Class 6 of a Short Course for People Inquiring about the Christian Faith and the Episcopal Denomination

CLASS 6
April 5, 2009:
Spirituality and the Sacraments; The Church Calendar;
and, Anglican Polity and Politics
A Class Assembled and Taught By Bill Stroop
Revised 5 April 2009

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CLASS 6:

PART I: SPIRITUALITY AND SACRAMENTS

In this section of today's class, we will first look at Anglican worship and at the sacraments of the church (the so called "major" and "minor" sacraments). We will look at the traditions and the Canons of the Church regarding Baptism, Communion, Confirmation, and membership. We will also discuss some of the pastoral offices - particularly marriage and burial, since these are two rites we have had, or likely will have exposure to more often in the Church than the other services. Finally, we will talk a little about Anglican Spirituality.

Overview of Worship

Why do we worship? I think it lies in the fundamental understanding that there is something larger than ourselves "out there." James Griffiss, in his book The Anglican Vision (one of the books in the teaching series of the Episcopal Church - see the Bibliography) describes worship as that which arises out of a fundamental characteristic of what it is to be human: our need to deal with the question of meaning (Griffiss, 88). The circumstances we encounter in life give rise to "why questions" that have no easy answers. Why do I have to die? Why did Grandma suffer so much before she died? Why do bad things happen to good people? (this is similar to the title of a book by Harold Kushner).

Griffiss argues that people of faith do not ignore these questions, but instead seek to answer them through faith, hope, and love. He says that worship is a courageous way of "calling beyond," to offer oneself in praise and thanksgiving in the presence of the unseen God (Griffiss, 89). I agree with Griffiss, especially in his understanding of worship being an activity that by its very nature acknowledges the presence of the "other" in our lives. I like to think of worship as something that touches on everything else that I do, that in all the mundane, day-to-day things I accomplish, some part of that activity is offered to God, for God, and/or for God's people.

The Catechism addresses worship and prayer and the sacraments (see pages 856-857 of the prayer book). Worship, as the catechism defines it, is corporate - meaning something that we do together in which we :unite ourselves with others to acknowledge the holiness of God, to hear God's word, to offer prayer, and to "celebrate the sacraments" (BCP, page 857). I believe this is too narrow a definition of worship, because it does not address how we can worship God in the very ordinary things of life. The monastic tradition that we have discussed in previous classes recognized this deficiency as well, and many of the Rules of Life followed by various monastic orders stress the importance of maintaining a worshipful mind at all times, doing all things.

However, with the understanding that worship reaches well beyond the doors of the church into our everyday lives, what we will concentrate on in this section is corporate worship, and the various kinds of public rites and ceremonies that we do as a gathered community of Christians.

The Sacraments Defined by the BCP and the Canons of the Church

The word "sacrament" is defined as an outward and visible sign of an inward and spiritual grace. The BCP defines the sacraments as actions given to us by Jesus Christ as "sure and certain means by which we can receive [God's] grace." (BCP, 857).

Major and Minor Sacraments

There are two major sacraments of the church are Holy Baptism and Holy Eucharist (BCP, 858). These sacraments were defined as ordained by Christ in Article 25 in 1563 in the Thirty Nine Articles of the Church under Elizabeth I (see Class 5; also see BCP, page 872). The minor sacraments are confirmation, penance (reconciliation), holy orders, matrimony, and extreme unction (last rites).

The BCP provides descriptions of these sacraments in the italicized pages preceding and following the rites themselves. In addition to the BCP, the Church has a set of rules called Canons that expand upon or define the specifics pertaining to worship and the sacraments (among other things). The Canons are available on line. Use the table below to find information about the sacramental rites of the church in the BCP and the Canons.

		Description on BCP Pages	Sacramental Rite on BCP Pages	Relevant Canons
Major Sacraments	Holy Baptism	298, 312, 873	299-308	Canon I.17 and Canon III.1
	Holy Eucharist	322 or 355 and 406-409	323-349; 355-382; 396-399; 400-405	Canon I.17 and Canons II.1-II.5
Minor Sacraments	Confirmation	412	309; 413-419
	Reconciliation (Penance)	446	447-452
	Holy Orders	510, 511, 524, 536; 522-555	512-551	Canons III.5- III.13
	Matrimony	422; 437-438	423-434; 435-436	Canons I.18 and I.19
	Extreme Unction		462-466

Regarding the sacraments, the text from the BCP in the historical documents section reads as follows:

XXV. Of the Sacraments.
Sacraments ordained of Christ be not only badges or tokens of Christian men’s profession,
but rather they be certain sure witnesses, and effectual signs of grace, and God’s good will
towards us, by the which he doth work invisibly in us, and doth not only quicken, but also
strengthen and confirm our Faith in him.

There are two Sacraments ordained of Christ our Lord in the Gospel, that is to say,
Baptism, and the Supper of the Lord.

Those five commonly called Sacraments, that is to say, Confirmation, Penance, Orders,
Matrimony, and Extreme Unction, are not to be counted for Sacraments of the Gospel,
being such as have grown partly of the corrupt following of the Apostles, partly are states of
life allowed in the Scriptures, but yet have not like nature of Sacraments with Baptism, and
the Lord’s Supper, for that they have not any visible sign or ceremony ordained of God.

The Sacraments were not ordained of Christ to be gazed upon, or to be carried about, but
that we should duly use them. And in such only as worthily receive the same, they have a
wholesome effect or operation: but they that receive them unworthily, purchase to
themselves damnation, as Saint Paul saith.

The catechism of the church teaches about the minor sacraments the following:

Q. What other sacramental rites evolved in the Church
under the guidance of the Holy Spirit?
A. Other sacramental rites which evolved in the Church
include confirmation, ordination, holy matrimony,
reconciliation of a penitent, and unction.

Q. How do they differ from the two sacraments of the
Gospel?
A. Although they are means of grace, they are not
necessary for all persons in the same way that Baptism
and the Eucharist are.

Q. What is Confirmation?
A. Confirmation is the rite in which we express a mature
commitment to Christ, and receive strength from the
Holy Spirit through prayer and the laying on of hands
by a bishop.

Q. What is required of those to be confirmed?
A. It is required of those to be confirmed that they have
been baptized, are sufficiently instructed in the Christian
Faith, are penitent for their sins, and are ready to affirm
their confession of Jesus Christ as Savior and Lord.

Q. What is Ordination?
A. Ordination is the rite in which God gives authority and
the grace of the Holy Spirit to those being made bishops,
priests, and deacons, through prayer and the laying on
of hands by bishops.

Q. What is Holy Matrimony?
A. Holy Matrimony is Christian marriage, in which the
woman and man enter into a life-long union, make their
vows before God and the Church, and receive the grace
and blessing of God to help them fulfill their vows.

Q. What is Reconciliation of a Penitent?
A. Reconciliation of a Penitent, or Penance, is the rite in
which those who repent of their sins may confess them
to God in the presence of a priest, and receive the
assurance of pardon and the grace of absolution.

Q. What is Unction of the Sick?
A. Unction is the rite of anointing the sick with oil, or the
laying on of hands, by which God’s grace is given for the
healing of spirit, mind, and body.

Q. Is God’s activity limited to these rites?
A. God does not limit himself to these rites; they are
patterns of countless ways by which God uses material
things to reach out to us.

