COMMON PRAYER-BOOK. This contains the forms of public worship and adminis tration of the sacraments and other rites and ceremonies according to the use of the United Church of England and Ireland. It is, for the most part, a translation of such portions of the services of the ancient Catholic church as were considered by the reform ers free from all objection. Before the reformation, the liturgy was in Latin, and the form generally adopted in the s. of England was that after the use of Sarum. The first steps towards its reformation were taken by Henry VIII., the main objects in view being the abolition of what was superstitious, and the translation of the services into the vulgar tongue. In the year 1540, a committee of bishops and divines was appointed for the purpose, and what was done by them was revised by convocation in 1543. In the year 1545, the. King's Prirner came forth, containing, amongst other things, the Lord's prayer, creed, ten commandments, " Venite," "Te Deum," litany, and other hymns and collects in English, several of which were in the same version as at present used. It was, how ever, in the reign of Edward VI. that the most important steps were taken for framing a new service-book. In opposition to the practice introduced by the Roman Catholic church, an act of parliament was passed, ordering the communion to be administered to the laity in both kinds, and a formulary was drawn up for this purpose, and used at the end of the Latin mass. In the following year, a complete service-book was drawn up, including offices not only for S•indays and holidays, but for the administering of baptism and confirmation, for matrimony, the burial of the dead, and other occasions, together with the above-mentioned office for the communion considerably altered. This book was compiled by Cranmer and Ridley, assisted by eleven other divines; it was revised by convocation, and confirmed by king and parliament, and published in 1549, and is known as the FIRST PRAYER-BOOK of Edward VI. It differed from the one now in use by beginning the daily service with the Lord's prayer, by retaining prayers for the dead, and directing the use of the sign of the cross in confirmation and visitation services, and the anointing of the sick. It was drawn up with great prudence, retain
ing as lunch, :tad altering as little as possible of what had been familiar to the people. In 1550, the ordination service was added, taken principally from that used by the Roman Catholic church, but omitting certain ceremonies, and adding most of the ques tions proposed to the candidates. This service differed but little from that now in use, as authorized in 1602.
In 1551, objections, as might be expected, were made from various quarters to this first prayer-book, and Cranmer proposed to revise it, and called to bis assistance two distinguished foreign reformers—Martin Bucer, and Peter Martyr. In this revision, some of the principal alterations were the addition of the opening sentences, the exhor tation, confession, and absolution at the beginning of the service, the disuse of oil in baptism, of unction of the sick, and of prayers for the dead. The book thus altered was confirmed by act of parliament in 1552, and is called the SECOND PRAYER-ROOK of Edward VI.
In the reign of queen Mary, the acts of 1549 and 1552 were repealed, and therefore, at the accession of Elizabeth, it was.necessary to reverse this repeal; and this afforded a fresh opportunity of revising the whole. Time question then arose (1560) as to which of king Edward's two books should be adopted. The queen herself would probably have preferred the first, as containing many of the old ceremonies to which she was attached, but the second-was chosen, and a few unimpottant changes 'introduced. This may be called the TIMED Coargox PRATER-ROOK. No alteration was made by it as to the use of church ornaments and vestments, which were directed by the act of uniformity, 1559, to be retained as they were left by the authority of parliament in the second year of Edward VI.