A Prayer for the Covenant Design Group, appointed by the Archbishop of Canterbury under the chairmanship of the Archbishop of the West Indies.

Let us pray:

Almighty God our heavenly Father, we rejoice that your Incarnate Son is the Head of your Church, and that it is your will that the Church on earth should be not only in name but also in practice one, holy, catholic and apostolic in its character and nature.

We ask you mercifully to look upon that branch and jurisdiction of your Church, which is The Anglican Way, and which at this time is experiencing a severe crisis of identity, especially as it seeks ways in maintaining orthodox faith to express both autonomy and interdependency by its provinces. Especially do we pray for the Covenant Design Group, which has the important and urgent task of preparing “An Anglican Covenant” to be a means of binding together in faith, love and ministry the provinces of the Anglican Communion of Churches.

We pray that its members:

• The Most Revd Drexel Gomez, West Indies
• The Revd Victor Atta-Baffoe, West Africa
• The Most Revd Dr John Chew, South East Asia
• Ms Sriyanganie Fernando, Ceylon
• The Revd Dr Kathy Grieb, USA
• The Rt Revd Santosh Marray, Indian Ocean
• The Most Revd John Neill, Ireland
• The Revd Canon Andrew Norman, England
• Chancellor Rubie Nottage, West Indies
• The Revd Dr Ephraim Radner, USA
• Ms Nomfundo Walaza, Southern Africa
  and
• The Revd Canon Gregory Cameron, London

will be the faithful recipients of your wisdom and grace and know such a sweet fellowship and common mind that their work will lead to a successful conclusion for the edification and peace of the Church, and for the glory of your holy Name; through the same Jesus Christ our only Saviour and Lord. Amen.

The Rev'd Dr. Peter Toon MA., D.Phil (Oxford)

The Anglican doctrine of Baptism?

A starter…

The Reformed Catholic Doctrine of the Church of England and of The Anglican Way concerning Baptism is stated in (a) The Thirty-Nine Articles of Religion; (b) The Baptismal Services within The Book of Common Prayer of 1662, and (c) The Catechism, found also within the Prayer Book. It is also assumed in other places, e.g., the Collect for Christmas.

Let us begin with The Articles.

First of all, here is the general statement made concerning Sacraments in Article 25:

The Sacraments

The sacraments prescribed by Christ are badges and tokens of our profession as Christians, and, more particularly, they are trustworthy witnesses and effectual signs of God’s grace and good will to us. By them God works invisibly in us, both arousing and also strengthening and confirming our faith in him.

Christ our Lord has ordained two gospel sacraments, namely baptism and the Lord’s Supper.

In the second place here is what is said specifically concerning Baptism in Article 27:

Baptism

Baptism is a sign of the faith we profess and a mark that differentiates Christian persons from those who are unbaptized; and it is also a sign of regeneration or new birth by which, as by an instrument, those who receive baptism rightly are grafted into the Church, the promises of forgiveness of sin and of our adoption to be the sons of God are visibly signified and sealed, and faith is confirmed and grace increased by virtue of prayer to God. The baptism of young children is under all circumstances to be retained in the Church as a practice fully agreeable with the institution of Christ.

Later we shall notice what is stated in Article 16 concerning sin after Baptism. Let us now itemize what is clearly stated in Articles 25 and 27 concerning the Sacrament of Baptism as it applies in the first place to adults, and secondly to infants.

1. God the Father works invisibly and truly by the Holy Spirit in those receiving Baptism, which is a Sacrament instituted and ordained by Christ the Lord, the Incarnate Son of God.
2. Baptism is an outward and visible declaration and badge of belonging to God in Christ the Lord and is thus a means of separating the children of God from others.
3. Baptism points to spiritual regeneration or new birth and is the means by which God the Father by the Holy Spirit and for Christ’s sake declares his good will, places the baptized in his Church, grants the forgiveness of sin, adopts them as his sons/children, communicates his grace, and strengthens their faith in him.
4. Baptism is not only to be administered to adults who believe the Gospel, but also to young children/infants as well, for this is the will of the Lord Jesus Christ as known from Holy Scripture.

Article 16 teaches that there is the possibility and availability of forgiveness of sin by God after the washing and cleansing of Baptism, if, and only if, the baptized sinner is repentant and seeks God’s forgiveness.

If we turn to The Catechism we learn that there are two parts in a Sacrament, the outward visible sign, and the inward spiritual grace. The outward visible sign is Water and the inward and spiritual grace is: “A death unto sin, and a new birth unto righteousness; for being by nature born in sin, and the children of wrath, we are hereby made the children of grace.” So there is a birth into the kingdom of God and the family of God at Baptism, and the cancellation of the guilt of original sin.

Then in answer to the question what is required of adults before they are baptized, it is said: “Repentance, whereby they forsake sin: and faith, whereby they steadfastly believe the promises of God, made to them in the Sacrament.” So Baptism assumes and requires that the person being baptized is turning from sin and believing the Gospel promises of salvation from the New Testament. It assumes also that he is not yet regenerate but will be so after Baptism.

While Article 27 declares that Infant Baptism is both right and good, The Catechism tells us why. The question is posed: “Why then are infants baptized when, by reason of their tender age, they cannot either repent of sins or believe the Gospel promises?” And this is the answer: “Because they promise them both [repentance and faith] by their sureties [godparents]; which promise, when they come to age [as young adults] they themselves are bound to perform.” The nature and effects of the Sacrament are therefore identical for believing adults and their infant children, except that, in the latter case, godparents stand in the place of the children representing them, until the children are sufficiently mature consciously to believe the Gospel personally. Thus as with adults, the Catechism teaches that recently-born infants are born again, this time into the kingdom of God and the family of God. And so baptized infants are Christians and it is the profound responsibility of the parents and godparents to ensure that the Christian child is brought up as a Christian in the nurture and admonition of the Lord [see the most serious exhortation given by the Priest to the godparents at the end of the Service of Infant Baptism in the Prayer Book].

