a
PRINCETON. N. J.
f
Part of the at ADDISON AI.KX AN'DER LIBRARY, $ which was presented by Messrs. K. L. and A. Stuart.
BX 5139 .B32 1845 Bates, William, 1625-1699. College lectures on Christian antiquities and
fif*^c tf, //rj.
COLLEGE LECTURES
ON
CHRISTIAN ANTIQUITIES
AND THE
&ttual of t\)t CngUs!) Cburrft ;
WITH SELECTIONS FROM THE ANCIENT CANONS,
AND THE
CAMBRIDGE, DUBLIN, AND DURHAM UNIVERSITY EXAMINATION PAPERS.
BY s/
THE REV. WILLIAM BATES, M A.
FELLOW, LECTURER , AND HEBREW LECTURER OF CHRIST 's COLLEGE, CAMBRIDGE.
JOHN W.
LONDON: PARKER, WEST STRAND.
M.DCCC.XLV.
Digitized by the Internet Archive in 2015
https://archive.org/details/collegelecturesoOObate_0
TO
THE REV. JAMES HILDYARD, M.A.
FELLOW AND TUTOR OF CHRIST'S COLLEGE, CAMBRIDGE,
AND LATE ONE OF HER MAJESTY'S PREACHERS AT WHITEHALL;
A WARM AND CONSISTENT PROMOTER F THEOLOGICAL STUDIES IN THIS UNIVERSITY;
THE FOLLOWING LECTURES,
COMPOSED AT HIS SUGGESTION, ARE WITH AFFECTION AND RESPECT INSCRIBED BY
THE AUTHOR.
ADVERTISEMENT.
The principal portion of the second part of the following Lectures was delivered to the Bachelors of Arts of this College during the Lent and Easter terms of the present year, with the view of assisting them in preparing for the Voluntary Theological Examination in the ensuing Michaelmas term. The Lectures in the first part were never delivered, but have, together with a selection from the Canons of the Primitive Church, been added to render the subject more complete.
The Catechetical form (previously adopted in the College Lectures on Ecclesiastical History), has been retained, as being, upon mature consideration, best suited to impart the information, which has been collected from a great variety of sources.
Christ's College, Cambridge, September 12, 1845.
CONTENTS.
PART THE FIRST. THE ANTIQUITIES OF THE CHRISTIAN CHURCH.
JLctturc I.
PAOK
LITERATURE OF THE ANTIQUITIES OF THE CHRISTIAN CHURCH... 1—3
JUrturc II.
ON THE EARLY JEWISH AND PROFANE ACCOUNTS OF THE CHRIS- TIAN CHURCH. THE APOSTOLICAL CONSTITUTIONS AND CANONS 4— U>
Hectare III.
ON THE NAMES ASSUMED BY AND APPLIED TO THE EARLY
CHRISTIANS 11—15
Hectare IV.
ON THE NAMES AND CLASSES OF CHRISTIANS It! — 2>
Hectttrc V.
ON THE PATRIARCHS, METROPOLITANS, AND BISHOPS OF THE
EARLY CHURCH 22— 2!>
&ccture VI.
ON THE PRESBYTERS, DEACONS, ARCHDEACONS, DEACONESSES,
AND OTHER INFERIOR MINISTERS OF THE EARLY CHURCH ... 30—43
ftrctttrc VII.
ON THE CHURCHES AND SACRED PLACES OF THE EARLY CHRIS- TIANS 44—52
Hccture VIII.
ON THE PENITENTIAL DISCIPLINE OF THE EARLY CHURCH S3— 65
Hecture ix.
ON THE JEWISH RELIGIOUS SERVICES, AND THE FORMS OF
PRAYER USED BY THE EARLY CHURCH 86—81
X
CONTENTS.
Ilcrturc X.
ON THE HABITS AND GESTURES, AND OF THE DAYS OF DIVINE PAG"' SERVICE OF THE EARLY CHURCH 82— !Kt
ftcthirc XI.
ON THE MORNING AND EVENING PRAYERS, AND THE LITURGIES
OF THE PRIMITIVE CHURCH 1 91—108
ilrrture XII.
OF THE RITES AND CUSTOMS OBSERVED IN THE ADMINISTRATION OF THE SACRAMENT OF BAPTISM, AND OF CONFIRMATION, OF THE EARLY CHURCH 10!)— 137
JLrcturc XIII.
ON THE MISSA CATECHUMENORUM, " THE SERVICE OF THE CATE- CHUMENS," OR THE ANTE-COMMUNION SERVICE 138-157
ILcrturc XIV.
ON THE MISSA FIDELIUM, OR COMMUNION SERVICE OF THE EARLY
CHURCH 158—171
Hccturf XV.
