Episcopalians for Traditional Faith (ETF)

Upholds this Classic Liturgy

For more than four and a half centuries, the traditional Book of Common Prayer (BCP) has set the standard of worship for Episcopalians and all Anglicans worldwide. One by one, ill-conceived revisions of this great text have been measured against it and have come up short. In England and elsewhere throughout the Anglican Communion, the 1662 BCP is the standard, as is the 1928 BCP in the United States.

Archbishop Thomas Cranmer

On January 21, Episcopalians for Traditional Faith (ETF) and orthodox Episcopalians and Anglicans worldwide mark the anniversary of the day that Parliament enacted the Act of Uniformity of Edward VI, making Archbishop Thomas Cranmer’s Book of Common Prayer the official order of worship in the Church of England.

Over the centuries, minor revisions have been made; but the most recent of the scripture-based classic Prayer Books, the 1928 Book of Common Prayer, stands alone in the USA church as the true descendant of Cranmer’s original book, the only Episcopal liturgical text based entirely on scripture. There is no comparison between the elegant, reverent, cadenced language of the 1928 BCP and the jarring language of the imitations. More important, with each dilution of our words of worship, truth and doctrine, along with the beauty of language, are eroding incrementally.

Other protestant denominations have incorporated much of the 1928 BCP into their own worship services. Literate Americans, whatever their beliefs, are familiar with 1928 BCP phrases such as

The devices and desires of our own hearts — A General Confession, Morning Prayer
The devil, the world, and the flesh — Holy Baptism Speak now or forever hold your peace — Matrimony
Earth to earth, ashes to ashes, dust to dust — Burial of the Dead

These and other phrases touch us in a way that revised liturgies cannot, for the words of the 1928 BCP speak to “all sorts and conditions of men.” — Morning Prayer

On the home page of the ETF website www.etf1928.org is an image of the 1928 BCP. Click on it to go to the prayer book itself. Use your 1928 e-BCP online or print out copies of services for use at baptisms, weddings, funerals, and other signposts of life. Send your fellow Episcopalians emails containing the website URL as a link.

The timeless words of the 1928 BCP — a legacy of Archbishop Thomas Cranmer and the historic Act of Parliament on January 21, 1549 — have been incorporated into our culture.