Editorial
An elegant apology for the late appearance of the journal.
Volume 45 2009-10
Calvin and the Genevan Form of Prayer and Praise
The main published editions of the Genevan Service Order are listed. The history of the emergence of the Genevan Psalter is outlined. Calvin's Communion order remains consistent throughout these editions. Not a purification of the Mass, like Anglican and Lutheran, but based on the late medieval Prone. The paper explores two areas in particular: the understanding of worship reflected in this order and the significance of its musical aspect (both referred to in 'Letter to the Reader'. Considerable quotations are offered on the first topice and the didactic and polemical tone is noted. Regarding music, the whole section from the 'Letter' is given and a commentary on this from Andreas Marti. He concludes by quoting Calvin himself in the Foreword to his Commentary on the Psalms. In the course of this account, views of W D Maxwell are challenged.
Calvin and the Worship of the Church of England in the Sixteenth Century
Cranmer's influences had been Medieval and Reneaissance Catholic and Lutheran rather than Reformed. The Sarum rite was a major source. In the 1552 revision of the Book of Common Prayer, there was Reformed influence but not from Calvin directly but was rather a 'Calvinist consensus', the theological position of most C of E divines prior to early seventeenth century. Attempts to have the Genevan service book adopted in England, however, failed. A move away from having a set liturgy resulted in the Westminster Directory.
In Memoriam
Alex Mowat
Andrew Stewart Todd DD
Book Reviews
Sharing the past, Shaping the Future, reviewed by Peter Donald
Liturgy in the Age of Reason, Worship and Sacraments in England and Scotland 1662-c1800, reviewed by Henry Sefton
Worship and Liturgy in Context: Studies and Case Studies in Theology and Practice, reviewed by James Stewart
Liturgy and Architecture: From the Early Church to the Middle Ages, reviewed by James Stewart
Secretarial Notes
Anniversaries: Calvin 2009, Scottish Reformation 2010. The Society's new website. The 2009 Study Day based on Worship and Liturgy in Context, edited by Duncan Forrester and Doug Gay, held in Old St Paul's, Edinburgh. 2010 Study Day was overnight conference on Cumbrae based on a paper by Doug Gay (based on his Chalmers Lecture of 2010 – 'Uncommon Order? Possible Futures of Worship in the Church of Scotland) and on a Skype conversation with former President, Professor Bryan Spinks of Yale, whose recent book The Worship Mall had been read by participants in preparation; there was also a discussion of the future role of the Society as it approached its 150th anniversary in 2015.