The 1962Book of Common Prayer^{[note 1]} is an authorizedliturgical book of theAnglican Church of Canada.^[2] The 1962 prayer book is often also considered the 1959 prayer book, in reference to the year the revision was first approved for an "indefinite period" of use beginning in 1960.^[3]: 136 The 1962 edition follows from the same tradition of other versions of theBook of Common Prayer used by the churches within theAnglican Communion andAnglicanism generally. It contains both theEucharistic liturgy andDaily Office, as well as additional publicliturgies and personal devotions. The second major revision of theBook of Common Prayer of the Anglican Church of Canada, the 1962Book of Common Prayer succeeded the 1918 edition, which itself had replaced theChurch of England's 1662 prayer book.^[4] While supplanted by the 1985Book of Alternative Services as the Anglican Church of Canada's primary Sunday service book, the 1962 prayer book continues to see usage.^{[2][5]: 505}

Following theEnglish Reformation and the separation of theChurch of England from theCatholic Church, theliturgies of what becameAnglicanism were transcribed intoEnglish. The first such production was the1549Book of Common Prayer, traditionally considered to be work ofThomas Cranmer, which replaced both themissals andbreviaries of Catholic usage.^[6] Among these liturgies were theCommunion service andcanonical hours ofMatins andEvening Prayer, with the addition of the Ordinal containing the form for the consecration ofbishops,priests, anddeacons in 1550.^[7] UnderEdward VI, the1552Book of Common Prayer incorporated more radicallyProtestant reforms,^[8]: 11 a process that continued with 1559 edition approved underElizabeth I. The 1559 edition was for some time the second-most diffuse book inEngland, only behind theBible, through anact of Parliament that mandated its presence in eachparish church across the country.^[9]

The first Church of England liturgy in what is nowCanada was a 1578 Holy Communion celebrated by a "Maister Wolfall" onKodlunarn Island,Frobisher Bay, present dayNunavut, during the voyage ofMartin Frobisher to theArctic.^[10] This was most probably said according to the 1559 prayer book.^[11]: 191

The entirety ofCanadian New France was seized from theKingdom of France byGreat Britain in 1763 following theSeven Years' War. The influence of Catholicism remained in this territory, with celebration according to the1662 English prayer book often featurehigh church practices. The 1662 prayer book would remain the dominant liturgy until the first Canadian prayer book was published in the early Twentieth Century.^[12]: 186

In 1911, theGeneral Synod of the Church of England in the Dominion of Canada determined that "adaption and enrichment" of the more than 300-year-old English prayer book pattern should be undertaken, following the 1908Lambeth Conference that encouraged such efforts.^{[13]: 51 [14]} This came after nearly a decade of efforts towards revision, including one that was rejected in 1902 in favor of a minor addition to the appendix of the 1662 prayer book and another popular effort in 1905 that failed after criticism from pro-1662low churchmen, whose objections failed against the 1911.^{[12]: 186–187}

The 1918 prayer book^{[note 2]} introduced a large number of new prayers and additional Scripture options relative to prior English and American prayer book revisions.^{[16]: xii–xiii} Imitating theScottish Episcopal Church andU.S. Episcopal Church, there were several efforts to include anEpiclesis into theAnaphora of the Holy Communion office.^[16]: 251 Ultimately, few alterations were made to the Eucharistic liturgy, whichTractarians had initially sought to replace. Among the few changes were rubrics acknowledging already common practices, providing the option to replace theTen Commandments with theSummary of the Law and the dropping of longer Exhortations.^[12]: 187 Other revisions included an enhancement of Matins to enable its usage as a standalone Sunday liturgy, the introduction of new prayers for illness reflecting medical advancements, and prayers for missionary efforts.^[12]: 188

The 1918 prayer book was introduced as the "authorized book of public worship" onEaster, 1922.^[17]: vii Nearly all copies of the 1918 prayer book were printed byCambridge University Press.^[15] The uniformity of practice between parishes with the 1918 prayer book and 1938The Book of Common Praise was considered a positive through the 1940s, though the logistical challenges of Canada's expansive territory meant many would attendUnited Church of Canada services.^{[18]: 60, 65}

