[Magdalen] Three Sisters.

[Cantor03 at aol.com]

No, not the volcanos in the Cascade Range of Oregon.
 
Rather the three flagship Anglocatholic parishes of the Philadelphia
area:  Saint Clements, Saint Marks, and Good Shepherd  (Rosemont).
 
Granted there are other high church parishes in the Philadelphia
area, but the three sisters are the famous ones.
 
I was chatting with a clergyman who has been on the staff of all  three
parishes, and is currently Rector of Saint Clement's after several
years as Rector of Saint Mark's.
 
He confirmed that circa 1960, all three of these parishes would have
had a similar liturgies, with minor differences, but it is  fascinating
to see how the three sisters each went their own way in the
subsequent years.
 
A brief summary:
 
(1) Saint Mark's embraced TEC '79 Prayer Book and '82 Hymnal,  the
OW, and moved the high altar out so that at least a portion of the
liturgy could be versus populi.  Their version of the liturgy  includes
the dumping of the Minor Propers.  
 
(2) Saint Clement's has continued its version of the RC Tridentine
Rite always ad orientem.  They continue to use the old  Tridentine
Church calendar with the "Gesima" Sundays and all.  There are no
women clergy celebrating at this parish.  TEC 28 Prayer Book is  used
(with augmentation) and the 1940 Hymnal..  The Minor Proper at  the
main Choral Mass is in Latin out of the Graduale Romanum.
 
(3) Good Shepherd accepted TEC '79 Prayer Book, and the '82 Hymnal
but put out it's own edition of the former in Cranmerian English.   There
was complete non-compliance with OW, and the then Rector became a
bishop in another Anglican group.  There was total disintegration  which
led to litigation, and what is left of this once large congregation is 
a tiny remnant.
 
Someone needs to write a detailed summary of the history of these
three sisters over the past 75 years!
 
 
 
David Strang.