Baptism whether of adults or children is a once, and once only, Sacrament. There is no repeating of it. What is required of baptized adults and children, male and female, is that they live lives in conformity with the status given them in Baptism, that is as true followers of Jesus Christ, rejecting sin and following righteousness. The Collect for The Nativity of our Lord has this petition: “Grant that we being regenerate, and made thy children by adoption and grace [= what God does in Baptism], may daily be renewed by thy Holy Spirit [living daily truly as the Baptized]…” And the exhortation to the newly baptized adult persons, requires the Priest to address them as “you who have now by Baptism put on Christ” and say:

It is your part and duty, being made the children of God and of the Light by faith in Jesus Christ, to walk answerably to your Christian calling, and as becomes the children of light; remembering always, that Baptism represents unto us our profession; which is, to follow the example of our Saviour Christ, and to be made like unto him; that as he died and rose again for us, so should we, who are baptized, die from sin and rise again unto righteousness, continually mortifying all our evil and corrupt affections, and daily proceeding in all virtue and godliness of living.

In conclusion, this can be claimed. The doctrine of Baptism within the BCP and Articles of the Anglican Way is firmly based upon the teaching and practice of the early Fathers of the Primitive Church in the conviction that they rightly read and understood Scripture concerning the Sacraments and that they rightly discerned the mind of the Lord for his Church in this important matter. It associates, as do plain texts of the N.T., Baptism with Regeneration, and the two are never prized apart. To maintain this Anglican doctrine today requires not only an ancient way of reading the Bible but also a disciplined pastoral practice which upholds it, and such are extremely difficult to achieve and maintain in modern America be it in The Network, the AMiA or the Continuing Churches.

Today many of us think of Sacraments in the tradition of expressive individualism endemic in Western culture and also as heirs of the Evangelical Revivals wherein spiritual regeneration was effectively disconnected from the Sacrament of Baptism and made to equate with conversion. And we read the Bible not with the Fathers (who established the Canon of the New Testament) but rather with the mind of sophisticated or popular Evangelicalism and often in a version of the Bible created by dynamic equivalency from within this mindset. Thus the doctrine that was so clear and biblical and patristic to our Anglican forbears seems to many of modern Anglican clergy to be imbalanced and impractical. And so we prefer the much-changed and dumbed-down doctrine in the Baptismal Text of the 1979 Prayer Book of The Episcopal Church. Or, using the classic text from the historic BCP we simply ignore those parts of it that do not easily fit into our modern situations.

The Rev'd Dr. Peter Toon MA., D.Phil (Oxford)

Baptism, views of regeneration thereat and therein

A discussion starter from Dr Peter Toon

In the Service of Holy Baptism for both Infants and Adults in the classic editions of The Book of Common Prayer, the assumption that regeneration occurs in relation to Baptism and is an act of God the Father by His Spirit in the Name of Jesus Christ is, to my mind, absolutely clear.

Therefore, the question arises: What is understood by “spiritual regeneration” and its synonyms, which appear in the Services to be:—born anew of Water and the Holy Spirit, baptized with water and the Holy Spirit, washed with the Holy Spirit, partaker of God’s everlasting kingdom, heir of everlasting salvation, becoming a member of God’s faithful and elect children, & being grafted into the Body of Christ, and so on.

The plain common sense meaning seems to me to be that the Holy Trinity through the act of Baptism in Water makes the person who is baptized into his adopted child, a member of his covenant of grace, and heir to all the gifts and blessings of the kingdom of heaven. Thus he is born again, that is born into the family of God and the Body of the Lord Jesus Christ. Birth is a start and normally with nurturing and care leads on to maturity of a person; but birth is the beginning, not the middle or the end of the journey of grace with the Lord Jesus Christ unto the heavenly Jerusalem. Thus spiritual birth is not conversion in its fullness or completeness; it is as the planting of a seed not the reaping of a harvest, and it is as a potential rather than a realization.

Now to Evangelicals and the way they have addressed the relation of spiritual regeneration to Baptism, especially Infant Baptism.

I think it is fair to say that no group of Evangelicals has addressed this topic with more learning or urgency than those of the Church of England during the first fifty years of the reign of Queen Victoria. [See my book Evangelical Theology 1833-1856, 1979, chaps 3 & 6).They were the heirs of the Evangelical Revival inside the National Church and thus they were very familiar with the assumed and innovatory doctrine of many in and after the Revival—that spiritual regeneration, and being born again, are synonyms for conversion and renewal, and further that there is no real connection in practice of spiritual regeneration to Baptism. But also, the Evangelicals had to face the very different and strong Anglo-Catholic claim that the very administration of the Sacrament by a real priest using the right service/words guaranteed spiritual regeneration of the person baptized (this was expressed, they claimed, in the Tracts for the Times and it became a national controversy in the Gorham Case in the late 1840s; it had also been taught by Bishop Mant in his Tracts on Baptism from the SPCK back in 1815).

We may notice four views expressed by Evangelicals in the nineteenth century as to the meaning and timing of regeneration—as regeneration is expressed in the BCP services. All of them—with the BCP itself— take the reality of “original sin” present in each infant born into the world as a given (and in this of course they differ with most modern liturgists and western, Anglican clergy). Then they all want to make clear that we are saved by God himself by receiving and believing the Gospel. Further, all of them sought to dismiss the Anglo-Catholic view that full spiritual regeneration always (and inevitably) occurs when the Sacrament is rightly administered.

