Anglican / Episcopal Churches

Anglican/Episcopal worship has always been guided by The Book of Common Prayer. The Revised Rites of 1976 introduced the liturgical forms and styles of renewal. Many churches have also incorporated charismatic elements of worship. "In Corporate Worship, we unite ourselves with others to acknowledge the holiness of God, to hear God's Word, to offer prayer, and to celebrate the sacraments. " So the catechism in the 1979 Book of Common Prayer in the United States describes worship. This prayer book definition emerges from the historical context of an English-speaking liturgy handed down from Thomas Cranmer in the first English prayer book (1549). Yet it looks beyond to the present era of liturgical renewal and experimentation. Anglicans for the last ten years have sought to define, through a great deal of study and "trial use," the role of liturgy in the life of a church whose historical identity is reflected in its worship. Throughout the Anglican Communion there is also a felt nee…