John J. Myers, the Archbishop of Newark and Ecclesiastical Delegate for the Pastoral Provision, addressed the Anglican Use Conference in San Antonio on July 11. Describing his “awestruck” reaction to his first Anglican Use liturgy, he spoke of the efforts underway to expand the Anglican Use and the Pastoral Provision to “continuing Anglican communities.”
Controversies within the Anglican Communion and the Episcopal Church have encouraged Episcopalian bishops, clergy, and laity to seek reconciliation with the Roman Catholic Church. Last September Jeffrey Steenson, the Episcopal Bishop of Rio Grande, New Mexico, resigned his office to become a Catholic.
Archbishop Myers in his lecture noted that modern ecumenical dialogue between Catholics and Anglicans had been inaugurated during the historic meeting of Pope Paul VI and Michael Ramsey, the Archbishop of Canterbury on March 23, 1966. Dialogue since that event has been “quite promising at times” and he said that it continues “because the Catholic Church believes that the Anglican Communion holds a special place in relationship to her.”
“Even though the relationship and dialogue seem strained at times we are obliged to continue to pray and work for unity, to ”˜press toward the mark,’ so that the prayer of our Blessed Lord may be realized that all who profess faith in Him may be one,” he continued.
From what I have read of the Anglican Use Liturgy, I don’t know why they are calling it Anglican. Almost all of the stuff that is uniquely Anglican (mostly the Cranmerian stuff) in the liturgy has been eliminated and replaced with what is in the Novus Ordo.
I remain skeptical.
Re: #1,
You are mistaken; have you ever seen it? True, there is little that is “Cranmerian” in it, but would you expect the views of an old heretic to be found in a liturgical rite approved by the Roman Church? What it is is the 1979 ECUSA BCP, with modifications. The 1970 Offertory Rite from the Missal of Paul VI replaces the “Offertory Rite,” if it is one, form 1979 — but more importantly, in “Rite A” a 16th-Century translation of the Roman Canon replaces the two Prayers of Consecration (that from the 1928 BCP and a new “condensed” [and, I would opine, improved] version of 1928) of the 1979 BCP, and in Rite B the four Eucharistic Prayers of the 1970 Missal [the Roman Canon in a contemporary (bad) translation and three new prayers] replace the four in the 1979 BCP.
Personally, I find it a hybrid rite in many ways, but none the worse for that. However, I have it on good authority that one aspect of the TAC/ACA appeal to Rome to become a kind of — I am speaking loosely — “Anglican Rite” within the Catholic Church is to explore the possbility for a more Anglican form of worship. I can add further that the particular Anglican Rite that is the basis of these conversations is the 1764 “Scottish Communion Office” which, “toned down” and “protestantized” at key points, was the basis for the 1789/1892/1928 PECUSA BCPs. You can find the 1764 rite here:
http://justus.anglican.org/resources/bcp/Scotland/Scot1764_Communion.htm
It is a rite that, when compared to the 1928 PECUSA rite, or even the 1929 Scottish BCP, here:
http://justus.anglican.org/resources/bcp/Scotland/Scot_Scottish_Communion.htm
is the most “patristic” and unReformed communion service ever produced by an Anglican church.
Some may wonder about Cranmer’s first BCP, that of 1549. But however Catholic (even Western Medieval Catholic) the Communion Service may appear, it is clear to anyone reading it that its Prayer of Consecration sets out to “correct” the “errors” of the Canon of the Mass, just as it is not clear to its reader that the theology underlying it is compatible with (Roman) Catholic orthodoxy — and therefore it is not, nor ever will be, a candidate for use in any Anglican Use Catholic rite. The 1764 Scottish Communon Office’s Prayer of Consecration, although retaining Cranmerian language, draws its theological and liturgical inspiration from Eastern Patristic sources, and so would not encounter the same Roman objections as the 1549 rite.
[blockquote]Some may wonder about Cranmer’s first BCP, that of 1549. But however Catholic (even Western Medieval Catholic) the Communion Service may appear, it is clear to anyone reading it that its Prayer of Consecration sets out to “correct†the “errors†of the Canon of the Mass, just as it is not clear to its reader that the theology underlying it is compatible with (Roman) Catholic orthodoxy—and therefore it is not, nor ever will be, a candidate for use in any Anglican Use Catholic rite. [/blockquote]
Yes, that is exactly my point. The copy I have read of the Anglican Use rite basically eliminates anything smacking of Protestantism from the Cranmerian and subsequent BCP’s and basically just rewords the normal Roman canon of the mass to make it “sound Anglican,” but its really not in terms of substantive theology.
Sort of off-topic, but Dr. Tighe, do you know if anyone is aware of this typo (an ancient one I guess?) in the Prayer of Consecration in the 1764 print version (my boldface):
“….a perpetual memorial of that his precious death and sacrifice until his [b]coining[/b] again. For in….”
I looked closely at these two URLs to compare – thanks for providing these links – and was startled to read as above. I’m fairly confident the priest always prays for His [b]coming[/b] again!