CHAPTER 1

PreliminaryEssentials

Before we turn our attention to directions and suggestions for particularservices, there are certain preliminary matters that we must consider: (1) thepattern of worship presupposed by The Book of Common Prayer and its theologicalbasis; (2) the participants in worship and their function and vesture; (3) thesetting of worship—"the house of the church"; (4) ceremonial action; (5) thelanguage of the liturgy; and (6) the use of music.

The Pattern of Christian Worship

The first matter to be considered is one that frequently escapes our attentionaltogether. The Book of Common Prayer is not a miscellaneous collection ofservices; it provides a pattern for our worship that sets forth the appropriateservice for each situation. If we do not understand this, our use of the PrayerBook will easily get off course.

The first rubric of The Book of Common Prayer 1979 states:

The Holy Eucharist, the principal act of Christian worship on the Lord's Day andother major feasts, and Daily Morning and Evening Prayer, as set forth in thisBook, are the regular services appointed for public worship in this Church.

This rubric makes explicit what was implicit in all prior editions of The Bookof Common Prayer: that the Prayer Book prescribes a pattern of services forparochial worship—daily Morning and Evening Prayer and the Holy Eucharist onSundays and other major feasts for which propers are provided. A "regular"service in this sense is one which is regulated by the calendar of the churchyear and the lectionaries of the Prayer Book.

Daily Morning and Evening Prayer is rooted in the tradition of the Church andultimately in its heritage from the Jewish synagogue. These services form thefirst major section of service material in the Prayer Book, The Daily Office.Also included in this section are two other parts of the Office which may beused as occasion requires—An Order of Service for Noonday and An Order forCompline, as well as a festive form of Evening Prayer—An Order of Worship forthe Evening, and informal Daily Devotions for Individuals and Families. TheGreat Litany, prescribed by earlier Prayer Books for use after Morning Prayer oncertain days, follows.

The occasions for which the celebration of the Eucharist are prescribed aretheologically grounded. Sundays, "the first day of the week," when Christ"overcame death and the grave, and by his glorious resurrection opened to us theway of everlasting life" (Preface 2 of the Lord's Day, pages 345 and 377), arefor that reason "feasts of our Lord Jesus Christ." They and other feasts ofChrist are appropriately observed by the celebration of the Eucharist in whichthe "Risen Lord" is "known to us in the breaking of the Bread" (EucharisticPrayer C, page 372). The feasts of the saints are observed in the same waybecause (Lesser Feasts and Fasts, page 56)

... the triumphs of the saints are a continuation and manifestation of thePaschal victory of Christ ...

For the major feasts of the Calendar, the celebration of the Eucharist isprescribed; other feasts listed on the calendar are days of optionalcommemoration, along with the weekdays of Lent and Easter. Propers for theseoptional commemorations are found in the book of Lesser Feasts and Fasts. TheEucharist is not appropriate on Good Friday and Holy Saturday, days whichcommemorate Christ's death and burial.

The propers in the Prayer Book for Various Occasions are not commemorations;they are provided for what have been known in the West as "votive celebrations,"celebrations related to a theme or intention rather than to the calendar. Theymay not replace the major feasts of the calendar, but may be used at othertimes. A daily celebration of the Eucharist (except on Good Friday and HolySaturday) is neither required nor forbidden. The daily celebration of theEucharist does tend to blur the distinction between feasts and other days,however, and overshadow the office as the proper form of daily worship.

The Collects for the Church Year, the section of the Prayer Book following theGreat Litany, are provided for use with the regular services—that is, the DailyOffice and the Holy Eucharist. Rubrics in this section regulate the use of thevarious propers.

The Proper Liturgies and Holy Baptism, the sections printed before the HolyEucharist in the Prayer Book, may also be understood as "regular services"—thatis, as services regulated by the calendar. The Proper Liturgies are specialforms of the Proclamation of the Word of God used in Lent and Holy Week and atthe Great Vigil of Easter. The Book of Occasional Services also provides properliturgies. These include baptismal vigils for the Baptism of Christ and AllSaints' Day or Sunday, other special forms of the Ministry of the Word on otherdays; seasonal material for the Office (lucernaria, or lamplightingresponsories), the Eucharist (confractoria, or fraction anthems), and blessings;materials for the catechumenate for use in Lent or Advent; and seasonal serviceswhich are, properly speaking, paraliturgical. All of the material from this bookis for optional and supplementary use.

Holy Baptism, formerly considered an occasional office, is now understood as theproper service for the baptismal feasts—Easter, Pentecost, the Baptism ofChrist, and All Saints' Day or Sunday—and for the Bishop's visitation. Thebaptismal Eucharist is the proper liturgy for these feasts; in the absence ofcandidates for Baptism on these days, the Renewal of Baptismal Vows shouldreplace the Creed at the Eucharist (rubric, pages 312; form, pages 292–294). Aspecial bidding is provided for the Easter renewal of vows and one might becomposed for the other days, relating the theology of Baptism to the theology ofthese feasts. A procession to the font would also be appropriate on these days,with a blessing of the water using the form provided on pages 570–571 andperhaps an aspersion of the congregation. The rubric on page 298 tells us thatthe baptismal Eucharist is an appropriate liturgy for any Sunday or feast.Baptism should not be administered at other times except in an emergency.

As distinct from these regular services, the Pastoral Offices and EpiscopalServices in the Prayer Book and similar materials in The Book of OccasionalServices are occasional services—that is, their use is determined by occasionsin the lives of individuals and congregations rather than by...