Auden, the Psalms, and me

In this class, guest lecturer J. Chester Johnson presents his story of the retranslation of the psalter for the 1979 Book of Common Prayer. Johnson served on the drafting committee for that project, taking the place of W. H. Auden in 1971, when the poet returned to England. Despite Auden’s ambivalence about making changes to the American Book of Common Prayer, he wrote several articles and poems on the topic, and authored many letters ‚Äì including several to Johnson himself ‚Äì of spiritual and theological significance. Johnson is one of two surviving members of the drafting committee that produced the retranslation, for which he received a special citation in December, 1979 from the Standing Liturgical Commission of the Episcopal Church. Johnson’s book, Auden, the Psalms, and Me, will be published in September, 2017 by Church Publishing.

• Theology Events