Entering

1. Entering A Brief Overview of the History of The Book of Common Prayer

2. Introduction • “The Book of Common Prayer (BCP) is not a prayer book in the sense of a collection of separate prayers. It is more like a playbook, the script actors use for performing a play. In this case, the acts to be performed are acts of worship, religious exercises in which prayers are important components, but not the only ones.

3. Introduction • The players or participants must know what to do and how to follow along and the texts in the BCP make that possible. Consequently, worshiping with the BCP conforms to a set of patterns.”

4. Origins • A. Missal • a) Pre-reformation book for Mass • b) Convenient for priest- large churches • c) Priest alone, enabled him to celebrate the Mass on his own B. The Breviary - book of daily services C. The Missal – book for Holy Communion D. The Ritual – book of special offices E. The Pontifical – book of offices only used by Bishops F. An extra-- The Pica(Pie) – an extra directory of instructions for the saying of services and for helping sacristans and others involved in preparation

5. Origins Cont’d. • G. Daily Prayers • a) Rule of St. Benedict from 6th century, originally by Benedict of Nursia, taken from John Cassian • b) of all the religious orders, Benedictines were probably the most influential in England • c) divine office was the official set of prayers from the Roman Catholic Church from Latin officum divinum meaning divine service or duty • d) daily offices were offered in a way that echoed the spirit of the Rule, with Lauds and Vespers as the main services, between which were Terce, Sext and None, begun with Prime and ending with Compline. • e) at the eve of the Reformation, the practice of reciting the daily offices in two main blocks, morning and evening, had become the norm.

6. Purposes of the BCP • Original motivations were: • A) Doctrinal- to embody liturgy that put Reformation teaching into praying words • B) Social-to signal and spread the use of the vernacular • C) Liturgical- to bring together the main services of the reformed Church of England and put them in direct contact with clergy and laity

7. Gutenberg Press • The invention of moveable type and efficient printing presses greatly impacted the Reformation as a whole. Gutenberg’s genius was to produce each individual letter as a single piece of moveable metal type. Composed into a page, the words were locked into forms and inked. The image was transferred to paper by one firm imprint from Gutenberg’s press. This process was a tremendous improvement over traditional methods, and by 1500, an estimated 1,100 printing shops were operating in 240 European towns. All types of manuscripts were produced, including vernacular publications, such as the BCP.

8. Thomas Cranmer and BCP • A. Background and Bio • a) born in 1489 • b) studied at Jesus College Cambridge • c) ordained in 1520, Doctor of Divinity, 1526, conservative at the time, no reformation sympathies • d) by 1527, involved in diplomatic business • e) among 1st theologians involved in negotiations for divorce of Henry VIII from Catherine of Aragon • g)1st published English work backed Henry’s case • g) 1532 visited Nuremberg and saw Lutheran reformation; secretly married niece of a reformer; illegal act for English Priest and 1st evidence of his sympathy with the reformation • h) Archbiship of Canterbury in 1533 and served until 1556. Became involved with Thomas Cromwell, King’s Vice Regent, in removing papal supremacy in England and in the subsequent reform of the church

9. Thomas Cranmer Cont’d. • B. Cranmer’s Religion • a) Henry demanded subservice, so Cranmer’s desire for reform was constrained by royal policy • b) religious teaching determined by series of doctrinal statements or sets of articles • c) Ten Articles of 1536 link with Lutheran doctrine, but many differences were glossed over • d) June 1539 reform door slammed shut with the Six Articles which affirmed traditional teachings…Cromwell executed and Cranmer isolated. • e) 1543 King’s book replaced all others as the benchmark of doctrine in England.

10. The Reformation • A. Edward VI - Son of Henry VIII and Jane Seymour, and Henry’s only male issue • a) accession of Edward VI in January 1547 allowed English reformers to move forward • B) Cranmer secured abolition of various ceremonies and customs as superstitious. • c) in 1548, Order of the Communion consisting of exhortations, confession, and absolution and what would come to be known as the Comfortable Words and the Prayer of Humble Access, along with a formula to be used at the administration of communion, i.e. lay people were to receive consecrated bread and wine, emerged

11. The Reformation Cont’d. • d) Cranmer and his colleagues were at work drafting the 1st complete English Prayer Book • e) Parliament passed the new Prayer Book on Jan 21 and it was the text required to be in use by Whitsunday , or June 9, 1549 • f) on April 14, 1552, Parliament passed the 2nd revised Prayer Book and ordered its use begin on November 1st • g) both Cranmer’s prayer books retained a large amount of material from the traditional services and gave the impression of a conservative reform

12. The Monarchy • B. Mary Tudor - daughter of Henry VIII and Catherine of Aragon, staunchly Roman Catholic • a) tried to restore English church to the state in which it had been in 1530 prior to her father’s break with Rome and her brother’s establishment of a Protestant faith • b) impossible task as religious orders and places of worship had been destroyed and church lands were now in lay ownership

