The text of Rowan Williams' lecture may be found here:
http://www.archbishopofcanterbury.org/1575#top
Saturday, February 09, 2008
Booklets By Peter Toon
People have asked me about the Booklets I have written over the last 3 years for the PBS. Here is what is currently available for individual purchase and for Church bookstalls.
Peter Toon
1. Same Sex Affection, Holiness and Ordination: A Response to Bishop Frank T Griswold Peter Toon
2. Episcopal Innovations 1960-2004: Theological & Historical Reflection on the Current Crisis In ECUSA By Peter Toon
3. Anglican Identity: Keeping the Global Family Together Peter Toon
4. On Salvation and the Church of Rome By Richard Hooker edited by Peter Toon
5. Mystical Washing & Spiritual Regeneration- Infant Baptism and the Renewal of the Anglican Way in America by Peter Toon
one copy $7.00 including S & H
5-9 copies-$5.00 each
10-19 copies--$4.50 each
20 or more copies--$4.00 each
Please send order by mail to:
The Prayer Book Society
PO Box 35220
Philadelphia, PA 19128-0220
or e-mail and I will Invoice you.
Thank you,
Debbie Remenyi
debbier@bee.net
Peter Toon
1. Same Sex Affection, Holiness and Ordination: A Response to Bishop Frank T Griswold Peter Toon
2. Episcopal Innovations 1960-2004: Theological & Historical Reflection on the Current Crisis In ECUSA By Peter Toon
3. Anglican Identity: Keeping the Global Family Together Peter Toon
4. On Salvation and the Church of Rome By Richard Hooker edited by Peter Toon
5. Mystical Washing & Spiritual Regeneration- Infant Baptism and the Renewal of the Anglican Way in America by Peter Toon
one copy $7.00 including S & H
5-9 copies-$5.00 each
10-19 copies--$4.50 each
20 or more copies--$4.00 each
Please send order by mail to:
The Prayer Book Society
PO Box 35220
Philadelphia, PA 19128-0220
or e-mail and I will Invoice you.
Thank you,
Debbie Remenyi
debbier@bee.net
Tuesday, February 05, 2008
ONE THING THOU LACKEST!
WHAT IS often MISSING from the content of the new-style, church growth ANGLICANISM?
Not a few of the modern Anglican congregations, which are of a general evangelical and charismatic ethos, do not hand out any books to people when they arrive. No need to do so, for the words of songs and prayers are projected on to one or more screens in the worship center.
Other congregations—in fact many—also do not give out books but provide a service leaflet on which is printed all that it is judged the people need in order to follow and participate in the service.
In both these situations, only a minority of people bring a copy of the Bible to worship, and only usually where they need it for a Sunday School class or they expect an expository sermon.
In fact, the churches where it is “required” that people have a Prayer Book and possibly also a Bible in order profitably to participate in the liturgy are becoming amongst the would be orthodox a minority these days.
Why this introductory observations? Because I now want to make the (old-fashioned but still relevant) point that the possession and use of a personal Bible and a Prayer Book is really necessary for a Christian ,who desires to practice Christianity in the Anglican Way ( in contrast to say a generic evangelical way) in 2008.
Let us recall that one purpose of The Book of Common Prayer, first published in 1549, and now available in over 150 languages and in updated editions, is to provide a disciplined approach to God the Father through Jesus Christ in the Holy Spirit for the whole of the Year—the regular year and the Christian Year. It does this not alone but with the Bible to which it is inextricably tied. The BCP seeks to bring order in our lives by placing them through good habit and holy discipline under the guidance of the Holy Trinity each day.
Critical to this engagement with God the Father through his Son are the two similar services called the Daily Offices of Morning and Evening Prayer. By use of these the church and each baptized believer enclose all space and time daily within the providence and grace of God. Each service provides opportunity for the confession of sin, the praying of psalms and collects, the singing of Canticles, the reading of the Old and New Testaments, and the offering of petitions and intercessions. By sharing in them, good habits of discipline, devotion, meditating, praying and hearing God’s Word are developed. And if one cannot meet with others to use them, one can do them alone as the basis of personal devotion and godly habit.
In the Prayer Book are also services for use at critical important moments in the whole life of the Christian—Baptism, Confirmation, and Marriage—as well as for times of extremity (visitation of the sick) and at death. Further, there are many memorable prayers of rich content and texture, and learned by heart these become prayers often offered to God in times of stress and strain, joy and delight.
Let us now return to the theme of modern methods of projecting the service and using leaflets for Sundays.
Here –whatever benefits may accrue--there is no encounter with The Book of Common Prayer as a planned collection of services to provide godly order and habit for the Christian church, home and individual believer. Here also—due to the lack on The BCP, there is no possibility of the worshippers turning over the pages of The BCP before and at the end of the service and getting a feel for where is in there. Further, in these congregations there is rarely any teaching about the beneficial form of disciplined prayer of Morning and Evening Prayer, which is at the heart of the Anglican Way. Jesus used the Psalter as his “Prayer Book” and the church in the daily and ordered use of the Psalter in M & E P seeks to imitate its Lord as well as prayr with and in him as his Body.
Conclusion
One may freely admit that it is very possible to be a good Christian without using The BCP! However, one cannot truly be an Anglican Christian unless one is within its long-standing and well-tried ways of ordered and disciplined, yet also fervent and effectual prayer, based on the use of the Daily Offices, by which one is united to Jesus Christ, the Mediator and High Priest, and to the Body of Christ on earth and in heaven.
One of my hopes with the publication of AN ANGLICAN PRAYER BOOK (a contemporary English form of the classic BCP) is that churches will not merely project its service of The Eucharist but will encourage people to buy and use a copy of the Prayer Book itself as a guide to their devotion and consecration to the Father through the Son in the Holy Spirit.
[This new Prayer Book in hardback and superior paper is available from The PBS, Box 35220, Philadelphia, PA 19128-0220, delivered: it is published by the PBS for the AMIA: special rates for churches—call 1-800-PBS-1928]
drpetertoon@yahoo.com Quinquagesima 2008 www.pbsusa.org
Not a few of the modern Anglican congregations, which are of a general evangelical and charismatic ethos, do not hand out any books to people when they arrive. No need to do so, for the words of songs and prayers are projected on to one or more screens in the worship center.
Other congregations—in fact many—also do not give out books but provide a service leaflet on which is printed all that it is judged the people need in order to follow and participate in the service.
In both these situations, only a minority of people bring a copy of the Bible to worship, and only usually where they need it for a Sunday School class or they expect an expository sermon.
In fact, the churches where it is “required” that people have a Prayer Book and possibly also a Bible in order profitably to participate in the liturgy are becoming amongst the would be orthodox a minority these days.
Why this introductory observations? Because I now want to make the (old-fashioned but still relevant) point that the possession and use of a personal Bible and a Prayer Book is really necessary for a Christian ,who desires to practice Christianity in the Anglican Way ( in contrast to say a generic evangelical way) in 2008.
Let us recall that one purpose of The Book of Common Prayer, first published in 1549, and now available in over 150 languages and in updated editions, is to provide a disciplined approach to God the Father through Jesus Christ in the Holy Spirit for the whole of the Year—the regular year and the Christian Year. It does this not alone but with the Bible to which it is inextricably tied. The BCP seeks to bring order in our lives by placing them through good habit and holy discipline under the guidance of the Holy Trinity each day.
Critical to this engagement with God the Father through his Son are the two similar services called the Daily Offices of Morning and Evening Prayer. By use of these the church and each baptized believer enclose all space and time daily within the providence and grace of God. Each service provides opportunity for the confession of sin, the praying of psalms and collects, the singing of Canticles, the reading of the Old and New Testaments, and the offering of petitions and intercessions. By sharing in them, good habits of discipline, devotion, meditating, praying and hearing God’s Word are developed. And if one cannot meet with others to use them, one can do them alone as the basis of personal devotion and godly habit.
