Prayer & Worship Resources
The Holy Bible
The Episcopal Church uses several Bible translations in its worship; at the Cathedral, we use the New Revised Standard Version (NRSV). The selected readings for each service are guided by the Revised Common Lectionary (for Sundays and other principal feasts and services) and the Daily Office from the Book of Common Prayer.
Book of Common Prayer
The Book of Common Prayer (BCP) 1979 is the book authorized by The Episcopal Church as the common book used to guide our worship. It is used by all churches of the Anglican Communion (the world-wide affiliation of churches with a “family tree” that traces back to the Church of England). First published in 1549, its purpose was to provide a common prayer book for all English churches to use in place of the Latin language service rites. Each church in the Anglican Communion has its own version of the BCP. In the Episcopal Church, there have been four editions of the Book of Common Prayer. As noted above, our current prayer book, and the one we use at the Cathedral, is the Book of Common Prayer 1979.
A wide selection of BCPs, including both the 1928 (the former version) and 1979 BCPs as well as BCPs from other countries are available from major book sellers. The BCP is also available in electronic form:
- Online version
- Older versions of the Prayer Book
- Versions of the BCP used in other countries
- E-reader versions are also available for e-readers:
The Church Calendar
Throughout the year, the Cathedral Church of St. Paul celebrates and remembers many feast days of those who are honored in the church calendar. The Episcopal Church maintains an updated liturgical calendar here.
Daily Office Readings
In the tradition of the Episcopal Church, daily prayer and Scripture reading is a core practice for our churches, and individual prayer life. In the Prayer Book tradition, many individuals pray the offices at home, at work, or wherever they are throughout the day. A central online resource for daily prayer, including full text for the offices, a calendar, and the Forward Day by Day meditations, can be found at the Forward Movement website.
The Society of St. Nicholas Ferrar is another resource in support of praying the Daily Office. You can find more information about them here.
Forward Day By Day
Forward Day By Day is a daily devotional and prayer resource that is available from the Resource Rack located just to the left of the elevator in the Gallery. There are regular pocket sized and large print editions. It is available daily online at the Forward Movement website and you can also purchase the Forward Day By Day app – available for Android (Google Play store) and iPhone/iPad (App Store).