An exploration of the history of the Book of Common Prayer and its revisions, beginning with the 1549 English Prayer Book and continuing up to the present. This revised and expanded version of The Story of the Real Prayer Book (this book’s original title) finishes the story of the final adoption of the 1979 Book of Common Prayer. Sydnor explores why each revision was necessary, what was changed, added, omitted, as well as what was retained in the “new” book. By understanding the delicate balance between the need for change and the preservation of what is timeless, William Sydnor believes that Episcopalians will “find anew that common ground of common prayer which is our legacy, our inspiration, and our joy.”
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William Sydnor. Prayer Book Through the Ages
THE PRAYER BOOK THROUGH THE AGES
OTHER BOOKS BY WILLIAM SYDNOR
ACKNOWLEDGMENTS
PREFACE
TABLE OF CONTENTS
CHAPTER I. AN EXTRAORDINARY BOOK
CHAPTER II. THE FIRST ENGLISH PRAYER BOOKS, 1549 AND 1552
CHAPTER III. THE BOOK OF 1559
CHAPTER IV. THE BOOK OF 1604
CHAPTER V. THE BOOK OF 1662
CHAPTER VI. THE FIRST AMERICAN PRAYER BOOK, 1789
CHAPTER VII. THE BOOK OF 1892
CHAPTER VIII. THE BOOK OF 1928
CHAPTER IX. THE BOOK OF 1979
CHAPTER X. PROSPECTIVE – LOOKING FORWARD
CHAPTER XI. A UNIVERSAL TREASURE
CHAPTER XII. WHAT LIES AHEAD
APPENDIX A. THE CHANGELESS AND THE CHANGING PRAYER BOOK
APPENDIX B. THE PRAYER BOOK SOCIETY’S POST-CONVENTION EFFORT
NOTES. Chapter I
Chapter II
Chapter III
Chapter IV
Chapter V
Chapter VI
Chapter VII
Chapter VIII
Chapter IX
Chapter X
Chapter XI
SELECTED BIBLIOGRAPHY. Unpublished Document:
Editions of the Book of Common Prayer:
Journals of General Convention:
Periodicals:
Other Works:
INDEX
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Revised Edition of
The Story of the Real Prayer Book
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With Parliament’s Act of Uniformity in January, 1549, and the actual use of the Book beginning in March of that year, the good ship Book of Common Prayer was launched on its stormy voyage and as of now has logged some 440 years. During that time it has been overhauled and refitted for service eight times. For each of those eight times, as well as for the issuing of this first Book, the occasion has been one of joy or anguish, relief or disgust, pride or dismay, dedication or revolt. In 1549, such strong feelings as these poured over the Book almost before the ink was dry.
In producing the 1549 Book, Cranmer and his colleagues were sincerely and honestly seeking to lead the Church of England into a genuine revival of its worship practices. They aspired to help worshippers find greater meaning and significance in practices which were grounded in the rich heritage of Christendom. “Cranmer was trying to edge a nation notorious for its conservatism into accepting a reformed service, though, for all its comprehensiveness, the Book turned out to have gone almost too far. He hoped to satisfy the reforming zealots by suppressing all mention of oblation, to pacify the conservatives by keeping the time-hallowed framework, and to supply a positive, reformist-Catholic statement of what all had in common. This would provide the basis for further advance. For the moment, the more doctrinal positions that could be read out of it, the better.” The attempt failed from every point of view. The conservatives disliked its innovations and the omission of old services; the reformers thought it retained too much of the old and did not go far enough in innovation.6 The law required that the Book be used everywhere beginning with Whitsunday, June 9, 1549. By Monday, ominous, open revolt against the government had erupted in many parts of England. While much of this was smoldering opposition to “the miserable government of the Protector and Council,” some of it at least was due to worshippers’ violent resentment of the new Prayer Book. Because of the danger of insurrection and the fear that France would find the widespread unrest an inviting opportunity to attack its old foe, the government was forced to secure its safety by foreign mercenaries.