In the Prayer Book are also services for use at critical important moments in the whole life of the Christian—Baptism, Confirmation, and Marriage—as well as for times of extremity (visitation of the sick) and at death. Further, there are many memorable prayers of rich content and texture, and learned by heart these become prayers often offered to God in times of stress and strain, joy and delight.
Let us now return to the theme of modern methods of projecting the service and using leaflets for Sundays.
Here –whatever benefits may accrue--there is no encounter with The Book of Common Prayer as a planned collection of services to provide godly order and habit for the Christian church, home and individual believer. Here also—due to the lack on The BCP, there is no possibility of the worshippers turning over the pages of The BCP before and at the end of the service and getting a feel for where is in there. Further, in these congregations there is rarely any teaching about the beneficial form of disciplined prayer of Morning and Evening Prayer, which is at the heart of the Anglican Way. Jesus used the Psalter as his “Prayer Book” and the church in the daily and ordered use of the Psalter in M & E P seeks to imitate its Lord as well as prayr with and in him as his Body.
Conclusion
One may freely admit that it is very possible to be a good Christian without using The BCP! However, one cannot truly be an Anglican Christian unless one is within its long-standing and well-tried ways of ordered and disciplined, yet also fervent and effectual prayer, based on the use of the Daily Offices, by which one is united to Jesus Christ, the Mediator and High Priest, and to the Body of Christ on earth and in heaven.
One of my hopes with the publication of AN ANGLICAN PRAYER BOOK (a contemporary English form of the classic BCP) is that churches will not merely project its service of The Eucharist but will encourage people to buy and use a copy of the Prayer Book itself as a guide to their devotion and consecration to the Father through the Son in the Holy Spirit.
[This new Prayer Book in hardback and superior paper is available from The PBS, Box 35220, Philadelphia, PA 19128-0220, delivered: it is published by the PBS for the AMIA: special rates for churches—call 1-800-PBS-1928]
drpetertoon@yahoo.com Quinquagesima 2008 www.pbsusa.org
Monday, February 04, 2008
AN ANGLICAN PRAYER BOOK
Contemporary English Services based on those in The Book of Common Prayer and The Ordinal, in their English 1662, American 1928 and Canadian 1962 editions
The aim of this prayer book is to make available in contemporary language the doctrine, devotion and structure of classic Anglican Common Prayer, as these are provided in the historic editions of The Book of Common Prayer. It is designed for use primarily with the English Standard Version of the Bible, but other conservative translations will work also. It is intended in the first place for the congregations in the networks of The Anglican Mission of the Americas; but it is fully expected that it will also be used within other parts of contemporary Anglicanism.
The aim is not to replace the standard, traditional editions of The Book of Common Prayer authorized in England, U.S.A. and Canada, but to build a bridge towards them by presenting their basic theology, spirituality and reformed catholic ethos in a form of language that a majority feel is now the only real option—a form of contemporary English.
It is a regrettable fact that most of the forms of service designed for use since the late 1960s in western Anglicanism have sought to set aside the pattern and doctrine within the historic Book of Common Prayer, and replace them with a shape and theology that is a mixture of ancient structure and modern doctrine. Even where some of the historic content has been preserved, as in Rite One services of the 1979 Prayer Book of The Episcopal Church, it is made to fit into the “shape” of the modern Rite Two.
Therefore, there is a real need in contemporary Anglicanism for the availability of classic Common Prayer in a way that is acceptable and usable by those who currently use Rite Two, or the Canadian 1985 Book, or the like. There is an open space developing for use of traditional services in contemporary English, where the doctrine and devotion of the historic Anglican Way are present, known and received.
Contents : Preface; The Christian Year; Morning and Evening Prayer; The Litany;
The Athanasian Creed; Compline; Holy Communion; The Collects and Eucharistic Lectionary; Baptism; The Catechism; Confirmation; Marriage; Visitation of the Sick; Burial of the Dead; Interment or Scattering of Ashes; Family Prayer; Daily Lectionary; The Ordinal -- The Making of Deacons; The Ordination of Priests; The Consecration of a Bishop; & The Articles of Religion
AN ANGLICAN PRAYER BOOK is published for The Anglican Mission in the Americas by The Preservation Press of the Prayer Book Society on February 1, 2008. ISBN: 978-1-879793-13-2 and 1-879793-13-X. It has 240 pages and is in quality hardback.
Individual copies are $15.00 including S & H; multiple copies [10 plus] for congregations are $10.00 each, including S & H. Available from: The Prayer Book Society of the U.S.A., P.O. Box 35220, Philadelphia, PA. 19128-0220. 1-800-PBS-1928. Checks to “The Prayer Book Society.”
Very soon after February 11, 2008, individual copies only will be available at www.anglicanmarketplace.com for purchase with a credit card in a secure system.
The aim of this prayer book is to make available in contemporary language the doctrine, devotion and structure of classic Anglican Common Prayer, as these are provided in the historic editions of The Book of Common Prayer. It is designed for use primarily with the English Standard Version of the Bible, but other conservative translations will work also. It is intended in the first place for the congregations in the networks of The Anglican Mission of the Americas; but it is fully expected that it will also be used within other parts of contemporary Anglicanism.
The aim is not to replace the standard, traditional editions of The Book of Common Prayer authorized in England, U.S.A. and Canada, but to build a bridge towards them by presenting their basic theology, spirituality and reformed catholic ethos in a form of language that a majority feel is now the only real option—a form of contemporary English.
It is a regrettable fact that most of the forms of service designed for use since the late 1960s in western Anglicanism have sought to set aside the pattern and doctrine within the historic Book of Common Prayer, and replace them with a shape and theology that is a mixture of ancient structure and modern doctrine. Even where some of the historic content has been preserved, as in Rite One services of the 1979 Prayer Book of The Episcopal Church, it is made to fit into the “shape” of the modern Rite Two.
Therefore, there is a real need in contemporary Anglicanism for the availability of classic Common Prayer in a way that is acceptable and usable by those who currently use Rite Two, or the Canadian 1985 Book, or the like. There is an open space developing for use of traditional services in contemporary English, where the doctrine and devotion of the historic Anglican Way are present, known and received.
Contents : Preface; The Christian Year; Morning and Evening Prayer; The Litany;
The Athanasian Creed; Compline; Holy Communion; The Collects and Eucharistic Lectionary; Baptism; The Catechism; Confirmation; Marriage; Visitation of the Sick; Burial of the Dead; Interment or Scattering of Ashes; Family Prayer; Daily Lectionary; The Ordinal -- The Making of Deacons; The Ordination of Priests; The Consecration of a Bishop; & The Articles of Religion
AN ANGLICAN PRAYER BOOK is published for The Anglican Mission in the Americas by The Preservation Press of the Prayer Book Society on February 1, 2008. ISBN: 978-1-879793-13-2 and 1-879793-13-X. It has 240 pages and is in quality hardback.
Individual copies are $15.00 including S & H; multiple copies [10 plus] for congregations are $10.00 each, including S & H. Available from: The Prayer Book Society of the U.S.A., P.O. Box 35220, Philadelphia, PA. 19128-0220. 1-800-PBS-1928. Checks to “The Prayer Book Society.”
Very soon after February 11, 2008, individual copies only will be available at www.anglicanmarketplace.com for purchase with a credit card in a secure system.
ANGLICAN—three ways of being so in 2008
One way of beginning to understand the present confusion and division, within what has been generally called Anglicanism since the middle of the 19th century, is to notice how “Anglican” is defined in the phrase, “Anglican Communion.” We may notice three basic definitions.
