The Confraternity of the Blessed Sacrament (CBS), officially the Confraternity of the Blessed Sacrament of the Body and Blood of Christ, is a devotional society in the
Anglican Communion
The Anglican Communion is the third largest Christian communion after the Roman Catholic and Eastern Orthodox churches. Founded in 1867 in London, the communion has more than 85 million members within the Church of England and other ...
dedicated to venerating the
Real Presence
The real presence of Christ in the Eucharist is the Christian doctrine that Jesus Christ is present in the Eucharist, not merely symbolically or metaphorically, but in a true, real and substantial way.
There are a number of Christian denomin ...
of Christ in the
Eucharist
The Eucharist (; from Greek , , ), also known as Holy Communion and the Lord's Supper, is a Christian rite that is considered a sacrament in most churches, and as an ordinance in others. According to the New Testament, the rite was instit ...
. It has worked to promote the
Mass
Mass is an intrinsic property of a body. It was traditionally believed to be related to the quantity of matter in a physical body, until the discovery of the atom and particle physics. It was found that different atoms and different elementar ...
as the main Sunday service in churches, regular
confession
A confession is a statement – made by a person or by a group of persons – acknowledging some personal fact that the person (or the group) would ostensibly prefer to keep hidden. The term presumes that the speaker is providing information th ...
, and the
Eucharistic fast. The society's motto is ''Adoremus in aeternum sanctissimum sacramentum'', or in English, "Let us forever adore the Most
Blessed Sacrament
The Blessed Sacrament, also Most Blessed Sacrament, is a devotional name to refer to the body and blood of Christ in the form of consecrated sacramental bread and wine at a celebration of the Eucharist. The term is used in the Latin Church of the ...
".
It is the oldest
Anglican devotional society
Since the time of the Oxford Movement in the Church of England, there have been organizations whose purpose is the propagation of the Catholic Faith within the Anglican Communion. Each of these societies champions one aspect of Ritualism and Angl ...
. In its present form it resulted from the amalgamation on 26 February 1867, of two older societies: the Society of the Blessed Sacrament, founded in 1860, and the Confraternity of the Blessed Sacrament, founded in 1862 by
Thomas Thellusson Carter
Thomas Thellusson Carter (19 March 1808 – 28 October 1901), often known as T. T. Carter, was a significant figure in the Victorian Church of England. He was responsible for reintroducing some Catholic practices to the church and bein ...
during the
Oxford Movement in the
Church of England
The Church of England (C of E) is the established Christian church in England and the mother church of the international Anglican Communion. It traces its history to the Christian church recorded as existing in the Roman province of Britain ...
. Members are known as associates.
Duties of associates
Associates and priests-associate (the constitution differentiates between the two, but the requirements are identical) of the Confraternity of the Blessed Sacrament strive to promote reverence for
Jesus
Jesus, likely from he, יֵשׁוּעַ, translit=Yēšūaʿ, label=Hebrew/Aramaic ( AD 30 or 33), also referred to as Jesus Christ or Jesus of Nazareth (among other names and titles), was a first-century Jewish preacher and religious ...
in the Holy Eucharist through the witness of their lives, words, prayers and teaching. They pray for one another at Mass and before the
Blessed Sacrament
The Blessed Sacrament, also Most Blessed Sacrament, is a devotional name to refer to the body and blood of Christ in the form of consecrated sacramental bread and wine at a celebration of the Eucharist. The term is used in the Latin Church of the ...
and make use of the
Sacrament of Reconciliation
The Sacrament of Penance (also commonly called the Sacrament of Reconciliation or Confession) is one of the seven sacraments of the Catholic Church (known in Eastern Christianity as sacred mysteries), in which the faithful are absolved from s ...
.
Structure
Autonomous provinces
The confraternity consists of autonomous provinces, of which there are currently two - the English (and original) CBS and the American CBS - each led by a superior-general and administered by a secretary-general and treasurer-general. Additionally there are semi-autonomous branches of CBS in both Canada and Australia, though currently neither has the numerical strength to become a fully autonomous province, and so they remain part of the English CBS. The English CBS is also active in
Sweden
Sweden, formally the Kingdom of Sweden,The United Nations Group of Experts on Geographical Names states that the country's formal name is the Kingdom of SwedenUNGEGN World Geographical Names, Sweden./ref> is a Nordic country located on ...
,
Wales
Wales ( cy, Cymru ) is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. It is bordered by England to the Wales–England border, east, the Irish Sea to the north and west, the Celtic Sea to the south west and the ...
and the
Channel Islands
The Channel Islands ( nrf, Îles d'la Manche; french: îles Anglo-Normandes or ''îles de la Manche'') are an archipelago in the English Channel, off the French coast of Normandy. They include two Crown Dependencies: the Bailiwick of Jersey, ...
