Holding Hands During the Our Father
Some people would rather handle toxic waste with no gloves than hold hands during Mass. Usually this practice gets mentioned with the usual litany of complaints of liturgical innovations. But although no priest should insist or push this, I think this practice is different from other annoying things. I understand this hand holding started in Latin America where the people are warmer than up here. I first encountered this during my trip to San Antonio years ago at a Mass held in one of the missions. The custom there was to hold hands lightly but up in the air and sway back and forth while singing the Our Father. I did not feel self-conscious at all, and it was not at all something that felt pushed on the congregation by some modernist Amchurch person. It felt like I was simply doing what seemed natural in the warm, Latino culture while at Mass. Some families hold hands in our parish, but it is not too common. In a few parishes I have been to many join hands, and I don’t mind this. There are real abuses occurring at Mass that should be the focus of complaints before the hand holding.