them for whom thou wert pleased to shed thy Blood and we supplicate for those for whose welfare thou didst sacrifice thy Body They also believed that as long as they did Communicate they did enjoy the company of those blessed Spirits and that when they were kept from the Lord's Table they were under the power of Satan for Excommunication was a terrible sentence to them and the worst of punishments so great an affliction did they account that which is now our choice being fully perswaded that he who was shut out of the Church here without a deep Repentance and Absolution must necessarily be kept out of the Kingdom of Heaven And May God of his great Mercy and Goodness give his Holy Spirit to all that are called Christians that they may put a just value on the Priviledges of the Church of God that they may Honour Reverence and Frequent the Holy Sacrament which is the Communion of Saints and may dread the being justy deprived of those advantages that we may neither excommunicate our selves from thy Table nor deserve the censures of the Church to drive us from it but that thy fear may be upon us all the days of our Life through Jesus Christ our Lord Amen CHAP. XXIII Of the abuse of the Sacrament to evil ends IT is an Observation confirm'd by sad Experience That the best of things or persons when they degenerate prove the worst of their kind and it is also as sadly confirm'd That the best of enjoyments when employed to bad ends and purposes prove the causes of the greatest mischiefs and this is demonstrated as by many other instances so by the abuse of the Divine Institution of the Holy and most Advantageous Sacrament of the Eucharist to serve the designs of sensual ambitious and covetous men very great alterations having been made both in the Doctrine and Rites of that Sacrament from the Primitive Institution and Original Practise Of this Nature I must confess there are some things that seem to me not so fairly defensible in the Centuries that preceded the Establishment of Popery such as * Aug. op imperf adv Julian l. 3. c. 164. the making Plaisters of the Eucharist to Cure Blindness or other Diseases ‡ Id. de C. D. l. 22. c. 8. the Celebrating of this Sacrament in a private house to expel the Evil Spirits that haunted it * Nicet Paphl Vit. Ignat. Theop. an 20. Heracl the dipping Pens in the Consecrated Wine when they either Sealed Covenants or condemn'd a notorious Heretick †Ambr. in ob Satyr Fratr the tying it about the neck as an Amulet in the time of Imminent danger ‡ Hesyc in Levit. l. 2. c. 8. the burning or burying the remainders of the Consecrated Elements or ‡ Evagr. l. 4. c. 35. giving them to School-boys and such like persons who were not present at the Consecration with other such usages but I remember that those were the days of Miracles and Extraordinary men might make use of uncommon methods and that it becomes not me to uncover the Nakedness of the Fathers especially because at this distance of time few men are capable of understanding the reasons why they did many things at which we now wonder And it were to be wisht the same Apology were so made for the succeeding Ages wherein strange Opinions and as Novel Customs had their Original for then the reverence due to the mysteries degenerated into Superstition and Idolatry and the Mysteries themselves were many times applyed to unbecoming usages and on trifling occasions For men would not be content to believe that God was really present in the Sacrament but they were resolved to study a way how to make him so by a Method that baffles sense and contradicts reason and to this purpose men begun not to be satisfied with the common Bread in which the Eucharist was Anciently Celebrated the bread that was usually eaten at ordinary meals was thought unfit for this sacred use and therefore unleavened bread and wasers were introduc'd and this perhaps was the practise of the eighth Century and in two or three Hundered Years after the notion of Transubstantiation began to be owned but in such an Age which Baronius and other Historians say was the shame of the Papacy when there was neither Learning nor Vertue at Rome but the greatest ignorance and the greatest debauchery imaginable and with this Doctrine the half communion was introduc'd the people being Sacrilegiously rob'd of the Cup for sear they should in Receiving spill the Blood of Christ after which the Schoolmen first amus'd themselves and then their neighbors with impertinent inquiries relating to these Mysteries which made neither themselves nor others wiser or better and what number of Miracles were then coyned to uphold the new Doctrines that when reason would not perswade men to believe they might be convinc'd by wonder and extraordinary apparitions People being told that the Bread by the Prayers ‖ Jo. Diac. vit Greg. l. 2. c. 41. of St. Gregory the Great was turn'd into a piece of Flesh in view of all the people that our ‡ Paschas c. 14. de Corp. Dom. Saviour frequently appear'd on the Altar in the shape of a beautiful Boy ‡ Vid. Pinelli meditat 4. p. 126. ad p. 146. That St. Antony of Padua's Mule worshipt the Host and that Bees in their Hive built a Chappel to an Host which was by the owner put there to increase his stock And thus by degrees it grew to be a God till at last it had a Festival appointed called Corpus Christi day on which it is solemnly prayed to as at other times it is bow'd down to and Adored And as the Ark of the Govenant was carried before the Camp of the Israelites so the ‡ Hey l. Hist of Reform p. 70. Cornish Rebels in Edw. 6 time carried the Consecrated Host under a Canopy with Crosses Banners and other such solemn appendages before them in hopes thereby to get a certain Victory and as the Kings of Persia had their Immortal Fire carried before them to is this Sacrament carried before the Pope on solemn days and as Anciently men swore by the Name of God so they now swear by the Sacrament and did not Pope Hildebrand confult this Sacrament as as an Oracle to know what success he should have against the Emperor of Germany and when it did not answer expectation threw it into the Fire if we may believe Cardinal Benno and if he be doubted there are other ‡ Vid Orland in Hist Soc. Jes l 12. ss 48. p. 394. li. 16 ss 22. p 544. Instances out of more Authentiek and uncontroverted Authors to prove the usage and how often hath the Pix been brought out to quench Fires As was lately done at ‡ V. Daille de obj Cult Relig. li. 1. c 10 p. 138 Con Saligunst c 6. Avenion by the Popes own Legal Governor of that City when the