AN ACCOUNT OF SOME OF THE RITES AND CEREMONIES RE- LATING TO THE MISSA FIDELIUM, "OR COMMUNION SERVICE" OF THE EARLY CHURCH 172—188
APPENDIX.
THE APOSTOLICAL CANONS 189—198
THE NICENE CANONS 198—202
THE ANCYRAN CANONS 203 -206
THE NEO-CjESAREAN CANONS 206—208
THE GANGRAN CANONS 208—209
THE ANTIOCHIAN CANONS 210—214
THE LAODICEAN CANONS 215-219
THE CONSTANTINO POLITAN CANONS 219-221
THE EPHESINE CANONS 222-224
THE CHALCEDONIAN CANONS 224—229
THE SARDICAN CANONS 230-232
CONTENTS. xi
A CHRONOLOGICAL AND ALPHABETICAL LIST OF THE PRINCIPAL PA°E ANCIENT COUNCILS, AND THE NUMBER OF CANONS PASSED
AT EACH 233-235
AN ALPHABETICAL AND CHRONOLOGICAL TABLE OF EARLY
ECCLESIASTICAL AUTHORS 230
PART THE SECOND.
THE RITUALS OF THE CHRISTIAN CHURCH.
ILcrturc I.
ON THE LITERATURE OF THE LITURGIES AND RITUALS OF THE
CHRISTIAN CHURCH 237—243
ILcrturc II.
ON THE DIFFERENT OFFICES USED AT THE CANONICAL HOURS
OF PRAYER, AND THE BREVIARIES OF THE CHURCH 244—259
ILcrturc III.
ON THE LITURGY CALENDAR OF THE CHURCH OF ENGLAND. AN ACCOUNT OF THE ROMISH SAINTS' DAYS AND HOLY-DAYS, WHOSE NAMES ARE INSERTED IN OUR CALENDAR, WITHOUT HAVING ANY SERVICES APPOINTED FOR THEM 260-274
ILcrturc IV.
ON THE DOCTRINAL, DEVOTIONAL, AND LITURGICAL BOOKS OF
THE REIGNS OF HENRY VIII. AND EDWARD VI 275— 28(i
ILcrturc V.
THE RUBRICS ON ORNAMENTS AND VESTMENTS, AND THE ORDER
OF MORNING PRAYER FROM A.D. 1549 TO A.D. 1G02 287-208
ILcrturc VI.
ON THE ORDER FOR EVENING PRAYER, THE LITANY, AND THE
RULES FOR READING THE PSALMS AND LESSONS 209— 309
ILcrturc VII.
ON THE TITLES AND AUTHORITY OF THE PRAYER BOOKS, AND
ON ECCLESIASTICAL VESTURES 310-325
Xll
CONTENTS.
Hcrturr VIII.
ON THE DIFFERENT PARTS OF THE MORNING AND EVENING
PRAYER 326-363
Hcrturc IX.
ON THE COMMUNION SERVICE OF THE FIRST BOOK OF EDWARD
VI., AND THE FESTIVALS OF THE CHURCH OF ENGLAND 364 -381
JLecturc X.
UN THE RUBRICS AND RITES AND CEREMONIES RELATING TO
THE HOLY COMMUNION 382— 3!)3
lUctmc XI.
UN THE ADMINISTRATION OF HOLY BAPTISM AND CONFIRMATION 394-407
Hfcturr XII.
i )F .MATRIMONY ; OF THE VISITATION OF THE SICK ; OF THE BURIAL OF THE DEAD; OF THE CHURCHING OF WOMEN; AND
OF THE COMMINATION 408—423
JLcrtmr XIII.
(>N THE SERVICES FOR STATE HOLY-DAYS; THE BIDDING-PRAYER;
AND THE ORDINAL 424—432
VOLUNTARY THEOLOGICAL EXAMINATION PAPERS 433—445
CAMBRIDGE EXAMINATION PAPERS FOR THE CROSSE SCHOLAR- SHIPS 446— 45l(
DUBLIN UNIVERSITY EXAMINATION PAPERS 451—472
DURHAM UNIVERSITY EXAMINATION PAPERS 473—477
THE LORD BISHOP OF ELY'S EXAMINATION FOR HOLY ORDERS ... 478—479
SCHOLARSHIP EXAMINATION, CHRIST'S COLLEGE, 1845 480—481
CHRISTIAN CHURCH.
PART THE FIRST.
THE ANTIQUITIES OF THE CHRISTIAN CHURCH.
LITERATURE OF THE ANTIQUITIES OF THE CHRISTIAN CHURCH.
