The Washington times., 1928-07-21
URGED
IN EPISCOPAL
RTUA|l|
] NJ WILLIAM HOsTER

ii would sound strange to Amer.
leans II ii the pending presi
dentiaI campaign the issue upon
which the millions Of voters were
to vote was Shall the Revision
sc the Book Of Common Prayer
Be Approved 2s'
Yet here III the United States
III the midst of u great political
rampaigf. the Episcopal Church.
pffsprlng Of the Church of England
lis about tO complete i Revision
Of that same Book of Common
PRAYER over which widespread 20
litical controversy wages In. Rris
ain. ana the fact is devoid Of
the sfighIest political Significance.
The reason lies. of course, IN the
broad difference between a state
con ntfolled church like that ef Eng
land & and church III the United
states wllere there iK an irrevOca.
be separation between the state
affd an churches and religions.
THE DIFFERENCE
Sd it coffaes about that whereas ir
England any revision Of the Prayer
Book must receive the approval Of
P8fiiame --Ellade lip Of all res
ligious fa itlls ana Of none before II
can Be put into use III the English
churches here iii the United States
fter 4 Is years or effort the hisl-
ops, priests and laynaen 0f the Epis.
c0paI Church, assembling in general
convention lii Washington October
10 next will pass upon their own
revision Of the PraV YER Book ~ q
majority vote within their own
councils. ana that will settle the
matter.
Thus. the marriage service IS
n1Odernized in the new revision 50
that the bride on the one hand ts
relieved of f1er promise TO obey
while on the other hand the bride.
groom no longer endows her with
worldly goods Of which he FREE
quent1y possesses none: shortened
form Of the Ten Commandment is
provided for. new prayers for social
service. good government, world
peace and other modern trends are
provided The ri. Rev. Charles
Lewis Slattery. id. Ds. Bishop of
achusetts and chairman Of the
Joint commission under whose di.
recti0n the revision II being made,
says Of it
without losing the power Of
Archbishop Cranner's prose. we
shall b. freed from many archaic
which have lost meail- :
ing for our time Or are misunder-
stood. The burial service sub
stituteB New Testament trust for
Old Testament fear; aspirations Of
our time for social justice and
world brotherhood are made possis
ble. In 8 word, without ceasing
TO be the Book Of Ages. the Prayer.
Book becomes also the Book Of this
generation. Z
THE So ARTICLES
Bot one controversy looms Ger
the Prayer-BoOk at the WashinG'
ton Convention. This has To do with
the elimination of the Thirty nine
Articles Of Religion which are not
and never have been art Of
the Book OF Common Prayer. but
have simply been printed under -
same cover ~ supplementary. They
laf back to 1871 At the general
convention Of 1925 II was voted TO
eliminate them from the new
standard book of 1928. Since. under
the laws df the church, all matters
az this character must be voted
Iiv,un favOrably at two successive
cn,nvenfions. movement has started
rs overthrow the action On tNs
articles taken 1T the 1879 con.
TIle 1sFd elimination, Of the articles
~ religion is not a church party
n1ieafion. Among both high churcn-
man ana low. there Is q division
~ oninion on the subject and Ine
general feeling among the averase
,.,iIr,. nf members Of the Episcopal
rJ,nroi12 IS that no serious damage
viii IS done however the question
ii decided.