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cause_n	blood_n	body_n	great_a	2,100	5	2.8464	3	true

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ID	Title	Author	Corrected Date of Publication (TCP Date of Publication)	STC	Words	Pages
B08365	A dialogue between a pastor and parishioner, touching the Lord's Supper. Wherein the most material doubts and scruples about receiving that holy sacrament, are removed, and the way thereto discovered to be both plain and pleasant. Very usefull for private christians in these scrupulous times. With some short prayers fitted for that occasion, and a morning and evening prayer for the use of private families / by Michael Altham, Vicar of Latton in Essex.	Altham, Michael, 1633-1705.	1687 (1687)	Wing A2933AB; ESTC R172247	65,705	236

mightily pleased and wonderfully well satisfied with those directions which you have given me and am resolved by God's blessing with care and Conscience to observe them I know I cannot do it so well as I should but I will do it as well as I can and I hope God will accept my willing mind and pardon my weaknesses and infirmities But Sir You did also promise to direct me how to demean and behave my self when I am at this holy Feast so that I may not displease and offend my blessed Saviour who hath been and still is so kind to me Pastor It is very true I did promise you that also and I hope I shall not fail you therein because I intend to take two unerring Guides along with me viz. The blessed Jesus and his holy Apostle St. Paul The former of which not only commandeth us to do this but to do it in remembrance of him Luk. 22.19 and the latter tells us that in the doing of it there ought to be a Discerning of the Lord's Body 1 Cor. 11.29 1. When we come to this holy Feast we ought to call to mind all that the blessed Jesus hath done and suffered for us He who commandeth us to do this commandeth also to do it in remembrance of him This holy Feast was never intended by the blessed Author and Instituter of it to be an Expiatory or propitiatory Sacrifice nor as the Papists call it an unbloody offering for the sins both of the quick and dead nor for a scenical and histrionical representation of the Death of Christ But it was designed to be an Eucharistical Sacrifice or a Sacramental action whereby Christians are to commemorate that bloody Sacrifice which Jesus Christ offered upon the Cross for the sins of Mankind And therefore St. Paul reciting the words of Institution applyeth them to this holy action saying This do ye in remembrance of me 1 Cor. 11.24 25. And that he might be the better understood he explaineth himself in the following words saying As often as ye eat this bread and drink this Cup ye shew forth or shew ye forth the Lord's death till he come v. 26. Now the word 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 which is here used and rendered to shew forth doth not signify to express one thing by the likeness of another nor to represent it by histrionical gestures but to preach and declare the thing as it is i. e. by celebrating this holy Feast to keep up the memorial thereof and thereby declare what a deep sense we have of all that our blessed Saviour hath done and suffered for us Whence by the way I may note unto you the vanity of that Popish Figment of Transubstantiation For if the blessed Jesus had designed to have been always really and bodily present with his people in this holy Feast this command of his would have been very insignificant for Remembrance doth not respect things future or things present but things past But to return to our business To do this in remembrance of him and in so doing To shew forth the Lord's Death seem to be expressions exegetical or explanatory of one another And therefore it may not be amiss to enquire into the sense and meaning of both that we may the better understand how to behave our selves at this holy Feast To that purpose I shall take them in order and show you 1. What it is To do this in remembrance of him 2. What it is To shew forth the Lord's Death 1. What it is To do this in remembrance of him Ans An idle and unconcerned remembrance of the sufferings and death of Christ such as men sometimes have when they call to mind things past which are of no great concern to them is not the thing here intended No it must be an effectual remembrance i. e. Such an one as may stir up our minds to apprehend and apply Christ with all his benefits to our selves so to remember the Sacrifice and Death of Christ that we may thence reap Comfort Joy Peace of Conscience increase of Faith and Charity and an assured hope of future life and felicity on that account So to remember the love that he hath shown unto us therein as to be always thankful to him for it But to be more particular 1. When we come to God's Table and there see the two Elements of Bread and Wine ready prepared to be delivered to and received by us we ought to call to mind that Jesus Christ is a perfect Saviour and that his Body and Blood which are represented thereby are the true Bread and Water of Life to all that believe in him