ANGLICAN CnUECITES. 



31 



and Augmentation of Small Livings, contain- 

 ing ii scheme for the sale of small advowsons, 

 the patronage of which is vested in public 

 bodies. After discussion, it was referred back. 

 A resolution was adopted expressing the desire 

 of the House that liberty should be given to 

 the deans and chapters of the cathedrals of the 

 new foundation to revise from time to time 

 their statutes, with the consent of competent 

 authority. 



The Convocation met again for the dispatch 

 of business on June 24th. Several days were 

 spent in consideration of the revision of ru- 

 brics in respect to ornaments, the Athanasian 

 Creed, and the burial service. A synodical 

 declaration was decided upon to be appended 

 to the Athanasian Creed, " for the removal of 

 doubts and to prevent disquietude," which 

 states that the creed "doth not make any 

 addition to the faith as contained in Holy 

 Scripture." A recommendation was adopted 

 to the effect that in the burial service it shall 

 be allowable, under certain circumstances, to 

 read portions of Scripture and prayers from 

 the Prayer-Book not at present included in 

 the service. The following new rubric was 

 agreed upon, to be placed immediately after 

 the " ornaments rubric " : " In saying public 

 prayers and administering the sacraments and 

 other rites of the Church, every priest shall 

 wear a surplice with the stole or scarf and the 

 hood of his degree; or, if he thinks fit, the 

 gown, with hood or scarf; and no other vest- 

 ments shall at any other time be used by him 

 contrary to the monition of the Bishop of the 

 diocese ; provided always, that the rubric shall 

 not be understood to repeal the 24th, 25th, 

 and 58th canons of 1604." The schedule of 

 proposed alterations of the rubrics in the 

 Prayer-Book having been completed, a report 

 of the business of revision in which the Con- 

 vocation had been engaged for several years 

 was ordered to be presented to her Majesty, 

 with an address, in which it was submitted 

 that in approving the accompanying alterations 

 and recommendations, the Houses did not wish 

 to be understood as inviting the sanction of 

 the two Houses of Parliament to what was 

 proposed until the draft bill presented with 

 the report should have become a law. 



The Convocation of York, at its session in 

 July, declined to take any action on the orna- 

 ments rubric, every effort in that direction 

 being defeated by the disagreement of the two 

 houses. A similar result was reached in the 

 propositions which were made to modify the 

 use of the Athanasian Creed. A resolution 

 was offered to the effect that no action of Con- 

 vocation ought to diminish the frequency of 

 the use of this creed. The Bishop of Durham 

 offered an amendment proposing to change 

 the rubric so as to make the use of the creed 

 optional. Both motions were lost by disagree- 

 ment. A motion favoring variations in the 

 burial service, similar to those approved in the 

 Convocation of Canterbury, was lost in both 



houses. A resolution was passed unanimously, 

 to the effect " that in the opinion of the Con- 

 vocation it is inexpedient that any legislative 

 sanction be sought for proposed amendments 

 of the rubrics until the ' Bill to provide Facili- 

 ties, 1 etc., agreed to by the Convocation of 

 Canterbury July 4, 1879, which was previous- 

 ly in substance agreed to by the Lower House 

 of Convocation of York 19th February, 1879, 

 or some similar measure, had become law." 



The Archbishop of Canterbury waited on 

 the Home Secretary August 15th, and placed 

 in his hands the report which had been agreed 

 upon by both houses of the Convocation of 

 Canterbury in answer to her Majesty's letter 

 of business, on the subject of the rubrics of 

 the Book of Common Prayer. The report em- 

 bodies a bill " to provide facilities for the 

 amendment from time to time of the rites and 

 ceremonies of the Church of England." In 

 principle the bill recognizes that regulations 

 respecting rites and ceremonies require to be 

 revised from time to time, and that, as times, 

 manners, and modes of thought change, old 

 rules and customs must be changed to corre- 

 spond. It recognizes, too, that in such changes 

 the Church ought to take the initiative, and 

 that the mouthpiece of the Church should be 

 the archbishops and bishops of both provinces 

 and the clergy by representation in the two 

 Convocations. It recognizes, further, the ne- 

 cessity of the assent of the laity through Par- 

 liament to any alterations or additions to the 

 Prayer-Book so initiated. The bill consists of 

 eleven clauses, of which three are either ex- 

 planatory or directive. The remaining eight 

 provide that the archbishops, bishops, and 

 clergy in both Houses of Convocation may 

 prepare from time to time and lay before her 

 Majesty in Council a scheme for making de- 

 sirable alterations in the Prayer-Book. Any 

 scheme so prepared is to be laid before both 

 Houses of Parliament within twenty-one days 

 of their meeting. Within forty days either 

 House may address the Queen asking her 

 Majesty to withhold her royal consent. If 

 neither House present such address, her Maj- 

 esty may make an order ratifying the scheme 

 and specifying when it shall take effect. 



A memorial from graduates of the universi- 

 ties and persons learned in history and ar- 

 chasology was prepared and addressed to the 

 Home Secretary, asking him to advise her 

 Majesty to take no further judicial action on 

 the ritual reports of the Privy Council until 

 certain historical misstatements, misquotations 

 from, and interpolations in, important docu- 

 ments shall have been examined by learned 

 men appointed by her Majesty for the pur- 

 pose. Some of the misstatements are specified, 

 such as the assertion that 1549 was the second 

 year of Edward VI. ; that the consecration 

 prayer was omitted in 1552 ; that mixing wine 

 and water apart from the service was unknown 

 to East and West; that there are such docu- 

 ments in existence as the advertisements of 



