Auden, The Psalms, and Me

A first person narrative, key to the work and prayer of the current Book ofCommon Prayer Appeal to those interested in literature or in the history of the BCPIn the nearly 40 years since the advent of the 1979 Book of Common Prayer, theretranslation of the Psalter created for that book has become a standard, usednot only by Episcopalians, but adopted by others into their own worship servicebooks and liturgies. Now J. Chester Johnson, one of the two surviving membersof the Committee that produced the retranslation, has agreed for the first time tocalls to tell the story of this Psalter and the little-known but vital part played in it byacclaimed poet W. H. Auden, whom Johnson replaced on the committee whenAuden decided to return to live in England. Despite Auden's ambivalence aboutchanges in the Episcopal Book of Common Prayer, he wrote associated articles andpoems, authored many letterssome of special liturgical and spiritual significanceand attended Psalter drafting committee meetings. Auden, The Psalms, and Me notonly illuminates this untold part of the Episcopal Psalter story but also describes thekey elements that drove the creation of this special retranslation.