In 2010, the General Synod mandated Faith, Worship and Ministry to work on the revision of the Church’s contemporary language liturgical texts. The Liturgy Task Force carries out this mandate and releases news texts for trial use and feedback as they become available. These draft materials are encouraged for use where the diocesan bishop allows it.
Proposed Revised Calendar for the Book of Alternative Services: A Study Paper
This work is commended to the church for study, critical engagement and feedback to a committee that will be created to bring a final Proposed Calendar for Trial Use and Evaluation, following upon this consultative process.
This document outlines a proposal for possible revisions to the BAS Calendar. The proposal first sets out the process and methodological approach taken in reviewing both the Temporal (hallowing of time) and the Sanctoral (hallowing of witnesses to Christ) calendars, explaining the importance of principles such as organic progression and noble simplicity, of ecumenical and multicultural considerations and the challenges of the fact that when it comes to Calendars, there is no ‘typical edition’ (a single, ancient prototype, such as we have for the eucharistic prayer and other liturgical texts, for example). It considers the arguments for why particular commemorations or memorials ought to be ‘retired’ and how to deal with the memorializing of historic events. These and other core liturgical-theological principles of inculturation and the nature of discipleship within a living tradition are then brought to bear in the proposals for both additions to and retirements from the Sanctoral Calendar, as well as some changes to existing memorials and commemorations.
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