C of E centered
The word “Anglican” obviously comes from England and is derived from the Latin name of the Church of England, ecclesia anglicana. So to be Anglican is to be a member of the Church of England or of one of the churches in the world derived from It and maintaining Its major characteristics. And the Anglican Communion is a fellowship of autonomous, independent Churches that are in communion with the Church of England via the See of Canterbury. To bring the Bishops or representatives of these Churches known as Provinces together has been seen as the duty of the Incumbent of the See of Canterbury, known as the Archbishop of C. Thus since 1867, when it began, the Archbishop in office at the time has invited Bishops to the Lambeth Conference and been the President of the assembly, which is not a Synod but a Conference. He is also present on other unifying groups as Chairman or President (e.g., Primates’ Meeting).
This approach sees itself as similar to, but not exactly the same as, the place of the ancient Patriarchates of the East in Orthodoxy and of Rome in the West. In his providence, it is held that God has ordered the Anglican Way in this form, even as he has ordered the Orthodox and Roman Ways in other forms.
Centered outside of the West entirely
Here to be Anglican is primarily to have a certain style of worship, doctrine, morals and polity, derived originally from the historic Prayer Book, Services of Ordination and Articles of Religion, and placing the Bible in the center. The ancient connection with the See of Canterbury is discounted as being somewhat out of date and belonging symbolically to the colonial era. The general demise and secularization of the Churches of the West is seen as making them no longer the leaders under God in worldwide mission. The emphasis here is on evangelization in the modern world in fellowship one with another so that the work is truly Global and to all nations, fulfilling the Great Commission.
This model is seen as being provided by the providence of God as the right approach for the 21st century, and it is very much associated with the African Provinces of Rwanda, Nigeria, Uganda and others. In general, it favors (a) the absence of “Gospel-based Bishops” from the 2008 Lambeth Conference; (b) attendance at a Global Anglican Conference instead; and (c) expulsion of unfaithful and heretical dioceses and Provinces from the Anglican Family of Churches.
“Traditional Anglican Communion”
While the two models above compete for the attention of the same 38 Provinces of what has been known as the Global Anglican Communion, one of the “continuing Anglican churches” [ACA] which began in 1977 as a secession from the American Episcopal Church, is now part of a fellowship of traditional people of like-mind in various countries, headed by Archbishop John Hepworth, and known as “The Traditional Anglican Communion,” This group has no desire at all to be in communion with the See of Canterbury but has applied to be recognized by the Roman Catholic Church as a special Anglican-Rite Church, using developed forms of the services of The BCP.
In the U.S.A.?
It appears that those Anglicans in the Common Cause Partners and in the Anglican Communion Network, because of their direct links to African Provinces and support of GAFCON, have chosen the new definition of the Anglican Communion. This in part explains the widespread and often not well informed criticism of both the present Archbishop of Canterbury and of the C. of E. heard often in the U.S.A.
On the other hand, The Episcopal Church (less its Anglican Network Dioceses) remains within the classic model of Anglicanism—and this despite its widespread infidelity to the Gospel. One may remark that there is a real possibility that TEC will be reprimanded, even disciplined in some way by the common will of the Lambeth Conference of 2008.
Therefore, those Anglicans who wish to remain in Communion with the See of Canterbury but have been badly treated by TEC are in somewhat difficult situation at this moment of time!
[For the commitment of TEC to communion with the C of E see the Preface in the editions of the BCP of 1789, 1892, 1928; and for that of the Church of Canada see the Solemn Declaration printed at the beginning of the BCP 1962.]
A Lament
Oh that those Bishops, who have decided that a new model of what is the Anglican Communion is necessary, would NOT see this decision as causing them to stay away from the Lambeth Conference.
Oh that these Bishops would go, graciously and courageously, to explain to the other 600 or so Bishops of the Anglican Family what has led them to their new understanding , and why they must say, as it were: “Here I stand. I can do no other. So help me God.”
Oh that they would delay any major decisions and implementation of policies until they have sought for 20 days on the university campus in Canterbury to persuade others of the need for a change in both the structure and the ethos of the Anglican Communion, so that it is a viable way of Mission and a carrier of Biblical Orthodoxy in the coming century.
Oh that they would see that to go to Lambeth, with a message of reform and renewal, is not to compromise their principles, or to submit to the liberal policies of the A. of C., but is to serve the Lord and his Church in the most practical way at this time and in this place.
Dr Peter Toon www.pbsusa.org Septuagesima 2008 drpetertoon@yahoo.com
[For a CD in pdf of the Reports of all the Lambeth Conferences 1867 and following, go to www.anglicanmarketplace.com ]
C of E centered
The word “Anglican” obviously comes from England and is derived from the Latin name of the Church of England, ecclesia anglicana. So to be Anglican is to be a member of the Church of England or of one of the churches in the world derived from It and maintaining Its major characteristics. And the Anglican Communion is a fellowship of autonomous, independent Churches that are in communion with the Church of England via the See of Canterbury. To bring the Bishops or representatives of these Churches known as Provinces together has been seen as the duty of the Incumbent of the See of Canterbury, known as the Archbishop of C. Thus since 1867, when it began, the Archbishop in office at the time has invited Bishops to the Lambeth Conference and been the President of the assembly, which is not a Synod but a Conference. He is also present on other unifying groups as Chairman or President (e.g., Primates’ Meeting).
This approach sees itself as similar to, but not exactly the same as, the place of the ancient Patriarchates of the East in Orthodoxy and of Rome in the West. In his providence, it is held that God has ordered the Anglican Way in this form, even as he has ordered the Orthodox and Roman Ways in other forms.
Centered outside of the West entirely
Here to be Anglican is primarily to have a certain style of worship, doctrine, morals and polity, derived originally from the historic Prayer Book, Services of Ordination and Articles of Religion, and placing the Bible in the center. The ancient connection with the See of Canterbury is discounted as being somewhat out of date and belonging symbolically to the colonial era. The general demise and secularization of the Churches of the West is seen as making them no longer the leaders under God in worldwide mission. The emphasis here is on evangelization in the modern world in fellowship one with another so that the work is truly Global and to all nations, fulfilling the Great Commission.
This model is seen as being provided by the providence of God as the right approach for the 21st century, and it is very much associated with the African Provinces of Rwanda, Nigeria, Uganda and others. In general, it favors (a) the absence of “Gospel-based Bishops” from the 2008 Lambeth Conference; (b) attendance at a Global Anglican Conference instead; and (c) expulsion of unfaithful and heretical dioceses and Provinces from the Anglican Family of Churches.
“Traditional Anglican Communion”
While the two models above compete for the attention of the same 38 Provinces of what has been known as the Global Anglican Communion, one of the “continuing Anglican churches” [ACA] which began in 1977 as a secession from the American Episcopal Church, is now part of a fellowship of traditional people of like-mind in various countries, headed by Archbishop John Hepworth, and known as “The Traditional Anglican Communion,” This group has no desire at all to be in communion with the See of Canterbury but has applied to be recognized by the Roman Catholic Church as a special Anglican-Rite Church, using developed forms of the services of The BCP.
In the U.S.A.?
It appears that those Anglicans in the Common Cause Partners and in the Anglican Communion Network, because of their direct links to African Provinces and support of GAFCON, have chosen the new definition of the Anglican Communion. This in part explains the widespread and often not well informed criticism of both the present Archbishop of Canterbury and of the C. of E. heard often in the U.S.A.
On the other hand, The Episcopal Church (less its Anglican Network Dioceses) remains within the classic model of Anglicanism—and this despite its widespread infidelity to the Gospel. One may remark that there is a real possibility that TEC will be reprimanded, even disciplined in some way by the common will of the Lambeth Conference of 2008.