A minority position was stated by Bishop Henry Ryder, the first Evangelical Bishop in the C. of E. He made a distinction between ecclesiastical regeneration and spiritual regeneration. In Infant Baptism, he claimed that what was certainly given was ecclesiastical regeneration—that is, a birth into the visible church and all its means of grace, with a covenanted title to the pardon and peace of the Gospel, when received by faith later at an age of maturity. Here it is assumed that ecclesiastical regeneration will lead in God’s providence to full spiritual regeneration and conversion, as the infant matures and comes to believe.

A majority position—much affected by the Evangelical Revival—held that the biblical meaning of regeneration is closely related to personal repentance for sin, saving faith and conversion. To this they added a strong doctrine of the covenant of grace that placed the children of baptized Christians in a special relation to God. In the Baptism of Infants, therefore, they held that the promises of salvation from sin and into the kingdom of God were declared and a sign and seal of them given to infants because of the covenant promise declared in Acts 2:39. Original sin was forgiven and washed away. However, there was not any immediate spiritual change in the heart of the infant through the gift of the Holy Spirit but rather the sure promise of God that he would work spiritual regeneration and conversion when the child on reaching maturity believed the Gospel. Of course, in the case of the adult they held that the declaration of spiritual regeneration in the Service, after the Baptism, was wholly true then and there because the person had saving faith. In the case of the infant it was a declaration and promise of what would be.

Another minority position worked with both the doctrine of the covenant and also that of predestination unto everlasting life (see Article XVII). Here the child of baptized Christians who is himself also of the elect of God, is baptized and is thereby made a full member of the covenant of grace by Baptism in that he is forgiven, adopted as God’s child, and given the gift of the Holy Spirit and of eternal life. The proof of his election will be that as an adult he actually comes to and professes conversion and commitment to Jesus Christ.

Another minority position was that which assumed that the infant of baptized Christians came to the service un-regenerate but was regenerated (sin forgiven and adopted into the family of God) by God in response to the fervent prayers of the officiating priest and people present. Thus Baptism when it occurred later in the service was truly a full sign of spiritual birth into the kingdom of heaven and seal of God’s promises of full salvation.

One may close with a historical footnote. I wrote in 1979 these words and I still think what I said is true:

“It would appear that because of the intensity of feeling raised by the Gorham controversy there developed in [Anglican] Evangelicalism such a fear of baptismal regeneration ex opera operato that gradually all views involving full baptismal regeneration were given up and thus part of evangelical belief at the end of the nineteenth century was the denial of baptismal regeneration.” And what was true in 1900 seems to be true also in 2007!

Position 2 above, linked to indiscriminate Baptism of infants and dumbed down in doctrine, seems to rule and in doing so it has undermined all church life, including discipline and the Administration of Holy Communion.
* * *
For those who wish to read my book, Evangelical Theology, 1833-1856 or another serious book on Regeneration entitled Born Again (Baker Books 1987) and cannot get used copies, they may read on line at: http://www.anglicanbooksrevitalized.us/Peter_Toons_Books_Online/Doctrine/anglicanway.htm

Evangelists and Infant Baptism

A discussion starter from Dr Peter Toon, Feast of the Epiphany, 2007

Many celebrate the Evangelical Revival in Great Britain and the Great Awakening in the American Colonies of Great Britain in the eighteenth century, and recall such names as John Wesley, George Whitefield and Jonathan Edwards with warm affection. The zeal and preaching of the evangelists and the heightened spiritual experience of thousands of people of all ages is often recounted—sometimes with a longing for the recovery of such things in our time.

However, in terms of right understanding and use of the Dominical Sacraments of Baptism and the Lord’s Supper, it may be said that the Revival and Awakening set the Churches back a long way (maybe too far)—especially with Baptism.

In the main, the evangelists preached to nominal and committed Christians, that is, to persons who had been baptized as infants and who went to church even if irregularly. Now the baptismal service of the Church of England particularly, and of other Churches generally, contained an assumption that there is a close relation between being born again (regeneration) and water Baptism. And being born again meant being placed by God the Father in the covenant of grace and thus born into his Family as his adopted child. To say the least it meant that the person baptized, infant, child or adult was in some sense a Christian in reality or in potential. And over the centuries the Church in West and West had treated the baptized as Christians and exhorted them to live daily as such. Baptism is a Sacrament that is never repeated. So the baptized of any age were not to be evangelized for they were not the heathen but they certainly had to be called to consecration and commitment to the Lord.

Instead of taking their model for their preaching from the Prophets of Israel who called the people of Israel as God’s people back to the LORD from their apostasy and faithlessness, the evangelists preached to the “Christians” as if they were heathen, as if they were not baptized in the Triune Name. Thus frequently they preached, “Ye must be born again,” and equated the new birth, regeneration, with both an internal renewal and an outward conversion, available there and then. They assumed that the people were not regenerate but needed to be born again in the extended sense of full conversion, and this meant that –without necessarily thinking about it— they actively denied the doctrine of the Baptismal Services. They separated the grace and mercy of God in regeneration from the Sacrament of Baptism and made Baptism to be merely and only an outward sign. And thereby they set in motion what has become a massive pastoral and doctrinal problem for those majority of Churches which baptize the Infants of baptized Church members.

In later periods of British and American revivalist preaching, “ye must be born again,” was heard often as a command from God to be obeyed at once—and it meant “make a decision for Christ and thus be born into his people/family.” In contemporary America this kind of preaching and practice is commonplace and thus any attempt—by traditional Anglican or Presbyterian or Lutheran— to relate regeneration to sacrament is a huge task for there are so many layers of explanation and understanding required to set the context for and to teach the historic doctrine of Baptism as God’s Sign and Seal of the Covenant of Grace .

Where we are in 2007 and what are our problems in America stand in stark contrast to evangelization in the Early Church where evangelism led people to desire to become a child of God and disciple of Jesus, but this was not seen as fully realized until, after instruction and exorcism, Baptism was administered. Here, it was proclaimed, regeneration took place (as the believer was adopted by God into his covenant and family) and afterwards the new Christian, as a family members, for the first time prayed, “Our Father…” When they had children, they were also baptized and admitted thereby into the new covenant, the family of God.

