A call to prayer
By The Rt Rev’d Jennifer A. Reddall, sixth bishop of Arizona
It has already been a fascinating experience serving on the Standing Commission on Liturgy and Music for the Episcopal Church. One key piece of what I am working on is the continued development of the www.episcopalcommonprayer.org website, per a resolution at the last General Convention.
The site currently has a great list of liturgical resources, which are cross-referenced by their authorization status. Official PDFs of the Book of Common Prayer (including the new translations in Spanish and French), but also all the trial-use same-sex marriage liturgies, all the editions of Enriching our Worship, and many others.
This work so far is fun—and holds promise to be a better resource in the future. What would it mean to have an official website where one could get resources to make bulletins and plan liturgies, pray, and learn? A website that is the actual repository of liturgical and prayer resources that can serve not just Episcopalians but people all around the world?
Most online resources for Episcopal prayer and worship are through unofficial websites and apps. Most clergy and parish administrators I know use www.lectionarypage.net to look up the readings each Sunday. It’s run by Kelly Puckett, an Episcopal layman in Texas, and it’s a work of love. I have learned that there is actually a (more) official lectionary resource at www.episcopalchurch.org/lectionary that includes printable readings and the Lesser Feasts and Fasts readings, and is working on adding biblical readings in Spanish.
Most of all, I encourage you to explore the Venite app, both for your own prayer practice and for developing bulletins if you’re at a church that could use a simple resource. The Rev’d Greg Johnston (now working with Forward Movement) has created an app that seamlessly integrates scripture, the Daily Office or Eucharist, Enriching our Worship and even offers timed silent meditations while you pray. It is what I use every day–and for those who might want to begin a prayer practice this year, I commend it to you.