What about proskunesis - I do not know whether this dog-system
meant (in Byzantine times) to go down merely with the front paws,
or to roll entirely on ones back (with all four paws in the air.
But as a techinique - in spirit: the literal execution is apt to
excite alarm and despondency among the public in the vicinity -
it works extremely well with Ticket Collectors, Policemen, Tax
Inspectors, Safety Assesors and the Like - 'Oh, Officer! What
shall I do?'
On a higher note, Psalm 95(94): Let us bow and bend low before God:
let us kneel before him in worship . Used by monks every day (at
least until recently, when variant psalms have been used) as the
Invitatory. After a bit, someone would notice.
a.c.
>Patsloane wrote:
>> A conjecture on kneeling. It seems to me the early Christian
>> community was conscious of its Jewish roots, but also wanted to
>> differentiate itself from Judaism. Kneeling is an interesting
>> gesture for this purpose, because it does have OT precedents, yet
>> doesn't seem to play a major role in OT prayer.
>
>Isn't kneeling a common sign of _subservience_ in most ancient cultures?
>Captives and slaves kneel before their masters; common people before
>their rulers. Among animals, laying down is a way to yield to a dominant
>leader. I saw a tape of an experiment in which deliberately provoked
>arguments were instantly defused by one party suddenly laying down on
>the ground. In China, kow-towing was a ritualized way of begging for
>mercy, perhaps preserved in the modern custom of bowing.
>
>Kneeling to beg for mercy or show respect easily generalizes to worship.
>
>Chuck Blatchley
>
Anselm Cramer OSB
Monastery Librarian
Ampleforth Abbey, York
GB - YO6 4EN
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