Liturgy and Forms of Worship
For the service of the church a comprehensive book of liturgies and offices was provided by the apostles. The first impression dates from 1842 and includes elements from the Anglican, Roman, and Greek liturgies as well as original work. Lights, incense, vestments, holy water, chrism, and other adjuncts of worship were in constant use. The complete ceremony could be seen in their Central Church (now leased to Forward in Faith and known as Christ the King, Gordon Square) and elsewhere.
The daily worship consisted of matins with proposition (or exposition) of the sacrament at 6 AM, prayers at 9 AM and 3 PM, and vespers at 5 PM. On all Sundays and holy days there was a solemn celebration of the Eucharist at the high altar; on Sundays this was at 11 AM. On other days low celebrations were held, in the side-chapels if the building had them, which with the chancel in all churches correctly built after apostolic directions were separated or marked off from the nave by open screens with gates. The community laid great stress on symbolism, and in the Eucharist, while rejecting both transubstantiation and consubstantiation, held strongly to a real (mystical) presence. It emphasized also the phenomena of Christian experience and deemed miracle and mystery to be of the essence in a spirit-filled church.
Read more about this topic: Catholic Apostolic Church
Famous quotes containing the words liturgy, forms and/or worship:
“You never see animals going through the absurd and often horrible fooleries of magic and religion.... Dogs do not ritually urinate in the hope of persuading heaven to do the same and send down rain. Asses do not bray a liturgy to cloudless skies. Nor do cats attempt, by abstinence from cat’s meat, to wheedle the feline spirits into benevolence. Only man behaves with such gratuitous folly. It is the price he has to pay for being intelligent but not, as yet, quite intelligent enough.”
—Aldous Huxley (1894–1963)
“Psychoanalysis can unravel some of the forms of madness; it remains a stranger to the sovereign enterprise of unreason. It can neither limit nor transcribe, nor most certainly explain, what is essential in this enterprise.”
—Michel Foucault (1926–1984)
“The eastern light our spires touch at morning,
The light that slants upon our western doors at evening,
The twilight over stagnant pools at batflight,
Moon light and star light, owl and moth light,
Glow-worm glowlight on a grassblade.
O Light Invisible, we worship Thee!”
—T.S. (Thomas Stearns)