Q. How are the sacraments related to our Christian hope?
A. Sacraments sustain our present hope and anticipate its
future fulfillment.

Baptism and Confirmation

Baptism is the entrance rite into the Christian faith, and according to the canons of the Episcopal church Holy Baptism is required for persons to subsequently receive communion in the church (Canon I.17.7). The description of the theology as reprinted from page 298 of the BCP is as follows:

Holy Baptism is full initiation by water and the Holy Spirit into
Christ’s Body the Church. The bond which God establishes in Baptism
is indissoluble.

Holy Baptism is appropriately administered within the Eucharist as the
chief service on a Sunday or other feast.
[On page 312, it says,
Holy Baptism is especially appropriate at the Easter Vigil, on the
Day of Pentecost, on All Saints’ Day or the Sunday after All Saints’
Day, and on the Feast of the Baptism of our Lord (the First Sunday
after the Epiphany). It is recommended that, as far as possible,
Baptisms be reserved for these occasions or when a bishop is
present.]

The bishop, when present, is the celebrant; and is expected to preach the
Word and preside at Baptism and the Eucharist. At Baptism, the bishop
officiates at the Presentation and Examination of the Candidates;
says the Thanksgiving over the Water; [consecrates the Chrism;] reads the
prayer, “Heavenly Father, we thank you that by water and the Holy
Spirit;” and officiates at what follows.

In the absence of a bishop, a priest is the celebrant and presides at the
service. If a priest uses Chrism in signing the newly baptized, it must have
been previously consecrated by the bishop.

Each candidate for Holy Baptism is to be sponsored by one or more
baptized persons.

Sponsors of adults and older children present their candidates and
thereby signify their endorsement of the candidates and their intention to
support them by prayer and example in their Christian life. Sponsors of
infants, commonly called godparents, present their candidates, make
promises in their own names, and also take vows on behalf of their
candidates.

It is fitting that parents be included among the godparents of their own
children. Parents and godparents are to be instructed in the meaning of
Baptism, in their duties to help the new Christians grow in the knowledge
and love of God, and in their responsibilities as members of his Church.

Note that under emergency circumstances, a Baptism can be done by anyone. See BCP page 313.

Some of the key elements of the Baptismal Liturgy are found in the Baptismal Covenant:

The Baptismal Covenant

Celebrant

Do you believe in God the Father?

People

I believe in God, the Father almighty,
creator of heaven and earth.

Celebrant

Do you believe in Jesus Christ, the Son of God?

People

I believe in Jesus Christ, his only Son, our Lord.
He was conceived by the power of the Holy Spirit
and born of the Virgin Mary.
He suffered under Pontius Pilate,
was crucified, died, and was buried.
He descended to the dead.
On the third day he rose again.
He ascended into heaven,
and is seated at the right hand of the Father.
He will come again to judge the living and the dead.

Celebrant
.

Do you believe in God the Holy Spirit?

People

I believe in the Holy Spirit,
the holy catholic Church,
the communion of saints,
the forgiveness of sins,
the resurrection of the body,
and the life everlasting

Celebrant

Will you continue in the apostles’ teaching and
fellowship, in the breaking of bread, and in the
prayers ?

People

I will, with God’s help.

Celebrant

Will you persevere in resisting evil, and, whenever
you fall into sin, repent and return to the Lord?

People

I will, with God’s help.

Celebrant

Will you proclaim by word and example the Good
News of God in Christ?

People

I will, with God’s help.

Celebrant

Will you seek and serve Christ in all persons, loving
your neighbor as yourself?

People

I will, with God’s help.

Celebrant

Will you strive for justice and peace among all
people, and respect the dignity of every human
being?

People

I will, with God’s help.

The church's catechism states (BCP, pp. 858-859):

Q. What is Holy Baptism?
A. Holy Baptism is the sacrament by which God adopts us
as his children and makes us members of Christ’s Body,
the Church, and inheritors of the kingdom of God.

Q. What is the outward and visible sign in Baptism?
A. The outward and visible sign in Baptism is water, in
which the person is baptized in the Name of the Father,
and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit.

Q. What is the inward and spiritual grace in Baptism?
A. The inward and spiritual grace in Baptism is union with
Christ in his death and resurrection, birth into God’s
family the Church, forgiveness of sins, and new life in
the Holy Spirit.

Q. What is required of us at Baptism?
A. It is required that we renounce Satan, repent of our sins,
and accept Jesus as our Lord and Savior.

Q. Why then are infants baptized?
A. Infants are baptized so that they can share citizenship in
the Covenant, membership in Christ, and redemption
by God.

Q. How are the promises for infants made and carried out?
A. Promises are made for them by their parents and
sponsors, who guarantee that the infants will be
brought up within the Church, to know Christ and be
able to follow him.

Eucharist

At the beginning of the pages in the BCP that describe the Eucharist is a section called the "Exhortation." While a separate liturgical piece, it explains some of the corporate nature of the Eucharistic celebration. It reads as follows (BCP pages 316-7):

Beloved in the Lord: Our Savior Christ, on the night before
he suffered, instituted the Sacrament of his Body and
Blood as a sign and pledge of his love, for the continual
remembrance of the sacrifice of his death, and for a spiritual
sharing in his risen life. For in these holy Mysteries we are
made one with Christ, and Christ with us; we are made one
body in him, and members one of another.

Having in mind, therefore, his great love for us, and in
obedience to his command, his Church renders to Almighty
God our heavenly Father never-ending thanks for the
creation of the world, for his continual providence over us,
for his love for all mankind, and for the redemption of the
world by our Savior Christ, who took upon himself our flesh,
and humbled himself even to death on the cross, that he
might make us the children of God by the power of the Holy
Spirit, and exalt us to everlasting life.

But if we are to share rightly in the celebration of those holy
Mysteries, and be nourished by that spiritual Food, we must
remember the dignity of that holy Sacrament. I therefore call
upon you to consider how Saint Paul exhorts all persons to
prepare themselves carefully before eating of that Bread and
drinking of that Cup.

For, as the benefit is great, if with penitent hearts and living
faith we receive the holy Sacrament, so is the danger great, if
we receive it improperly, not recognizing the Lord’s Body.
Judge yourselves, therefore, lest you be judged by the Lord.

Examine your lives and conduct by the rule of God’s
commandments, that you may perceive wherein you have
offended in what you have done or left undone, whether in
thought, word, or deed. And acknowledge your sins before
Almighty God, with full purpose of amendment of life, being
ready to make restitution for all injuries and wrongs done by
you to others; and also being ready to forgive those who have
offended you, in order that you yourselves may be forgiven.
And then, being reconciled with one another, come to the
banquet of that most heavenly Food.

And if, in your preparation, you need help and counsel, then
go and open your grief to a discreet and understanding priest,
and confess your sins, that you may receive the benefit of
absolution, and spiritual counsel and advice; to the removal
of scruple and doubt, the assurance of pardon, and the
strengthening of your faith.

To Christ our Lord who loves us, and washed us in his own
blood, and made us a kingdom of priests to serve his God
and Father, to him be glory in the Church evermore. Through
him let us offer continually the sacrifice of praise, which is
our bounden duty and service, and, with faith in him, come
boldly before the throne of grace ...

The catechism of the church states the following (BCP pp. 859-860):

Q. What is the Holy Eucharist?
A. The Holy Eucharist is the sacrament commanded by
Christ for the continual remembrance of his life, death,
and resurrection, until his coming again.

