vision continued to be made for the Public Service by the further order, that 'Curates being at home, and not being otherwise reasonably letted, should say the same in their parish church or chapel. And this is our present order for the continual maintenance of the Public Daily Prayer by Curates, 'being at home, and not otherwise reasonably hindered;' and for the private saying of the same prayers by all Priests and Deacons who have not joined a public congregation, and are not hindered by 'sickness, or some other urgent cause. Gene. al Introductory Rubrics. Directions concerning the Litany, and a part of the Litmy days Communion Service, were also given in 1549, that the Litany should be said or sung upon Wednesdays and Fridays, and after the Litany the Communion Service. should be begun (though there were none to communicate with the priest), and read until after the Offertory, concluding with a collect and the blessing. And the same part of the Communion Service was directed to be used on 'all other days whensoever the people be customably assembled to pray in the church, and none disposed to communicate.' The only change in this respect made in 1552 was the omission of the Communion Service except on holydays. Although, however, the rubric is strictly in favour of Daily Service, yet the evidence as to the practice before, as well as after the Reformation, tends to show that it has not been by any means in general use in ordinary parish churches. And, indeed, the rule, as interpreted by its imposers, appears to be fully satisfied by Service in such churches on Sundays and holydays, and their eves, with the Litany also on Wednesdays and Fridays.1 1 See Robertson, How to conform to the Liturgy, 2d ed. pp. 14 and 41 sqq. Canon XIV. (1604), The Common Prayer shall be said...upon such days as are appointed to be General Introductory Rubrics. said in the accustomed place of the Church, Chapel, or Chancel (2) In what part of the church should the Morning and Evening Prayer be said? To settle this question Prayers to be was the original intention of the first of these Rubrics. In 1549 the simple direction was given, 'The priest being in the quire shall begin with a loud voice. . . .' But great diversity arose in the manner of ministration; the more ardent reformers being anxious to change every custom of the medieval Service: hence, not only did some lay aside the vestments worn by the priest, but they left the accustomed place of reading the prayers. And this was not treated as an unimportant matter; for we find Bucer calling it antichristian1 to say Service in the choir; and opinions of the same class were constantly gaining ground throughout the reign of Edward VI. Accordingly, in the new Prayer Book of 1552, this portion of the old preface was placed as a General Introductory Rubric, with the title prefixed, 'The Order where Morning and Evening Prayer shall be used and said:" and the first rubric directed it to be 'used in such place of the church, chapel, or chancel, and the minister shall so turn him as the people may best hear. And if there be any controversy therein, the matter shall be referred to the ordinary.... In 1559 this was altered to 'the accustomed place. . . except it shall be otherwise determined by the ordinary.' The effect of the altered rubric was a permission to retain the customs of 1549, since on Elizabeth's accession the old usages were in force, and the accustomed place of Service was the chancel: such therefore was to continue, unless the ordinary should appoint otherwise2 for the better accommodation of the The accus tomed place. 1 Buceri Script. Angl. p. 457. towards the East,' as one of the old practices that would be set aside by the English Book of Prayer. Card. well, Conferences, p. 110. Some seem to have made alterations without waiting for the direction of the 2 General Introductory Rubrics. pew. people. Some bishops used the authority which was given to them, and caused a seat to be made in the body of great churches, where the minister might sit or Reading stand, and say the whole of the Divine Service; or, in smaller churches, a convenient seat outside the chancel door. This in turn became the general custom and the Canons (1604) direct a convenient seat to be made for the minister to read Service in, 'in such place of every church as the bishop of the diocese, or ecclesiastical ordinary of the place, shall think meet for the largeness or straitness of the same, so as the people may be most edified.' The Canon thus fixes the meaning of the rubric, which was retained at the last revision (1662), as a sufficient guide to the minister, all mention of Puritan innovations being omitted, and the final direction being left in the hands of the bishop of the diocese. (3) What should be the dress of the minister? At Vestments. the end of the Book of 1549 was placed the chapter, now forming a part of the Introduction, ' Of Ceremonies,' with certain notes for the more plain explication and decent ministration of things contained in this book. The ornaments of the ministers are here mentioned, which are referred to in our present rubric, as sanctioned by Parliament in the second year3 of Edward VI. 