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Author Topic: Urgent answers needed!!! TLM priest finger placement  (Read 6722 times)

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Offline cathsurgeon

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Urgent answers needed!!! TLM priest finger placement
« on: January 06, 2024, 09:56:42 PM »
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    He places his joined hands on the edge of the altar, so that only the tips of the small fingers touch the front of it, and silently prays that, by the merits of the Saints whose relics are in the altar, and of all the Saints, God may pardon all his sins. At the words quorum relíquiæ hic sunt (whose relics are here), he spreads his hands and kisses the altar.
    Paging Lad or any other former seminarians. Anyone know what is the symbolism of the bolded part? Why can't the whole of the hands joint together rest on the mensa of the altar? 
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    Offline Quo vadis Domine

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    Re: Urgent answers needed!!! TLM priest finger placement
    « Reply #1 on: January 07, 2024, 06:24:25 AM »
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    • Why is this so “urgent”?
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    Offline 2Vermont

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    Re: Urgent answers needed!!! TLM priest finger placement
    « Reply #2 on: January 07, 2024, 06:51:59 AM »
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    • Quote from: Quo vadis Domine on January 07, 2024, 06:24:25 AM
    Why is this so “urgent”?
    That was exactly my thought.
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    Offline Miseremini

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    Re: Urgent answers needed!!! TLM priest finger placement
    « Reply #3 on: February 20, 2024, 03:11:33 PM »
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    • Quote from: Quo vadis Domine on January 07, 2024, 06:24:25 AM
    Why is this so “urgent”?
    Quote from: 2Vermont on January 07, 2024, 06:51:59 AM
    That was exactly my thought.
    Maybe some retard was spreading detrimental comments about the priest in his chapel and the OP wanted a good concrete response quickly...maybe several other reasons... was it necessary to be so flip?
    The OP hasn't posted since.  Good way to spread our welcome to newbies....NOT.
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    Offline Yeti

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    Re: Urgent answers needed!!! TLM priest finger placement
    « Reply #4 on: February 20, 2024, 03:31:15 PM »
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    • From Fr. Nicholas Gihr's book, page 527 (the best place to look stuff like this up). It doesn't appear to have a symbolism related to the pinky finger, but is simply the priest bowing down to express humility.
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    Offline 2Vermont

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    Re: Urgent answers needed!!! TLM priest finger placement
    « Reply #5 on: February 20, 2024, 04:22:48 PM »
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    • Quote from: Miseremini on February 20, 2024, 03:11:33 PM
    Maybe some retard was spreading detrimental comments about the priest in his chapel and the OP wanted a good concrete response quickly...maybe several other reasons... was it necessary to be so flip?
    The OP hasn't posted since.  Good way to spread our welcome to newbies....NOT.
    Maybe we were just asking a question.

    FYI, he wasn't a "newbie".  He created his account back in July, and he's only posted 3 times since then.  How do you know we're the reason why he hasn't posted again? 

    Why the need to bump this weeks-old thread just to rebuke us?
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    Offline Ladislaus

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    Re: Urgent answers needed!!! TLM priest finger placement
    « Reply #6 on: February 20, 2024, 04:50:39 PM »
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    • He mentioned me by name here, though I'm not a Liturgical expert.  Perhaps Elwin could chime in.

    I would guess that the pinky fingers are just the initial contact where the priest is just barely entering the space of the altar, effectively asking permission to enter the "Holy of Holies", admitting that he is unworthy to enter but then entering while relying upon the relics/merits of the martyr.  Just my guess that it's something like that, where the tips of the pinkies just represent the minimal entry required to make the request to enter.

    So the priest starts at the foot of the altar, after confession and absolution can climb the steps, and then admits his lack of merits to enter the inner altar, the Holy of Holies, finally relying upon the merits of the martyr to enter.
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    Offline Motorede

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    Re: Urgent answers needed!!! TLM priest finger placement
    « Reply #7 on: February 20, 2024, 05:05:15 PM »
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    • Quote from: cathsurgeon on January 06, 2024, 09:56:42 PM
    Paging Lad or any other former seminarians. Anyone know what is the symbolism of the bolded part? Why can't the whole of the hands joint together rest on the mensa of the altar?

    My thoughts: The priest isn't supposed to place/rest his hands on the corporal until after the consecration. After that he is told not to place them on the altar cloth until after the ablutions. After which the corporal is folded and placed in the burse. But when he ascends to the altar the corporal is already displayed, so when he arrives at both altar and corporal to finish the prayer as mentioned above he could keep his hands folded, I suppose, or maybe down at his sides, I mean the hands have to go somewhere at this point, but instead,  the rubrics tell him to place the tips of his fingers on the edge of the altar, most likely because he is referencing the altar stone in this prayer and the altar stone is usually positioned at that part of the edge of the altar while at the same time respecting the rubric not to touch the corporal with his hands yet. But I could be way out in space here. Surely there are books written over the centuries to explain this. And, yes, Father Gihr is a good source to go by.
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    Offline TKGS

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    Re: Urgent answers needed!!! TLM priest finger placement
    « Reply #8 on: February 20, 2024, 05:57:31 PM »
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    • Quote from: Quo vadis Domine on January 07, 2024, 06:24:25 AM
    Why is this so “urgent”?
    His screen name is cathsurgeon.  Maybe he's a hand surgeon and is scheduled to operate on a priest's fingers very soon and needs the information quickly.  Unfortunately, the priest is already under anesthesia and can't answer the question.  :cowboy:
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    Offline Yeti

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    Re: Urgent answers needed!!! TLM priest finger placement
    « Reply #9 on: February 20, 2024, 06:07:42 PM »
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    • Quote from: TKGS on February 20, 2024, 05:57:31 PM
    His screen name is cathsurgeon.  Maybe he's a hand surgeon and is scheduled to operate on a priest's fingers very soon and needs the information quickly.  Unfortunately, the priest is already under anesthesia and can't answer the question.  :cowboy:
    .


    :laugh1:

    You get bonus points for creativity!
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