Q. Why is the Eucharist called a sacrifice?
A. Because the Eucharist, the Church’s sacrifice of praise and
thanksgiving, is the way by which the sacrifice of Christ is
made present, and in which he unites us to his one offering
of himself.

Q. By what other names is this service known?
A. The Holy Eucharist is called the Lord’s Supper, and
Holy Communion; it is also known as the Divine
Liturgy, the Mass, and the Great Offering.

Q. What is the outward and visible sign in the Eucharist?
A. The outward and visible sign in the Eucharist is bread
and wine, given and received according to Christ’s
command.

Q. What is the inward and spiritual grace given in the
Eucharist?
A. The inward and spiritual grace in the Holy Communion
is the Body and Blood of Christ given to his people, and
received by faith.

Q. What are the benefits which we receive in the Lord’s
Supper?
A. The benefits we receive are the forgiveness of our sins,
the strengthening of our union with Christ and one
another, and the foretaste of the heavenly banquet which
is our nourishment in eternal life.

Q. What is required of us when we come to the Eucharist?
A. It is required that we should examine our lives, repent
of our sins, and be in love and charity with all people.

According to the prayer book, communion can be withheld from people who is living a "notoriously evil life." What it says is as follows (from BCP page 409):

If the priest knows that a person who is living a notoriously evil life
intends to come to Communion, the priest shall speak to that person
privately, and tell him that he may not come to the Holy Table until he
has given clear proof of repentance and amendment of life.

The priest shall follow the same procedure with those who have done
wrong to their neighbors and are a scandal to the other members of the
congregation, not allowing such persons to receive Communion until
they have made restitution for the wrong they have done, or have at least
promised to do so.

When the priest sees that there is hatred between members of the
congregation, he shall speak privately to each of them, telling them that
they may not receive Communion until they have forgiven each other.
And if the person or persons on one side truly forgive the others and
desire and promise to make up for their faults, but those on the other side
refuse to forgive, the priest shall allow those who are penitent to come to
Communion, but not those who are stubborn.

In all such cases, the priest is required to notify the bishop, within
fourteen days at the most, giving the reasons for refusing Communion.

Marriage

The Canons of the Church provide the following rules and guidance about the marriage of two persons who have not been divorced. Immediately following is the section that deals with the remarriage of divorced persons.

CANON 18: Of the Solemnization of Holy Matrimony

Sec. 1. Every Member of the Clergy of this Church shall conform to the laws
of the State governing the creation of the civil status of marriage, and also to
the laws of this Church governing the solemnization of Holy Matrimony.

Sec. 2. Before solemnizing a marriage the Member of the Clergy shall have
ascertained:

(a) That both parties have the right to contract a marriage
according to the laws of the State.
(b) That both parties understand that Holy Matrimony is a physical
and spiritual union of a man and a woman, entered into within
the community of faith, by mutual consent of heart, mind, and
will, and with intent that it be lifelong.
(c) That both parties freely and knowingly consent to such marriage,
without fraud, coercion, mistake as to identity of a
partner, or mental reservation.
(d) That at least one of the parties has received Holy Baptism.
(e) That both parties have been instructed as to the nature,
meaning, and purpose of Holy Matrimony by the Member of
the Clergy, or that they have both received such instruction
from persons known by the Member of the Clergy to be
competent and responsible.

Sec. 3. No Member of the Clergy of this Church shall solemnize any
marriage unless the following procedures are complied with:

(a) The intention of the parties to contract marriage shall have
been signified to the Member of the Clergy at least thirty days
before the service of solemnization; Provided, that for weighty
cause, this requirement may be dispensed with if one of the
parties is a member of the Congregation of the Member of the
Clergy, or can furnish satisfactory evidence of responsibility.
In case the thirty days’ notice is waived, the Member of
the Clergy shall report such action in writing to the Bishop immediately.
(b) There shall be present at least two witnesses to the
solemnization of marriage.
(c) The Member of the Clergy shall record in the proper register
the date and place of the marriage, the names of the parties and
their parents, the age of the parties, their residences, and their
Church status; the witnesses and the Member of the Clergy
shall sign the record.
(d) The Member of the Clergy shall have required that the parties
sign the following declaration:
(e) “We, A.B. and C.D., desiring to receive the blessing of Holy
Matrimony in the Church, do solemnly declare that we hold
marriage to be a lifelong union of husband and wife as it is set
forth in the Book of Common Prayer.
(f) “We believe that the union of husband and wife, in heart,
body, and mind, is intended by God for their mutual joy; for
the help and comfort given one another in prosperity and
adversity; and, when it is God’s will, for the procreation of
children and their nurture in the knowledge and love of the
Lord.
(g) “And we do engage ourselves, so far as in us lies, to make our
utmost effort to establish this relationship and to seek God’s
help thereto.”

Sec. 4. It shall be within the discretion of any Member of the Clergy of this
Church to decline to solemnize any marriage.

The section dealing with the remarriage of (a) previously divorced person(s) is as follows:

CANON 19: Of Regulations Respecting Holy Matrimony: Concerning
Preservation of Marriage, Dissolution of Marriage, and Remarriage

Sec. 1. When marital unity is imperiled by dissension, it shall be the duty,
if possible, of either or both parties, before taking legal action, to lay the
matter before a Member of the Clergy; it shall be the duty of such Member
of the Clergy to act first to protect and promote the physical and emotional
safety of those involved and only then, if it be possible, to labor that the
parties may be reconciled.
Sec. 2 (a) Any member of this Church whose marriage has been annulled
or dissolved by a civil court may apply to the Bishop or Ecclesiastical
Authority of the Diocese in which such person is legally or canonically
resident for a judgment as to his or her marital status in the eyes of the
Church. Such judgment may be a recognition of the nullity, or of the
termination of the said marriage; Provided, that no such judgment shall be
construed as affecting in any way the legitimacy of children or the civil
validity of the former relationship.
(b) Every judgment rendered under this Section shall be in writing and
shall be made a matter of permanent record in the Archives of the Diocese.
Sec. 3. No Member of the Clergy of this Church shall solemnize the
marriage of any person who has been the husband or wife of any other
person then living, nor shall any member of this Church enter into a
marriage when either of the contracting parties has been the husband or the
wife of any other person then living, except as hereinafter provided:
(a) The Member of the Clergy shall be satisfied by
appropriate evidence that the prior marriage has been
annulled or dissolved by a final judgment or decree of a
civil court of competent jurisdiction.
(b) The Member of the Clergy shall have instructed the parties
that continuing concern must be shown for the well-being
of the former spouse, and of any children of the prior
marriage.
(c) The Member of the Clergy shall consult with and obtain
the consent of the Bishop of the Diocese wherein the
Member of the Clergy is canonically resident or the
Bishop of the Diocese in which the Member of the Clergy
is licensed to officiate prior to, and shall report to that
Bishop, the solemnization of any marriage under this
Section.
(d) If the proposed marriage is to be solemnized in a
jurisdiction other than the one in which the consent has
been given, the consent shall be affirmed by the Bishop of
that jurisdiction.
Sec. 4. All provisions of Canon I.18 shall, in all cases, apply.

