Customer Reviews

BCP Large Print Edition Prayer Book Burgundy calfskin leather 707

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The Church of England's first duty as an established church was to create a prayer book. Separating from the Roman Catholic church meant Mass and other services in English, not Latin. This created the need for a book from which educated people could follow the order of Mass. Be edict of Queen Elizabeth, a guidebook to Mass and the Administration of the Sacraments according to the church of England was created. This was the product of that edict. The Elizabethan language is absolutely beautiful. Imagine a living piece of testament to the protestant reformation right there beside you. A great guide for daily prayer or a unique addition to any church service. I loved it, and the large print was especially easy to read!

I am of mixed opinion about the "1662 Book of Common Prayer". My chief complaints and comments are:

a. The slipcase incarcerating the book that arrived on my doorstep was of plain brown cardboard, NOT the attractive-looking case shown on the Amazon website.
b. It took me 10 minutes to pry the book loose from this slipcase and after opening and reading the book, it will no longer go back into the case. A nice feature, that.
c. For some inexplicable reason, I expected an exact replica or reprint of the "1662 Book of Common Prayer". Silly me. While an attractive volume arrived, it was NOT what I expected.
d. The frontispiece states, "This edition includes the various amendments to the 1662 Book of Common Prayer..." and then lists them from 1964, 1965, and 1968....which in itself is odd since the tables for calculating the dates for Easter start at 1983. Furthermore, there are references on some pages to King Charles I, and then suddenly, on a subsequent page, to Elizabeth II and Prince Philip.
e. I was expecting, from the advertisement, a faithful copy of the "1662 Book of Common Prayer". It is in my mind, a misrepresentation.
f. As a result, for any given text in this volume, one can't be sure which period in history the words actually originate. If you are a scholar of the period, forget this edition, because this book isn't sure what it is trying to be.
g. The paper has a questionable look and feel, suggesting it may not age well. On the other hand, it is attractively bound in burgundy leather and the text is "large" as advertised.

Don't misunderstand me. The Word of God is always a joy to read...no matter the format. It's just that the format of this particular book is not being honestly advertised.

This Book of Common Prayer (1662) is the 'primary' BCP, used by the Church of England proper, the original branch of the Anglicans. There have been many books that have had the title 'Book of Common Prayer' since the first one appeared in 1549; it has been used continuously in one edition or another in the Anglican tradition since 1559; the 'main' edition remains this 1662 edition. Churches in other nations (Australia, New Zealand, Ireland, the United States, Canada) have done revised Books of Common Prayer, but they always use this as the touchstone.

A bishop in the Episcopal church once said to me, 'We don't have a theology that we have to believe -- what we have is the prayerbook.' Please forgive the absence of context for this phrase -- while he would say that this statement in isolation is an exaggeration, and I would agree, nonetheless his statement serves to highlight both the importance of and the strength of the Book of Common Prayer.

To be an Anglican, one does not have to subscribe to any particular systematic theological framework. One does not have to practice a particular brand of liturgical style. One does not have to have an approved politico-theological viewpoint. One can be a conservative, liberal or moderate; one can be high church, low church, or broad; one can be charismatic, evangelical, or mainline traditional -- one can be any number of things in a rich diversity of choices, and the Book of Common Prayer can still be the book upon which spirituality and worship is centred.

The Book of Common Prayer is not, in fact, a book that changed my life. It is a book that changes my life. Even though it is not the primary book of my own church, it continues to provide for spiritual insight and development; it continues to guide my worship and my theology. It continues to help me grow. The words are part of a liturgy now shared by Catholic, Lutheran, Methodist, Presbyterian and other liturgical churches, in different combination and priority.

Gerry Janzen, an Anglican professor at my seminary, said to me recently as we were lunching and having a fascinating and wide-ranging conversation (in a unique way that only Gerry Janzen is capable of doing) that he strives for that kind of memory and understanding that is so complete that one forgets what one has learned. He recounted to me his experience of working with his book on Job -- he had done a lot of research, development of ideas, writing, and organisation, and then set it aside for a time. When he picked up the topic later, he decided to begin by writing, and then go back to the research, other notes and writings he had done earlier. He was surprised to see, in comparing the work, that he had in fact duplicated much of the material -- he had internalised the information, incorporated it so well into his thinking and being, that it came forward without effort. It is this kind of relationship I feel I have developed with the Book of Common Prayer.

To be sure, there are pages of information that I don't know. I haven't memorised the historical documents; I still consult the calendars; I haven't learned all of the collects by heart. But it has become a part of me. When was asked to put together a liturgy for a houseblessing for Episcopalian friends, there were rooms that called for collects that had not been written -- I wrote new collects and inserted them into the liturgy.

