Thy kingdom come . . . . . . Devotion.
Thy will be done . . . . . . Obedience.
Give us our daily bread . . . . . . Support, Health,
Teaching, Communion.
Forgive us . . . . . . Forgiveness.
Lead us . . . . . . Guidance.
Deliver us . . . . . . Deliverance.
Then the Priest is directed to stand up: thus reminding us again that
we are approaching the Majesty on High. The people, though still
kneeling, {132} are included in his priestly action, and take an equal
share of the petitions, which form the Preces (=prayers L.). Each
verse is to be said by the Minister, and its Respond by the People.
A. The Preces.
These interjected prayers do not follow exactly the order of the
Collects and Prayers, which are to come next to them. The second
couplet belongs to the two prayers, _for the King_ and _for the Royal
Family_: the third and fourth couplets belong to the prayer, _for the
Clergy and People_. The first, fifth, and sixth couplets belong to the
first, second, and third Collects respectively. The Great Breviary of
1531, according to the use of Sarum, had the 5th of these couplets as
an Antiphon for our 2nd Morning Collect for Peace, to be used at Lauds,
and also as an Antiphon at Vespers, for our 2nd Evening Collect for
Peace. The Student will find that this using of the old materials is
characteristic of the Revision of 1549. All the Preces are from the
Day Hours. With the exception of the Couplet just mentioned, they are
verses of the Psalms: First Couplet from the 85th Psalm, verse 7:
Second, from the 20th, _v._ 9: Third, from the 132nd, _vv._ 9 and 16:
Fourth, from the 28th, _v._ 9: Sixth, from the 51st, _vv._ 10 and 11.
The First couplet is that which anticipates the First Collect.
The Second couplet agrees with the Vulgate (Latin), and Septuagint
(Greek) Versions of the Psalms. Our Bible and Prayer Book Psalms
follow {133} the Hebrew division of the verse: _Save, Lord: let the
King hear us when we call_. The couplet in this place, being taken
from the Sarum Service, as a prayer for the King and people, was left
in its old form, when the correction was made in the Psalms.
In the Third couplet '_endue_' means 'clothe.'
In the Fifth couplet the Respond appears to allege the want of earthly
helps as the reason why we ask God to give us peace. Since it is
obviously impossible that this is the meaning, it will be well to
enquire what other meaning there may be. The last verse of the 4th
Psalm has the same thought; _I will lay me down in peace, and take my
rest: for it is thou, Lord, only, that makest me dwell in safety_. If
the word only be omitted, the reason appears at once to be that God's
protection suffices to assure us of safety. The introduction of the
word, _only_, adds the thought that no other protection would suffice.
The same two thoughts are united in the Respond _Because there is none
other that fighteth for us, but only thou, O God_. It is as though we
said, 'Give us Peace, because thou hast the power; and we trust no
other power.'
This couplet was the Antiphon, in the Day Hours, to both the collects
for Peace; and must be taken as including both peace from "the assaults
of our enemies," and "that peace which the world cannot give." It is
suitable both to a time of External Peace, and also to a time when war,
with Peace for its object, is raging round us: the assaults, also, of
temptation are at times disturbing to our peace, in the sense which is
involved in this couplet.
The Sixth Couplet belongs to the Third Collects {134} which ask for
spiritual guidance, and spiritual light--_Blessed are the pure in
heart, for they shall see God_.
B. The Collects.
The Books formerly used in Church.
In a passage of the Prayer Book Preface of 1549, which was not struck
out until the last Revision in 1662, it was said that "by this order
the Curates shall need none other books for their public service, but
this book and the Bible." The simplification of the Services has made
it possible for everyone to find his way easily through the Prayer
Book. The progressive inventions of printing, and of fine paper, have
made it possible for him to have the books always with him.
Before the reign of Edward VI. the Services, though printed, were not
contained in one book. Before the invention of printing the books were
of necessity numerous. We may mention some of them.
A book of Lessons--Legenda; of Antiphons--Antiphonarium; of Psalms--the
Psalter: these were required for the Day Hours. As an abbreviation of
them, sufficient for practical purposes, the Breviary was arranged. A
portable form of it was called Portiforium. The Breviary was printed
in four volumes on the Continent, but in England had only a Winter
Volume and a Summer Volume.
For the Occasional Services,--the Services which mark the great events
of a Christian's life, beginning with Baptism and ending with Burial,
they had the Manual.
{135}
For the Holy Communion, they had the Missal; including (1) the Gradual,
which was an Antiphoner, or book of the musical parts of the Service;
(2) the Lectionary, or book of the Epistles; (3) the Evangelistarium,
or book of the Gospels; and (4) the Sacramentary. The Sacramentary
contained, amongst other things, the Collects.
We have already referred to the combination and simplification of the
Breviary Services, which have given us our Morning and Evening Prayer.
We must now observe that many of our Collects come from the
Sacramentaries.
Three celebrated Sacramentaries.
Three of the Sacramentaries deserve here special mention.
I. Gregory the Great, who was Pope of Rome from 590 to 604, was the
author of one of them. The English Church owes him gratitude for
sending missionaries to this country at a time when the older British
Church was deficient in missionary zeal: and we must here notice our
debt to him for a number of our best-known collects, as well as other
improvements in the Services. Canon Bright gives a list of 32 or 33
taken from Gregory's Book. Some of them may perhaps have been added
after Gregory's time; for it is often difficult to distinguish between
the original passages of an ancient Service-book and the additions
which were quickly made to it.
Twenty-eight Collects in that list are in our book amongst the Epistles
and Gospels. Besides these there are: one in the Baptism
Service--_Almighty and {136} immortal God_: the first part of _We
humbly beseech thee_ in the Litany: _O God, whose nature and property_
in the Occasional Prayers: _Prevent us, O Lord_ at the end of the
Communion Service.
II. The Sacramentary of Gelasius (who was Pope of Rome 492 to 496) had
provided much material which Gregory adopted. From this ancient source
we have our _Second Collect, for Peace_ in the Morning Service; and the
_Third Collect, for Grace_: the _Second Collect, for Peace_ in the
Evening Service: the _Third Collect, for Aid_: the Collect _for the
Clergy and People: Assist us mercifully_, at the end of the Communion
Service: the Confirmation Collect, _Almighty and everlasting God_: a
Collect in the Visitation Service: _O Lord we beseech thee_, in the
Commination: and 21 of those which are placed with the Epistles and
Gospels.
III. We go back still further for seven of the Sunday Collects, which
are taken from the Sacramentary of Leo the Great (Pope of Rome, 440 to
461).
Thus, five-sixths of our Sunday Collects are from these three
Service-books: although we do not purpose here to say much of the
Collects used in the Communion Service, and ranking as the "First
Collects" of Morning and Evening Prayer, we think it useful to note
their derivation from the 5th and 6th centuries. Even those which are
not so derived owe their form and manner to the same models.
This last remark applies to all the prayers which have the Collect
form. We may suppose that, in the years which preceded Leo the Great,
the Collects were being made. Perhaps the dignity of their {137}
diction grew by the survival of the simplest and best; by the falling
away of superfluous words; and of words of effort: in any case the
absence of small auxiliary words, in Latin sentences, contributed much
to their tone of modest dependence on God, as well as to their poetic
force.
To take an illustration, our Second Collect at Mattins is translated
from the following Gelasian Collect: _Deus auctor pacis et amator, Quem
nosse vivere, Cui servire regnare est, protege ab omnibus
impugnationibus supplices tuos; ut qui defensione tuâ fidimus, nullius
hostilitatis arma timeamus: Per &c_.
These 27 Latin words are equivalent to the 51 English words which we
use. We do not, however, suggest that the tone has been altered in the
translation. On the contrary, our Translators had so learnt the right
tone of the old prayers, that they not only translated them and the
tone, into a language of a very different sort; they also composed new
prayers, in English, which rank with the old ones, and have the same
great excellences. The Collects for Easter Eve, and Christmas Day, may
be taken as good examples of this.
What then are the characteristics which we must expect in a Collect?
1. It has three simple parts: (_a_) the Name of God; (_b_) what we ask;
(_c_) our appeal to Christ's advocacy.
2. It makes no effort to instruct the congregation, but speaks with
simplicity and directness, to Him who knows all things.
{138}
3. It asks for grace and help for our souls, whereby we may do what is
right.
Other prayers imitate Collects in one or more of these respects; and
may be called Collects, though not satisfying all the conditions.
The Three parts of a Collect.
Our Lord taught us (St John xiv. 13, 14; xv. 16; xvi. 23-26) to ask God
in His name. A Collect is a prayer made on that model. It has three
parts:
(_a_) God is addressed; and
(_b_) petition made,
(_c_) in the Name of Jesus.
(_a_) God is addressed. This may be expressed in one word, or expanded
into a sentence. It is always the reason for our prayer, that God is
able and willing to hear us: every name of God when named by His
children is an appeal to Him.
When we expand the address, we do so in order to include a claim, to be
heard because some quality in God has a special relation to that which
we are about to ask. Because God loves peace, we can ask Him for
Peace: because He is merciful, we can ask Him for forgiveness: because
He gave at Pentecost, we can ask Him for the same gift on Whitsun Day.
Thus the name of God at the beginning of a Collect often includes some
title upon which we build our hope.
