THE QUEEN gave her seal of approval to the new liturgy of the Church of
England yesterday describing it as a reflection of "the deepest strivings of our
faith".
The new service book, Common Worship, becomes the authorised text in all
13,000 Church of England parishes on Dec 3, the first Sunday of Advent,
replacing the 1980 Alternative Service Book. The Queen, as Supreme
Governor of the Church, welcomed the new liturgy after a service taken from
Common Worship at Westminster Abbey to inaugurate the General Synod.
But she also defended the "valued place" of Thomas Cranmer's Book of
Common Prayer which has been edged out of most churches. The Prince of
Wales is a vociferous defender of the 1662 Prayer Book, which remains an
authorised text alongside Common Worship and continues to be used in the
Chapels Royal.
The Queen told the 580 members of Synod in Church House: "I am pleased
that Common Worship contains services from the Book of Common Prayer
in its main volume. Both the Prayer Book and modern services have a valued
place in the Church of England today and are part of its future."
Common Worship, which has taken seven years to draft, is an attempt to
combine the traditional language of the Prayer Book with modern services.
The process has been laborious and dogged by disputes between factions in
the Church. Although criticised by traditionalists for its "Disneyfied language,"
Common Worship employs more traditional language than the Alternative
Service Book.
The Queen praised the liturgists, saying: "Their work holds to a long tradition
in the Church of England to worship God in ways, both old and new, which
reflect the deepest strivings of our faith." Flanked by the Archbishops of
Canterbury and York, the Queen also gave her blessing to unity with the
Methodist Church and her speech was greeted with prolonged applause.
The Church of England has been involved in "formal conversations" with the
Methodists for 18 months and a decision on whether to unify is expected next
year. The Church of England has pulled out of unity agreements twice before
in 1971 and 1982.
The Queen said: "The continuing search for full visible unity between the
Churches is vital for the effectiveness of their shared mission. Members of
Synod, you will have an early opportunity to carry this forward when you
receive the report from formal conversations between the Church of England
and the Methodist Church." She said her visit to the Pope in Rome earlier this
year was an indication of progress made towards Christian unity.
In his greeting to the Queen, the Archbishop of Canterbury, Dr George
Carey, said the new Synod, elected every five years, faced a "far from easy"
task. Dr Carey said: "Called to give leadership to the Church, it must do so in
ways which embody Christian service. And it must do so in a world
increasingly uncomprehending of the fundamentals of the Christian faith,
although the roots of the faith are still evident."
The Synod meets this week in Church House, where it will decide on new
measures to discipline errant clergy and debate a report on racism in the
Church.
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Duke of York visits Kuwait(Yahoo:Ananova)
The Duke of York has arrived in Kuwait for a visit, his third in two years to the oil-rich
state.
Andrew will meet the emir, Sheikh Jaber Al Ahmed Al Sabah, and senior Kuwaiti
officials.
The British Embassy said the Duke will also meet members of the British community, visit
a British trade exhibition, a Kuwaiti naval base and a science centre.
The Duke's visit is part of a Gulf tour that includes Saudi Arabia and Oman.