The ACNA's near-final liturgy

Today is the deadline for feedback on the ACNA’s new liturgy. It is bringing to an end a 10-year process that began in November 2008 in Fort Worth. The official Texts for Common Prayer are expected to be approved early in 2019 and made available next summer.

There is a detailed review of the revision, published in the September Living Church and Summer issue of Anglican Way (the newsletter of the Prayer Book Society). The commentary is by Drew Nathaniel Keane, until this year a member of The Episcopal Church Standing Commission on Liturgy and Music.

Keane praised the transparency of the ACNA effort, which seems well-deserved. In the internet era, the ACNA task force provides a model for how to share liturgy updates, rather than the annual photocopied (or printed) books used in the previous 50 years.

Overall, the new liturgy is similar to the 1979 prayer book that it is intended to replace. In some cases, this is unavoidable — since both reflect trends of postwar liturgical reform, there are some updates present in 1979 (such as midday and compline prayer) not present in 1662 or 1928.

To try to summarize the new liturgy, I’ll focus on the three areas of the liturgy that have the greatest day-to-day impact: the lectionary, the daily office and the Eucharist service.

Lectionary

Because it's such a pain to compare 52 weeks of subtly different choices, I am grateful to Keane for explaining the changes of the lectionary.

Unlike Cranmer’s one-year lectionary of his 1549 and 1552 prayer books (retained in the 1559,1662,1789 and both 1928 prayer books), the ANCA follows the 1979 and its 3-year cycle of the 1979 lectionary. Perhaps we can blame the Romans, since this is a post-Vatican II innovation that was also followed by most but not all Protestant liturgical churches (e.g. the LCMS allows a local option between these two). The 1979 prayer book introduced its own lectionary, but today TEC uses the Revised Common Lectionary.

As Keane notes, for the daily office the ACNA reverts to a one-year lectionary (as in 1549 through 1928) rather than the two-year of 1979. However, to my eye it’s more like Cranmer’s 1549 one year lectionary (retained through 1662 in England and 1892 in the US) which kept to the civil calendar. The 1928 U.S. lectionary marked a radical departure, in that it maps to the church year (“Tuesday after the second Sunday in Lent”) and also offers a less comprehensive coverage of Scripture (i.e. is less demanding).

Keane highlights another (healthy) correction to the 1928

Since 1928, the daily office lectionaries of the Episcopal Church have notoriously omitted sections of Scripture that that might not easily square with modern American sensibilities. This proposal abandons this approach; rather than tiptoeing around these passages, … it includes the Scriptures as they are

Keane debates whether the ACNA properly handles the lesser feasts and fasts; that topic is beyond the scope of this summary.

Daily Office: Morning and Evening Prayer 

Daily Office depends both on the lectionary (see above) and the specific prayers. The elements I find most interesting:

• Like 1979, the ACNA removes “miserable offenders” from the General Confession; every time I say Rite I, this is still a jarring omission.
• Like 1979, it allows any canticle to be used in any order. Unlike 1979, cuts down (slightly) on the confusion by segregating the canticles into morning and evening canticles.
• Makes clear the entire Psalm 95 (rather than the Venite) can be used in Morning Prayer — something everyone but the Americans have done since 1549 — but provides the missing four verses only during penitential seasons.
• Restores “O God, make speed to save us” from the 1662, that was omitted from previous American prayer books.

Next to the (shortened) confession, I have found that most powerful part of saying the Daily Office for the past three years has been the “Conditions of Men” prayer:

O GOD, the Creator and Preserver of all mankind, we humbly beseech thee for all sorts and conditions of men; that thou wouldest be pleased to make thy ways known unto them, thy saving health unto all nations. More especially we pray for thy holy Church universal; that it may be so guided and governed by thy good Spirit, that all who profess and call themselves Christians may be led into the way of truth, and hold the faith in unity of spirit, in the bond of peace, and in righteousness of life. Finally, we commend to thy fatherly goodness all those who are any ways afflicted, or distressed, in mind, body, or estate; [*especially those for whom our prayers are desired*] that it may please thee to comfort and relieve them, according to. their several necessities; giving them patience under their sufferings, and a happy issue out of all their afflictions. And this we beg for Jesus Christ’s sake. Amen.

