Dear readers,

Each of the three major divisions of the ancient eucharistic lectionary begins with an emphasis on love. Thus the Epistle for the First Sunday After Trinity begins, ‘Beloved, let us love one another: for love is of God; and every one that loveth is born of God, and
knoweth God’ (1 John 4:7). This strikes the keynote for this third and longest division of the church year, focused on our sanctification, which has in view the interior transformation of our nature into the image and likeness of the God who is Love, through Jesus Christ. One of the chief ways that this transformation is effected is through our regular participation in ‘these holy mysteries’ the sacrament of Christ’s body and blood, whereby the Word conveyed to our ears by preaching is put into our hands and mouths, as Cranmer has it (and Bishop Robinson discusses in his paper). Therefore, it is fitting that this Trinity Issue of The Anglican Way features papers from the last Anglican Way Conference: ‘These Holy Mysteries’: The Anglican Doctrine of the Eucharist.

The first three papers you will find herein are the papers read in the first session of the conference, ‘Conflict and Consensus’. Bishop Peter Robinson takes us on a whistle-stop tour of Anglican eucharistic doctrine, Professor Kirby explores Bishop John Jewel’s theology of sacramental presence, and your humble correspondent investigates whether the Scottish Liturgy contains a different eucharistic doctrine from the English. To these we have appended a brilliant paper on sacramental theology by the late Robert Crouse, whose spirit and memory were very much present at the conference.

In “Arts & Music” we have a reflection on Randall Thompson’s Easter anthem Alleluia by Dr Murphy, followed by a poem of mine, ‘On Dragons’. Fittingly, the next installment I Am His, the catechetical course authored by the Revd Dunbar, chairman of the Prayer Book Society included in this Trinitytide issue explains what the Prayer Book Catechism teaches about God the Holy Ghost, by whom those united to Christ by faith and baptism are sanctified and transformed. Finally, this issue concludes with a special dispatch from the field, for our editor’s endnotes – Art Editor, John Hager, whose sketches are featured on the cover, reflects on his recent visit to St Catherine’s Monastery on Mt Sinai.