Richard Hooker Clergy Seminar

By
Clergy Seminar – Reading Richard Hooker’s Laws of Ecclesiastical Polity

In discussions of Anglican theology and identity, Richard Hooker is often referred to, rarely read, and frequently misunderstood. One of the most important thinkers in the Anglican tradition, Hooker has been claimed by Anglo-Catholics, Evangelicals, and Broad Church adherents alike as one of the Anglican Church’s presiding spirits. Hooker’s magisterial Laws of Ecclesiastical Polity [1593-7] is a comprehensive defence of the Elizabethan Settlement and the English Prayer Book. Compared to the popularity of the works of his contemporary, William Perkins, the Laws was not a runaway best-seller and received a mixed reception at its publication from various quarters in the English Church. Indeed, there is some evidence that Books VI-VIII, published posthumously, may have been suppressed. In this monthly seminar, open to all clergy, we shall read through the Laws, with an eye on the historical context, the history of the reception of the text, and its continued value as a theological resource. We will also examine how we might introduce Hooker‘s work and thought to lay people in the parishes in which we serve.
One of the impediments to reading Hooker has been the sophistication (and in some cases the impenetrability) of his Elizabeth prose. Recently, the Davenant Institute has published a “modern translation” of the Preface and first four books of the Laws (the fifth book is currently in preparation). This may be one way in which we can re-introduce Hooker to the laity. Participants in the seminar are invited to read Hooker in either the original [Keble’s edition is readily available online] or in the Davenant rendering, which may be purchased through Amazon. In the first session, the facilitator will provide background context to prepare us for the reading of the text.
The Laws of Ecclesiastical Polity in Modern English, Vol. 1 Paperback
Belschner, Marr, and Littlejohn, editors.
Davenant Press, 2019. ISBN 978-1949716917, $30.05 cdn
The Works of that Learned and Judicious Divine Mr. Richard Hooker, Vol. 1 [1888]
John Keble, editor (can be easily found in reprints or online)
Vol 1
Vol 2
Vol 3

To register, contact Dan Graves:  associate@trinityaurora.ca

Course Schedule (2021-22)

April (2021): General Background
May: Lawes, Preface
June: Lawes, Book I
July: Lawes, Books II-IV
Sept: Lawes, Book V 
Oct: Lawes, Book V (cont'd)
Nov: Lawes, Book VI
Jan (2022): Lawes, Book VII
Feb: Lawes, Book VIII

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Why Was Peter Fishing Naked?

By
Image
“Just after daybreak, Jesus stood on the beach; but the disciples did not know that it was Jesus. Jesus said to them, ‘Children, you have no fish, have you?’ They answered him, ‘No.’ He said to them, ‘cast the net to the right side of the boat, and you will find some.’ So they cast it, and now they were not able to haul it in because there were so many fish. That disciple whom Jesus loved said to Peter, ‘It is the Lord!’ When Simon Peter heard that it was the Lord, he put on some clothes, for he was naked, and jumped into the lake. But the other disciples came in the boat, dragging the net full of fish, for they were not far from the land, only about a hundred yards off.” (John 21:4-8) When we preach on this, the last of the Resurrection appearances in St. John’s Gospel, we rarely stop to ask the question, why was Peter fishing in the nude? After all, the story from which this short excerpt is taken contains so many wonderful images on which we might otherwise preach: the multitudinou
Read more

Restoring a Reed Organ, Part 13: Recovering the Bellows and Exhausters

By DFG
Image
 After we stripped the cloth off the reservoir and exhausters, we sanded them down so that they were nice and clean with no glue or material residue remaining   The bellows had been recovered in 1905 and the restorer had left a penciled note on the inside of the reservoir.  The exhausters, however, were original. They were "harmonium style", that is, with large ribs with leather hinges and leather gussets. The conventional wisdom as that novices like us should not attempt to recreate these on the first go-around.  We decided we would just recover the exhausters using bellows cloth (more on that, below).   We cleaned off the old ribs and sanded them down so that we could use them again in the exhausters. We then set them aside while we moved to work on the main reservoir. We rehinged the bellows board to the movable reservoir board (for some reason I didn't take any photos of that) and then while waiting for the hinge to dry w
Read more

Restoring a Reed Organ: Part 3 - Resources

By
Image
Last time, I promised a post on the resources that we would be using to restore our Mason and Hamlin reed organ.   I got a little behind on that and we have now begun work on the organ, so here is a little “catch-up” post with the promised information. One of the gurus of reed organs was the late Robert Gellerman.   Gellerman has a very useful book entitled, The American Reed Organ and Harmonium , which not only gives instruction on reed organ restoration, but includes a detailed history of the American reed organ.   He also has a detailed chapter on tuning, as well as designs for organ benches, stop face fonts, and much more.   Gellerman also is the compiler of the Reed Organ Atlas , which is a directory of reed organ manufacturers, where they were located, and known serial numbers by years.   It is a very helpful resource for identifying and dating the old reed organ in the church basement or in the attic of the proverbial “Aunt Maude.” A book that seems to stir much contr
Read more