Authorization
New Patterns for Worship comprises
* alternative services and other material authorized for use until further resolution of the General Synod;
* services which comply with the provisions of A Service of the Word and other authorized services;
* material commended by the House of Bishops;
* material, the use of which falls within the discretion allowed to the minister under the provisions of Canon B 5 and by the rubrics and notes in authorized forms of service.
For details, see page 480.
Canon B 3 provides that decisions as to which of the authorized services are to be used (other than occasional offices) shall be taken jointly by the incumbent and the parochial church council.
Note
Throughout this volume references simply to Common Worship refer to the main Common Worship volume, Common Worship: Services and Prayers for the Church of England. The other Common Worship volumes are referred to bytheir full titles, for example Common Worship: Pastoral Services.
Preface
Patterns for Worship was first published in a Synod
edition in 1989, but was published in a commercial edition
until 1995. The Synod draft contained what some people
considered fairly revolutionary proposals about alternative
structures for the Eucharist and Eucharistic Prayers, and the
House of Bishops said it was 'mindful of those who want a
period of stability in the liturgical life of the Church, and
who might be anxious lest the Commission's
proposals extend the bounds of choice and variety of
liturgical provision more widely than has been customary in the
Church of England'. The 1995 edition established the principle
followed in Common Worship of publishing both
commended and authorized material in one volume. It included
the newly authorized Service of the Word, Confessions and
Absolutions and Affirmations of Faith, but no Eucharistic
Prayers were included. This present volume contains the same
range of material, and includes the outline for the Eucharist,
authorized as A Service of the Word with a Celebration of Holy
Communion, together with provision for using a number of
thanksgivings extended prefaces with some of the new
Eucharistic Prayers.
What is the difference between New Patterns for Worship and Common Worship? There are two important features about New Patterns which distinguish it from the Common Worship volumes. These have led to the publication of a new edition of this book, brought up to date so that it is entirely compatible with Common Worship.
First, it is organized in a completely different way from Common Worship. It is a directory of resources, organized in such a way that those looking for material for different sections of the service can find and compare possible texts and ideas, all cross-referenced for 'secular' themes as well as for major doctrinal themes and seasons. This is not a new idea. The introduction to Lent, Holy Week, Easter in 1984 said, 'We are providing a directory from which choices may be made.We think of this book as a manual to be used with selectivity, sensitivity and imagination.' In 1985 the report by the General Synod Standing Committee, The Worship of the Church, called for 'a directory with a wealth of resource material including supplementary material for each of the many points in the service where there is room for the individual's own words. The directory would need to set boundaries to the proposed freedom, and points which might be theologically divisive would have to be watched.' The introduction to Common Worship says that the provision for the combination of old and new 'provides for the diverse worshipping needs of our communities, within an ordered structure which affirms our essential unity and common life'. This continued provision for diversity within an authorized structure continues in Common Worship, both in the outline structures provided for A Service of the Word and other services, and also in the notes and rubrics which frequently use the phrase 'these or other suitable words'.
Second, New Patterns for Worship is designed to educate and train those who plan and lead worship. There are training elements built into each of the resource sections, together with discussion material for PCCs and worship planning groups. Some of the items in the Resource Sections have been deliberately chosen to illustrate different ways of doing things. So there are different ways of handling the Prayers of Intercession, and a number of examples of the same psalm or canticle treated in different ways both for singing and for speaking. At the end of the book there are Sample Services, covering quite a wide range of thematic and seasonal occasions. Sometimes they will be exactly what the user is looking for, and can be copied for local use. Sometimes they are simply outlines illustrating different shapes and creative ideas. The principles behind the basic outline of A Service of the Word imply the need for those who conduct and lead the services to be aware of the theological models that shape our worship, both in the patterns of the services and in the structures of the component parts. These patterns draw worshippers from where they are by means of encounter with the story of what God has done for his people to where we might hope they would be. But the main reason they are there is to illustrate the theory and methods explained in the earlier part of the book, and to stimulate those who plan services locally to produce better worship. Again, one of these services is deliberately dealt with in a number of different ways, so that the effect of different approaches may be seen.
The Liturgical Commission's aim in producing Patterns for Worship in 1989 was to meet some of the current needs of the Church's worship, reflected most acutely in Urban Priority Areas and in services (often called 'family services') at which all age groups, including children, are present.We used the already established principle of flexibility to provide forms of worship which could still be recognizable as belonging within the Anglican tradition, while encompassing the enormous variety that exists within the Church at present. Time has moved on. Much of the flexibility and variety is enshrined in Common Worship, and this book provides some complementary resources to encourage that. And we now speak of 'all-age worship' rather than 'family services', reflecting the social changes which still continue. But many of the needs are still the same: the need to explore different ways of recognizing and celebrating the presence of God in worship, the need to maintain the unity of the Church while doing so, the need to train more people to share in the planning and preparation of worship, and the need to enjoy God in worship in such a way that others are attracted and join in.
+ David Sarum
Chairman of the Liturgical Commission
November 2002