As in ancient Israel where boys of 8 days were circumcised, and as converts to Judaism be they male or female, old or young, were “washed” (baptized), so in the administration of the new covenant, inaugurated by the sacrifice of Jesus himself, God places male and female, old and young, through Baptism into that covenant, which makes all the baptized the children of God. They are born into a new and everlasting Family. Once within this covenant of grace they are called to live as “God’s elect,” true followers of the Lord Jesus Christ.

This said, to hold the right doctrine of, and to administer rightly, Infant Baptism in local churches in the land, where many claim to be “born again” and see not the slightest relation of this to Baptism, are difficult, if not impossible today!

Many of us take the easy way out and reduce Infant Baptism to a service of dedication or suchlike and make no assumption that the one baptized is actually and really a Christian, to be nurtured and instructed as such until he is sufficiently mature to recognize and accept to whom he belongs! Rather, we assume that the baptized, as the un-baptized, is to be evangelized whenever possible and is to be encouraged to make a decision for Christ so that he may then be “born again.” And in all this we ditch the pastoral mind and practice of the Church over many centuries!

Dr Williams invites Dr Jefferts Schori to Primates’ Meeting (Church Times)

by Pat Ashworth

THE ARCHBISHOP of Canterbury has written to all the Primates of the Anglican Communion, in advance of their February meeting in Tanzania, confirming that he has invited the Presiding Bishop of the Episcopal Church in the United States (ECUSA), Dr Katharine Jefferts Schori, to attend.


Dr Williams acknowledges that the meeting will be “an important and
difficult encounter, with several moments of discernment and decision to be
faced, and a good deal of work to be done on our hopes for the Lambeth
Conference, and on the nature and shape of the Covenant that we hope will
assist in strengthening our unity as a Communion”.


While questions remain about ECUSA’s relations with other provinces —
“though some provinces have already made their positions clear” — the
Archbishop says that he does not think it wise or just to take “any action
that will appear to bring that consideration, and the whole process of our
shared discernment, to a premature end”.


Dr Williams believes that it is important that Dr Jefferts Schori “be given a chance both to hear and to speak, and to discuss face to face the problems we are confronting together. We are far too prone to talk about these matters from a distance, without ever having to face the human reality of those from whom we differ.”


The Archbishop of Uganda, the Most Revd Henry Orombi, has already declared publicly that he will not sit at the same table as Dr Jefferts Schori (News, 29 December). Attempts failed this week to reach him for a response to the letter.


Dr Williams goes on to say that, given the “acute dissension” in ECUSA and its widespread effects in the Communion, he intends to invite “two or three other contributors from that province, for a session to take place before the rest of our formal business, in which the situation may be reviewed”.


He says he is currently consulting about how this could be best organised. He also emphasises that ECUSA is not a monochrome body, and contains “a full range of conviction”.


Dr Williams reminds the Primates of the unequivocal support of many bishops and dioceses in the United States for the processes and recommendations of the Windsor report. “There is much to build on here,” he says. “There are many in the Episcopal Church who are deeply concerned as to how they should secure their relationships with the rest of the Communion. I hope we can listen patiently to these anxieties.”


Underlining the importance of planning constructively for Lambeth 2008, Dr Williams issues a strong warning: “If we become entirely paralysed by our continuing struggles to resolve the challenges posed by decisions in North America, we shall lose a major opportunity for strengthening our common life.”


Dr Williams tells the Primates that he will be seeking the advice of the Primates’ Meeting on the question of invitations to Lambeth. He also confirms the presence at the meeting of the Archbishop of York, Dr Sentamu, as a spokesman for the Church of England.

INFANT BAPTISM TODAY – CONFUSION IF NOT CHAOS IN ANGLICAN WAY

In the U.S.A., the greatest obstacle to receiving not only to the meaning of infant baptism as clearly provided in the classic Formularies of the Anglican Way, but also to the practice itself, is the very widespread association of “being born again” and “conversion to Jesus Christ” in popular American religion.

Often “born again” and “conversion” are identified and treated as two expressions for the same thing, that is for “a decision for Christ,” or “becoming a committed Christian.” Here the Sacrament of Baptism is very much placed in the background or made to be of little consequence. For, if both those who were baptized as infants and those who were not both absolutely need to be “born again” then infant baptism is marginalized, to say the least. It certainly has no connection with being “born again.” And also, if it is only the “born again” who should be baptized as adults then “new birth” is not necessarily or intimately connected with adult baptism either. In both cases the connection of regeneration to Baptism is non-existent as a real factor.

To say all this is to say nothing that is surprising to most American Evangelical and Charismatic Christians—even to most evangelical Episcopalians and Anglicans! In fact it is commonplace.

This very common mindset explains why it is that converts from evangelicalism to the Anglican Way resist the wording in the classic Anglican services for infants and adults in the editions of the Book of Common Prayer (beginning in 1552 and stretching through 1662 to the Canadian of 1962 and the American of 1928). In these services there is a clear, explicit and unavoidable doctrine of a necessary connection between what is called “regeneration” and the act of Baptism in the Name of the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit. Further, regeneration is also called being “born again.” They find this necessary connection to be unacceptable and either reject it, find ways around it, or turn to use modern services (e.g., that in the Episcopal 1979 Prayer Book) wherein this connection is less obvious and where also the embarrassing doctrine of original sin (so prominent in the classic services) is absent. Anther attractive feature for them of the modern American and Canadian Anglican services is the emphasis they put upon human free will and decision, so as to allow the idea that the one being baptized is making a personal contract (covenant) with God.