(_b_) What we ask. This may be simple, or complex: it is Simple when
we ask for something without saying anything of the means, or the
results, {139} of our obtaining it: Complex, when we ask for some thing
in order that we may also have something else.
(_c_) Appeal to Christ's Advocacy. Our claim upon God is "in the name"
of Jesus Christ. Here again we vary the thought in agreement with the
petition: sometimes it is His mediation, sometimes His might, or His
love, which we mention: but not haphazard--the words are chosen to suit
what has been asked for.
One variety of this part deserves special mention--when we claim the
Saviour's advocacy, by words which recognise Him as One of the Blessed
Trinity. When His Godhead is thus mentioned, an ascription of praise
is often added.
Origin of the word 'Collect.'
It is impossible to speak with confidence about the origin of the word
Collect. We find in old Services both Collecta and Collectio. It
might be conjectured that these were references to Books of Collects
bearing those names as their titles. But the explanations which have
been offered for a thousand years, though very various, do not include
that as a possibility. Some derive it from people,
(1) collected for worship:
(2) collected in the unity of the Church:
(3) having collectedness of mind.
Others from:
(4) the sense collected from Scripture:
(5) the desires collected from the congregation.
{140}
Canon Bright[1] decides in favour of (1) as the explanation of
_Collecta_, and (5) as that of _Collectio_, preferring the former as
the source of our English word _Collect_.
Canon Bright quotes Alcuin the Northumbrian boy, the York Scholar
(735-804), who became the most learned man in Europe, and the friend,
adviser, and teacher, of the great Emperor Charlemagne. Alcuin derived
the word from _Collecta_, an assembly for worship.
The Morning and Evening Collects.
The First Collect is the Collect of the Day. The Preface (last rubric
before the Table of Lessons) orders that the Collect "appointed for the
Sunday shall serve all the week after, where it is not in this Book
otherwise ordered." The Book 'orders otherwise' for Saints' Days, and
at such special times as Christmas, Ash-Wednesday, Good Friday, Easter
Even, but has omitted, by some accident, to provide for the two days
after Ascension Day, for the week days between The Epiphany and the
First Sunday after, and for the three days after Ash-Wednesday.
A rubric at the beginning of the _Collects, Epistles, and Gospels_
provides that the Collect for a Sunday, or for a Holy Day having a
Vigil or Eve, shall be said at the Evening Service next before.
We have said something of the source of these Collects: their detailed
consideration belongs to a {141} book on the Communion Service, or on
the Epistles and Gospels.
The Second Collect, both at Mattins and Evensong, is a Collect for
Peace. Both are taken from the same chapter of Prayers for Peace in
the Gelasian Sacramentary.
The Morning Collect, desiring that our trust in God, and our
fearlessness, may be strengthened by continual knowledge of God's
protection, addresses Him as the author and lover of peace, and also as
the One whom we know and serve, and thereby have life and freedom.
_Standeth our eternal life_. Notice the phrase standeth in as a
substitute for is. We could not have said _whose knowledge is eternal
life_, because of the momentary doubt whether it referred to the
knowledge which God has, or to the knowledge which we have of Him. By
the use of an idiom not now in common use, we express the belief taught
by the Saviour's words S. John xvii. 3.
Notice also the phrase _whose service is perfect freedom_: here the
Latin original has _whom to serve is to reign_. Our eagerness to do
God's Will is, on the one hand, a service or bondage to Him; but, on
the other hand, it is what makes us masters of ourselves, and, in the
spiritual sense, kings (1 Cor. iv. 8; Rev. i. 6).
The prayer for defence from external assault has for its real motive
the attainment of trust and fearlessness.
The Evening Collect for Peace asks more plainly for spiritual peace; in
relation to (1) the tumults {142} occasioned in our consciences by
disobedience to God's commands, (2) the tumults occasioned in our lives
by outward interference. For (1), we appeal to God as the author of
good and holy desires within us: for (2), we appeal to Him as the
counsellor who helps us against our enemies. For both, we appeal to
Him who enables us, and others, to do what is just.
The Third Collect in the Morning is styled a Collect _for Grace_.
Because He is Almighty and Everlasting; because He is our Father and
our God and Lord; and, in particular, because He has brought us to the
beginning of the day; we ask Him to keep us from harm, and sin, and
danger, as the day goes on.
The corresponding Evening Collect is styled a Collect _for Aid against
all Perils_. Accepting the figure suggested by the close of the day,
we ask God to defend us from the perils and dangers of darkness. The
light which we seek is evidently inward and spiritual light; the
defence, in like manner, a defence from spiritual perils, though not
excluding the others: cf. Psalm xviii. 28: xxvii. i.
C. The other Prayers.
The change from the Three Collects to the Three Prayers which follow
may be softened by the Anthem, (or Hymn), which comes between. The
spiritual gifts, desired in the Collects, are the qualities which guide
the lives of men. When we pray that we may have a good King, or a good
Bishop, or a good People, we have evidently passed from the general to
the particular; from that which is within us to that which is external.
{143}
The Prayer for the King was inserted in 1559.
_Health and wealth_=To be hale or whole, and to be well. They are
Saxon words which include all prosperity of body and condition.
The Prayer for the Royal Family was inserted in 1604. The persons
mentioned by name have been the Consort of the Sovereign, the Queen
Dowager, and the next King and Queen. Thus in Queen Anne's reign,
Princess Sophia was mentioned until she died, eight months before the
Queen.
The Prayer for the Clergy and People. This is, in the Gelasian
Sacramentary, a prayer in a Monastery; or, in a private house.
Afterwards, the persons for whom it was said, were "an abbat or his
congregation"; then Bishops and their congregations; and finally,
Curates (i.e. the Clergy in _charge_ of parishes) were introduced in
1544. In Titus ii. 11 _The grace of God bringeth salvation_, the word
'healthful' is translated differently, but the phrase is the same as
here.
_the continual dew of thy blessing_: see Ps. cxxxiii. 3, where the
consecration of Aaron suggested Hermon (=consecration), and called up
thoughts of the dew and the clouds, running and floating from its
sides. So the blessing received from on high is received in order to
be transmitted to others.
The phrase _who alone workest great marvels_ seems to be justified by
the consideration that much is asked for in the prayer--God's spirit,
and the dew of His blessing, for all the Clergy, and for all the People.
{144}
A Prayer of S. Chrysostom is so called because it comes to us from the
Liturgy of S. Chrysostom. It is said to be older than A.D. 900 but not
so old as to have been composed by S. Chrysostom himself (354-407). It
addresses Christ as _Almighty God_, and reminds Him of His present gift
of grace, and of His ancient promise. The two blessings claimed
are--for this life, the knowledge of God's truth--for the life to come,
the knowledge of God Himself (S. John xvii. 3).
2 Cor. xiii. This Benediction is not merely the ending of the worship
in church: it is also the link between the Church Service and the
Service of God which we perform outside. We go out of church to do our
work with grace, and love, and fellowship, in the Name and Power of the
Holy Trinity.
The more solemn part of the Holy Communion, in the Clementine Liturgy,
S. Basil's, S. Chrysostom's and other Eastern Liturgies, began with
this Benediction.
The occasional Prayers and Thanksgivings. Like the six Collects after
the Communion Service, these may be used before the Prayer of S.
Chrysostom in the Morning and Evening, and (with one exception) also
when the Litany is said.
There are 11 Prayers: the first two were made in 1549: the next four in
1552: the first of the Ember prayers, in 1661: the second, in a
slightly different form, was a prayer in the Ordination Services of
1549, where it still stands. The ninth is from Gelasius' Sacramentary.
The Prayer for Parliament appeared in the last Revision (1661), but had
been printed before, in Special forms of Service.
{145}
The _Prayer for all conditions of men_ first appeared in 1661. There
are eight Thanksgivings: the first, fourth, and sixth, were printed in
1661: the rest in 1604. In the first of these, if the petition were
_Send us, we beseech thee, such weather_, the Prayer might be very
frequently used during the spring and summer. Having these, we seem to
want other, occasional prayers, and thanksgivings. The spread of
Emigration, the enlargement of our Navy and Army, the multiplication of
Municipal bodies, and other developments of the National life, demand
occasional prayers in the Service, and especially, perhaps, a prayer to
be used at times of anxiety for those at sea.
[1] See his Ancient Collects, Appendix: and his Paper in S.P.C.K.
Prayer Book Commentary "On the Collects."
{146}
CHAPTER XIV.
THE PRAYER SERVICE.
II. Anthems.
Anthem=Antiphon, fr. _antiphonon_: so called because two choirs sing
alternately.
Anthems are of two sorts--simple Anthems and compound Anthems. A
simple Anthem is one or more verses (often from Holy Scripture), used
to give character to a Psalm. A compound Anthem is a Hymn or Psalm
followed by a Verse, Respond, and Prayer. A simple Anthem was used,
for example, to give an Easter, Advent, &c. character to _Venite_.
Thus Dec. 16 is marked in the Calendar as _O Sapientia_ because on that
day the following Anthem was used with Magnificat:
O Wisdom, which camest forth out of the mouth of the Most High, and
reachest from one end to the other, mightily and sweetly ordering all
things; Come and teach us the way of prudence.
