This past World Youth Day, I had a group of approximately 50 young people with me in Madrid. We walked in late on Tuesday morning to catch catechesis and Mass with Archbishop Charles Chaput of Philadephia. The archbishop did a wonderful job with his presentation and answering questions from the English speaking pilgrims in attendance. As the Archbishop retreated to the back of the stage to prepare for Mass, the worship band led us in some praise and worship music to prepare our hearts.
The music started, “I’m trading my sorrows, I’m trading my sickness…. Yes, Lord. Yes, Lord, Yes, Yes Lord.” If you have been working in youth ministry for a while this song is not unfamiliar to you. It is usually accompanied by a series of hand motions using your fingers and thumbs. Teens all over the stadium began doing the hand motions that the worship leaders taught. I threw up in my mouth a little bit . . .
Hand Motion Sickness
I have hand motion sickness and I don’t think I am the only one. When the praise and worship song starts, I have tried to follow. I’ve moved my fingers, flapped my arms, waved my hands over my head, clapped in the shape of the cross and I once did the hokey pokey. Putting hand motions to songs is nothing new in youth ministry and it can be a worthwhile tool to teach youth to engage and participate.
However, I quickly noticed something about hand motions during praise and worship music – it’s not prayer. Because it is not prayer, I have stopped doing hand motions and no longer encourage my teens to participate. In fact, the sight of hand motions makes me just a little bit sick.
I know there are many youth ministers who would strongly disagree – but the challenge of these blogs is to go deeper, and to go deeper means we need to evaluate if what we are teaching is working. Prayer is supposed to bring us into intimate relationship with God. It is supposed to bring us to encounter Him and through the practice of prayer, our heart converts.
Praise and Worship
What is praise? What is its intention? The Catechism of the Catholic Church states that the prayer of praise, “is a form of prayer which recognizes most immediately that God is God. It lauds God for his own sake and gives him glory, quite beyond what He does, but simply because HE IS.” (CCC 2639).
I believe – and the Tradition of the Church would teach us – that the prayer of praise is one of the most foundational prayers to learn when growing in deeper relationship with Christ. It teaches us humility by teaching us to give God the glory. St. Ignatius Loyola – in his “First Principle and Foundation”- goes so far as to say that man, “is created for the praise, reverence and service of God and by this means to save his soul.”
Praise is so important, that he says that man is created for it and he obtains the salvation of his soul from it. When St. John had a vision of Heaven, he saw choirs of angels never ceasing to praise God by singing, “holy, holy, holy is the Lord God Almighty.” (Revelation 4:8).
We could go on and on with examples of the prayer of praise in the Scriptures and Tradition – whether it is Job in his tragedy, Mary’s Magnificat, Zechariah’s Canticle, etc. All of these prayers were not written, but rather expressed out of the heart with humility. Teaching teens to praise is as important as teaching any other form of prayer, because it is what we were created by God to do.
Praying With Our Body
Don’t get me wrong, Catholics pray with their body. We lie prostrate, we kneel, we sit, and we fold our hands in a posture of prayer. Sometimes we even extend our hands over our head in an open posture of worship.
All of these postures, even the hands over the head, are rooted in Scripture and the Tradition of the Church. They reflect the interior disposition of the soul and it’s receptivity to Christ. So what about hand motions? Why do I say it is not prayer?
When I was doing hand motions, the first thing I noticed is that my attention was not on Christ and giving Him glory, but rather on myself – what I was doing and what the group was collectively doing. I wouldn’t criticize hand motions if I thought they were generally benign, however it would seem that hand motions completes the opposite objective that praise is supposed to accomplish.
While there are many youth leaders that would disagree, some Catholic worship leaders have been calling attention to this for years. I remember one instance in particular where popular Catholic worship leader – Matt Maher – caused a minor twitter war in 2009 when he declared war on the “cross clap” following NCYC.
