Formulary Friday: Collecting our prayers

The distinctive structure of the Prayer Book Collects is very helpful in composing our own prayers, in private and public, says Mark Smith.

The Prayer Book Collects are like precious, highly-polished jewels adorning a crown. They are the short prayers which ‘collect’ together particular concerns and themes expressed in the liturgy – and invariably combine clear and easily-memorable phrasing with a highly concentrated shot of sound doctrine.

We’ll have the opportunity to look at particular Collects on other occasions, but for now, let me suggest that the distinctive structure of the Prayer Book Collects gives us a very helpful model for composing our own prayers – whether in our personal prayer times, or in public worship. Keep reading

Photo: Mike Hensen, The London Free