'Can you do that?' the householder asked, worried about the flow and the approval of the priest doing the blessing.

'I trust Kurt to write collects -- his probably belong in the BCP,' the priest said in response, and I appreciated her vote of confidence. That was perhaps the first confirmation to me of this sense of incorporation of the book into my life.

From his first edition, Cranmer distinguished in his terminology the words minister and priest, and the two should not be viewed as interchangeable. A priest is a minister, but a minister need not be a priest. This become part of the early development of the idea of all people being ministers to each other, which is also a concept that has varying acceptance and fulfillment in actual practice over the history of Anglicanism.

One of my favourite prayers derives from this book, part of the English prayer book from the very first one in 1549:

Almighty God, who hast given us grace at this time with one accord to make our common supplication unto thee, and hast promised through thy well-beloved Son that when two or three are gathered together in his name, thou wilt be in the midst of them: Fulfill now, O Lord, the desires and petitions of thy servants, as may be best for us, granting us in this world knowledge of thy truth, and in the world to come, life everlasting. Amen.

This prayer, like many things in the BCP, has moved to a new location from the first edition, but nonetheless the spirit of the BCP shows a circuitous but continuous development from the first English Prayer Book to the current varieties. Likewise, other denominations have gleaned insights, prayers and structures from this and other versions of the BCP.

The Book of Common Prayer, as a single unit and as a greater tradition of which this book is a part, is an Anglican gift to the world.

The Book of Common prayer was rated by Christianity today magazine as one of the 10 best devotion books of all time (along with such works as "the imitation of Christ" by Thomas a'Kempis). This Book is a useful devotion book, and it is so much more: it is a milestone of the history in the English language and culture. It is also the liturgy of one of the oldest Protestant bodies on earth, with roots that go back to the earliest churches. The first time I used this book devotionally, I read Psalm 18 from the psalter, and it was almost overwhelming; a little more ornate than the KJV, it was without a doubt the most beautiful English I had ever read, and certainly the most beautiful translation of scripture. It is full of 'archaic' language, but if you are comfortable with or interested in such language, you will find this book a verbal masterpiece! (my copy is the smaller pocket-size edition). I highly recommend it to anyone who delights in fine language. If you don't like the old language, I recommend the 1979 Book of Common Prayer.

To begin, I highly recommend this volume to both Anglicans and all Christians as a living testament to a magisterial approach to the worship of Our Lord.
This edition of the Book of Common Prayer is the standard for worship in the Church of England, and the foundation for the various editions of the prayer book now used in the American branches of the Anglican Church. While controversy continues to surround the current (1979) edition, the heritage represented by this volume is one that is a part of the theology and worship of all sons and daughters of the English Reformation.
This work also represents a true doctrinal structure based on scripture and holy tradition as understood by Cranmer, Hooker, and the English reformers. Contrary to much modern confusion, the goal of the reformers was not mere compromise or a via media, but a return to the sound practice and teachings of the patristic, pre-medieval church; thus the term Reformed Catholicism, as represented by the Protestant reforms to the medieval catholic tradition.
This book also represents the foundation of much of our language and literature. Along with the King James Version of the Bible, most generations of educated Englishman and Americans learned to read and think through reading, praying and reciting from these holy works.
Thus, there is much here for all Christians, and all those who are interested in Christianity and our American heritage. This book will be one of the best purchases you ever make.
Enjoy!

The 1662 Book of Common Prayer is one of the enduring achievements of the English Reformation. It is a masterpiece of lucid and elegant writing that has nourished the spiritual life of Christians in the Anglican tradition for hundreds of years. The desire of Cranmer to clearly communicate the Gospel and to guide reflection upon the Scriptures is clear. Phrases and prayers from the BCP will make their way deep into the mind and heart of anyone who uses it regularly in worship.

The theology of the services was driven by the intention to lead the congregation into repentance and a life of sober virtue under the rule of godly princes. This lends the BCP an austere and 'dry' feeling, reminding the worshipper of the seriousness of sin and the steady approach of eternal life and the judgement. The communion service, for instance, lacks the vibrant resurrection joy that most Christians often find in the eucharist, instead leading us step by step through our unworthiness until we are ready to receive the assurance of Christ's atoning sacrifice. The language of the BCP is also becoming archaic, and so revised editions that update the vocabulary and broaden the theological palette have been released in most Anglican dioceses around the world. But the BCP is the headwater of English worship after the Reformation, and it is worth going back to as a source of devotion and encouragement.

'Almighty God, unto whom all hearts be open, all desires known, and from whom no secrets are hid: Cleanse the thoughts of our hearts by the inspiration of thy Holy Spriit, that we may perfectly love thee, and worthily magnify thy holy Name; through Christ our Lord. Amen.'