The Church as Sacrament

James Griffiss' book, The Anglican Vision, ends with a chapter entitled, "The Church as Sacrament" (see Bibliography). He writes that the sacraments of the church, are

"deeply important for many Episcopalians ... Because of the Church's sacramental life we choose to remain Episcopalians despite all the conflict and ambiguity within the church. For being a member of the Episcopal Church - like any other church - is not always easy. Churches can say and do things that cause much pain; they can be a 'nest of vipers' as well as 'an ark of salvation.' They pos real problems because they sometimes can make belief in God difficult. Many committed church people find themselves saying from time to time, 'Yes I believe in God and I believe in Jesus Christ and the Holy Spirit, but I have a lot of difficulty with the Church!' How can we believe that the church is the sign to others of the incarnational and sacramental life that we personally have found so important? Can we believe that the church, this very fallible and human institution, tells us about God and God's ways with human beings? How is the institutional church a sign to the world of what it means to believe in the God of Jesus Christ?" (Griffiss, 117)

Griffiss argues that the church itself is a sacrament in which the outward and visible sign is the ordinary, fragile, and ambiguous human beings that comprise a church, and that the inward grace is the power of the Holy Spirit. He continues that there may be tension between what we want and do as human beings and what the Spirit might have in mind. He writes,

We who are Anglicans seek to live, as honestly as we can, in a twofold relationship with the Episcopal Church. One the one hand, we know it as an institution that is often divided and indecisive, willing to live with ambiguity and tension. In this clash and confusion of many voices, the Episcopal Church reflects our personal, human condition. We all, individually, try to determine in the complexity of our daily lives what it means to believe in God and that the consequences of that belief might be. In the church reaching a conclusion about complex social and theological issues is often a political process, one of trying different points of view and human concerns; it can be messy, and sometimes the results are inconclusive and not pleasing to everyone. And yet, the struggle to reach a compromise or consensus remains an integral dimension of the church's life, just as it was in the time of the early councils of the church, as we try to discern the guidance of the Holy Spirit.

On the other hand, we believe that we are carrying out this very human and political process in continuity with the witness and teaching of holy scripture and the tradition of belief that comes to us in the one, holy, catholic, and apostolic church. The struggle-both political and theological-is how to weigh one against the other, and how to interpret the authority of both. But the process itself says who we are as Episcopalians: we are the church as we struggle; we are being the church, indeed we are believing with the church, in the process of seeking God's will for us. Consequently, we can say that in the very process of our struggle to believe with the church we much also say, as we do in the creeds, that we believe in the church; we believe it co be the community of faith where God is present and in which God is guiding us to a deeper understanding of what we believe and ought to do." (Griffiss 125-26)

Do you think the church is a sacrament?

As we have developed in this course so far, Episcopalians are people who pray, and who define themselves by what they pray. But that really begs two questions. The first is what is prayer? The BCP Catechism says that prayer is responding to God, by thought and by deeds, with or without words. It further says that Christian prayer is response to God the Father, through Jesus Christ, in the power of the Holy Spirit. That is probably about as good a definition as any, for it allows the possibility that people who are thinking loving and caring thoughts about another person are engaged in a form of prayer.

The second question is how do we pray. In our corporate worship, such as the Eucharist and the Daily Offices, we recite many verbal prayers with the others present in the congregation. And as we pray throughout the year, our prayers differ with the liturgical season. For example, during the season of Lent, our worship services become more penitential. For example, we might use the penitential order (BCP, page 351) at the beginning of the service, instead of saying the confession after the Prayers of the People which is where the confession is usually said (BCP, page 359). This helps us focus our minds and hearts on repentance, a major theme of Lent. During the joyous time of Easter, we traditionally don't say the confession at all.

But, for Episcopalians, prayer is not just something we do together on Sunday mornings. We should make our lives into prayer. In the Church's teaching series is a book by Margaret Guenther that I think is one of the finest introductions to prayer available today (see the Bibliography). In this section of the class, we will look at prayer, using Guenther's book and the Catechism (see BCP, pages 856-867).

Prayer requires that we pay attention to what we are doing, even as we empty our minds so that we can be receptive to God's conversation with us. We need to avoid spiritual sluggishness (or falling asleep!). One of the problems with conversation is that we can become used to our conversation partner, and not hear them anymore. Any husband and wife (usually the wife) will tell you this is the case. Our conversations with God need to be active, filled with active and attentive listening.

We need to quiet our inner voices, those annoying things that pop into our heads when we try to clear our thoughts. As we begin to relax, our brains seem to do two things. They either fall into sleep, or they decide to become active in usually disturbing ways. For example, when getting into a relaxed meditative state, the brain can suddenly ask our consciousness whether there are clothes in the drier, or whether you remembered to add toilet paper to the grocery list. We have to actively suppress these thoughts in order to let God speak to us (unless it is God reminding us about the toilet paper!).

We also have to be willing to pray boldly and raise our heads to face the divine. It might be a scary thing to think of being in the presence of God, or to actually hear God speak. The Old Testament tells us stories of how the Hebrews were overwhelmed by God's voice. But we mustn't be afraid of God. We need to want an encounter with the holy in order to be in the right receptive frame of mind and spirit to experience God.

We may encounter the divine through the action of angels or through the words/deeds of modern day prophets. Angels are not sentimental, bug-eyed, pastel-colored ceramic figurines. They are slippery things that can come and go; they may appear as people. Prophets are likewise ordinary people saying and doing extraordinary things, like Gandhi, Tutu, Martin Luther King, Jr., and you.

There are many kinds of prayer. There is corporate prayer and private prayer. We have discussed corporate prayer quite a bit in this course, and now we will turn our focus to private prayer.

Combining what the prayer book and Guenther say about these prayers, we can define them as follows:

Adoration. Adoration is the lifting up of the heart and mind to God, asking nothing but to enjoy God’s presence. Guenther describes this as an experience that feels like God taking our breath away. We are humbled by this experience, but it is a short lived one. We only catch glimpses of God, and those glimpses cause us to spontaneously praise God.

Thanksgiving. We offer thanksgiving is offered to God for all the blessings of this life, for our redemption, and for whatever draws us closer to God. Basically we are grateful for the experience of creation. But we are "little" compared to God, and we often feel it is hard to properly express gratitude to God who is so very much bigger. But if we listen to our inner self, we will find that feelings of gratitude are within us. This may be particularly true at meal time. Grace before meals is a great place to start to express thanksgiving for all kinds of things.

Confession. Here we acknowledge our limitations and our inability to follow (or even comprehend) God's will. We also acknowledge actions, words, or inaction that have caused harm to others. All of these things collectively fall into that "thing called sin." Sin is what separates us from God and from each other. When we acknowledge our sinfulness, we are admitting that we are sick, and that God is the source of health. When we confess, though, we need to be specific ("I lied to my friend"). The reason this is important, is that it can be diagnostic of a problem, and with good diagnosis, a "cure" is more likely. Guenther writes, "In prayers of confession, the main point is not how appallingly sinful we are, but rather how prodigally loving God is. It is important to let go of sins once they are confessed, even though it is tempting to hold onto them and carry them around because we are proud of them, feeling that they bestow a certain distinction upon us - just as hypochondriacs resist health. Goodness is not interesting: sin makes us special. Marlowe's Faust was damned not for his sinful actions, but because he pridefully regarded himself as so great a sinner as to be beyond redemption. When we are truly penitent, confess our sins and make restitution where possible, with the intention to amend our lives.

