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ANNVER - Why in the lds church, does Priesthood holder voicing the Priesthood ordinance need to stand behind the person receiving eg, set apart for callings, blessings for the sick(if physically able) etc, it is never voiced facing the person receiving, are there church doctrine towards this? whats the symbolism?
JOEL - No doctrinal or symbolic reason for it that I know of; just a matter of comfort, convenience, and tradition. If the person voicing the ordinance was facing the person that is sitting, his belly would be in the recipient's face, and anyone watching the ordinance would not be able to see the recipient. Also if standing in front of the recipient the giver of the ordinance would have to bend over the recipient's knees and stretch out both his arms to reach the head; not so if he is standing behind the sitting person. And of course if the recipient is lying in a bed you couldn't stand behind him anyway.
I suppose if you wanted to assign some sort of symbolic meaning, the act of standing behind someone means that you support and sustain that person.
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