The criticism remained the same. He questioned whether we understand why we are doing it, whether it serves any purpose in prayer and he basically said that it can distract us from union with Christ. People focus on their motions rather than entering into a song and declaring, perhaps for the first time in their life, “God, your grace is enough for me.” If we wish to take teens into deeper relationships with Christ, learning to pray is vital for ongoing conversion and we need to look deeper and be more intentional about what we model and what we teach.
Discipleship
My final blog of the series will address the how we catechize and purify the youth. As youth ministers, Christ provided us the best model for training youth and preparing them for the mission of the Church. More and more, I believe that the Catholic youth ministry is moving to discipleship – intentionally focusing on individual youth and their private journey with Christ.
Hey Everett,
Great post! Really appreciate your honesty. I’d like to re-post this on my blog, “The Catholic Worship Blog” (http://catholic-worship.com) with your permission. Please e-mail me at catholicworship@gmail.com if that’s ok.
I agree that handmotions may be frustrating, however, my question would be – can they still serve a legitimate purpose in Youth Ministry? As much as I share your concerns and critiques re: hand motions, I would be wary of totally eliminating hand motions from youth ministry.
I believe they can serve as ice breakers, and even as legitiate prayers IN SO FAR as the individual connects the words to the motions – like a dancer. I totally concede that this may be the exception rather than the rule, however, I think it merits more discussion and prayer from youth ministers and music ministers – i.e. When would hand motions be appropriate?
Thanks again for this great post, God bless!
While I whole heartedly agree with the many of the points, I just want to be sure that we don’t throw out the baby with the bath water. Yes prayer and praise should always be focused on God, and No I would never encourage hand motions during adoration, but there is something to be said about expressing our Joy in the Lord trough actions that more than words.
In the 13 of leading P&W I’ve seen just about everything… In that time I’ve traveled extensively doing missionary work, and one thing that I learned in Latin America, and the Caribbean is to loosen up a little… See in those parts of the world people tend to have more of a carefree attitude towards life and praising God… Brings to mind dancing before the Arc like King David once did… Granted our Anglo/protestant cultural background (Our churches look like colonial halls, in Mexico our Lady of Guadalupe is in every front lawn, and in Thailand everyone has a statue of Buda by their door, yes our early colonial fathers have more of a psychological impact on our culture and us that we know or care to admit) keeps us from breaking out into full clapping and dancing, but drawing from the same page that our church does for ‘kneeling’ and ‘standing’ our body postures as they impact our predisposition for prayer, even the degree of tensions in our body can predispose us to going deeper or not in our prayer.
Time and time again it has been my experience that if we enter in with our bodies, maybe clap a little, or do a hand motion or two, then we can go deeper in the quiet moment, it’s like climbing up to the next diving board, the higher you go the deeper you go… Now let me clarify that there is a right place a right time, and that you should never force anyone to do anything against their will, especially teens, and especially prayer… quickest way to lose them… Age of the congregation also plays a factor, But who hear has not had an unending dance party on a Saturday night towards the end of long retreat day where the kids have encountered the Lord in earnest? The soul sometimes can’t help but express it ‘self through the body in a leap of joy, and since every fiver of our being belongs to Him, why should not we praise Him with everything we are? Again I am not talking about the one person dancing or clapping incessantly (drawing attention to themselves) while the moment calls for quiet prayer, or everyone is doing something else, but I don’t think it is up to us pass blanket judgment on what is prayer and what is not.
Well put Kevin. I agree, a time and place for each expression of worship to the Lord. PTL!
Great article!
I really appreciate your honesty and fair critique of this “phenomena” in Catholic Youth & Music Ministry. While I agree whole-heartedly with your assesment of the situation and your critique thereof, I still have to wonder, “Is there still an appropriate place/use for hand motions in ministry?”
One of my passions is discussing Catholic music ministry, and as of late I’ve been sharing with others the distinction between the different worship “contexts” in the life of the Church: liturgy, para-liturgy (adoration), and devotion. I think hand motions may have place in the devotional life of the Church insofar as they are used by an invidiual (or group) as an outward expression of prayer. In otherwords, SOME hand motions may act like a dancer’s praise to God – and that would be a good thing. I agree this is probably the exception rather than the rule – but my point remains that it may still be a valid form of prayer.
