CHRIST THE KING, Sunday 22nd November 2020

Today is the feast of Christ the King, a fairly recent feast instituted by Pope Pius XI in 1925, not long after the First World War. In this celebration Christ the King draws heaven and earth closer together – but, it seems that many priests find it a tricky subject to preach on for a number of reasons, – so no wonder I have had a struggle!

 We are familiar with the idea of kingship and its attributes. From King David onwards, the Old Testament is shot through with regal images. Ideally, earthly kings should be powerful, strong, wise, brave, glorious and just but, all too often, they fall short of this and fail to reflect their heavenly archetype.

 These images of kingship continue into the New Testament: ‘The Lord God shall give unto him the throne of his father David’, says the Angel Gabriel: ‘and he shall reign over the house of Jacob for ever; and of his kingdom there shall be no end…’ and the regal mantle falls over the shoulders of Christ, the anointed one, the King of Glory, but Jesus declines to accept worldly sovereignty  – whether he is offered the title by the Devil, Pontius Pilate or, even, his disciples. And yet in the Lord’s Prayer (given in St Matthew 6:9-13) we ask daily for the following: ‘thy kingdom come, thy will be done, on earth as it is in heaven’. Or is it ‘in earth as it is in heaven’? This may seem like a minor discrepancy but, if we are praying for Christ’s kingdom to come, we ought to know where it will be.

 The other day a friend of mine rang me in a state of some excitement. She told me she had been watching a service celebrated by Sarah, the Bishop of London, on television when, she noticed that the Bishop made a mistake. ‘She said the Lord’s Prayer and she got it wrong!’ exclaimed my friend. ‘What do you mean,’ I asked, ‘got it wrong?’ ‘She said “your will be done in earth”,’ she replied, ‘and I’ve always said “on earth”. Which one is right?’.

 Well, in your Order of Service today you will see in the Lord’s Prayer it says ‘on earth’. But, if you come to St George’s and pick up one of the daily Order of Service booklets, the ones with the blue covers, you will find it says ‘in earth’.

 ‘In earth’ or ‘on earth’ – does it really matter? Is it a question of translation, or interpretation, or simply a printer’s error? I decided to investigate. I would like to say that I opened up leather-bound volumes written in Aramaic, Hebrew, Greek or Latin to find the answer but I’m afraid I have to admit that, like most of us these days, I consulted my friend Professor Google – and it seems I am not the only one to be troubled by this question. On a blog debating this topic a contributor remembered: I was taught in my seminary: "IN Earth" Adam, the first man, was created from ‘earth or dust’, not kosmos like, ‘...For God so loved the WORLD - Kosmos…’ but, ‘...thy will be done IN earth (or man/Adam) as it is IN heaven (or God)...’
Conclusion: ‘...may your will be done in ME, as in You/God..’

 Clear? No? Neither am I but I think we’re getting closer. The Church of England, too, has struggled with this translation. In 1994, the General Synod decided that three versions of the Lord’s Prayer would be included in the Church of England’s modern prayer book. But I have found 10 different versions seven of which – including an Old English version from 995, one by Wycliffe from 1389, another by Tyndale from 1526, the King James Bible of 1611 and early editions of the Book of Common Prayer (of 1549, 1662 and 1772) – all favour ‘in earth’. But, interestingly, in the BCP of 1928 (three years after the institution of the feast Christ the King) it was changed to ‘on earth’. So, what on earth is going on? Are we now praying that Christ will establish his kingdom on earth?

Another source tells me that:‘King’ is a common designation for God in Judaism. Many 1st century Jews thought and hoped that the kingdom would be brought by God or an agent of God, a prophet, a priest or a king. The coming or presence of the Kingdom of God is central to Jesus’ teaching. [In the Q document the coming of the Kingdom is expected to happen soon.] When God reigns the social order will be turned upside down; the poor will be lifted up and the hungry will be full.

As we have just heard in the Matthew reading:

‘When the Son of Man comes in his glory, and all the angels with him, then he will sit on the throne of glory. All the nations will be gathered before him… Then the king will say to those at his right hand: “Come, you that are blessed by my father, inherit the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world...’

So, is that an end to it? I think not for could we not embrace both ‘in earth’ and ‘on earth’? And if we accept Christ as our ruler within us– ‘in earth’ – if we submit to his will and try to serve him; if we are loyal subjects, then God’s kingdom on earth will also flourish and Christ the King will reign. Heaven and earth will be brought together. Amen to that.

Lord's Prayer to be given in three versions

Top of Form

Bottom of Form

THREE versions of the Lord's Prayer are likely to be included in a new edition of the Church of England's modern prayer book.

The General Synod, meeting in York next weekend, will try to agree on a solution to the long war between liturgical traditionalists and modernisers: a new prayer book combining language both from the 16th and 20th centuries.

The battle between the supporters of prayers ancient and modern became known to a wider public five years ago when the Prince of Wales lambasted the language of the Church's modern prayer book, the Alternative Service Book, as 'crass, banal, patronising, mean and trite'.

ADVERTISING

The General Synod will debate a recommendation from its Liturgical Commission that the next edition of the Alternative Service Book, due out in 2000, should, unlike previous versions, include sizeable excerpts from Thomas Cranmer's Book of Common Prayer. Priests will be encouraged to use whichever prayers suit their congregations.

The General Synod first decided at its York sessions in 1989 that editions of the Alternative Service Book printed in the future should have both the modern and the almost traditional versions of the Lord's Prayer printed side by side. Now Cranmer will be added.

The ASB has been used for the past 20 years in Anglican churches but its licence, which makes it legal to use the book in churches, must be renewed by 2000. The Liturgical Commission plans to change the present 1,500-page book by splitting it in two, keeping one half for the core services, and the other for special occasions, such as baptisms, funerals and weddings.

At present there are at least five English versions of the Lord's Prayer in use in the UK. Anglicans account for three of these; a Roman Catholic international committee produced another, and a fifth is traditional in Scotland. English Roman Catholics have used one of the Anglican versions since they abandoned the Latin Mass.

'Our Father' is the lead-in that everyone agrees on. The arguments start with the third word. Should it be 'which', 'who' or 'in'?

However, all this may be overtaken by the march of technology. The Liturgical Commission expects that it will have to license liturgical software as well as books by 2000, so that parishes can print out special service sheets every Sunday, complete with readings, psalms and prayers from any source that takes the preacher's fancy.

The three versions of the Lord's Prayer presently used in C of E churches are:

 

Continue

Bottom of Form

1. Cranmer

Our Father, which art in heaven, Hallowed be thy name. Thy kingdom come, Thy will be done, in earth as it is in heaven. Give us this day our daily bread. And forgive us our trespasses, As we forgive them that trespass against us. And lead us not into temptation; But deliver us from evil. For thine is the kingdom, the Power and the Glory, for ever and ever. Amen.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/History_of_the_Lord%27s_Prayer_in_English

Lindsay Fulcher