Ann Landers Can’t Compete with Fr. Rutler

I’m a big fan of Fr. George Rutler, so when I came across an article titled, “Dear Father Rutler,”...well...how could I resist. I’m glad I didn’t try. I’ll just give you his first piece of advice to tempt you. You can find more at the Catholic Herald (UK):

Dear Father Rutler,

My wife keeps trying to hold my hand during the Our Father. I’m sure it’s very sweet, but I find it annoying. Would it be un-Christian to ask her to stop? Is there a delicate way of doing so?
Paul C. from Salem, OR 

Spouses may hold hands anytime. The real problem is what seems to be the latest fad of groups joining hands during the Our Father. Blame that on various liturgists who would remedy the failure of some forms of prayer to be real worship by inventing gimmicks. They stripped altars, then gave us pianos and guitars, felt banners, balloons, clowns, sand in place of Holy Water during Lent, baptismal fonts that look like latrines, scary Big Puppets, and semi-Vestals dancing with bowls of incense. As the Holy Spirit shines like a dove, uncontrolled liturgists irritate like mosquitoes.

There is some official ambiguity about prescribing or proscribing the lifting up of hands in the “orans” position by individuals, although it creates an imbalance in the flow of the Eucharistic liturgy. But congregants cozily joining hands suburbanise the City of God. The Cross is not a maypole, and mature adults do not do daisy chains. Nor do soldiers in the Church Militant hold hands as they go into battle.