A Book of Common Prayer liturgy for the Fifth of November

Book of Common Prayer 1662 November 5

A Form of Prayer with Thanksgiving; to be used yearly upon the Fifth Day of November for the happy Deliverance of the King, and the Three Estates of the Realm, from the most Traiterous and Bloudy intended Massacre by Gun-Powder.

The Service shall be the same with the usual Office for Holidays in all things; Except where it is hereafter otherwise appointed.

If this Day shall happen to be Sunday, only the Collect proper for that Sunday, shall be added to this Office in its place. Morning Prayer shall begin with these Sentences.

TURN thy face away from our sins, O Lord; and blot out all our offences. Psal. li. 9 Correct us, O Lord, but with judgment, not in thine anger; lest thou bring us to nothing. Jere. x, 14 I will go to my father, and will say unto him; Father, I have sinned against heaven, and before thee; and am no more worthy to be called thy son. S. Luke xii. 18, 19.

Proper Psalms. Xxxv. Lxiv. Cxxiv. Cxxix.

Proper Lessons.

The First, 2 Sam. xxii.

The Second, Acts xxiii.

In the Suffrages after the Creed, these shall be inserted and used for the King. Priest. O Lord, save the King; People. Who putteth his trust in thee. Priest. Send him help from thy holy place People. And evermore mightily defend him. Priest. Let his enemies have no advantage against him. People. Let not the wicked approach to hurt him.

Instead of the First Collect for Morning Prayer, shall these two be used. ALMIGHTY God, who hast in all ages shewed thy power and mercy in the miraculous and gracious deliverance of thy Church, and in the protection of righteous and religious Kings and States, professing they holy and eternal truth, from the wicked conspiracies and malicious practices of all the enemies thereof; We yield thee our unfeigned thanks and praise for the wonderful and mighty deliverance of our late gracious Sovereign King James, the Queen, the Prince, and all the Royal Branches, with the Nobility, Clergy, and Commons of England, then assembled in Parliament, by Popish treachery appointed as sheep to the slaughter, in a most barbarous, and savage manner, beyond the examples of former ages. From this unnatural conspiracy, not our merit, but thy mercy; not our foresight, but thy providence, delivered us: And therefore, not unto us, O Lord, not unto us; but unto thy Name be ascribed all honour and glory in all Churches of the saints, from generation to generation, through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.

O LORD, who didst this day discover the snares of death that were laid for us, and didst wonderfully deliver us from the same; Be thou still our mighty Protector, and scatter our enemies that delight in blood. Infatuate and defeat their counsels, abate their pride, assuage their malice, and confound their devices. Strengthen the hands of our gracious King Charles, and all that are put in authority under him, with Judgment and justice, to cut off all such workers of iniquity, as turn religion into rebellion, and faith into faction; that they may never prevail against us, or triumph in th ruine of thy Church among us: But that our gracious Soveraign and his Realms, being preserved in thy true Religion, and by thy merciful goodness protected in the same, we may all duly serve thee, and give thee thanks in thy holy congregation, through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.

In the end of the Litany (which shall always this day be used) after the Collect [We humbly beseech thee, O Father, &c.], shall this be said which followeth.
ALMIGHTY God and heavenly Father, who of thy gracious providence, and tender mercy towards us, didst prevent the malice and imaginations of our enemies, by discovering and confounding their horrible and wicked enterprize, plotted, and intended this day to have been executed against the King, and whole State of this Realm, for the subversion of the Government, and Religion established among us; We most humbly praise and magnify thy glorious Name for this thine infinite gracious goodness towards us, expressed in both these acts of thy mercy. We confess, it was thy mercy, thy mercy alone, that we were not then consumed. For our sins cried to heaven against us; and our iniquities justly called for vengeance upon us. But thou hast not dealt with us after our sins, nor rewarded us after our iniquities; nor given us over, as we deserved, to be a prey to our enemies; but didst in mercy delivered us from their malice, and preserved us from death and destruction. Let the consideration of this thy goodness, O Lord, work in us true repentance, that iniquity may not be our ruine. And increase in us more and more a lively faith, and fruitful love in all holy obedience, that thou maist continue thy favour, with the light of thy Gospel to us and our posterity for evermore; and that for thy dear Sons sake, Jesus Christ our only Mediator and Advocate. Amen.

