By Fr. Justin Clemente | February 15, 2022
This past Sunday, I shared a “pastor fail” with the congregation. Always fun. Okay, it’s probably not that bad, but it is a correction of sorts. Since the beginning, I have strived to make New Creation a place where our Anglican heritage is accessible and understandable. One of the ways we have done this is by making sure that everything worshippers need on a Sunday morning can be found in one place – the bulletin. But, what I’ve found is that this can engender a lack of discipleship and knowledge around the Prayer Book. And we do deeply love the Prayer Book. After all, the BCP is scripture organized for the life of the church. It’s the place where our corporate and personal prayers live together, so to speak. It’s a deep well of time-tested and authentic worship. And, we should note, our Church loves it so much that our Province took years to revamp and renew the Prayer Book tradition for contemporary culture, giving us the 2019 Prayer Book we use at New Creation.
So, here’s what we’re doing. Starting Sunday, February 20, everything that is in the Prayer Book will be found there. Everything unique to a service (music, etc.) will be found in the Sunday bulletin. After the first year, this will save us roughly half our cost in printing, but even more important is the why. This move will:
- Catechize you in the Prayer Book, showing you better how it flows and fits together. I want you to know your way around our BCP!
- Empower you to use your Prayer Book with your family (it’s not just a book for priests and deacons. It is common prayer).
- Expose newcomers to our new/old way to be Christian. Many outside the Prayer Book tradition are absolutely refreshed and astonished by value they find in the BCP. This move will get it into their hands from day one.
So, here we go! As we walk through this change, I and the Vestry would love your feedback on how it’s working. Please help us know how we can better refine our practice, keeping full, active, and engaged worship at the center of our life together through our Prayer Book heritage.