Something Understood: Paper Topic

Having enormous difficulty putting together a proposal for a 10 page paper. The proposal is due tomorrow in Anglican Tradition and Life. I cannot seem to pick between two imperfect drafts, and I'm getting tired. This one:

In 1892, the General Convention of the Episcopal Church authorized a new Book of Common Prayer. More than one hundred years had passed since the creation of the first American Book of Common Prayer in 1789. In the intervening years, the Church and society had had to integrate a huge amount of change. However, The 1892 Prayer Book does not differ markedly from its century old predecessor, and yet was replaced within 35 years with the far more radical 1928 book.
I will argue that the Prayer Book of 1892 fell far short of the liturgical and ecclesiological vision set out by William Reed Huntington, the chief proponant of prayer book revision in the late 19th century. I will do this by reviewing the history of the pressures on prayer book revision in the second half of the 1800's, emphasising the contributions of Huntington, Bishop Hobart, and William A. Muhlenberg. I will specifically compare changes in Eucharistic liturgy between the 1789, 1892, and 1928 BCPs.

and this one:

One of the defining characteristics of the Anglican Communion is, of course, the fact of a Book of Common Prayer. There have been revisions to these books, and a cornucopia of authorized liturgical texts exists across the Communion. While prayer books provide “scripts” and limited rubrics for liturgy, there are a great number of questions that go unanswered. Rubrical expansions, historical and theological considerations, and practical tips are provided in a variety of guides and resources. These manuals contain explanations of how a presider or officient might best lead those services. They are, in effect, books of suggestions for liturgical praxis that are based on background research and theological priorities.
I will attempt to show that these resources reveal that modern Episcopalian liturgical decision-making is based on historical precedent and theological reflection. Specifically, I will compare the commentaries on Eucharistic liturgy in several of these handbooks, pointing out cases in which the authors differ on emphasis or opinion, and discussing the considerations that the authors bring to the table.

I think I'll take another look in the morning.

Something Understood

breaking down and building up at seminary

Paper Topic

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