On the Horns of Dilemma: Catholics and Protestants in the Anglican Church in North America

By Robin G. Jordan

Clergy and congregations in the Anglican Church in North America who highly value the Protestant Reformation and the doctrine and principles of the reformed Anglican Church embodied in her historic formularies are faced with some tough choices. In this article I am going to look at a number of possible options from which they might choose and weigh the pros and cons of each of these options.

1. These clergy and congregations can gradually abandon historic Anglicanism and embrace the confession du jour, the form of unreformed Catholic beliefs and practices embodied in the ACNA’s formularies, proposed and otherwise. This is the path that the ACNA leaders who are responsible for these formularies are hoping will happen. They are hoping that the clergy and congregations will quietly acquiesce to the form of unreformed Catholicism that they are foisting on the province and will put up no resistance.

I do not expect to see clergy who do not accept these formularies ejected from their churches. However, I do expect them to experience pressure from their bishops and fellow clergy to conform, particularly in dioceses in which the bishop and other clergy subscribes to the form of unreformed Catholicism embodied in the formularies or place support of the ACNA as an organization above other considerations. This happened in the Anglican Church of Canada and the Episcopal Church in the USA when the agenda of progressive liberal Anglicans and Episcopalians became the official policy of the denomination. The ACNA shows no evidence of being any different from these two Anglican provinces in this regard. It is the nature of the beast.

If these clergy and congregations do conform, the North America will be left without a genuine Anglican presence and witness as well as the Anglican Church in North America.

2. Clergy and congregations in the Anglican Church in North America who uphold the doctrine and principles of the reformed Anglican Church embodied in her historic formularies might migrate to one of the other breakaway churches. Of the older breakaway churches that form the Continuum or predate the 1970s St. Louis Continuing Movement, only two jurisdictions claim to uphold the doctrine and principles of the reformed Anglican Church embodied in her historic formularies—the Anglican Orthodox Church and the United Episcopal Church of North America. Both jurisdictions are small and aging. One has experienced a number of divisions; the other has vacillated between Anglo-Catholicism and Protestant Broad-Church Anglicanism.

Both jurisdictions are poorly equipped to have an effective witness on the twenty-first century North American mission field. Both jurisdictions permit only the use of the King James Bible in church services. They do not permit the use of modern Bible translations. This puts them at a decided disadvantage when it comes to reaching the younger generations who struggle with the Elizabethan English of William Shakespeare’s plays and sonnets and the Jacobean English of the King James Bible. University students for whom English is not their native language have a particularly difficult time with these older forms of the English language.

Both jurisdictions have adopted the 1928 Book of Common Prayer as their official Prayer Book. The United Episcopal Church of North America also permits the use of the 1662 Prayer Book and 1962 Canadian Prayer Book in its churches. The language of these Prayer Books presents the same kinds of difficulties for the younger generations and foreign exchange students as does the language of the King James Bible. The doctrine and liturgical usages of the 1928 Prayer Book and 1962 Canadian Prayer Book do not conform to those of the 1662 Prayer Book. The use of the 1928 Prayer Book and the 1962 Canadian Prayer Book weakens their claim to uphold the doctrine and principles of the reformed Anglican Church embodied in her formularies. Both books embody doctrine and principles that represent a departure from the doctrine and principles of the reformed Anglican Church.

For some clergy in these two jurisdictions their attachment to the 1928 Prayer Book (or the 1962 Canadian Prayer Book) is sentimental. They have used the book for the better part of their ministry. For others this attachment is sentimental and doctrinal. In such cases one must question the full commitment of these clergy to the doctrine and principles of the reformed Anglican Church. A few may use the 1928 Prayer Book simply because it is the only Prayer Book that they are permitted to use. They have no attachment to the book, sentimental or otherwise.

In my opinion both jurisdictions would benefit from adopting a policy of permitting the use of modern translations of the Bible and contemporary versions of the 1662 Prayer Book services. But it may be too late in the game for them to do so. Their existing clergy and congregations, I suspect, have too much invested in the continued use of the King James Bible and the 1928 Prayer Book.

Neither jurisdiction is vigorously engaged in planting new churches in the United States and Canada and remissioning existing churches. Both jurisdictions are heavily reliant on transfer growth.

The Anglican Orthodox Church has more overseas affiliates than it does parishes and missions in the United States. These overseas affiliates are not the result of the missionary efforts of that jurisdiction but are, for the most part, if not entirely, small indigenous churches that have, out of a desire to be a part of a larger network of churches and thereby to gain a measure of legitimacy, placed themselves under the umbrella of the Anglican Orthodox Communion, the brain-child of the AOC’s presiding bishop. The extent to which these overseas affiliates adhere to the doctrine and principles of the reformed Anglican Church embodied in its historic formularies is unknown.

As can be seen this option has its drawbacks. It may be the right choice for some clergy and congregations who have no other alternative.

A mass migration from the Anglican Church in North America to one or both of these jurisdictions, however, would be, to my mind, pouring new wine in old wineskins. While these two jurisdictions might initially welcome the new clergy and congregations, they would likely experiencing difficulty in assimilating the newcomers in the long run. While they may share a commitment to the doctrine and principles of the reformed Anglican Church, they are poles apart upon the use of modern translations of the Bible, contemporary versions of the 1662 Prayer Book services, and a host of other issues. These differences would likely create tensions between longtime clergy and congregations of the two jurisdictions and the new arrivals and might lead to divisions that do not serve the cause of a united reformed Anglican presence and witness in North America.

3. Clergy and congregations in the Anglican Church in North America who highly value the Protestant Reformation and the doctrine and principals of the reformed Anglican Church embodied in her historic formularies can try to maintain a shadow existence in the ACNA. They can cling to the hope that they can outlive the present leadership of the ACNA and at some future date can gain control of the levers of power in the province.

The problem with this option is that it is predicated on the idea that these clergy and congregations can somehow not only survive in the environment that the Catholic wing of the Anglican Church in North America is seeking to create in the province but also thrive in that environment. It is not an environment that is friendly to the doctrine and principles of the reformed Anglican Church or to clergy and congregations that uphold such doctrine and principles. It is an environment intended to spread the form of unreformed Catholicism which that wing espouses to all levels of the ACNA—provincial, diocesan, and local.

Clergy and congregations who uphold the doctrine and principles of the reformed Anglican Church may for a time find refuge in the dioceses of bishops who may be friendly to such doctrine and principles or tolerant of them. They, however, have no assurance that these dioceses will be such a refuge for the long term. Under the provisions of the constitution and canons of the Anglican Church in North America, the College of Bishops has the last say in regards to who may become the bishop of a diocese in the province. The College of Bishops has authority to confirm the election of a bishop elected by a diocese or to appoint a bishop for the diocese from candidates nominated by the diocese.

The Catholic wing of the ACNA has pushed to make the second method of choosing a bishop the primary method of choosing a bishop and to phase out the election of bishops by dioceses. Eliminating the first method of choosing a bishop, which is most ancient method of choosing a bishop, would give the College of Bishops greater control over who became a bishop. Since the College of Bishops is dominated by the Anglo-Catholic-pro-Orthodox bishops, it would also give this faction in the College of Bishops greater control over who became a bishop. The provisions of the constitution and canons do not require the College of Bishops to choose one the nominees proposed by the diocese for the office of bishop of the diocese. They also do not prohibit the College of Bishops from choosing its own nominee for that office.

This particular method of choosing bishops was originally touted as an improvement over the way bishops are elected in the Episcopal Church. It was further touted as one of the ways that the African provinces chose their bishops and maintained the orthodoxy of their episcopal college.

What was not mentioned was that the Roman Catholic Church has exercised a strong influence upon the African view of bishops as has traditional African society. This particular method is similar to the way Roman Catholic bishops are chosen. In the Roman Catholic Church the conference of bishops of a province submit a list of candidates for the episcopate to the Apostolic See. Individual bishops may also submit the names of candidates to the Apostolic See. The Pope chooses new bishops from these nominees. The Roman Catholic Church’s Code of Canon Law does not prohibit the Pope from choosing a new bishop from other candidates that he believes are suitable for the episcopal office.

