When is incense used in
the Episcopal Church? "During the first three centuries of the Christian era
there was no ceremonial use of incense in the church's worship... The use of
incense in one way or another has been common to all the historic liturgies
since the beginning of the sixth century at the latest... Those Anglican
churches which use incense today usually follow the Roman use of it." [from
"Incense" in The New Westminster Dictionary of Liturgy and Worship, pp.
265-6]
"Some of the aversion which
many English people still show towards the use of incense in our services is
due to the elaborations ... in which the clinking of chains and the elaborate
censing of persons and things are apt to occupy an undue prominence in the
liturgy." [from Dearmer and Pocknee, The Parson's Handbook, p. 98]
"This is perhaps the most
controversial of the ceremonial practices considered... Its use calls for
considerable pastoral sensitivity, and it should be omitted if it proves
divisive or offensive. ... Anglican tradition as a whole uses it with caution
and restraint." [from Stuhlman, Prayer Book Rubrics Expanded, pp. 25-6]
Some worshippers report allergies that are triggered by incense, and many choir
members have discovered that during services incense adversely affects their
vocal cords.