Therefore, those Anglicans who wish to remain in Communion with the See of Canterbury but have been badly treated by TEC are in somewhat difficult situation at this moment of time!
[For the commitment of TEC to communion with the C of E see the Preface in the editions of the BCP of 1789, 1892, 1928; and for that of the Church of Canada see the Solemn Declaration printed at the beginning of the BCP 1962.]
A Lament
Oh that those Bishops, who have decided that a new model of what is the Anglican Communion is necessary, would NOT see this decision as causing them to stay away from the Lambeth Conference.
Oh that these Bishops would go, graciously and courageously, to explain to the other 600 or so Bishops of the Anglican Family what has led them to their new understanding , and why they must say, as it were: “Here I stand. I can do no other. So help me God.”
Oh that they would delay any major decisions and implementation of policies until they have sought for 20 days on the university campus in Canterbury to persuade others of the need for a change in both the structure and the ethos of the Anglican Communion, so that it is a viable way of Mission and a carrier of Biblical Orthodoxy in the coming century.
Oh that they would see that to go to Lambeth, with a message of reform and renewal, is not to compromise their principles, or to submit to the liberal policies of the A. of C., but is to serve the Lord and his Church in the most practical way at this time and in this place.
Dr Peter Toon www.pbsusa.org Septuagesima 2008 drpetertoon@yahoo.com
[For a CD in pdf of the Reports of all the Lambeth Conferences 1867 and following, go to www.anglicanmarketplace.com ]
A LAMENT OVER THE DECISION OF THE ARCHBISHOP AND BISHOPS OF SYDNEY NOT TO ATTEND THE LAMBETH CONFERENCE IN JULY 08.
“With regret, the Archbishop and Bishops of the Diocese of Sydney have decided not to attend the Lambeth Conference in July.
They remain fully committed to the Anglican Communion, to which they continue to belong, but sense that attending the Conference at this time will not help heal its divisions.
They continue to pray for the Archbishop of Canterbury and the Lambeth Conference.”
Oh how sad that the Episcopoi of Sydney, committed as they are to the Reformed Catholic doctrine of the classic Anglican Formularies, will not be present to witness to this historic Foundation in the mixed company of Bishops at Lambeth, and to see it enter the proposed new Anglican Covenant.
Oh how sad that the Episcopoi of Sydney, committed as they are to the final authority of the Holy Scriptures in all matters of Faith and Conduct, will not be present to witness to the teaching of Scripture in these areas in the mixed company of Bishops, not a few of whom regrettably place the authority of either Tradition or Experience above that of the plain meaning of Scripture.
Oh how sad that the absence of the Episcopoi of Sydney, along with those of several African Provinces, will make it that much easier for the liberal elite of the West to cause the Conference to avoid facing up to, and speaking clearly on, matters of pressing importance in the church and in society.
Oh how sad that the absence of the Episcopoi of Sydney, along with those of several African Provinces, from Lambeth will make it that much easier for the Archbishop of Canterbury to continue his commitment to “process” and his hesitancy to reach real decisions on sexual morality and associated themes.
Oh how sad that the absence of the Episcopoi of Sydney, along with those of several African Provinces, from Lambeth will give to the watching churches and world the impression that there is a major schism or division in the Global Anglican Communion.
Oh how sad that the absence of the Episcopoi of Sydney, along with those of several African Provinces, from Lambeth will give the impression to many that there is a failure on their part to distinguish sufficiently clearly between the See (ancient archbishopric) of Canterbury as an ancient Christian center and the present (liberal!) incumbent thereof.
Oh how sad that the absence of the Episcopoi of Sydney, along with those of several African Provinces, from Lambeth, and their gathering in the Middle East (Cyprus-Jerusalem or Amman-Jerusalem) for their GAFCON (Global Anglican Conference) as an alternative instead in June 08, gives the impression that they have already decided that the Anglican Communion can and should exist in these post-colonial days, when the Church is most active outside the West, without any necessary relation to the See & Archbishop of Canterbury ( for they see him as the one who always makes the important decisions on matters that concern all).
Oh how sad that the absence of the Episcopoi of Sydney, along with those of several African Provinces, from Lambeth will cause the Lambeth Conference to lack in strength one of the major voices and witnesses of Global Anglicanism—a voice and witness that has emphasized and seen much missionary outreach and church planting in the name of the Lord Jesus.
Oh how very sad to see the Global Anglican Communion in such deep distress and division in 2008, the like of which it has never known before by Anglicans, and which, as a form of religious ethos, seems to come up to the pain and tribulation in divided and disobedient Judah & Israel in the period documented in the books of I & II Kings.
BISHOP DUNCAN & “MERE ANGLICANISM”: A FRIENDLY CRITIQUE FROM A PRESBYTER OF THE ANGLICAN WAY
Bishop Bob Duncan is very much at the center of the movement within American Anglicanism to bring reform and renewal to the Anglican Way. First of all I shall summarize part of the talk he gave on February l, 2008; and then, secondly, I offer a few observations and criticisms. I begin with a brief explanation of “Mere Anglicanism.”
The expression, “Mere Christianity,” pointing to that basic relation to God the Father through Jesus Christ, the Lord, which all true disciples of Jesus know experientially, can be extended not only into “Mere Anglicanism” but also to “Mere Lutheranism” and the like. Here the idea is of being committed to the basics and essence of Christianity, but within the general provision of the Ministry of the Word and of the Sacraments, along with the discipline and habits of daily devotion, of a particular jurisdiction—e.g., The Anglican Way.
The argument of Bishop Duncan in his talk at the “Mere Anglicanism Conference” in Charleston, South Carolina, on February 1st, was that “Mere Anglicanism” is difficult or impossible to maintain and experience in the old ecclesiastical Anglican structures and ethos of the West; but, in contrast, it is the very heartbeat and essence of the religion of the Anglican Churches/Provinces in what is known as The Global South—particularly the African Provinces of Nigeria, Rwanda, Kenya, Tanzania and Uganda. And, further, if the Global South is to retain true Christian Anglicanism, then it needs to be free now—not tomorrow--of the control and influence of the Anglicanism of the West.
Then, in justification of this position, he offers the argument (as though it were universally accepted) that “the Elizabeth Settlement” of 1559 applies to and governs not only the Church of England by law established, but also in a less direct but yet very real way also governs the Anglican Provinces created from the Church of England in other lands. His major reason for claiming that this Settlement still governs Provinces in other lands is that the Archbishop of Canterbury, the Primate of all England within the Settlement, has much authority today in the Anglican world, specifically by his control over the Lambeth Conference and other central bodies, or “instruments of unity,” of the Anglican Communion.
He asserts in strong terms that this Settlement has failed both in England and in the rest of the Anglican world and that its emphasis on the authority of the Scriptures and the Formularies (BCP etc.) no longer applies as liberal theology dominates in the West; further, he explains that in the rest of the Anglican world the Settlement has failed because the Archbishop of Canterbury does not stand full square on the historic, orthodox biblical Faith and is ready to compromise with those in the West who undermine it. Thus the See of Canterbury has become a barrier to the true mission of the Church and the doctrinal purity of the Communion. Further, Duncan claims that the demise of “Mere Christianity/Anglicanism” in the West and the direct or indirect, willing or unwilling, real participation in this demise by the See of Canterbury makes this left-over of the Elizabeth Settlement irrelevant to most of the Anglican Family—certainly irrelevant to the dynamic parts in Africa, for example.
So as the Elizabeth Settlement collapses on all sides, Duncan states, the Anglican Family goes into seeming dysfunctionality and chaos; one manifestation of which is currently focused on attendance by all invited Bishops to the Lambeth Conference in July 08, that is, whether those who stand for “Mere Christianity” in the Anglican Way ought to absent themselves on grounds of conscience. And not merely absenting themselves but also attending another Conference (GAFCON) committed, it is claimed, to true mission and communion.