In the African adaptation of this method of choosing bishops the episcopal college of a province takes the place of the Pope. Just as the Pope consults with the bishops of a province before choosing a new bishop, the episcopal college consults with the diocese. The episcopal college then makes its choice as does the Pope.

One does not have to be a rocket scientist to figure out why the Anglican Church in North America’s Catholic wing prefers this method of choosing bishops. It enables that wing to entrench itself in the College of Bishops and through the College of Bishops to control the direction of the province.

4. Clergy and congregations in the Anglican Church in North America who uphold the doctrine and principles of the reformed Anglican Church embodied in her historic formularies can push for the reorganization of the ACNA and other major reforms in the province. I do not know how far they would get. The provincial legislative process is designed to inhibit much needed reform, not to facilitate it. It also designed to permit one faction in the ACNA to control the entire process.

Dioceses may make recommendations to the Provincial Council which may refer the recommendations to the Governance Task Force which may draft proposed legislation based upon these recommendations. If the Provincial Council is not satisfied with this legislation, it refers the legislation back to the Governance Task Force with any recommended changes. There is no such thing as a private member’s bill in the Provincial Council. A member cannot propose legislation or an amendment to legislation. If the Provincial Council is satisfied with the revised legislation, it formally adopts it and passes it on the Provincial Assembly. The Provincial Assembly has the choice of approving the legislation or referring it back to the Provincial Council. The Provincial Assembly cannot amend the legislation itself. It only can recommend changes to the legislation. It has no power to initiate legislation or revise it or substitute other legislation for it. Its legislative sessions are tightly orchestrated. Discussion of legislation is kept to a minimum. Except for rubber-stamping any legislation submitted to it, the Provincial Assembly is largely an overblown pep rally.

The Anglican Church in North America’s legislative process reflects a basic distrust of the judgment of the ordinary clergy and laity who are the primary stakeholders in the province. It designed to lend an air of legitimacy to the decisions of the top echelon of the province—its bishops and a few other key leaders.

Due to the way the Anglican Church in North America is organized, clergy and congregations committed to biblical Christianity and historic Anglicanism might be more successful bringing about reform at the diocesan level. The provisions of the ACNA’s canons do, however, require the constitutions and canons of a diocese to contain nothing that is inconsistent with the province’s constitution and canons. If the province’s Catholic wing becomes alarmed by a movement among the dioceses to assert greater independence for themselves in such areas as governance, election of bishops, catechetical instruction, and forms of worship, those involved in this movement should not be surprised if that wing rams legislation through the Provincial Council and the Provincial Assembly restricting their independence. The province’s Catholic wing is not happy with the degree of independence that they enjoy now. Any movement toward greater diocesan autonomy would be viewed as a threat to its hegemony.

5. A fifth option that clergy and congregations in the Anglican Church in North America who highly value the Protestant Reformation and the doctrine and principles of the reformed Anglican Church embodied in her historic formularies may wish to weigh is taking advantage of the provisions of the ACNA’s constitution and canons which recognize the right of dioceses to band together for the purpose of missions or in distinct jurisdictions and form a network of dioceses and churches committed to upholding the doctrine and principles of the reformed Anglican Church—something like the Anglican Communion Network. The ACN, as you may remember, was the forerunner of the ACNA. This network could combine its resources to plant new churches and to remission existing ones and cooperate on other projects such as the publication of catechetical material of its own and contemporary versions of the 1662 Prayer Book services and maintenance of a central registry of affiliated clergy and congregations, as well as represent historic Anglicanism in North America. It might draw up its own covenant recognizing the plenary authority of the Holy Scriptures and affirming the one apostolic and catholic faith embodied in the creeds and the doctrine and principles of the reformed Anglican Church embodied in her historic formularies.

I understand that some clergy and congregations have changed their affiliation several times and may be suffering from fatigue associated with these changes. They are numb from the theological disputes that have divided the Anglican Communion and the non-Communion Anglican Churches over the past 50 odd years. However, if they are truly committed to biblical Christianity and historic Anglicanism, this option may be their best choice.

If the Catholic wing of the Anglican Church in North America attempts to block the formation of such a network, it will show to the GAFCON Primates that the ACNA is not GAFCON in North America as they might like to believe. If the GAFCON Primates side with the ACNA’s Catholic wing, it will show to the world that GAFCON Primates do not really stand for biblical Christianity and historic Anglicanism as they claim to do.

The formation of such a network would also facilitate an amicable parting of the ways between the ACNA’s Catholic and Protestant wings should they decided that the two wings cannot inhabit the same ecclesial body due to their differences. It would not mean that they could not continue to cooperate in some areas such as the funding of a joint pension fund and health insurance plan and the protection of the unborn.

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Why Can’t We All Get Along? Catholics and Protestants in the Anglican Church in North America

By Robin G. Jordan

In the article “The Anglican Continuum – Some Thoughts for Its Renewal” the late Dr. Peter Toon championed the comprehensiveness that he understood to be one of the finer characteristics of Anglicanism and which Douglas Bess, author of Divided We Stand: A History of the Continuing Anglican Movement, dismisses as “muddle-headed thinking.” Bess by his own admission is an Anglo-Catholic. While he tries to be objective and is for a large part successful, his sympathy for the Catholic wing of the Continuum is evident. Bess opines that Dr. Toon did not understand the Catholic Revivalists in the Continuum and was fooling himself he believed that they would give thought to what he was saying.

While Dr Toon may have been correct in his assumption that comprehensiveness is one of the better characteristics of the Anglican tradition, Bess was right in his observation that this view of Anglicanism carries no weight with Catholic Revivalists. They view Anglican comprehensiveness as a weakness.

Bess focuses on Catholic Revivalists’ dogmatism as the reason why they see Anglican comprehensiveness as a weakness. However, their dogmatism is not the only reason that they view it that way.

From Catholic Revivalist perspective Anglican comprehensiveness is a weakness that they historically have been able to exploit, promoting the idea when it served their purposes, using it to establish credentials for themselves in the Anglican Church and to support their claim that they are a legitimate Anglican theological school of thought. Having used it to gain a foothold in the Anglican Church, they fear that others may take advantage of it in the same way.

When Catholic Revivalists have promoted comprehensiveness, it has been lopsided. It is a comprehensiveness that makes room for their beliefs and practices but not for the beliefs and practices of other schools of churchmanship. It is a one-way street.

One may champion Anglicanism as a convergence of theological streams—three streams, one river—as long as unreformed Catholicism is the main current of the river and evangelicalism and Pentecostalism are just eddies near the river’s banks. One may champion liturgical revision as long as it produces rites and services that are expressions of unreformed Catholicism or countenance unreformed Catholic beliefs and practices.

Self-preservation motivates Catholic Revivalists to oppose a policy of comprehensiveness in the Anglican Church in North America as much as dogmatism. They fear what may happen should they lose their grip on the levers of power in the ACNA. In the Episcopal Church progressive liberals exploited comprehensiveness to topple Anglo-Catholics from their position of leadership in that denomination as Anglo-Catholics had previously toppled its Evangelicals.

In the Anglican Church of North America Catholic Revivalists have taken ground in such areas as governance, the catechism, the ordinal, and the proposed Book of Common Prayer but fear the loss of this ground. They have not made much headway in their efforts to ban women’s ordination and to secure an all male priesthood. This has prompted Bishop Jack Iker to declare a state of impaired communion in the Anglican Church of North America.

The issue of women in ordained ministry is a perennial topic of discussion at meetings of the College of Bishops. While Bishop Iker has called for an ACNA equivalent of the Rodgers Report and accused former Archbishop Duncan of obstructing such a report, ten years after the formation of the province may a little too late for the kind of report that he wants to see the Task Force on Women’s Ordination produce. The only purpose that such a report would serve at this late date is to provided  Bishop Iker and other opponents of women’s ordination in the ACNA with leverage to use against supporters of women’s ordination in the province.

