Nortish Rite/Draught

Nortish Rite
Divine Service according to the Nortish Rite is often sung with quire.
Part of a series on the Church of Nortend
Liturgy	Nortish Rite
Theology	Akeepian Frympellite
Structure Places Sulthey Cathedral Abbey Lendert Cathedral Priory Chepingstow Cathedral Minster Polton Cathedral Minster Allord Abbey University of Aldesey Nortish religious houses Churchmen Archbishop of Sulthey Archbishop of Limmes Archbishop of Rhise
Art and Music	Church music Illuminated manuscripts Architecture

Worship and ceremonies according to the use of the Church of Nortend constitute the Nortish Rite of Great Nortend. Divine Service in the form of the mass, hours and other occasional offices that is undertaken under the authority and jurisdiction of the Church of Nortend must follow the form authorised and set forth by the Crown along with the Frympell translation of the Holy Bible.

History

Cardinal Miers, Archbishop of Sulthey, sought to undertake a reform of the Church's liturgy.

Sir Charles de Henfoot was Master of the Commission charged with producing an English service.

The Divine Service of the Church of Nortend is a descendent of the uses of the Roman Rite which had prevailed in Great Nortend since the Christianisation of the country. In the Middle Ages, Divine Service was almost wholly in Latin and consisted of the mass, as well as daily hours of prayer — Vigils , Mattins, Prime, Tierce, Sext, Nones, Vespers and Compline—as well as the rites and ceremonies for occasional offices such as baptisms, confirmations, marriages, ordinations and funerals.

Alexander I led a reformation of the Church in Great Nortend with the Small Schism of 1614 which involved inter alia the rejection of the authority of Rome. Notwithstanding, the Latin liturgy continued in use through the archbishopric of Cardinal Frympell who aligned himself as a moderate Lutheran reformer. The installation of Cardinal George Miers as Archbishop of Sulthey in 1704 hastened liturgical reform towards a more evangelical or reformed Lutheran divine service under the young Edmund VI.

Henfoot Commission

Sir Charles de Henfoot, the Provost of the Chapel Royal, was appointed by Cardinal Miers to be Master for a „Commission for the Divine Service” to undertake the task of reforming the liturgical books. Henfoot presented preliminary draughts in 1706 for the mass and hours, in Latin to be translated into English upon authorisation. However, it was met with little enthusiasm from both the Frympellite and the Akeepian clergy, the former complaining of its retention of the repetitive mediæval monastic pattern of seven long hours unsuitable for public, secular worship and the latter rejecting the more Protestant theology of the mass being a mere remembrance. Edmund, counselled by the Lord Treasurer the Count of Cardenbridge, wrote to Henfoot expressly requiring that the Commission rework its proposals to satisfy both camps.

The Commission thus returned to its draught and made a number of significant changes. Importantly, the hours of prayer were reduced to two major hours — Mattins and Vespers — whilst following a lectio continuo pattern of continuous reading though the whole Old and New Testaments throughout the year. The use of anthems, responsories and hymns were considerably simplified, albeit retained their mediæval organisation. For the mass, the Commission reworked its replacement for the Roman Canon, more explicitly returning to a sacramental view towards the Holy Eucharist. The order also enjoined again the customary acts of bowing by the priest, although it continued to prohibit the reservation of the Host for „gazing-upon, carrying-about or uplifting”. Frympellites refused to authorise the Book unless the elevations of the bread and chalice at their consecrations were forbidden, and a rubric was inserted to the same effect.

The Latin Henfoot „Book of Hours and Masses” was finally approved by Parliament in 1711 and authorised by Edmund through the canon Quia solliciti. The authorised English translation was published that same year and commended for use throughout the Realm.

Divine Service

Hours

The Church of Nortend has two greater hours of daily prayer, being Mattins and Vespers, or Morning and Evening Prayer. Mattins and Vespers are said daily through the year in every parish church, cathedral and college and by every clerk in holy orders, professed monks, minchens, canons and nuns. Additionally, there are two lesser hours of daily prayer, being Prime and Compline, which are popular as private devotions before mass and before sleep respectively.

Mattins and Vespers share the same basic structure, consisting mainly of psalms, lessons and prayers. After the opening verses, Mattins always begins with the „Venite” and Vespers with the „Domine clamavi” with their anthems, before a hymn and the psalms. The entire Psalter is divided such that on every day of the month, there are five psalms or portions of psalms said at each of Mattins and Vespers. Following the psalms, there are three lessons from Scripture or Homily appointed. After each lesson, a responsory is said or sung while on certain double festivals, there are nine shorter lessons appointed instead at Mattins with eight responsories, the Te Deum being sung for the ninth. There is then a Gospel canticle sung at each of Mattins and Vespers; at the former, the „Benedictus” and at the later, the „Magnificat”, which are sung with an anthem. This is followed by the „Kyrie eleyson”, the „Credo” and „Pater noster”, further verses, collects, remembrances and prayers.

The structure of Responsories throughout the year is as follows. From Trinity unto Advent, the Responsories are taken from the Old Testament books (or „histories”) being read in the first lesson. During Advent until Epiphany the Responsories are proper. After Epiphany until Septuagesima, the Responsories are taken from the Psalms. From Septuagesima through Lententide, the Responsories are taken again from the Old Testament books, beginning with Genesis. From Easter until Trinity, the Responsories are proper again.