These words are taken, with some alteration, from Wisd. viii. 1. On
each of the seven days which follow, until Dec. 23, a different Anthem
was used with Magnificat; and forasmuch as these eight Anthems begin
with O (O Wisdom, O Lord, O Root of Jesse, &c.), they were known as the
O Anthems. Similarly on The Epiphany, S. Matth. ii. 1, 2, 11 was sung
as an Antiphon to Magnificat; and on Whitsunday S. John iv. 23. {147}
These are instances of the use of simple Anthems in the Services before
1549. The following illustrates the purpose for which they were
appointed. It will be observed that the Advent thought was made to
pervade the whole Psalm.
ADVENT SETTING OF VENITE.
Behold the King cometh. Let us go to meet our Saviour.
O come, let us sing unto the Lord: let us heartily rejoice in the
strength of our Salvation. Let us come before his presence with
thanksgiving: and shew ourselves glad in him with Psalms.
Behold the King cometh. Let us go to meet our Saviour.
For the Lord is a great God: and a great King above all gods. In his
hand are all the corners of the earth: and the strength of the hills is
his also.
Let us go to meet our Saviour.
The sea is his, and he made it; and his hands prepared the dry land. O
come, let us worship, and fall down: and kneel before the Lord our
Maker, for he is the Lord our God: and we are the people of his
pasture, and the sheep of his hand.
Behold the King cometh. Let us go to meet our Saviour.
To day if ye will hear his voice, harden not your hearts: as in the
provocation, and as in the day of temptation in the wilderness. When
your fathers tempted me: proved me and saw my works.
Let us go to meet our Saviour.
Forty years long was I grieved with this generation, and said; It is a
people that do err in their hearts, for they have not known my ways.
Unto whom I sware in my wrath: that they should not enter into my rest.
Behold the King cometh. Let us go to meet our Saviour.
Glory be to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Ghost. As it
was in the beginning, is now, and ever shall be, world without end.
Amen.
Let us go to meet our Saviour.
Behold thy King cometh. Let us go to meet our Saviour.
{148}
THE COMPOUND ANTHEM.
The Prioress, in Chaucer's _Canterbury Tales_, relates that a
Litel child his litel book lernynge,
As he sat in the scole in his primere,
He _O alma redemptoris_ herde synge,
As children lerned her antiphonere:
From this we understand that _O alma redemptoris_ was an "Antym" out of
the Antiphonere, or Anthem Book. This Anthem has six hexameter lines
followed by a Verse and Respond, and the Collect which we now use for
Lady Day. This, then, is what we have called the Compound Anthem.
A good example of it is found in the Prayer Book of 1549 where the
Easter Anthems, as we still call them, were ordered to be used in the
Morning afore Mattins. Their "setting" was as follows:
Christ rising again from the dead now dieth not: Death from henceforth
hath no power upon him. For in that he died, he died but once to put
away sin; but in that he liveth, he liveth unto God. And so likewise
count yourselves dead unto sin, but living unto God in Christ Jesus our
Lord.
Hallelujah. Hallelujah.
Christ is risen again, the firstfruits of them that sleep. For seeing
that by man came death, by man also cometh the resurrection of the
dead. For as by Adam all men do die: so by Christ all men shall be
restored to life.
Hallelujah.
_The Priest_. Shew forth to all nations the glory of God.
_The Answer_. And among all people his wonderful works.
Let us pray.
O God who for our redemption didst give thine only begotten Son to the
death of the cross; and by his glorious resurrection hast delivered us
from the power of our enemy: Grant us so {149} to die daily from sin,
that we may evermore live with him, in the joy of his resurrection;
through the same Christ our Lord. Amen.
The history of the transformation of this Anthem into a Psalm, as it is
now used, may be given here. In 1552 its rubric was changed to the
present form: that is, it was no longer to be used before Mattins; it
was to be sung or said instead of _Venite_. The Verse, Respond and
Collect were omitted. In 1662 _Gloria Patri_ was added, and the words
of 1 Cor. v. 7, 8 were inserted at the beginning.
The Easter Anthems, as now ordered, are most properly set as a Psalm.
With similar propriety, when they were used _before_ the Service of
Mattins, they were set as a Prayer-Anthem--beginning with the jubilance
which is expressed by the twofold Hallelujah, and gradually modulating
the jubilance in preparation for the Service which followed.
Simple Anthems were so frequent, and their changes for special
occasions were so many, that they created some confusion and intricacy
in the old Services. We may, however, recognise the beauty and
worshipfulness of the plan. In the Visitation of the Sick, the words
_O Saviour of the world_ &c. as used with Psalm lxxi. are a survival of
it. The verse _Remember not Lord_ &c. was introduced at the beginning
of the same Service, as an Anthem to Psalm cxliii. The Psalm was
omitted in 1552, but its Anthem remains.
The singing of the Psalm and Anthem will be understood from the example
quoted above--the half choir which sang the Psalm was continually
interrupted by {150} the half choir which sang the Anthem. The
following illustration is quoted (by Martene) as of the 11th century.
In this case a verse of _Magnificat_ was sung after each verse of the
Anthem.
EASTER EVE SETTING OF MAGNIFICAT.
[Transcriber's note: In the following section, in the original book,
the material in the right-hand column was italicized. In standard
Project Gutenberg practice, such text is (usually) surrounded by
underscores ("_"), but for clarity, that underscoring has been omitted
here.]
Now on the evening of the
Sabbath, as it began to dawn My soul doth magnify the
toward the first day of the Lord:
week, came Mary Magdalene
and the other Mary to see the
Sepulchre.
And behold, there was a And my spirit hath rejoiced
great earthquake. in God my Saviour.
For the angel of the Lord For he hath regarded the
descended from heaven, and lowliness of his handmaiden:
came and rolled back the stone for behold, from henceforth all
from the door, and sat upon it. generations shall call me blessed.
His countenance was like For he that is mighty hath
lightning, and his raiment magnified me, and holy is his
white as snow. name.
And for fear of him the And his mercy is on them
keepers did shake, and that fear him, throughout all
became as dead men. generations.
And the angel answered He hath shewed strength
and said unto the women, Fear with his arm; he hath scattered
not ye; for I know that ye the fraud in the imagination
seek Jesus, which was crucified. of their hearts.
He is not here: for he is risen,
as he said.
Come, see the place where He hath put down the
the Lord lay. mighty from their seat, and
hath exalted the humble and
meek.
And go quickly, and tell He hath filled the hungry
his disciples, that he is risen with good things, and the rich
from the dead. he hath sent empty away.
{151}
In Galilee shall ye see him: He remembering his mercy
lo, I have told you. hath holpen his servant Israel.
Fear not ye; for he is risen As he promised to our forefathers,
as he said. Abraham and his seed
for ever.
And very early in the first Glory be to the Father, and
day of the week, they came to the Son, and to the Holy
unto the sepulchre at the rising Ghost:
of the sun.
And they said among themselves, As it was in the beginning,
Who shall roll us away is now, and ever shall be,
the stone, and when they looked, world without end. Amen.
they saw that it was rolled
away.
We have now given examples of Anthems, which show that they have their
name from the responding of two choirs to one another[1]. But Anthems
were not of necessity hymns of Praise. The place provided at Morning
and Evening Prayer, for the singing of an Anthem, is singularly
ill-suited to the singing of a Praise-Anthem: for it is the place also
of the Litany. It is sometimes pleaded that people grow tired of
prayer, by the end of the 3rd Collect, and need a change: hence, after
praying for three or four minutes, they rise up and sing praise for ten
minutes, before kneeling again for seven or eight minutes. If we have
grasped the reverent orderliness of the Services, we shall not easily
be persuaded that this was the design of the order at this place. We
have elsewhere shown that an Anthem here unites the Collects which
precede it, to those which follow.
{152}
We must believe that there was an intention to provide an Anthem Book.
Until this is done by authority, it would be well to distinguish, in
Hymn Books, between those Hymns which are suitable in the midst of the
Prayers, and those which are appropriate as Hymns of Praise. The same
might also be done in the Anthem Books, so that a Praise-Anthem, or
Hymn, might be sung at the close of the whole Service. A
Prayer-Anthem, or Hymn, or one upon the Redeemer's Love, and His Work
as Mediator, suits well as a modulation to the Prayers after the 3rd
Collect. And it might be sung Antiphonally.
[1] Rabanus, _De Inst. Cler._ Mart. IV. iv. 1.
{153}
CHAPTER XV.
THE SERVICE OF PRAYER.
III. The Litany.
Origin of Litanies. Some of the Offices of Holy Communion--especially
in the East--have had a portion after the Gospel very similar to what
we call a Litany. Thus in the Liturgy (i.e. Holy Communion Office) of
S. James, the Deacon says _The Universal Collect_, consisting of
fifteen suffrages (see Appendix F), each ending with, _Let us beseech
the Lord_: and the Response of the people is, _Lord have mercy_, which
is said thrice at the end of the petitions. Similar to this is _the
Prayer of Intense Supplication_, in the Liturgy of S. Chrysostom. Cf.
also the modern Liturgy of Constantinople.
We should expect to find the further development of Litanies, in
Churches where the Eastern influence was felt; it is therefore no
surprise to us, that the history of them next takes us to the Churches
of Southern France. "The South of Gaul had been colonized originally
from the Eastern shores of the Aegaean. Its Christianity came from the
same regions as its colonization. The Church of Gaul was the {154}
spiritual daughter of the Church of proconsular Asia[1]."
Pothinus, Bp of Lyons and Vienne, had come probably from Asia Minor.