The Rodgers Report was produced three years after the formation of the Anglican Mission in America. Its recommendation was that “the Anglican Mission in America should maintain its present moratorium on the ordination of women, at least to the priesthood and episcopate, until a consensus emerges within the Anglican Communion that can be declared to be such by a Lambeth Conference.”

Since that time a lot of water has flowed under the proverbial bridge. The leadership of the Archbishop of Canterbury has fallen into disrepute in the Global South provinces. Anglicans in the Canada, the United Kingdom, and the United States as well as in the Gobal South look to the GAFCON Primates and the Global South Primates for leadership. Global South bishops boycotted the last Lambeth Conference. To the Global South provinces the bishops assembled at Lambeth no longer speak the mind of the Anglican Communion.

The Anglican Church in North America, unlike the Anglican Mission in America, did not impose a moratorium on the ordination of women to the presbyterate only their ordination to the episcopate. The constitution of the ACNA guarantees the right of dioceses that support women’s ordination to ordain women as deacons and priests.

As for the Global South provinces, while some do not ordain women, a large number of them do. A consensus is no more likely to emerge in these provinces than in the Anglican Communion as a whole. The panel for whom Bishop John Rodgers wrote the report knew that the emergence of a consensus was unlikely in the foreseeable future. It simply provided an after-the-fact rationale for the moratorium.

The overall drift in the Anglican Communion has been toward the acceptance of women’s ordination. That drift does not show any signs of changing directions. A reversal on woman’s ordination in the Anglican Church in North America might prove risky. It might alienate not only the supporters of women’s ordination in the ACNA but also the Global South provinces that ordain women.

Where does this leave ACNA clergy and congregations who place a high value on the Protestant Reformation and the historic Anglican beliefs and practices grounded in the Holy Scriptures and the Reformation? Frustrated in their efforts to ban women’s ordination, Catholic Revivalists can be expected to double-down and not to budge an inch in response to calls for greater comprehensiveness in the province. Even if they are successful in imposing such a ban, they cannot be expected to relinquish any ground that they have taken.

ACNA clergy and congregations that are committed to remaining faithful to the Bible and historic Anglicanism cannot ignore these developments. They are going to be affected by the developments if they are not already affected by them. Their viability as a theological school of thought in the Anglican Church in North America is at stake. This is a lesson that they should have learned from what happened in the Episcopal Church and continues to happen in that denomination. The remaining conservative Episcopal dioceses and conservative Episcopal parishes and missions have not been able to insulate themselves from the agenda of the progressive liberals in the denomination.

May be you are thinking to yourself, “Is it really as bad as that in the Anglican Church in North America?” Consider this. Does a friend and ally put in place a form of church government that does not allow you much voice in the affairs of the province? Does a friend and ally compile and endorse a catechism that conflicts with the historic Anglican formularies on such key issues as the order of salvation and the sacraments, favors the position of a particular side of an issue over which Anglicans have historically been divided, for example, baptismal regeneration; and espouses doctrine, implicitly if not plainly expressed, that historic Anglicanism has viewed as unscriptural? Does a friend and ally prepare and endorse proposed rites and services that expresses doctrine which the English Reformers rejected on solid scriptural grounds and countenances practices that they rejected for the same reason?

The obvious answer is “no.” A friend and ally does not do that sort of thing. However, that is exactly what the supposed friend and ally of Protestant Anglicans in the ACNA has done, proving by these actions to be no friend or ally.

My grandparents and my mother loved to quote proverbs. Some were taken from the Bible; others were taken from literature or were folk sayings. One of these proverbs was “actions speak louder than words.” What matters most is not what people say but what they do.

If the Anglican Church in North America is not making a genuine effort to make room for all the schools of churchmanship of conservative North American Anglicans in the here and now, the ACNA cannot be expected to do so at some later date. The culture of the province is being established at this very moment and it is not a culture that genuinely welcomes confessional Anglicans and other Protestant Anglicans. It is a culture that views them as an obstacle to the aspirations of the Catholic wing of the province.

Since it is not politically expedient to bar Protestant Anglicans from the province or to expel them, the province’s Catholic wing has adopted an alternative strategy of preventing them from becoming a significant influence in the province. We see that strategy in play in the form of church government, the catechism, and the proposed rites and services.

I am no wild-eyed conspiracy theorist. This strategy is a natural outgrowth of the Catholic wing’s conviction that its beliefs and practices are the only valid ones, its desire for self-preservation, and its desire to be the dominant influence in the province and to shape the province along the lines of how it believes that the church should be. Whatever lip service it may give to cooperation with Protestant Anglicans, it is not willing to put up with a potential rival in its midst. After all, it has an almost 200 year history of believing that it and it alone truly represents what it means to be Anglican.

The situation in the Anglican Church in North America is a life-and-death one for Protestant Anglicans because the province’s Catholic wing is creating an environment that not only is unfriendly to historic Anglicanism but also is intended to discourage its growth. This is evident from the ACNA’s form of church government, its catechism, and its proposed service book.

This brings us to the thorny question of whether Catholics and Protestants can coexist in the Anglican Church in North America? Where Catholics and Protestants do coexist in an Anglican jurisdiction, it is in the kind of environment in which a variety of schools of churchmanship are tolerated at the local level—at the level of the parish or mission—and at the jurisdictional level there is a commitment to the dictum, “Unity in essentials, liberty in non-essentials, and in all things, charity.”

The governing documents of the jurisdiction will contain a statement like the Fundamental Declarations of the Anglican Church of Australia.

1.The Anglican Church of Australia, being a part of the One Holy Catholic and Apostolic Church of Christ, holds the Christian Faith as professed by the Church of Christ from primitive times and in particular as set forth in the creeds known as the Nicene Creed and the Apostles’ Creed.

2. This Church receives all the canonical scriptures of the Old and New Testaments as being the ultimate rule and standard of faith given by inspiration of God and containing all things necessary for salvation.

3. This Church will ever obey the commands of Christ, teach His doctrine, administer His sacraments of Holy Baptism and Holy Communion, follow and uphold His discipline and preserve the three orders of bishops, priests and deacons in the sacred ministry.

The jurisdiction’s governing documents may also affirm the doctrine and principles of the Church of England embodied in its historic formularies—The Thirty-Articles of Religion of 1571, The Book of Common Prayer of 1662, and The Form of Making, Ordering, and Consecrating Deacons, Priests, and Bishops of 1661.

The theological school of thought that has the most influence in the jurisdiction may espouse a moderate form of Anglo-Catholicism or a moderate form of the “Protestant reformed religion by law established,” which is tolerant of the existence of divergent opinions in the jurisdiction provided these opinions do not stray outside the limits of the comprehensiveness, which the jurisdiction has adopted. Its adherents do not feel a need to force their own particular beliefs and practices upon the other clergy and congregations with which they share the jurisdiction. They are secure enough in their position in the jurisdiction to take a low-key approach, recognizing that these other clergy and congregations may come around to their way of thinking over time.

Catholics and Protestants can co-exist in this kind of environment as long as the dogmatists of one wing or the other do not start jockeying to become the exclusive theological school of thought in the jurisdiction. When that happens, any thought of coexistence goes out the window. Any detente between the two wings will break down.

This is what is happening in the Anglican Church in North America. By their actions the dogmatists of the ACNA’s Catholic wing are signaling that they intend to become the exclusive theological of thought in the jurisdiction. The only two groups that will be tolerated in the province are those which subscribe to their beliefs and practices or are sympathetic to them. The second group is tolerated out of the expectation that it eventually will subscribe to these beliefs and practices.

What is developing is the kind of situation that calls for the type of intervention to which the Fellowship of Confessing Anglicans has committed itself—at least on paper. Whether the FCA can bring itself to intervene in what was supposed to be GAFCON in North America is an entirely different matter.

