Common Prayer Experience
The Common Prayer Tradition in
its English form began in 1549 with the publication of The Book of the Common Prayer.
It had been known in Latin for centuries and the tradition was not
changed with the publication in English.
To say that it was based on the
Since the 1970s Anglican liturgists have looked back more to the second and third centuries for their inspiration and models, and they have not paid much attention to the doctrinal and liturgical developments and maturity of the fourth and fifth centuries. Practically speaking, their primary thrust seems to be that of encouraging a seemingly endless variety of possibilities into divine worship and thereby introducing mediocrity into the texts and rites by the sheer volume produced at great speed. They claim that people today want variety and choice and that they also want to address God in much the same way as they talk to one another in modern language.
The Book of Common Prayer is not perfect. Only the liturgy of heaven is perfect. The traditional editions of 1662 (England), 1928 (USA) and 1962 (Canada) can be improved and their contents adjusted for contemporary use because their basic tradition is sound and well tried in all important respects. The excellence of these books is not only in the choice and form of words, but also in the way this tradition reflects the doctrine of Holy Scripture together with the classic, patristic, Trinitarian doctrinal and devotional heritage of the one, holy, catholic, and apostolic Church. However, the 1979 Prayer Book was not intended to retain the doctrinal teaching or devotional heritage of its predecessors.
First, of all, they replaced the common or shared form, content, style and language with a variety which can only lead to even more variety. Gone is the definition of “Common” that stood for beliefs held in common by all the congregations. In its place is a definition that only requires a common structure and minimal common elements like the Lord’s Prayer and the Creed. Common Prayer can now be as varied as possible if it is placed in a specific shape and has one or two common elements, and is authorized by competent authority.
In the second place, one does not have to look very far with a trained eye to see that the doctrines of the Holy Trinity, of the Person and saving Work of our Lord Jesus Christ, and the nature of God’s salvation for the world have all been either modified or left open for a variety of interpretations. Instead of “Blessed be God, the Father, the Son and the Holy spirit”, the 1979 book contains, “Blessed be God: Father, Son and Holy Spirit.” The first clearly states that God is one God in three persons. The second implies that God is one God with three names.
In the Apostle’s Creed, “He was conceived by the Holy Spirit and born of the Virgin Mary,” was replaced with “He was conceived by the power of the Holy Spirit and born of the Virgin Mary.” The second allows people who do not believe in the miraculous conception of Jesus to think of his conception as very special but not unique. This is just one attempt to present Jesus as the Perfect Man in whom the divine presence dwells. He becomes a supreme example of God’s presence and a perfect example of human response to God in faith and love. What is missing is the confession that Jesus is Lord and God.
The Nicene Creed in Rite II, begins with, ‘We believe” as opposed to “I believe.” These are not equivalent and the difference is significant. While the corporate fellowship and communion, the Body of Christ and the Bride of Christ, do collectively believe, each individual must also declare their personal belief. It is not enough to have a corporate statement of belief because that could be based on a majority of 6 out of 10 votes.
Holy Scripture endured a change in use and doctrine as well. The Psalter once began with, “Blessed is the man,” but now begins with “Happy are they.” In changing the perceived sexual discrimination of “man” to “they”, they also equated blessed with happy. God’s blessing does not relate to our personal earthly happiness. In Psalm 51, the full extent of the nature of sin is diminished in the 1979 Psalter. The human condition of sin is replaced with a notion of individual freedom of choice. The lectionary was revised to drop sections of Scripture which stood in definite opposition to the insights of the revised religion. Specific Christian teaching on the relation between the male and female, or the immorality of homosexuality was labeled rabbinic teaching and removed from the lectionary. The intent of the traditional lectionary was to insure that the critical teaching of Holy Scripture be read at least once a year. The inconvenient and uncomfortable teachings have been discarded.
One effect of the change in the 1960s to a so-called contemporary, accessible English where God was addressed as “You” was to cut off a growing number of people from a rich heritage, from the tradition of worship, prayer, piety, habit, discipline, doctrine, and morality connected with the long established English language of public worship, common prayer and private devotion. The old tradition of Common Prayer, is an excellent way to know God, the living God, the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, in public worship; further it is to recognize that from this knowing, trusting, and loving comes the serving and obeying of him in daily life. Modern homes are warmer than old ones. But knowing God is not like buying houses. In this human quest we need to pay attention to the accumulated wisdom and tested practice of the centuries as this is more likely to lead us to the God of our fathers.
Why should we continue and encourage others to use a traditional Book of Common Prayer? First, we must understand what is unique about knowing God and how this knowledge can truly be received and experienced only in a Liturgy where there is faithfulness to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ and to his self-revelation recorded in Holy Scripture. Liturgy can lead us to know God both personally and corporately, but only if the focus remains on God. The liturgy is the corporate worship of Almighty God and is truly the work which the people of God do to glorify, magnify and praise him. By God’s good providence, there is within the Common Prayer Tradition a logic of faith, hope, and love, derived from the New Testament, and available to the flock of Christ in order that they may know God as their Father, Christ Jesus as their Shepherd and the Holy Ghost as their Counselor.
Music and singing provides an example of three varied approaches discerned in the worship practices over the history of the Church. First, Martin Luther and John Wesley regard music and singing as gifts of God, means of bearing God’s word and enabling human beings to praise God and proclaim his Gospel. Second, Ulrich Zwingli is representative of those who see no place for music and singing in worship. They believe it admits worldly ideas and sensuality into the church. Third, Thomas Cranmer and John Calvin admit music and singing into worship but in a limited way, seeking to control them so they do not become an end in themselves and thus fail to serve the worship of the Holy Trinity.
Music and singing are allowed in the service to enrich and elevate what is done so that it serves its true purpose, the knowing, adoring, loving, and serving of God in worship. If the music and singing is dumbed-down to become pedestrian, there is little in them to raise the spirit heavenward. If they are elevated into a show so that the worship service is not much different from a concert, they have again missed their mark. That explains why we retain the use of the 1940 Hymnal and are very selective about the use of music outside of its offerings. Every priest who has ever conducted a marriage or funeral ceremony has faced the wrath of a parent or child who feels their favorite tune or lyrics should replace the limited offerings of our Hymns. Particularly in trying times, people forget our primary task is to worship God. We recommend receptions as the appropriate place for favorite tunes and lyrics.
For more details, read “Worship without Dumbing-down” by The Rev. Dr. Peter Toon, M.A., D.Phil.
(Preservation Press
of the Prayer Book Society of the