Special note should also be made concerning the gesture for the Our Father. Only the priest is given the instruction to "extend" his hands. Neither the deacon nor the lay faithful are instructed to do this. No gesture is prescribed for the lay faithful in the Roman Missal ; nor the General Instruction of the Roman Missal , therefore the extending or holding of hands by the faithful should not be performed.

"Bishop Foys’ purpose [in issuing the decree] was to reiterate the directives guiding the celebration of the Mass as specified by the Second Vatican Council and related Vatican documents, fulfilling his role as chief teacher of the diocese; he did so as the new translation of the Roman Missal was first used in the diocese and in the United States last weekend. The decree concerned the proper texts of Mass prayers; liturgical music; gestures for priests, deacons, religious and lay faithful; the location of the choir and other musicians; and prayerful silence before and after Mass.”

As if the new translation wasn't tough enough, a bishop in Kentucky is now trying to kill the spirit of Vatican II!!!Bishop Roger Foys is telling parishioners to stop holding hands during the Our Father. WCPO reports that Bishop Foys wrote:Diocesan spokesman Tim Fitzgerald said:To be honest, I don't see this as much as I used to. I never really understood why it was done in the first place but it always smelled a little hippie to me so I stayed away from it.CMR kudos to Bishop Foys.