The Alcuin Club is an

Anglican Anglicanism, also known as Episcopalianism in some countries, is a Western Christianity, Western Christian tradition which developed from the practices, liturgy, and identity of the Church of England following the English Reformation, in the ...

organization seeking to preserve or restore church ceremony, arrangement, ornament, and practice in an orthodox manner. The organization was founded in 1897 and named after

Alcuin of York Alcuin of York (; ; 735 – 19 May 804), also called Ealhwine, Alhwin, or Alchoin, was a scholar, clergyman, poet, and teacher from York, Northumbria. He was born around 735 and became the student of Archbishop Ecgbert at York. At the invita ...

. It was a reorganization of an earlier group, the Society of St. Osmund, which was formed in 1889. The Alcuin Club's first publication, ''English Altars'' by W. H. St. John Hope, appeared in 1899. The club was especially dedicated to the ''

Book of Common Prayer The ''Book of Common Prayer'' (BCP) is the title given to a number of related prayer books used in the Anglican Communion and by other Christianity, Christian churches historically related to Anglicanism. The Book of Common Prayer (1549), fi ...

'' and conformity to its exact

rubric A rubric is a word or section of text that is traditionally written or printed in red ink for emphasis. The word derives from the Latin , meaning red ochre or red chalk, and originates in medieval illuminated manuscripts from the 13th century or ...

. The club sought to provide academic and dispassionate vetting for proposed revisions to this Book. The club was active in the debate over the rewriting of the ''Book of Common Prayer'' in the 1920s. The club's publications were read by ecclesiastical scholars, not a popular audience. In order to reach a broader audience, the Anglican priest

Percy Dearmer Percival Dearmer (27 February 1867 – 29 May 1936) was an English Anglican priest and liturgist best known as the author of ''The Parson's Handbook'', a liturgical manual for Anglican clergy, and as editor of ''The English Hymnal''. A lifelong ...

and later faculty member of King’s College for sacred art, worked to spread the club's message. He sought to win artists and craftsmen with high aesthetic standards for liturgical work in churches and chapels. Its influence faded after the 1950s and it is now dedicated to studying ceremony of all

Christian A Christian () is a person who follows or adheres to Christianity, a Monotheism, monotheistic Abrahamic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus in Christianity, Jesus Christ. Christians form the largest religious community in the wo ...

churches. The club has members in the United Kingdom and many in the United States. From the beginnings, the club promoted

bibliophile A bookworm or bibliophile is an individual who loves and frequently reads or collects books. Bibliophilia or bibliophilism is the love of books. Bibliophiles may have large, specialized book collections. They may highly value old editions, aut ...

reprints. Its second publication, for instance, was ''Exposition de la messe'' from ''La legende dorée'' of

Jean de Vignay Jean de Vignay (c. 1282/1285 – c. 1350) was a French monk and translator. He translated from Latin into Old French for the French court, and his works survive in many illuminated manuscripts. They include two military ...

, including illuminations reproduced from holdings in the

Fitzwilliam Museum The Fitzwilliam Museum is the art and antiquities University museum, museum of the University of Cambridge. It is located on Trumpington Street opposite Fitzwilliam Street in central Cambridge. It was founded in 1816 under the will of Richard ...

; these had little immediate connection to the ''Book of Common Prayer''. Today, the Alcuin Club selects works on liturgy, ceremony, and

hagiography A hagiography (; ) is a biography of a saint or an ecclesiastical leader, as well as, by extension, an adulatory and idealized biography of a preacher, priest, founder, saint, monk, nun or icon in any of the world's religions. Early Christian ...

for awards.

References

External links

*
Selected bibliography
from

Project Canterbury Project Canterbury (sometimes abbreviated as PC) is an online archive of material related to the history of Anglicanism. It was founded by Richard Mammana, Jr. in 1999 with a grant from Episcopal Church Presiding Bishop Frank T. Griswold, and is ...

Anglican organizations Anglo-Catholicism Text publication societies Christian organizations established in 1897 {{Anglicanism-stub

See also

References

External links