In the Communion Service, instead of the Collect for the Day, shall this which followeth, be used. ETERNAL God, and our most mightly protector, we thy unworthy servants do humbly present ourselves before thy Majesty, acknowledging thy power, wisdom, and goodness in preserving the King, and of the Three Estates of this Realm assembled in Parliament, from the destruction this day intended against them. Make us, we beseech thee, truly thankful for this thy great mercy towards us. Protect and defend our Sovereign Lord the King, and all the Royal Family from all treasons and conspiracies: Preserve them in thy faith, fear and love; prosper his Reign with long happiness here on earth; and crown him with everlasting glory hereafter in the kingdom of heaven; through Jesus Christ our only Saviour and Redeemer. Amen.

The Epistle. Rom. xiii. 1.

LET every soul be subject unto the higher powers. For there is no power but of God: the powers that be, are ordained of God. Whosoever therefore resisteth the power, resisteth the ordinance of God; and they that resist, shall receive to themselves damnation. For rulers are not a terrour to good works, but to the evil. Wilt thou then not be afraid of the power? Do that which is good, and thou shalt have praise of the same: For he is the minister of God to thee for good. But if thou do that which is evil, be afraid; for he beareth not the sword in vain: for he is the minister of God, a revenger to execute wrathe upon him that doth evil. Wherefore ye must needs be suject, not only for wrath, but also for conscience sake. For, for this cause pay you tribute also: for they are Gods ministers, attending continually upon this very thing. Render therefore to all their dues; tribute to whom tribute is due, custom to whom custom, fear to whom fear, honour to whom honour.

The Gospel. S. Matth. xxvii. 1.

WHEN the morning was come, all the chief priests and elders of the people took counsel against Jesus to put him to death. And when they had bound him, they led him away, and delivered him to Pontius Pilate the governour. Then Judas which had betrayed him, when he saw that he was condemned, repented himself, and brought again the thirty pieces of silver to the chief priests and elders, saying, I have sinned, in that I have betrayed the innocent Bloud. And they said, What is that to us? see thou to that. And he cast down the pieces of silver in the temple, and departed, and went and hanged himself. And the chief priests took the silver pieces, and said, It is not lawful for to put them into the treasury, because it is the price of bloud. And they took counsel, and bought with them the potters field, to bury strangers in. Wherefore that field was called, The field of bloud unto this day. Then was fulfilled that which was spoken by Jeremy the prophet, saying, And they took the thirty pieces of silver, the price of him that was valued, whom they of the children of Israel did value; and gave them for the potters field, as the Lord appointed me.

After the Creed, if there be no Sermon, shall be read one of the six Homilies against Rebellion.

This Sentence is to be read at the Offertory.
WHATSOEVER ye would that men should do to you, do ye even so to them; for this is the law and the prophets. St. Matth. vii. 12

Book of Common Prayer (BCP) Evensong - Sunday, 12 July 2020

Book of Common Prayer (BCP) Evensong is a sublime service using text from 1662.

The BCP is still THE principal prayer book of the Church of England - and long may that situation last.

BCP Evensong - Sunday, 14 June 2020

Can't explain how much I got from conducting the BCP evensong - the service is another example of the blessings that the Book of Common Prayer brings to the liturgical life of the church.

Particularly fin when got tongue-tied with Ahimalech :-)

Book of Common Prayer - A dinosaur?

That's how it was described to me recently. In fact I was told that it was a 'relic of the past' and my companion went to great lengths to tell me how BCP and evening services ought to be a thing of the past (along with robes, choirs and all 'that old -fashioned' stuff)!

Last Sunday I was privileged to engaged in a BCP sandwich, beginning with an early-morning communion services and ending with evensong (a Common Worship communion as the filling) and I found it to be an extremely uplifting and rewarding experience. The communion, a 'said' service, appealing to the mind and challenging us as we heard the ten commandments (outside of this service, when was the last time we encountered them I wonder?) and such wonderful words as:

'Here we offer and present unto thee, O Lord, ourselves, our souls and bodies, to be a reasonable, holy and lively sacrifice unto thee'

There is no doubt that this service brings us to a place of penitential encounter with the risen Christ in a stunningly simple manner using words and stillness that are rarely found within our fast paced, music-ridden, services. It appeals to head and heart and provides a space that so many of us, with its accompanying silence, appear to almost fear these days.

