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The Anglican Eucharist in New Zealand 1814-1989

Anglican Eucharist in New ZealandMy thesis is on the history of the Eucharist (Holy Communion) from the first one in Aotearoa New Zealand (1814) to the publication of the revised Anglican Prayer Book, A New Zealand Prayer Book He Karakia Mihinare o Aotearoa (1989).

You can download a PDF version of the thesis here (7MB).

This is the story of changing from one of the most liturgically conservative, conforming Anglican churches to being one of the most radical and varied. There are ritual controversies, fights, disputes, and ecclesiastical court cases. Parishioners throw the processional cross in the river when they object to processions. There is the account and analysis of the heady quarter of a century that culminated in A New Zealand Prayer Book He Karakia Mihinare o Aotearoa.

It is an easy read for those who just want the story. For those who want the fine details there are extensive, thorough notes. Access to all the archives meant that you can follow the behind-the-scenes draft by draft changes the Commission went through, for example. In the case of the Eucharistic Prayers you can easily follow their development as the Prayer Book Commission revised year by year.

[Some may even open two copies of the thesis – to go more easily from the story in the text to notes and back.]

A 44 page abbreviation of my thesis The Anglican Eucharist in New Zealand, 1814-1989 was published as Joint Liturgical Study, Alcuin GROW #21, (1992). That short book is also available here.

You can read the thesis online at Scribd here.

The Anglican Eucharist in New Zealand 1814-1989