01 August 2009

Collect for Sunday, 2nd August

O Lord, we beseech thee, let thy continual pity cleanse and defend thy Church, and, because it cannot continue in safety without thy succor, preserve it evermore by thy help and goodness; through Jesus Christ our Lord, who liveth and reigneth with thee and the Holy Spirit, one God, for ever and ever. Amen.

UPDATE: New Liturgical Movement has linked to this Collect in an interesting article about the use of hieratic liturgical English in worship. Some time ago I wrote a posting called "Prayerful Cadence," which discusses what makes for beautiful English in the liturgy.

2 comments:

Mary said...

Father, is this person saying that the BDW should be used for the English translation of the Liturgy?

Fr. Christopher G. Phillips said...

No, the point being made is that it is possible for English to have a dignity which lends itself to the language of worship, which is why is is called "hieratic" -- it can have a sense of the sacred. The language of the BDW is being held up as an example of this.