The evensong with Psalm and canticles - and let's be fair, pointing and singing them have always been a challenge for many of us - is a very different kettle of fish indeed. After all there are hymns (which I've swapped for some of the modern offerings with great success) and space for an Anthem (the choir's showpiece spot and a chance for us to be touched by something splendid) too. Combine this with a gentle, steady and measured progress through the words and what you have is something that marries reflective and contemplative and offers insights and opportunities for true encounter.

But of course my colleague didn't agree, claiming BCP services were, 'So samey and repetitive'! My response to this being, 'Of course the worship band offering is different every time isn't it?'

Well of course it isn't, although my colleague did accentuate the importance of changing the services to make them attractive ('if you don't they get bored and stop coming!'), something that raises the question: Are our services engagement or entertainment ? Are we concerned with quality and efficacy of the worship we offer or merely looking to the numbers of people turning on and tuning in? Ratings or relationship? What a cruel thought (which I kept to myself of course)!

Another person popped in to the conversation and dismissed it all with simple side-swipe that dismissed BCP as 'too cerebral' and reiterated how evening services 'just weren't popular anymore' - just goes to show that you can't win. But perhaps we need to look at the popularity of evening services and their decline (I favour blaming weak and ineffective clergy and television bringing such offerings as the Forsythe Saga, Upstairs Downstairs and the Onedin Line to show that you could be entertained, moved and engaged on a Sunday evening at home rather than bored to death in a church building.

The glove was laid down then - I wonder when the Church will think about picking it up and engaging in the battle for ratings - not with entertainment but with a contagious, compelling and appealing faith?

ps. I think there is a place for all forms of worship style and wonder whether we are guilty of not trying to introduce BCP, Taizé and other forms of worship to our members because we fear they might not 'like' it. I think there is merit and value and potential for encounter in every form (even the Rupert Bear Prayer Book [Blast!]) if we bring it to a people who we have prepared correctly. A people who are willing to seek God outside of their own comfort zones (which of course means those who lead need to be outside their own first, doesn't it?)

The Blessings of Christmas

Are to firstly be found at 08:30 on a Christmas morning celebrating the Eucharist with so many wonderfully faithful and engaged people.

Secondly to be privileged to preside at such a service with the wonderfully measured and sound piece of liturgy that is the 1662 Book of Common Prayer (BCP) service.

The cherry on the cake comes in the shape of the location this took place in - and I have to say that the chapel dedicated to St George in Tamworth's Parish church is one of the most lovely and sacred spots of all that I might have been able to do this service in.

Between Burne-Jones' 'Days of Creation - the Patriarchs and Prophets - and St Christopher (all dedicated to Sir Robert Peel) and the joy of knowing that one faithful member of the church would rejoice that the candlesticks and cross were back where they belonged - it was a splendid start to what was destined to be a wonderfully blessed and restful day.

Keep Calm - Go to Evensong

I guess this image says it all - Evensong is cool and relevant in today's society.

Why not give it a try?

351 years of hitting the spot - sorta says it all!

Now that's what I call worship - 1662

Following on from the parody - I have to admit I found this rather pleasing.

You see there's space for it all - Book of Common Prayer, Common Worship, Taizé, contemporary worship and more flavours besides (OK, perhaps we can forget ASB!). There are so many ways to worship God (and the music is just a small part of that) - so why do we limit and restrict ourselves so?

Have a listen and enjoy yourself. I know I did.

Church boring or irrelevant?

Don't forget that you heard it here first!

Tidying the study this morning I put the radio on and set it to search for any random station that came under the 'Christian' label. The winner this morning was 'Premier' and one of the news items that have been running is that church is boring and irrelevant.

Well I think I found that yesterday when I was buttonholed at the local Crem' but there is a bit of a worry attached to this in that one of the kneejerk responses is to decide that we need church to be 'different' and by doing so end up, like many of those around me, being different by being exactly the same as their peers. If you don't know what I mean take a look at the kids as they go to school and count how many have the same coloured hair or hair style - look at the blokes and their sagging trousers and underpants up under their armpits!

Well the same is true of many of us who lead churches in that we all assume that effective church consists of singing the same songs as everyone else and accompanying them with guitars, drums and keyboards (some even have brass and woodwind which has to be good ;-)). Having taken care of the 'Worship' (when will Christians learn that ALL the service is worship?) many then do stuff that is, to be quite honest, not only lightweight in terms of theology, but bordering on the syncretic! Not only that but I've been to Anglican churches where it was difficult to see any difference between the service there and one at a free evangelical, baptist or charismatic church gathering. The reason given was that it made the church service accessible.