and worthily receive that holy Sacrament 2. When we see the Bread and Wine set a-part by the Minister and by him Consecrated to that holy purpose by repeating the Promises and Prayers made for that end we ought to remember that Jesus Christ was also ordained of God appointed and set a-part by him to be our Mediator and Redeemer to make intercession for us at the Throne of Grace and redeem us from all our sins 3. When we see the Bread broken and the Wine poured out it should put us in mind how the Body of Christ was broken and his Blood shed for us how he was Crucified and slain and all this for our sins and that if he had not thus once died for us we must have died ever i. e. we must have undergone an ever yet never dying Death 4. The Sacramental actions of giving and receiving the Elements should put us in mind That God doth truly and really give Christ with all his merits and all the efficacy of them to every worthy Receiver in this Sacrament 5. The consideration of these two last Meditations should put us upon renewing our Faith and Repentance For 1. When we remember that his Body was broken and his Blood shed for us it should stir up in us a godly sorrow and unfeigned repentance for our sins which have been the causes of so great sufferings to our blessed Saviour 2. When the Minister giveth the Bread and Wine and we receive them we should at the same time lift up our hearts to Heaven in a deep sense of God's goodness and our own unworthiness and endeavour to apprehend and apply Christ with all his benefits to our selves believing that he was made man for us and that he suffered and died not for the remission of sins in general but of our sins in particular 6. The consideration of the dying Love of the blessed Jesus represented to us in this holy Sacrament ought to put us in mind how necessary a charitable frame and temper of mind is this Feast If Christ have so loved us then certainly we ought to love him and if we would do this well let let us take his own directions who saith If ye love me keep my Commandments John 14.15 And if God so loved us we ought also to love one another 1 John 4.11 Love to the Brethren

the other and I hope shall not fail in it In order whereunto it will be necessary rightly to understand the true state of this Case There are two things which you seem to fear viz. Communicating in a mix'd Congregation and being thereby made partakers of other mens sins I shall consider these severally and do not doubt but to make it evident that this is a causeless fear and that those who have taught you thus to scruple have indeed made you afraid where really no fear was 1. As to the first part of the Objection which concerns Communicating in a mix'd Congregation an Assembly made up of good and bad the plain English of it is no more than this You have no mind to receive the Sacrament in the Company of those whom you think not to be so good and holy as your selves To cure which tumour I shall offer these Considerations 1. Whether there be any Society in this World without such a mixture i. e. Whether there be any such Assembly of men in which there are not some good and some bad 2. Whether for any one to entertain such high thoughts of himself and such low ones of others do not savour too much of Pharisaical Pride and Insolence and whether that be not as great a sin as any other 3. Whether such a temper of mind doth not bespeak a man as unfit if not more than those whom he judgeth to be so unworthy 4. Whether it be not the duty of all who address themselves to this holy Table to lay aside all proud and over-weening thoughts of themselves all low and mean thoughts of others and with lowly and humble minds to approach thereunto 5. Whether this lowly and humble temper of mind doth not principally consist in a deep sense of our own sin and unworthiness in a due apprehension of God's greatness in himself and his goodness towards us notwithstanding our unworthiness And if so Whether there can be any room left in such an one for low and mean thoughts of others 6. If those who thus object will deal truly and justly by themselves and others I appeal to their own Consciences Whether they do or can know so much unworthiness in any other man as they may and must know in themselves And if so then have they no more cause to scruple the Company of others than others have to scruple theirs 7. Whether the same reason will not hold in civil Conversation as well as sacred Communion And if so then must they not converse with any one who either is or whom they think to be in a lower form of godliness than themselves They must retire and live alone they must turn Hermits and forsake the Conversation of the World because there is no Society of men to be found in it in which there are not bad as well as good 8. Whether it be not a piece of great impertinence to say no worse for any one to concern himself with the worthiness or unworthiness of another Especially considering that plain and excellent rule which St. Paul hath prescribed in this Case Let a man examine himself not another and so let him eat of this