Intercession. Intercession brings before God the needs of others. Prayers of intercession move us beyond ourselves into community. It is tempting to think of intercession as asking God for something, but actually, that is an act of petition. When we intercede, we place ourselves before authority (God) on behalf of another. This is a highly democratic kind of prayer, and this is the kind of prayer we do publicly in church each Sunday during the Prayers of the People (in addition to prayers of petition). Guenther belies that intercession is the most vital for our solitary prayer because we turn to it when we feel the most anxious or helpless. We cannot stop the demise of a loved one with cancer, but we can name her in our prayers. We cannot undo the effects of a Tsunami, but we can remember the unknown homeless and wounded in our prayers. We pray in this way because we have faith that God will hear us.

Petition. This is probably the most common kind of prayer, because here we ask God for things for ourselves or others. This is not self-indulgence. Jesus himself taught us that we need to b persistent in prayer for our own selves (Lk 11:5-13). They are specific prayers in which we present our own needs and the needs of others, praying that God’s will may be done.

There is much, much more to be said about prayer, and the many varieties of prayers. There is also much to be said about how different prayer styles match different Meyers-Briggs personality types. But that is another huge topic that will have to wait for another time.

Theologically, there are two Greek terms that refer to time: Chronos and Kairos. Chronos is the root of our word "chronology" and it refers to the sequential ordering of events, thus creating a temporal sense of past, present, and future. Kairos refers to God's own time, and it is often used in the New Testament to times when God interjected Godself into our temporal (Chronos) time. The feast days and the ordering of the church calendar contain both elements of fixed (chronos) events and celebrations as well as remembrances of times when God was especially immanent in the person of Jesus or the Holy Spirit (kairos).

The Church calendar is built from two different - and competing - cycles of time: the lunar cycle and the solar cycle. The date of the birthday of Christ (Christmas), Epiphany (January 6), and All Saint's Day (November 1) are set by the solar cycle, so they occur on the same days each year. Easter, the day of Christ's resurrection, is set by the lunar cycle and the Spring Equinox (March 21). Easter Sunday is the first Sunday after the first full moon on or after the Spring Equinox (BCP page 15). Since the solar and the lunar cycles do not start or end on the same calendar days of the year, how does the church calendar work?

The calendar is based around seven principle feasts: Easter, Ascension, Pentecost, Holy Trinity (Trinity Sunday), All Saints, Christmas, and Epiphany (see BCP pages 15-18). All Saint's Day, Christmas, and Epiphany always occur on the same calendar dates each year. Ascension, Pentecost, and Trinity Sunday each occur a fixed number of days after Easter. Easter is a movable date. In order to knit together two calendars, one with fixed celebrations based on the solar cycle and the other with celebrations that fall on different calendar dates due to the lunar cycle, two seasons with variable numbers of days are inserted into the calendar, one after Epiphany, and the other after Pentecost (see the diagram below). The ordering of the principle feasts throughout the 365 calendar year is thus made possible.

The BCP says that all Sundays of the year are feasts of our Lord Jesus Christ. In addition to celebrating the principle feasts noted above on the days indicated, the prayer book states that the feasts of The Holy Name, The Presentation, The Transfiguration, The feast of the Dedication of a Church, and the feast of its patron or title, may be observed on, or be transferred to, a Sunday, except in the seasons of Advent, Lent, and Easter. All other Feasts of our Lord, and all other Major Feasts appointed on fixed days in the Calendar, when they occur on a Sunday, are normally transferred to the first convenient open day within the week.

Each regular Sunday is a day set aside for special devotion. And as special days, there are seasons of the church year during which Sundays are not counted as part of that particular season. For example, the 40 days of Lent do not include the Sundays.

The following special holy days have precedence over all other days of commemoration or of special observance, unless otherwise contradicted by the rules concerning Sunday worship:

Other Major Feasts that occur throughout the calendar year include the following:

There are several days or periods in the church calendar that are observed by special acts of discipline and self-denial. The most familiar ones to most are probably Ash Wednesday and the other weekdays of Lent and of Holy Week, and Good Friday.

Finally there are days of optional observance that may be observed during the church year by the saying of special Collects, Psalms, and Lessons duly authorized by the Church. These are often printed in the Lesser Feasts and Fasts and Lectionary Texts: Various Occasions and Occasional Services. Among these are days commemorating specific saints; Ember Days, traditionally observed on the Wednesdays, Fridays, and Saturdays after the First Sunday in Lent; the Day of Pentecost; Holy Cross Day; The Rogation Days; traditionally observed on Monday, Tuesday, and Wednesday before Ascension Day; and other various occasions.

The church year begins with the season of Advent. This begins four Sundays before Christmas Day (around the end of November; in 2005, the first Sunday of Advent will be November 27, 2005). The Christmas season is 12 days long, ending on January 6, the Feast of the Epiphany. Lent begins with Ash Wednesday, 40 days (excluding the Sundays) before Easter. The Easter season is 50 days long, with the Ascension occurring 40 days after Easter, and the Feast of Pentecost occurring on the Sunday 50 days after Easter (which is May 5, 2005). Trinity Sunday is the first Sunday after Pentecost (May 22, 2005). The season after Trinity Sunday is called "ordinary time" by some people, and it last until the first Sunday of Advent. All Saint's Day is a Principle feast occurring during ordinary time on November 1 (there are provisions for celebrating Pentecost on the first Sunday after the actual date of November 1 when November 1 does not fall on a Sunday). These seasons are shown in the diagram below.

We mark the seasons of the church year, as well as the Principle and Minor feasts by the use of colors on the altar, and by the vestments worn by the priest. A brief description of the seasons and the colors is as follows. Explanations are derived from An Episcopal Dictionary of the Church (see the Bibliography).

In the section, we talked about the church calendar and prayer as viewed from the Episcopal tradition, and as informed by the Book of Common Prayer. But the Episcopal Church is only one member of the larger Anglican Communion - which is a confederation of provinces that arose as a result of the spread of the Church of England throughout the world during the periods of English colonization. However the church did not take an active role in evangelization during the colonial period. But rather it spread by chaplains who were part of the colonial expeditionary forces. Evangelization was largely accidental.

The Anglican Communion can be thought of in several ways: as a political body, a spiritual one, the Body of Christ, a collection of parishes connected by the Prayer Book tradition, and so forth. In a chapter entitled "What is Anglicanism?" in the book, The Study of Anglicanism, Paul Avis describes the Anglican Communion as a priesthood bound together by worship. He writes,

The Anglican priesthood is a pastoral one: neither a sacerdotal caste serving to restrict the spiritual privileges of the laity, the people of God, nor a didactic, scribal, rabbinic, judicatory order that lays down the law as to belief and practice and is entrusted with the duty of policing its enforcement. It is a priesthood—it has authoritative, sacramental and even mediatory functions (provided that these are understood as embodying the priestly character of the people of God who are baptized into Christ’s priestly office)—but a priesthood that involves all the gentleness, the attention to human needs, the listening ear, and the solidarity in our human condition of the true pastor.

Worship is common: that is to say, not performed by a vicarious priesthood on behalf of a liturgically unqualified laity, but shared by the whole priestly body of the Church whose comprehending participation (to use a phrase of Stephen Sykes) is vital. Moreover, under the parochial system, it is the common prayer of a given community, that already exists for other, secular purposes, not of a self-selecting élite. The nature of Anglican common worship constantly militates against all sectarian tendencies.

