Uniformity, Act Of
Legal definition for Indian law research
Definition
Uniformity, Act of, (English) 14 Car. 2, c. 4, 'for the Uniformity of Public Prayers and Administration of Sacraments and other Rites and Ceremonies and for establishing the Form of making, ordaining, and consecrating Bishops, Priests, and Deacons of the Church of England' (now partly repealed), received the Royal Assent on May 19, 1662 and came into operation on August 24 (the feast of St. Bartholomew) following (see Lane's Notes on English Church History).
After a long preamble setting forth the preparation of the Prayer Book by several Bishops and other Divines appointed by the King, its approval by the two Convocations, and stating that 'nothing more conduceth to the peace of this nation, nor to the honour of our religion and the propagation thereof, than an universal agreement in the public worship of Almighty God.' The Act directs that:
All and singular ministers in any cathedral, collegiate or parish church or chapel or other place of public worship within this realm of England, dominion of Wales and town of Berwick upon Tweed shall be bound to say and use the morning prayer, evening prayer, celebration and administration of both the sacraments and all other the public and common prayer in such order and form as is mentioned in the said book annexed and joined to this present Act.... And that the morning and evening prayers therein contained shall upon every Lord's day and upon all other days and occasions and at the times therein appointed be openly and solemnly read by all and every minister or curate in every church, chapel or other place of public worship within this realm of England and places aforesaid.
There followed a direction to every beneficed minister to read in his church on some Sunday before august 24, 1662, a declaration of assent to the Book and all its contents on pain of deprivation, and it is still enacted, that resident incumbents keeping curates shall personally and at least once monthly read the Prayer Book service in their churches, on pain of a 5l. penalty, and that no person except an ordained priest shall be beneficed or administer the Sacrament on pain of 100l. penalty. There are savings for Latin prayers in the college chapels of Oxford and Cambridge Univer-sities and in the convocations of either province.
Earlier Acts of Uniformity.-The Act of 1662 is the Act of Uniformity par excellence, but it had been preceded by three other Acts of Uniformity, each prescribing its own Prayer Book (2 & 3 Edw. 6, c. 1, 5 & 6 Edw. 6, c. 1, and 1 Eliz. c. 2), all expressly confirmed by s. 20 of the Act of 1662, which directs that they 'shall be applied, practised and put in use for the punishing of all offences contrary to the said laws with relation to the book aforesaid and no other,' and also included (though not by name) in the definition of 'Act of Uniformity' contained in s. 1 of the Act of Uniformity Amendment Act, 1872 (45 & 46 Vict. c. 35). These earlier Acts allow offences against them to be tried at assizes by judge and jury with diocesan assessorship, and impose very severe punishments on convicted offenders-imprisonment for life being the punishment on a third conviction.
Later Acts (UK).-The Prayer Book (Table of Lessons) Act, 1871 (34 & 35 Vict. c. 37), has established a new lectionary; and the Act of Uniformity Amendment Act, 1872, above referred to, has authorized (1) shortened, (2) special, and (3) additional services, 'so that there be not introduced into such additional service' any portion of the Communion Service, 'or anything, except anthems or hymns, which does not form part of the holy scriptures, or book of Common Prayer,' and so that the form and mode of use is approved by the ordinary. The Public Worship Regulation Act, 1874, has also added to the remedies for clerical deviations from uniformity. An alternative lectionary has been provided by the Revised Table of Lessons Measure, 1922 (12 & 13 Geo. 5, No. 3).
See Chitty's Statutes, tit. 'Church and Clergy,' for the later Acts; and for the earlier Acts, see the Statutes Revised, 2nd Edn., Vol. i., and Lely's Church of England Position, and see also PUBLIC WORSHIP REGULATION ACT, 1874.
After a long preamble setting forth the preparation of the Prayer Book by several Bishops and other Divines appointed by the King, its approval by the two Convocations, and stating that 'nothing more conduceth to the peace of this nation, nor to the honour of our religion and the propagation thereof, than an universal agreement in the public worship of Almighty God.' The Act directs that:
All and singular ministers in any cathedral, collegiate or parish church or chapel or other place of public worship within this realm of England, dominion of Wales and town of Berwick upon Tweed shall be bound to say and use the morning prayer, evening prayer, celebration and administration of both the sacraments and all other the public and common prayer in such order and form as is mentioned in the said book annexed and joined to this present Act.... And that the morning and evening prayers therein contained shall upon every Lord's day and upon all other days and occasions and at the times therein appointed be openly and solemnly read by all and every minister or curate in every church, chapel or other place of public worship within this realm of England and places aforesaid.
There followed a direction to every beneficed minister to read in his church on some Sunday before august 24, 1662, a declaration of assent to the Book and all its contents on pain of deprivation, and it is still enacted, that resident incumbents keeping curates shall personally and at least once monthly read the Prayer Book service in their churches, on pain of a 5l. penalty, and that no person except an ordained priest shall be beneficed or administer the Sacrament on pain of 100l. penalty. There are savings for Latin prayers in the college chapels of Oxford and Cambridge Univer-sities and in the convocations of either province.
Earlier Acts of Uniformity.-The Act of 1662 is the Act of Uniformity par excellence, but it had been preceded by three other Acts of Uniformity, each prescribing its own Prayer Book (2 & 3 Edw. 6, c. 1, 5 & 6 Edw. 6, c. 1, and 1 Eliz. c. 2), all expressly confirmed by s. 20 of the Act of 1662, which directs that they 'shall be applied, practised and put in use for the punishing of all offences contrary to the said laws with relation to the book aforesaid and no other,' and also included (though not by name) in the definition of 'Act of Uniformity' contained in s. 1 of the Act of Uniformity Amendment Act, 1872 (45 & 46 Vict. c. 35). These earlier Acts allow offences against them to be tried at assizes by judge and jury with diocesan assessorship, and impose very severe punishments on convicted offenders-imprisonment for life being the punishment on a third conviction.
Later Acts (UK).-The Prayer Book (Table of Lessons) Act, 1871 (34 & 35 Vict. c. 37), has established a new lectionary; and the Act of Uniformity Amendment Act, 1872, above referred to, has authorized (1) shortened, (2) special, and (3) additional services, 'so that there be not introduced into such additional service' any portion of the Communion Service, 'or anything, except anthems or hymns, which does not form part of the holy scriptures, or book of Common Prayer,' and so that the form and mode of use is approved by the ordinary. The Public Worship Regulation Act, 1874, has also added to the remedies for clerical deviations from uniformity. An alternative lectionary has been provided by the Revised Table of Lessons Measure, 1922 (12 & 13 Geo. 5, No. 3).
See Chitty's Statutes, tit. 'Church and Clergy,' for the later Acts; and for the earlier Acts, see the Statutes Revised, 2nd Edn., Vol. i., and Lely's Church of England Position, and see also PUBLIC WORSHIP REGULATION ACT, 1874.
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