bread and drink of this Cup 1 Cor. 11.28 These things well considered may suffice I hope to answer the first part of this objection and remove that scruple of receiving the Sacrament in a mix'd Congregation But 2. There is a greater danger yet they are afraid lest hereby they should be made partakers of other mens sins This if there were any thing in it would be a dangerous thing indeed For he that is a partaker of other mens sins shall certainly participate with them in the punishment due to those sins But I do not question but to demonstrate to you that even this also is a causeless fear For there are but these five ways that I know of whereby one man may be said to partake of another man's sins 1. By counselling or contriving an evil action Or 2. By consenting to the counsel and contrivance of others in an evil thing Or 3. By abetting and encouraging men in evil doing Or 4. By conniving at the wickedness of men when it is in our power to prevent it Or 5. By joining and co-operating with them in their evil doing Thus and only thus may one man become a partaker with another in his sins And how far these rules are applicable to our Case I appeal to your own Conscience But before you give your Verdict let me advise you to take these considerations along with you 1. That the action you are now required to join in is so far from being evil that it is good and very good being a duty incumbent upon you and all Christians by vertue of a Divine Command 2. That it is one thing to join with others in a known duty and another thing to join with them in a known sin These are cases so different that to think of confounding these together were not only to put a force upon our own but to offer an affront to the reason of all Mankind We may as well attempt to bring the two Poles together or to make Righteousness and Unrighteousness Christ and Belial Faith and Infidelity or the most contrary extreams and most palpable contradictions to agree in one as to make these to conspire together 3. That in the performance of a common duty every man is to be accountable for himself no one for another That Jewish Proverb is now out of Doors The Fathers have eaten sowre grapes and the childrens teeth are set on edge Ezek. 18.2 For the soul that sinneth shall die the Son shall not bear the iniquity of the Father neither shall the Father bear the iniquity of the Son the righteousness of the righteous shall be upon him and the wickedness of the wicked shall be upon himself v. 20. 4. That a good man doing his duty well will be never the worse for the Company of one that doth it ill nor will he that doth it ill be ever the better for the Company of him that doth it well Judas was never the better for communicating with the Disciples nor they ever the worse for communicating with him 5. That unless a man do by some one or other of the ways before mentioned join with another in doing evil there is no fear of his being partaker with him either in his sin or punishment All which considered may I hope be sufficient to discharge your mind of this fear and guard you against such impressions for the future By this time I suppose you are sensible how much you have been imposed upon and that without any just cause you have been withheld from the performance of a known and necessary duty I pray God to forgive them who have thus misled you and direct you better for the time to come Parishioner Sir I am very sensible now how great an errour I have laboured under I bless God and thank you for it

Hands unto God in Prayer But though this ought to be the constant Frame and Temper of our Souls yet there are some particular Seasons when we ought seriously solemnly and on set purpose to exercise the same especially Morning and Evening And because all Masters of Families ought with the good Joshuah to take care that not only They themselves but those of their House serve the Lord and that this can never be well done without keeping up some Religious Order and Discipline in their Families it will not only be convenient but necessary for them to set apart some certain Times and Seasons wherein both they and their Houshold may jointly exercise this so immediate Act of Worship and together offer up their Prayers and return their Thanks and Praises unto God. This Part of Religious Worship I am afraid is too much neglected if not wholly laid aside in many Families at this Day To restore therefore this Holy Order and Discipline in private Families to revive the Exercise thereof and to assist those who are not already better supply'd in that Godly Practice I have Composed this following Prayer and do heartily wish that all Masters of Families would take care that either this or some such like Prayers be constantly at least every Morning and Evening used in their Houses The Prayer O Almighty most Merciful and Eternally Gracious Lord God! Thou art a God hearing Prayers therefore to Thee shall all Flesh come Thou art Good and doest Good Thou art the Great and Glorious Creatour of Heaven and Earth the Wise Orderer and Disposer of all things therein We the unworthiest