Efforts to revise the Holy Communion office were revived with the Church of England'sProposed 1928 prayer book that restored a 1549-like liturgy. The General Synod authorized the beginning of a new full prayer book revision in 1937. The revisers reported on the less controversial recommendations regarding baptism and a penitential office in 1943, both of which sought to distance the liturgies from the notion of beingborn into sinfulness.^[12]: 189 A draft liturgy of the Eucharistic liturgy was produced in 1952, drawing criticism for its appending of the Summary of the Law directly to the Decalogue. TheDraft Book of 1955 contained the same and introduced a new Anaphora.^{[19]: 98–99}

The final approval of the 1959 revision occurred at the 1962 General Synod inKingston, Ontario. The resolution approving Canon XXVI that established the prayer book "as the authorized Book of Common Prayer" was moved by Reginald Soward and carried unanimously by both houses of the synod.^[20] The approval coincided with the 300th anniversary of the 1662 English prayer book, which was commemorated by a prayer said by PrimateHoward Clark.^[21]

Besides the various offices and Psalter, the 1962 prayer book contains several other materials and documents. The preface, modified from that present in the 1918 edition, explains the development of the revisions and states all alterations from the 1662 prayer book would align "with the 27th Resolution of the Lambeth Conference of 1908 and the 78th Resolution of the Lambeth Conference of 1948."^{[note 3]} It also states that the purpose of the prayer book is so that the members of the church "may become more truly what they already are: the People of God."^[1]: vii

Following the preface, the "Solemn Declaration 1893" is included. It contains the details of the Church of England in the Dominion of Canada'sfull communion with the Church of England and continuation of its liturgical practice.^[1]: viii Acatechism is also provided, with minor amendments from that present in the 1662 prayer book, particularly in relation to the baptism of infants as entering them into a "household of faith."^[5]: 505

TheImprecatory Psalms and Psalm verses regarding curses were deleted for the 1959 revision, attributed to an aversion to violent imagery emanating from the two world wars and the view that such passages were not useful for the worship ofGod.^[12]: 191 The expungements were reversed for the 1985Book of Alternative Services, which contains the full text of theBook of Psalms.^[23] TheCoverdale Psalter forms the basis of the 1962 prayer book, but with minor alterations for updated verbiage and verse numeration.^[12]: 191

The thirdcollect forGood Friday, commonly known as theGood Friday prayer for the Jews, is explicitly removed by Canon XIV of the Canons of the General Synod.^[24]: 71 Other collects within the 1962 prayer book remain largely similar to those within the 1662 edition, with Cranmerian language and cadence being removed in theBook of Alternative Services.^[13]: 51

The 1962 prayer book's Holy Communion office, a development within the English prayer book recension, is not significantly different from that present in the 1918 prayer book.^[25] However, where the 1918 prayer book had not received a new Anaphora, the 1962 edition's Prayer of Consecration is a uniquely Canadian form of the Epiclesis, intentionally distinct from that of the Proposed 1928 prayer book or1929Scottish Prayer Book.^[12]: 192

Rubrics for the 1962 prayer book Daily Office offer several optional omissions and inclusions across the various liturgies. Among these are rubrics to optionally open Morning Prayer with "O Lord, open thou our lips" fromPsalm 51 and omit all that follows theTe Deum if Morning Prayer is immediately followed by Holy Communion. Additionally, there is no prohibition against saying extemporaneous prayers.^[26] Lateral efforts encouraging the reincorporation of the 1962 prayer book into not only Holy Communion liturgies but also regular public Daily Office celebrations have been organized byPrayer Book Society of Canada.^[27]