So, sad to relate, the Global Anglican Communion is divided into two basic camps—(a) one says that the Anglican Communion is in the providence of God to be necessarily united in communion with the ancient See of Canterbury (which, let it be recalled, was there centuries before the Elizabethan Settlement), just as the Catholic Church is related to Rome and the Orthodox to Constantinople; (b) the other says the Anglican Communion does not any longer belong to the West and to necessary communion with an ancient See; but, it is now a global fellowship free of control of the Church of England, and it will find its own center and leadership as God leads.
Bishop Duncan is very much aware of the divided state of Anglicanism—and very much in the USA in shatters—but he is optimistic. Often he states: “This look at the Elizabethan Settlement has taught us that we are in a period of disintegration but a new consensus will emerge.” He hopes that even as the Common Cause Partners in the U.S.A. will grow together into a federation and then a Province, so the faithful parts of the present Anglican Global Communion will also grow together into a viable new Global Communion free of the pernicious influence of western liberalism and revisionism.
Comment:
First of all, I must say that the Bishop is very optimistic in asserting that out of the current disintegration will come a new consensus. If the Global Anglican Communion does not very quickly cease to disintegrate, then it will find itself in several parts and unable to recover the fragile unity of a year or two ago, let alone the stronger unity of a decade ago. There will be permanent schism. And the latter is almost nearly inevitable in the U.S.A. when all the cultural, social and religious conditions are tilted to creating more denominations rather than uniting these in existence. Common Cause Partners will at best become an unstable Federation due to the powerful American individualism and prized autonomy of the participating groups!
Secondly, I think that he overstates the claimed orthodoxy of those of the African Provinces, and those who follow them. True enough, they are not commending sexual immorality as such, but in terms of the great dogmas of the Early Church concerning Who is God, and Who is Christ, and What is salvation, not a few of those claimed as “the orthodox” use liturgies which at best dumb down, and at worst undermine, these great truths of the Catholic Faith. Then, in terms of the Evangelical Faith of the Reformation, not a few of those involved use liturgies which dumb down or undermine the great truth of Justification by Faith alone through Grace alone by Christ alone (see e.g. the 1979 TEC liturgy and the 1996 Nigerian Liturgy). One cannot make a neat line of distinction between the old West and the Provinces of Nigeria, Kenya etc.
Thirdly, he does not mention the most important fact that part of the Global South is against the boycotting of Lambeth 2008 and sees the need for the focus on the See of Canterbury today –e.g. the Provinces in Asia and the West Indies. I think that Bishop Duncan needs to hear carefully what these Provinces say.
Finally, and I cannot develop this in detail, I must state that the use of the Elizabethan Settlement as a basis for his argument, is not so straightforward as the Bishop assumes, for its sixteenth-century form was modified in various ways as the centuries went by, including the last century, with the creation of the General Synod of the Church of England. However, the same Formularies of the Settlement of 1559 are still in place now as the Formularies of the present Church of England—the classic BCP, Ordinal and Articles of Religion—and not a few parishes use this Prayer Book weekly. Thus the asserted collapse is not so clear as the Bishop assumes.
February 2, 2008 drpetertoon@yahoo.com www.pbsusa.org
The expression, “Mere Christianity,” pointing to that basic relation to God the Father through Jesus Christ, the Lord, which all true disciples of Jesus know experientially, can be extended not only into “Mere Anglicanism” but also to “Mere Lutheranism” and the like. Here the idea is of being committed to the basics and essence of Christianity, but within the general provision of the Ministry of the Word and of the Sacraments, along with the discipline and habits of daily devotion, of a particular jurisdiction—e.g., The Anglican Way.
The argument of Bishop Duncan in his talk at the “Mere Anglicanism Conference” in Charleston, South Carolina, on February 1st, was that “Mere Anglicanism” is difficult or impossible to maintain and experience in the old ecclesiastical Anglican structures and ethos of the West; but, in contrast, it is the very heartbeat and essence of the religion of the Anglican Churches/Provinces in what is known as The Global South—particularly the African Provinces of Nigeria, Rwanda, Kenya, Tanzania and Uganda. And, further, if the Global South is to retain true Christian Anglicanism, then it needs to be free now—not tomorrow--of the control and influence of the Anglicanism of the West.
Then, in justification of this position, he offers the argument (as though it were universally accepted) that “the Elizabeth Settlement” of 1559 applies to and governs not only the Church of England by law established, but also in a less direct but yet very real way also governs the Anglican Provinces created from the Church of England in other lands. His major reason for claiming that this Settlement still governs Provinces in other lands is that the Archbishop of Canterbury, the Primate of all England within the Settlement, has much authority today in the Anglican world, specifically by his control over the Lambeth Conference and other central bodies, or “instruments of unity,” of the Anglican Communion.
He asserts in strong terms that this Settlement has failed both in England and in the rest of the Anglican world and that its emphasis on the authority of the Scriptures and the Formularies (BCP etc.) no longer applies as liberal theology dominates in the West; further, he explains that in the rest of the Anglican world the Settlement has failed because the Archbishop of Canterbury does not stand full square on the historic, orthodox biblical Faith and is ready to compromise with those in the West who undermine it. Thus the See of Canterbury has become a barrier to the true mission of the Church and the doctrinal purity of the Communion. Further, Duncan claims that the demise of “Mere Christianity/Anglicanism” in the West and the direct or indirect, willing or unwilling, real participation in this demise by the See of Canterbury makes this left-over of the Elizabeth Settlement irrelevant to most of the Anglican Family—certainly irrelevant to the dynamic parts in Africa, for example.
So as the Elizabeth Settlement collapses on all sides, Duncan states, the Anglican Family goes into seeming dysfunctionality and chaos; one manifestation of which is currently focused on attendance by all invited Bishops to the Lambeth Conference in July 08, that is, whether those who stand for “Mere Christianity” in the Anglican Way ought to absent themselves on grounds of conscience. And not merely absenting themselves but also attending another Conference (GAFCON) committed, it is claimed, to true mission and communion.
So, sad to relate, the Global Anglican Communion is divided into two basic camps—(a) one says that the Anglican Communion is in the providence of God to be necessarily united in communion with the ancient See of Canterbury (which, let it be recalled, was there centuries before the Elizabethan Settlement), just as the Catholic Church is related to Rome and the Orthodox to Constantinople; (b) the other says the Anglican Communion does not any longer belong to the West and to necessary communion with an ancient See; but, it is now a global fellowship free of control of the Church of England, and it will find its own center and leadership as God leads.
Bishop Duncan is very much aware of the divided state of Anglicanism—and very much in the USA in shatters—but he is optimistic. Often he states: “This look at the Elizabethan Settlement has taught us that we are in a period of disintegration but a new consensus will emerge.” He hopes that even as the Common Cause Partners in the U.S.A. will grow together into a federation and then a Province, so the faithful parts of the present Anglican Global Communion will also grow together into a viable new Global Communion free of the pernicious influence of western liberalism and revisionism.
Comment:
First of all, I must say that the Bishop is very optimistic in asserting that out of the current disintegration will come a new consensus. If the Global Anglican Communion does not very quickly cease to disintegrate, then it will find itself in several parts and unable to recover the fragile unity of a year or two ago, let alone the stronger unity of a decade ago. There will be permanent schism. And the latter is almost nearly inevitable in the U.S.A. when all the cultural, social and religious conditions are tilted to creating more denominations rather than uniting these in existence. Common Cause Partners will at best become an unstable Federation due to the powerful American individualism and prized autonomy of the participating groups!