One way of looking at the developments in the Anglican Church in North America is to see it as a test of the resolve of the Fellowship of Confessing Anglicans to truly stand for what they claim to uphold. Is the FCA willing to intervene in a GAFCON member-province if the developments in that province warrant a FCA intervention? If the FCA cannot bring itself to take that step then its usefulness as a defender of biblical Christianity and historic Anglicanism must be questioned. It is a paper tiger. All talk and no action.

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A Contemporary Reformed Anglican Service of the Lord's Supper

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To show how easy it would be to furnish the Anglican Church in North America with a modern-language version of the Holy Communion service of the reformed Anglican family of Prayer Books – The Books of Common Prayer of 1552, 1559, 1604, and 1662 – I have reproduced below one of the forms of the Lord’s Supper from Common Prayer: Resources for Gospel-Shaped Gatherings (2012). This form is described as “a contemporary version of the Book of Common Prayer service.” An examination of the form supports this description. It is in my opinion one of the better contemporary versions of the Prayer Book service. Compiled by the Archbishop of Sydney’s Liturgical Commission, it conforms to the doctrinal and worship principles laid out in the Thirty-Nine Articles, embodies the doctrine of the 1662 Prayer Book and its predecessors, the 1552, 1559, and 1604 Prayer Books, and respects the  liturgical usages of these books.

For churches that highly value the Protestant Reformation which restored the New Testament gospel to the English Church and the historic Anglican beliefs and practices which are grounded in the Holy Scriptures and the Reformation, this form of the Lord’s Supper would be a good choice. It also has a high degree of flexibility, adaptability, and congregational participation, which make it a useful resource for churches on the North American mission field.

THE LORD’S SUPPER
FORM 1

This is a modern and simplified restatement of the order created by Archbishop Thomas Cranmer during the Reformation of the sixteenth century. It was the only form used in England for over 400 years and has been the basis for many contemporary Anglican revisions.

It focuses on the death of Christ for our sins and the believer’s justification by faith. The service moves a number of times from acknowledgment of sin, to hearing the word of grace, to the response of faith.

The service is in two halves. The first half is a service of the Word and Prayer. We appeal for God’s mercy following a meditation on the Commandments. God’s word of grace is heard in the readings and sermon, and we respond with an affirmation of faith and prayer. A second appeal for God's mercy comes with the confession of sins. God’s words of love for the unworthy follow and we respond by joining the heavenly praise of God. We are briefly faced with our unworthiness again before being assured of God’s grace as we share in the Lord's Supper together. The service concludes with a response of praise and thanksgiving.

THE LORD’S SUPPER
FORM 1

(a contemporary version of The Book of Common Prayer service)

THE WORD AND THE PRAYERS

1. Verses of Scripture highlighting the character of God and how we should respond to him may be read (e.g. Psalms 98:1-2; 105:1-2; Isaiah 45:22-23; John 6:35; 8:12; Acts 17:24-25; Colossians 3:16-17).

A suitable hymn or song may follow.

2. The minister invites all to pray together.

Let us pray.

Almighty God, to whom all hearts are open, all desires known, and from whom no secrets are hidden, cleanse the thoughts of our hearts by the inspiration of your Holy Spirit, that we may perfectly love you, and worthily magnify your holy name, through Christ our Lord. Amen.

3. The minister may read a form of the Ten Commandments (Exodus 20:1–17) or Jesus’ declaration of the Two Great Commandments (Matthew 22:37–40).

Hear the commandments which God gave his people Israel.

1. I am the Lord your God who brought you out of Egypt, out of the land of slavery; you shall have no other gods besides me.
2. Do not make any idol for yourself; you shall not bow down to them or serve them.
3. Do not misuse the name of the Lord your God.
4. Observe the Sabbath day by keeping it holy. Six days shall you labour and do all you have to do, but the seventh day is a Sabbath to the Lord your God.
5. Honour your father and your mother.
6. Do not murder.
7. Do not commit adultery.
8. Do not steal.
9. Do not give false testimony against your neighbour.
10. Do not covet anything that is your neighbour’s.

After each commandment, the people may say Lord, have mercy on us and incline our hearts to keep this law.

After the last commandment, or after the commandments have been read together, the people may say Lord, have mercy on us, and write your commandments in our hearts by your Holy Spirit.

or

Jesus said: “’Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind and with all your strength’. This is the first and greatest commandment. The second is like it: ‘Love your neighbour as yourself’. All the Law and the Prophets hang on these two commandments.”

Lord have mercy on us, and write your commandments in our hearts by your Holy Spirit.

4. The prayer of the day is said (see pages 46-49).

5. The Bible readings follow, one from the Old Testament and at least one from the New Testament.

A psalm may be said and suitable songs may follow any of the readings, to express appropriate responses to what has been heard.

6. The Nicene Creed is said here or after the sermon, the people standing.

We believe in one God, the Father, the Almighty, maker of heaven and earth of all that is, seen and unseen. We believe in one Lord, Jesus Christ, the only Son of God, eternally begotten of the Father, God from God, Light from Light, true God from true God, begotten not made, of one being with the Father; through him all things were made. For us and for our salvation he came down from heaven: he was incarnate of the Holy Spirit and the virgin Mary and became truly human. For our sake he was crucified under Pontius Pilate; he suffered death and was buried. On the third day he rose again in accordance with the Scriptures; he ascended into heaven and is seated at the right hand of the Father. He will come again in glory to judge the living and the dead and his kingdom will have no end. We believe in the Holy Spirit, the Lord, the giver of life, who proceeds from the Father and the Son, who with the Father and the Son is worshipped and glorified, who has spoken through the prophets. We believe in one holy catholic and apostolic church. We acknowledge one baptism for the forgiveness of sins. We look for the resurrection of the dead, and the life of the world to come. Amen.

7. The sermon is preached here or before the creed.

8. A song may follow and a collection may be taken.

Members of the congregation may be encouraged to support the work of the gospel and provide for the needy by the reading of biblical passages such as Matthew 5:16; 6:19-20; 7:21; 2 Corinthians 9:6-7; Galatians 6:6, 10; Hebrews 13:16; 1 John 3:17. 9.

The minister or one or more members of the congregation may pray, using this form or a suitable alternative.

Let us pray for all people, and for Christ’s church throughout the world.

Almighty and eternal God through the apostle Paul you teach us to pray and to give thanks for all people. In your mercy (accept our gifts and) receive our prayers. Set the nations on the path of righteousness and peace. Lead their rulers to wise decisions and right actions for the welfare of all. We pray for the leaders of our nation (especially …), and for all who exercise authority in this land. Enable them to uphold justice, restrain wickedness and promote integrity and truth. Comfort and sustain, merciful Lord, everyone in this fleeting life who is in sorrow, need, sickness, or any other distress (especially …). Pour out your Spirit on your church, so that all who acknowledge your holy name may agree in the truth of your word, and live in unity and godly love. Give grace to all bishops and other ministers (especially …), to set forth your life-giving word by their example and teaching and rightly administer your holy sacraments. Give grace to your people gathered here, to receive your word with humble and obedient hearts and serve you in holiness and righteousness all the days of our lives. We praise you for all who have died in the faith of Christ (especially …). Help us to follow their good examples, that with them we may inherit your heavenly kingdom. Hear us, Father, for the sake of Jesus Christ, our only mediator and advocate. Amen.

