Editor’s note: We are posting occasional additional posts on the 39 Articles of Religion and the related history of the Book of Common Prayer, now that our blog series has ended.
by Tanner Moore
What is the Black Rubric?
Concisely put, the Black Rubric is, “A 19th-cent. name [sic] for the ‘Declaration on Kneeling’ printed at the end of the Holy Communion Service in the Book of Common Prayer. It was inserted in the Book of 1552 without Parliamentary authority. When rubrics came to be printed in red, the fact that the ‘Declaration’ was not a rubric was indicated by printing it in black.”[1] What lay at the heart of the issue of the Black Rubric is the amount of reverence, and right posture gave when receiving Holy Communion. The debate is twofold, what is the proper position when receiving Holy Communion, and the question of whether kneeling when receiving the Eucharist implies adoration of the elements of bread and wine. Before we proceed further, it is essential to read the Black Rubric in its original printing in the 1552 Book of Common Prayer.
The text of the Black Rubric states,
Although no ordre can be so perfectlye devised, but it may be of some, eyther for theyr ignoraunce and infermitie, or els of malice and obstinacie, misconstrued, depraved, and interpreted in a wrong part: And yet because brotherly charitie willeth, that so much as conveniently may be, offences shoulde be taken awaye: therefore we willing to doe the same. Whereas it is ordeyned in the booke of common prayer, in the administracion of the Lord’s Supper, that the Communicants knelyng shoulde receyve the holye Communion. whiche thynge beyng well mente, for a sygnificacion of the humble and gratefull acknowledgyng of the benefites of Chryst, geven unto the woorthye receyver, and to avoyde the prophanacion and dysordre, which about the holy Communion myght els ensue: Leste yet the same kneelyng myght be thought or taken otherwyse, we dooe declare that it is not ment thereby, that any adoracion is doone, or oughte to bee doone, eyther unto the Sacramentall bread or wyne there bodily receyved, or unto anye reall and essencial presence there beeyng of Christ’s naturall fleshe and bloude. For as concernynge the Sacramentall bread and wyne, they remayne styll in theyr verye naturall substaunces, and therefore may not be adored, for that were Idolatrye to be abhorred of all faythfull christians. And as concernynge the naturall body and blood of our saviour Christ, they are in heaven and not here. For it is agaynst the trueth of Christes true natural bodye, to be in moe places then in one, at one tyme.[2]
Before I proceed further, it is essential to note the term ‘rubric’ here means an instruction to follow. This stands in contrast to the modern usage of the word, such as a grading rubric. Most Anglican/Episcopal parishes still kneel when receiving Communion. This supplemental shows the origins, development, and modern usage of the Black Rubric.
The History of the Black Rubric
The origins of the Black Rubric lie in a debate in the 1552 Council deciding the details of the second edition of the Book of Common Prayer. The first Archbishop of Canterbury Thomas Cranmer (1489-1556) primarily authored the first edition of the Book of Common Prayer three years prior in 1549. The council of thirty-two persons designated to oversee the prayer book was theologians of various theological leanings, from more Roman Catholic leanings of Thomas Cranmer to more Reformed leanings of John Knox (1513-1572). Historian A. G. Dickens in his seminal work The English Reformation notes that just months before the intended publication of the 1552 Book of Common Prayer John Knox gave a sermon before King Edward VI (1537-1553), the firstborn son of Henry VIII (1491-1547), against the insertion of the rubric on kneeling. Cranmer refused to make the change to the rubric. During the early stages of the printing of the 1552 Book of Common Prayer, the council inserted the rubric into the prayer book, ensuring the reception of Holy Communion by kneeling.[3]
The controversy over kneeling comes from the English Reformers dealing with the concept of the real presence of Christ in the Eucharist. Early Church of England formularies believed that Christ is present in the elements of bread and wine. These articles are the precursor to the Thirty-Nine Articles of Religion and show the working out of the faith of the early Church of England. The first attempt at a concise formulary is the Ten Articles of Religion, first published in 1534. Article 4 states that, “That the body and blood of Christ are really present in the elements of the eucharist.”[4]. Two years later, in 1536, the articles are shortened to Six Articles, with the Eucharistic position stating,
“First, that in the most blessed Sacrament of the Altar, by the strength and efficacy of Christ’s mighty word, it being spoken by the priest, is present really, under the form of bread and wine, the natural body and blood of Our Saviour Jesu Christ, conceived of the Virgin Mary, and that after the consecration there remaineth no substance of bread and wine, nor any other substance but the substance of Christ, God and man;”[5]