Also, in a youth ministry setting, hand motions may be a terrific icebreaker – which I’m sure you agree, since the goal here is no longer primarily a “prayer” but rather to encourage youth to open up.
Anyways, I appreciate the post, and would love to discuss it more. Thanks Everett, and God bless!
-Tom http://www.catholic-worhsip.com
We can remove this duplicate post – I didn’t realize that comments were moderated and so I posted again…sorry all!
Everett, thank you for posting this, I couldn’t agree more. While I do think you’re right in saying that some youth ministers might disagree with this, I think your intention is spot on. Not all teens are the same in their preference of worship. I think showing them alternative forms of prayer from the “standard norm” for youth settings would benefit a ministry setting tremendously and would show teens that there is no particular “mold” for praising God.
Agreed!
Everett– I loved this article! I too get hand motion sickness. Also, I so needed to read the last line, “If we wish to take teens into deeper relationships with Christ, learning to pray is vital for ongoing conversion and we need to look deeper and be more intentional about what we model and what we teach.” It is such an important reminder of why we do what we do. It has be to modeled well if we are to teach them well. They do what they see, not just what they hear! Keep the faith brother. Thanks for sharing.
Thank you! Thank you! Thank you! I thought I was the only one. It drives me nuts.
For 34 years of my life I never fully understood the concept of hand motions in church songs, to this day I still don’t. But one hand motion I have fully come to embrace, that hand motion is the raising of the hands high above our heads in prayerful song. I became a father almost three years ago, since then I come home from work every day and when I walk through the doors they dropped whatever it is that they are playing with, breaking or soaking with drool and come running to me with arms held high. One in the car, I listen to Christian music non-stop, I heard a song and started to raise my hands a little bit and realized what I was doing, I was running to my Father, just like my daughters run to me every day. There is joy in a Fathers embrace, a comfort that only he can give. Granted you are standing there singing your heart out you lift your hands to the Father because you know it is only Him who can give you what you truly need. Sometimes, being a youth minister I just want to show the youth this concept, run to the one with running towards you with arms held high and let him pick you up and embrace you and comfort your wounds and satisfy your needs.
As youth ministers I think it is very important for us to reflect that “catholic” aka universal aspect of our faith. There are as many spiritualities in our church as there are personalities, each, there for us to best find the one that fits who we are, Franciscans, Dominicans, contemplatives, the list goes on… We must be aware that the same diversity exists in every one of our youth groups and while our presentation of a youth night and how we run things reflects to an extent who we are and our training, we must not forget that the youth in our groups are not mini-me’s, we have to be open to exposing them to many spiritualities and experiences that will fit them and get them closer to God.
While we must hold fast to the truths in our faith, I think we need to be open to the different styles in which Kids can express themselves in prayer and experience God. As I reflect on the number of kids that have passed through the youth ministry programs I have been a part of, I can honestly say that those kids who participated in hand motions where as a whole more open and in the end, went deeper and still are, deeply involved in their faith and spiritual life. That being said, there are plenty of kids who did not participate in hand motions who are still deeply involved in their faith, I was one of those kids that hated anything having to do with hand motions and to this day find it difficult to participate in them. But I do see their benefit and I do see that it is up to me to get over myself, and do what is right for the kids.
If the point of this blog is to say, ‘make sure you move past hand motions into a deeper relationship with God’ as I believe the author intended, then YES that is the point, to move past an experiential, emotional place, into a deeper relationship that will get you through the ‘dark night’… But that does not in any way negate that there is a time and a place and purpose to hand motions (nor does it say that they are evil and should be banned from catholic youth ministry). I would actually dare say that a person who sees the good in, and participates with the same vigor in rejoicing with their bodies, as they do in quiet meditation and passive prayer, is healthier in their relationship with God, than someone who rejects either. To reject the notion of hand motions (in their appropriate place) is just as bad as to go only as shallow as a feel good hand motion religion.
