Shape of the Liturgy [Paperback]

Dom Gregory Dix (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: January 1983 | ISBN-10: 0816424187 | ISBN-13: 978-0816424184

The acquisition of the A & C Black theology list brings major Biblical commentaries and some of contemporary theology's most distinguished scholars to Continuum's already outstanding list. Continuum plans to build on the A & C Black list and its Continuum, Chapman, and Mowbray religious book programs to further expand its leading position in religious publishing.

Dom Gregory Dix's classic account of the development of the Eucharistic rite continues to be the authoritative work on the subject. He presents his massive scholarship in lively and nontechnical language for all who wish to understand their worship in terms of the framework from which it has evolved. He demonstrates the creative force of Christianity over the centuries through liturgy and the societies it has molded.

--This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

Editorial Reviews

Review

'if you have never had your own copy of this great classic, here is your opportunity to own a piece of modern liturgical history....If you want to experience the English language in its poetry and beauty you are in for a treat. And, if you want to understand many of the presuppositions that underlie much of modern liturgical renewal, Dix remains required reading.' Worship, Mazwell E. Johnson,

(Maxwell E. Johnson Worship )

'a new edition of a classic book...a helpful intrioduction with enough footnotes to help the Dix scholar find his or her way around the literature.'

Praxis News of Worship, Phillip Tovey, Director of Reader Training, Diocese of Oxford, and Lturgy Tutor, Rip[on College Cuddesdon

(Praxis News of Worship - Phillip Tovey )

'This was the spirit of the Liturgical Movement in probably its finest English literary form. It is certainly no fault of Dix himself that the later liturgical texts he helped to shape have not always been able to communicate so high a degree of fervour.'

~ Glyn Paflin, Times Literary Supplement, 2006

(Glyn Paflin Times Literary Supplement )

"This is a valuable piece of scholarship that will certainly enrich student learning in one strand of the liturgical curriculum in Anglican contexts...I welcome this book."
Stephen Burns, Charles Sturt University, Australia, Anaphora

'if you have never had your own copy of this great classic, here is your opportunity to own a piece of modern liturgical history....If you want to experience the English language in its poetry and beauty you are in for a treat. And, if you want to understand many of the presuppositions that underlie much of modern liturgical renewal, Dix remains required reading.' Worship, Mazwell E. Johnson,

(, Worship )

'a new edition of a classic book...a helpful intrioduction with enough footnotes to help the Dix scholar find his or her way around the literature.'

Praxis News of Worship, Phillip Tovey, Director of Reader Training, Diocese of Oxford, and Lturgy Tutor, Rip[on College Cuddesdon

(, )

'This was the spirit of the Liturgical Movement in probably its finest English literary form. It is certainly no fault of Dix himself that the later liturgical texts he helped to shape have not always been able to communicate so high a degree of fervour.'

~ Glyn Paflin, Times Literary Supplement, 2006

(, Times Literary Supplement ) --This text refers to the Hardcover edition.

About the Author

Dom Gregory Dix was an Anglican Benedictine Monk of Nashdom and an outstanding scholar with an international reputation. The Shape of the Liturgy was his masterpiece. --This text refers to the Hardcover edition.

Product Details

• Paperback: 777 pages
• Publisher: Seabury Pr (January 1983)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0816424187
• ISBN-13: 978-0816424184
• Product Dimensions: 8.2 x 5.4 x 1.5 inches
• Shipping Weight: 2 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 5.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (5 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,534,659 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

50 of 51 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars *The* Classic of Liturgical Studies, May 31, 2002

By 

David Bennett (United States) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: Shape of the Liturgy (Hardcover)

Most Liturgical scholars own a copy of Dix's `Shape of the Liturgy.' The reason is that Dix is perhaps the most thorough and erudite liturgical scholar of the 20th century. `Shape' is a classic that has fundamentally shaped most Protestant and Catholic denominations. To the person not familiar with `liturgy,' it means `work of the people,' and is the way in which Christians have traditionally worshipped. It is a common worship, in which the worship of various separate churches is similar, but varies by time of year, and with the local culture.

Dix starts with an introduction to the Liturgy; then he moves on to the performance of the Liturgy. Then he begins his historical quest, in which he attempts to find the roots of the liturgy in the Biblical documents, moving into the pre-Nicene time period. It was in the very early pre-Nicene times that the Eucharist came to consist of a four-action shape: offering, thanksgiving, fraction, and communion. He discusses the Eucharistic prayer, the local traditions, the meaning and theology of the Eucharist, consecration theology, sanctification of time, and the ceremonial. He then discusses the completion of the shape, and the use of variable prayers. Then he covers the medieval liturgy, the Reformation liturgies (with particular attention to Anglican issues), and a call for renewal.

Overall, Dix's work is monumental. Sometimes, it is a bit too monumental. The work is 764 pages long. Much of what he says could be condensed into probably 200 pages effectively. However, his attention to detail is marvelous: he has read every Church father writing 2-3 times! Dix is partly responsible for the rediscovery of Liturgy in most mainline Churches, from the Evangelical Lutheran Church to the United Methodist Church. His research into early liturgies has demonstrated the Jewish nature of many Christian liturgies. I highly recommend this book. However, a little patience is needed to get through the entire book.

40 of 40 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Senior Pastor of Grace Community Fellowship, March 7, 2005

By 

David W. Kaiser (Canton, Ohio, USa) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Shape of the Liturgy (Hardcover)

An excellent overview of the liturgical development of the early church. I would recommend this book to all people like myself that are non-liturgical. Dix brings out that the general outline of the service of the Eucharist "is everywhere most remarkably the same after 300 years of independent existance in the widely scattered church" in the Mediterranean region. If the non-liturical fundamentalist arguement that pagan intrusion was the origin of the Eucharist service were true, we would expect to see widely divergent local customs surrounding the eucharist service. The only explanation to explain the remarkable similarity is a common origin that must date to the very beginning of the Christian movement, before its missionary expansion. This would mean that the original design of the Eucharist liturgical service was done with Apostolic oversight.

This is blockbuster news to a non-liturgical cleric like myself. After reading this book, I now have more of a respect for the desire of my liturgic brother to keep the shape of the liturgy as it has been handed down to him or her. And I now will be more open to incorporating parts of the liturgy into our non-liturgical service. This is a must read for those that are contemplating throwing out the customs and practices of the liturgical service as being boring and repetitious. Instead the ministry of the liturgical church needs to teach what Dom Gregory Dix writes to the laity of the church, so they understand the various parts of the service, what they mean and their Apostolic origins. If someone had done that for me when I was an adolescent growing up in a liturgical church, I might have stayed in the church, instead of moving on to be a pastor in a non-liturgical denomination.

45 of 48 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A Classic on Liturgy returns, August 15, 2000

By 

Mac D. Culver (Richland, WA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

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This review is from: The Shape of the Liturgy (Hardcover)

"Everything old is new again" seems to have impacted the Christian Church in the 21st Century. With the "rediscovery" of the richness and depth of the ancient forms of worship, the reprint of this classic on liturgy is very welcomed.

Dom Gregory Dix, an Anglican scholar, began a short presentation of the shape of liturgy that by his own admission became an expansive examination of how the Church has worshipped over the centuries. The research is outstanding and the general usefulness of the book is amazing considering the length to which the author has gone to verify his conclusions.

This outstanding work is a key for those theologians, pastors and priests seriously interested in the worship of the church through the ages. A serious layman can obtain much from the book as well.