Liturgical posture consultation response encouraging: Bishop

The consultation, launched in late 2025, invited discussion on whether the diocese should continue its long-standing practice of standing during the Eucharistic Prayer or move to the more common practice of kneeling.

Participants were encouraged to consider a range of factors, including the Church’s liturgical guidance in the General Instruction of the Roman Missal, the wishes of previous bishops and the current situation in their parish communities.

Parishes were asked to convene local gatherings to explore the issue as part of a synodal approach to listening and discernment. Submissions were invited from individuals and groups, with the process closing on Easter Sunday.

Speaking after the close of submissions, Bishop John Adams said the diocese had received more than 170 responses. He described the level of engagement as encouraging.

He stressed, however, that the volume and depth of feedback means that the next stage will not be hurried. “I’m certainly not going to rush the analysis of what people have had to say,” he said, adding that he plans to read every submission.

Bishop Adams indicated that any outcome would be communicated pastorally, describing it as not a “harsh decree”, but an articulation of where the diocese is heading now.

He also noted that discernment would not rest with him alone. One possibility raised was a further synodal-style process, involving a small group who would “get together and pray and think about it”, as part of reflecting on the themes emerging from the submissions.

A summary of the themes arising from the consultation is expected once the submissions have been fully reviewed. Further communication will outline any next steps and how any proposed direction would be implemented across the diocese.

FULL STORY

Next Steps in the Conversation on Liturgical Posture (Tūmanako/Catholic Diocese of Palmerston North)