Anglican Ordinariate in England and Wales Set to Use RSV Lectionary

Our Lady of the Atonement parish in San Antonio has the entire stock of the Ignatius RSV Lectionary and can provide these two-volume sets at a very low cost. Originally listed at $270.00, they are able to make each set available for just $100.00. The financial situation of the Ordinariate of OLW is difficult at this beginning stage and Fr. Phillips has told Msgr. Newton that he would seek to obtain donations so that they can provide fifty sets of the lectionary at no cost to them.

WASHINGTON, DC (Catholic Online) - As we await the official announcement concerning the Anglican Ordinariate in America, the Personal Ordinariate of Our Lady of Walsingham in England and Wales is already underway and gathering their liturgical resources.

The Revised Standard Version - Catholic Edition (RSV-CE) has long been a favorite version of the Scriptures for many Catholics and has become the standard text for many Anglican Use parishes.

We received word through a posting by Fr. Christopher Phillips of Our Lady of the Atonement Church (Anglican Use) in San Antonio that this version of the lectionary is going to be adopted by the Ordinariate in England and Wales. His article in The Anglo-Catholic also noted that his parish is inviting others to join with them in providing these Lectionaries to the fledgling parishes in the U.K.

The following is Fr. Phillips' article:

For many, the Ignatius Bible is the "gold standard" among the various Catholic versions of Holy Scripture. The Revised Standard Version of the Bible has a well-balanced combination of scholarship and beautiful language. It is one of the versions listed in The Book of Divine Worship to be used in the Anglican Use parishes, and it is likely to be used as a standard in the Ordinariates.

Some years ago, Ignatius Press published a two-volume Revised Standard Version Three-Year Lectionary. Many of the Anglican Use communities have been using this lectionary, and have found it to be an inspiring and beautiful complement to our liturgy. The text is able to be chanted in a dignified way, and it very much carries on in the tradition of the old Authorized Version of Holy Scripture.

Volume One has 1044 pages and contains the Masses for Sundays and the Holy Triduum. It also contains the Masses for Solemnities of the Lord. It includes an Introduction and a table of Moveable Dates, as well as a Table on the arrangement of the Second Reading on Sundays. There is an Index of Readings, and Index of Responsorial Psalms and an Index of Alleluias and Acclamations before the Gospel.

Volume Two has 2438 pages. This volume contains the following: the Proper of Seasons, the Proper and Common of the Saints, Ritual Masses, Masses for Various Needs, Votive Masses and the Masses for the Dead. There is also a table giving the arrangement of First Readings on the Weekdays. The volume contains four indices: an Index of Readings for the year; an Index of Readings for the special Masses, an Index of Responsorial Psalms and an Index of Saints.

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I'm pleased to announce that Our Lady of the Atonement parish has managed to obtain the entire stock of the Ignatius RSV Lectionary, and can provide these two-volume sets at a very low cost. Originally listed at $270.00, we are able to make each set available for just $100.00. The books are beautifully bound in red with embossed covers, making them suitable for carrying in procession. Printed on cream-colored paper, the print is well-sized for ease of reading.

I have corresponded with the leadership of the Personal Ordinariate of Our Lady of Walsingham, and Msgr. Keith Newton would like to obtain copies of the RSV lectionary for the Ordinariate groups there. As we know, the financial situation of the Ordinariate of OLW is difficult at this beginning stage, and I have told Msgr. Newton that I would seek to obtain donations so that we can provide fifty sets of the lectionary at no cost to them.

Could you help? If you are able to give a lectionary, it will go to a specific Ordinariate group, and I've asked that the priest might offer a Mass for your intentions. This would be great way to forge a bond between you, as an Ordinariate supporter, and one of the Ordinariate groups - and what a privilege it would be to provide a lectionary that will be used at every Mass being offered.

If you would like to purchase one of the two-volume sets for yourself, your parish, or for one of the English Ordinariate groups, please email me at FrPhillips@atonementonline.com, and I'll send you the details about payment and shipping.

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Randy Sly is the Associate Editor of Catholic Online and the CEO/Associate Publisher for the Northern Virginia Local Edition of Catholic Online (http://virginia.catholic.org). He is a former Archbishop of the Charismatic Episcopal Church who laid aside that ministry to enter into the full communion of the Catholic Church.

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