Tradition and Treachery, by Anthony Esolen

By Anthony Esolen, Crisis Magazine, Dec. 27, 2024

Dr. Anthony Esolen is the author of 28 books on literature, culture, and the Christian life, whose most recent work is In the Beginning Was the Word: An Annotated Reading of the Prologue of John. He and his wife Debra also produce a new web magazine, Word and Song, devoted to reintroducing people to the good, the true, and the beautiful. He is a Distinguished Professor at Thales College

Kneeling is good for the soul. It lifts you up by making you, in stature, no more than a child.

The cardinal of Chicago, Blase Cupich, has issued a directive to demand that parishioners in the archdiocese not kneel to receive Holy Communion, on the grounds that doing so interrupts the flow of the procession and calls attention to the individual. Of course, kneeling at a Communion rail would not interrupt anything at all, or call attention to anyone at all; and it would provide in a most powerful and memorable way the experience of human community that is supposed to be, but never is, imparted by standing in line.

I have made the point many times before. When you are kneeling at the rail, you need not worry about stepping on someone’s shoes, or about getting out of the way fast enough. You can see other people receiving Communion as the priest makes his way toward you, people of all kinds. You may very well be kneeling beside a stranger; even, perhaps, beside someone you dislike. It is hard to keep enmity entirely frigid when that happens. …

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