Cranmerian Holy Communion during Advent: Sacrament, Gloria, and Eschaton

Alpha and Omega,

To whom shall bow

All nations at the doom,

Is with us now.

The ancient eucharistic anthem from the 7th century Antiphonary of Bangor captures the eschatological aspect of the holy Sacrament. Rowan Williams quotes it when he describes how through the sacrament Christians "stand at or beyond the end of the ages ... [and] become, unevenly and fleetingly but truly signs of the end, bearers of hope and judgement". We might detect here an echo of the great Alexander Schmemann and his account of the Eucharist: "we have entered the Eschaton, and are not standing beyond time and space". As Schmemann also says elsewhere:

The Kingdom is still to come, and yet the Kingdom that is to come is already in the midst of us. The Kingdom is not only something promised, it is something of which we can taste here and now.

And what does this rich teaching have to do with Cranmerian Holy Communion? One of the most distinctive features of the family of Cranmerian Eucharistic rites is the placing of the Gloria at the conclusion, after reception of the holy Sacrament. Even those rites influenced by Anglo-catholic thought - for example, PECUSA 1928 and Scotland 1929 - abandon 1549 and remain with 1552 in terms of the placing of the Gloria.

Now, yes, there was, as Torrance Kirby has indicated, a thoroughly Reformed eucharistic theology at work in Cranmer's decision to move the Gloria to the conclusion of 1552. This, however, is not the only aspect of Cranmer's placing of the Gloria. It also demonstrates how such a Reformed eucharistic theology gave rise to a powerful expression of the eschatological nature of the sacrament. To quote Kirby on Vermigli and his influence on Cranmer:

According to Vermigli’s theology of “instrumental realism” participants in the eucharist would be enabled to "sing the song of the angels" only after they had "participated" the body and blood of Christ, hence the liturgical repositioning of the Gloria.

Our true feeding on Christ in the holy Sacrament is a foretaste of the eschaton, of all things made new, of all things caught up in Christ. Then is "said or sung" the Gloria, as we rejoice with the angelic hosts in creation made new.

Not only does this give to the Gloria a theological meaning very much absent from its placing at the outset of the Eucharist, it also explains why it is said throughout the year, not just on Sundays and high feasts: each time we receive "these holy mysteries" we "stand at or beyond the end of the ages". And so each time we rightly say or sing, "Glory be to God on high, and in earth peace, good will towards men. We praise thee, we bless thee, we worship thee, we glorify thee".

This short series on how aspects of Cranmerian Holy Communion has a particular meaning and resonance during Advent has sought to demonstrate how these provide a much richer theological understanding of the season than can often be found in the provision and ceremonies now commonly used in Anglican liturgies. It is only fitting, therefore, that we conclude with the placing of the Gloria in Cranmerian Holy Communion. Nothing in the Anglican liturgical tradition quite so powerfully captures the relationship between the holy Sacrament and the eschaton, drawing us to discern that by our true feeding on the Lord's Body and Blood "we have entered the Eschaton".

Why I support the ordination of women: a High Church reflection

A number of commenters on this blog have asked about my occasional expressions of support for the ordination of women to all three orders. With some hesitation, I have decided to post a summary of my own views on this matter. The hesitation is because I have sought on this blog to focus on issues and themes which can unify those who identify with or have respect (grudging or otherwise!) for what we might term 'classical' Anglicanism (the Anglicanism of the Formularies and - yes - of the Old High Church tradition). Some oppose the ordination of women (and I have friends and colleagues who do so, Anglo-Catholic, High Church, and Reformed Evangelical). Some of us support it (again, friends and colleagues covering a wide range of theological traditions). Below, I have organised my thinking around 5 points (needless to say, no reference to Dort is implied). 1. The Declaration for Subscription required of clergy in the Church of Ireland states: (6) I promise to submit ...

How the Old High tradition continued

Charles Gore's 1914 letter to the clergy of his diocese, ' The Basis of Anglican Fellowship ', can be regarded as a classical expression of the Prayer Book Catholic tradition. A key part of the letter - entitled 'Romanizing in the Church of England' - addressed the "Catholic movement", questioning beliefs and practices within it which tended to "a position which makes it very difficult for its extremer representatives to give an intelligible reason why they are not Roman Catholics". Gore provides the outlines of an alternative account and experience of catholicity within Anglicanism, defined by three characteristics. What is particularly interesting about these characteristics is their continuity with the older High Church tradition. Indeed, the central characteristic as set out by Gore was integral to High Church claims over centuries: To accept the Anglican position as valid, in any sense, is to appeal behind the Pope and the authority of t...

1928 practices and the 1979 book: unthinking conservatism or popular piety?

Those responsible for Earth & Altar - a new blog emanating from a group within TEC - are to be congratulated for an excellent contribution to wider Anglican discussion and debate. The commitment to "an expansively conceived credal orthodoxy as fully compatible with LGBTQ inclusion, gender equality, and racial justice" is an important part of a wider retrieval of creedal orthodoxy within what we might call the post-liberal generation. It is in this spirit that I want to respond to a recent post on the site by Andrew McGowan , Dean of the Berkeley Divinity School at Yale and Professor of Anglican Studies at Yale Divinity School. Against the background of another round of "ill-defined" liturgical revision in TEC, he understandably urges that a fuller reception of the 1979 BCP should occur before further reforms. In doing so, however, he takes aim at what he describes as "clinging to the ritual structures of 1928" while using the text of 1979. We ...

laudable Practice

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