Parliament and prayer book: the theology and ecclesiology behind the Prayer Book Crisis

Cruickshank, Dan (2019) Parliament and prayer book: the theology and ecclesiology behind the Prayer Book Crisis. MTh(R) thesis, University of Glasgow.

Abstract

This thesis considers the doctrinal and ecclesiological trends that were present during the construction of the revised Book of Common Prayer of 1927. Through the use of the records of both Convocations and of the National/Church Assembly, it looks at the discussions that took place within the Church of England during the construction of the revised Book. By analysing these debates, it considers the doctrinal shifts that were taking place within the Church of England after the ritual controversies of the nineteenth century. Focussing on the Communion service and the reservation of the elements for the communion of the sick, the thesis shows how much of what had been seen as ritualist had become part of the ‘mainstream’ of the Church. It challenges the idea that the revision process stalled in the First World War both by demonstrating how the process continued at the same pace during the war as it had done pre-1914, but also by showing how the birth of the National Assembly that took place during the war was born out of the revision process and a desire to avoid Parliamentary scrutiny of any revision. This will also demonstrate how the revision process created an atmosphere in which many in the Church of England had serious discussions about radically altering the ecclesiology of the Church, specifically in the area of Church-State relations. It will link into my previous work on the growth of ‘Two Kingdoms’ theology in the Church by showing how the revision process made many decide the State, in Parliament, should not have the right to debate and approve the liturgy of the Church of England. Examining the revision process in the National Assembly it will show the growth of lay power in the Church through the integral role they played in the revision process in the 1920s. Through the parliamentary debates, it will show how Parliament reasserted its right to decide the liturgy and doctrine of the Church of England, at the same time as many within the Church had decided they did not have that right. Finally it will examine how the rejection of the revised Books of 1927 and 1928 led to radical ecclesiological thinking within the Church, with many from the very top of the hierarchy advocating forms of disestablishment.

• Item Type: Thesis (MTh(R))
• Qualification Level: Masters
• Additional Information: Published as Dan D. Cruickshank, The Theology and Ecclesiology of the Prayer Book Crisis, 1906-1928 (Palgrave Macmillan, 2019).
• Keywords: Theology, church history, liturgy, liturgical history, twentieth-century history, British history, English history, historical theology, ecclesiology.
• Subjects: B Philosophy. Psychology. Religion > BR Christianity; B Philosophy. Psychology. Religion > BX Christian Denominations; D History General and Old World > DA Great Britain
• Colleges/Schools: College of Arts & Humanities > School of Critical Studies > Theology and Religious Studies
• Supervisor's Name: Methuen, Professor Charlotte
• Date of Award: 2019
• Embargo Date: 28 February 2022
• Depositing User: Mr Dan D. Cruickshank
• Unique ID: glathesis:2019-41044
• Copyright: Copyright of this thesis is held by the author.
• Date Deposited: 11 Mar 2019 12:42
• Last Modified: 05 Mar 2020 22:29
• Thesis DOI: 10.5525/gla.thesis.41044
• URI: https://theses.gla.ac.uk/id/eprint/41044