This expanded eucharistic position seeks to explain how Christ is present in the bread and wine. The words “under the form” is from the work of Medieval Catholic theologian Peter Lombard (1100-1160). Lombard states that, “Similarly, ‘he [Christ] is in heaven insofar as he is man’ “namely visibly: but invisibly he is on the altar, because he does not appear in human form, but is veiled by the form of bread and wine.”[6]
After Edward VI’s death in 1552, Henry VIII’s eldest daughter Mary I (1516-1558) became Queen of England. Mary returned England to the Roman Catholic Church and removed the Book of Common Prayer from public worshipaltogether. After Mary I’s death in 1558 her sister Elizabeth I (1533-1603) became Queen of England and in the same year restored England to the Church of England/Anglicanism. Theological compromise is the key theme of Elizabeth I’s reign. Elizabeth I’s 1558 Act of Uniformity restored the Book of Common Prayer as the service book used in England. However, this prayer book was neither the 1549 nor the 1552 versions. Instead, the 1559 Prayer Book established during the reign of Elizabeth I is a mixture of both prayer books, blending elements of the Catholic and Protestant aspects of both books, respectively. However, the Black Rubric is omitted entirely from the 1559 text. While there is not much known about the meeting that removed the Black Rubric from the 1559 version, A. G. Dickens argues that this removal allowed “a certain latitude of eucharistic belief.”[7] This latitude meant that communicants could believe kneeling was or was not a proper act of devotion to God when receiving the Eucharist. After the removal of the Black Rubric in 1559, Black Rubric would not exist in the Book of Common Prayer for over 100 years until the 1662 Book of Common Prayer under Charles II (1630-1685).
In 1563, during the reign of Elizabeth I, the Church of England published the Forty-Two Articles of Religion, further clarifying their positions of faith. Article XXIX “Of the Lord’s Supper” states the new Eucharistic position of the Church of England.[8] Regarding the presence and elements, the Article states “with faith receive the same, the bread which we break, is a communion of the body of Christ. Likewise, the cup of blessing is a Communion of the blood of Christ.”[9] The change is now that what is received is the communion of the body and blood of Christ. This is further emphasized regarding transubstantiation, the article states “Transubstantiation, or the change of the substance of bread and wine into the substance of Christ’s body and blood cannot be proved by holy writ, but is repugnant to the plain words of Scripture, and has given occasion to many superstitions.”[10] This article reflects the first rejection of transubstantiation in the Articles of Religion. The argument goes further beyond rejecting the transubstantiation of the elements, but also that Christ cannot be in one time in multiple places, as that “a faithful man ought not, either to believe or openly to confess the real and bodily presence (as they term it) of Christ’s flesh and Blood in the Sacrament of the Lord’s Supper.”
The final authoritative act clarifying the position of Anglican Eucharistic doctrine is the Thirty-Nine Articles, still in use today. Article XXVIII reverts to a view of the real presence. The opening paragraph states that “the Bread which we break is a partaking of the Body of Christ; and likewise the Cup of Blessing is a partaking of the Blood of Christ. “[11] This is a change from the partaking of the “communion” to the partaking of Christ himself. While there still remains a section on transubstantiation, there is now a section clarifying the presence of Christ in the Eucharist. This section states, “The Body of Christ is given, taken and eaten in the Supper, only after an heavenly and spiritual manner. And the mean whereby the Body of Christ is received and eaten in the Supper is Faith.”[12] The position of partaking of Christ in faith is the position of the Church of England. What exactly this means and what posture a communicant should receive Christ in faith was still a matter of contention in the decades to come.
Charles II became king of England in 1660 and the Act of Uniformity 1662 ordered the Book of Common Prayer again to be the standard usage within the Church of England. The 1662 Book of Common Prayer came about after much deliberation between Presbyterians and Anglicans in the 1661 Savoy Conference.[13] As with the 1552 Black Rubric, the 1662 states that in kneeling, “thereby no adoration is intended.”[14] The 1662 uses similar language to the 1552 regarding no adoration of the bread and wine, and the bread and wine remain bread and wine, while “the natural Body and Blood of our Saviour Christ are in Heaven.”[15] The 1662 Book of Common Prayer remains the official version of the Book of Common Prayer used by the Church of England, with the Black Rubric still in its original place.