Indeed, the situation is such that in evangelical Anglicanism in North America, what is deemed to be “orthodoxy” (e.g., by the average clergyperson in The Anglican Communion Network, the AMiA etc.) is the doctrine that there is no specific connection between regeneration by the Holy Spirit and Baptism in Water in the Threefold Name. The Reformed Catholic doctrine (which may truly claim to be Patristically-guided Biblical teaching) so clearly set forth in the Anglican Formularies—the BCP and Thirty-Nine Articles—is seen as old-fashioned, wrong, erroneous, and even heretical. This judgment is made because the Bible is read through the spectacles of both the doctrines of popular modern Evangelicalism and also of contemporary expressive individualism. And thus the Bible is said to associate being born again with conversion, not with Baptism.

Further, to adopt the classic Anglican doctrine of Baptism and Regeneration means for most evangelical Anglicans major changes in both evangelization and pastoral policies and methods. You cannot use the modern church growth methods in their raw state. Changes to common practice include baptizing only the infants of baptized believers, of nurturing these children in church and home as Christians (not as potential Christians), that is as members of the covenant of grace by Divine adoption; and of clearly distinguishing conceptually in preaching and teaching regeneration from conversion, and recognizing the clear, biblical, covenantal relation between regeneration and Baptism.

Here Infant Baptism is not to be treated as “Infant dedication” and used as a means of getting people to come to church and to be converted! Rather it is to be highly prized as the first Sacrament of the Covenant of Grace— the eternal covenant made originally with Abraham and his seed, and then made universal in availability and application as the new covenant established by Jesus Christ. And this covenant from the very beginning was for both adult men and infant boys, and, importantly, because of the doctrine of the headship of the male, also for all women in relation to them (relatives—wife and daughters). At the end of the O T period, when Gentiles were admitted into the Israel of God all converts male and female, adults and children, were baptized in water but only the male circumcised. From apostolic times, likewise, all adults converts to Christianity and their children were baptized, as the sign and seal of their being placed by God himself in the covenant of grace, in his Family through Jesus Christ.

Below is the Service from the BCP 1928 rendered into a modern form of English, addressing the Deity as You.

---

Holy Baptism

It is the duty of the Minister in each parish to urge Christian parents not to postpone the Baptism of their infant children. Likewise it is his duty to urge adults who seek commitment to Jesus Christ to prepare for Baptism.

Baptism should normally be within Public Worship on the Lord’s Day or a Holy Day, and follow either immediately after the Second Lesson at Morning or Evening Prayer, or be included within The Order for Holy Communion at a suitable place.

For each male-child there should normally be two Godfathers and one Godmother, and for each female-child two Godmothers and one Godfather.

Before any Adult is baptized, he should be examined beforehand to make sure that he truly believes in our Lord Jesus Christ and is sufficiently instructed in the principles of the Christian Faith. Further, he should be urged to prepare for receiving the Sacrament with prayer and fasting. At the time of Baptism, he should be presented by at least two witnesses/sponsors.

In the text below he and him may be changed to she and her and also made plural as they and them etc. Likewise this child and this your servant may be made plural when occasion requires.

This Service has five basic parts: (1) the Preparation; (2) the Promises of the candidates and their Sponsors; (3) the Blessing of the Water in the Font; (4) the actual Baptism; and (5) final prayer and thanksgiving.

---

At the Font, filled with pure water, the Minister shall say the following, as all stand.

Has this Child (Person) already been baptized?

If they answer, No; then the Minister proceeds as follows, as the People stand:

Dearly beloved, the Sacrament of Baptism is offered because our Lord Jesus Christ taught us that we cannot enter the kingdom of God unless we are born anew of water and the Holy Spirit. Therefore, I urge you to call upon God the Father, in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, that in his bounteous mercy he will give to this Child (this Person) a new nature that is not his by birth; that he may be baptized with water and the Holy Spirit, and received into Christ’s holy Church to be made a living member thereof.

Then shall the Minister say,

Let us pray.

Almighty and immortal God, giver of aid to the needy, strength to the helpless, and everlasting life to those who believe, we pray for this Child (this your Servant) who is coming to your holy Baptism, that he may receive forgiveness of his sins by spiritual regeneration. Receive him, as you have promised by your well-beloved Son in the Gospel, saying, Ask, and you shall have; seek and you shall find; knock and the door will be opened to you. Therefore, Lord, give us what we now ask; let us find what we seek; open the door to us as we knock; and make this Child (this your Servant) to come, through the blessing of your heavenly washing, to the eternal kingdom, which you have promised by Christ our Lord. Amen

Then the Minister shall from the RSV or the ESV read the one of the following: Mark 10:13 - 16 ; or John 3:1- 8 ; or Matthew 28: 18 - 20, as the Gospel, introducing it as follows:

Hear the words of the Gospel according to St. …, in the … chapter, beginning at the … verse.

The Gospel ended, the Minister shall say,

And now, having learned the good will of our heavenly Father toward this Child (this Person), declared by his Son Jesus Christ, let us faithfully and devoutly give thanks to him, as we say together,

Almighty and everlasting God, heavenly Father, we give you humble thanks because you have called us to the knowledge of your grace and to faith in you. Increase this knowledge, and confirm this faith in us this and every day. Give your Holy Spirit to this Child (this your Servant), that he may be born again, and made an heir of everlasting salvation; through our Lord Jesus Christ, who lives and reigns with you and the same Holy Spirit, now and for ever. Amen.

When infants are to be baptized the Minister shall address the Godparents as follows.

Beloved in Christ, you have brought this Child here to be baptized; you have prayed that our Lord Jesus Christ would be pleased to receive him, to break the power of sin over him, to sanctify him with the Holy Spirit, and to make him an heir of the kingdom of heaven and everlasting life.

Do you, therefore, in the name of this Child renounce the devil and all his works, the vain attractions and glory of this evil world, with all its covetousness, and the sinful desires of fallen human nature, so that you will not follow, nor be led, by them?