Avis goes on to say that Anglicanism does not hide behind religious walls, but openly deals with the realities of the world in which we live. He writes,

Anglicanism’s love of the truth is fearless. The scholarly pursuit of truth and the conscientious witness to it are safeguarded in Anglicanism ... Anglicanism has put a special value on scholarly integrity and has permitted a breadth of theological opinion to flourish within its borders. The Anglican ideal is certainly a noble one, though one that remains to be fully attained. It appears to focus on a particular view of the role of authority in the sphere of religion. It appeals to Scripture, tradition and reason, but does so in the acknowledged context of our modern pluralistic situation. As a result, these three sources or criteria are combined in a dynamic way in order to serve as mutual qualifiers, checks and balances, not merely to restrict and relativize each other but also to generate innovative thinking in dialogue with the Church’s cultural and ideological context. The result is a muted—some would say emasculated—notion of authority, but it is one that is eminently suited to our condition. The question of the distinctiveness of Anglicanism is a legitimate and necessary one, but it must never become our prime concern.

Many people have argued that Anglicanism fails to take an adequate stand on moral or theological issues, and consequently is a denomination that suffers from a lack of identity. Avis argues that while this might be a problem for some, it should not be taken too seriously. He writes,

The problem of identity is one that troubles both individuals and institutions, including churches, but to become obsessed by it would be neurotic. Identity is not an end in itself, but it is a corollary of integrity. While Stephen Sykes has argued that there is no integrity without identity, I would prefer to put the equation the other way round. A distinctive identity does not necessarily guarantee integrity. While identity can be contrived by all sorts of dubious means, including the manipulation of people’s perceptions by the public relations industry, there is no short cut to integrity. Pursue integrity and identity will take care of itself. Anglicanism exists. Its political, social and cultural parameters, with all their compromises, are given. We should not fret about them.

In the end, Avis argues that

the vocation of Anglicanism must be to proclaim the gospel of Christ within those parameters appealing, as is its wont, to all valid sources of information and insight, and to spend itself in the service of Christ for the redemption of humanity. As Michael Ramsey wrote more than half a century ago, while the Anglican Church is vindicated by its place in history, with a strikingly balanced witness to gospel and Church and sound learning, its greater vindication lies in its pointing through its own history to something of which it is a fragment. Its credentials are its incompleteness, with the tension and travail in its soul. It is clumsy and untidy, it baffles neatness and logic. For it is sent not to commend itself as ‘the best type of Christianity’, but by its very brokenness to point to the universal Church wherein all have died.

So what is Anglicanism?

Anglicanism is a denomination with a vocation. It may not have reached its vocational goals in all times and places, but it nonetheless is a denomination with a purpose.

Anglicanism aspires to be a catholic faith with its roots in Christian antiquity and in continuity of faith and order, worship and witness, from the apostles. The Reformers appealed to the antiquity of the British Church, and autonomous church that long antedated the mission of St. Augustine of Canterbury in 597. The claim was made (for example, by Archbishop Parker under Elizabeth) that the English episcopate derived from the visit of Joseph of Arimathea. Jewel insisted that the Church of England had departed, not from the Catholic Church, but from the errors of Rome. Whitgift pointed out that the Church of England was ‘reformed’ not ‘transformed’ because ‘we retain whatsoever we find to be good, refuse or reform that which is evil’. In a later generation, Charles Gore believed that Anglicanism could offer ‘catholicism without Rome’ and Garbett affirmed: ‘Uncompromisingly the Church of England is the catholic Church in this land, set free from subjection to the Church of Rome.’The catholicity of Anglicanism rests on its continuity of worship, employing ancient forms purged of medieval accretions, and of pastoral care in the parishes and parish churches whose origins, in Britain, go back to time immemorial. Anglican Catholicity rests also on the retention of the three-fold order of bishops, priests and deacons in the historic succession. Above all, the catholic character of Anglicanism is revealed it its adherence to the Scriptures, the creeds and the councils of the undivided Church (canonically, the first four), which give the Church its christological and trinitarian dogmas. The catholicity of Anglican faith is further evinced by the fact that it acknowledges the authority of the Church (and of a particular church) to adjudicate in disputed matters of faith. In appealing to the authority of the Church gathered in council, Anglicanism shows itself to belong to the conciliar, as opposed to the monarchical tradition of Catholicism.

Anglicanism aspires to be a reformed faith. The essentially reformed character of Anglicanism is evidenced above all in the place that it gives to Holy Scripture as the norm by which all other sources of Christian truth are evaluated. It was by the touchstone of Scripture that the Reformers rejected aspects of medieval Catholicism: the universal jurisdiction of the pope, the sacerdotal office of the priesthood, the propitiatory sacrifice of the Mass, withholding the cup from the laity, transubstantiation which overthrows the nature of a sacrament, the liturgy in a foreign tongue, compulsory clerical celibacy, mandatory sacramental confession, purgatory and the treasury of merits, the cultus and mediatory role of the saints, the downgrading of the lay vocation compared with the religious life

Overview An Overview of the Anglican Communion (Also see the Anglican Domain web site. I have adapted much of their information here)

The Anglican Communion consists of 70 million baptized members worldwide in 38 self-governing Churches, 500 dioceses, 30,000 parishes, 64,000 congregations in 164 countries. The information below about each of the Provinces in the World Wide communion comes from http://www.saintmartins-stockport.org.uk/stmnumbers2.html.

In the United States and Scotland the Anglican Church is called Episcopal, and in most of the rest of the world it is called Anglican. Many churches around the world that have the word Anglican in their name, and virtually all of them are indeed Christian churches in the Anglican tradition. In some sense these are all Anglican churches, and most of them are part of the Anglican Church.

Sometimes churches agree on issues of faith and doctrine and tradition, and sometimes they do not. There is no central administration of the Anglican Church. There is no Pope or President or chief executive. The Anglican Church is instead unified by tradition, belief, and agreement. The coordination of that unity is achieved through something called The Anglican Communion. Some churches use the word "Anglican" or "Episcopal" in their name, but are not part of the Anglican Communion; this make it important to ask questions when in an unfamiliar church.

The Anglican Communion inherits many centuries of catholic and apostolic tradition, especially that part which began in the British Isles. Although Christian missionaries had reached England by the time of the Council of Jerusalem in 50 AD, the foundation of the Anglican Church is often described as having begun with the arrival in 597 AD of St. Augustine, first Archbishop of Canterbury (See Class 3).

When the Romans withdrew from Britain in 407 AD, they left a legacy of Christianity among the Celtic people. Those Celtic Christian churches were largely still in existence when Augustine arrived two centuries later, though they had become isolated from Rome. In particular, they survived in Wales, Ireland, and Scotland, and they helped to ensure that, from its beginnings, the Anglican Communion was not exclusively English in origin.

When the English people settled the British Empire they took their religion with them and thus the Church of England spread overseas. Eventually these overseas parishes became autonomous provinces of the Communion. These churches, while autonomous in their governance, are bound together by tradition, Scripture, and the inheritance they have received from the Church of England. They together make up the Anglican Communion, a body headed spiritually by the Archbishop of Canterbury.

If an Anglican church is a member of the Anglican Communion, it is said to be "in communion", or "in communion with the See of Canterbury". Otherwise it is said to be "not in communion." Generally, Anglican churches that are not in communion with the See of Canterbury have withdrawn because of doctrinal differences. In recent years those differences have included the ordination of women priests and the attitude of the church towards sexuality.

