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Resources and tools for Anglican Communion communications.
Welcome to the Comms Hub
Use Directory changes to find and update people, Member Churches and dioceses.
Open Directory changesAbout the Cycle of Prayer
Praying together across the Communion
Each day, the Anglican Cycle of Prayer asks Anglicans to pray for a named church or diocese somewhere in the worldwide Communion. In turn, the Cycle gives a day to each church and diocese in its schedule. For many people, it is a way to pray for places beyond their own parish and diocese, often places they will never visit. It is also a reminder that they belong to a Communion much larger than their own church, and that others pray for them too.
For the ACO, the Cycle is an important way to reach more Anglicans and to deepen our relationship with them. We do not measure its value in page visits. Its value is a regular, useful presence in people's prayer lives, which points each day to a real church and its people.
We will bring the Cycle to a phone application. Many people already use their phone for daily prayer, and the application will support that daily habit. The application is not yet available. We will share details when they are confirmed.
One prayer schedule, several ways to use it
The Cycle has one published prayer schedule. Every output in the diagram above uses that same schedule, so each format gives the same prayer for the same day:
- Daily prayer pages on the Cycle of Prayer website.
- Calendar subscriptions. A subscription adds each day's prayer to a person's own calendar on their phone or computer, and keeps it up to date.
- Prayer content on other websites. An embed lets a parish, diocese or other organisation show the day's prayer inside its own website.
- PDF and spreadsheet downloads, for printing, notice sheets or planning ahead.
- Feeds for applications and other services. A feed is a regularly updated copy of the schedule that other software can read.
- The phone application, when it launches.
People and churches can choose the format that suits how they pray. Because all formats use one schedule, a correction made once reaches all of the updating formats. People do not have to wonder which version is correct.
Who looks after what
The Members Directory supplies the details of each church and diocese, such as its name and the member church it belongs to.
The Cycle of Prayer keeps its own prayer schedule, its church-calendar information (for example, Sundays and festivals) and its editorial decisions.
A Directory correction changes how a church or diocese is described. It does not change who is prayed for on a particular date.
How routine corrections reach the Cycle
- Save the correction in the Communications Hub, under Directory changes.
- The Directory publishes the change.
- Each hour, the Cycle checks for published Directory updates. It takes in the changes it is permitted to use, rebuilds its prayer pages and other outputs, and then checks the result.
Allow around 90 minutes for a routine correction to appear in the published prayer content. This is a guide for normal conditions, not a guaranteed deadline. Calendar apps and other websites refresh on their own timetables, so they can show the change later.
A successful save means the Directory has your change. It does not mean the Cycle has already published it. To check, open Connected services in the Communications Hub. This page shows the last verified Cycle publication and any decisions that are waiting.
For the full steps, see What happens after saving? in the Hub.
Changes that need an editorial decision
Some changes affect the prayer schedule itself, not only the details that people see:
- adding a diocese to the Cycle
- removing a church or diocese that is no longer active
- moving a church or diocese to a different place in the prayer sequence, for example between Sunday and weekday prayers.
Each of these changes can move the prayer dates of other churches and dioceses. Parishes and dioceses may already have plans for their dates. For this reason, the system does not change the agreed schedule by itself. It holds the change until an editor makes a decision. While a decision is waiting, Cycle publication can pause, and this can include routine corrections. Connected services shows any decision that is waiting.
Updated services and saved copies
- Saved copies do not change. Downloaded spreadsheets and PDFs, and printed copies, keep the information from their own edition. If a correction is important, direct people to the current version.
- Connected services do update, but not all at once. Calendar subscriptions and other connected services receive updates. Each one refreshes on its own timetable, so it can show a change later than the website does.
What is available now
- Published for review. The Cycle of Prayer is published at anglicancommunion.org/cycle-of-prayer/. The pages are password-protected at present and are not yet open to the public.
- Prepared, but not yet public. The daily pages, calendar subscriptions, embeds, downloads and feeds are ready on the password-protected site. While the password stays in place, the public, parishes and other websites cannot use them.
- Coming. The phone application is not yet available.
The diagram shows the types of output that the Cycle produces. It does not show which outputs are publicly available.
How you can help
- Correct church or diocese details in the Communications Hub, under Directory changes. This is the only place to make them.
- Check publication in Connected services.
- Report a problem with a prayer date, prayer content or anything else in the Hub: . You can also press Report this next to an error message. A screenshot of the page and its details are attached for you. Please say what you expected to see, or the correction that is needed.
How we choose the prayer dates
One daily prayer.
Two continuing sequences.
Every day has a main church or diocese to pray for. Sundays and other days follow separate lists. A change to church details does not, by itself, change the prayer order.
- SundayChurch A
- Next SundayChurch B
- Next SundayChurch C
- SaturdayDiocese A
- MondayDiocese B
- TuesdayDiocese C
01 / Prayer order
Continue the order. Review changes.
The Cycle continues the order in the previous published Cycle. It is broadly alphabetical, with agreed exceptions. We do not sort the whole list again whenever the Directory changes.
How does each church get its turn?
Each eligible church or diocese gets a turn before its list starts again. The two lists move independently. Churches outside a province, also called extra-provincial churches, take a non-Sunday turn.
Each list needs an agreed starting church or diocese and a starting date. If either is missing or unclear, an editor must resolve it before a schedule can be approved.
The current planning period runs from 1 January 2027 to 31 January 2030. Leap days are included like other days.
What does alphabetical placement mean?
A new diocese is placed among the existing names using the Cycle’s established alphabetical method. Existing dioceses keep their order relative to one another. Accepted exceptions are not removed by sorting the list again.