10. A song may follow.

THE LORD’S SUPPER

11. The minister may say the following exhortation.

Brothers and sisters in Christ, we who come to receive the holy communion of the body and blood of our Saviour Christ can come only because of his great love for us. For, although we are completely undeserving of his love, yet in order to raise us from the darkness of death to everlasting life as God’s sons and daughters, our Saviour Christ humbled himself to share our life and to die for us on the cross. In remembrance of his death, and as a pledge of his love, Jesus instituted this holy sacrament, which we are now to share. But those who would eat the bread and drink the cup of the Lord must examine themselves, and amend their lives. They must come with a repentant heart and steadfast faith. Above all, they must give thanks to God for his love towards us in Christ Jesus. And then the minister invites the people to genuine repentance and faith in Christ You then who truly repent of your sins, and are reconciled with others, intending to lead a new life of joyful obedience to God, draw near with faith, and take this holy sacrament to strengthen and sustain you. But first, let us make a humble confession of our sins to Almighty God.

12. A pause for self-examination may follow. All then say the following confession together.

Almighty God, Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, you made all things, and you call everyone to account. With shame we confess the sins we have committed against you, in thought, word and deed. We rightly deserve your condemnation. We turn from our sins and are truly sorry for them; they are a burden we cannot bear. Have mercy on us, most merciful Father. For the sake of your Son our Lord Jesus Christ, forgive us all that is past. Enable us to serve and please you in newness of life, to your honour and glory, through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.

13. The minister stands and assures the people of God’s forgiveness.

 Almighty God our heavenly Father, who has promised to forgive the sins of all who turn to him with repentance and faith, have mercy on you; pardon and deliver you from all your sins, strengthen you to do his will, and keep you in eternal life, through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.

14. The minister says the following words of assurance.

Hear these words of assurance for those who truly turn to Christ.

Jesus said: ‘Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest’. Matthew 11:28

‘God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish, but have eternal life.’ John 3:16

The apostle Paul said: ‘Here is a trustworthy saying that deserves full acceptance: Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners’. 1 Timothy 1:15

The apostle John said: ‘If anyone sins, we have an advocate with the Father, Jesus Christ the Righteous One. He is the atoning sacrifice for our sins.’ 1 John 2:1–2 15

15. The minister leads the people in praise and thanksgiving.

Lift up your hearts,
We lift them to the Lord.
Let us give thanks to the Lord our God.
He is worthy of all praise.

Always and everywhere, it is right for us to praise you, Lord, holy Father, mighty Creator and eternal God.

On certain days a special preface (see below) is said here.

Therefore, with all those gathered around your throne in heaven, we proclaim your great and glorious name, in words of never-ending praise:

Holy, holy, holy Lord, God of power and might, heaven and earth are full of your glory. Glory to you, Lord most high.

Special prefaces for use at Christmas, Easter, Ascension, Pentecost and Trinity:

Christmas
We praise you for giving your only Son Jesus Christ to be made man for us. By the power of the Holy Spirit he was born of the virgin Mary his mother, without sin, to make us free from all sin.

or

We praise you that the Word became flesh and made his dwelling among us. We have seen his glory, the glory of the one and only Son, who came from the Father, full of grace and truth.

Easter
We praise you especially for the glorious resurrection of your Son Jesus Christ our Lord. He is the true Passover lamb who was offered for us and has taken away the sin of the world. By his death he has destroyed death; by his rising to life again he has restored to us eternal life.

Ascension
We praise you through Jesus Christ our ascended Lord, who was seen by his disciples after his resurrection and in their sight went into heaven to sit at your right hand and prepare a place for us, that where he is we might also be and reign with him in glory.

Pentecost
We praise you through Jesus Christ our Lord, by whose sure promise the Holy Spirit came upon the apostles to teach them and lead them into all truth, giving them boldness and fervent zeal to preach the gospel to all nations. By that gospel we have been brought out of darkness and error into the true knowledge of you and of your Son Jesus Christ.

Trinity
You are one God, one Lord, not one person but three persons. For all that we believe of your glory, Father, we believe also of the glory of your Son and of the Holy Spirit. We worship you, one God in Trinity and Trinity in unity.

After each of these prefaces the minister and people continue with the words “Therefore, with all those gathered etc.”

16. This prayer of preparation (or the version found on page 51) may be said by the minister alone or by all together.

We do not presume to come to your table, merciful Lord, trusting in our own righteousness, but in your many and great mercies. We are not worthy so much as to gather up the crumbs under your table. But you are the same Lord whose nature is always to have mercy. Grant us, therefore, gracious Lord, so to eat the flesh of your dear Son Jesus Christ, and to drink his blood, that we may evermore dwell in him, and he in us. Amen.

17. Standing at the table, the minister continues to give thanks. As Jesus’ words of institution are said, the minister breaks the bread and takes hold of the cup before all the people.

We thank you, our Father, that in your love and mercy you gave your only Son Jesus Christ to die on the cross for our salvation. By this offering of himself once and for all time Jesus made a full, perfect and sufficient sacrifice for the sins of the whole world and commanded us to continue a remembrance of his precious death until his coming again.

Hear us, merciful Father, and grant that we who receive these gifts of your creation, this bread and this wine, according to our Saviour’s command, in remembrance of his suffering and death, may be partakers of his body and blood.

On the night he was betrayed, Jesus took bread and, when he had given thanks, he broke it, then gave it to his disciples, saying, ‘Take and eat; this is my body which is given for you; do this in remembrance of me.’

In the same way after the meal, Jesus took the cup and, when he had given thanks, he gave it to them, saying, ‘Drink from this, all of you. This is my blood of the new covenant, which is poured out for you and for many for the forgiveness of sins. Do this, as often as you drink it, in remembrance of me.’

18. The minister may say

Come let us eat and drink in remembrance that Christ died for us, and feed on him in our hearts by faith with thanksgiving.

The minister and those assisting give the bread to each person saying, within the hearing of each person,

The body of our Lord Jesus Christ, which was given for you, preserve your body and soul to everlasting life. Take and eat this in remembrance that Christ died for you, and feed on him in your heart by faith with thanksgiving.

or

Take and eat this in remembrance that Christ died for you, and feed on him in your heart by faith with thanksgiving.

The minister and those assisting give the cup to each person saying, within the hearing of each person,

The blood of our Lord Jesus Christ, which was shed for you, preserve your body and soul to everlasting life. Drink this in remembrance that Christ’s blood was shed for you, and be thankful.

or

Drink this in remembrance that Christ’s blood was shed for you, and be thankful.

19. The minister says

Let us pray.

As our Saviour Christ has taught us, we are confident to say, Our Father in heaven, hallowed be your name, your kingdom come, your will be done on earth as in heaven. Give us today our daily bread. Forgive us our sins as we forgive those who sin against us. Lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil. For the kingdom, the power and the glory are yours, now and for ever. Amen.

20. The minister leads the people in one of these two prayers of thanksgiving and dedication.

Lord and heavenly Father, in your loving kindness, accept our sacrifice of praise and thanksgiving. Grant that by the merits and death of your Son Jesus Christ, and through faith in his blood, we and your whole Church may receive forgiveness of our sins and all other benefits of his suffering. With gratitude for all your mercies, we offer ourselves to you as a living sacrifice, through Jesus Christ our Lord. Send us out in the power of your Spirit to live and work to your praise and glory. Amen.

or

Almighty and everliving God, thank you for feeding us with the spiritual food of the body and blood of our Saviour Jesus Christ. Thank you for assuring us of your goodness and love, that we are members of his body, and heirs, through hope, of your eternal kingdom. Keep us faithful to your Son, and strengthen us by your Spirit to do the good works you have prepared for us to do for your honour and praise. Amen.

21. The following hymn of praise or another suitable song may be sung.

Glory to God in the highest and peace to his people on earth. Lord God, heavenly king, almighty God and Father, we worship you, we give you thanks, we praise you for your glory. Lord Jesus Christ, only Son of the Father, Lord God, Lamb of God, you take away the sin of the world: have mercy upon us; you are seated at the right hand of the Father: receive our prayer. For you alone are the Holy One; you alone are the Lord; you alone are the Most High, Jesus Christ, with the Holy Spirit, in the glory of God the Father. Amen.

22. The minister says

May the peace of God, which passes all understanding, keep your hearts and minds in the knowledge and love of God, and of his Son, Jesus Christ our Lord; and the blessing of God almighty, the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit, be among you, and remain with you always. Amen.