of thy Creatures here on Earth are at this time prostrate in thy Presence humbly confessing our Sins and thankfully acknowledging thy Mercies We confess O Lord we have sinned against Heaven and against Thee and are no more worthy to be called thy People We have left undone those things which we ought to have done and we have done those things which we ought not to have done We have omitted many Duties and committed many Enormities We have sinned against great Light and great Love discovered to us in the Gospel of thy Son. Our Sins we confess have been so out of measure sinful that should'st Thou deal with us as we have deserved or measure out unto us a Vial of Wrath proportionable to the Ephah of our Iniquities it might in a drowning measure and manner fall upon us But with Thee O Lord is Mercy that Thou may'st be feared and therefore is it that we are once more humbly bold to offer our Persons and our Devotions to the Throne of Grace beseeching Thee for thy Mercy 's sake and for the Merit 's sake of thy dear Son and our Blessed Saviour in Mercy to look upon us to open our Eyes and make us sensible of our Sins to open our Hearts and make us sorrowful for our Sins to work in us a Repentance never to be repented of to subdue and mortifie in us all our Lusts and lustful Inclinations all our corrupt Thoughts and Imaginations And instead thereof to implant in us Principles of Holiness and true Righteousness Give us a lively Faith in thy Son a sincere and entire Obedience to thy Will a profound Humility and unwearied Patience under thy Hand and an holy Contentedness with every Estate and Condition wherein Thou shalt please to place us Justifie we pray Thee our Persons and sanctifie our Natures Wash us throughout in Soul and Body and Spirit that so both our Persons and our Performances may now and evermore be acceptable in thy Presence O Lord our Strength and our Redeemer With us we pray Thee be mindful of all Thine Bless thy Universal Church and every Member thereof particularly these Churches of England Scotland and Ireland And herein in a particular manner let the choicest of thy Blessings rest upon the Head and Heart of thy Servant but our dread Soveraign JAMES by thy Grace and especial Providence of England Scotland France and Ireland King Defender of the Faith in all Causes and over all Persons as well Sacred as Civil in these his Realms and in all other his Majesty's Dominions and Countries Supreme Moderator and Governour As Thou hast done Great things for Him so we pray Thee do Great things by Him In Him give unto us the Blessings of Government and in Him fulfil amongst us the Ends of Government Bless Him and Us in the Safety and Preservation of his Royal Person and in the Health and Happiness of his Royal Relations In particular Bless Him and Us in blessing his Royal Consort and our Gracious Queen MARY make her a joyful Mother of Children and happy in them And in Blessing be pleased to bless Katherine the Queen Dowager their Royal Highnesses Mary Princess of Orange the Princess Anne of Denmark and all the Royal Family Endue them with thy Holy Spirit enrich them with thy Heavenly Grace prosper them with all Happiness and bring them at last though late to thine Everlasting Kingdom Bless Him and Us in blessing the Ministers of thy Holy Word and Sacraments as well Arch-Bishops and Bishops as other Pastors and Curates Bless the Lords and the rest of his Majesty's most Honourable Privy-Council Bless all the Nobility Gentry Judges Magistrates and Commonalty of the Realm Bless them all from the Highest to the Lowest with Religious Hearts towards Thee their God Loyal Hearts towards their Soveraign and Loving and Charitable Hearts one towards another And now O Lord we pray Thee for a Blessing upon Us even Us who are here before Thee at this time Bless Us in our Persons in our Off-spring in our Servants in our Relations in our Acquaintance in our Habitations and in all our Lawful Actions Thus far this Prayer may be used both Morning and Evening and the Morning Prayer may be continued thus LET thy good Hand of Providence be over us this Day for Good Let it preserve and defend us from all Dangers both of Soul and Body We are now going to Converse with a subtil and sinful World be Thou pleased to fortify our Minds against both the Allurements and Contagion thereof Let neither our own in-bred Lusts and Corruptions betray us nor the Power of Sathan nor Policy of the World prevail upon us to swerve from the ways of thy Commandments Be pleased O Lord to go in and out with us in all our Undertakings and to bless and prosper us therein Imprint upon our Minds such a warm and vigorous Sense of thy Divine Providence over us as may engage us always to walk in thy Ways and oblige us to study nothing more than how to serve and please Thee all our Days Nor are we mindful of our selves alone but of all those also who are in worse Condition than our selves who are any ways afflicted or distressed in Mind Body or Estate especially those who either desire or stand in need of our Prayers Let it please Thee to comfort and relieve them