Adapted from the Rev. Devon Anderson, writing on the weblog of the Standing Commission on Liturgy and Music:
The Standing Commission on Liturgy and Music (SCLM) will be sending to General Convention 2018 four different paths forward for its consideration in regards to the Book of Common Prayer and liturgical renewal. It will request that General Convention 2018 select one of the four paths that will chart the SCLM’s course for the 2018-21, and 2021-24 triennia. The SCLM is looking for a clearly articulated (and funded) mandate for its work going forward. The four paths are:
- Full and comprehensive revision of the 1979 Book of Common Prayer beginning after the 2018 General Convention;
- Creation of comprehensive Book(s) of Alternative Services and no revision of the 1979 Book of Common Prayer, with work beginning after the 2018 General Convention;
- Intensive church-wide conversation between the 2018 and 2021 General Convention about whether a revision of the Book of Common Prayer is needed or desirable; to what extent; and whether, if revision is not desirable, the Episcopal Church should instead develop significant supplemental liturgical resources, such as a Book of Alternative Services;
- A step back from efforts toward comprehensive liturgical revision or creation of new liturgies, and an accompanying commitment to deepening the collective understanding of — and engagement with — the theology of our current liturgies.