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An Experimental North American Eucharistic Rite

By Robin G. Jordan

The following eucharistic rite is based upon the Holy Communion service of The Book of Common Prayer (1962) of the Anglican Church of Canada and incorporates modern-day English textual material from a number of sources, including the An Australian Prayer Book (1978), Common Prayer: Resources for Gospel-Shaped Gatherings (2012), and a draft of a modern-day English version of The Book of Common Prayer (1956) of the Free Church of England, which I prepared in 2009. It is not the complete rite. It begins with the Preparation and concludes with the Dismissal.

There are some notable differences between this rite and the 1962 Canadian rite other than the use of modern-day English. Among these differences is the use of a shorter version of the Prayer of Humble Access, which is found in a number of more recent Anglican service books. It does not contain the unscriptural bifurcation of the cleansing power of the Christ’s body and blood that the 1548 Order of Communion’s version of the prayer contains. This wording of the Prayer of Humble Access was a longstanding Puritan criticism of The Book of Common Prayer. The Prayer of Humble Access may be said after the Comfortable Words or before the Communion. The Alternative Order of the Ministration of the Holy Communion in the 1928 Proposed English Prayer Book moved the Prayer of Humble Access to a position after the Comfortable Words and it occupies this position in several more recent Anglican service books in which it forms a part of the Preparation. The Prayer of Humble Access may be omitted.

The Peace has been moved to a position before the Prayer of Consecration—a position that it occupies in a number of more recent service books and is more fully developed than in the 1962 Canadian Holy Communion service. It gives members of the congregation who may have become estranged an opportunity to tangibly show that they desire to be reconciled to each other. It also provides an opportunity for members of the congregation to greet newcomers and visitors without putting them under a spotlight.

The Epiclesis of the Prayer of Consecration is a slightly-altered modern-day English version of the 1662 Epiclesis from Common Prayer: Resources for Gospel-Shaped Gatherings (2012). Like the 1552-1662 Epiclesis, it avoids the invocation of the descent of the Holy Spirit upon the bread and wine.

Archbishop Thomas Cranmer concluded that such an invocation was not agreeable to the Holy Scriptures on the basis that in Scripture the Holy Spirit is recorded as descending only upon people and where the descent of the Holy Spirit is invoked in Scripture, it is also upon people.

Cranmer also concluded that the invocation of the descent of the Holy Spirit upon the bread and wine implies that the Prayer of Consecration by the action of the Holy Spirit brings about a change in the bread and wine. According to Bishop Stephen Gardiner who was a staunch Roman Catholic, the words of the Epiclesis in the 1549 Canon taught “that Christ's most precious body is made present to us by conversion of the substance of bread into His precious body.”

In other words, the invocation of the Holy Spirit to act upon the bread and wine in the 1549 Epiclesis taught the medieval Catholic doctrine of transubstantiation, a doctrine that Cranmer and the other English reformers rejected as unscriptural and which the Thirty-Nine Articles states “cannot be proved by Holy Writ; but is repugnant to the plain words of Scripture, overthroweth the nature of a Sacrament, and hath given occasion to many superstitions.”

Cranmer’s rejection of the medieval Catholic doctrines of transubstantiation and eucharistic sacrifice, it must be added, were tied to his wholehearted acceptance of the New Testament doctrine of salvation by grace through faith.

The words, “Wherefore, O Father, Lord of heaven and earth, we thy humble servants, with all thy holy Church, remembering the precious death of thy beloved Son, his mighty resurrection, and glorious ascension, and looking for his coming again in glory, do make before thee, in this sacrament of the holy Bread of eternal life and the Cup of everlasting salvation, the memorial which he hath commanded….,” have been omitted from the Prayer of Consecration for the same reason that Cranmer omitted the words “... we thy humble servants do celebrate and make here before thy divine majesty, with these thy holy gifts, the memorial which thy Son hath willed us to make” from the 1552 Prayer of Consecration. The 1962 Canadian text originally included the phrase, “We present unto thy divine majesty this holy Bread of eternal life and this Cup of everlasting salvation.” As A Statement on Prayer Book Revision in Canada(1957) notes, this phrase was a cause of difficulty in the preparation of the 1962 Canadian Prayer Book. A number of theologians expressed the fear that the phrase opened the door to unscriptural theories concerning the eucharistic sacrifice. It was too susceptible to misinterpretation.

However, the phrase that was substituted for the phrase in the 1955 draft of the 1962 Canadian Prayer Book is not really any better. It retained the reference to the bread as the “holy Bread of eternal life” and the wine as the “Cup of everlasting salvation,” wording which gives far greater emphasis to the bread and wine than does the text in 1549 Canon from which the Canadian text is derived. It refers to the bread and wine as “these gifts.”

The Roman Catholic opponents of the reform of the English Church according to the Holy Scriptures claimed that in the 1549 text they discerned the offering of the sacrifice of Christ in the Mass, a belief that Cranmer rejected on scriptural grounds and which the Thirty-Nine Articles further rejects as a blasphemous fable and a dangerous deceit (Article XXXI). The 1962 Canadian text is even more open to this interpretation due to the reference to the bread as the “holy Bread of eternal life” and the wine as the “Cup of everlasting salvation.”

I incorporated a muted anamnesis into the text, “O Lord and heavenly Father, we your humble servants, having in remembrance the suffering and death of your dear Son, entirely desire your fatherly goodness to mercifully accept this our service of praise and thanksgiving.” It keeps the attention of the people focused upon what Dennis Peterson identifies as the theme of the sacrament—the proclamation of our Lord’s death.

In his article, “The Major Shift: Doctrine in The Alternative Service Book 1980,” Peterson makes several observations about the inclusion of references to the Resurrection and the Ascension in the Prayer of Consecration:

The inclusion in the Prayer of Consecration of references to the Resurrection and Ascension of the Lord Jesus Christ goes beyond Scripture which tells us that in the sacrament we proclaim the Lord's death.

It is at first sight attractive to add these thoughts, but it takes attention away from the great issue between God and man, our sin and God's grace in dealing with it. Further, these inclusions not only dilute the theme of the sacrament, but prepare people instead to concentrate upon the risen and ascended Lord's alleged presence in the bread and wine rather than his death. A desire to praise God for Christ's Resurrection and Ascension is laudable, but the Prayer of Consecration in the Lord's Supper is an entirely inappropriate place for it.

While some readers may wish to argue that such references are found in a number of ancient anaphoras and have become a common feature of contemporary Eucharist Prayers of a number of denominations, it must be remembered that the guiding principle of the reformed liturgies of the Anglican church is not the rule of antiquity or the ecumenical consensus, to which those who have been influence by the Anglo-Catholic and Liturgical Movements are wont to appeal, but the rule of Scripture.

Readers will note that in the foregoing text the word “service” has been substituted for “sacrifice.” This substitution was suggested by the first Post-Communion Thanksgiving in the 1956 Free Church of England Prayer Book. This is to highlight Christ’s sacrifice in which Christ offered himself for the sins of the world while at the same time avoiding the re-introduction of the language of our sacrifice into the Prayer of Consecration. The reintroduction of this language is contrary to the practice of The Book of Common Prayer in its 1552, 1559, 1604, and 1662 editions.

Cranmer removed such language from the 1552 Prayer of Consecration to guard against what he believed was serious theological error. In his Defence of the True and Catholic Doctrine of the Sacrament (1551) Cranmer takes the position, based upon his study of the New Testament, that there are only two proper sacrifices--the “one oblation of himself once offered” that Christ made on the cross, and our sacrifices of “laud, praise, and thanksgiving” in response to that sacrifice. The latter sacrifices, he argues, are the only sacrifices that we can make and which are properly spiritual.

By using language of sacrifice in the Prayer of Consecration only to describe Christ’s offering of himself for our sins, Cranmer gives expression to this understanding in 1552 Prayer Book. The same understanding is expressed in the 1662 Prayer Book.