our great Master at that season first gave Being to the Sacrament dispensing with Peoples eating before they received which at other times was not allowed And ⸪ Aug. Ep. 118. in some of the African Churches they celebrated the Eucharist twice on this day in the morning for the sake of those who intended to dine and in the evening for the sake of those who fasted and in the * Ludolph li. 3. c. 6. alii Aethiopick Churches to comply the more exactly with the practice at the Institution they use unleavened Bread whereas all the rest of the Year they celebrate in Leaven And the ‖ Prateol de Haer. p. 202 Guid. Car. Alph. a Castro c. Greeks are perswaded that the Sacrament consecrated on Maundy-Thursday is of more Virtue and Efficacy than when it is consecrated at any other time and therefore they and the Moscovites in imitation of them reserve some of the Sacramental Bread consecrated on this day to be administred to the sick the whole Year following and it is not a little remarkable that among the Roman-Catholicks in Holland and as ‖ Ep. Vossio init Ep. Ecclesiast Theolog. Ep. 557. p. 807. Grotius thinks elsewhere time out of mind until now on this day after Supper the Father or Master of the Family in imitation I suppose of the Jewish Custom after the eating of the Passover having read the History of the Sacrament out of the Gospel gives to every one of his Family a piece of bread dipt in Wine This day is also called among the High-Germans Green Thursday among the Low-Germans White Thursaday and among our Forefathers Sheer Thursday as it was generally and among all the Western Christians Lavipedium and Maundy-Thursday either because of the Maundy or Alms that were given this day to the Poor by Princes Bishops and religious Persons or rather because of the Mandate or Command John 13.34 A new Commandment I give unto you that ye love one another which Passage is the Antiphona for this day in the Wâ—stern Churches an Instance of which Love and Condescention our Blessed Saviour then gave when-he wash'd his Disciples Feet which in the East was the Office of Servants toward their Masters and this Custom also is not only continued in the ‡ Smith p. 40 41. Greek Church and among the other Oriental Christians but in the Latin Church also the Bishop performing this Office to his inferior Clergy and the Governour of every Religious House to those of his Fraternity the custom being Ancient and Apostolical ‡ V Conc. Aquisgr c. 20. Aug. Ep. 119. c. 18. tho the practice as to circumstances were not uniform in all Churches and on this day the King of England anciently in his own Person now by Proxy the Grand Almoner supplying the place does wash the feet of as many poor men as he is Years old to whom also he gives an Alms as the Bishops do on the same occasion which was wont to be called the * Anastas in Adrian P.P. p. 112. Paschal Alms or the Easter Charity The Lessons on this day if I mistake not the Fathers were the Book of ‡ Ambr. ub supr Jonas a very proper Portion of Scripture to set forth the Divine Pity and inclinations to forgive and the ‡ Chrys ub supr History of Judas's Treason together with the Account of the Institution of the Blessed Sacrament The Epistle 1 Cor. 10.16 THE Cup of Blessing which we bless is it not the Communion of the Blood of Christ The Bread which we break is it not the Communion of the Body of Christ for we being many are one Bread and one Body for we are all Partakers of that one Bread The Gospel out of the Evangelists and St. Paul THE Lord Jesus the same Night in which he was betray'd after his Disciples had eaten the Paschal Lamb took Bread and when he had given Thanks and Blessed it be brake it and gave it to them and said Take Eat This is my Body which is broken and given for you This do in remembrance of me after the same manner also when he had supped he took the Cup and when he had given Thanks he gave it to them saying Drink ye all of it for this is my Blood of the New Testament which is shed for you and for many for the remission of sins This do as oft as ye drink it in remembrance of me Verily verily I will no more drink of the Fruit of the Vine until I drink it new with you in my Father's Kingdom and they all drank of it And having sung an Hymn they went out to the Mount of Olives The MEDITATION THE Condition of Mankind in this Life is relative and made up of dependancies upon Heaven nor could Adam in his best Estate subsist without the Benediction of his Maker Communion with God is the End of Religion and was the Employment of Paradise nor can any thing else make the World happy But because God who is a pure Spirit cannot converse with men without condescending to treat us according to our Capacities therefore Truth when it visits us is content to be drest in our Habits when God speaks to us he entertains us not with his own Losty and Majestick Expressions but with modes of Speech and Representations of Things that we are acquainted with It is true had we been made without Flesh and Blood our Graces had come to us like themselves not wrapt up in Emblems and Figures but because we cannot live without our senses and are most affected with what we hear and see theresore God speaks to our outward man in visible ministrations the Almighty Wisdom treating the World with sensible Objects the better to lead them to the Contemplation of those things that are invisible and this was the cause why Rites and Ceremonies were instituted in the Church as marks of Communion and incentives of Devotion Angels we know who are not clogg'd with a load of Flesh and Blood and whose dwelling is above have no need of Sacraments they who have the Honour of a clear Vision of the Almighty and the freedom of a more immediate Converse with him need not these remoter Encouragements to Piety and such also shall be the Happiness of God's Servants after they dye but man in his best and most innocent Estate wanted them and therefore God planted and by a particular sanction constituted the two Trees in Eden to be two Sacraments outward and visible sings of the Favour which Adam should partake of if he perform'd the conditions of obedience which God required from him they representing to him the state of Wisdom and Felicity which was reserved for him in Heaven and serving to inform him that to attempt the knowledg of the highest Mysteries to the prejudice of the Divine Commands is not the way to Life and Immortality To maintain this Union with God Adam was endued with Original Righteousness he had no
Reward from my Father that seeth in secret And tho on every day I give my God my earliest attendance yet on the days of my solemn Vows I bind my self to prevent the morning that in the beginning of the watches I may pour out my heart like water before the Lord. Thus every day will be a day of business and traffick and every night I shall be some steps nearer to my Fathers Palace The Collect. GRant Lord that when I serve thee in secret I may do it with a true and upright heart and that all my publick performances may be encouragements to others to love and praise and adore thee that I may pray fervently and thank thee heartily and read carefully and meditate seriously and fast humbly and live conscientiously all the days of my life in hopes at my death to be admitted into thy presence through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen CHAP. I. Of the Obligations of Religion especially the Sacraments to Holiness WEre the Christian Religion to be judg'd of by the excellency of its Author and the purity of its Precepts by the wisdom of its contrivance and the usefulness of its designs it would need no other Credentials that it came down from Heaven and that its Original was from God But if we judg of it by the practices of its professors who under the mask of Piety allow themselves in all sorts of sensuality who scruple not to break all their Vows made to their Maker tho confirm'd and renew'd in the presence of Men and Angels and sealed by the most precious Body and Blood of the Son of God who call themselves Saints and yet live more irregularly than Brutes This very consideration is enough to