Anglican Liturgical Movement
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| Anglican Liturgical Movement | |
|---|---|
| Name | Anglican Liturgical Movement |
| Start | 19th century |
| Location | Church of England |
| Notable people | John Keble, Edward Bouverie Pusey, John Henry Newman, Charles Gore, Percy Dearmer, Percy Dearmer (liturgist), Cosmo Gordon Lang, B. F. Westcott, F. J. A. Hort, Randall Davidson, G. K. Chesterton, Rupert Brooke, Dom Gregory Dix, H. B. Workman, Walter Frere, Walter Howard Frere, Charles Gore (bishop), Arthur Middleton, A. C. Bouquet, E. L. Mascall, H. R. McAdoo, Alexander Marshall Mackenzie, Ernest Walter, William Temple, Michael Ramsey, Donald Coggan, Cyril Garbett, Geoffrey Fisher, John Stott, N. T. Wright, Desmond Tutu, Rowan Williams, Justin Welby |
| Influences | Oxford Movement, Tractarianism, Roman Rite, Eastern Orthodox Church, Lutheranism |
| Influenced | Liturgical Movement, Anglican Communion, Book of Common Prayer (1662), Alternative Service Book 1980, Common Worship, Anglo-Catholicism |
Anglican Liturgical Movement The Anglican Liturgical Movement was a broad reform initiative within the Church of England and the wider Anglican Communion from the 19th century onward that sought renewal of Eucharist celebration, vestments, ceremonial, and rites drawing on historical Roman Rite, Eastern Orthodox Church, and Medieval patrimony. It intersected with the Oxford Movement, Tractarianism, and the wider Liturgical Movement across Europe and North America, shaping successive editions of the Book of Common Prayer (1662) descendants and provoking theological and ecclesial debate involving bishops, theologians, architects, and musicians.
Origins and historical development
Roots trace to the Oxford Movement led by John Keble, John Henry Newman, and Edward Bouverie Pusey reacting to changes in the Church of England after the Catholic Emancipation Act 1829 and controversies like the Gorham case. Nineteenth-century parish revivalism, exemplified at St Mary’s Church, Oxford and parishes influenced by William Palmer, fed interest in pre-Reformation rites and medieval ceremonial. Anglo‑Catholic societies such as the Society of St John the Evangelist and the Church Union promoted sacramental theology, while scholars like Dom Gregory Dix and editors of the Dictionary of Christian Antiquities advanced historical liturgical scholarship. Movements in Germany and Belgium—notably figures associated with the Liturgical Movement—and contacts with monastic practice influenced parish rites during the Victorian era and the Edwardian era.
Theological and liturgical principles
Advocates emphasized sacramental realism connected to theologians such as Charles Gore and William Temple, arguing for the centrality of the Eucharist rather than the Morning Prayer orientation of earlier Book of Common Prayer (1662) practice. They drew on patristic sources studied by scholars like B. F. Westcott and F. J. A. Hort, and on historical-critical work associated with Henry Bradshaw and liturgiologists across France and Germany. Liturgical principles included restoration of ancient calendars, sanctification of time through ceremonial, congregational participation promoted later by liturgical renewalists influenced by Dom Gregory Dix and A. C. Bouquet, and integration of vernacular and musical renewal supported by composers and hymnologists such as Percy Dearmer and Ralph Vaughan Williams.
Key figures and organizations
Key clergy and scholars included John Keble, Edward Bouverie Pusey, John Henry Newman (before his conversion), Percy Dearmer, Walter Howard Frere, Dom Gregory Dix, Charles Gore, William Temple, Michael Ramsey, Donald Coggan, and later archbishops such as Geoffrey Fisher and Michael Ramsey. Institutions and societies instrumental in reform comprised the Society of St John the Evangelist, Alcuin Club, Society for Promoting Christian Knowledge, Church of England Liturgical Commission, and academic centers at Oxford, Cambridge, and King’s College London. Liturgical scholarship drew on partnerships with continental bodies like the Abbey of Solesmes and the Taizé Community.
Major reforms and liturgical texts
Reforms manifested in experimental liturgies, parish ceremonial manuals, and revised service books culminating in texts such as the Alternative Service Book 1980 and liturgical resources leading to Common Worship. Earlier significant publications included the Ritualist movement manuals, The Parson’s Handbook by Percy Dearmer, and scholarly works like The Shape of the Liturgy by Dom Gregory Dix. Revision processes involved commissions under archbishops like Randall Davidson and Cosmo Lang, debates in the House of Bishops, and synodal procedures extending into the 20th century and the late 20th century reforms across the Anglican Communion.
Influence on worship practice and church architecture
Liturgical renewal reshaped parish worship: altar repositioning and eastward celebration, reintroduction of chasubles and Eucharistic vestments, and enhanced ceremonial influenced by practitioners in parishes such as St Alban’s Church, Holborn and All Saints, Margaret Street. Musical revival involved hymnody reformers and composers linked to St Martin-in-the-Fields and cathedral traditions at Westminster Abbey and Canterbury Cathedral. Architectural impact included liturgical east ends, restoration projects by architects influenced by George Gilbert Scott and William Butterfield, and new church designs reflecting renewed spatial theology seen in parishes across England, Scotland, Australia, and Canada.
Criticisms and controversies
The movement provoked controversy from low church evangelicals and legal challenges such as prosecutions under ritual statutes and cases heard in ecclesiastical courts and civil forums linked to figures like John Kensit and organizations including the Church Association. Critics accused ritualists of Romanizing the Church of England and cited tensions with parliamentary actors and public opinion during episodes like disputes over the Public Worship Regulation Act 1874. Debates continued into the 20th century involving theologians across the spectrum, press coverage in outlets like The Times and interventions by archbishops such as Cosmo Gordon Lang and Randall Davidson.