BCPization

Discussion in 'Liturgy, and Book of Common Prayer' started by Moses, Nov 2, 2020.

  1. Moses

    Moses Member

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    I know that the BCP drew heavily from pre-reformation English liturgy, especially the Sarum use. When Anglicanism spread to non-English speaking countries that were already Christian, did they attempt to BCPize any other rites? For example, were there ever BCP versions of the Byzantine, Mozarabic, or Coptic liturgies?
     
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  2. bwallac2335

    bwallac2335 Well-Known Member

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    If they did I would love to buy one.
     
  3. Stalwart

    Stalwart Well-Known Member Anglican

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    Great question. There was obviously an adaptation of the English BCP to the other provinces and languages in the Anglican Communion, but I don't know if this was applied to jurisdictions outside of Anglican bounds.
     
  4. Shane R

    Shane R Well-Known Member

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    You might like to investigate the works of John Mason Neale, who translated much Eastern content into English. Less prolific but also important in that field was Lightfoot.
     
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  5. Fr. Brench

    Fr. Brench Well-Known Member Anglican

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    I believe the Reformed Episcopal Church in Spain (or some such name) uses a form of the Mozaribic Rite.
     
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  6. Shane R

    Shane R Well-Known Member

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    It should be noted that is a Canterbury Communion church, not at all related to the REC founded by Bp. Cummins in 1873.
     
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  7. Liturgyworks

    Liturgyworks Well-Known Member Anglican

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    There are two examples of this I am aware of in addition to the aformentioned Spanish example.

    Firstly, the Church of South India, which was the result of a merger of most of the Protestant churches in South India, was from the start in communion with the Mar Thoma Syrian Church, which was a reformed church of St. Thomas Christians, or Nasranis, as they are known locally, using a simplified version of the Syriac Orthodox form of the Divine Liturgy of St. James. The Church of South India in turn implemented in their new liturgy elements of the Divine Liturgy of St. James, as well as elements of the Book of Common Prayer; they were also heavily influenced by the less agreeable factions in the Liturgical Movement and were, in 1954, the first church to implement celebration versus populum, which any tradition-minded Roman Catholic can attest has been one of the major causes of the ruination of their liturgy post-1969 (and indeed, in the newer suburban ECUSA churches built in the 1970s, 80s and 90s, before declining membership seems to have halted the construction of new Episcopalian churches, the combination of celebration versus populum and the Rite II of the 1979 BCP leaves much to be desired in terms of liturgical aesthetics. The Church of South India is a full member of the Anglican Communion, in communion with the Archbishop of Canterbury. The Mar Thoma Syrian Church is also in communion with Lambeth Palace.* Unfortunately I am not aware of any traditionalist Anglican church operating in India. A PDF of the 1954 CSI Eucharist, partially derived from the Divine Liturgy of St. James and the 1662 Book of Common Prayer, among a vast array of other sources, can be found here:
    http://justus.anglican.org/resources/bcp/India/HC_South_India54.pdf

    The second, and somewhat more interesting example, hails from Mexico, where the Mexican Episcopal Church when initially constituted used an experimental recension of the Mozarabic Rite, which was actually composed in the US by the Bishop of Springfield and an assistant, and which was printed in English and Spanish. Like the ancient Gallican Rite to which it is closely related to, the Mozarabic Rite is extremely variable, with various parts of the Synaxis and Anaphora, and sometimes the Anaphora as a whole, changing on various occasions throughout the year (for example, on some occasions, the Anaphora is addressed to our Lord Jesus Christ, rather than God the Father, in the manner of some Eastern liturgies like the Coptic Liturgy of St. Gregory Nazianzus. The simplified recension compiled by Bishop Hale features a standardized anaphora and is much more compact, simplified and user friendly. You can read it here: http://justus.anglican.org/resources/bcp/Mexico/index.htm

    * Interestingly, the Mar Thoma Syrian Church, while not a member of the Anglican Communion, is in communion with all members of the Anglican communion, and is also in full communion with the Malankara Independent Syrian Church, the smallest of the three Syriac Orthodox jurisdictions in India.
     
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  8. Shane R

    Shane R Well-Known Member

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    The Orthodox Anglican Communion has operated in India for many years. In fact, I think the Indian church was one of the original international provinces around 1967 or '68. The current bishop is John Sathikumar.

    I have no idea what their liturgical texts are though.
     
  9. Liturgyworks

    Liturgyworks Well-Known Member Anglican

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    Good to know.