encline a man to applaud the Morals of the Heathen World and to believe that either that body of holy Precepts is not the Gospel of the blessed Jesus or such men are not professors of it so strongly are the generality of Mankind in a loose and ungovernable Age bent towards Vice and Ruin Nor can it otherwise be expected when men put on the form of godliness in defiance to the power of it and think that the Redemption wrought out for them by Christ is only a deliverance to do all sort of abominations Nor can I give a better Reason why the Christian World are so degenerate from truth and holiness than that so few of us reflect on the Obligations of the Covenant that we have enter'd into with God tho so often and so solemnly acknowledged by us that we confidently lay claim to the Priviledges but never mind the Duties of Religion May our gracious God so mercifully forgive me and the rest of sinners our former neglect as we may resolve for the time to come to alter our course and put on more becoming Resolutions and faithfully make good what we have so solemnly promis'd our Redeemer For when I seriously and as becomes a Christian consider with my self the Relation which every baptized person hath to the Son of God and that that initiatory Sacrament was design'd as to free him from his share in Adam's sin so to engage to a life of Obedience to the Laws of our blessed Saviour and that therefore we are buried with him in baptism that like as Christ was raised up from the dead by the glory of the Father even so we also should walk in newness of life reckoning our selves to be dead indeed unto sin but alive unto God through Jesus Christ our Lord I cannot but remember that among all those holy and beneficial Precepts which he hath blest the World with that is none of the least in advantage and usefulness that injoins me to do as he did in remembrance of his Passion the great cause of our redemption and happiness and encourages me to frequent communicating because as often as I do eat that bread and drink that cup so often do I show forth the Lords death till he come so often do I call to mind my old promises of obedience and conformity to the divine prescription and enter into new engagements to love and adore my Saviour How eagerly therefore ought my soul to pursue after and to embrace all Opportunities of coming to that holy Table where God exhibits himself Happy are those Servants of his who stand continually before him and keep themselves always in that frame of mind that fits and encourages them to communicate every day Happy are those men who only want Occasions but are never defective in intention or preparation who are never without the Wedding Garment nor without Oyl in their Lamps How did our dear Saviour long to institute the Sacrament * Luke 22.15 with desire did he desire to eat the passeover at the close of which the Eucharist was celebrated before he suffered And shouldst not thou my soul as earnestly long to receive it Were this Sacrament like that of Baptism not to be re-iterated or but once only in my life to be received and that just before my death with what ardors of mind should I wish to be dissolv'd that I might thus also be with my Saviour And must the Blessing because it is common be for that Reason cheap Is the bread of Heaven become contemptible because it may be my daily food But remember O my soul it is not enough to approach this Venerable Altar unless thy Repentance be sincere thy Sorrow hearty thy Resolutions unalterable thy Piety flaming and thine Alms generous My preparations should be the same with those of dying persons not of those who have lived loosly all their days in hopes to make their faint desires of Heaven when the pleasures of the Earth have deserted them to pass for true love to those joys but of those who all their lives long have been crucified to the world My care ought to be so to approach Gods Table on Earth as if I were the next moment to be carried by Angels to eat bread with him in his Kingdom It is true I am too sensible that this is more easily talkt of than done that when the good Man is acting the Priest and sacrificing himself to God then Satan is at his right hand perplexing him And I have sadly experimented how difficult it is to deny my self to put off the Old Man and to crucifie my transgressions But is it not O my soul much more sad and difficult more uneasie and distracting to be confin'd to utter darkness and to endure the tortures of Hell in a remediless Eternity To argue from a present state of ease is a shortness of discourse that is not to be allowed Were I never so passionately bent to gratifie an unreasonable Lust I doubt not but I should be afraid to proceed did any man but threaten me with immediate death if I should pursue my unlawful design And ought I not with greater Reason to forbear when that God who can neither lie nor deceive threatens me with everlasting damnation Am I afraid of the
pity who being just ready to celebrate these Venerable Mysteries was so unnessarily and unseasonably and uncharitably angred by Eusebius Bishop of Valentinople that he was forc'd to desist from the Office and to desire Pansophius Bishop of Pisida to consecrate for him being perswaded that that occasional anger was an invalidating of his preparation And in truth the * Conc. Carth. 4. Can. 93. Church was so much an enemy to all quarrels that it forbad the admittance of the Oblations of those who were not in perfect Charity either at the Altar or into the Church-Treasury 5. But if I sin after so solemn a Renewal of my Vows in this Sacrament will it not increase my guilt So among the Ancients some deferr'd their Baptism till the time of their death that they might not be impeacht of defiling the White Robes which they then put on And does not this Argument equally hinder the performance of all other Offices of Christianity May I not as well defer to repent since a relapse into evil habits after such an ab-renunciation of them is an heavy aggravation of my Crime And is not this to do as it is reported of the Circassians who follow their Thievery till they are Sixty and then spend the remainder of their days in Prayers devoting their Youth and Strength to the Devil and their Vices their Old Age Impotence and Diseases to God and Repentance But what if death should seize me while I thus defer making up my accounts with my Master What if a dull Lethargy which perhaps is but the effect and punishment of my irregularities should seize my brain and stifle the spirits and disable me from thinking So that by reason thereof I am dead while I live What if a Fever should captivate my Reason and put me into a Frenzy so as I can only name God in my Oaths and Curses will not this hinder all commerce with God or my own Soul And how deplorable must my estate then be For Heaven was never design'd a Bedlam a Receptacle for the Distracted and Vicious How can I promise my self to repent or communicate to morrow who put off hearkening to my Saviour to day since all his injunctions relate to the present time And if that that must save me be a work of Grace of time and perseverance what folly is it to neglect it And will not the slighting these passionate and earnest invitations of my God be a great increase of my guilt 6. But does not Satan sometimes tempt me to think it unlawful to