Page "Book of Common Prayer" Paragraph 10

Further developed, and fully translated into English, this Communion service was included, one year later, in 1549, in a full prayer book, set out with daily offices, readings for Sundays and Holy Days, the Communion Service, Public Baptism, of Confirmation, of Matrimony, The Visitation of the Sick, At a Burial and the Ordinal ( added in 1550 ).

The Preface to this edition, which contained Cranmer's explanation as to why a new prayer book was necessary, began: " There was never any thing by the wit of man so well devised, or so sure established, which in continuance of time hath not been corrupted.

" Although the work is commonly attributed to Cranmer, its detailed origins are obscure.

A group of bishops and divines met first at Chertsey and then at Windsor in 1548, drawn from both conservatives and reformers, agreed only " the service of the church ought to be in the mother tongue ".

Cranmer collected the material from many sources ; even the opening of Preface ( above ) was borrowed.

He borrowed much from German sources, particularly from work commissioned by Hermann von Wied, Archbishop of Cologne ; and also from Osiander ( to whom he was related by marriage ).

The Church Order of Brandenberg and Nuremberg was partly the work of the latter.

Many phrases are characteristic of the German reformer Martin Bucer, or of the Italian Peter Martyr, ( who was staying with Cranmer at the time of the finalising of drafts ), or of his chaplain, Thomas Becon.

However, to Cranmer is ' credited the overall job of editorship and the overarching structure of the book ' including the systematic amendment of his materials to remove any idea that human merit contributed to their salvation.