Answer: I renounce them all, and by God’s help, intend not to follow, nor be led by them.

Do you believe the whole content of the Christian Faith, as contained in the Apostles’ Creed?

Answer: I do.

Is it your intention to be baptized in this Faith?

Answer: That is my desire.

Will you then obediently keep God’s holy will and commandments, and walk in them all the days of your life?

Answer: I will, by God’s help.

Having now, in the name of this Child, made these promises, will you also on your part ensure that this Child learn the Creed, the Lord’s Prayer, and the Ten Commandments, and all other things which a Christian ought to know and believe for his salvation?

Answer: I will, by God’s help.

Will you also ensure that this Child, after sufficient instruction, is brought to the Bishop to be confirmed by him?

Answer: I will, by God’s help.

When Adults are to be baptized, the Minister shall address them as follows, with those to be baptized answering for themselves.


Beloved in Christ, you have come here desiring to receive holy Baptism. We have prayed that our Lord Jesus Christ would graciously receive you, to release you from sin, to sanctify you with the Holy Spirit, to give you the kingdom of heaven, and everlasting life.

Do you renounce the devil and all his works, the vain attractions and glory of this evil world, with all the its covetousness, and the sinful desires of fallen human nature, so that you will not follow, nor be led by, them?

Answer: I renounce them all, and by God’s help, intend not to follow, or be led by, them.

Do you believe in Jesus the Christ, the Son of the Living God?

Answer: I do.

Do you accept him, and desire to follow him as your Savior and Lord?

Answer: I do.

Do you believe the whole content of the Christian Faith, as contained in the Apostles’ Creed?

Answer: I do.

Do you wish to be baptized in this Faith?

Answer: That is my desire.

Will you also obediently keep God’s holy will and commandments, and walk in them all the days of your life?

Answer: I will, by God’s help.

Then shall the Minister make the following supplications for all candidates:

Merciful God, grant that like as Christ died and rose again, so this Child (this your Servant) may die to sin, and rise to newness of life. Amen.

Grant that all sinful desires may die in him, and that all things belonging to the Spirit may live and grow in him. Amen.

Grant that he may have power and strength by faith to have victory and to triumph, against the devil, the world and sinful human nature. Amen.

Grant that whoever is here dedicated at this time to you by my office and ministry may also be given heavenly virtues, and your everlasting reward, through your mercy, Blessed Lord God, who live and govern all things, for ever and ever. Amen.

The Lord be with you

Answer: And with your spirit.

Lift up your hearts.

Answer: We lift them up to the Lord.

Let us give thanks to the Lord our God.

Answer: It is fitting and right to do so

It is very fitting, right, our obligation and duty, that we should always and everywhere give thanks and praise to you, Lord, holy Father, Almighty, Everlasting God, because your most dearly beloved Son, for the forgiveness of our sins, shed from his most precious side at the Cross both water and blood; and later gave commandment to his disciples, that they should go teach all nations and baptize them in the Name of the Father, and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit. Hear, we humbly ask, the prayer of your people; sanctify this water to the mystical washing away of sin; and grant, that this Child (this your Servant), now to be baptized in it, may receive the fullness of your grace, and ever remain in the number of your faithful children; through Jesus Christ our Lord, to whom with you in the unity of the Holy Spirit, be all honor and glory, now and for ever. Amen.

The Minister takes the child into his arms, or by the hand, and says to the godparents,

Name this Child.

If the person to be baptized is an adult, he shall ask the witnesses his Name.

Then the minister shall proceed to the Baptism saying for each candidate, as he dips him in the Water or pours Water upon him:

N I baptize you in the Name of the Father, and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit. Amen.

Then the Minister shall say the following and make the sign of the Cross upon the forehead.

We receive this Child (this Person) into membership of Christ’s flock, and sign him with the sign of the Cross, symbolizing that from this time forward he shall not be ashamed to proclaim the faith of Christ crucified and courageously to fight under his banner against sin, the world and the devil; and to continue Christ’s faithful soldier and servant to the end of his life. Amen.

Then the Minister shall say,

Beloved in Christ, now that this Child (this Person) has been born anew and has been received into the family of Christ’s Church, let us give thanks unto Almighty God for these blessings; and with one mind pray to him, that this Child (this Person) may lead the rest of his life according to the promises made on his behalf (by him) today.

All join together in the Lord’s Prayer, in the traditional or modern version,

(a) Our Father who art in heaven, …
(b) Our Father in heaven, hallowed be your name….

Then the Minister shall say,

Most merciful Father, we offer you sincere thanks, that it has pleased you to grant this Child (this your Servant) new birth by your Holy Spirit, to receive him as your own Child, and to make him a member of your holy Church. We humbly ask you to grant that he, being dead to sin, may live unto righteousness, and being buried with Christ in his death, may also share in his resurrection; so that finally, within your holy Church, he may be an inheritor of your everlasting kingdom through Christ our Lord. Amen.

Then the Minister shall also say,

Almighty God, the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, from whom every family in heaven and on earth is named, strengthen you internally with power by his Spirit, that Christ dwelling in your heart by faith, you may be filled with all the fullness of God. Amen.

It is proper that every baptized Adult should be confirmed by the Bishop as soon after his Baptism as is possible, and that immediately afterwards he will be admitted to Holy Communion.

---

[In the 1662 edition of The Book of Common Prayer, the service begins with an Exhortation which is different from that in 1928 and then has a long prayer, filled with biblical typology, which is not used by 1928. Here is the Exhortation and the Prayer in a modern form.]