The reference to the Holy Spirit in the 1962 Canadian text, “And we pray that by the power of thy Holy Spirit, all we who are partakers of this holy Communion may be fulfilled with thy grace and heavenly benediction,” may construed in a number of different ways. It can be interpreted to mean that the operation of the Holy Spirit by which those receiving the bread and wine are made full of God’s grace and blessing is the “sanctification” of the bread and wine. It is a way of working around the lack of an Epiclesis invoking the descent of the Holy Spirit upon the bread and wine to bless and sanctify them. To my mind it also presumptuous to tell God how he should go about showing his grace to the communicants and bestowing his blessing upon them. For this reason I have chosen to omit it.

I have kept to a minimum those texts that separate the Words of Institution from the act of receiving. In his article Peterson also makes this observation:

The Prayer of Consecration rehearses the Lord's words over the bread and wine, 'Take eat ... Drink ye all of this ... '. These are words of administration and should immediately be followed by the receiving of the bread and wine as in The Book of Common Prayer. The insertion of the Lord's Prayer, other prayers and anthems separates the Lord's words of administration from the act of receiving. By thus isolating the Prayer of Consecration from the eating and drinking the impression is strengthened that the Prayer of Consecration is a self-contained element which makes the bread and wine the sacrament rather than the eating and drinking to preach the Lord's death.

Cranmer himself viewed the eating and drinking as the sacrament. This is why he inserted nothing between the Words of Institution and the act of receiving. The 1559 and 1604 Holy Communion services follow suit. The Restoration bishops inserted an “Amen” between them in the 1662 Holy Communion service. The compilers of the 1962 Canadian Holy Communion service inserted this text between the Words of Institution and the act of receiving.

Wherefore, O Father, Lord of heaven and earth, we thy humble servants, with all thy holy Church, remembering the precious death of thy beloved Son, his mighty resurrection, and glorious ascension, and looking for his coming again in glory, do make before thee, in this sacrament of the holy Bread of eternal life and the Cup of everlasting salvation, the memorial which he hath commanded; And we entirely desire thy fatherly goodness mercifully to accept this our sacrifice of praise and thanksgiving, most humbly beseeching thee to grant, that by the merits and death of thy Son Jesus Christ, and through faith in his blood, we and all thy whole Church may obtain remission of our sins, and all other benefits of his passion; And we pray that by the power of thy Holy Spirit, all we who are partakers of this holy Communion may be fulfilled with thy grace and heavenly benediction; through Jesus Christ our Lord, by whom and with whom, in the unity of the Holy Spirit, all honour and glory be unto thee, O Father Almighty, world without end.

They also inserted the Peace and the Prayer of Humble Access. While it is far less than what the compilers of the 1928 American Prayer Book and the compilers of the Scottish Liturgy of the 1929 Scottish Prayer inserted between the Words of Institution and the act of receiving, it is far more than what is found in the 1552-1662 Holy Communion services.

I have reduced the length of the foregoing text, moved the Peace to a position before the Prayer of Consecration, and provide an alternative position for the Prayer of Humble Access, which in any case may be omitted.

I provided the 1552 Words of Administration as an optional alternative to the 1559 Words of Administration.

I have also provided an Alternative Preparation which is textually closer to that of the 1662 Prayer Book and the 1962 Canadian Prayer Book and is adapted from Common Prayer: Resources for Gospel-Shaped Gatherings (2012).

Canadian traditionalists who are attached to the 1962 Canadian Holy Communion service as American traditionalists are attached to the 1928 American Holy Communion service may be inclined to feel that I have mutilated the rite. That was not my intent.

I am posting this rite to show that it is possible to prepare more comprehensive eucharistic rites for use in the Anglican Church in North America. This includes eucharistic rites that conform to the doctrinal and worship standard of the historic Anglican formularies and which are modeled upon the 1552-1662 Holy Communion service and the 1962 Canadian Holy Communion service. It is not a difficult task if those preparing rites and services for the ACNA are willing to undertake it. Their cooperation is essential to providing the province with a more comprehensive liturgy, one that is grounded in historic Anglicanism and its formularies.

To date, however, they have shown very little inclination to provide the province with such a liturgy, producing instead rites and services that favor the Catholic Revivalist wing of the ACNA and move the province away from historic Anglican beliefs and practices in an unreformed Catholic direction.

PREPARATION FOR THE LORD’S SUPPER

A deacon or other minister may say

Brothers and sisters in Christ, as we gather at the Lord’s Table we must recall the promises and warnings given to us in the Scriptures. Let us therefore examine ourselves and repent of our sins. Let us give thanks to God for his redemption of the world through his Son Jesus Christ, and as we remember Christ’s death for us, and receive this pledge of his love, let us resolve to serve him in holiness and righteousness all the days of our life.

A time of silence may follow.

The deacon or other minister says

Knowing the goodness of God and our failure to respond with love and obedience, let us confess our sins, saying together

All kneeling, the following General Confession or another authorized General Confession is said by the whole congregation with the minister.

Heavenly Father, you have loved us with an everlasting love, but we have gone our own way. We have broken your holy laws and have left undone what we ought to have done. We are sorry for our sins and turn away from them. For the sake of your Son who died for us, forgive us, cleanse us, and change us. By your Holy Spirit enable us to live for you and to please you more and more each day; through Jesus Christ our Lord. AMEN.

The presiding minister stands and declares God’s forgiveness in these or other authorized words.

God is slow to anger and full of compassion, forgiving all who humbly repent, and trust in his Son as Savior and Lord. God therefore forgives you in Christ Jesus, in whom there is no condemnation. AMEN.

One or more of the following passages may also be read as an assurance of God’s forgiveness.

God so loved the world that he gave his only Son, so that everyone who believes in him may not perish but may have eternal life. John 3.16

As far as the east is from the west, so far has God removed our sins from us. Psalm 103.12

Our Lord Jesus Christ bore our sins in his body on the cross, so that we might die to sin and live for righteousness; by his wounds you have been healed. 1 Peter 2.24

The Prayer of Humble Access may be said here or before the Communion.

[We do not presume to come to your table, merciful Lord, trusting in our own righteousness, but in your many and great mercies. We are not worthy so much as to gather up the crumbs under your table. But you are the same Lord whose nature is always to have mercy. Grant us, therefore, gracious Lord, so to eat the flesh of your dear Son Jesus Christ, and to drink his blood, that we may evermore dwell in him, and he in us. Amen.]

THE GREETING OF THE PEACE

All stand. The presiding minister says The peace of the Lord be always with you and the people respond and also with you.

The presiding minister and the people may share with one another a sign of peace, such as a handclasp or other similar action, and may say these or similar words Peace be with you. This may be introduced with the words Let us offer one another a sign of peace.

The offerings of the people are collected and brought to the Lord’s Table. A hymn or other song may be sung.

THE GREAT THANKSGIVING

The presiding minister takes the bread and wine for the communion, places them upon the Lord’s Table, and says this Prayer of Thanksgiving and Consecration.

[The Lord be with you. And also with you.]

Lift up your hearts. We lift them to the Lord.

Let us give thanks to the Lord our God. It is right to give our thanks and praise.

It is indeed right, and our duty and our joy, that we should at all times and in all places give thanks and praise to you, holy Father, heavenly King, almighty and eternal God

On certain days a special preface is said here; otherwise the presiding minister and people together continue

Therefore with angels and archangels and with all the company of heaven we proclaim your great and glorious name, for ever praising you and saying:

Holy, holy, holy, Lord God of hosts, heaven and earth are full of your glory. Glory to you, O Lord most high.

