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
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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.