. Currently lacking structure, there are fledgling CBS movements in parts of
Africa
Africa is the world's second-largest and second-most populous continent, after Asia in both cases. At about 30.3 million km2 (11.7 million square miles) including adjacent islands, it covers 6% of Earth's total surface area ...
.
Districts
Within an autonomous province of CBS there may be a further level of structure known as a "district". The English CBS is divided into 23 districts. A district is led by a "district superior", who may appoint a "district secretary", and is a collection of all the wards within a particular region.
Wards
The local unit of CBS is known as a "ward". Members of the confraternity meet together in local wards for prayer, worship and mutual support under the guidance of a
priest
A priest is a religious leader authorized to perform the sacred rituals of a religion, especially as a mediatory agent between humans and one or more deities. They also have the authority or power to administer religious rites; in particu ...
as "ward superior", assisted by a "ward secretary". Each ward decides its own annual programme of events and the ward superior has authority to admit new associates (although he must consult the district superior or superior-general before admitting a new priest-associate).
Many wards are attached to a local
parish
A parish is a territorial entity in many Christian denominations, constituting a division within a diocese. A parish is under the pastoral care and clerical jurisdiction of a priest, often termed a parish priest, who might be assisted by one or m ...
, although this is not necessary according to the constitution, which merely requires a priest-associate (as ward superior) to gather other associates around himself in order to form a ward. In recent times a number of priests-associate have formed wards which are not attached to any parish church. Examples in the English CBS include:
*The Ward of the Sacred Heart, attached to the Diocese of Lincoln and holding a meeting once a year;
*The Ward of St Cuthman - attached to the
Deanery of
Storrington and holding meetings throughout that deanery;
*The Ward of the Precious Blood - attached to the Deanery of
Horsham and holding meetings throughout that deanery;
*The Ward of St Mary and St Nicolas - attached to
Lancing College
Lancing College is a public school (English independent day and boarding school for pupils aged 13–18) in southern England, UK. The school is located in West Sussex, east of Worthing near the village of Lancing, on the south coast of England. ...
and for the benefit of members of that school who belong to CBS;
*The Ward of St Brigid - a geographically vast ward, uniting scattered CBS members throughout Sweden.
There remain unattached associates of CBS, who live too far from any ward to be able to participate in its life. These unattached associates receive updates and news directly from the secretary-general.
Finances
The English CBS has benefited from a number of generous bequests and careful financial management and has consequently built up considerable financial reserves. These allow it to provide grants of vessels and vestments to priests celebrating the Eucharist and reserving the Blessed Sacrament in poorer parishes and also to provide financial support to large projects and conferences, including the annual
Caister Conference.
In early July 2011, controversy broke when it was first rumoured, then reported in ''The Times'',
that the confraternity had made a grant of £1 million to the
Personal Ordinariate of Our Lady of Walsingham
The Personal Ordinariate of Our Lady of Walsingham in England and Wales is a personal ordinariate in the Latin Church of the Catholic Church immediately exempt, being directly subject to the Holy See. It is within the territory of the Catholic B ...
, thus divesting itself of more than half its assets. Christopher Pearson, superior-general of the confraternity, was reported (by
Ruth Gledhill
Ruth Gledhill (born 1959) is an English journalist and is a former religion affairs correspondent for ''The Times'', a post she left in 2014. Gledhill was the last full-time newspaper journalist dedicated to religious affairs in the UK. She is c ...
)
[ in ''The Times'' as stating that the trustees believed, having taken legal advice, that the grant was compatible with the charitable objects of the confraternity, a view which Pearson also stated in a letter to members of the confraternity.] This was disputed by others, including Paul Williamson who described the grant as "a disgrace" and made formal complaints to both the Archbishop of Westminster and the Charity Commission. In June 2012 the Charity Commission for England and Wales stated that following a "substantial number of complaints" it had carried out an investigation and judged the grant to be improper in that a majority of the trustees of CBS who authorised the grant were themselves members of the ordinariate, meaning that "the majority of the Trustees ada (financial) personal interest in the decision". The commission ruled that the grant was both "invalid" and "unauthorised".[ The commission also appeared to rule out any similar grants in the future, when it stated: "there is substantial doubt whether the Confraternity could make a grant to the Ordinariate (even with restrictions) which could be applied by the Ordinariate consistently with the objects of the Confraternity".] Shortly after the publication of the Charity Commission's findings the superior-general (Christopher Pearson), secretary-general, and treasurer-general of CBS, who were all members of the ordinariate, resigned. The full £1 million grant was repaid to the confraternity, with interest.[
]
Other points of interest
The English CBS publishes a quarterly newsletter and prayer schedule, known as the ''Quarterly Paper'' or ''QP'', and sent to all associates. Other publications include ''The Constitution'', ''The Manual'', and ''The Directory'' (of districts and wards).
