Skip to main content

'An excellent office': Introducing Shepherd's reflections on Prayer Book Holy Communion

In March 2023, laudable Practice commenced near weekly posting of extracts from John Shepherd's A Critical and Practical Elucidation of the Morning and Evening Prayer of the Church of England (1796). That the series did not conclude until 23rd May 2024 is an indication of the richness of Shepherd's commentary; and, of course, of the theological and devotional depths of Prayer Book Matins and Evensong.  

Today we begin to consider Shepherd's reflections on the Prayer Book order for the Holy Communion. This was published as A Critical and Practical Elucidation of the Book of Common Prayer, Volume II (1801):

The Eucharistic Sacrifice, or the celebration of the Sacrament of the Supper of the Lord, is a duty enjoined by the positive command of our Lord himself: it is likewise the most efficacious mean of pardon and of grace, and consequently one of the most essential parts of the Christian worship. This service ought therefore to be performed with proportionable care and solemnity. The Church of England has accordingly furnished us with an excellent office for the administration of this rite, and the fault is entirely our own, if we do not communicate with suitable devotion and effect.

This short introductory paragraph is significant in three ways. Firstly, from the very outset, it demonstrates how mainstream, conventional opinion in the Church of England during the 'long' 18th century was perfectly at ease with a sacrificial terminology for the Eucharist. Such terminology is, of course, inherent to the Prayer Book rite: "we thy humble servants entirely desire thy fatherly goodness mercifully to accept this our sacrifice of praise and thanksgiving ... And here we offer and present unto thee, O Lord, ourselves, our souls and bodies, to be a reasonable, holy, and lively sacrifice unto thee". Secondly, as I have sought to previously indicate, there was a rich and vibrant sacramental theology and piety evident in the pre-1833 Church of England. Hence Shepherd's statement that the Sacrament is "the most efficacious mean of pardon and of grace". Thirdly, Shepherd's confidence in the Prayer Book Communion rite - "an excellent office" - reflected 18th century Anglicanism's delight in the Prayer Book, and particularly in its eucharistic rite. Mindful that later 19th century Anglo-catholics would be regarding the Prayer Book rite as insufficient and lacking - a view which came to be shape a liturgical consensus in 20th century Anglicanism - it is refreshing to read Shepherd's quiet confidence and delight in the Prayer Book rite. Hopefully this series of posts will share something of that confidence and delight.

Labels:

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

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 ...
25 comments
Read more

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...
19 comments
Read more

Pride, progressive sectarianism, and TEC on Facebook

Let me begin this post with an assumption that will be rejected by some readers of laudable Practice , but affirmed by other readers. Observing Pride is an understandable aspect of the public ministry of TEC.  On previous occasions , I have rather robustly called for TEC to be much more aware and respectful of the social conservatism of the Red states and regions in which it ministers. A failure to do so risks TEC declining yet further into the irrelevance of progressive sectarianism.  At the same time, TEC also obviously ministers in deep Blue states and metropolitan areas - and is the only Mainline Protestant tradition in which a majority of its members vote Democrat .* With Pride now an established civic commemoration, particularly in such contexts, there is a case for TEC affirming those aspects of Pride - the dignity of gay men and lesbian women, their contribution to civic life, and their place in the church's life - which cohere with a Christian moral vision. (I will n...
4 comments
Read more