Secondly, I think that he overstates the claimed orthodoxy of those of the African Provinces, and those who follow them. True enough, they are not commending sexual immorality as such, but in terms of the great dogmas of the Early Church concerning Who is God, and Who is Christ, and What is salvation, not a few of those claimed as “the orthodox” use liturgies which at best dumb down, and at worst undermine, these great truths of the Catholic Faith. Then, in terms of the Evangelical Faith of the Reformation, not a few of those involved use liturgies which dumb down or undermine the great truth of Justification by Faith alone through Grace alone by Christ alone (see e.g. the 1979 TEC liturgy and the 1996 Nigerian Liturgy). One cannot make a neat line of distinction between the old West and the Provinces of Nigeria, Kenya etc.
Thirdly, he does not mention the most important fact that part of the Global South is against the boycotting of Lambeth 2008 and sees the need for the focus on the See of Canterbury today –e.g. the Provinces in Asia and the West Indies. I think that Bishop Duncan needs to hear carefully what these Provinces say.
Finally, and I cannot develop this in detail, I must state that the use of the Elizabethan Settlement as a basis for his argument, is not so straightforward as the Bishop assumes, for its sixteenth-century form was modified in various ways as the centuries went by, including the last century, with the creation of the General Synod of the Church of England. However, the same Formularies of the Settlement of 1559 are still in place now as the Formularies of the present Church of England—the classic BCP, Ordinal and Articles of Religion—and not a few parishes use this Prayer Book weekly. Thus the asserted collapse is not so clear as the Bishop assumes.
February 2, 2008 drpetertoon@yahoo.com www.pbsusa.org
Wednesday, January 30, 2008
THE SEE OF CANTERBURY & THE CHURCH of ENGLAND: DO THESE MATTER ANYMORE IN THE U.S.A.? Or only Nostalgia?
Everyone agrees that what we know as Anglicanism, or the Reformed Catholicism of The Anglican Way, began when ecclesia anglicana, the Church of and in England, went through a reformation in the middle of the sixteenth century. To gain an immediate acquaintance of the heart of the changed religion of this National Church one needs to read the English Bible, the English Prayer Book, the English Ordinal [services of ordination] , the Articles of Religion, and the Book of Homilies.
Obviously, since the sixteenth century, there have been changes and developments in the religion of The Church of England and in the many churches created from it around the world. Nevertheless, everyone agrees that the Anglican form of Christianity began in the Church of England.
Until very recently everyone apparently also agreed that rightly to claim the name of Anglican a Church in any country had to be in communion with the Church of England, and the way of expressing this was often, “in communion with the See of Canterbury” as the seat of the archbishop who is known as the Primate of all England.
However, in 2008 we are in the amazing position where Churches, tiny and large, in America and Africa (and perhaps in South America), are claiming that they are truly Anglican; and, at the same time, they are asserting that this does not require being in communion with the See of Canterbury or with the Church of England.
To illustrate this point, let’s begin with the tiny churches, those known as the Continuing Anglican Churches in the U.S.A. and which originally seceded from The Episcopal Church in 1977.
On departing they clearly asserted that they desired to remain in communion with the See of Canterbury (see “Affirmation of St Louis, 1977” ). However, this dimension of their religion has now been dropped. So they claim to be able, in and of themselves, and by their own authority, to define what is “Anglican” and then practice that religion, as wholly separate from the See of Canterbury and the Anglican Communion of Churches.
Now let’s note what the largest of Anglican Churches in the world did in 2002. The Anglican Church of Nigeria removed from its constitution all reference to Communion with the See of Canterbury and stated its own authority to define both what is “Anglican” and what is “the Anglican Communion.” This new Constitution is currently in force.
Though the provinces of Rwanda, Kenya, Tanzania and Uganda have not taken such dramatic action as Nigeria, they have effectively united with Nigeria in a position that in practical terms states that Communion with the See of Canterbury is at best optional and may even be damaging—and thus avoided. One major reason for the proposed Conference in June 2008 in Jerusalem (GAFCON), just before the Lambeth Conference in Canterbury, is apparently to demonstrate that the Anglican Communion can do quite well without being [mis]guided by the Archbishop of Canterbury. The group of provinces and organizations associated with GAFCON appear to believe that “Anglican” can be defined and claimed by any group that so chooses and the ancient polity of relation to the C of E is no longer necessary—especially as long as Rowan Williams, whom they distrust, is in the See.
This means that the offshoots of these Provinces which are present in the U.S.A. and Canada have to follow the lead of their African leaders. This they seem happy to do! Apparently what is known as the Common Cause Partners (a fledgling organization of some of these offshoots and like-minded groups) has through its appointed leader, Bishop Bob Duncan, stated full commitment to GAFCON and thus to the mindset of it, which is the downgrading or rejection of the See of Canterbury.
Therefore in the U.S.A. any parish or congregation that claims the name of Anglican or Episcopal and desires to be in communion with the See of Canterbury has only one place to go, and that is The Episcopal Church! Though one could say that this Church is hanging on by a thread to its membership in The Anglican Communion of Churches, it is still a member! Much the same point applies in Canada.
There may be an exception to this and that is membership of a former TEC diocese that has become a diocese of The Southern Cone of South America—specifically San Joachin in CA. However, it is not wholly clear whether the association of this small Province with GAFCON means that it regards the See of Canterbury merely as an option rather than a necessity for truly Anglican identity.
All in all we are living in complex and confusing times, and nowhere is it more difficult to fathom what is going on than in the U.S.A.
drpetertoon@yahoo.com Sexagesima , January 2008, www.pbsusa.org
Obviously, since the sixteenth century, there have been changes and developments in the religion of The Church of England and in the many churches created from it around the world. Nevertheless, everyone agrees that the Anglican form of Christianity began in the Church of England.
Until very recently everyone apparently also agreed that rightly to claim the name of Anglican a Church in any country had to be in communion with the Church of England, and the way of expressing this was often, “in communion with the See of Canterbury” as the seat of the archbishop who is known as the Primate of all England.
However, in 2008 we are in the amazing position where Churches, tiny and large, in America and Africa (and perhaps in South America), are claiming that they are truly Anglican; and, at the same time, they are asserting that this does not require being in communion with the See of Canterbury or with the Church of England.
To illustrate this point, let’s begin with the tiny churches, those known as the Continuing Anglican Churches in the U.S.A. and which originally seceded from The Episcopal Church in 1977.
On departing they clearly asserted that they desired to remain in communion with the See of Canterbury (see “Affirmation of St Louis, 1977” ). However, this dimension of their religion has now been dropped. So they claim to be able, in and of themselves, and by their own authority, to define what is “Anglican” and then practice that religion, as wholly separate from the See of Canterbury and the Anglican Communion of Churches.
Now let’s note what the largest of Anglican Churches in the world did in 2002. The Anglican Church of Nigeria removed from its constitution all reference to Communion with the See of Canterbury and stated its own authority to define both what is “Anglican” and what is “the Anglican Communion.” This new Constitution is currently in force.
Though the provinces of Rwanda, Kenya, Tanzania and Uganda have not taken such dramatic action as Nigeria, they have effectively united with Nigeria in a position that in practical terms states that Communion with the See of Canterbury is at best optional and may even be damaging—and thus avoided. One major reason for the proposed Conference in June 2008 in Jerusalem (GAFCON), just before the Lambeth Conference in Canterbury, is apparently to demonstrate that the Anglican Communion can do quite well without being [mis]guided by the Archbishop of Canterbury. The group of provinces and organizations associated with GAFCON appear to believe that “Anglican” can be defined and claimed by any group that so chooses and the ancient polity of relation to the C of E is no longer necessary—especially as long as Rowan Williams, whom they distrust, is in the See.