There are copies of the society's manuals in the Library and Museum of Freemasonry
Freemasonry or Masonry refers to fraternal organisations that trace their origins to the local guilds of stonemasons that, from the end of the 13th century, regulated the qualifications of stonemasons and their interaction with authorities ...
in London
London is the capital and largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary down to the North Sea, and has been a majo ...
, listed under Classmark 1295 CON.
Members of the Confraternity were instrumental in the founding (in 1869) of a religious order of Anglican nuns whose work was to make reparation (by prayer) for what the founders perceived to be dishonour to Jesus through the historic attitude of the Church of England to the Blessed Sacrament. The sisters were known as the Community of Reparation to Jesus in the Blessed Sacrament (CRJBS).
Bishop Roger Jupp
Roger Alan Jupp (born 1956) is a British Anglican bishop. He was the Bishop of Popondota from 2003 to 2005. He returned to parish ministry because of ill-health.
Early life
Jupp was born in London and brought up in Blackheath. He was educate ...
is the current superior-general in the United Kingdom.[Officers liste]
here
. The Secretary-General of the American branch is the Very Reverend Father William Willoughby III. The Reverend Canon Brian Freeland leads the Canadian organisation.
Notable members
* John Bauerschmidt
* C. P. A. Burnett
* Thomas Thellusson Carter
Thomas Thellusson Carter (19 March 1808 – 28 October 1901), often known as T. T. Carter, was a significant figure in the Victorian Church of England. He was responsible for reintroducing some Catholic practices to the church and bein ...
* Loren N. Gavitt
* Charles Chapman Grafton
Charles Chapman Grafton (April 12, 1830 – August 30, 1912) was the second Episcopal Bishop of Fond du Lac, Wisconsin.
Early life and education
Born on April 12, 1830, in Boston, Massachusetts, he became an ardent supporter of the Oxford M ...
* Reginald Mallett, Superior-General of the American Branch, 1946-1965
* Dan Martins
* James W. Montgomery
* Robert Alfred John Suckling
* Grieg Taber
* Granville M. Williams SSJE
See also
*Anglo-Catholicism
Anglo-Catholicism comprises beliefs and practices that emphasise the Catholic heritage and identity of the various Anglican churches.
The term was coined in the early 19th century, although movements emphasising the Catholic nature of Anglican ...
*Catholic societies of the Church of England
The Catholic societies of the Church of England are associations within the Church of England which follow in the tradition of Anglo-Catholicism. They may be devotional, theological or pilgrimage-focused in nature. Many trace their origins to the C ...
*Guild of All Souls
The Guild of All Souls is an Anglican devotional society dedicated to prayer for Afterlife, faithful departed Christians. As stated on its website, it is a "devotional society praying for the souls of the Faithful Departed, and teaching the Cathol ...
*Guild of Servants of the Sanctuary
The Guild of Servants of the Sanctuary or GSS is an association of altar servers in the Church of England and the Church in Wales, with some overseas organisation in several other countries.
Objectives and Membership
The Guild states its objecti ...
*Society of King Charles the Martyr
The Society of King Charles the Martyr is an Anglican devotional society dedicated to the cult of King Charles the Martyr, a title of Charles I of England (1600–1649). It is a member of the Catholic Societies of the Church of England, an Ang ...
*Society of Mary (Anglican)
The Society of Mary is an Anglican devotional society dedicated to and under the patronage of Mary, mother of Jesus. As its website states, it is a group of Anglican Christians "dedicated to the Glory of God and the Holy Incarnation of Christ un ...
*Society of the Holy Cross
The Society of the Holy Cross (SSC; la, Societas Sanctae Crucis) is an international Anglo-Catholic society of male priests with members in the Anglican Communion and the Continuing Anglican movement, who live under a common rule of life that i ...
References
{{Reflist
External links
Confraternity of the Blessed Sacrament UK
Confraternity of the Blessed Sacrament US
an
Confraternity of the Blessed Sacrament - Australian Region
The Confraternity of the Blessed Sacrament
historical documents from Project Canterbury Project Canterbury (sometimes abbreviated as PC) is an online archive of material related to the history of Anglicanism. It was founded by Richard Mammana, Jr. in 1999 with a grant from Episcopal Church Presiding Bishop Frank T. Griswold, and is ho ...
Confraternity of the Blessed Sacrament Lincoln
The Swedish CBS Blog - Confraternity of the Blessed Sacrament in Sweden
Anglican Priests Eucharistic League
Anglo-Catholicism
Anglican Eucharistic theology
Confraternities