13. The Monarchy Cont’d. • Elizabeth I - daughter of Henry VIII and Anne Boleyn • a) brought up in Protestant household of her stepmother Catherine Parr • b) halted and dismantled Mary’s Catholic reformation within 6 months of ascending to the throne • c) in matters of religion, Elizabeth was a Protestant and would not tolerate a church independent from the state or under Roman pontiff • d) emergence of the 1559 BCP bound to the political maneuvers of the 1st months of her reign • e) Elizabeth and her advisors pursued reform in the church by proceeding through the legal system • f) Elizabeth died in 1603

14. The Monarchy Cont’d. • James VI of Scotland became King James I of England • a) ascended to the throne with the hope of many that he would replace the BCP since Scotland was Presbyterian in polity • b) was immediately presented with the Millenary Petition, requesting reform of the church and liturgy • c) James referred these matters to the Hampton Court conference of 1604 • d) BCP of 1604 resulted and changes made were moderate • e) Bishop Lancelot Andrewes and his colleagues began distancing themselves from continental Reformed theology • f) this group of divines, known as the Durham House group preferred the authority of the ancient church fathers to the Reformation, and looked more to the BCP of 1549 for inspiration

15. The Monarchy Cont’d. • Charles I – James’ son • a) ascended the throne upon his father’s death • b) Durham House group, including William Laud, a later AB of Canterbury, began to show symptoms of what reformers called creeping popery, i.e. railing of communion table • c) Scotland invaded England, leading to Civil War and eventual execution of Charles I • d) Oliver Cromwell established Commonwealth and Protectorate and a semi-Presbyterian system came into place • e) BCP of 1604 replaced with A Directory for the Public Worship of God, or Westminster Directory. It was a compromise between all parties and provided only an outline for services • f) BCP use was outlawed in 1645

16. The Monarchy Cont’d. • King Charles II • a) Cromwell’s death led Parliament and the army to restore the monarchy under Charles II • b) in 1660, Charles II issued Declaration of Breda, promising “religious liberty to tender consciences” but also declared BCP of 1660 “the best we have seen” • c) ecclesiastical war was waged at the Savoy Conference among Episcopate and Presbyterians • d)the BCP of 1662 ultimately resulted and became known as an incomparable liturgy • e) as the British settled elsewhere in the world, this book went with them

17. The BCP in the Colonies and States of America • A. Earliest Years • a) 1st Holy Communion service on American soil conducted by Anglican clergyman Robert Hunt in Jamestown on May 14, 1607 • b) Hunt was chaplain of the expedition that founded Jamestown • b) some colonies adhered to English traditions, some were populated by heirs of Puritan and Nonconformist traditions

18. The BCP in the Colonies and States of America • B. BCP 1786 • a) previous revisions were attempted in England; one in 1773 by Ben Franklin • b) John Wesley adopted Prayer Book Liturgy for Methodists shortly after the American Revolution • c) conflicts between believers in the northern and southern churches made revising the BCP a difficult task • d) the book that emerged from the convention in Philadelphia in 1785 contained changes favored by evangelicals in the southern and middle states, many of which were unacceptable to the high church party in other regions of the country, as well as bishops in England

19. The BCP in the Colonies and States of America • B. BCP 1786, cont’d. • e) references to King and Parliament were eliminated, as well as the Nicene Creed • f) baptism service made no reference to regeneration and required no sign of the cross • g) members of the clergy were never referred to as priests

20. The BCP in the Colonies and States of America • C. BCP 1789 • a) general convention of the new church met in Philadelphia in 1789 • b) a modified versions of the 1786 book was adopted • c) Nicene Creed was restored • d) Prayer of Consecration was much longer than in the BCP of 1662 • e) principal Sunday morning service was still Morning Prayer • f) some language was updated • g) parents could serve as sponsors, a change sought by early Puritans

21. The BCP in the Colonies and States of America • D. BCP 1892 • a) BCP 1789 wore well for almost 100 years b) revision was needed due to large influxes of immigrants into cities, towns, and remote missionary areas where lengthy Sunday worship was impractical c) revision was also influenced by Catholic revival in Anglicanism d) ended up being an extremely conservative revision e) added 1 new service, A Penitential Office for Ash Wednesday

22. Later Revisions • A. BCP 1928 • a) first steps towards a new revision taken at General Convention of 1913 • b) too soon to be influenced by Liturgical Movement in Europe • c) consequently, fairly conservative revision • d) included broader range of prayers • e) controversies involved public prayer for the dead and rearrangement of the components parts of the Communion Service • e) convention set up a Standing Liturgical Commission to prepare for future revisions

23. Later Revisions • B. BCP 1979 • a) most innovative feature was the way in which the revision came into being • b) standing Commission on Liturgy undertook production of a series of Prayer Book Studies to test suggested changes • c) resulted in several trial versions, commonly known as the Green Book, the Zebra Book, and the Blue Book • d) innovative process invited church members into the revision experience in line with the new emphasis on a priesthood of the people • e) resulted in a reshaped Liturgy that restored earlier forms and produced a dramatic sequence, all based on practices of early Christians.