Dearly beloved in Christ, the Sacrament of Baptism is offered because our Lord Jesus Christ taught us that we cannot enter the kingdom of God unless we are born anew of Water and the Holy Spirit. This new birth is necessary because all human beings have both a disposition towards evil and are also sinners. Therefore, I ask you to call upon God the Father, in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, that in his great mercy he will grant new birth to this child; that he may be baptized with water and the Holy Spirit, and received into Christ’s holy Church and be made a living member thereof.

Almighty and everlasting God, who in mercy saved Noah and his family in the Ark when the great flood came, who safely led the children of Israel through the Red Sea, symbolizing thereby holy Baptism; and who by the Baptism in the river Jordan of your Son, Jesus Christ, sanctified water to the mystical washing away of sin; in your infinite mercy look on this child, wash and sanctify him by the Holy Spirit, we pray, in order that, being delivered from your wrath, he may be received into the Ark of Christ’s Church. Make him to be steadfast in faith, joyful through hope, and rooted in love, so that passing through the dangers and anxieties caused by the world, he may finally come to the land of everlasting life, there to reign with you forever; through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.

END

The Rev'd Dr. Peter Toon MA., D.Phil (Oxford)

Epiphany – journeying by faith to a known goal

In contemporary “spirituality” a lot is made by some of “journeying” and keeping a journal of daily feelings and religious experiences. However, much of this emphasis on one’s journey is not specific on such basics as from where the journey began and to where the journey is headed! Regrettably, it can be more about the experience of being en route to wherever one may be going than what is there at the end of the road as the goal of the effort.

In contrast, when the wise men, the sages of the East, set off on their journey Westwards they knew where they were going and for whom they were looking, even though the specifics were not clear until they got near to their destination (Matthew 2). No doubt they had both uplifting and depressing experiences on their long journey; yet they kept going in the one direction because the goal of the journey was what made the journey necessary. They intended to see and worship the One born to be King of the Jews and they were not satisfied until they could present him with their precious gifts and worship him.

On the Feast of the Epiphany (January 6) Anglicans pray:

O God, who by the leading of a star didst manifest thy-only begotten Son to the Gentiles:….

We read the biblical account of “the wise men from the East,” we meditate upon it and we marvel how non-Jews could be so inspired and so dedicated in their determination to see and adore the Messiah of the Jews, whom they came to see is also the Saviour of the world. We note the sacrifice and time they were prepared to offer in order to gain knowledge of God’s salvation and we compare it with what we are prepared to make and give—and we feel ashamed, but also inspired.

Mercifully grant, that we, which know thee now by faith, may after this life have the fruition of thy glorious Godhead, through Jesus Christ our Lord.

The sages knew Jesus by sight and by faith; but we know him only by faith. Certainly we can know about him by education, instruction, reading and study; certainly we can be very well informed about his titles, commandments, teachings, ministry and saving work; but in and above, and through, this knowledge about him we must know him by faith—that is to be practically and experimentally (experientally) in touch and fellowship with him. To know God requires knowledge about him from his self-revelation but the real knowing is by faith, a saving faith that works by love.

In this mortal life and in this evil age, the baptized people of God are on a journey, and it is a journey which has a goal, a real goal, and it is a journey in which faith in the Incarnate Son of God is the primary means of staying on the road, which is a narrow way towards the end of that road. The end of the road is to gaze upon the glory of the Father as it shines in the face of the Lord Jesus Christ and to serve the Holy Trinity unto ages of ages. For inside the gates of heaven faith will be fulfilled in sight of Jesus and hope will be fulfilled in the beatific vision. As the star led the pilgrims from the East towards the Saviour, so the revealed word of God as taught in the Church of God, our “Mother”, teaches the people of God to walk by faith in the light of Christ Jesus towards the land of promise. There they will taste the glorious fruit of perfect communion with the Godhead, that is with the Person of the Father through the Person of the Incarnate Son by the presence of the Person of the Holy Ghost. And they will be immersed in LOVE.

In its original medieval form in Latin this Collect prayed that we “may be led onwards, until we come to gaze upon thy Majesty by sight.” The journey is important for by it we are prepared in heart and mind (through testing and chastisement) for the contemplating, adoring and gazing upon the Majesty of God as this is reflected through, by and in the Incarnate Son. However, let us be clear, the journey is not important in and of itself but only as it is the means, the pilgrimage, ordained by God to bring us through this evil world into the world of pure delight, the heavenly Jerusalem.

The sages of the East saw the Majesty of God clothed in humility and in relative poverty and then they returned home to live by faith until they were given the sight of the glory of God in the face of Jesus Christ at death. But the baptized people of God head for the Goal and when they reach it they remain there for ever, going from “glory unto glory” in the glorious light of the heavenly Lamb of God, and surrounded by the redeemed people of God and the hierarchy of heavenly choirs.

The “fruition of thy glorious Godhead” is the GOAL for herein is and will contained everything to satisfy creatures from everlasting to everlasting.

AMEN

January 5, 2007 petertoon@msn.com

AMiA Contemporary English 1662 BCP & Phos Hilarion

Kindly note:

1. The trial use AMiA contemporary English version of significant parts of the classic 1662 BCP, and called “The Green Book,” is available for those who wish to study it from St John the Evangelist Anglican Church in Philadelphia. Call 215 396 1970 ask for Patricia and she will tell you the cost per copy or in bulk if a church wishes to use it. This will not the final version of this work, but is what is being used in order to move to a final version. It is not intended to prevent the use of the classic 1662 BCP itself but as a way into this Common Prayer Tradition for those who are used only to “You” language for God. There will be a seminar on this “Green Book” at the AMiA Conference in Jacksonville on Thursday Jan 18. [Also I have a compressed pdf file of it which I am prepared to send to the serious-minded person who requests it.]

