Worship Posture

I have been thinking about the various body postures we use in worship: sitting, standing, kneeling, and occasionally lying prostrate. The old instruction said, "Stand for praise, kneel for prayer, and sit for instruction." Lying prostrate is rarely used, and then usually in specific instances to indicate total submission to God. It might be used by catechumens, penitents, and ordinands. I am mostly concerned here with the posture of standing in worship and why it is (or should be) used.

As a Methodist preacher's kid, I wondered why we had to stand so often and for so long in worship. Over the years I have become accustomed to standing in worship and even prefer it. I pose the question, "Should we stand for the long Great Thanksgiving Communion prayer?" I am aware that it is not a universal custom to do so among denominations and even among United Methodists. I've been told that it is customary in African American congregations to remain seated during The Great Thanksgiving, and I have been in other United Methodist congregations where this was also the case. There is no rubric to stand at this point in the liturgy in our hymnal, but The Book of Worship (page 28) says, "The Pastor stands behind the Lord's table, the people also standing." Should the congregation stand or sit during the liturgy?

Consider why we stand on certain occasions:

  1. Standing implies an attitude of respect. Men will often stand when a woman joins the group. Congress stands when the President of the United States joins the Congress for the State of the Union address.
  2. Standing implies an expectation of what will follow, as when the crowd stands at a baseball game when Barry Bonds comes to bat, or when people stand at a horse race just before "And they're off!"
  3. Standing implies an attitude of reverence and honor, as standing for the national anthem or pledge of allegiance, the entrance of the bride at her wedding, or when a flag-draped coffin passes in a military cortege.
  4. Standing also implies a sense of attentiveness, alertness, and readiness to begin, as when a politician gathers a group of supporters around for a pep talk or rally, or a football quarterback calls the next play in a huddle.

We stand at different times in worship: the call to worship, choral and congregational singing, prayers, Psalm or responsive reading, the exchange of peace, Doxology and Gloria Patri, and benediction. Some congregations stand for the reading of the gospel lesson. I suggest that this has more to do with the four reasons given above than it does with simply giving the people an opportunity to stretch their legs. I suggest also that the Book of Worship's call for the people to be "standing also" (page 28) during the Great Thanksgiving is for these same reasons. I do not mean to imply that congregations who sit during The Great Thanksgiving (and certainly those not physically able to stand) do not share these attitudes, only that historically and often culturally, these attitudes have traditionally been reflected from a standing posture. We have even recognized this standing posture in the hymns and songs we sing in worship:

  • "Rise to Greet the Sun"
  • "Rise Up, O Men of God"
  • "Rise, Shine, You People"
  • "Stand By Me"
  • "Stand Up and Bless the Lord"
  • "Stand Up, Stand Up for Jesus"
  • "Standing in the Need of Prayer"
  • "Standing on the Promises"

Although there are Scriptures that refer to other postures, here are some that refer to standing for worship and prayer: Nehemiah 8:5; 1 Samuel 1:26; Luke 18:11-13; Mark 11:25.

To think about:

  • Is posture in worship important or not?
  • How accurate is the saying, "Stand for praise, kneel for prayer, sit for instruction"?
  • What is your congregation's practice, and are the people aware of why they do it that way?
  • If your congregation remains seated during the Great Thanksgiving, is there a reason why?
  • What is your personal preference? conviction? Are your preferences/convictions the same or different from those of the congregation?

You may also want to see Dan Benedict's article,"Standing During the Great Thanksgiving."

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