I just spent a week at our Diocesan Shrinemont conference. I had a unique experience when the liturgy team asked me to celebrate the Eucharist that evening. Without a second thought I said, "Of course." A little later in the day, I was having some fun with them and asked, "This will be Rite 1 completely chanted correct?" Then I was told that we were actually using another Eucharistic Prayer, one that was composed by a female priest in South Africa.
As I looked over the prayer, I found several things I wasn't all that comfortable with. The proper preface had nothing to do with the person and work of Jesus Christ. Nowhere did the prayer ask for the Holy Spirit to come down and sanctify the gifts. It hit me at that moment that I really am becoming a stickler for the book.
As Anglicans, we have spent the last 500 years resisting a comprehensive confession of our beliefs. Instead we have operated under the premise that how we pray shapes how we believe. If that is the case, we really need to be careful about the prayers we use in public worship. With no established confession, the prayers will determine our theology at our deepest levels. A well-meaning, beautiful prayer seem like a good idea at the time, but without the scrutiny of General Convention, theologians, and liturgists of our Church, such a prayer may have unintended consequences.
That being said, I am not against introducing new prayers for our worship, I just feel that they need to be theologically sound, and we need to take our time evaluating them before they are used in a public setting. So in the interests of new prayers, as well as deepening our ecumenical relations, I would like to post the following prayer for consideration.
http://eleisonmusic.com/Eucharistic_Prayer-Divine_Liturgy_of_St._John_Chrysostom.htm
This prayer is one that I have compiled from the Divine Liturgy of St. John Chrysostom, which is one of the two main liturgies for the Orthodox Church. I have shortened it in certain places, so it would fit into the rhythm of Episcopal worship. I post it here to begin a conversation. What do we think about this prayer? Does it have the necessary elements to fit into our theology. There's quite a bit here that we don't normally have - are they combersome, or will they help us deepen our faith?
Thanks for reading and I look forward to your comments.
As I looked over the prayer, I found several things I wasn't all that comfortable with. The proper preface had nothing to do with the person and work of Jesus Christ. Nowhere did the prayer ask for the Holy Spirit to come down and sanctify the gifts. It hit me at that moment that I really am becoming a stickler for the book.
As Anglicans, we have spent the last 500 years resisting a comprehensive confession of our beliefs. Instead we have operated under the premise that how we pray shapes how we believe. If that is the case, we really need to be careful about the prayers we use in public worship. With no established confession, the prayers will determine our theology at our deepest levels. A well-meaning, beautiful prayer seem like a good idea at the time, but without the scrutiny of General Convention, theologians, and liturgists of our Church, such a prayer may have unintended consequences.
That being said, I am not against introducing new prayers for our worship, I just feel that they need to be theologically sound, and we need to take our time evaluating them before they are used in a public setting. So in the interests of new prayers, as well as deepening our ecumenical relations, I would like to post the following prayer for consideration.
http://eleisonmusic.com/Eucharistic_Prayer-Divine_Liturgy_of_St._John_Chrysostom.htm
This prayer is one that I have compiled from the Divine Liturgy of St. John Chrysostom, which is one of the two main liturgies for the Orthodox Church. I have shortened it in certain places, so it would fit into the rhythm of Episcopal worship. I post it here to begin a conversation. What do we think about this prayer? Does it have the necessary elements to fit into our theology. There's quite a bit here that we don't normally have - are they combersome, or will they help us deepen our faith?
Thanks for reading and I look forward to your comments.
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