From Bishop Rowthorne, former Suffragan Bishop of CT and Bishop of the Convocation of American Churches in Europe, Retired:
What you are doing is rooted in the very beginnings of Anglicanism. Thomas Cranmer - moved by his passion for grounding the spiritual life of the English people in the Scriptures - appointed one chapter of the Bible to be read in church at Morning Prayer and one at Evening Prayer. These were whole chapters (no verses excluded) and were read in unbroken sequence.
Thus today - January 16 - the service in church included Genesis 28 and Matthew 14 (MP) and Genesis 29 and Romans 14 (EP). Tomorrow the readings would have been Genesis 30 and Matthew 15 (MP) and Genesis 31 and Romans 15 (EP). In this way over the course of a year almost the whole of the Old Testament was read through once and the New Testment three times. Even though people were largely illiterate they were made familiar with the Bible in a way that our lectionaries do not provide for so amply. And, sadly, our literate church members, unlike our Anglican forebears, are largely illiterate when it comes to what lies between the covers of the Bible.
So congratulations and great gratitude for what you are doing in the name of our Lord and for the health and well-being and effective witness of his Church!
I am very excited about my church, St Johns, having decided to propose the Bible Challenge. I am going to implement the reading of the bible into my activities of daily living by becoming more flexible with it. I am going to carry a paperback bible that I can fit into my bag. That way while on the bus or waiting at an appointment I can reach for it. Initially I wanted to start my day by studying and prayer and I will continue to do so but in the event that I am interupted I have other options. God Bless - Elizabeth
ReplyDelete