2. An excellent article by The Revd Dr Daniel McGrath on THE PHOS HILARON, the ancient Greek evening hymn, (and so badly translated in the 1979 ECUSA prayer book) is available [with other stimulating pieces] in THE MANDATE for January 2007 available at www.pbsusa,org for downloading and in printed version in 2 weeks time from the PBS office. This is the seventh in a series of articles on HYMNS written by my neighbor in Washington State, Fr Daniel, who is a musician and priest.

The wonderful FEAST of the EPIPHANY is close – rejoice as you keep it.

The Rev'd Dr. Peter Toon MA., D.Phil (Oxford)

What’s New from Oxford?

The 1928 Book of Common Prayer

Available January 2007

This volume is a treasured resource for traditional Anglicans and other readers that appreciate the majesty of King James-style language. 5-1/2”x 7”

NOTE: This new style replaces all existing bindings of the 1928 Book of Common Prayer.

KEY FEATURES INCLUDE:
• A sturdy binding that will withstand years of daily use.
• Presentation Page for personalizing the book as a gift.
• Certificates for the rites of Baptism, Confirmation and Marriage.

ISBN-13
9780195285253
Style No.
7601
Binding
bonded leather over board
Color
burgundy
Price
39.99
Features
sewn pages, shrinkwrapped, gilded page edges, gold cross stamped on front cover, slipcase

Prices, specifications and product availability are subject to change without notice. Oxford University Press, Inc. publishes works that further Oxford University’s objective of excellence in research, scholarship, and education.

The Anglican Way in 2007. Is OPTIMISM appropriate?

Since we do not have a sure word of prophecy from the contemporary equivalent of Elijah or John the Baptist, we cannot say with certainty what is going to happen to the Anglican Way worldwide during the coming year of 2007. All we can do is to look at what has happened in recent years, seek to understand it, and suggest on the basis of this knowledge, and other accessible knowledge, what is likely to happen. And if we do this then what we suggest will necessarily have many qualifiers built into it.

In terms of the global situation, we can say with reasonable certainty that what the Archbishop of Canterbury says and does month by month, and what The Primates’ Meeting in February says and does, will have enormous effect upon the ethos and stability of the Anglican Way. We can also say with reasonable certainty that what the Canadian Anglican Synod decides in July 07 with reference to The Windsor Report and what the American Presiding Bishop (with the Executive Council and House of Bishops of The Episcopal Church) continue to say and do on the same topic will have some general effect upon the Anglican Way globally, as well as in N.A.

It is difficult to be optimistic about the effect globally of words and actions of the persons and groups mentioned above, because they are apparently deeply divided amongst themselves by what seems to be a major chasm, for they hold differing doctrines of Who is God, Who is Jesus?, and What is salvation? So their words and actions at any given time tend to strengthen the cause of their supporters and to alienate their opponents. Thus the likelihood of major, solid moves being made by these parties towards the creation of genuine, reconciled and permanent conciliar structures which recognize autonomy and require interdependency of provinces seem to be slim, very slim—despite the work on "The Anglican Covenant" and towards a common core of canon law for the provinces. So the global situation seems to be ripe not for general unity on sound principles, but for the continuing evolution of a variety of groupings based on ideology and geography—at best, ripe for the evolution of a large traditional grouping and a smaller liberally progressive one (as the A of C has indicated).

In North America, where the Anglican Way is so dysfunctional, divided and desperate, it is nearly impossible to be optimistic in any direction at all—except perhaps from the limited perspectives of (i) an individual parish which is managing to grow in numbers and maturity despite the context of confusion around, (ii) an Anglican society which is having temporary success in its mission, and (iii) individual Christians who are maturing in faith and love in this ongoing crisis.

On the ground we find Anglicanism is made up of (a) a rich variety of "continuing" Churches, small or very small, and little cooperation between them; (b) offshoots from African and Indian Anglican provinces—e.g. AMIA & ACAC, small but growing; (c) around 100 break-away congregations from ECUSA temporarily tied to overseas bishops as their acting Episcopal Visitor; (d) dioceses and parishes within ECUSA claiming not to be of the same faith and practice as ECUSA; (e) the majority of ECUSA dioceses and parishes, wholly or partly in support of the modern agenda, and (f) much the same in Canada but on a much smaller scale; and (g) other manifestations. Then we have various societies and networks and councils seeking to work with all or most of these expressions of Anglicanism, sometimes together and sometimes in opposition. Further, we find a lot of movement and activity from North America to other places in the Global Communion and back again, often creating false hopes and confused information. Thus while the amount of news and the flow of adrenalin is rich (see www.Virtueonline.org) the quality and health of the Anglican Way in North America appears to deteriorate daily in a corporate sense, despite the energy, noise and God-talk.

Let us be honest. From the perspective of the American supermarket of religions, the dividedness of the Anglican Way poses no problems—it adds to the color and size of the growing supermarket and the pages in "Yellow Pages"! Yet from the perspective of the vision of the Anglican Way as a Communion of autonomous yet interdependent national Churches/ geographical provinces the dividedness is a tremendous burden causing great agony and seemingly permanent crisis.

So pessimism for the health of the Global Communion and for the future of the Anglican Way in North America seems to be required by the evidence available to us. A house divided cannot stand and a house built upon sand will fall down.

At the same time, optimism seems in order for those Anglican Provinces, virtually all in the Global South so-called, where the church is growing in maturity and numbers, despite the real difficulties caused by poverty, the aids epidemic, militant Islam and the profusion of sects. All these churches are traditional and wholly opposed to the western, liberal progressive agenda.

Happily the wisdom, will, power and mercy of the Blessed, Holy and Undivided Trinity of the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit are not limited by and to what is presently the case or what we think will be the case tomorrow. With God the impossible is possible—if he wills; thus, "Let us pray…"

Don’t go to Rome or Orthodoxy or classic Protestantism yet!

Feast of the Circumcision of Jesus the Christ, January 1, 2007
The Rev'd Dr. Peter Toon MA., D.Phil (Oxford)