'In the saying or singing of Matins and Evensong, Baptizing and Burying, the minister in parish churches, and chapels annexed to the same, shall use a surplice. And in all cathedral churches and colleges, the archdeacons, ordinary in 1564 Cecil complained of these irregularities; that some said service in the chancel, others in the body of the church, some in a seat made in the church, some in the pulpit, with their faces to the people. Strype, Parker, p. 152. Parkhurst's Articles of Visitation for the Diocese of Norwich (1569). 2 Canons (1604) 14 and 82. 3 By the first Act of Uniformity; above, p. 26. The Direc First Book of for Minis tions of the Edward VI. ters, General introductory Rubrics. deans, provosts, masters, prebendaries, and fellows, being graduates, may use in the quire, beside their surplices, such hood as pertaineth to their several degrees which they have taken in any University within this realm. But in all other places, every minister shall be at liberty to use any surplice or no. It is also seemly that graduates, when they do preach, shall use such hoods as for Bishops, pertaineth to their several degrees. And whensoever the bishop shall celebrate the Holy Communion in the church, or execute any other public ministration, he shall have upon him, beside his rochette,1 a surplice or albe,2 and a cope3 or vestment, and also his pastoral staff in his hand, or else borne or holden by his chaplain.' Also 4 1 The word rochette cannot perhaps be traced further back than the thirteenth century. The chief difference between this garment and the surplice formerly was, that its sleeves were narrower. In the time of Henry VIII. and Edward VI. the bishops wore a scarlet chimere over the rochette, which in the time of Elizabeth was changed for the black satin chimere used at present. Palmer, Orig. Lit. II. p. 318. 2 The albe, alba, camisia, linea, was a kind of long tunic reaching to the feet, and generally bound with a girdle of the same. It was worn by the bishop, priests, and deacons in ministering the Communion; and, instead of it, a bishop might wear a surplice (ibid. p. 315), a vestment differing from the albe only in having wider sleeves: the name, superpelliceum, is found about the twelfth century. Ib. p. 320. The cope was an ancient garment under the names capa, cappa, pallium, pluviale, &c. Being intended for use in the open air, it had a cowl, and in process of time was entirely open in front. It was used in processions or litanies, and on solemn occasions in morning and evening prayers; by the bishop, except in celebrating the Eucharist, ordination, and other occasions, when he used the vestment; and by priests, if they did not use the vestment, at the Eucharist. The Injunctions of Elizabeth (1564) directed the principal minister in collegiate churches to use a cope at Communion with gospeller and epistler agreeably and this direction was renewed in the Canons (1604). Ibid. p. 312. 4 The vestment, or chasuble, called in the Western Churches casula, planeta, pænula, amphibalum, &c., and in the Eastern pawóλeov or peváλiov, has been used in the Christian Church from a period of remote antiquity. It was a garment reaching from the neck nearly to the feet, with only an aperture for the head. The Latins afterwards divided it at the sides for convenience; (but the small, opensided chasuble was not used in England:-Rock, Church of our Fathers, I. p. 323.) It was much ornamented, and of various colours. This vestment, or a cope, was appointed by the first English ritual to be worn by bishops in all public ministrations, and by priests in celebrating the Eucharist. Palmer, p. 309. General Introductory Rubrics. for the Priest at Commu nion. the officiating priest at Communion was instructed1 to wear 'a white albe plain, with a vestment or cope,' and the assistant priests or deacons, 'albes with tunicles.' 2 In the Second Book of Edward VI. these ornaments were reduced to the smallest possible amount; it was Vestments then ordered,3 that the minister at the time of the Com-the Second munion, and at all other times in his ministration, shall Edward VI use neither alb, vestment, nor cope: but being archbishop, or bishop, he shall have and wear a rochette: and being a priest or deacon, he shall have and wear a surplice only.' The Rubric in Elizabeth's Prayer Book did not specify the vestments of the clergy, but referred to her Act of Uniformity, which was prefixed to the Book, and which retained the ornaments of the second year of Edward, until other order should be taken by the Queen. Owing to the prevalence of great irregularities, it was necessary to publish some further order, which was done in the 'Advertisements' of 1564. These Articles carefully specified the public and private apparel of persons ecclesiastical.' The vestments for the public ministration 1 Fourth rubric before the Communion Office (1549). 2 The tunicle, tunica, tunicella, dalmatica, originally had no sleeves, and was often called colobium. It is said that wide sleeves were added in the West about the fourth century; and the garment was then called dalmatic, and was the deacon's vestment when assisting at the Holy Communion; while that worn by subdeacons called by the AngloSaxons 'roc,' and tunicle generally after the thirteenth century-was of the same form, but smaller and less ornamented. Palmer, p. 314; Rock, ib. p. 383. See also an article on 'Church Vestments,' in the Contemporary Review (Aug. 1866), pp. 537 sqq.; Blunt, Annotated Prayer Book, p. 587 [p. 79, ed. 1884]; and Vestiarium Christianum,—the origin 3 Second General Rubric before were 4 These Advertisements' See ordered in Book of in the Advertise ments of Elizabeth, |