Independence Day
Commemoration of the signing of the Declaration of Independence on July 4, 1776. It is a legal holiday in the United States. The 1785 General Convention directed that a service be drawn up for this day, and “That the said form of prayer be used in this Church, on the fourth of July, for ever.” […]
American Missal, The
The American Missal: The Complete Liturgy of the American Book of Common Prayer with Additional Devotional Material Appropriate to the Same. It was first published in 1931 by Morehouse Publishing Company. A revised edition appeared in 1951 with the copyright: Earle Hewitt Maddux, S.S.J.E. A note on page iv states: “this book can claim no […]
Vernacular
A language that is commonly spoken in a locality, the native language of a place. In the early church, the vernacular was used as the language for Christian liturgy. However, language that was once vernacular may in time become archaic or disused as a common language of the people. For example, Latin became the vernacular […]
Suter, John Wallace, Jr.
(June 18, 1890-Nov. 27, 1977). He was born in Winchester, Massachusetts. Suter received his B.A. from Harvard University in 1912 and his B.D. from the Episcopal Theological School in 1914. He was ordained deacon on June 7, 1914, and priest on Apr. 25, 1915. Suter was assistant minister and director of Christian Education at Christ […]
Historical Documents of the Church
This is a collection of five documents in the 1979 BCP (pp. 863-878), the first Prayer Book to have and use the title Historical Documents. The five documents are the “Definition of the Union of the Divine and Human Natures in the Person of Christ,” which was adopted by the Council of Chalcedon in 451; […]
Certain Trumpet, The
This journal was published at Norwalk, Connecticut, from Mar. 1972 until Feb. 1981. It was founded and edited by Perry Laukhuff, who wrote that “At Minneapolis [the 1976 General Convention], the Episcopal Church unilaterally altered the sacred Apostolic ministry by purporting to allow the ordination of women in the contravention of Christ's example, theological principle, […]
Hatchett, Marion Josiah
(b. July 19, 1927). A leading liturgical scholar of the twentieth century. He was born in Monroe, South Carolina. His father was a Methodist pastor. Hatchett was confirmed in the Episcopal Church in Dec. 1946 while a student at Wofford College, where he received his B.A. in 1947. He received his B.D. in 1951 from […]
Price, Charles Philip
(Oct. 4, 1920-Oct. 13, 1999). Priest, theologian, and seminary professor. He was born in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. Price received his B.A. from Harvard University in 1941, his M.Div. from the Virginia Theological Seminary in 1949, and his Th.D. from Union Theological Seminary in 1962. He was ordained deacon on Feb. 24, 1949, and priest on Oct. […]
Liturgics
The study of liturgy, including the rites, forms, texts, symbols, and theology of worship. It is also known as liturgiology. Candidates for ordination to the transitional diaconate and priesthood must be examined and show proficiency in liturgics concerning Christian worship according to the contents and use of the Book of Common Prayer. Similarly, candidates for […]
Suter, John Wallace
(Dec. 1, 1859-Apr. 11, 1942). Priest and liturgist. He was born in Boston, Massachusetts. Suter received his B.A. from Harvard University in 1881 and his B.D. from the Episcopal Theological School in 1885. He was ordained deacon on June 17, 1885, and priest on June 8, 1886. From 1885 until 1912 he was the rector […]
Episcopal Church, The
A conference of three clergy and twenty-four lay delegates met at Chestertown, Kent County, Maryland, on Nov. 9, 1780, and resolved that "the Church formerly known in the Province as the Church of England should now be called the Protestant Episcopal Church." On Aug. 13, 1783, the Maryland clergy met at Annapolis and adopted the […]
Allin, John Maury
(Apr. 22, 1921-Mar. 6, 1998). Twenty-third Presiding Bishop of the Episcopal Church. He was the sixth Bishop of Mississippi from May 31, 1966 to June 1, 1974, and Presiding Bishop from June 1, 1974 to Dec. 31, 1985. He was born in Helena, Arkansas, and received his B.A. (1943) and B.D. (1945) from the University […]
Insufflation
Ancient liturgical practice of “blowing in” the Holy Spirit to the mouth of the candidate for baptism by the celebrant. It was preparatory to the baptism itself. The term is from the Latin in and sufflare, “to blow.” It was the counterpart to the “exsufflation,” or exorcism of evil spirits by the action of the […]
Liturgy of the Lord’s Supper was presented to the 1967 General Convention and approved for trial use
It was also in 1967 that the General Convention approved the constitutional change allowing trial use for liturgical revision. Responses to this eucharistic rite influenced Services for Trial Use, a series of rites authorized by the 1970 General Convention. Subsequent publications in the process of trial use for Prayer Book revision included Authorized Services 1973 […]
Liturgy of the Lord’s Supper, The (1966)
A book containing a eucharistic rite for trial use, along with study materials concerning the process of liturgical revision, the problem of liturgical norms, new perspectives in liturgical renewal, and a detailed rationale for the proposed revision of the eucharistic rite. Its appendices included a document of an Inter-Anglican Committee on the structure and contents […]
Hart, Samuel
(June 4, 1845-Feb. 25, 1917). Secretary of the House of Bishops and dean of the Berkeley Divinity School. He was born in Saybrook, Connecticut. Hart received his B.A. from Trinity College, Hartford, Connecticut, in 1866, and his B.D. from the Berkeley Divinity School in 1869. He was ordained deacon on June 2, 1869, and priest […]
Malania, Leo
(May 21, 1911-Sept. 1, 1983). Prayer Book revision coordinator. He was born in Tiflis, in the Russian province of Georgia. Malania received his B.A. from the University of Toronto in 1934. He studied at the George Mercer School of Theology. Malania was ordained deacon on Feb. 27, 1965, and priest on Dec. 21, 1965. Before […]
Reproaches, The
The reproaches are a traditional anthem based on OT prophetic passages (see Mi 6:3-4) and the Trisagion. It is sung at the Good Friday liturgy during the veneration of the cross. It is also called Improperia. It begins, “O my people, what have I done unto thee? or wherein have I wearied thee? Testify against […]