Use of the litany

Discussion in 'Questions?' started by Mark Carrigher, May 14, 2020.

  1. Mark Carrigher

    Mark Carrigher New Member

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    Good afternoon, on page 400 of CofE Common Worship is The Litany. Can I ask how would this be used at home in private morning and or evening prayers please? Does the litany replace the normal prayer section?
     
  2. Shane R

    Shane R Well-Known Member

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    The Litany can be a stand alone office or it may be used to augment Morning and Evening Prayer. I have little familiarity with Common Worship but most prayer books have a rubric that inserts the Litany near the end of the service, somewhere near the fixed Collects. The Litany may also be used with Antecommunion.
     
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  3. peter

    peter Active Member

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    I am not familiar with Common Worship, but certainly in the Prayer Book the Litany would usually be used after Morning or Evening Prayer, but can be used independently and is occasionally used in procession, for instance on Good Friday.
     
  4. Botolph

    Botolph Well-Known Member

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    The rubric at the end of the Litany in Common Worship reads:

    When the Litany is said instead of the Prayers at Morning or Evening Prayer,
    the Collect of the Day, the Lord’s Prayer and the Grace are added here.
     
  5. Stalwart

    Stalwart Well-Known Member Anglican

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    I read somewhere that the traditional Church of England services used to always be a Matins/Evensong followed by the liturgy of the Litany. Each of these taking up to an hour, you'd have a 1.5-2 hour divine service every time!
     
  6. bwallac2335

    bwallac2335 Well-Known Member

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    What exactly is Common Worship and why not just use the BCP?
     
  7. Shane R

    Shane R Well-Known Member

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    Common Worship is a theoretical BCP supplement, much like the BAS in Canada and the first Australian book (1978). In practice, those books supplanted the BCP as the regular form of liturgy. They have positives such as an expanded list of graduals and canticles. More controversial, but in my eyes still positive, the 3 year lectionary. And they all adopted contemporary language, which I am neutral toward.
     
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  8. peter

    peter Active Member

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    Asides from the offices being more difficult to find your way around because of the greater amount of options, and thus needing multiple volumes, ribbons etc, the thing I really dislike about the Common Worship offices is the very poor translations of the cantilcles.

    For example, the Te Deum, used in both versions in Morning Prayer

    BCP: We praise thee O God, we acknowledge thee to be the LORD
    CW: You are God and we praise you.

    Now asides from sounding terrible and being rather poor gramatically, why would you need to tell the Almighty that He is God?! I could cite other examples, but that is probably the most glaring. The Communion service in Common Worship is alright if the more traditional options are selected, but the offices are a very poor substitute for the BCP.
     
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  9. Stalwart

    Stalwart Well-Known Member Anglican

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    Basically it's the liberal revisionist Prayer Book, that by many traditionalists is not even considered to be Anglican, but merely a generic formula of Christian prayers. In other words, it does not contain anything genetically Anglican, and the unique traits of Anglican spirituality are basically unattainable through it. It also contains many traits of liberal Christianity, such as a minimization of sin and repentance; the maximal use of sentimental and feelings-based language; a weakened teaching on the Sacraments; an opening to the revision of genders. The current conversation taking place is to start using it for same-sex marriages within the Church of England. So far it hasn't passed, but the Common Worship is a major enabler of this and other programs.

    Why was it pushed? Because people who have lost the faith have climbed to the top ranks of the Church of England, propped up by government entanglements which make it incredibly difficult for the Church to witness to the truth against the might of the secular overlords.

    And yet because the Book of Common Prayer had been authorized by no less than the old Parliament and Monarchs, it is difficult to enshrine Common Worship in its stead. Thus while its use is widespread and colossal, it is at the same time, practically illegal. The Book of Common Prayer is the only legal and canonical liturgy in the Church of England, even today.
     
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  10. Rexlion

    Rexlion Well-Known Member

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    Before the virus hit, during Lenten Sunday services our parish was reciting the Litany during the entry procession, in lieu of song. As for reciting it at home, that's a great thought. The way an individual structures his own daily prayer time is subject to great latitude; there's no right way or wrong way.

    About Common Worship, I have no familiarity so I looked it up and at a cursory glance it appears to have pretty much the same elements as the Renewed Ancient Text liturgy, only those elements are greatly rearranged (for some reason I don't fathom). I'm curious to know if you folks think this in inherently faulty, or just potentially opening the door to error (a stepping stone toward things being left out or wrongly added), or what exactly is the usual objection? I've never been exposed to this issue before.
     
  11. bwallac2335

    bwallac2335 Well-Known Member

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    So just based off this it sounds like a dumpster fire we would do well to stay away from.
     
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  12. bwallac2335

    bwallac2335 Well-Known Member

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    I like the Renewed Ancient Text so I hope they are not to similar
     
  13. Silvan

    Silvan Active Member

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    I like Litanies.
    Even Latin Litanies.