Mutual Enrichment: The Old Missals and the Modern Lectionary

At St. Francis we use the old missals, primarily the English Missal and the American Missal, with the modern lectionary of the 1979 American BCP and the Roman Lectionary. For a number of years we used Fr. Tange's adaptation of the Novus Ordo to the 1979 BCP and we continue to use his Gradual for the so-called 'minor proper' on Sundays.  Quite frankly we grew tired of using note book liturgies and inserts in the altar missal. The solution was to continue to use the newer lectionary (despite its problems because this is the requirement of Bishop Iker) but in conjunction with the American Missal (the very fine edition put out by the  Lancelot Andrewes Press) on Sundays and the English Missal (1958) for daily Mass. (we have the Associated Parishes reprint of the Anglican Missal but this in practice has proved itself less useful.) 

There are inevitably some problems with divergent calendars and readings to be worked out. The communion antiphons on Sundays are not of course  coordinated with the newer lectionary. But since we use and print in the bulletin on Sundays Fr. Tange's Gradual text this is easily accounted for. The collects are the collects of the 1928 BCP, for the most part the ancient collects unlike the 1979 BCP,  an improvement over the 1979 collects. The Missal on the altar also allows us easily to commemorate the saints with a second collect. We have produced a supplement to take into account the commemorations of new saints and the newer dates of the older commemorations.

The result, I must say, is a greater appreciation of the traditional liturgy along with also an appreciation of the the richness of the modern lectionary.