Perhaps so but it wasn't Anglican and certainly wasn't sound in terms of the selective nature of what was done. There was one Bible reading and the songs were more important that the extremely light sermon (well, I assumed it was a sermon anyway!) and since they only did communion once a month (or two if the activities and stuff got in the way - and I kid you not, been there and seen it!!!).

I don't think that the Book of Common Prayer needs to be thrown out of our services. I can see within Common Worship the potential to keep the Bible in our services and still make them fresh, accessible and interesting. In fact I've coming to a place where I realise that it's the HOW that we do it that makes sense.

So seems I have theme for the next few days . . .  Watch this space (and send me your contributions - I'd love to have some guest writers on this issue).

Pax

Church - Rearranging the deckchairs - 3

'We have a gospel to proclaim
Good news for men in all the earth;
The gospel of a Saviour’s name:
We sing His glory, tell His worth."

I wonder how many of us have sung this hymn? Edward Burns words are sound and the music old and this is another area that I find we are addressing, or at least discussing, greatly as the angle between floor and the leve seas increase! Not only that but we are now concerned with the 'when' of church attendance too; adding to this the mixed economy of traditional and fresh expression of being church for good measure.

Here are a few things we need to be thinking of:

Some churches (people and building) are not the right targets for drums guitars and modern music.
In fact, some places cry out for a cessation of the 'modern is good' and a focus upon the English Church choral music and even a bash with the Book of Common Prayer (1662). But this is, to many of my colleagues, a return to the past days and the source of decline. I suggest that we tell that to the members of the Prayer Book Society and the many who travel to places where the music of organ and choir draws them.

All church buildings are right for multiple congregations. It is not wrong to cater for the BCP people as the day start (and perhaps with evensnog, ends too!) and to move on to a Common Worship generation, fitting somewhere between beginning and end contemporary music and the Gospel being preached in another way too! The many that I meet who rend their garments (but sadly rarely their hearts) over the fact that the congregations 'don't meet' and work at 'getting them to worship together' always appear to forget that they will, but it might just have to be when they all stand before the throne!

Not everyone can come to church on a Sunday (we will have to discuss what 'church' and 'Church' are sometime) so we open our doors when they can. It isn not rocket science. If someone wants something and (because of work, life or something else) can only seek it out during certain times then the venue that caters for that need will find itself graced by their presence. We had a man who, due to work schedules, could only do church on a Wednesday and so we started a Wednesday Communion service at a time he could do. Sadly I think he came once, but the response to the need generated something that others have benefitted from!

Flexibility is the key. We need to be doing church when people can make it. This is not bowing to consumer pressure, it is providing the ability to come together when people can come together.

My biggest problem (and I'm sure you can see that I have many) is the fact that the answer is always 'yes'. When people ask for a service or want something from the Church I have (99% of the time) that one answer (and then I work out how it's going to happen). Our doors are open and we engage with, and work for, the community. The object is that we have the Church outside the building that many think bears the same name and the community (AKA 'not the Church') inside it.

Now I know some have taken me to task for this thought but the reality is that the building is the community's and the church (the people) are the Lord's. We get so precious about our buildings and how (and who) they are used but at the end of the day our job is, quite simply, to worship God and to bless what God is doing in the lives of the 'not the Church' people and, having made them aware of the fact that God is active and engaged in their lives, to bring them into Church so they can invite others into the building.

We are in the position we are in because we have failed to teach and act in the Biblical truths of:

Evangelism - Worship - Prayer - Discipleship - Tithing - Teaching

We have failed to live outside the culture in which we find ourselves and have embraced it at every turn in a false hope of being 'popular' and this mess of popularist pottage has brought us to where we are.

We do not condemn, for this is the work of him against who we contend, but we do not bless that which God does not bless either. God does not just want us to be happy because we do what pleases us but want us to be happy because we seek to be obedient and find happiness where it is rightfully to be found - in Him, living as He commands.

This is all so simple and yet we look to more reports, strategies and plans rather than grasp the nettle and be as Church should be.

Happy Sunday - May God bless you and yours and may our lives shine with His love, mercy and truth.

pax