The prayer was introduced in the 1662 English prayer book — used globally for 300+ years — and part of the 1789, 1892 and 1928 US prayer books. It was dropped in the 1979 prayer book and remains missing in the 2019. To my ear, this (as with “miserable offenders”) substantially weakens the penitential nature of the service. A booklet (rather than Prayer Book) parish could restore it, since it is prayer #31 on the list of “Occasional Prayers and Thanksgivings”.

Eucharist Service

While the Ordinal was the ACNA’s initial priority, from a practical standpoint, Holy Communion is the only service that the typical parishioner will see most of the year. The changes to Holy Communion are numerous and detailed.

While both 1979 and 2019 have two rites, there the similarity end. In the 1979, the Rite I uses traditional language (if not the sequence) of the 1549-1662-1928, while Rite II has major changes both to the liturgy and language. In 2019, there are two contemporary language liturgies: “Anglican Standard Text” is like a modern language version of Rite I, while “Renewed Ancient Text” is very similar to Rite II.

Keane takes a guess about the reason for the latter similarity.

Although the Renewed Ancient Text is clearly based on 1979 Rite II, the preface “Concerning the Service” seems less than forthcoming regarding the source: “The Renewed Ancient Text is drawn from liturgies of the Early Church [and] reflects the influence of twentieth century ecumenical consensus.” Yes, 1979’s Rite II did draw from some ancient liturgies and reflects the influence of the mid-20th century ecumenical Liturgical Movement, but the particular text — its selection of which ancient liturgies to follow, where, and to what extent — constitutes an original liturgy, a source that this preface obscures.

However, task force member Fr. Jonathan Kanary says the circumstantial similarity is misleading:

…the first version of the "Ancient Canon" wasn't based on 1979 at all, but was an entirely independent liturgy, although it was (like Rite 2 Prayer A) based loosely on Hippolytus. Because of feedback we received (including from some bishops), the revision drew in a fair bit of the familiar language from Prayer A, while retaining the things that had worked well from the first version of the Ancient Canon. The Living Church article seems to assume that the rite is simply an adaptation of the 1979 Prayer A, and I understand how someone glancing over it now might think so, but the history is much more complex.

For my recent liturgy class, I looked at the Prayer of Consecration from 1549 to 2019, including Cranmer’s prayer books, the 20th century American prayer books and the ACNA liturgy.

Although modernized in language, the “Anglican Standard” mainly differs in the order of the prayers:

1549 BCP	1928 BCP/1979 Rite I	2019 Anglican Standard
Words of Institution Invocation Oblation Concluding Doxology	Words of Institution Invocation Oblation Concluding Doxology	Invocation Words of Institution Oblation Concluding Doxology

Meanwhile, the “Renewed Ancient Text” follows closely Rite II, except for changes in the language of the Invocation:

1979 Rite II	2019 Renewed Ancient
Sanctify them by your Holy Spirit to be for your people the Body and Blood of your Son, the holy food and drink of new and unending life in him. Sanctify us also that we may faithfully receive this holy Sacrament, and serve you in unity, constancy, and peace; and at the last day bring us with all your saints into the joy of your eternal kingdom.	Sanctify them by your Word and Holy Spirit to be for your people the Body and Blood of your Son Jesus Christ. Sanctify us also, that we may worthily receive this holy sacrament, and be made one body with him, so that he may dwell in us and we in him. And bring us with all your saints into the fullness of your heavenly kingdom, where we shall see our Lord face to face.

Keane also notes three changes that move the liturgy in a (slightly) more Anglo-Catholic direction:

• The Benedictus qui venit is included in the Sanctus. This is not included in the historic prayer book tradition, but by the late 19th century was commonly inserted in High Church circles; it was provided as an optional addition in 1979’s Rite I.

• The Agnus Dei follows the Prayer of Humble Access rather than the other way round as in 1979. This order was common in American Anglo-Catholic parishes that inserted the Agnus Dei into the 1928 prayer book service.

• Along with the Invitation from 1979, “The gifts of God for the People of God,” a second option is provided in both rites: “Behold the Lamb of God.” Taken from John 1:29 and Revelation 19:9, Anglo-Catholic parishes commonly inserted these scriptural sentences into the old text as an Invitation to Communion, and a version of this invitation is part of the Church of England’s Common Worship.

Conclusions

The liturgy is different enough that faithful (clergy or laity) moving between the ACNA and Rite II or Rite I (let alone earlier prayer books) will have to carefully read every sentence for several months until it becomes familiar. I feel bad for supply priests who are in a diocese with more than one liturgy. However, at least any confusion caused by trial use of interim liturgies will soon be over.

