Anglican Prayer Calendars Merge
Episcopal News Service. October 7, 1982 [82208]
LONDON (DPS, Oct. 7) -- Anglicans are to have a new international prayer calendar as the result of the amalgamation of two Anglican-Episcopal publications which have for many years been produced separately on either side of the Atlantic.
The joint venture brings together the Anglican Cycle of Prayer and Partners in Prayer produced respectively by the London-based Anglican Consultative Council and Forward Movement Publications, an official agency of the Episcopal Church, located in Cincinnati, Ohio, and was launched in early October.
It will retain the name The Anglican Cycle of Prayer and the general framework of the former publication. But it will also resemble Partners in Prayer in its aim to promote informed intercession on behalf of the 411 dioceses which make up the world-wide Anglican Communion -- spanning Aba (Nigeria) to Zululand (South Africa).
Each day, users will be aided in their prayers for one or two dioceses by specific prayer requests supplied by each diocese. There are accompanying maps. A lot of trouble has been taken to link intercession for particular Provinces and dioceses with important occasions such as national days. And while it is primarily for Anglican use, there is a definite ecumenical dimension. Days are set aside for prayer for other Christian Churches and the Cycle can be used in conjunction with For All God's People, the prayer calendar of the World Council of Churches.
Canon Austin Masters SSM, Diocese of Hereford, England, was chiefly responsible for planning its general framework, while Marge Bowdon from the staff of Forward Movement co-ordinated the enormous task of extracting the necessary prayer information from the dioceses throughout the world.
The forward for 1983 is contributed by the Archbishop of Canterbury.
The Anglican Cycle of Prayer can be ordered from Forward Movement Publications, 412 Sycamore Street, Cincinnati, Ohio 45202. The price is $1.75 plus postage and handling.