Special Prefaces

Blessing and glory and thanksgiving be to you, almighty God, our heavenly Father, for in your tender mercy you gave your only Son Jesus Christ to suffer death upon the cross for our redemption; who made there, by his one oblation of himself once offered, a full, perfect, and sufficient sacrifice, oblation, and satisfaction for the sins of the whole world; and who instituted, and in his holy gospel commanded us to continue, a perpetual memory of his precious death, until his coming again:

Hear us, merciful Father, we humbly pray, and grant that we who receive these gifts of your creation, this bread and this wine, according to our Savior’s command, in remembrance of his suffering and death, may be partakers of his body and blood.

On the night he was betrayed, (Here the presiding minister is to take the paten) took bread; and, when he had given thanks, (And here to break the bread) he broke it, and gave it to his disciples saying: Take, eat; (And here to lay a hand on all the bread) this is my body which is given for you: Do this in remembrance of me.

In the same manner, after supper he (Here the presiding minister is to take the cup) took the cup; and, when he had given thanks, he gave it to them, saying: Drink this all of you, (And here to lay a hand on the vessels in which is wine to be consecrated) this is my blood of the new covenant which is shed for you and for many for the forgiveness of sins. Do this, as often as you drink it, in remembrance of me.

O Lord and heavenly Father, we your humble servants, having in remembrance the suffering and death of your dear Son, entirely desire your fatherly goodness to mercifully accept this our service of praise and thanksgiving.

Grant that by the merits and death of your Son Jesus Christ, and through faith in his blood, we and your whole Church may receive forgiveness of our sins and all other benefits of his passion.

And we pray that all who are partakers of this holy communion may be filled with your grace and heavenly benediction; through Jesus Christ our Lord, by whom, and with whom, and in whom, in the unity of the Holy Spirit, all honor and glory be yours, almighty Father, now and for ever. AMEN.

If the Prayer of Humble Access has not already been said, it may be said here.

[We do not presume to come to your table, merciful Lord, trusting in our own righteousness, but in your many and great mercies. We are not worthy so much as to gather up the crumbs under your table. But you are the same Lord whose nature is always to have mercy. Grant us, therefore, gracious Lord, so to eat the flesh of your dear Son Jesus Christ, and to drink his blood, that we may evermore dwell in him, and he in us. Amen.]

THE COMMUNION

The presiding minister and other communicants receive the holy communion

When the minister gives the bread, he says

The Body of our Lord Jesus Christ, which was given for you, preserve your body and soul to everlasting life. Take and eat this in remembrance that Christ died for you, and feed on him in your heart by faith with thanksgiving.

or

Take and eat this in remembrance that Christ died for you, and feed on him in your heart by faith with thanksgiving.

The communicant may answer

Amen

When the minister gives the cup, he says

The Blood of our Lord Jesus Christ, which was shed for you, preserve your body and soul to everlasting life. Drink this in remembrance that Christ's Blood was shed for you, and be thankful.

or

Drink this in remembrance that Christ's Blood was shed for you, and be thankful.

The communicant may answer

Amen

During the Communion hymns and other songs may be sung.

AFTER COMMUNION

The presiding minister says

Let us pray.

Our Father in heaven, hallowed be your name, your kingdom come, your will be done, on earth as in heaven. Give us today our daily bread. Forgive us our sins as we forgive those who sin against us. Lead us not into temptation but deliver us from evil. For the kingdom, the power, and the glory are yours, now and forever. AMEN.

or

Our Father, who art in heaven, hallowed be thy name, thy kingdom come, thy will be done, on earth as it is in heaven. Give us this day our daily bread; and forgive us our trespasses, as we forgive those who trespass against us. And lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil. For thine is the kingdom, and the power, and the glory, forever and ever. AMEN.

Then all say the Post-Communion Thanksgiving.

Almighty and ever-living God, we heartily thank you that you graciously feed us, who have duly received these holy mysteries, with the spiritual food of the most precious body and blood of our Saviour Jesus Christ. By this you assure us of your favour and goodness towards us; that we are truly members of the mystical body of your Son, the blessed company of all faithful people, and that we are also heirs, through hope, of your eternal kingdom, by the merits of the suffering and death of your dear Son.

And here we offer and present to you, O Lord, ourselves, our souls and our bodies, to be a reasonable, holy and living sacrifice. Although we are unworthy, yet we pray that you will accept this the duty and service that we owe, not weighing our merits, but pardoning our offences; through Jesus Christ our Lord to whom, with you and the Holy Spirit, be all honour and glory, forever and ever Amen. 

A hymn or other song may be sung, which may be the Gloria in excelsis, if it has not been used earlier in the service.

The presiding minister says this or another suitable Blessing.

The peace of God, which passes all understanding keep your hearts and minds in the knowledge and love of God, and of his Son Jesus Christ our Lord; and the blessing of God Almighty, the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit, be among you and remain with you always. Amen.

A final song or hymn may be sung.

The deacon or another minister may say

Go in peace to love and serve the Lord. In the name of Christ. Amen.

or

In Eastertide:

Go in peace to love and serve the Lord. Alleluia! Alleluia! In the name of Christ. Alleluia! Alleluia!

or

Go in peace to share the good news. In the name of Christ. AMEN.

or

In Eastertide:

Go in peace to share the good news. Alleluia! Alleluia! In the name of Christ. Alleluia! Alleluia!

The ministers and people depart.

ALTERNATIVE PREPARATION FOR THE LORD’S SUPPER

The presiding minister may say the following exhortation.

Brothers and sisters in Christ, we who come to receive the holy communion of the body and blood of our Saviour Christ can come only because of his great love for us. For, although we are completely undeserving of his love, yet in order to raise us from the darkness of death to everlasting life as God’s sons and daughters, our Saviour Christ humbled himself to share our life and to die for us on the cross. In remembrance of his death, and as a pledge of his love, Jesus instituted this holy sacrament, which we are now to share. But those who would eat the bread and drink the cup of the Lord must examine themselves, and amend their lives. They must come with a repentant heart and steadfast faith. Above all, they must give thanks to God for his love towards us in Christ Jesus.

And then a deacon or other minister invites the people to genuine repentance and faith in Christ

You then who truly repent of your sins, and are reconciled with others, intending to lead a new life of joyful obedience to God, draw near with faith, and take this holy sacrament to strengthen and sustain you. But first, let us make a humble confession of our sins to Almighty God.

A pause for self-examination may follow.

All then say the following confession together.

Almighty God, Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, you made all things, and you call everyone to account. With shame we confess the sins we have committed against you, in thought, word and deed. We rightly deserve your condemnation. We turn from our sins and are truly sorry for them; they are a burden we cannot bear. Have mercy on us, most merciful Father. For the sake of your Son our Lord Jesus Christ, forgive us all that is past. Enable us to serve and please you in newness of life, to your honour and glory, through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.

The presiding minister stands and assures the people of God’s forgiveness.

Almighty God our heavenly Father, who has promised to forgive the sins of all who turn to him with repentance and faith, have mercy on you; pardon and deliver you from all your sins, strengthen you to do his will, and keep you in eternal life, through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.

The presiding minister says the following words of assurance.

Hear these words of assurance for those who truly turn to Christ.

Jesus said: ‘Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest’. Matthew 11:28

‘God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish, but have eternal life.’ John 3:16

The apostle Paul said: ‘Here is a trustworthy saying that deserves full acceptance: Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners’. 1 Timothy 1:15

The apostle John said: ‘If anyone sins, we have an advocate with the Father, Jesus Christ the Righteous One. He is the atoning sacrifice for our sins.’ 1 John 2:1–2

The Prayer of Humble Access may be said here or before the Communion

[We do not presume to come to your table, merciful Lord, trusting in our own righteousness, but in your many and great mercies. We are not worthy so much as to gather up the crumbs under your table. But you are the same Lord whose nature is always to have mercy. Grant us, therefore, gracious Lord, so to eat the flesh of your dear Son Jesus Christ, and to drink his blood, that we may evermore dwell in him, and he in us. Amen.]

Image Credit: Christ the King Anglican Church (ANiC) Quispamsis-Sussex, New Brunswick