The Book of Common Prayer: A Guide (Guides to Sacred Texts)

Review\n"What must be wholeheartedly affirmed is that this book is a tour de force. For anyone who has either a connection with the BCP, or an interest in understanding more of the immense significance of this most sacred text, Hefling's work is a 'must read'." -- Maurice Elliott, Anaphora\n"Charles Hefling's The Book of Common Prayer combines his characteristically meticulous scholarship with a profound analytic clarity and a deep personal understanding of the rhythms and spiritual impact of this unique Anglican liturgical classic. But it is also written with an eye to those who may, in this generation, be coming new to the BCP and its extraordinary history. This book is not just a sure historical guide, but a fresh invitation to a landscape of liturgical transcendence." -- Sarah Coakley, FBA, Norris-Hulse Professor Emerita, University of Cambridge\nThe Book of Common Prayer is a remarkable book, a sacred book in more than one sense. It is primarily a liturgical text, meant to be used in corporate worship, and at the same time a literary landmark, a cultural icon, and a focus of identity for Anglican Christianity. This brief, accessible account of the Prayer Book, as it is often called, describes the contents of the classical version of the text, with special emphasis on the services for which it has been used most frequently since it was issued in 1662. Charles Hefling also examines the historical and theological context of the Prayer Book's origins, the changes it has undergone, the controversies it has touched off, and its reception in England, Scotland, and America. Readers are introduced to the political as well as the spiritual influence of the Book of Common Prayer, and to its enduring place in English-speaking religion.