The Prayer Service


I. Preces and Collects. Morning and Evening Rubrics.



The directions concerning the Services are to be found in the Rubrics:

which are placed either (1) in the Prefaces and Tables at the beginning

of the Prayer Book; or (2) at the beginning or end of a Service; or (3)

at some break or pause in the Service. By the correction of mistakes,

the later Revisions have left very little ambiguity; but some instances

/> remain, which may usually be interpreted by the analogy of other parts

of the Book. A plain instance is the omission of a direction that the

Sermon is to be preached from the pulpit: but it is directed that after

it the Priest shall return to the Lord's Table.



Bishop Cosin who took a leading part in the Revision of 1661-2, and had

been preparing notes for it for about 40 years, made the remark: "the

book does not everywhere enjoin and prescribe every little order, what

should be said or done, but take it for granted that people are

acquainted with such common, and things always used already."



The two Services, which are here considered together, are still printed

together as parts of the same Chapter (see p. 25): and the Morning

Service has always had rubrics which applied to both Morning and

Evening: (see Rubrics, about the use of Gloria Patri after Canticles,

cf. p. 4: and about the First Lessons).



Before 1662 a rubric, after the Canticles at Evensong, referred back to

Mattins for directions &c. about the rest of the Service. The Second

and Third Collects, being different from the Morning Collects, were, of

course, printed in full: everything else was read from the Morning

Service.



In 1662 the Evening Service was for the first time printed out in full.



The words of the Evening rubric about the Collects were retained, and

not made like the Morning rubric: also the words all kneeling, which

were, at that time, added to the Morning rubric, were, through

forgetfulness, not added to the slightly different Evening Rubric. The

word all includes the Minister; for the people are already kneeling.



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