communicate with sinners or as it is worded with a mixt company And am not I my self the greatest sinner And who can come there who is not so And does not our Church as well as all other the Reformed debar all gross and notorious transgressors from the Sacrament Can I call this any thing but Cunning in my ghostly Enemy who first tempts me to mean thoughts of my self and would keep me from God's Table because my self am unworthy and now tempts me to pride and contempt of my Christian brother I am sure Charity thinks no evil and obliges us in honour to prefer others to our selves Besides why do I pray or hear with sinners if I must not communicate with them And how do I know but he who offended deeply yesterday is as deep a penitent to day And how dare I to judg anothers servant It is not in the diseases of the soul as of those of the body Nothing makes the spiritual Plague infectious but my consent A man may if he will live chast in a school of debauchery and keep himself temperate in the house of an Epicure If my brother comes unworthily he eats and drinks damnation to himself and not to me And I am sure I have employment enough to examine my self to keep me from being busied about other mens matters Lastly But is not the posture of receiving apt to give scandal and to be mistaken for an act of worship perform'd not to God but to the Elements I am sure Humility is a necessary Attendant on the worthy Communicant a Vertue which is peculiarly Christian which the Philosophers do not so much as name in their Catalogues I know also that when I communicate the Priest prays that the body and blood of our Lord Jesus Christ may preserve my body and soul unto eternal life and with him I pray when I say Amen and the posture of prayer is kneeling and therefore I fall down and worship before the Lord our Maker Perhaps our Saviour gave the blessed Eucharist to his Apostles in another posture for we are not sure because the Scripture is silent and so also did he give it only to men when there were many Female Disciples and in an upper room and after a Feast as it was also in St. Paul's time celebrated after the Love-Feast or Agape But hath not the Church as much power as the Synagogue And did not the Jewish Church alter the posture of the Passeover which was at first to be eaten standing with the shoes on to a Table posture which also our Saviour seems to have observed For can we think that our Saviour's practice binds more than God's express command Or does it bind more in one circumstance than in others Besides I am convinc'd that the practice of the Ancients and the commands of my superiors should much sway me in doubtful cases But they tell me * Aug. in Ps 98. Chrys To. 3. p. 778. 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 Id. to 5. p. 518. c. That it is a sin not to adore when I receive And when I so adore I no more worship the Altar or the Elements that I bow before than when I kneel in the Pew I worship the Desk or the Book that lies on it Nor hath the one been more abused to Idolatry than the other For the Heathen do worship Wood and stone as much as the Papists the Host And is not this adoration a part of that honour which is fixt on Christ the Institutor of this Sacrament who also is the thing signified under those Visible Figures for he hath sworn by himself that every knee shall bow to him which honour he purchas'd by his blood For because he humbled himself to the death of the Cross therefore God hath given him a Name above all Names that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow And is not this Sacrament a Representation of that Passion Nor was it ever heard that Superstition could abolish the duty of a Text. And if when I kneel I give countenance to the Papists who in this case err by attributing such honour to the Son of God which he allows not of I am sure in sitting at this Table I countenance the Socinians and other Anti-Trinitarians who debase our Saviour and degrade him from his Godhead for which Reason * Altare Damascen p. 752. in Four several Synods in Poland the Protestants both Lutherans and Calvinists
my Will and Thoughts forgive me all of them as thou art Good and Gracious and preserve me from condemnation that the Oblations of thy People may be acceptably offered unto thee by me thy unworthy and sinful servant and that I my self may receive thy Precious Body and Blood to the curing of my soul and Body and may distribute thy Mysteries to others to their benefit and salvation For thine is the Kingdom Power and Glory Thine O Father Son and Holy Spirit now and for ever Amen CHAP. XXI The Methods of the ancient Church at the Celebration of the Holy Communion THe Writings of the Fathers together with the Old Rituals and Liturgies do at large give an Account both of the deep Respect that was paid to the Sacrament and of the Zeal Reverence and Devotion of those who received it together with the several Rites and Ceremonies that beautified and compleated the performance It cannot be denied but that in several Churches there were circumstantial differences in the Performance of this Duty but withal it cannot be denied that in the main there was an exact agreement As soon as the Bishop or Priest who Preacht had ended his Sermon all persons * Dionys Areop Eccl. Hier. c. 3. who were not Baptized or were possest by Evil Spirits or were in the state of Pennance were dismist the Deacons or Sub-Deacons keeping the Doors that no unqualified person might presume to stay any longer in the Church or to see the solemnity of the Celebration who was not worthy to Communicate After which the Deacons brought the materials of the Holy Sacrament which they had before received from the Hands of the Faithful * Vid. Mendoz. in Can. 22. Concil Illiberit and had layed up in the Church Treasury a place like our Vestry and delivered them to the Bishop if present if not to the Priest who laying them on the Table tendred them to God with this short Prayer Lord we offer thy own out of what thou hast bountifully given us Then the Deacon or as in some Churches the Sub-Deacon brought Water to the * Cyril Catech. Mystag 5. Liturg. Bishop and his Presbyters in which they were obliged to wash because the Psalmist says I will wash my hands in innocency and so will I compass thine Altar O Lord for washing was an Emblem of the Purifying both of the Body and Mind the * Enseb l. 10 c. 4. Chrys to 6. p. 619. c. people having washt at the Church-door before they begun their prayers it being accounted very indecent to appear before God unless they could lift up clean hands without wrath or doubting The Bishop and his Clergy had their seats round the Altar which stood in the middle of the Quire nor was any person permitted to be there besides the Clergy except the Graecian Emperor in the Churches of the East for even the Monks themseves in those days had no place among the Clergy but stood just without the Cancelli or Rails the Episcopal Throne for so it was stiled was placed just above the Holy Table his Presbyters seats being on each side of it the Deacons standing by * Chrys to 4. p. 271. passim all cloathed in white Garments some being concern'd in the Ministration of the Sacrament which they were injoined to do * Const Ap. li. 2. c. 57. with fear and reverence others to quiet the people and * Ap. Const l. 8. c. 12. one to keep