When, at the age of more than 90, he was martyred (A.D. 177), his
successor as Bishop was Irenaeus, who received part of his early
education in Asia Minor from Polycarp, a disciple of S. John the
Evangelist. Other martyrs, at Vienne and Lyons, in that year (A.D.
177), had come from Asia Minor. A map will show that Vienne is about
16 miles south of Lyons. Thus from the first days of the Church in
France, a close connection existed between it and the Church in Asia
Minor.
About A.D. 467[2], Mamertus, Archbishop of Vienne, ordered Litanies to
be said in procession on the three days before Ascension Day; being
moved thereto by a succession of calamities--earthquake, war, wild
beasts invading the city itself--followed shortly by the destruction of
the royal palace in Vienne by lightning. The practice spread to
neighbouring dioceses, and was confirmed by the Council of Orleans
(A.D. 511). The three days before Ascension Day are thence called
'Rogation Days'; and processions for purposes of prayer are called
Rogations, or Litanies.
The Rogation Litanies were not adopted at Rome {155} until the time of
Leo III. (795-816): but in a time of pestilence at Rome, Gregory the
Great, A.D. 590, instituted the Sevenfold Litany of S. Mark's Day.
Gregory the Great has been called the Apostle of the English, because
he intended to come as a missionary to convert the English; and, when
prevented from so doing by his election as Bishop of Rome, sent
Augustine in his stead A.D. 596. The yearly Synod of the English
Church was appointed in 673 to be held at Cloveshoo--a place probably
near London but in the kingdom of Mercia. In 747 at a great council
held at Cloveshoo, March 12 was appointed as S. Gregory's Day; May 26
as the day of S. Augustine Archbishop of Canterbury[3]; and Gregory's
Sevenfold Litany, together with the Rogation Services, was sanctioned
for use in England, with a phrase which implies that custom had already
introduced them.
The 2nd Book of Homilies (1562. See Art. xxxv). contains a Homily for
Rogation Week in four parts--three of which appear to be designed for
the three Rogation Days, and the fourth for The Perambulation of the
Parish, or Beating of the Bounds--a custom which has survived into our
own time. The parishioners walked along the outline of the parish,
taking {156} care that at least one of them passed through any
obstruction which was built, or erected, across the boundary. Thus, if
a cottage were so built, a boy would be passed though the door and
window of it. Trees at corners were marked with a hatchet: a note book
was preserved as a guide for the next perambulation. From this useful
and ancient ceremony, Rogation Days were called by the Anglo-Saxons
Béddagas=Prayer-days, or Gang-dagas=perambulation-days. Boundary
stones, dated May 4, 1837, are to be seen in the thickets of Buckland
Woods, Devon, showing that Ascension Day was chosen in that year for
the perambulation of Ashburton. More recently the perambulation of
Exeter has been performed on Ascension Day. The steps by which the
religious dedication of the year's work, at each centre of agricultural
industry, passed into a municipal ceremony accompanied by social
amenities, may be conjectured. It was still a religious
service--partly in the church and partly in the fields, in the time of
Queen Elizabeth, and much later.
Litanies, however, have ceased to be processions. They are not said
walking, but kneeling. The Litany is to be said at some different
place from the Morning Prayer: for, in the Commination it is ordered,
that part shall be said by the Minister in the Reading Pew, or Pulpit,
and the rest "in the place where they are accustomed to say the
Litany." Since this recognises an accustomed place, the kneeling desk
or fald-stool[4], placed "in front of the chancel door," or "in {157}
the midst of the Church" (Injunctions of Edw. VI.), appears to be
intended.
For the order to kneel to say the Litany, we must refer back to the
rubric at the head of the Collects in Morning Prayer, where the words,
_all kneeling_, were added in 1662 (see p. 130).
The place of the Faldstool may have been suggested by Joel ii. 17, _Let
the priests, the ministers of the Lord, weep between the porch and the
altar_.
Structure of the Litany.
The Litany is a series of prayers addressed mainly to God the Son. It
has two breaks, or interruptions, which consist of prayers addressed to
God the Father. Thus there are five sections.
Section i. from the beginning, to _O Christ, hear us_.
Thirty petitions to Jesus under the title _Good Lord_, with invocation
of Holy Trinity at the beginning, and urgent entreaty at the end.
Section ii. from _Lord, have mercy upon us_, to _world without end_.
Amen.
Earnest appeal to the Father, with _Lesser Litany_ as preface to the
Lord's Prayer.
Section iii. _From our enemies_, to _O Lord Christ_.
Eight Antiphonal prayers to Christ.
{158}
Section iv. _O Lord, let thy mercy_, to end of occasional prayers and
thanksgivings.
One fixed, and other variable, prayers for urgent needs.
Section v. The Prayer of S. Chrysostom, addressed to Christ, and the
Benediction 2 Cor. xiii.
NOTES.
i. The Invocation of the Holy Trinity in the 1st Section is very full,
and should be compared with the Invocation which is used in Section ii.
as a preface to the Lord's Prayer.
The words, _Good Lord_, are spoken to Jesus: as we may easily infer
from the words, _whom thou hast redeemed with thy most precious blood_;
and from, _By the mystery of thy holy Incarnation, By thine Agony and
bloody Sweat_ &c. _Son of God, O Lamb of God, O Christ_.
ii. The Lesser Litany is to be repeated, verse by verse, by the
congregation; copying, in this respect, the setting of the Invocation
at the beginning of Section i. The beginning of the Section being thus
marked, the end of it is marked by the _Gloria Patri_.
iii. We shall show that these eight verses are probably intended for
Antiphonal singing.
iii. and iv. The Sarum Litany had here 10 couplets of versicles and
seven collects. Of these seven collects we may mention, _O God, whose
nature and property_ &c., _the Prayer for Clergy and People_, and the
2nd Evening Collect, _O God, from whom_ &c.
The substitution of the two sections, as they now stand, may be quoted
as an example of the improvements which were effected in the Revision
period.
{159}
iv. The 4th Section includes various prayers of the _Amen_ form. The
first of these may be known as the Collect of Complete Confidence. It
is made up of two older prayers, and the couplet which precedes it
expresses each of those two older prayers in a brief sentence. Thus
the couplet anticipates the Collect. [See also p. 128.]
The other prayers of this Section usually have equivalents in the first
Section. The repetition is made because of some urgency due to the
circumstances of the time. Thus, we have prayed for the Clergy
already, but in Ember Weeks we add, in the 4th Section, a Collect for
the Candidates for Ordination. Or again, we have prayed for sick
people, but at this point we may add a Collect for the time of any
common Plague or Sickness. Similarly, we have prayed for the
preservation of the fruits of the Earth, but may add a prayer here for
Rain, or Fair weather, or for cheapness and plenty.
Section i. Our cry to Christ.
The distinguishing feature of the Litany is that it uses a worship-form
which is not used elsewhere in the Prayer Book. The Minister dictates
briefly the subject of the Prayer, which is then made by the voices of
the People. These are called Suffrages (from _suffragium_, Latin for a
vote in favour, or approbation). That part of the Litany which is made
in this way is very full and detailed. Students should also notice the
variety of its phrases, and the beauty of its rhythm.
The use of such a form is ancient, and the Revisers in 1549 had the
substance ready to their hand. Comparing the older Litany with that
which we use, we note that the Revisers have frequently combined
several suffrages to make one suffrage, as in the following instance:
{160}
By thine Agony and bloody By thy Passion and Cross:
Sweat; by thy Cross and deliver us, O Lord.
Passion; by thy precious Death By thy precious Death:
and Burial; by thy glorious deliver us, O Lord.
Resurrection and Ascension; By thy glorious Resurrection:
and by the coming of the Holy deliver us, O Lord.
Ghost: By thy marvellous Ascension:
deliver us, O Lord.
Good Lord, deliver us. By the grace of the Holy
Spirit the Comforter: deliver
us, O Lord.
Here five suffrages are grouped into one. In like manner four are
grouped in the suffrage, _From all evil and mischief_ &c.
The number of petitions was further reduced by the omission of all the
prayers to the Saints, entreating them to pray for us. These were very
numerous--28 fixed; and 40 more, which varied according to the week-day.
The petitions which were then introduced present two features which
should be carefully studied--_Duplication_ and _Wreathing_[5].
_Duplication_ has been already explained (see p. 33), and is here of
the Progressive sort. We give numerous instances below. _Wreathing_
is when two phrases have two members each, and are united by taking the
two first members together, and the two second members together.
A simple instance of this is found in the union of the phrases,
_by their preaching they may set forth,_
_and by their living they may shew accordingly_
{161} the Word of God. These, being wreathed together, become _that by
their preaching and living they may set it forth and shew it
accordingly_.
In such combinations it is necessary that the ideas shall be in harmony
with one another. God's truth is set forth in sermons, and shewn in
the preacher's life: with rather less exactness, but with sufficient
truth, and with admirable suggestion, we may say that God's truth is
set forth in the good life of a preacher, and shewn in his sermons.
One of the best instances of Wreathing is in the combination of the
three phrases
_succour all that are in danger,_
_help all that are in necessity,_
_comfort all that are in tribulation._
Danger, Necessity, and Tribulation are in progressive order of
calamity. In danger, the calamity may be avoided--we want support for
our own strength: in necessity, the blow has fallen--we want help at
once from outside: in tribulation, the disaster has come--we want
comfort.
If we have understood Progressive Duplication, we shall at once see
that Wreathing is used in unison with it.