Administratively the Anglican Communion is very complex. It is divided into transnational provinces, extraprovincial dioceses, national churches, intranational provinces, and such. You needn't understand any of them in order to find what you are looking for, and in fact if you know too much about them you might have trouble finding things. For example, the Diocese of Colombia, in South America, is administratively part of the Episcopal Church in the USA, the Diocese of Peru, next door, is administratively part of the Anglican Church of the Southern Cone of America, and the Anglican Church of Brazil, next door to Peru, is its own province that has seven dioceses. There is also an Anglican Center in Rome, an outpost of the Anglican Communion at the Vatican.

Australia
Primate: Dr Peter Carnley
Anglicans: 3.9m
Total population: 20m
History: Founded in 1788 with the arrival of the first emigrants from the UK.

England
Primate: Dr Rowan Williams
Number of Anglicans: 26m described themselves as Anglicans at the latest Census, however, the Church of England puts the number of churchgoers as 2.75m.
Total population: 49m
History: English Christianity emerged from the missionary work of St Augustine, sent from Rome in 597, and from the work of Celtic missionaries in the north. Separated from Rome in the 16th Century and became Protestant.

Kenya
Primate: Benjamin Nzimbi
Anglicans: 2.5m
Total population: 32m
History: Mombasa saw the arrival of Anglican missionaries in 1844. The first Africans were ordained to the priesthood in 1885.

New Zealand
Primate: John Paterson
Anglicans: 584,800
Total population: 3.9m
History: The Anglican Church in New Zealand had its beginnings in 1814 when the Maori chief Ruatara agreed with the Reverend Samuel Marsden to give protection to three missionaries and their families at Oihi in the Bay of Islands.

Nigeria
Primate: Peter Akinola
Anglicans: 15m
Total population: 134m
History: The rebirth of Christianity began with the arrival of Christian freed slaves in Nigeria in the middle of the 19th Century.

Southern Africa
(S Africa, Lesotho, Namibia, Mozambique, Swaziland)
Primate: Winston Njongonkulu Ndungane
Anglicans: 2m
Total population: 65m
History: British Anglicans met for worship in Cape Town after 1806 and the first bishop was appointed in 1847.

Sudan
Primate: Joseph Marona
Anglicans: 5m
Total population: 38m
History: The Church Missionary Society began work in 1899 in Omdurman. Christianity spread rapidly among black Africans of the southern region.
Stance:Archbishop Marona says the Church should tackle the effects of war and poverty before homosexuality. "We have much worse things to face," he has said.

Tanzania
Primate: Donald Mtetemela
Anglicans: 2m
Total population: 36m
History: The Universities Mission to Central Africa and the Church Missionary Society began work in 1864 and 1878 at Mpwapwa.

United States
Primate: Frank Griswold
Anglicans: 2.4m
Total population: 290m
History: Anglicanism was brought to the New World by explorers and colonists with the first celebration of the Holy Eucharist in Jamestown, Virginia, in 1607.

The Episcopal Church is made up of between two and three million worshipers in about 7500 congregations across the United States and a few related dioceses outside the US. It is divided into seven provinces as shown in the diagram below. We are in Province IV in the Diocese of Mississippi.

The following is taken from the Episcopal Church web site. The Episcopal Church is made up of between two and three million worshipers in about 7500 congregations across the United States and a few related dioceses outside the US. “Episcopal” means “bishop” in Greek, and the Episcopal Church is governed in part by its bishops. “Episcopal” means “bishop” in Greek, and the Episcopal Church is governed in part by its bishops. The basic unit of ministry in the Episcopal Church is the “diocese,” or a region of a reasonable number of Episcopalians. Each diocese is presided over by a “diocesan bishop” who may have help from a variety of other kinds of bishops, depending on the circumstances.

The Diocesan Bishop (addressed as "The Rt. Rev." Smith) chooses and ordains priests and deacons to serve the “parishes,” or congregations, of the diocese, which carryout the ministry of the diocese in their local communities. The priests lead the parish in worship, make decisions related to the sacramental life of the parish, and in general, supports the ministry of the worshiping Christians there.

The Episcopal Church is governed by a Constitution and a set of laws (known as “canons”) which it establishes for itself by Convention, but the diocesan bishop is the ecclesiastical (or “church”) authority in his or her particular diocese. The bishops of the Episcopal Church have no jurisdiction outside of their dioceses, so they meet together twice per year to pray and make decisions about the life of the Church. Every nine years, the Church elects a “Presiding Bishop” (addressed as The Most Rev.) who represents the Episcopal Church in the Anglican Communion and presides over meetings of the bishops, known as the “House of Bishops.”

Every three years, delegations (or “deputations”) from all the dioceses, along with the House of Bishops, gather to worship and pass legislation for the Church. This General Convention is where broad decisions are made about policy and worship, as well as revitalizing the Christian community for ministry back home.

Each year, each Diocese convenes a meeting (variously called a "council" or a "convention"). Council is given several powers by the Constitution and Canons of the Diocese. Firstly, it is given the power to adopt Canons for the diocese in addition to any other action deemed necessary for the conduct of the affairs of the Diocese that are not in conflict with either the Constitution and Canons of the Diocese or those of the general Church, including the debate and passage of various resolutions submitted to the Council. With the bishop, the Council is given all temporal powers of the Diocese, except those delegated to some officer, agency, or committee during the interim between Councils. The Council also has the authority to discuss and pass the annual budget.

In the Diocese of Mississippi, our ministries and commissions provide conduits of action for us to proclaim the Gospel, and to accomplish the three major goals of the Diocese: Inviting, Transforming, and Reconciling.

To facilitate our ministry efforts, we have divided our diocese into seven geographical regions called “convocations.” Each convocation is headed by a clergy member who serves as dean and a lay member who serves as president. The convocations are as shown in this map:

Don S. Armentrout and Robert Boak Slocum, Eds. An Episcopal Dictionary of the Church. New York, NY: Church Publishing Inc. 1999.

James E. Griffiss. The Anglican Vision. Cambridge, MA: Cowley Publications. 1997.

Margaret Guenther. The Practice of Prayer. Massachusetts, MA: Cowley Publications. 1988.

Mark Harris. The Challenge of Change: The Anglican Communion in the Post-Modern Era. New York, NY: Church Publishing, 1998.

Stephen Sykes, John Booty, and Jonathan Knight, Eds. The Study of Anglicanism, Revised Edition. Bristol, England: SPCK/Fortress Press, 1998.

