Lex orandi, lex credendi is a principle of liturgical theology that shapes much of the worship of The Episcopal Church. It is derived from the writings of Prosper of Aquitaine, who in the 5th century said, ut legem credendi lex statuat supplicandi, which translates to “so that the law of praying might establish the law of believing.” Lex orandi, lex credendi can be translated as “the law of prayer is the law of belief,” or even “praying shapes believing.” It describes the reciprocal nature between prayer and belief: one shapes the other, shaping us in the process, too.
This means we should be very thoughtful when we choose our prayers. Many of the words that we pray in Episcopal worship are very old, as you will see in the annotations over the next few weeks. Most of the things we that pray or sing were written at a time when masculine language was used to describe groups that included people of both sexes: mankind instead of humankind, sons instead of children. Additionally, God was described using masculine nouns and pronouns almost exclusively.
This kind of language is problematic. God is not male or female, but if we only use masculine words to refer to God, it diminishes our spiritual imaginations. This errant vision of God lacks transcendence and seeks to make God in our own image. It offers an incomplete vision of God’s plan of salvation, and omits all others who are equally caught up in Christ’s saving work: women, children, and non-binary persons. At its worst, the exclusive use of masculine words has bolstered systems of inequality and oppression which have caused great harm for centuries.
After extensive prayer, dialogue, and reflection, The Episcopal Church now offers “Expansive Language” versions of existing liturgies to address these deficiencies and errancies. Expansive language does not seek to remove all masculine words for God, but it replaces many of them with non-gendered words, most of which are deeply imbedded in our tradition. An excellent example is the opening acclamation: The traditional, masculine words of the trinitarian formula (Father, Son, and Holy Spirit) are retained, while his kingdom is changed to God’s reign in the people’s response. This keeps the original meaning while de-gendering some of the words.
Transfiguration adopted these expansive language liturgies as soon as they were authorized by General Convention. While they can trip up those who know the old prayer book language by heart, they have been gratefully received by many people who now feel closer to the God in whose image of God we were all created. Ultimately, use of expansive language liturgies changes our understanding of God and ourselves because, as we know, praying shapes believing: lex orandi, lex credendi. By occasionally swapping out creator for king, or source of life instead of father of mankind, we can envision a greater God, knowing full-well that God is more expansive than our language will ever be.