It is convenient to describe the 1st section of the Litany, as
consisting of four subsections, viz. Invocations, Deprecations,
Obsecrations, and Intercessions. The Invocations are said by the
Minister, and repeated by the congregation. The prayers of the other
sub-sections formerly were also said twice; but, since 1549, are said
in two parts, the congregation making the respond which contains the
prayer. This is done {162} not only for variety, but to assist the
blind, or unlearned, in uniting their voices with the rest of the
people. It is moreover an exercise of the privilege of approach to
God, granted by our Lord (1 Pet. ii. 5; S. Matth. xviii. 19, 20), which
is sometimes forgotten in thoughts of the ministry which He appointed.
_Progressive Duplication &c._
The groups of sins and sufferings from which we desire to be delivered
supply instances of progress, from that which is less, to that which is
more, serious. Most of these are obvious, and call for no further
remark.
Deprecations (Prayer for deliverance).
1. _Spare thy people, O Lord_: Joel ii. 17.
2. _Crafts and assaults_: The crafty enemy is one who cannot, or dare
not, attack openly. Hence assaults imply greater strength, or greater
courage, than crafts.
3. Of personal defects, _Blindness of heart_ may be due at first to
causes for which we are not responsible. _Pride_ is that which is too
well satisfied with itself: _Vain-glory_ is that which seeks admiration
from others; _Hypocrisy_ is that which seeks admiration on false
pretences.
_Envy_ is the desire to injure, and grows into _Hatred_, which has
perhaps a vestige of candour that is absent from _Malice_.
3 and 4. _Deadly sin_. All sin is deadly unless it is forgiven by God;
on the other hand "after we have {163} received the Holy Ghost, we may
depart from grace given, and fall into sin, and by the grace of God we
may arise again, and amend our lives," "the grant of repentance is not
to be denied to such" (Article xvi.). It should be remembered that our
Lord has taught us to interpret the Commandments inclusively, so that
they comprise all duties, and all sins--envy, hatred, and malice, as
well as murder, for instance. The old distinction between deadly sins
and venial sins has in it only an element of truth. Those named deadly
sins were Pride, Covetousness, Lust, Envy, Gluttony, Anger, Sloth. Of
these Pride, Lust, and Envy are mentioned here, being notable amongst
sins which war against the Soul. Two phrases here include all sins:
"all deadly sin," and, "the deceits of the world, the flesh, and the
devil." It is not easy to decide whether such a sin as Idleness falls
under the head of Covetousness, or Sloth, or Pride; nor whether it is a
deceit of the World, the Flesh, or the Devil. These classifications
do, however, help in self-examination, and sometimes suggest helps in
the battle against our sins.
5. _Plague, Pestilence, and Famine_ form a group in which we see that
Famine is the most serious, because it attacks the whole community.
Plague is a disease which befalls us as a blow (_plege_); Pestilence is
a disease which spreads from one to another. Science tends to enlarge
the host of pestilences, and diminish the number of death-blows which
cannot be explained. It is apparent that a disease which spreads
through a community is more dreadful than one which singles out one
person or many.
{164}
_battle, murder, and sudden death_, are blows which may fall upon us;
it is not prayer that we may be delivered from being soldiers, and from
the crime of murder.
6. _sedition, privy conspiracy, and rebellion_: sedition is the
thought; conspiracy, the plan; and rebellion, the action--of a subject
against the Government.
_false doctrine, heresy and schism_: false doctrine is the thought;
heresy, the plan; and schism, the action--of a Churchman against the
Church, and its Lord.
_hardness of heart_, is a disposition to disobey what we know to be the
command of God. If not checked, it grows into actual _contempt of His
Word and Commandment_.
Obsecrations. (Entreaty mentioning the plea.)
7 and 8. _Incarnation_: S. John i. 14; Rom. i. 3.
_Nativity_: S. Luke ii. 11. Circumcision: S. Luke ii. 21.
_Baptism_: S. Matth. iii. 16.
_Fasting and Temptation_: S. Luke iv. 1, 2.
_Agony and Bloody Sweat_: S. Luke xxii. 44.
_Cross and Passion_: S. Matth. xxvii. 41-46; Heb. v. 7.
_Death and Burial_: S. Mark xv. 44, 45.
_Resurrection_: S. Matth. xxviii. 5-7.
_Ascension_: Acts i. 9; 1 Tim. iii. 16.
_The Coming of the Holy Ghost_: Acts ii. 32, 33.
9. _Tribulation, Wealth, Death, Judgment_ are the four times of special
need.
Tribulation is derived from threshing, or crushing.
{165}
Wealth is well-doing, or welfare. Prosperity and Adversity are both
times of temptation.
Intercessions. (Prayer for others.)
10. _Universal_ is equivalent to Catholic.
11. _Governor_ refers to the relation of the Sovereign to the Church.
12. _faith, fear, and love_, an ascending order of submission to God.
_affiance_=trust.
11, 14. The names of the Sovereign, and of the Royal Family, vary in
these petitions. A Prayer Book of 1682 has King Charles, Queen
Catherine, and James Duke of York. In 1801, King George, Queen
Charlotte, George Prince of Wales, and the Princess of Wales. In 1850,
Queen Victoria, Prince Albert, and Albert Prince of Wales. The date of
a Prayer Book is sometimes omitted from a title page, but may be learnt
from these petitions more accurately than from the Table of Moveable
Feasts. It is, I believe, left to the Sovereign to say who is to be
mentioned, and by what titles.
15. _Bishops_: successors of the Apostles as Overseers of the Churches
(1 Tim. i. 3; 2 Tim. ii. 2; Tit. i. 5, ii. 15). The word _epirkopos_(=
overseer) is contracted into Bishop in many languages, with slight
differences, e.g. Old English, Dutch, German, Swedish, Cornish. In
Spanish it becomes Obispo; in Italian, Vescovo; in French, Évêque.
_Priests_: successors of the Elders, or Presbyters, who ministered in
congregations (Acts xx. 17). As the Bishop has the Oversight of many
congregations with their Priests and Deacons, so the Priest {166} has
the Oversight of one congregation, or Parish. In this sense he might
be called Overseer, or Bishop, of that Parish, and S. Paul's use of
this word in 1 Tim. iii. has suggested that, while the Apostles lived,
the word Bishop was used as much in this sense as in the other. When
the word Bishop was required for the Apostolic office, the word Priest
remained for the second Order of the ministry. Priest is contracted
from Presbyter, and appears with slight variations in many languages.
_Deacons_. The Seven appointed in Acts vi. are not there called
deacons, but they are assumed to be the first who were appointed to
that office, or order of the Ministry. In some ancient churches they
retained the practice of having seven deacons.
The word means Minister, and has come from the Greek into many
languages with slight variations. Like the word Bishop, it is used in
the N.T. of other orders of the Ministry (S. Paul, 1 Cor. iii. 5; 2
Cor. iii. 6; Eph. iii. 7, &c.: Epaphras, Col. i. 7: Tychicus, Eph. vi.
21: Timothy, 1 Tim. iv. 6: Archippus, Col. iv. 17). Although in 1 Tim.
iv. 6 the word is used of Timothy, who was receiving commandment as
overseer of all the Clergy at Ephesus, we find in 1 Tim. iii. 8-10 that
Deacons were already Church Ministers, with official duties (1 Tim.
iii. 10)[6].
{167}
shew it _accordingly_: i.e. shew it in accordance with their preaching.
The "teaching" and "living" must agree together.
16. The Council of the King of England had, from of old, the duty of
making, or approving, the choice of the King, and advising him on
matters of state, and of law. Many of its duties have been deputed to
Committees, to Judges, and to Parliament. The Cabinet of Chief
Ministers of State may be regarded as a Committee of the King's Council.
In the reign of Charles II., when the Prayer Book was last revised, the
Council was still the body whose advice guided the King, although it
was growing too large for the secrecy which is often necessary in such
weighty matters. It is still a very great honour to be made a Privy
Councillor, but the Privy Council very seldom, or never, meets for
business except by its Committees, which are not chosen by the Council.
When therefore we use this petition, we may think rather of the members
of the Cabinet than of those whom the King has honoured with the title
of Privy Councillor. A petition for the House of Commons might with
advantage be introduced into the Litany.
17. _to execute justice_, in the case which is being tried, is the
first duty of a magistrate; _to maintain truth_ is also his duty, for
he must have regard to other cases which will come before the Court.
18. This concludes the petitions for our own nation. We now go on to
things which affect all nations alike.
19. _Unity, peace, and concord_. The general meaning of these words is
the same, but there may {168} be unity without peace, and peace without
concord: therefore we pray for all the three; and concord is placed
last as being the inward temper which gives reality to unity and peace.
20. Here the order is reversed--proceeding from love which is the
highest kind of bond, to _dread_ which should keep us from
disobedience, and coming finally to the outward result viz. _a diligent
life of obedience to the commandments_.
21. Takes up the last thought of the previous suffrage.
The life of obedience is here traced from hearing to receiving, and so,
_to the fruits of the Spirit_ (see Gal. V. 22-24).
22. _Erred_ is when the fault is in ourselves only; _deceived_ is when
we give way to the evil guidance of others.
23. Those who _stand_ need strength: those who are _weak-hearted_ need
comfort and help: those who _fall_, restoration.
24. See p. 161.
25. Emigration has become more common since this petition was prepared:
those who settle in foreign lands should here be remembered.