This means that the offshoots of these Provinces which are present in the U.S.A. and Canada have to follow the lead of their African leaders. This they seem happy to do! Apparently what is known as the Common Cause Partners (a fledgling organization of some of these offshoots and like-minded groups) has through its appointed leader, Bishop Bob Duncan, stated full commitment to GAFCON and thus to the mindset of it, which is the downgrading or rejection of the See of Canterbury.
Therefore in the U.S.A. any parish or congregation that claims the name of Anglican or Episcopal and desires to be in communion with the See of Canterbury has only one place to go, and that is The Episcopal Church! Though one could say that this Church is hanging on by a thread to its membership in The Anglican Communion of Churches, it is still a member! Much the same point applies in Canada.
There may be an exception to this and that is membership of a former TEC diocese that has become a diocese of The Southern Cone of South America—specifically San Joachin in CA. However, it is not wholly clear whether the association of this small Province with GAFCON means that it regards the See of Canterbury merely as an option rather than a necessity for truly Anglican identity.
All in all we are living in complex and confusing times, and nowhere is it more difficult to fathom what is going on than in the U.S.A.
drpetertoon@yahoo.com Sexagesima , January 2008, www.pbsusa.org
Tuesday, January 29, 2008
Preparing for LENT: Ash Wednesday – Why no call for FASTING in the Collect?
People ask me: Why does The Book of Common Prayer (1662) delay the required Prayer (Collect) on Fasting during Lent to the First Sunday in Lent when it should, apparently, by rights, be prayed on the First Day of Lent, which is the previous Wednesday?
Here is the answer!
The Collect for the first Sunday is addressed to the Lord Jesus Christ and begins with a reference to fasting,
O Lord, who for our sake didst fast forty days and forty nights; Give us grace to use such abstinence, that, our flesh being subdued to the Spirit, we may ever obey thy godly motions in righteousness and true holiness, to thy honour and glory…..
In contrast, the Collect appointed for Ash Wednesday is addressed to the Father and contains no reference to fasting:
Almighty and everlasting God, who hatest nothing that thou hast made, and dost forgive the sins of all them that are penitent; Create and make in us new and contrite hearts, that we, worthily lamenting our sins, and acknowledging our wretchedness, may obtain of thee, the God of all mercy, perfect remission and forgiveness; through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.
The answer to the question of why no reference to fasting in the Ash Wednesday Collect is as follows:
Back in the fifth and six centuries when the Christian Year, with its Collects, Epistles and Gospels, was created, Lent began on the Sunday which was called Quadragesima, for it was about 40 days before Easter ( with the previous Sundays being named Septuagesima, Sexagesima and Quinquagesima—roughly 70, 60 & 50 days before Easter). Only later was the beginning of Lent put back to the previous Wednesday to make it an exact 40 days, when the Sundays are not counted. So in the tradition of the medieval Church of England, although Lent began literally forty days (excluding Sundays) before Easter on the previous Wednesday (called Ash Wednesday), the Collect for the First Sunday testified to (and historically belonged to) an earlier period when Lent actually began on the Sunday which was 40 days or so before Easter.
So worshippers need to know the Collect for Quadragesima, as they actually hear the Collect for Ash Wednesday at the beginning of Lent!
Now back to the special Prayer for Ash Wednesday which is to be repeated every day throughout Lent.
This was composed by Archbishop Cranmer, using as his base, the Latin Collect prayed at the benediction of the ashes on Ash Wednesday in the medieval English Church. Before the ashes were laid upon the heads of the members of the congregation the priest said, “Remember, man, that thou art ashes [dust] and unto ashes [dust] shalt thou return.”
Here is the old English Latin Collect used with the ashes in an English translation, which seeks to preserve the style of the original:
Almighty and everlasting God, who hast compassion upon all men, and hatest nothing that thou hast made, and dost not impute the sins of men by reason of their penitence; who also dost succour those who labour in necessity; Vouchsafe to bless [+] and sanctify [+] these ashes, which thou has appointed us to bear upon our heads after the manner of the Ninevites, in token of humiliation and holy devotion, and in order to the washing away of our offences; and, by this invocation of thy holy name, grant that all those that shall bear them upon their heads, to implore thereby thy mercy, may obtain from thee both the pardon of all their offences, and also grace so to begin today their holy fasts, that on the day of Resurrection, they may be counted worthy to approach to the holy Paschal feast, and hereafter to receive everlasting glory. Through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.
A final word is in order. Lent, of course, is not about historical research but is about devotion to the Lord Jesus Christ. May our abstinence and fasting in Lent be adorned in Gospel righteousness.
The Reformers dropped the use of ashes on Ash Wednesday in order to avoid superstition and misunderstanding. Today some churches have restored their use believing that their symbolism can be rightly appreciated in this time and place,
drpetertoon@yahoo.com January 2008 Sexagesima
Here is the answer!
The Collect for the first Sunday is addressed to the Lord Jesus Christ and begins with a reference to fasting,
O Lord, who for our sake didst fast forty days and forty nights; Give us grace to use such abstinence, that, our flesh being subdued to the Spirit, we may ever obey thy godly motions in righteousness and true holiness, to thy honour and glory…..
In contrast, the Collect appointed for Ash Wednesday is addressed to the Father and contains no reference to fasting:
Almighty and everlasting God, who hatest nothing that thou hast made, and dost forgive the sins of all them that are penitent; Create and make in us new and contrite hearts, that we, worthily lamenting our sins, and acknowledging our wretchedness, may obtain of thee, the God of all mercy, perfect remission and forgiveness; through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.
The answer to the question of why no reference to fasting in the Ash Wednesday Collect is as follows:
Back in the fifth and six centuries when the Christian Year, with its Collects, Epistles and Gospels, was created, Lent began on the Sunday which was called Quadragesima, for it was about 40 days before Easter ( with the previous Sundays being named Septuagesima, Sexagesima and Quinquagesima—roughly 70, 60 & 50 days before Easter). Only later was the beginning of Lent put back to the previous Wednesday to make it an exact 40 days, when the Sundays are not counted. So in the tradition of the medieval Church of England, although Lent began literally forty days (excluding Sundays) before Easter on the previous Wednesday (called Ash Wednesday), the Collect for the First Sunday testified to (and historically belonged to) an earlier period when Lent actually began on the Sunday which was 40 days or so before Easter.
So worshippers need to know the Collect for Quadragesima, as they actually hear the Collect for Ash Wednesday at the beginning of Lent!
Now back to the special Prayer for Ash Wednesday which is to be repeated every day throughout Lent.
This was composed by Archbishop Cranmer, using as his base, the Latin Collect prayed at the benediction of the ashes on Ash Wednesday in the medieval English Church. Before the ashes were laid upon the heads of the members of the congregation the priest said, “Remember, man, that thou art ashes [dust] and unto ashes [dust] shalt thou return.”
Here is the old English Latin Collect used with the ashes in an English translation, which seeks to preserve the style of the original:
Almighty and everlasting God, who hast compassion upon all men, and hatest nothing that thou hast made, and dost not impute the sins of men by reason of their penitence; who also dost succour those who labour in necessity; Vouchsafe to bless [+] and sanctify [+] these ashes, which thou has appointed us to bear upon our heads after the manner of the Ninevites, in token of humiliation and holy devotion, and in order to the washing away of our offences; and, by this invocation of thy holy name, grant that all those that shall bear them upon their heads, to implore thereby thy mercy, may obtain from thee both the pardon of all their offences, and also grace so to begin today their holy fasts, that on the day of Resurrection, they may be counted worthy to approach to the holy Paschal feast, and hereafter to receive everlasting glory. Through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.
A final word is in order. Lent, of course, is not about historical research but is about devotion to the Lord Jesus Christ. May our abstinence and fasting in Lent be adorned in Gospel righteousness.