the Children in due order for they also were admitted to this Sacrament and in some Churches two of the Deacons shaded the Chalice with a Skreen that no flyes or other such insects might fall into the Consecrated Wine Now the Churches among the Ancients were so ordered that as there was a partition between the Body of the Church and the Quire so there was also a Veil or Curtain which shaded the Altar and kept it from the sight of those who had no right to the Mysteries which Curtain when it was drawn the People in a solemn manner looking upon the Holy Table as a Type of Heaven and the Priests attending as the Angels of God descending to Minister to Men did give God hearty thanks * Liturg. S. Jacobi that there was an entrance given them into the Holy of Holies * Cyril Cat. myst 4. Ambr. de his qui initiantur c. 8. and that he had prepared a Table in their sight before the face of them for they believed * Chris to 5. p. 565. that this was tipified by the rending of the Veil at our blessed Saviour's passion that the people might look into the Holy of Holies and see their Crucified Redeemer now upon the Altar besides the Linnen and the Vessels necessary for the Consecration of which * Tet. de pudirit c. 7. and c. 10. the Chalices had the Impress of the good Shepherd bringing back the lost Sheep on his Shoulders there was nothing set besides a * Tert. apol 1.39 and Chrys to 6. p. 631. Cross and Lights and both of them very anciently to express that whatever was there done was a representation of that Sacrifice which our Blessed Saviour made of himself on the Cross for our sins and of that first Supper which he instituted and that it was a Feast of Joy to the Christian World After these preparative Actions the people were * Dion Areop ubi sup Const Ap. 2.57 Basil Liturg. c. bid 'To rise up together and to stand decently and with trembling and turning toward the East to pray to that God who ascended into the Heaven of Heavens and fitteth in the Eastern part of it toward which place stood Paradise whence the first man by the cunning of Satan was banisht And when the Congregation had put themselves into this posture the Deacon who attended the Bishop said aloud * Const ap l. 8. c. 11. Let not any man who is at enmity with his brother let not any man who is only hypocritically reconciled approach this table To which also he subjoined Let us attend after which the Bishop saluted his people with the peace of God be with you to which they answered and with thy Spirit tho o To. 3. p. 647. St. Chrysostome places the double salutation as it was called after the Kiss of Peace and immediately the * Dion Areop ub sup Cyril Cat. mystag 5. Const Ap. 2.57 Deacon aloud bad the people give each other the Holy Kiss or the Kiss of Charity which Action was managed with the greatest care and modesty imaginable for * Conc. Laodic Can. 19. first the Bishop gave the Kiss to his Presbyters and the Presbyters to the inferior Clergy and afterward among the Laâ—ty the men kist the men but the women their own Sex only for they had their different apartments and particular Officers appointed to each apartment the * Ostiarii Door-keepers at the entrance of that which belong'd to
in my mouth but in St. Austins time at * August Retractat lib 2. cap. 11. Carthage they used to sing the Psalms of David not only during the distribution of the Sacrament but also before the Oblation I suppose he means only those which were suitable to the occasion and mystery In †Just M. Apo. log 2. Palestine and in many other places the Bishop or Priest brake the bread and gave it into the hands of the Deacons and they gave it to the People as they also distributed the Cup. At ‡ Tertul. de Coron cap. 3. Carthage and else where especially in Africa the people received both the Elements from the hands of the Bishop while at ‡ Clem. Alex. Strom. 1. Alexandria the people were allowed themselves to take the consecrated Bread from the Patin tho I think this was a peculiar custom of that Church and lasted but a little while but generally he who consecrated gave the Bread and the Deacon the Cup. ' In the ‖ Cyril Cat. myst 5. Church of Jerusalem when the Communicants received the bread they took care not to spread their hands abroad or to widen their fingers but placing their hands in the form of a Cross they supported the Right Hand with the Left and in the hollow of the Hand received the Body of Christ This o Vid. Chrys to 5. p. 519. holy bread they first put to their Eyes and then did eat it being extreamly careful that no part of it should fall to the ground thus they received the bread and when the cup was to be received the * Cyr. ubi supr Const Ap. li. 8. c. 3. Prosper in Sentent Communicant was forbid to stretch out his Hand and only advised to bow himself and being in the posture of Worship and Adoration the Wine was poured into his Mouth and before he swallowed it he was obliged to moisten his Fingers in it and then to touch his Eyes his forehead and the rest of the Organs of his senses thereby sanctifying them and securing them from the assaults of Satan He who Ministred the blessed Sacrament ‖ Chrys l. 3 de Sacerd. Aug. Ep. 259. carried it in his right hand and when he gave the Bread he said * Ap. Const l. 8. c. 13. The Body of Christ or ⸫ Liturg. S. Marc. the Holy Body and the Communicant said Amen And when he gave the Cup he said The Blood of Christ the Cup of Life or the precious Blood of our Lord God and Saviour and then also the Communicant answered o Vid. Aug. contr Faust Manich lib. 12. cap 10. Amen But afterward the form ‖ Liturg. Greg. Dialog was enlarged as I conjecture by Gregory the Great The Priest saying The Body of our Lord Jesus Christ preserve thee unto Eeernal Life Amen To which the Communicant replyed I will receive the heavenly Bread and will call upon the Name of the Lord and when the Priest delivered the Cup he used this Form The Blood of our Lord Jesus Christ preserve thee unto Eternal Life Amen and the Communicant rejoin'd I will receive the Cup of Salvation After the Distribution was ended * Const Ap. ub Supr the Deacon spoke to the Congregation in these words Let us who have received the precious Body and Blood of Christ give him our Thanks and Praises to which end he did bid them put themselves into an erect posture and to stand upright that both Soul and Body might be intent on the Office that in the Prayer which compleated the Sacrifice they might praise God heartily and with a good courage for the Honour and Priviledg of partaking of those Mysteries and then they were dismist The remainder of the Consecrated Elements was ⸫ Just M. Apolog 2. some of it sent to those who were absent especially to the Confessors in Prison who were every day in expectation of Death the rest the faithful who had communicated carried home with them and o Naz. Or. 11. Or. 19. that in both kinds and ‖ Tert. ad Vxor l. 2. they commonly did eat of this Bread before their ordinary meals especially at their entertainments of Friends and Bishops usually sent pieces of it one to another as a token of mutual Communion In after times in some Churches the Communicants did eat what was left in some they buried in others they burnt the remainders and in other places they gave them to the School-boys and other Children who had not communicated What was left of the Oblations