An examination of the liturgical rituals of the high festivals of the year and their reflection in the secular church. This volume presents an examination of the liturgical rituals of the high festivals from Christmas to Ascension in late Anglo-Saxon England, particularly in the secular church. It expands the current knowledge of liturgical practice in a period where there is little direct evidence, using vernacular homilies and sermons - important but neglected sources of information - to explore the extent to which monastic practices were extended to the secular church.The performative nature of litury and its spiritual, emotional and educative value receive particular attention; the author argues that preachers were often unconsciously influenced by the liturgical experience of an episode rather than by the biblical narrative which they were ostensibly retelling. M. BRADFORD BEDINGFIELD gained his D.Phil. at Oxford University.

New research into the liturgy of Anglo-Saxon history, with important implications for church history in general. The essays in this volume offer the fruits of new research into the liturgical rituals of later Anglo-Saxon England. They include studies of individual rites, the production, adaptation and transmission of texts, vernacular gospeltranslations, liturgical drama and the influence of the liturgy on medical remedies, poetry and architecture; also covered are the tenth-century Benedictine Reforms and the growth of pastoral care. It will be valuable for anyoneinterested in later Anglo-Saxon England as well as medieval liturgy and church history.