The
Book of Common Prayer is the short title of a number of related
prayer books used in the
Anglican Communion, as well as by the
Continuing Anglican, "
Anglican realignment" and other Anglican churches. The original book, published in 1549 , in the reign of
Edward VI, was a product of the
English Reformation following the break with
Rome. Prayer books, unlike books of prayers, contain the words of structured (or
liturgical) services of worship. The work of 1549 was the first prayer book to include the complete forms of service for daily and Sunday worship in English. It contained
Morning Prayer,
Evening Prayer, the
Litany, and
Holy Communion and also the occasional services in full: the orders for
Baptism,
Confirmation,
Marriage, '
prayers to be said with the sick' and a
Funeral service. It also set out in full the "
propers" (that is the parts of the service which varied week by week or, at times, daily throughout the Church's Year): the
collects and the
epistle and
gospel readings for the Sunday Communion Service.
Old Testament and
New Testament readings for daily prayer were specified in tabular format as were the
Psalms; and
canticles, mostly biblical, that were provided to be said or sung between the readings .