The Reformers dropped the use of ashes on Ash Wednesday in order to avoid superstition and misunderstanding. Today some churches have restored their use believing that their symbolism can be rightly appreciated in this time and place,
drpetertoon@yahoo.com January 2008 Sexagesima
Quinquagesima Sunday—LENT begins in 3 days—February 3, 2008
The Collect for the 3 days before Ash Wednesday, and then for the rest of the week, was created by Archbishop Cranmer, after prolonged meditation upon the Epistle for the day, 1 Corinthians 13.
It replaced the medieval Collect, which related to a custom of receiving absolution (“getting shriven”) on Shrove Tuesday before Lent began. In traditional English it prayed: “O Lord, we beseech thee favorably to hear our prayers, and, having loosed us by absolution from the bonds of our sins, defend us from all adversity; through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.” For many by 1549 Shrove Tuesday had become a day of letting off steam—as now in many Latin American places—before the rigors of Lent ;and so this Collect by 1549 no longer had much relevance.
Here is the Collect that first appeared in the new English Prayer Book of 1549:
O Lord, who hast taught us that all our doings without charity are nothing worth; Send thy Holy Ghost, and pour into our hearts that most excellent gift of charity, the very bond of peace and of all virtues, without which whosever liveth is counted dead before thee: Grant this for thine only Son Jesus Christ’s sake. Amen.
We may observe first of all that to enter the door into the long season of Lent, thinking and praying about the gift of charity in relation to God and man, is an excellent way of going forward into this important penitential season. And in the second place, we note that the cruciality of the word “charity” both in the English Bibles of the sixteenth century and in the Prayer Book. It points to what we would call a real and committed love of human beings as they are in themselves before God and in their need.
The Collect addresses the Lord, who is the Father of the Lord Jesus Christ. And in his presence it recalls—by use of the relative clause—what he has taught us in his written Word, especially in 1 Corinthians 13. And this is that unless we do our good works in the spirit of love for others then as deeds seen by God they are worth nothing; for only what is truly motivated and offered in love has worth in God’s kingdom. So it is not the size or value of any good work that God sees but its quality in terms of its motivation and purpose. We recall the widow’s mite!
Having recalled in his presence what his Word teaches concerning love in action, the Collect is ready to make a major petition: “Send thy Holy Ghost—the Spirit who comes from the Father through the Son—and pour into our hearts that most excellent gift of charity.” In Galatians 5:22 we read that “the fruit of the Spirit is love.” We need to be profoundly and humbly aware that in and of ourselves, try as we may, we cannot produce the love that God approves and accepts.
What he requires of us he alone is only able to give to us—that is, to give when we are ready to receive with penitent heart. And the love that he gives enables us both to love him and, in that love, to love our fellow human beings. But this excellent gift of charity/love is not given at one moment to be there for all time; we need to be receiving this love daily so that our hearts are not governed by our own pride and selfishness.
Then the Collect in the words, “the very bond of peace and of all virtues,” offers an interpretation of the crucial and unifying place of love in the Christian life, based upon (a) Ephesians 4:3—“endeavoring to keep the unity of the Spirit in the bond of peace” and (b) Colossians 3:18—“… the bond of perfectness.” The idea is of love being that central way and means by which the various virtues (= doings) and gifts of the Spirit are held together in an orderly and efficient way in the Christian life, in order both to please the Lord and to abound in good works.
And the Collect draws to a close with a further strong statement, that can only be uttered if it is truly grounded in Scripture: “Without which whosoever liveth is counted dead before thee.” That is, not to have the love of God in the heart is to be as dead before the heavenly Father. The easiest place to look for the grounding is in 1 John 4 where we read, “He that loveth not his brother abideth in death.” But it is also grounded in 1 Corinthians 13:2, “without charity I am nothing”.
It is with one of the great verbs used in prayer, “Grant,” that the final part of the Collect begins. What has been asked thus far is only possible because of the saving and mediatorial work of the Incarnate Son of God, the Lord Jesus Christ; and so the Collect arises to the Father through the Lord Jesus Christ.
And God’s people say, Amen!
drpetertoon@yahoo.com Sexagesima 2008
It replaced the medieval Collect, which related to a custom of receiving absolution (“getting shriven”) on Shrove Tuesday before Lent began. In traditional English it prayed: “O Lord, we beseech thee favorably to hear our prayers, and, having loosed us by absolution from the bonds of our sins, defend us from all adversity; through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.” For many by 1549 Shrove Tuesday had become a day of letting off steam—as now in many Latin American places—before the rigors of Lent ;and so this Collect by 1549 no longer had much relevance.
Here is the Collect that first appeared in the new English Prayer Book of 1549:
O Lord, who hast taught us that all our doings without charity are nothing worth; Send thy Holy Ghost, and pour into our hearts that most excellent gift of charity, the very bond of peace and of all virtues, without which whosever liveth is counted dead before thee: Grant this for thine only Son Jesus Christ’s sake. Amen.
We may observe first of all that to enter the door into the long season of Lent, thinking and praying about the gift of charity in relation to God and man, is an excellent way of going forward into this important penitential season. And in the second place, we note that the cruciality of the word “charity” both in the English Bibles of the sixteenth century and in the Prayer Book. It points to what we would call a real and committed love of human beings as they are in themselves before God and in their need.
The Collect addresses the Lord, who is the Father of the Lord Jesus Christ. And in his presence it recalls—by use of the relative clause—what he has taught us in his written Word, especially in 1 Corinthians 13. And this is that unless we do our good works in the spirit of love for others then as deeds seen by God they are worth nothing; for only what is truly motivated and offered in love has worth in God’s kingdom. So it is not the size or value of any good work that God sees but its quality in terms of its motivation and purpose. We recall the widow’s mite!
Having recalled in his presence what his Word teaches concerning love in action, the Collect is ready to make a major petition: “Send thy Holy Ghost—the Spirit who comes from the Father through the Son—and pour into our hearts that most excellent gift of charity.” In Galatians 5:22 we read that “the fruit of the Spirit is love.” We need to be profoundly and humbly aware that in and of ourselves, try as we may, we cannot produce the love that God approves and accepts.
What he requires of us he alone is only able to give to us—that is, to give when we are ready to receive with penitent heart. And the love that he gives enables us both to love him and, in that love, to love our fellow human beings. But this excellent gift of charity/love is not given at one moment to be there for all time; we need to be receiving this love daily so that our hearts are not governed by our own pride and selfishness.
Then the Collect in the words, “the very bond of peace and of all virtues,” offers an interpretation of the crucial and unifying place of love in the Christian life, based upon (a) Ephesians 4:3—“endeavoring to keep the unity of the Spirit in the bond of peace” and (b) Colossians 3:18—“… the bond of perfectness.” The idea is of love being that central way and means by which the various virtues (= doings) and gifts of the Spirit are held together in an orderly and efficient way in the Christian life, in order both to please the Lord and to abound in good works.
And the Collect draws to a close with a further strong statement, that can only be uttered if it is truly grounded in Scripture: “Without which whosoever liveth is counted dead before thee.” That is, not to have the love of God in the heart is to be as dead before the heavenly Father. The easiest place to look for the grounding is in 1 John 4 where we read, “He that loveth not his brother abideth in death.” But it is also grounded in 1 Corinthians 13:2, “without charity I am nothing”.
It is with one of the great verbs used in prayer, “Grant,” that the final part of the Collect begins. What has been asked thus far is only possible because of the saving and mediatorial work of the Incarnate Son of God, the Lord Jesus Christ; and so the Collect arises to the Father through the Lord Jesus Christ.
And God’s people say, Amen!
drpetertoon@yahoo.com Sexagesima 2008
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