unconsecrated found the Ancients the materials of their Love-seasts tho the Apostolical * L. 8. c. 31. Constitutions give it to the Clergy afterward the Bread was given to the Catechumens or Penitents who were speedily to be reconciled or it was sent instead of the Sacramental Present abovementioned by one Bishop to another These were the Ancient Methods and may our good God give this present Age his Grace and fill our Hearts with a holy Fear of his Majesty and a due Reverence and respect to all his Ordinances that the Examples of the devout Christians of the Primitive Ages may incline us to an Imitation of their Piety Humility and other Virtues till we come to the general Assembly of the first-born in Heaven through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen CHAP. XXII Of the honour done to the Sacrament by the Ancients THE Holy Eucharist being the highest Office of Religion and the greatest Priviledg of Christians on Earth the Church hath thought fit on all occasions to testifie what a Reverence ought to be paid it and what honour is justly due to it And therefore took all care to sence and secure it from any attempts that might lessen its esteem or profane its usages of which I shall mention the most materal For 1. None was permitted to be present at the Celebration but those who had right to receive the Mysteries for tho the Governours of the Church prohibited no Persons to be present at the Sermon ‖ Conc. Carth. 4. c. 84. were they Infidels Jews or Hereticks yet as soon as the Sermon was done * Const Ap. lib. 1. cap. 5 6. the Deacon made a Proclamation Let no Infidel tarry here and lest that warning should not secure the Mysteries from being prostituted the faithful People were bid to ⸫ 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 Chrys adv Jud. examine and take Cognisance one of another and to look distinctly that there were no Stranger among them the Church having pray'd for them already That God would convert them to the Truth When they were dismist and Silence made o Id. hom 2. in 2 Ep. ad Corinth the People were bid to stand decently and to pray for the Catechumens who were all the while Kneeling or Prostrate that God would bring them to Baptism ‖ Const App. ub Sup. the People in the mean while praying silently to themselves and saying Lord have mercy after
which our Redeemer once offered to cleanse the world from their sins and we offer as often as we communicate setting that Immaculate Lamb before the Eyes of God and by that intreating him to have Mercy upon us For our Saviour commanded us to do as he did at the Institution in remembrance of him not only to our selves and our Neighbours but to God also as the Ancients and the most judicious of the Modern Writers affirm For tho my Saviour was many Hundred Years since Crucified yet he is the Sacrament represented as if his Passion commenc'd at the same time in which the Holy Office is performed and what should hinder my receiving the benefits of his sufferings tho so long since undergone For if by reason of my share in the first Adam's Transgression notwithstanding the vast distance of Time and Place I and every one that is born is infected with Original Sin what should hinder but that the Crucifixion of my Saviour tho transacted so many Ages past and in a Countrey so remote as Judea should be available to my Salvation For as by one mans sin many were made Offenders so by the Obedience of one many are made Righteous The Priest therefore offers a Sacrifice at Gods Altar a commemoration of that one full perfect and intire Sacrifice which was once offered on the Cross And at the same time Jesus our High Priest offers in Heaven pleads his VVounds and the merits of his Death and implores the Divine Pardon and the assistances of Grace for all his Servants And this is as much as the Church can pretend to while it is Militant so under the Old Law the Priests who had admittance into the Temple were denied entrance into the Holy of Holies thither only the High Priest went once a Year but they were not denied the Liberty to direct the smoak of their incense toward that sacred Place and their Prayers and their Incense had access where themselves could not come And so is it in the Christian Congregration for when the Oblation is made we that are concern'd in the Offertory cannot reach Heaven while we are in this state of Imperfection but our High Priest is there already and gives his People liberty thither to address their supplications and the sweet Odours of their Devotion this is the Honour and these the Priviledges that are purchased for the Church by that Sacrifice and secured to it in this Sacrament Blessed Eucharist Glorious things are spoken of it in the Writings of the good men of old It is called the Supernatural Bread the Divine Mysteries the Sacrifice of Sacrifices the Honourable the Holy the Heavenly the unspeakable Gifts the Sacrament of Sacraments the Holy of Holies the food which gives Life and Salvation the nourishment which endears a man to his God which recovers those that languish which recals those who are in error which raises them that are fallen and secures to the dying penitent the rights of Immortality and by way of eminency it is called the Sacrament the blessed and holy Sacrament when we eat of it we feed on the fatness of the Lord's Body and when we drink of it we taste the immortal Blood of our dying Saviour If Manna were Angels food this is the Bread of God and what an honour is it to receive my Saviour If Joseph's Tomb tho but a little and narrow place when it entertain'd the Body of our crucified Lord was by that means made more venerable and august than the Palace of Kings and became more glorious by containing the Son of God than by being the residence of the Angels who there took up their station how much more excellent is my injoyment when I give my dear Saviour a lodging in my heart and my bosom becomes an habitation for the Lord of Life With trembling therefore will I approach the Altar of God I will admire the Mystery and contemplate the circumstances of his Passion in which every word that he spoke was a Sermon for his Cross was his Pulpit and Mount Calvary the House of Prayer for there he prayed for his enemies and from thence he preached patience and submission to his Friends and I will remember his last actions for tho in all his discourses he spake so as never Man spake like him yet he never entertain'd the world with so eloquent and convincing a Sermon as when he went dumb before his persecutors and opened not his mouth when he carried his Cross silently and bore the marks of his adversaries cruelty without murmuring I will remember this my greatest and best Friend I will remember his last words and dying injunctions and I will communicate with him in the benefits of his Passion till his second appearance to judgment when the just shall eat of the Tree of Life in a better Paradise at that time all Signs shall cease all distant methods of conversation shall expire for in Heaven there are no Sacraments so that at the dawning of the day which the Lord himself shall enlighten when no other beams shall be needful but those of the Sun of Righteousness to make it glorious for ever then all Types and symbolical emblems shall be accomplisht then I shall be united to my Jesus and personally enjoy that