Thank you all for your replies. It has brought good discussion on the subject. A couple of things were brought up that should probably be addressed:
1. This blog was primarily written for a USA audience. There are cultural things to consider when thinking of dance and celebration in worship. In Africa or parts of Central America, dance and joyful expressions are more appropriate as it is part of the culture. It represents inculturation and the universality of the Church.
2. I have seen hand motions work well to get youth participate. I have used them very, very sparingly with middle school youth to get them engaged in a song prior to entering into worship. It can be useful and fruitful in some settings.
My critique of hand motions is more about the gestures and motions that I see at conferences and rallies from other youth groups. It would be one thing if this was a different spirituality like Franciscan, Ignatian, Dominican or even a charimatic spirituality. All lead to Christ. But these gestures and movements are not rooted in any spirituality. In fact, as I mentioned before, it really isn’t prayer at all. I know there are a lot of youth ministers that think they are fruitful, but I question the use of hand motions as if to say, “If we didn’t do them, would we really miss anything?” If the goal is to get teenagers to worship God, why not just skip straight to worship instead of using some of these silly bridges? I am sure there are many youth ministers who could speak about how hand motions helped teens in their groups. I grew up in the TEC movement, which significantly helped my relationship with Jesus Christ. TEC really helped me in my faith, but I am really critical of the movement today. While I benefited from the movement, I can look back on the methods they employed to teach the faith and say, “that was emotionally promiscuos, that wasn’t necessary, that time in the retreat weekend is a method that is really outdated.” Sometimes, evaluation of our ministry isn’t just about asking, “is it working?” Sometimes we need to ask, “can we do it better?” For me, I don’t see hand motions as a necessary component to youth ministry anymore. I actually think that teens benefit more from jumping right into praise and worship without the crutch. Just my opinion, but I think there are many who feel the same way.
As far as creating a little “mini-me”, I will address that in my next blog on discipleship.
Everett,
I’m one of those youth ministers. There I said it. I like the motions at rallies and on bus trips, I like them before we begin Mass in the Life Teen Room.
I would whole heartily agree it isn’t prayer. The mistake YM’s would make is thinking that it is.
In our ministry I find myself often encountering teens who have never prayed, never been to church, and the entire Jesus thing is new to them. If their experience with us was only goofy hand motions I would say we had done them a disservice. But the motions serve many purposes –
1) It makes a guest or new person feel included when they can quickly jump in a feel like a part of the group.
2) It wakes up their brains, it literally gets blood moving into their brain so they can truly hear and receive.
3) Many teens are kinetic learners and if they have used muscles in coordination with lyrics they will recall the words with greater ease. As lyrics are often scriptural, they are learning scripture without even knowing it.
4) It is a tremendous ice breaker to new people to see their peers, adults, everyone willing to be a fool for Christ – being silly, dancing and allowing others to see them vulnerable. Being vulnerable in this way with teens builds trust, and allows them to be vulnerable with you.
5) It is a door, teens have so many walls and any door way that opens their heart to Christ can and should be accessed.
6) Hand motions were never meant to be the “end all-be all.” If it’s all a YM has in their tool bag, they are using them as a crutch. They are ice breakers, not prayers maybe that’s the way we need to look at them?
Blessings and thanks for the thought provoking blog
Robin McCarty
Youth Minister
St. Mary’s Edwardsville, IL
Life Teen / Edge
I am so glad to read your thoughts! As a youth minister and recent Catholic convert I often joke that the 2 things Catholic Youth ministry have mastered are group t-shirts and hand motions to every song ever written:) I think the hand motions are often fun during the more upbeat praise songs and its always cool to see thousands of youth united together.
My concern has been during the slower, more prayerful times of worship, that the hand motions can become a distraction to others when its time to get still before the Lord.
There is a time for everything. A time to add hand motions and a time to prayer. It’s funny that you mentioned the threw up in your mouth, because it does frustrate me and upset me too, I’ve never gagged or threw up:)
Thanks for sharing!