Can we?

[Eleana]

I'm a newbie in Catholicism, so alot of things I really don't understand yet, although I do try to learn. I believe we can't really learn it all, sometimes it may even take us a lifetime to learn about our relationship with the Lord.

My godmother is started to be very impatient with me already. cos most of the times when I still dont understand certain things, I prefer not to do it just because everyone is doing it. For example, bowing to the mother mary status and pray. or when we enter a church, we go forward and bow before we go back to the bench. everyone did that. When i asked my godmother why and who are we bowing to, she dont even know. and many other things like pray rosary or writing penitance to mary. So for things like that where I dont have an understand, mostly I wont follow suit. is it wrong for me not to do things until i fully understand it?

 

[InnerPhyre]

Well the reason for genuflecting when you enter the church is to show reverance for Christ present in the tabernacle. I only bow before the tabernacle. I never bow to statues, so you're doing nothing wrong if you don't do that. *edit* We also bow as a sign of reverance before we receive the Eucharist, which is of course, Jesus's Body, Blood, Soul, and Divinity, so it is worthy of our worship and adoration.

 

[tionfyre]

In modern East-Asian culture, it is still standard to bow to someone you respect, to the elderly, to the great, and to strangers if you're doing any service for them. The list goes on and on.

I tend to keep that in mind when I do bow, genuflect, kneel, etc. They are signs I respect them, not just merely acknowledge that they exist.

Don't we bow at statues of former great kings/generals in respect?

Example:
You don't just stare at a picture of your deceased mother and walk away.
You say "hi"", bow, pause in memory of her.

Note - By mother in this sense, I talk not of Mary. Mary has never been deceased.

The way the Eastern Orthodox conduct their Mass has given me more appreciation for forms of showing respect, piety, and humility.

 

[InnerPhyre]

Good call. I guess I didn't take that into account in my first post......I used to bow to students in my martial arts classes. I suppose it all depends on what the intent is. Clearly I never worshipped my martial arts sensei.

 

[Magisterium]

I'm a newbie in Catholicism,...

... So for things like that where I dont have an understand, mostly I wont follow suit. is it wrong for me not to do things until i fully understand it?

In your case, I'd say that you are doing right by not blindly going through motions. The reasons for the various gestures, postures, and pratices within the mass and Catholicism as a whole are because the Church is one that includes the entire human being in worship.

That is to say, the church does not simply address the spirit, or just simply appeal to your mind or physical senses. The Catholic church is one that recognizes that we are composite beings of spirit and flesh. For this reason, our vision, hearing, smell, taste, and touch are all engaged in various ways as well as our hearts and minds in worship. (the catholic "smells and bells")

That said, it is cetainly a good idea to investigate the practices and their meanings before necessarilly taking part. However, you will be doing yourself a tremendous disservice to simply exclude yourself and never take the time and effort to learn them. Additionally, there are many aspects of our faith which we can never completely comprehend. These mysteries can however be embraced through faith which St. Paul calls "evidence for things not seen".

In closing, I encourage you to read and learn as much as you can about the things you don't understand. God will reward your faithful search. "seek and ye shall find" as our Lord promises. I also warn you against presumtuous skepticism. All to often, people see something and presume some meaning or understanding without really seeking the true reason or meaning. In this way, many incorrectly judge the nature of Catholic practices and miss out on important opportunities to grow spiritually.

Edit:
Additionally, bowing and certain other actions before statues are not directed at the statue itself! In these cases, the statue is merely a visual aid used to engage our physical sight and even touch in our prayer. By analogy, onemight kiss a photo of their spouse if away for a long time (such as in military service). This person is not in love with the photo itself, but merely expressing their love for the person in it. Such is the case with many such practices in the church. However, one is not required to participate if it will scandalize them. however, it needs to be understood that statues and icons are not worshipped for their own merit. They are empirical aids in prayer.