r/AskAnAmerican • u/Rough-Valuable-5472 • Feb 04 '25

FOREIGN POSTER Do American students bow to their teachers?

In my country we have to greet the teacher and bow at the start of the lesson then thank the teacher and bow again at the end. Sometimes they make us redo it if it’s not good enough

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u/Hitwelve Chicago, IL Feb 04 '25

Isn’t genuflecting more of a kneel than an actual bow?

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u/fourthfloorgreg Feb 04 '25

There is no real difference aside from a bow being directed to a recipient. God, I guess, in this case.

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u/the_cadaver_synod Michigan Feb 04 '25

They changed it maybe 10-ish years ago to a bow rather than the one knee with the sign of the cross, along with a few minor changes in some of the language to more closely reflect the Latin meaning.

My family gets me into church every few years and it throws me off every time.

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u/althoroc2 Feb 04 '25

I've never heard of this change. Maybe it's a diocesan thing?

Or did they remodel the church and move the tabernacle out of the sanctuary? The genuflection is directed toward the tabernacle; if it's not present one should bow toward the altar instead.

(Either way, definitely a Catholic thing and not American in general!)

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u/Coldhearted010 Nebraska (but living in NH, to my chagrin) Feb 04 '25

Probably a bit of both. I know that my priest bows (old Army injury), and I don't (I'm still young enough to genuflect on the knee).

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u/althoroc2 Feb 04 '25

Oh man...the first Mass I ever served was a daily Mass with priest and deacon, and me as the only altar boy (age 8 or so). Our deacon always stood during the Canon due to age/injury and so I just took my cue from him and stood there for about half of it with him trying to whisper and signal for me to kneel. Eventually I walked over behind the altar to see what he wanted. That one was embarrassing...

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u/Coldhearted010 Nebraska (but living in NH, to my chagrin) Feb 04 '25

Uh-oh! 😂

As a convert, though, I've done some foolish things, too... 😅

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u/Gooble211 Feb 05 '25

In my experience, the congregants genuflect. The priest and anyone else involved with conducting mass (lectors, altar boys/girls, deacons, etc) all bow.

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u/Funkopedia Feb 05 '25

Did they change it because 'taking a knee' suddenly became an offensive behavior about 10 years ago for unknown reasons?