Common Worship refers one of the two complementary sets of services and prayers used by the Church of England. The other is the 1662 Book of Common Prayer.
EUCHARIST
The Eucharist (Greek for Thanksgiving) Service is also known as (Holy) Communion or Mass. It is the main Anglican service and in addition to sharing the communion (bread and wine) it includes prayers, hymns, readings from the bible (old and new testament) and the gospel, plus a sermon or address.
MUSIC
The Mass Setting is the music sung at the Eucharist service, consisting of the Kyrie, Gloria, Credo, Sanctus, Benedictus, and Agnus Dei.
Kyrie is a Greek word meaning O Lord. Kyrie Eleison / Christe Eleison = Lord, Have Mercy / Christ Have Mercy.
It is usually only sung during Lent and Advent (in Greek or English), replacing the Gloria.
Gloria is a Latin word (Gloria In Excelsis Deo means Glory Be To God On High). The Gloria is not sung during Lent or Advent and if using the Book of Common Prayer, is usually sung in English.
Credo is Latin for Creed and the Creed is usually spoken in English. Sanctus (Latin for Holy), Benedictus (Latin for Blessed is He), and Agnus Dei (Latin for Lamb of God) are all usually sung in English.
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It is structured as follows:
HM The Queen is the Supreme Governor of the Church of England. Next comes the PRIMACY of All England headed by the Archbishop of Canterbury who has supremacy over the Archbishop of York. These two ARCHBISHOPS head the only two PROVINCES in the Church of England (Canterbury and York).
The provinces are subdivided into many DIOCESES, which have CATHEDRALS and are under the jurisdiction of BISHOPS. They are subdivided into ARCHDEACONRY which are further divided into DEANERIES.
The deaneries consist of many ECCLESIASTICAL PARISHES which are at local level and are run by PAROCHIAL CHURCH COUNCILS. A parish may have more than one church. Parish finances are the responsibility of the Parochial Church Council.
A. Historically, each parish would have had a Benefice, an ecclesiastical office which, under Canon law, carries certain duties and conditions (called the spiritualities) together with certain revenues (called the temporalities). The office holder is known as the Incumbent and parochial benefices were either Rectories, Vicarages or Perpetual Curacies.
A Rectory was a benefice in which a Tithe was paid to the Incumbent who was the Rector and his residential Benefice house was the Rectory.
Many benefices were once owned by monasteries and they were entitled to receive the temporalities (ie the Tithes etc) but they also had to assume the spiritualities (the spiritual care of the parishes). The monasteries would use a third of the Tithe (typically a third) to pay for an agent to act on their behalf (vicariously) and such a person was known as a Vicar. Their house was a Vicarage.
With the decrease in number of clergy numbers, there are now many Benefices that are suspended as soon as they become vacant, so the Bishop assumes the spiritualites and temporalities and appoints someone to conduct these on his behalf whilst under suspension. The person appointed is called a Priest-in-Charge as they are not the Incumbent.
Confused? So am I....
Q. What is the Parish Share?
A. Well, it isn't the church wardens playing the stock market with the weekly collection.... The largest part of the expenditure of each Diocese is on parochial clergy (stipend, housing, national insurance etc.). To meet this they require income and the main income comes from parish share or quota. Parishes are under no legal obligation to pay this but without it a Diocese cannot meet its commitments. Some Dioceses, particularly the older ones, also gain significant income from investments including the old glebe land and from the sale of clergy houses. Therefore, the level of parish share varies greatly from Diocese to Diocese. The level of grants from the Church Commissioners to each Diocese is adjusted in order to give greater assistance to poorer Dioceses.
Q. What is the PCC (Parochial Church Council)?
A. The Parochial Church Council is a group of members of the local church who manage the church on behalf of the parish. They are meant to ensure the spiritual wellbeing of parishioners and to uphold the fabric of the Church and the maintenance of the Church and Churchyard.
Q. What is the General Synod?
A. The General Synod is the national assembly of the Church of England and is responsible for:
Legislation by 'Measure' (to pass Measures which, if approved by resolution of each House of Parliament, receive Royal Assent and thereby become part of the law of England) and by 'Canon' (to legislate by Canon, subject to Royal Licence and Assent)
Relations with other Churches
Regulation of the Church of England’s relations with other churches and provision for matters relating to worship and doctrine.
Liturgy and Doctrinal Assent
To approve, amend, continue or discontinue liturgies and provide for any matter other than the publication of banns of marriage, to which rubrics of the Book of Common Prayer relate. To ensure that the service forms in the Book of Common Prayer continue to be available for use in the Church of England. The decide the form in which ministers and officers of the Church of England are required to assent to the doctrine of the Church of England (the Declaration of Assent).
Deliberation
To consider any other matters of religious or public interest
Finance
To approve (or reject) the central church budget each year.