The Revd. Dr. Robert Crouse
Dr. Crouse held the position of Honorary President of the Prayer Book Society for many years until his death in 2011. He was one of the guiding lights of the PBSC from its very earliest days. Sharing his deep learning, spiritual wisdom, thoughtful advice and steadying perspective, his influence shaped the direction of the Society throughout tumultuous times. This selection of articles authored by him consists of those that are most directly relevant to the Prayer Book and the PBSC. Many more of his writings and sermons can be found posted under “The Recollected Pastor”, on the website of St. Peter Publications.
Tribute
- In Memoriam – Robert Crouse
The Rt. Revd. Anthony Burton, formerly Bishop of Saskatchewan and currently rector of the Church of the Incarnation in Dallas, Texas, reminisces about the life and enduring influence of Dr. Crouse. Read here.
By Dr. Robert Crouse
- The Spirituality of Advent
In this article, written for the Advent 2009 issue of the PBSC Newsletter, Dr. Crouse points out the ancient origins of the BCP eucharistic lectionary readings for the four Sundays in Advent, and explores the intertwined themes running through them. Read here. - The Logic of Lent
In this address delivered in Toronto in 2004, Dr. Crouse explains the coherence and interconnectedness of the Bible readings that are appointed in the Prayer Book eucharistic lectionary for Lent and the three Sundays preceding it. Read here. - The Essence of Anglicanism
A lecture delivered by Dr. Robert Crouse at Regent College, Vancouver, on October 3, 2002, to the Vancouver Branch of the PBSC. Dr. Crouse explains how the Prayer Book forms the cornerstone of the Anglican way of being Christian. Read here. - The Catholicity of the Prayer Book: “The Form of Sound Words”
An address given in Toronto in 1999, on the occasion of the 450th anniversary of the first Book of Common Prayer. Dr. Crouse demonstrates how catholic the Prayer Book was and is, in its continuity with the living tradition of the Church. Read here. - “That They May Be Made Perfect In One” (St. John 21:16)
A sermon preached by Dr. Crouse in 1996 on the occasion of the 10th anniversary of the founding of the PBSC, commending the Society’s work in upholding the BCP as “the distinctive glory of Anglicanism” and as a means of unifying the church. Read here. - The Lectionary – The Heart of the Prayer Book System
This article appeared in the July 1996 issue of the PBSC Newsletter. In it, Dr. Crouse shows how the Trinitytide readings in the BCP lectionary lead us “into an ever deeper and clearer perception of Christian truth and the essentials of Christian life”. Read here. - Anglican Spirituality and the Book of Common Prayer
In this essay, published in “The Machray Review” in 1994, Dr. Crouse reflects upon the Anglican tradition of prayer as “an habitual language of devotion, rich with associations… deeply engraved upon minds and hearts … thoroughly biblical in its images and inspiration”. Read here. - Hope Which Does Not Disappoint
An address delivered to the Essentials ’94 Conference in Montreal. Dr. Crouse urges that “fundamental to any genuine renewal of Christian life in our church and ourselves must be a renewal in the essential Christian virtues of faith, hope and charity”. Read here. - Baptism, Confirmation and Holy Communion: The Prayer Book Tradition in Theological Perspective
In this article from 1987, Dr. Crouse explains the traditional Prayer Book system of Christian initiation, especially the place of Confirmation in relation to Baptism and Holy Communion, demonstrating that it is “consistent and cogent, historically and doctrinally”. Read here. - Eucharistic Doctrine in the Prayer Book
Dr. Crouse gives a thorough but accessible explanation of Archbishop Thomas Cranmer’s teaching as to how Christ is present in the Holy Communion and about the nature of the eucharistic sacrifice, praising Cranmer’s “profound and precise Biblical and Patristic scholarship”. Read here. - The Book of Common Prayer in Historical and Theological Perspective
An introductory paper presented by Dr. Crouse at the 1985 Atlantic Theological Conference on the Prayer Book, showing how the BCP provides a focus of Anglican unity and identity, and how liturgy should not be a matter for casual experimentation. Read here.