_Captives_ are war-prisoners.
26. We may mentally supply the thought of _motherless_ children.
Widows may be supposed to include widowers. Both sexes are described
as widows in some parts of England. All kinds of bereavement are of
course included in _desolate and oppressed_.
27. Just as 19 concluded a section of petitions {169} for our own
nation, so 27 concludes a section about the people of all nations. 28
adds a petition which the Lord particularly enjoined (S. Matth. v. 44).
28. _enemies, persecutors_, and _slanderers_--in ascending order of
malignity. Similarly in the Commandments, where the worst sin of each
sort is the one mentioned, we find false witness, or slander, named, in
the Commandment which forbids all falsehood.
_and to turn their hearts_--a nobler prayer even than asking God to
forgive them: for when we have asked Him for their forgiveness, we may
still long to overcome their hostility, rather than to see it
withdrawn. As Christ's disciples we here desire to forego our triumph,
and to rejoice over their conversion from evil.
29. Kindly fruits of the earth. 'Kindly' means 'natural'; from an Old
English word 'cynd' or 'gecynd,' meaning _nature, kind, manner,
condition_. (Cf. Gen. i. 11, 12, 21, 24, 25.)[7]
30. Although forgiveness is granted through the death of our Lord,
repentance is that condition of our souls wherein the forgiveness
cleanses them. _Repentance_ is therefore asked for first, then
_Forgiveness, Grace_, and _Amendment_.
_Sins, negligences, and ignorances_: cf. General Confession, 'left
undone'=negligence; 'done'=sins; 'no health in us' supplying the other
defects, which are here set down to ignorance. We are called to a holy
life, and therefore faults due to ignorance need {170} amendment and
pardon, as well as faults which come of conscious disobedience to God's
commands.
At the close of these petitions, the cry becomes more urgent. Our Lord
warned us against vain repetitions--repetitions without meaning. The
repetitions here are not vain--they express deep feelings, and anxious
entreaty.
Section ii. Our cry to the Father in Heaven.
The couplet
_O Lord, deal not with us_, &c.
_Neither reward us_, &c.
belongs to the _Prayer of the Contrite Heart_, and is a summary of it.
It is taken from Psalm ciii. 10. It offers no excuse but owns that we
have sinned and are in wretched plight, as does the prayer which
follows. This prayer was taken from the Sarum Missal, where it stands
in a Mass for Tribulation of heart.
Ps. li. 17 supplies the thought of, that _despisest not--the contrite
heart_, which is interwoven with, _sorrowful sighing_, from Psalm
lxxix. 12.
We base our claim upon our forlorn condition, and appeal to God's mercy.
Note the repetition _merciful--mercifully--graciously--goodness_. The
temper of the prayer is of kin to Psalm lxix. which--especially in verses
13 to 21, and in its final thankfulness, as sure of God's help--may have
inspired its words and thoughts.
_Psalm xliv_. _1st and last verses_. Doubtless an abbreviation of the
whole psalm, which stood at the beginning of the 3rd Rogation Litany.
{171}
If it be thought that the Gloria Patri occurs as a surprise in the
midst of these entreaties, we may notice (1) that all entreaties are
more real when they recognise truly the Majesty of God; and (2) that S.
Augustine's processional Litany when he came to Canterbury (A.D. 596)
concluded with Alleluia. "We beseech thee, O Lord, in all Thy mercy,
that Thy wrath and Thine anger may be removed from this city and from
Thy holy house, for we have sinned. Alleluia." (Taken from the 2nd
Rogation Litany), (3) the _Gloria Patri_ is always said after a Psalm
in the Services, and sometimes after parts of a Psalm.
Section iii. Appeal for help.
The eight versicles which follow next are addressed to Christ, and in
most editions of the Prayer Book are separated by a small space from
the Verse and Respond,
_Priest_. O Lord, let thy mercy, &c.
_Answer_. As we do put, &c.
These eight versicles were, even in 1544, distinguished from those two,
although they were then all marked to be said responsorially. In 1549
the direction for responsorial use was omitted for the eight verses,
and retained for the couplet which anticipates the next collect. We
may infer from this that it is intended that the eight verses should be
said, or sung, antiphonally. In the Sarum Use (3rd Litany for S.
Mark's Day), they were all to be said, first by the Minister, and
repeated by the People.
The eight versicles form a section by themselves, and have a different
setting from the sections which {172} precede and follow them. It was,
no doubt, intended to make this 3rd Section a very solemn appeal to
Christ, for help in all those difficulties and anxieties which have
been recited in Section i.; and to make this appeal more earnest,
_because_ of the evil plight which is acknowledged in Section ii.
The phrases are freely translated from the Latin of the Sarum Use,
suggested by a thorough knowledge of the Psalms, but not, we believe,
to be regarded as quotations therefrom. _O Son of David_ was
substituted for _Fili Dei vivi_, in making the translation. There is
not sufficient ground for supposing that it was done by accident. In
the appeal for a merciful hearing, it is right to ground it first upon
His Human Nature as Son of Man, and then upon His Divine Nature as
Christ, and Lord.
Section iv. The pressing anxieties of the moment.
The _Collect of Complete Confidence_, with its Verse and Respond, is
placed here to strike the keynote of the Section: and the Section is
filled up from the Occasional Prayers, or from the Collects after the
Communion Service.
This is obviously the place where other prayers may be introduced, when
urgent needs require them.
The _Verse and Respond_: Psalm xxxiii. 22. The first half of the
Collect was formerly a complete prayer, separated from the other half,
in the Litany of 1544, by _O God whose nature_, &c., the prayer _for
{173} Clergy and People_, and another prayer. The Verse contains the
thought of the first half, the Respond has the thought of the second
half.
Since the special prayers which are used in this Section are only
occasional, and rarely more than one or two at a time, they were all
placed (1662) in a chapter by themselves, after the end of the Litany.
Section v. _The final commendation of our prayers to Christ, who makes
them acceptable_: See Morning and Evening Prayer.
[1] Lightfoot, _Apost. Fathers_, Pt. II. vol. 1. p. 446.
[2] This date is variously stated. Hotham in _Dict. Chr. Ant._ vol.
11. says 477; Scudamore in the same vol. 452; Hooker 'about 450';
Burbidge 450; Maclear (S.P.C.K.) and Prayer Book Interleaved 460;
Proctor 'about 460'; Daniel, J. H. Blunt, and Barry 467. The dates
_known_ of Mamertus are between 463 and 474. (Professor Collins tells
me no others are known.)
[3] In some Churches this day was the Festival of Augustine, Bp of
Hippo. The Calendar of Le Bec, however, sets it down to our Augustine,
as our own Calendar does. I do not know whether this agreement between
them was after, or before, that famous Abbey sent us Lanfranc and
Anselm to be successors of Augustine at Canterbury.
[4] Fald-stool. Faudestola (whence French, fauteuil) is said by
Martene to be adopted into Latin; and by Brachet is traced to a German
origin, Falt-stuol. The idea of these derivations is, that the
Prie-dieu, or kneeling-desk, was able to fold up and be made, perhaps,
a chair. But the connection with Rogations suggests (A.S.) Feald-stól,
or Feld-stól (German Feld-stuhl), i.e. a moveable seat (cf. camp-stool).
[5] See George Herbert's poem, "A wreath."
[6] The settlement of words of general meaning, into titles of office,
is frequent enough to supply ample illustration of the process briefly
indicated above. Pastor, General, Major, Mayor, and many other words,
including Rector, Vicar, Curate, may be traced through changes which
are often singularly similar to those of Bishop, Priest, and Deacon.
It is a natural process--so natural as to be almost invariable.
[7] The Greek Translation of our Prayer Book has _oraious_, timely or
seasonable: the German has "lieben," dear, beloved, or kindly in the
other sense, which, though as old as Chaucer's time, is not the meaning
here.
APPENDIX C.
ON THE LESSONS IN THE DAY HOURS, (p. 55.)
The Preface to the Prayer Book _Concerning the Service of the Church_
states that, prior to 1549, the old order, for reading the greatest
part of the Bible through every year, had been "so altered, broken, and
neglected, that commonly when any book of the Bible was begun, after
three or four chapters were read out, all the rest were unread."
There was a First Lesson from the Old Testament, a Second Lesson from a
Commentary, and a Third Lesson from the New Testament.
{174}
On certain days, each Lesson consisted of three parts; and the second
and third parts of the Third Lesson were from a Commentary.
The occurrence of Saints' Days was so frequent as to disturb many of
these: for the special Lessons of a Saint's Day were read, instead of
those of the regular course.
The theory of reading the whole books had been maintained; but it broke
down in practice.
It is worthy of notice that these various Lessons, from the Bible, from
Commentaries, and from the acts and martyrdoms of Saints, were all
"set" with Verses, Responds etc. so as to be Acts of Worship, as well
as a means of Instruction.
APPENDIX D.
ON PLINY'S LETTER TO THE EMPEROR TRAJAN. (p. 107.)
[Pliny the younger was Governor of Pontus and Bithynia during some of
the early years of the 2nd century. Trajan was Emperor from A.D. 98 to
117. The letter, from which we give some extracts, has been dated (Bp
Lightfoot) A.D. 112. It shows that the marvellous spreading of the
Faith took place in the face of laws which made it a crime to be a
Christian: and that the closest enquiry on Pliny's part made him aware
of their high moral standard, and of the stedfastness of their
devotion.]
