Cynthia Shattuck – författare

The Oxford Guide to the Book of Common Prayer is the first comprehensive guide to the history and usage of the original Book of Common Prayer and its variations. Expert contributors from around the world and from every major denomination offer an unparalleled view of The Book of Common Prayer and its influence.The Oxford Guide to Common Prayer is more than simply a history: it describes how Anglican churches at all points of the compass have developed their own Prayer Books and adapted the time-honored Anglican liturgies to their diverse local cultures. The Guide examines how the same texts - Daily Prayers, the Eucharist, Marriage and Funerals, and many others - in dozens of editions now in use throughout the world, both resemble and differ from one another. A brief look at "electronic Prayer Books" also offers a unique and exciting modern perspective. The Oxford Guide to the Book of Common Prayer offers a fascinating journey through the history and development of a classic of world literature from its origins in the 16th century to the modern day. Oxford is pleased to offer The Book of Common Prayer in a variety of formats and prices to match readers'' needs and budgets - perfect for study or gift-giving. Visit our website to order your copy today.* A comprehensive survey of the rich history of the original Book of Common Prayer and all of its varied descendents. * Explains, characterizes, and illustrates the dozens of Prayer Book versions in current use throughout the world. * Lays out a path that will enable any reader, Anglican or not, to learn why the BCP is a classic of liturgy and literature.

Here, for the first time, is a comprehensive survey of the history of the original Book of Common Prayer and all of its descendants throughout the world. The Oxford Guide to the Book of Common Prayer shows how a classic text for worship and devotion has become the progenitor of an entire family of religious resources that have had an influence far beyond their use in Anglican churches.The tale begins with the creation of the first Prayer Book in 1549. The Guide surveys how the Prayer Book developed and took root in English culture. The story then describes how Anglican missionaries and others brought the Prayer Book to far corners of the British Empire. In the twentieth century, Anglican churches throughout the world began to develop their own, unique versions of the Prayer Book to serve the needs of their local communities. The Guide describes the development of indigenous Prayer Books in Africa, the nations of the Pacific, Asia, North and South America, and Europe. It explains how, in the dozens of Prayer Books in current use, the same basic texts - Daily Prayers, the Eucharist, Marriage and Funerals, and many others - resemble each other, and differ from each other. Finally, a brief look at the future of "electronic Prayer Books" offers a glimpse at how this story of development and adaptation may continue.John Donne, Samuel Johnson, Jane Austen, T. S. Eliot, W. H. Auden, C. S. Lewis, Dorothy Sayers, and P. D. James, among many others, worshiped from the Prayer Book, giving it immense literary influence. The Prayer Book family has created worship language that remains within Anglican tradition, while adapting to very different cultural contexts. Prayer Books in New Zealand, for example, incorporate Maori elements, and ones in Myanmar use Buddhist prayer forms - just a few of the fascinating facts in this rich and varied history. In this Guide any reader, Anglican or not, can learn why The Book of Common Prayer is a classic of liturgy and literature.

The Book of Common Prayer runs like a golden thread through the history of the Church of England and the worldwide Anglican Communion. The Oxford Guide to the Book of Common Prayer is the first comprehensive guide to the history and usage of the original Book of Common Prayer and its numerous descendants throughout the world. It shows how a seminal text for Christian worship and devotion has inspired a varied family of religious resources that have had an influence far beyond their use in the churches of a single tradition.The Guide is unique. In it, experts from every part of the globe and every branch of Anglicanism, as well as from the Lutheran, Roman Catholic, Methodist, and Unitarian traditions, provide an unparalleled examination of The Book of Common Prayer and its lineage. Much more than simply a history, this volume describes how Anglican churches at all points of the compass have developed their own Prayer Books and adapted the time-honored Anglican liturgies to their diverse local cultures. In the dozens of editions now in use throughout the world, the same texts-Daily Prayers, the Eucharist, Marriage and Funerals, and many others-resemble each other, and yet differ from each other in interesting ways. A brief look at "electronic Prayer Books" offers a glimpse at how this story of development and adaptation may continue in the Information Age.From 1549 to the twenty-first century, The Oxford Guide to the Book of Common Prayer offers a fascinating journey through the history and development of a classic of world literature. "A wonderful and useful book. This book asks all the important questions and provides essential material for those who are looking for answers."--(The Rev.) Christopher Webber, The Living Church "It is well conceived physically, graced with both illustrations of historic prayer books and text boxes from the liturgies being discussed, which are a significant help to the reader. This authoritative guide to the Book of Common Prayer as it once was and has now become will well serve anyone interested in Anglicanism or the prayer book tradition."--Christian Century "The editors have assembled a roster of authors that is a veritable who's who among Anglican liturgical scholars. [They] have provided a service to the entire Communion by editing this worldwide survey of the Book of Common Prayer."--Frank C. Senn, Anglican Theological Review "Hefling and Shattuck have kept a tight hand; they have maintained narrative interest, eliminated overlaps, discreetly filled holes themselves. Excerpts from specimen prayers and documents are given in boxes on the page. In a big book, room has been found for thirty black-and-white illustrations, a chronology, a glossary, a bibliography, a good index, and a world map in the endpapers."--John Whale, Times Literary Supplement "Monumental and magnificent! This Guide makes clear why The Book of Common Prayer is both a religious and a literary masterpiece."--Phyllis Tickle