Kneeling and Genuflecting

Two Catholic traditions dealing with knees come to us from two kings, one in the Old Testament, and one in the New. We receive the tradition of praying on our knees from King Solomon: “…he rose from before the altar of the Lord: for he had fixed both knees on the ground…” (3 Kings 8:54). Other biblical references for kneeling are: 2 Paralipomenon 6:13, Daniel 6:10, St. Luke 22:41, Acts of the Apostles 9:40.

The custom of genuflecting (literally, in Latin, “bending the knee”) for the Incarnation (“…and the Word was made Flesh…”) in the Creed, was begun by Saint Louis IX, King of France, who knelt out of devotion when he heard the words sung at Mass one day. This is something of a holy mirror of the secular custom of standing for the “Hallelujah Chorus” in Handel’s Messiah. (King George II was so stirred during the performance that he rose to his feet in excitement. When the king stands, everybody stands, even during a concert.) Similarly, thanks to Louis’ piety, and the French respect for their monarch, the King of Kings is saluted with a genuflection every time his Holy Incarnation is recalled in the Credo of the Roman Rite.