The Black Rubric Today
While the 1662 Book of Common Prayer remains the version of The Book of Common Prayer used in the Church of England today, there are two different prominent prayer books used in America: the 1928 and 1979 versions. The 1928 and 1979 Book of Common Prayer used by The Episcopal Church and other Continuing Anglican jurisdictions do not contain the Black Rubric. However, this does not mean that these editions did away with kneeling. The rubric for Holy Communion in the 1928 Book of Common Prayer states that the minister(s) give communion “to the People also in order, into their hands, all devoutly kneeling.”[16] This is keeping with the 1662 Book of Common Prayer that states, “and, after that to the people also in order, into their hands, all meekly kneeling.”[17] The 1979 Book of Common Prayer does not prescribe kneeling for the communicants, stating “The ministers receive the Sacrament in both kinds, and then immediately deliver it to the people. The minister gives the Bread and the Cup to the communicants with these words.”[18] Thus, different versions of the Book of Common Prayer use the tradition of the Black Rubric in different ways.
Conclusion
The history of the Black Rubric is a debate over the right belief given to God during the service of Holy Communion through the reception of the Eucharist. Many Episcopal/Anglican churches still use the practice of kneeling as the communicant receives the bread and wine. Whether one receives the Sacrament kneeling or standing, it is important to remember the words before the service of Holy Communion, to “repent you truly for your sins past; have a lively and steadfast faith in Christ our Saviour; amend your lives, and be in perfect charity with all men; so shall ye be meet partakers of those holy mysteries.”[19]
The Rev. Tanner Moore is an Anglican deacon and a PhD student in history at Purdue University.
[1] The Concise Oxford Dictionary of the Christian Church, “Black Rubric,” Accessed July 11, 2019. https://wwwoxfordreferencecom.ezproxy.lib.purdue.edu/view/10.1093/acref/9780199659623.001.0001/acref-9780199659623-e-720.
[2] ******This is the original language. I figured I would insert the black rubric in its original 1552 form as various versions of the Book of Common Prayer do not contain the original Black Rubric. I can modernize the spelling if you like to make it easier to read if you would like.
The Book of Common Prayer, “The Order for the Administracion of the Lordes Supper, or Holye Communion,” http://justus.anglican.org/resources/bcp/1552/Communion_1552.htm
[3] A. G. Dickens, The English Reformation, Second Edition. (University Park, Pennsylvania State University Press, 1974). 278.
[4] Thomas Cranmer, Ten Articles of Religion, 1534. 4.
[5] Thomas Cranmer, Six Articles of Religion, 1539. 2.
[6] Peter Lombard, The Sentences. Book 4, Distinction X, ch. 2., 4.
[7] Ibid., 359.
[8] For a much more detailed analysis on this change, I recommend Torrance Kirby’s article “Lay Supremacy: Reform of the canon law of England from Henry VIII to Elizabeth I (1529–1571)”
[9] Church of England, Forty-Two Articles of Religion, 1553. XXIX.
[10] Ibid.
[11] Church of England, Thirty-Nine Articles of Religion, 1571. XXVIII.
[12] Ibid.
[13] John Spurr, The Restoration Church of England. (New Haven and London, Yale University Press. 1991) 40.
[14] The 1662 Book of Common Prayer, “The Order for the Administration of the Lord’s Supper, or Holy Communion,” Accessed July 12, 2019. http://justus.anglican.org/resources/bcp/1662/HC.pdf.
[15] The 1662 Book of Common Prayer, “The Order for the Administration of the Lord’s Supper, or Holy Communion,” Accessed July 12, 2019. http://justus.anglican.org/resources/bcp/1662/HC.pdf..
[16] The 1928 Book of Common Prayer, “The Order for the Administration of the Lord’s Supper, or Holy Communion,” Accessed July 12, 2019. http://justus.anglican.org/resources/bcp/1928/HC.htm.
[17] The 1662 Book of Common Prayer, “The Order for the Administration of the Lord’s Supper, or Holy Communion,” Accessed July 12, 2019. http://justus.anglican.org/resources/bcp/1662/HC.pdf.
[18] The 1979 Book of Common Prayer, “The Holy Eucharist,” Accessed July 12, 2019. http://justus.anglican.org/resources/bcp/euchr1.pdf.
[19] The 1928 Book of Common Prayer, “The Order for the Administration of the Lord’s Supper, or Holy Communion,” Accessed July 12, 2019. http://justus.anglican.org/resources/bcp/1928/HC.htm.