The Sanctus in the Eucharistic Prayer

the treatment of the sanctus by the sixteenth-century Reformers must be seen within a twofold context. First, when discussing tropes, we noted that medieval manuscripts regarded the canon as beginning with Te igitur, and the sursum corda, preface, sanctus and benedictus were regarded as a separate preliminary unit. The result was that the sanctus and benedictus could be regarded as congregational and choir items. The Reformers never had reason to question this understanding, and their target was the canon of the mass, and not harmless chants. The sanctus, therefore, was an item which could either remain because it was of no doctrinal consequence, or could be replaced by something more useful and fitting.

Secondly, the foundation rites of the Reformation were the writings and recommendations of Martin Luther, and the rites prepared in Switzerland by Zwingli and Oecolampadius. This is not to deny the individual contributions by Bucer at Strasbourg, Calvin at Geneva, or Cranmer in England. However, they drew upon the experience and precedents set by the earlier Reformers.

LUTHERANISM

In his early writings, such as the Babylonian Captivity of the Church, 1520, The Misuse of the Mass, 1520, and Receiving Both Kinds, 1522, Luther suggested that since the stumbling block in the mass was the canon and anything which spoke of sacrifice, then priests should simply omit anything which referred to sacrifice. The entire canon could be omitted and replaced with the words of institution, or a prayer shorn of any hint of offering. Thus, the sursum corda-preface-sanctus unit could remain intact, though not all proper prefaces were doctrinally acceptable. Much to Luther's annoyance, some German Reformers put his advice into practice.