The ordinal for theordination and consecration for deacons, priests, and bishops is essentially identical to that present in the 1662 prayer book, keeping with the 1918 prayer book. A set of prayers was added for missionary work, and thekalendar added 26 missionaries.^[12]: 190 Sermons at funeral offices are neither explicitly made an option nor prohibited, an allowance serving a pastoral need, particularly amongcharismatic communities.^[27]

TheDiocese of The Arctic published a translation of the 1959 prayer book intoEastern Eskimo (Inuktitut) in 1960, with a revision issued in 1972.^[28] Previous editions of theBook of Common Prayer had been translated into Inuktitut since 1881, initially under the missionaryEdmund Peck and various times over the next century.^[29] The 1962 prayer book has also been translated intoFrench,Mohawk, andCree.^[30]

The effects of theLiturgical Movement had not been fully implemented by the Anglican Church of Canada until after the approval of the 1962 prayer book. While efforts prior to 1980 had produced a number of complete liturgies, they could not be compiled into a single text as extensive as a typicalBook of Common Prayer. Among these was the text resulting from the 1967 General Assembly's desire to collect the "experimental liturgies and services now in use"; the 1969Experiment and Liturgy also included explanations of principals of worship and experimentation.^[31] In order to release the approved liturgies while enabling the Doctrine and Worship Committee to continue its work, the 1980 General Synod approved the publication of a text intended as an optional alternative to the 1962 prayer book.^[32]: 370 The Anglican Church of Canada published theBook of Alternative Services in 1985.^[2] Among the most notable deviations from the 1962 prayer book are emphases oninclusive language and participation of thelaity.^[33] TheBook of Alternative Services also introduced a full set of liturgies forHoly Week.^[32]: 370

The production of new and revised liturgies has continued since 1980, with several new texts authorized for regular and experimental liturgies. In 2001, a set of three orders of the Daily Office for usage alongside theBook of Alternative Services that draw from the 1962 prayer book's pattern.^[27] Additional liturgies presently approved for trial use include those for TheDeconsecration of a Sacred Space, Preparation of Candidates and Community for the Celebration of Holy Baptism, and Liturgies for Journeys ofGender Transition andAffirmation.^[34]

The Book of Common Praise^{[note 4]} is the name assigned to the standard authorized Anglican Church of Canadahymnal. The first edition ofThe Book of Common Praise, containing 795 hymns as well as 139settings, was published in 1908 and known for its brown binding. It was followed by the blue-bound 1938 edition, initially containing 812 hymns, which was in use through the revision process of the 1962 prayer book. A revision of this edition was approved in 1963.^[36] This edition is partially credited with the introductionprayers for the dead into the 1962 prayer book, as several hymns for the deceased are included despite a tradition of excluding such prayers emanating from the Reformation.^[37]

An attempt at a union between the Anglican Church of Canada and the United Church of Canada produced the 1971The Hymn Book of the Anglican Church of Canada and the United Church of Canada, identifiable by its red binding. In 1998, another edition of hymnal was published. Again bound in blue but now simply calledCommon Praise, this edition contains 769 hymns.^[36]

In order to assist in the execution of the rubrics in the conduct of parochial liturgies, brethren of theSociety of St. John the Evangelist'sBracebridge, Ontario, location publishedReadiness and Decency in 1961, intended to match with the requirements of the 1959 prayer book. This work was a successor to an edition ofReadiness and Decency prepared in 1946 for usage alongside the 1918 prayer book.^[38] While certain rubrical flexibility exists for usage of the 1962 prayer book, the performance of the liturgy is to be within delineated rubrics, including in cases of ecumenicalconcelebration with other denominations.^[39]

Influenced byWalter Frere's 1911Some Principles of Liturgical Reform, the 1962 prayer book includes the names of an increased number of post-Reformation individuals. However, whether all these individuals should be referred to as "saints" and how they should be liturgically celebrated were not described. The publication ofFor All the Saints by the Anglican Church of Canada following the introduction of theBook of Alternative Services would enumerate the celebration of Anglican saints. Further supplemental offices were provided within ArchbishopHarold Sexton's 1964The Canadian Book of Occasional Offices.^[40]

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