In saying “the old Testament is not contrary to the new,” Article VII focuses on two kinds of continuity: moral and eschatological. Concerning morality, “No Christian man whatsoever is free from the obedience of the Commandments which are called moral.” As for last things, “Both in the old and New Testament everlasting life is offered…
A few days ago I had the privilege of introducing the Anglican tradition to teachers at The Ecclesial School at St. Alban’s. The faculty are a mixed bunch — Anglicans, Eastern Orthodox, Roman Catholics, Lutherans, Presbyterians, and Baptists. Afterwards I had a wonderful conversation with a sincere and devout Baptist who wanted to understand more…
Anglicans are often proud of the central place of scripture in prayer book worship, especially the lectionaries, those scheduled scripture readings for the Daily Offices of Morning and Evening Prayer and the Eucharist. Certainly, it is true that a widening diversity of calendars and lectionaries across the Anglican world are limiting claims about uniformity of…
In my last piece, the first part of this overview of the annual cycles of Bible reading in the Prayer Book, I discussed the Calendar with Table of Lessons for Morning and Evening Prayer (that is, the daily lectionary) and the Epistles and Gospels for the Lord’s Supper (that is the Communion lectionary). These are…
We tend to think of the Book of Common Prayer as a collection of rituals, but its original preface presents it as a means for hearing the word of God. Cranmer’s Preface recommends it with these words: [H]ere you have an order for prayer (as touching the reading of holy scripture) much agreeable to the…
Meeting God in the Bible: How to Read Scripture Devotionally. By John M. Linebarger. Dallas, TX: Fontes Press, 2019. 163pp. $15.95 (paper). Of the making of devotional aids there is no end. Nevertheless, in his new book, Meeting God in the Bible: How to Read Scripture Devotionally, John M. Linebarger (MDiv, MBA, PhD) manages to…
The Great Bible Theft by the Rev’d Dr. Peter Sanlon. Credimus Press, 2019. It is no big surprise that Anglicanism is in crisis. The Communion is in a state of slow motion schism. Anglican churches across the world are hemorrhaging communicants at an unsustainable rate. The Mother Church of England is a shadow of its…
In part 1 of this article, we saw a brief history of the Matthew Bible, first published in 1537. It was the work of three Englishmen living in Antwerp: William Tyndale, who translated the New Testament and the first half of the Old from the Hebrew and Greek; Myles Coverdale, who translated the other Scriptures…
When the sixteenth century dawned in England, there were laws prohibiting the translation of the Bible into English. It was illegal to even own or to read English Scriptures.((In 1401, under King Henry IV, parliament passed a statute called De haeretico comburendo, or On the burning of heretics, targeting Wycliffe’s followers, the Lollards. Then in 1408…
Most everyone fears a lack of manpower in the ministry of the Church – by which people usually mean insufficient manpower for their houses of worship to run their programs. The Christian’s priority, however, must be the furtherance of the gospel and training in righteousness in its many aspects. Not the success or even the survival of…