In the 21st century, one of the great resources for learning the liturgy is the Internet — whether via web pages or a cellphone app. Flipping through tables and paper books to find lessons works for printing a Sunday bulletin, but is a bit daunting for laity doing the Daily Office twice daily.

The ACNA is fortunate to have a website, www.legereme.com, that helps solve this problem. It provides

• A complete order of Morning Prayer and Evening Prayer, with lessons
• The lessons for the Sunday Eucharist service

An entrepreneurial church planter is currently taking a collection fund iPhone and Android versions of a stand-alone app for the Legerme texts.

Continuing Anglican Liturgy in Atlanta

Liturgy was at the center of this month’s Jt. Synod of four major Continuing Anglican jurisdictions — the ACA, ACC, APA and DHC. My own experience suggested both the potential and challenges of integrating this “G-4” in terms of practice, if not ecclesiology.

The heart of the Jt. Synod was the intercommunion agreement signed by the G-4 bishops, followed by a joint mass. But long before Atlanta, Continuing Anglicans have been defined by the Congress of St. Louis, their use of the 1928 BCP and rejection of the 1979 prayer book, one the late Peter Toon termed a “Book of Alternative Services.”

G-4 jurisdictions represented at this month’s Joint Synod both agreed to intercommunion, and also repeatedly worshipped together One of the things I enjoy most about'

Joint Worship at the Joint Synod

The culmination of the Jt. Synod was the “Solemn High Mass for Christian Unity” on Friday October 6. However, it was proceeded by twice daily services from October 2-5, with each day beginning with a Morning Prayer and Mass, and ending with an Evening Prayer. The worship took place in one of the hotel ballrooms, with an altar set up on a raised platform. The earlier services had a capacity of around 250 people, while for the high mass, the capacity was more like 750 (I guessed about 400-500 were in attendance).

Evening Prayer, Wednesday October 4

Fighting jet lag after the trip from California, I was unaware of the Wednesday MP, but attended the Wednesday EP, Thursday MP & Mass and joined the opening hymn of the Thursday EP. The jurisdictions took turn leading these services — the last three being led by the APA, the ACA, and the DHC. (I have uploaded scans of these service booklets for posterity).

Insights into Congregational Practice

There are often variations in the congregational practices of any liturgical church between parishes. These are generally smoothed out over time, as people get used to the culture and other norms of their home parish. Thus, joint worship with no dominant constituency highlights some of the differences in practice — and, I would argue, some of the challenges faced by newcomers to traditional Anglican worship.

We were told to bring our prayer books — but for the Daily Office a slight majority of us were reciting the familiar prayers from memory. (I would guess for communion it was over 80%). Prayer books were not needed for the closing High Mass, which had a detailed nine-page as well as a ten-page musical insert.

The greatest confusion was over standing, sitting and kneeling. There were times when the congregation was split among all three. As in other churches, the degree of kneeling was greatest on key prayers — such as on the confession. Also — as in many storefront churches — I suspect that the kneeling (on the hotel carpet) was less than might have happened if there were pews and kneelers. Still, for the psalm at the Wednesday EP, many of us remained standing until we noticed that so many others were sitting.

Another interesting variation was the congregational response bracketing the reading of the Gospel, which (fortunately for those of us who go to ACNA or FIFNA events), includes the same “Glory be to thee, O Lord” beforehand and “Praise be to thee, O Christ” afterward. The rubric in the 28 BCP (p. 70) says

Then, all the People standing, the Minister appointed shall read the Gospel, first saying, The Holy Gospel is written in the — Chapter of —, beginning at the — Verse.

Communion at the October 5 morning service.

Some in the congregation started the “Glory be” before the introduction was completed — suggesting at their parishes the deacon omits the chapter and verse — and perhaps even the author of the Gospel.

While the congregation was consistent in making than the threefold sign of the cross before the Gospel, there was also significant variation in the bowing and crossing at other times during the service. Lacking a communion rail, the Eucharist was (of necessity) administered standing up, although some clergy (or seminarians) knelt on the carpet — either to receive the elements or because (at least in the final service) they were being administered by the princes of the church.

Variations in the Liturgy

The worship reflected many common variations among 28 BCP parishes. Perhaps the most theologically significant is the Gloria, which in the service — as in the BCP — was recited after the Eucharist. In Rite I (of the 79 prayer book), the Gloria is said near the beginning, immediately after the Kyrie; this is also the practice of our parish (and many other California 28 BCP parishes).