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Day or Season	Color	Explanation
Advent	Blue or Purple	The first season of the church year, beginning with the 4th Sunday before Christmas and continuing through the day before Christmas. The name is derived from the Latin meaning "coming." It is a season of preparation and expectation of the celebration of Jesus' nativity, and for the final coming of Christ in power and glory.
Christmas	White	The nativity of our Lord, December 25. It was first celebrated about 336. The date of December 25 as Jesus' birthday has no connection to anything historical. The date was probably chosen to oppose the feast of the Sun God.
Epiphany	White	This day commemorates the manifestation of Christ to the people of the earth. Christians chose Jan 6 because this date was already kept and celebrated by pagans as the winter solstice in the first centuries of the church. The day became a date to celebrate the various manifestations of Jesus' divinity, including his birth, the coming of the Magi and the changing of water into wine at Cana. The season of Epiphany (of variable length depending on the date of Easter) concentrate on the miracles of Jesus, the calling of the disciples, and the wedding at Cana. The last Sunday of the Epiphany season is devoted to the Transfiguration (another "manifestation").
Lent	Purple	This is a season of penitence and fasting in preparation for the Paschal feast. The word "Lent" comes from the Old English word for "Spring." The season is 40 days in length beginning with Ash Wednesday and ending with Holy Saturday (not counting the intervening Sundays). It was a season especially important for the preparation of people for Baptism, and for those who had done something notorious, and were preparing to be reaccepted into the Christian assembly.
Holy Week	Red	The week before Easter is a special time of devotion. It evolved from the period when many Christians made pilgrimages to the Holy Land to venerate the places where Christ suffered during his final days with us. The rites we observe on Maundy Thursday, Good Friday, Holy Saturday, and the Vigil all evolved from these pilgrim experiences. There are special readings, and other special services and acts of devotion that take place during Holy Week. Holy Week ends at sundown on Holy Saturday (the Saturday before Easter Sunday).
Easter Sunday	White	This is the feast of Jesus' resurrection. The word probably derives from the Anglo-Saxon spring goddess "Eostre." Christians in England applied the word to the paschal feast. The date of Easter places Spring against the backdrop of lessons about creation and deliverance and the proclamations of the living Christ. The date of Easter always falls between Mar 22 and April 25 inclusive. In the Episcopal Church we follow the Jewish custom of beginning our celebration of Easter at Sundown on the preceding Saturday with the Great Vigil of Easter.
Season of Easter	White	The season of Easter lasts for 50 days until the Feast of Pentecost.
Pentecost Sunday	Red	In recognition of the descending of the Holy Spirit that appeared as tongues of flame upon the heads of the gathered disciples, Pentecost Sunday is commemorated by the use of red. Pentecost Sunday occurs on the Seventh Sunday after Easter. It recognizes that the church is understood to be the body of CHrist, drawn together and given life by the Holy Spirit.
Trinity Sunday	White	This feast celebrates the one and equal glory of Father, Son, and Holy Spirit in trinity of persons and in Unity of Being. It is celebrated on the first Sunday after Pentecost. Trinity Sunday was made an official feast by Pope John XXII in 1334.
Post Pentecost (Ordinary Time)	Green	This is the longest season of the church year, spanning the period from approximately May/June through November (ending on the Saturday before the first Sunday of Advent).
All Saints	White	This is the feast that commemorates all saints, known and unknown. It is celebrated on the fixed day of Nov. 1. But the feast is often transferred to the Sunday following Nov. 1.

Parishes:	Missions:	Mission Stations:	Chaplaincies:	Schools:
Advent-Sumner	All Saints'- Inverness	Ascension-Brooksville	Canterbury at Southern Miss	Coast-Pass Christian
All Saints'- Grenada	Ascension-Hattiesburg	Calvary-Michigan City	Canterbury Fellowship M.S.U.	St. Andrew's-Jackson
All Saints'-Jackson	Good Shepherd-Columbus	Christ Church-Church Hill	Episcopal Church at Ole Miss	St. George's-Clarksdale
All Saints'- Tupelo	Good Shepherd-Terry	Nativity-Macon	St. Michael's Chapel-Picayune	St. John's-Laurel
Calvary-Cleveland	Grace-Carrollton	Our Savior-Iuka	State Penitentiary-Parchman	St. Paul 's-Columbus
Chapel of the Cross-Madison	Grace-Rosedale	St. George's-Itta Bena	University Medical Center	Trinity-Natchez
Chapel of the Cross-Rolling Fork	Holy Cross-Olive Branch	St. Stephen's-Batesville		University of the South
Christ Church-Bay St. Louis	Holy Innocents-Como	St. Stephen's-Hazlehurst	(Some of these are currently
Christ Church-Holly Springs	Holy Trinity-Crystal Springs		vacant)
Christ Church-Vicksburg	Nativity-Water Valley			* Owning Diocese
Creator-Clinton	Redeemer-Greenville
Epiphany-Tunica	St. Bernard's-Okolona
Grace-Canton	St. Elizabeth's-Collins
Holy Trinity-Vicksburg	St. Francis'- Philadelphia
Incarnation-West Point	St. James'-Port Gibson
Mediator/Redeemer-McComb	St. John's-Aberdeen
Mediator-Meridian	St. John's-Leland
Nativity-Greenwood	St. Mark's-Raymond
Redeemer-Biloxi	St. Mary's-Bolton
Redeemer-Brookhaven	St. Mary's-Enterprise
Resurrection-Starkville	St. Mary's-Lexington
St. Alban's-Bovina	St. Mary's-Vicksburg
St. Andrew's-Jackson	St. Matthew's-Forest
St. Christopher's-Jackson	St. Paul 's-Corinth
St. Columb's-Ridgeland	St. Paul 's-Hollondale
St. George's-Clarksdale	St. Pierre 's-Gautier
St. James'- Greenville	St. Stephen's-Columbia
St. James'- Jackson	St. Thomas '-Belzoni
St. John's-Laurel	Trinity-Newton
St. John's-Ocean Springs
St. John's-Pascagoula
St. Luke's-Brandon
St. Mark's-Gulfport
St. Mark's-Jackson
St. Matthew's-Kosciusko
St. Patrick's-Long Beach
St. Paul 's-Columbus
St. Paul 's-Meridian
St. Paul 's-Picayune
St. Paul 's-Woodville
St. Peter's by the Lake-Brandon
St. Peter's by the Sea-Gulfport
St. Peter's-Oxford
St. Philip's-Jackson
St. Stephen's-Indianola
St. Thomas '-Diamondhead
St. Timothy's-Southaven
Trinity-Hattiesburg
Trinity-Natchez
Trinity-Pass Christian
Trinity-Yazoo City
No. of Parishes: 51	No. of Missions: 29	No. of Stations: 8	No. of Chaplaincies: 6	No. of Schools: 8

Celebrant	Do you believe in God the Father?
People	I believe in God, the Father almighty, creator of heaven and earth.
Celebrant	Do you believe in Jesus Christ, the Son of God?
People	I believe in Jesus Christ, his only Son, our Lord. He was conceived by the power of the Holy Spirit and born of the Virgin Mary. He suffered under Pontius Pilate, was crucified, died, and was buried. He descended to the dead. On the third day he rose again. He ascended into heaven, and is seated at the right hand of the Father. He will come again to judge the living and the dead.
Celebrant .	Do you believe in God the Holy Spirit?
People	I believe in the Holy Spirit, the holy catholic Church, the communion of saints, the forgiveness of sins, the resurrection of the body, and the life everlasting
Celebrant	Will you continue in the apostles’ teaching and fellowship, in the breaking of bread, and in the prayers ?
People	I will, with God’s help.
Celebrant	Will you persevere in resisting evil, and, whenever you fall into sin, repent and return to the Lord?
People	I will, with God’s help.
Celebrant	Will you proclaim by word and example the Good News of God in Christ?
People	I will, with God’s help.
Celebrant	Will you seek and serve Christ in all persons, loving your neighbor as yourself?
People	I will, with God’s help.
Celebrant	Will you strive for justice and peace among all people, and respect the dignity of every human being?
People	I will, with God’s help.