Editors confirm the name used for ordering. It can differ from the full name shown to readers. A name correction alone does not move a diocese to a different place.
What stays in place during routine updates?
Routine updates preserve the agreed prayer order, published dates and specific decisions made for particular dates. They can correct details such as a church name.
A change that affects who is prayed for, or when, needs a separate editorial decision. The previous published schedule remains in use until an approved replacement is ready.
02 / Church changes
A changed Directory is not a changed schedule.
The Directory tells us which churches and dioceses exist and how they are related. The Cycle decides their place in the prayer schedule.
A new diocese is formed
- Confirm that the diocese should join the Cycle.
- Agree its ordering name and review its alphabetical place among the existing dioceses.
- Prepare its first prayer date and show any effect on other dates.
- Approve the replacement schedule before publication.
Adding a record to the Directory does not complete these steps or assign a prayer date automatically.
A diocese closes or becomes inactive
We keep the old record for history. An inactive diocese must not receive new future assignments. However, a Directory change does not silently remove a prayer that is already in the published schedule.
An editor reviews the affected future prayers and agrees a replacement schedule. We do not assume that every closure should move all later dates forward. That treatment is specifically agreed for mergers; a closure on its own still needs a decision about its affected dates.
Two or more dioceses merge
Agreed rule: the new diocese does not inherit a predecessor’s place or prayer date. Each merger still needs a reviewed and approved replacement schedule.
- Remove the predecessorsKeep their historical records, but remove them from the future diocesan sequence.
- Place the new dioceseUse its agreed ordering name to insert it alphabetically among the remaining dioceses.
- Recalculate and compareUse the available future diocesan dates. Show the new diocese’s first date and every other date that changes.
The new entry and all predecessor removals form one change for review. The new diocese’s date follows from its new place. It does not take either predecessor’s old date.
Editors agree the first date that can change. Past dates remain unchanged. Later diocesan dates can move earlier or later.
Keep unchanged: Member Church Sundays and their order, extra-provincial prayer dates, specific prayers agreed for particular dates, additional prayers and church-calendar observances.
If a predecessor has a specially agreed prayer date, editors must decide what happens to that prayer. If it is the agreed starting diocese, they must also agree a new start. These questions must be resolved before approval.
This describes the decision process. This page does not provide a form to approve or publish a merger.
A name or church relationship changes
A corrected name does not move a diocese in the sequence. Routine changes to details can flow from the Directory into a new edition.
If a change would move a church between the Sunday and non-Sunday lists, or otherwise affect its prayer dates, it needs editorial review first.
03 / Church calendar
A feast adds context, not a replacement prayer.
The Cycle uses Common Worship names and the agreed calendar rules below. Churches use different local calendars, so this is not a complete calendar for every church.
Easter, Lent and the Sundays around them
Easter Day determines the dates of Ash Wednesday, Holy Week, Ascension, Pentecost and Trinity Sunday. The Sunday after Easter Day is the Second Sunday of Easter.
The three Sundays before Lent also show their older names:
- Third Sunday before Lent — Septuagesima.
- Second Sunday before Lent — Sexagesima.
- Sunday before Lent — Quinquagesima.
The Day of Thanksgiving for the Institution of Holy Communion, also called Corpus Christi, falls on the Thursday after Trinity Sunday.
All Saints, Advent and Christmas
All Saints’ Day stays on 1 November, including when that date is a Sunday. The Last Sunday after Trinity is the Sunday before 1 November. It is not found by counting a fixed number of Sundays from Trinity.
Advent begins on the fourth Sunday before Christmas. Christ the King is the Sunday before Advent. Christmas Day stays on 25 December and Epiphany on 6 January.
We do not automatically move every feast when dates coincide. The Cycle uses its agreed rules for the observances it includes.
Anglican Communion Sunday
Anglican Communion Sunday is the Sunday after 26 May. If 26 May is itself a Sunday, it falls on 2 June.
It is not moved to avoid another feast. If it shares a date with Pentecost or Trinity Sunday, that feast keeps its main heading. Anglican Communion Sunday is shown alongside it.
Seasons and additional observances
Christmas continues through 5 January. Epiphany season follows until Lent begins on Ash Wednesday. Lent continues until Easter; Easter season continues until Pentecost.
The Season of Creation runs from 1 September to 4 October. Additional prayers and observances sit alongside the day’s main prayer focus.
Lesser festivals are not included because churches follow different calendars of saints.
Which details still need a decision?
Some proposed details are not yet settled. These must not be treated as agreed annual rules:
- The intended dates for Thy Kingdom Come in future years.
- The wording for a proposed Feast of Creation in Christ on 1 September.
- Confirmation of an additional Easter Day prayer for Jerusalem.
These questions do not authorise automatic changes to the published schedule.
04 / Review and approval
Check the whole effect before publishing.
- 1Prepare
Confirm the change, the ordering name and the first date that can change.
- 2Compare
Show the new schedule against the published one. Check every changed date and every date that must stay fixed.
- 3Approve
An authorised editor or administrator approves the specific replacement schedule.
- 4Publish and check
Publish the approved edition and verify its outputs. Keep previous editions unchanged.
Approval and publication are separate steps. A routine Directory update cannot approve a new prayer order.
Saved PDFs, spreadsheets and printed copies keep the information from their own edition. Calendar subscriptions and other connected services update on their own timetables.
Check publication and waiting decisions in Connected services →
Provisional examples
These editable Word and PowerPoint files are working examples. They are not approved ACO templates. Replace them after the official files are ready.
STAFF FILES
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