The Book of Common Prayer: A Biography

by Alan Jacobs

Overview

How The Book of Common Prayer became one of the most influential works in the English language

While many of us are familiar with such famous words as “Dearly beloved, we are gathered together here. . .” or “Ashes to ashes, dust to dust,” we may not know that they originated in The Book of Common Prayer, which first appeared in 1549. Like the words of the King James Bible and Shakespeare, the language of this prayer book has saturated English culture and letters. Here Alan Jacobs tells its story. He shows how The Book of Common Prayer—from its beginnings as a means of social and political control in the England of Henry VIII to its worldwide presence today—became a venerable work whose cadences express the heart of religious life for millions.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780691191782
Publisher:	Princeton University Press
Publication date:	05/28/2019
Series:	Lives of Great Religious Books , #2
Edition description:	Reprint
Pages:	256
Sales rank:	379,737
Product dimensions:	5.50(w) x 8.40(h) x 0.90(d)

About the Author

Alan Jacobs is Distinguished Professor of the Humanities in the Honors Program at Baylor University. His books include Original Sin: A Cultural History.

Table of Contents

Chronology ix

List of Figures xi

A Note On Texts xiii

Introduction: The Archbishop in His Library 1

Chapter 1 One Book for One Country 7

Chapter 2 Revision, Banishment, Restoration 45

Chapter 3 Becoming Venerable 61

Chapter 4 The Book in the Social World 91

Chapter 5 Objects, Bodies, and Controversies 113

Chapter 6 The Pressures of the Modern 149

Chapter 7 Many Books for Many Countries 181

Appendix The Prayer Book and Its Printers 195

Acknowledgments 201

Notes 203

Index 231

What People are Saying About This

From the Publisher

“One could not wish for a more engaging introduction to the history of the Prayer Book. . . . [A] triumph of compression and lucidity.”—David Martin, Church Times

“Elegant and authoritative.”—Willy Maley, Times Higher Education

“[A] gem.”—Peter J. Leithart, First Things

“A beautifully lucid introduction to the origins and use of one of the most significant religious texts in the English-speaking world. Alan Jacobs helps us to understand not only the book but also the Christian sensibility of the whole Anglican tradition and the culture it nourished.”—Dr. Rowan Williams, Magdalene College, University of Cambridge

“The Book of Common Prayer, often thought of as a source of Anglican stability, has led an interesting life of many changes. Jacobs tracks them all like a shrewd detective.”—Garry Wills, author of What the Gospels Meant

Editorial Reviews

One could not wish for a more engaging introduction to the history of the Prayer Book. . . . [A] triumph of compression and lucidity.”—David Martin, Church Times


“Elegant and authoritative.”—Willy Maley, Times Higher Education


“[A] gem.”—Peter J. Leithart, First Things


“A beautifully lucid introduction to the origins and use of one of the most significant religious texts in the English-speaking world. Alan Jacobs helps us to understand not only the book but also the Christian sensibility of the whole Anglican tradition and the culture it nourished.”—Dr. Rowan Williams, Magdalene College, University of Cambridge


“The Book of Common Prayer, often thought of as a source of Anglican stability, has led an interesting life of many changes. Jacobs tracks them all like a shrewd detective.”—Garry Wills, author of What the Gospels Meant

From the Publisher

"The Book of Common Prayer has undergone numerous revisions and adaptations since it was first published in 1549. Jacobs traces the life of this influential book from English Reformation to the modern era. . . . Jacobs skillfully describes the challenges associated with the Reformation, Puritanism, the Restoration, and the Victorian era, when rubrics and the role of government were important issues. . . . Readers will appreciate the author's analysis and insights."

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