Another variation is in the Prayer of Humble Access and post-communion prayer, which the 28 BCP commands to be said by the priest, but are congregational prayers in the 1979 prayer book. Many 28 parishes have adopted the latter practice — which I believe to be an improvement — and this is also what we did at the Thursday morning mass. I am guessing this practice must be common, because the booklet for Friday’s mass says “Celebrant Only” after the Prayer of Humble Access.

After carefully following the prayer book, the High Mass included two non-prayer book additions that seem common at Anglo-Catholic parishes. One was the threefold prayer “Lord I am not worthy” that references the centurion’s statement of faith in Matthew 8:8. While the prayer is a standard element of the Roman rite (Domine, non sum dignus), and also included in early 20th century “Anglo-Papalist” practice in England, it does not appear anywhere in the 28 BCP.

The High Mass also included the Last Gospel (John 1:1-14) of the Roman rite, but read in King James English rather than the Latin of the Tridentine Mass.

Finally, most of the services I attended did not use an altar bell, but it wasn’t clear whether it’s because they didn’t have one, they didn’t have an acolyte ready to ring it, or they didn’t believe it was an appropriate practice.  Although common in today’s Anglo-Catholic parishes, it’s nowhere mentioned in the BCP, but rather a medieval Roman practice codified in the Tridentine Mass and largely abandoned after Vatican II. (As a musician, I happen to like the sound — and also missed it because because at our parish the second bell helps signal when we should cross ourselves).

Unity in Ecclesiology and Worship

The G-4 are working towards a common hierarchy, one they hope will eventually include other groups as well. The Continuing churches are united by a common liturgy, even more so than the Anglicans going back to Cranmer’s day, but the reality is that today there are numerous deviations from the nearly 90-year-old American BCP. It seems as though most of these differences could be handled (for now) by supplemental rubrics.

In doing so, I think it would also good to write down and disseminate congregational practices such as standing, kneeling, crossing, ringing and genuflecting. Over the long haul, I'm hoping that parishes will indicate these into the seat booklets, particularly since word process and web pages can easily include unicode symbols (e.g. ✠, ✣) that are instantly recognizable and self-explanatory. Certainly agreeing on a supplemental document would be a better way to kick off a joint committee on liturgy than to start with the more complex (and contentious) issue of a prayer book revision.

Come, let us sing!

Today is the first day of Forward in Faith North America’s annual conference. The 2017 Assembly is being held 13 miles from DFW in the Texas Metroplex, in the Diocese of Ft. Worth.

We kicked off the Assembly with a sung evensong, with a 17-voice choir formed by the local music director and volunteers from St. Vincent’s Cathedral and St. Mark’s Anglican in Arlington. Their obvious talent aside, it was great to hear a medium-sized choir, which sounds so much more full and than the 4- to 10-voice choirs I’ve mainly heard the last 15 years. (One small gripe: like most volunteer choirs, there weren’t enough men’s voices with only 5 of the 17).

The service was a 1928 BCP Evening Prayer, although the text was obviously unfamiliar to many of those present. (One tip-off: saying “Holy Spirit” instead of “Holy Ghost.”) The music was picked with taste from the English repertoire, included chants and anthems by John Stainer, John Goss, Alec Rowley, and C.H.H. Parry.

However, as a member of the congregation (rather than in the choir or an organizer), I (re)learned a valuable lesson. There was literally no music to sing — unless you count the monotone chant of the creed and the Lord’s Prayer. As you might expect for a conference of Anglo-Catholic clergy (including five bishops and one bishop-elect), there was a lot of music talent in the pews — and some of us sang along anyway (particularly on the psalm, where it was practical enough to learn as we went.)

So there were at least two key lessons:

• For most churches and most occasions, more music should be sung by the congregation than by the choir alone. That often means two really great and elaborate anthems, and then three hymns plus service music where the congregation can sing along.
• If the congregation is asked (or expects) to sing along, don’t trick them. For example, if we sing “Amen” after the officiant for three prayers, either make the Amens all the same or write out the music.

And this points to a final lesson. Over the past few years, I learned a lot about take-for-grantedness by visiting a wide range of churches before choosing my current church, and I’ve also tried to visit unfamiliar churches while traveling. The clergy, music director and choir need to get out more so they have empathy for how those in the pews experience the liturgy.