immediate communion of which these Mysteries are but shadows and remote representations The Collect. BLessed Lord who bast so graciously invited me to partake of the merits of the Death and Resurrection of Jesus Christ conveyed to me in the blessed Sacrament grant that I may receive it to the remission of my past sins and to the preservation of my Soul against future temptations to the correcting of the deformities of my mind and the rooting out all evil customs out of my heart to the inlightening of my understanding to the strengthening of my faith and that I may be able to give a good account at the dreadful seat of thy judicature help me to spend this day and every day in thy fear and in the offices of holy Religion let thy Mercy pardon me thy Angels guard me and thy Goodness lead me to repentance that I may live and dye thine for Jesus Christ's sake our only Mediator and Advocate Amen The Anthem PETER Mourning IN a cold dark and melancholly night To gloomy shades which did augment the sright Where dismal horrors and confusion dwell And ghastly sights that made the place like Hell The trembling Peter tends and with swoln eyes Deeply laments his fear and cowardise Wretch that I am thus to deny my Lord Fit to be scorn'd by men by God abhorr'd Disconsolate and sad where shall I fly T'escapte the lightnings of my Master's eye That glance that passionate and killing look When Jesus turn'd his head me thunder strook Sufficient was the warning which was given By the infallible Oracle of Heaven Peter said my wise Master boast no more The rich in brags are in performance poor In vain thou promisest with me to dye Thou e're
to the Son of David blessed is he that cometh in the Name of the Lord Peace in Heaven and Glory in the Highest § 9. When the devont Christian is invited to draw near to the Holy Table he uses one or more of these Sentencs Lord I have looked for thee in Holiness that I might behold thy Power and Glory How dreadful is this Place this is no other but the House of God and the Gate of Heaven This is the Lords Mercy-Seat which the Cherubim of Glory shadow this is the Altar of Jesus round which the Angels clad in their bright Robes stand This is the Altar where Jesus is crucified let all the Angels of God and all the Sons of Men worship him I will come into thy House upon the multitude of thy Mercies and in thy fear will I hold up my hands and worship towards the Mercy-Seat of thy Holy Temple I will exalt the Lord my God and will worship at his Footstool for he is Holy I will fall down and adore for I know that God is here of a truth § 10. VVhen the good man comes up and kneels before the Altar he says Lord I most thankfully receive this gracious Invitation which thou hast afforded me to come to thy Holy Table and tho the number and weight of my Transgressions might justly deter me yet I am resolved to embrace the opportunity because thou hast bidden all who are weary and heavy laden to come unto thee Will Jesus whom the Heavens must contain till the consummation of all things be content to dwell with his poor servant Oh that I could entertain thee in my Soul with the same joy that the Holy Virgin did at thy incarnation with the same Exultations that the Infant Baptist did when he danc'd before he was Born at the approach of a Saviour with the Hosannah's of the Devout Jews before thy Passion and with the Authems of Angels at thy Ascension For who deserves my praises but my Saviour Worthy is the Lamb who was slain to receive Power and Riches and Wisdom and Strength and Honour and Glory and Blessing My Soul therefore shall joyn consort with every Creature which is in Heaven and on the earth and under the earth and such as are in the Sea when they say Blessing and Honour and Glory and Power be unto him that sits on the Throne and unto the Lamb for evermore § 11. VVhile the Priest himself is receiving the good man prays for him The Lord hear thee the name of the God of Jacob defend thee send thee help from the Sanctuary and strengthen thee out of Zion Remember all thy offerings and accept thy Sacrifice Grant thee thy hearts desire and fulfil all thy mind § 12. After which if the time will permit he Exercises this or the like act of contrition but if he wants time he does it in his Closet at his return Lord I am the greatest of sinners but here is the Lamb of God that taketh away the sins of the World His Blood speaks better things than that of Abel and he is the propititation for our sins My sins dearest Jesu brought thee to all thy shame and all thy sufferings but that satisfaction was necessary for the Redemption of the World I am troubled above measure for thy sorrows and will revenge thy death on my vices which were the cause of it Melt me O God into a soft temper fit to receive thy impressions give me an intire detestation of my sins and an indignation that may engage me to forsake my transgressions and to love the paths of virtue § 13. To which he subjoins this or the like act of Faith Jesus is my God and my Saviour he is the Angel of the Covenant I will not leave him till he bless me This is Jesus whom the Jews slew and hanged on a Tree him hath God exalted with his right hand to be a Prince and a Saviour to give repentance to Israel and forgiveness of sins If God hath given us his Son how shall he not with him give us all things for his flesh is meat indeed and his blood is drink indeed Lord I believe that thou art present in the Sacrament but in a manner spiritual and ineffable to think that thou art here corporeally bids defiance to my senses and my reason and debases thy glorified humanity and to imagine that I receive nothing more than bare signs is to rob my self of the benefit of communicating with thee Let me feel the truth of that mystery which I admire and believe but cannot prove and let me experiment the glorious effects of this Sacrament tho I am unacquainted with the particular manner how they are derived to me Thou hast convinc'd me that the flesh profiteth nothing but thy Words are spirit and life as therefore thou hast made it so I humbly and thankfully receive it Let it be unto thy servant according to thy word and grant that the days may come shortly when Faith shall be swallowed up of Vision Amen § 14. If many others Communicate before him the good man employs that leasure in reflecting upon the Office of Consecration and because he could not without disturbance interpose his ejaculations while the Priest was saying the Prayer of Consecration he takes this occasion to say When the Priest carries the Patin As Moses lifted up the Serpent in the Wilderness for the cure of the wounded Israelites so was our dearest Saviour lifted up on the Cross for the redemption of a world of sinners Lord evermore give me this bread When the Priest breaks the Bread he says So was the Body of Jesus mangled so was his flesh torn till there was no whole place in his body When the Priest pours out the Wine he says So when Jesus was in his Agony so when he was scourged crowned with Thorns and nailed to the accursed Tree did the Blood run down so Jesus loved us and wash'd us from our sins in his own blood When the Priest carries the Chalice he says It is the Blood of Jesus that makes atonement being shed for me and for many for the remission of sins I will cleave to the Cross of my bleeding Saviour and will drink his Blood Inable me O my God to overcome all my ghostly enemies by the blood of the Lamb. § 15. When the Priest takes the Elements in his hands to give them to the devout Christian he remembers that so God offers his Son to be the Author of Eternal Salvation to every believer so hath God fitted Jesus a body and indowed him with the spirit above measure that whosoever believes in him should not perish but have everlasting life § 16. When the Priest delivers the Elements to the worthy Communicant he considers that there are two parts in the form of distribution a Prayer and an Advice the Prayer in these words The Body the Blood of our Lord Jesus Christ preserve thy Body and Soul unto everlasting Life to which with