"* * * The method I have observed towards those who have been brought
before me as Christians is this; I interrogated them whether they were
Christians; {175} if they confessed, I repeated the question twice,
adding threats at the same time; and if they still persevered, I
ordered them to be immediately punished. For, I was persuaded,
whatever the nature of their opinions might be, a contumacious and
inflexible obstinacy certainly deserves correction. * * * An
information was presented to me without any name subscribed, containing
a charge against several persons; these, upon examination, denied they
were, or ever had been, Christians. They repeated after me an
invocation to the gods, and offered religious rites with wine and
frankincense before your statue * * * and even reviled the name of
Christ; whereas there is no forcing, it is said, those who are really
Christians, into any of these compliances. * * * The rest owned indeed
they had been of that number formerly, but had now (some above three,
others more, and a few above twenty years ago) renounced that error. *
* * They affirmed the whole of their guilt, or their error, was, that
they met on a certain stated day before it was light, and addressed
themselves in a form of prayer to Christ, as to some god, binding
themselves by a solemn oath, not for the purposes of any wicked design,
but never to commit any fraud, theft, or adultery; never to falsify
their word, nor deny a trust when they should be called upon to deliver
it up: after which, it was their custom to separate, and then
reassemble to eat in common a harmless meal. * * * Great numbers must
be involved in the danger of these prosecutions which have already
extended and are still likely to extend, to persons of all ranks and
ages, and even of both sexes. In fact, this contagious superstition is
not confined to the cities only, but has spread its infection among the
neighbouring villages and country. * * *"
_Melmoth's Translation_ (1747).
{176}
APPENDIX E.
ON THE ADDITION OF "FILIOQUE" TO THE CREED. (p. 124.)
The Nicene Creed (325) had the words "_Proceeding from the Father_":
the Council of Ephesus (431[1]) decreed that no addition was to be made
to the Creed, as there settled. When, however, the question was raised
whether we ought not to say "proceeding from the Father, _and the Son_
(Filioque)," various Scripture phrases were adduced in support of it:
such as, _the Spirit of Christ_ (Rom. viii. 9), _the Spirit of His Son_
(Gal. iv. 6), _the supply of the Spirit of Jesus Christ_ (Phil. i. 19),
_the Spirit of Christ_ (1 Pet. i. 11). Also S. John xv. 26, xvi. 7,
xx. 32, and the general similarity of expressions which, speaking of
the Holy Spirit, refer to the Father, and to the Son.
The Eastern Churches were opposed to the addition of the words, "and
from the Son." The Western Churches were, mainly, in favour of it.
The controversy lasted from the 5th to the 11th century, and resulted
in the schism which still separates the Eastern and Western Churches.
It is usually agreed that the difference is not one of doctrine. The
Easterns prefer the phrase "receiving from the Son": the Westerns
prefer to assert afresh the equality of the Father and the Son, by
using the phrase, "proceeding from the Father and the Son." It may be
{177} doubted whether the words should have been added without the
assent of a General Council. But there is no denial of the equality of
the Father, the Son, and the Holy Ghost, in the Eastern, nor in the
Western, Churches.
[1] On p. 124, we have accidentally written 'Chalcedon' for 'Ephesus':
and _vice versâ_. The dates are correctly given on pp. 122, 123.
APPENDIX F.
ON THE GREEK ORIGIN OF LITANIES (p. 153).
_Litany_ comes from the Greek _litaneia_.
_lite_ means a prayer; whence (_litanos_) one who prays; _litaneuo_ to
be a person who prays; _litaneia_ a continued prayer. Thus _Litany_
has the meaning of "prolonged prayers."
In _the (Greek) Liturgy of S. James_, there are three Bidding Prayers
(besides the "Diptychs"), which have something of the Litany Form. The
following suffrages are selected from the one to which we have referred:
"_The Deacon_. Let us beseech the Lord in peace.
_The Laity_. Lord, have mercy.
_The Deacon_. O God, by thy love grant us safety, mercy, compassion,
and protection. _The Laity_. Lord, have mercy.
_The Deacon_. For the peace that is from above, for the love of God
towards man, and for the safety of our souls, let us beseech the Lord.
_The Laity_ (after each suffrage). Lord, have mercy.
_The Deacon_. For the peace of the whole world, and the unity of all
the holy churches of God, let us &c.
{178}
For those who bear fruit and do good in the holy churches of God, those
who remember the poor, the widows, and fatherless, strangers and needy
persons, and for those who have bidden us to remember them in our
prayers, let us &c.
For those who are in old age and weakness, by disease or illness, for
those who are oppressed by unclean spirits, for their speedy recovery
and safety through God's help, let us &c.
For those who pass their lives in singleness, devotion, or meditation,
for those in holy matrimony, those engaged in life's battle in
mountains, and caves, and pits of the earth, our holy fathers and
brothers, let us &c.
For Christian sailors, travellers, strangers, and those in captivity,
in exile, those in prisons, and bitter slavery, being our brethren, for
their return in peace, let us &c.
For the remission of our sins, and pardon of our faults, and for our
deliverance from all tribulation, anger, danger, and necessity, and
from the rising-up of enemies, let us &c.
For a mild season, gentle rains, and kindly dews, for plenteous crops,
and a perfect year crowned (with His goodness), let us &c.
For those who are present and pray with us at this sacred hour and at
any time, our fathers and brothers, for their earnestness, toil, and
readiness of heart, let us beseech the Lord.
That our prayer may be heard, and may be acceptable before God; and
that his mercies and compassions may be poured abundantly upon us, let
us beseech the Lord."
* * * * * * * *
{179}
DATES.
The principal dates which are of use in reading this book fall into
four groups:
1. The Early Church.
2. The Discussion of the Creed.
3. The Growth of Services.
4. The Growth of the English Services.
There is of course a certain amount of overlapping: but this will be
readily understood. The reader will also easily guess when the years
mentioned are those of a life, or those of a reign.
Early Dates.
A.D. A.D.
14-37. Tiberius, emp.
54-68. Nero, emp.
98-117. Trajan, emp. 112. Pliny's letter.
55-(117). Tacitus, hist.
-(120). Suetonius, hist.
138-161. Antoninus Pius, emp. 140. Justin's 1st Apology.
70-156. Polycarp, Bp.
161-180. Marcus Aurelius, emp. 86-117. Pothinus, Bp.
(125)-202. Irenaeus, Bp.
-(222). Tertullian.
-253. Origen.
-253. Cyprian, Bp.
306-337. Constantine, emp.
{180}
The discussion of the Articles of the Creed.
Doubts. Writers. Councils. Creed.
First & second
centuries.
Ebionites. Irenaeus,
abt 180.
Tertullian,
abt 200.
Docetae.
Gnostics.
Third century. Cyprian, Bp, ? Apostles'
? 253. Creed.
Sabellians.
Arians.
Fourth century. Athanasius, Bp, Nicaea, 325. ) Nicene
(300)-371. ) Creed
)
Basil, Bp, )
329-379 )
)
Apollinarians. Ambrose, Bp, Constantinople, )
340-397. 381. )
Chrysostom, Bp,
(347)-407.
Fifth century. Jerome,
346-420.
Nestorians. Augustine, Bp, Ephesus, 431.
354-430.
Eutychians, or ) Chalcedon, 461.
Monophysites. )
Seventh century.
Monothelites. Constantinople, 'Athanasian'
680. Creed.
{181}
DATES CONNECTED WITH THE
Growth of the Christian Service Books.
A.D.
112. Pliny's Letter.
140. Justin Martyr's 1st Apology.
340-397. Ambrose, Bp of Milan.
347-407. Chrysostom, Bp of Constantinople.
Before 400. Clementine Liturgy.
463-474. Mamertus, Bp of Vienne. _Litanies_.
590-604. Gregory, Bp of Rome. _Litany: Sacramentary_.
Sacramentaries of 7th century, &c., representing
work of
440-461. Leo, Bp of Rome.
492-496. Gelasius, Bp of Rome.
590-604. Gregory, Bp of Rome.
742-814. Charlemagne. Abolition of Gallican Liturgy.
747. Great Council of Cloveshoo.
DATES CONNECTED WITH THE
Growth of the Service Books in England.
200. Christianity already established in Britain. (_Tertullian_.)
314. Council at Arles in France. Three British Bishops signed.
596-605. Augustine, Archbishop of Canterbury.
664. Council of Whitby.
747. The great Council of Cloveshoo.
Restraints upon the influence of the Pope in England.
1215. Magna Charta.
1279. Statute of Mortmain.
1351. Statute of Provisors.
1352. Statute of Praemunire.
{182}
Translations of the Bible Revisions of the Prayer Book
in England. in England.
8th century. Psalms (_Saxon_).
The Gospels (_Egbert_).
S. John (_Bede_).
880. The Psalms (_King Alfred_).
1085. The Sarum Use.
1380-4. Wyclifs Bible.
1526-31. Tyndale.
1535. Coverdale.
1539. Cranmer (The Great Bible).
1545. The King's Primer.
1548. The Order of the Communion.
1549. First Revision in English.
1552. Second Revision in English.
1553. (Latin) Uses restored.
1558-9. Third Revision in English.
1568. The Bishops' Bible.
1604. Fourth Revision.
1611. The Authorised Version.
1645-60. Prayer Book forbidden
by the Long Parliament.