to 2. p. 1022. Chrys to 5. p. 539. Cabasil c. 53. and kist his hand that used to hold and distribute the Body and Blood of Christ Every person also who approacht this Table washt and put on their best Apparel on purpose to testify the purity of their minds the joy of their hearâ—s and their respect to the holy Sacrament 4. The Ancients lookt on the celebration of this Sacrament as what did compleat all other sacred Offices and therefore in those best of times they received every day because they thought they could not serve God as they ought without performing that necessary duty for they believ'd that because our Blessed Saviour having bid his Church do so in remembrance of him had yet fixt no time when it should do so that therefore he intended it for that reason as a part of the Religions Worship which ought to be perform'd as often as Christians meet to serve God for the remembrance of a dying Saviour and his last desires made a strong impression upon their minds And therefore this Office was added to all the other Offices of Religion for they never Baptiz'd any person but they immediately gave him this other Sacrament also and when any were Maried this Ordinance consummated the Union when they ordain'd a Clerk they carried him up to God's Table and caused him to eat of his Masters Bread they gave it to dying persons when they visited the sick and they gave it to them who were alive when a Funeral happened 5. They approacht this Table with the deepest Reverence and an awful Dread they came to Church fasting thinking it a Presumption to eat any thing before they had tasted of the Dainties their Saviour had provided for them they received the Sacred Elements in their right hands and with a Solemn care looking on them as a pledg of Gods Love and an assurance of Salvation ‖ Cyril Catech. mystag 5. and they would as willingly have lost a Limb as let a crum of it fall to the ground But above all they took care to receive in a posture of Adoration of Reverence and Humility it is true we do not read that they received Kneeling for on Sunday and all the time between Easter and Whitsuntide and probably on other Festivals for the same reason the Laws of the Church prohibited Kneeling so much as at their Prayers because they were times of rejoycing they stood then as those who were risen with Christ and who were in expectance of the joys of Heaven and they remembred that this was a Eucharist a solemn Thanksgiving and for that reason they always ended their Fasts before they Communicated and an erect posture best fits these ends And yet notwithstanding a Aug. in Ps 98. Châ—ys To. 3. p. 778. 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 To. 5. p. 518. 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 He also mentions the 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 of the Communicants Theodorit dial 2. 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 all this they adored when ever they received they stoopt and bow'd with Reverence and Godly fear and sometimes fell down and then received and this is plain not only from the passages in the Fathers cited in the Margin but also from the known Story of the Female Macedonian Heretick who receiving the Body of our Saviour from the hands of St. Chrysostom is ‖ Sozom. l. 8. c. 5. 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 said to stoop down as if she would pray 6. They anciently carryed home some of the Consecrated Elements with them * Tert. ad Ux. l. 2. which they did eat before their common Meals Sanctifying their Meat and Drink thereby nay every common meal was to them a sort of Communion ⸪ Vid. Jo. Frontonis Familia Christiana p. 8 9 10. for they never durst eat till they had prayed to God for a Blessing and at their Tables they refused to admit any excommunicate person or any Heretick much more the prophane and profligate nay not so much as a Catechumen unless upon extraordinary occasion The Bread and Wine when so blest was lookt on as holy and they were troubled if casually either of them fell to the ground and as they began their meals with the Sacramental Elements so they mutually reconciled themselves to each other before they sat down and said the Lord's Prayer in which the Petitions Give us this Day our dayly Bread and forgive us our Trespasses were very proper to the usage after which they gave the kiss of Charity and sign'd themselves with the sign of the Cross and then begun their meal and in most Families some one was deputed to read the holy Scriptures the hard places of which the Master of the House interpreted and when they had done they thank'd God for all his Blessings in some holy Hymn and the Master of the Family gave the remainders to the poor for he acted the part of a Priest in his own House and thus they turn'd the House into a Church the Table into an Altar and the Feast into a Sacrifice and if at any time a Stranger came among them as they durst not shut their doors against any such they gave him the preference especially if a Priest to begin and end the prayers 7. And so much respect did the devouter Christians pay to this Sacrament * Naz. orat 10. or 19. that they would not spit on the pavement of the holy place while they were at Church nor turn their backs on the Altar when they lest it As now among the Aethiopians no Man spits the whole day after he hath received this Sacrament And in the Church of Constantinople by the advice and example ‖ Phot. Cod. 59. of St. Chrysostom they swallowed a little Cake or Wafer to prevent spitting or vomiting after the reception But that which made them tremble when they approach'd the Holy place was an opinion * S. Maxim mystag Eccles c. 24. which they entertain'd That the Angels being present did Write down the names of all the worthy Communicants whose behaviour they inspected and whose names they brought into remembrance before God for they were fully convinc'd ‖ Ambr. de Sacram li. 1. c. 2. Aug. Ser. 3. in Ps 33 c. that the Angels stood round the Altar and assisted at the Sacrifice For at that time says St. * To. 7. p. 892. Chrysostom the Angels fall down before the Lord and the Archangels pray they lay hold on the occasion and the Sacrifice that is on God's Altar gives them assistance for as men pluck the branches of Olives and tender them to Princes thereby putting them in mind of that mercifulness and compassion that becomes them So do the Angels instead of Branches of Olives holding up the Lords Body befeech God for all mankind as if they said We implore thee for those whom thou didst love so dearly as to give thy Lise for them and we pour out our Prayers for