1661-2. Fifth Revision.
1871. New Lectionary.
1872. Shortened Services allowed.
1881, 1885. The Revised Version.
{183}
INDEX.
Absolution, 29, 31, 35
Alcuin, 140
Alexandrine MS., 65, 69
Ambrose, Bp of Milan, 42, 43, 57 n., 63, 65, 78
Amen, 18, 20, 23, 37, 127-8, 159
Anthem, 20, 22, 28, 128, 142, 146-152
Antiphon, 9, 10, 19, 60, 132, 133, 134, 146
Antiphonal, 3, 40, 128, 157, 158
Antiphonary, 128, 134, 135, 148
Apocrypha, 51, 56
Apollinarian, 124
Arian and Arius, 110, 120, 122
Athanasian, see Creed
Athanasius, 124
Augustine, Archbp of Canterbury, 155, 171
Augustine, Bp of Hippo, 65, 78, 94, 124, 155
Authorised, see Bible
Basil, Bp of Caesarea, 29 n., 70, 144
Benedicite, 11, 63, 77, 78-81, 88
Benedictus, 62, 63, 83-6
Bible, 47-57, 182
-- Authorised V., 40, 41
-- Bishops', 11, 41
-- Great, 41
-- Revised V., 182
-- Wyclif, 13
Breviary, 59, 132, 134
Bright, 135, 139, 140
Calendar, 57
Cambridge Companion, 47
Canon, 57
Cantate, 63, 77, 81
Canticles, 4, 9, 37, 39, 41, 57, 59, 61, 88
Capitulum, 61, 62
Cartwright, 20, 22
Catholic Church, 105, 107, 112, 120, 121-2
Catholic Religion, 101, 125
Chalcedon Council, 97, 122, 124
Chant, 39
Charlemagne, 124, 140
Chaucer, 148
Choral Singing, 3
Christian Verity, 101, 125
Chrysostom, Bp of Constantinople, 54 n., 143, 144, 153, 158
Clementine Liturgy, 144
Cloveshoo, 155
Collecta, Collectio, 139, 140
Collects, 9, 10, 28, 127-142
Combination of Services, 9-10
Communion, Holy, 5, 10, 58, 59, 131
Communion of Saints, 112
Compline, 7, 43, 60, 63
Confession, 10, 24, 28, 30-32, 35
Consubstantial, 126
Continuous Singing, 3
Controversy, 118-123
Corinth, 18
Cosin, Bp of Durham, 61, 117 n.
Creeds, 89-94
Creed, Apostles', 28, 39, 91-8, 104-114, 116, 118
Creed, Athanasian, 92, 99, 101, 115-126
Creed, Nicene, 92, 94, 110, 114, 116, 118, 126
Cyprian, Bp of Carthage, 66, 72
Daily Service, 25, 26
Day Hours, 6, 8, 9, 10, 60, 61, 63-4, 132, 173
Deus Misereatur, 63, 83, 88
Direct Singing, 3
Docetae, 110, 121
Doxology, 24, 27, 37, 53, 70, 131
Doxology in Te Deum, 74
Duplication, 33, 34, 35, 160, 161, 162-4
Ebionite, 119
Edward VI., 26, 27, 41, 134
Ember Prayers, 144
-- Week, 159
Ephesus Council, 18
Eusebius, 95
Eutyches, Eutychian, 122, 123
Evangelistarium, see Lectionaries
Evensong, 10, 42, 141, 142, and see Mattins
Excursus, 113
Exhortation, 29, 30, 34
Extempore worship, 1, 2, 17
Faldstool, 156-7
Festivals, 44
Forms of worship, 2, 3, 4, 17
Gallican Church, 61
Gelasian Sacramentary, 137, 141, 143, 144
Gelasius, 136
Gloria Patri, 4, 10, 11, 28, 37, 39, 40, 74, 114, 116-7,
129, 149, 158, 172
Gnostic, 121
Gradual, 135
Great Bible, see Bible
Gregory the Great, 135, 155
Hampton Court Conference, 40
Haphtarah, 53
Harvey Goodwin, 92, 116
Hebrew, 18
Henry VIII., 41
Hilary of Arles, 78, 124
-- Poictiers, 78
Homilies, 155
Honorius, 122
Hook, 57
Hooker, 20, 22
Hours of Prayer, 5-6
Hymns, 9, 39, 44, 60-2, 66, 69, 76, 77
Hymn, Greek, 71
Intention, 15, 17, 24, 44
Intercessions, 161, 165-9
Interjectional, 20, 21, 23, 127, 128
Introductory, 29, 32
Invitatory, 40
Invocations, 161
Irenaeus, 95, 96, 97, 98, 154
Jerome, S., 42, 51, 54
Jew, 119, 121
Jewish Influence, 18
-- Lectionary, 53
Jubilate, 63, 83, 87, 88
Justification, 117
Justin Martyr, 3, 54, 58, 59
Kay, 88
Keble, 71
Keynote, 16, 24
Latin Services, 25
Lauds, 6, 7, 9, 43, 44, 60, 61, 62, 63, 87, 132
Lectern, 57
Lectionaries, 51-7, 135
Legenda, 134
Leo the Great, 136
Lessons, 9, 10, 18, 24, 28, 39, 41, 47-57, 76, 77, 82,
83, Appendix C, 173
Litany, 20, 23, 35, 153-173
-- Lesser, 9, 11, 131, 157
Liturgy, 10, 40, 41
-- of S. James, 153
Lord's Prayer, 9, 11, 12-17, 28, 37, 38, 131
Macedonius, Bp of Constantinople, 120
Magnificat, 63, 77, 78, 146-150
Mamertus, Bp of Vienne, 154
Manichaean, 121
Manual, 134
Manuscripts, 32
Map of Lessons, 64
Mattin-Lauds, 6, 7, 60, 62, 63
Mattins, 6, 7, 10, 42, 43, 141
Missal, 135
Monothelites, Monophysites, 122, 124
Morning Service, 8, 24, 25
Names and Titles, 10
Nero, 106, 107
Nestorian, 122, 123, 124
New Testament, 49
Nicene, see Creed
Nocturn, 42
None, 7, 43
Nunc Dimittis, 63, 83, 86, 87
Obsecrations, 161, 164
Occasional Prayers and Thanksgivings, 131, 144, 145, 158-9
Office Hymns, 61
Old Testament, 48, 62
Ordinary, 7, 44
Original Sin, 102
Ornaments, 26, 57
O Sapientia, 146
Parascha, 53
Pater Noster, 11
Paul, S., 18
Petitions, 14
Pie, 33
Pliny, 107, Appendix D, 174-5
Polycarp, 154
Portiforium, 134
Pothinus, 154
Praise Terminations, 8-14, 30, 37, 47, 58, 63, 78
Prayers, 24, 112-144
Preceded Form, 21, 23
Preces, 21, 28, 128, 129, 130, 132-134
Predestination, 102
Preface, 33, 40-1, 43, 44, 119, 140, 165
Prime, 7, 43, 117 n.
Proper Lessons, 55
Prophets, 29, 49
Psalms, 18, 24, 28, 37-46, 100, 117 n., 132
Psalms, method of singing, 3, 4
Psalter, 41, 134
Quicunque vult, 11, 126
Reading, 30
Responds, 10, 39
Responsorial, 3, 20
Resurrection, 113, 114
Revelation, 90, 100, 104
Revision and Revisers, 26, 32, 33, 41, 129, 132, 134, 158, 159
Rogation Days, 154-6
-- Litanies, 155, 172
Rubrics, 4, 25, 32, 57, 129, 130, 131
Sabellian, 119
Sacramental, 112
Sacramentary, 135-7
Sanctification, 103
Sarum Breviary, 33, 132, 133
-- Litany, 158
Sarum Missal, 170
-- Use, 33, 43, 88, 171, 172
Scripture, Holy, 10
Seats, 57
Self-examination, 93, 94
Semi-Arian, 120
Sentences, 29
Septuagint, 43, 132
Services, 42
Setting, 15, 16, 17 n., 24, 147, 150
Sext, 7, 43
Socrates, 102, 103, 104, 105
Special Psalms, 44
Stanzas of Te Deum, 66-9
Substance, 126
Suetonius, 106
Suffrage, 159, etc.
Surplice, 26
Symbolum, 93
Synagogue Services, 18, 51, 54
Table of Worship Forms, 20
Tacitus, 106-7
Te Deum, 4, 63, 65-75, 76, 78, 83
Temple, 18
Terce, 7, 43
Tertullian, 95
Testament, O. and N., 62
Thanksgivings, 10, 14, 15, 28, 30, 144, 145
Theodosius, 42
Tiberius, 107
Translation, 41
Translators, 10, 173
Travers, Walter, 20
Uses, see Sarum
Variations, 1-4
Variety, 3
Venite, 11, 40, 146, 147, 149
Verity, Christian, 101, 125
Verse and Respond, 127, 132-4, 146, 148, 172
Versicles, 9, 10, 39
Vespers, 6, 7, 42, 43, 60, 63, 132
Vulgate, 43, 132
Witness of Bible, 104, 105, 107-114
Worship, 13, 18
-- Forms, 20, 11, 24, 127
Wreathing, 160-1
Zacharias, 84
Zechariah, 84
End of Project Gutenberg's The Prayer Book Explained, by Percival Jackson