Q. What two works were the chief authorities on Ecclesiastical Antiquities shortly after the Reformation ?
A. The " Magdeburg Centuries," and the "Eccle- siastical Annals of Cardinal Csesar Baronius."
Q. By whom and upon what plan were the " Cen- turies of Magdeburg" written ?
A. By Matthias Flacius Illyricus, a Lutheran divine, in conjunction with Johann Wigand and Matthaeus Judex, the pastors of the city of Magdeburg, and other scholars. The first volume appeared in the year 1559, and the thirteenth and last in 1574. Each volume contains the history of Christianity for a century, and is divided into sixteen different chapters, of which the sixth relates to the " rites and ceremonies," and the seventh to the " polity and government" of the Church.
Q. Under what circumstances were the " Annals of Baronius" published ?
A. Their author, Caesar Baronius, was an Italian by birth, and lecturer on church history in the " Congrega-
i~ A. R. C. C. A
lecture I.
2
LITERATURE OF THE
[part i.
tion of the Oratory"' at Rome. He afterwards became the superior of that society, and was appointed a cardinal and librarian of the Vatican. In the year 1588 he pub- lished the first volume of his <; Ecclesiastical Annals." con- taining the events of the first century of the Christian era. and in 1607 the twelfth and last volume, which ends with the year 1198. He had free access to all the libraries at Rome, and received every assistance from the authorities of that church. The work contains a great number of documents and extracts from manuscripts which are not to be found elsewhere, and forms a " Thesaurus of Sacred Antiquities."
Q. By what foreign writers was the subject of Christian Antiquities treated as a separate branch of study?
A. Balihasar Bebelius, a learned divine of Strasburg. set the example by publishing in the year 1669 a work entitled " Antiquitates Ecclesiae in tribus post Christum natum sseculis/' and in 1679 he continued it to the end of the fourth century. About the same time the !i Lexicon Antiquitatum Ecelesiastiearuni" of Joshua Arnd appeared, and was followed by D. and C. Maori, Schmidt, Rechen- berg, and others, all of whom adopted an alphabetical arrangement of the subject.
Other writers, such as Quenstedt, Xicolai, Walch, Baunigarten, Simonis, Voegel, Haug, and Volborth, com- posed systematic treatises, on a small scale, for the use of general readers, which have long been superseded by the works of subsequent authors.
Q. Give a brief notice of the works of some modern German scholars on Christian Antiquities.
A. (1) The work of Augusti is considered the most complete that has appeared since that of Bingham. It consists of twelve octavo volumes, and was published 1817 — 1831. In 1835, and the two subsequent years, he published an abridgement of his larger work, in three volumes, octavo, which forms the groundwork of Riddle's Manual, and the American compilation of Coleman. (2)
LECT. I.] ANTIQUITIES OF THE CHRISTIAN CHURCH.
3
Rheinwald, a follower of Neander, published in 1831 a manual, in one volume, accompanied with numerous plates. The text, like that of Gieseler's History of the Church, is brief, and is only used to introduce a mass of valuable extracts from original documents. (3) Siegel, lecturer on Christian Antiquities at Leipsic, published in 1835 — 1838, an alphabetical manual in four volumes. It is somewhat similar to Augusti's smaller work. (4) The works of Bohmer, Staudenmaier, Miinter, and the new edition of the Politia of Pellicia, by Ritter and Braun, and the similar work of Binterim, have extended our knowledge of Chris- tian Antiquities.
Q. Who are the leading English authorities on the subject of Christian Antiquities ?
A. According to Bingham, Dr Cave in his " Primitive Christianity," published in 1673, gives " the most me- thodical account of things of this kind." Lord Chancellor King also published, in 1691, " An Inquiry into the con- stitution, discipline, unity, and worship of the Primitive Church, that flourished within the first three hundred years after Christ." This work, which was aimed against the Church of England, was answered by Sclater in his " Original Draught of the Primitive Church," and it is generally believed that he had the satisfaction of con- vincing his opponent of his error; but the standard work on this subject is the " Origines Ecclesiasticse, or the Antiquities of the Christian Church,11 of Bingham, pub- lished in the interval between the years 1708 and 1722, which is generally printed in nine octavo volumes.
Note : — No other original work professing to treat exclu- sively of Christian Antiquities has since appeared in England, but much valuable information may be derived from the works of our standard divines upon every subject connected with them.
The most accessible treatise for students is " A Manual of Christian Antiquities," compiled from the works of August? and other sources, by the Rev. J. E. Riddle, M. A., which consists of one large octavo volume, the second edition of which was published in 1843.
A2
4
EARLY JEWISH AND PROFANE ACCOUNTS [PART I.
toture II.
ON THE EARLY JEWISH AND PROFANE ACCOUNTS OF THE CHRISTIAN CHURCH— THE APOSTOLICAL CONSTITUTIONS AND CANONS.
Q. What two Jewish authors are supposed to al- lude to the existence of the early Christians, and what is the nature and value of their testimony ?
A. (l) Josephus says, "At that time lived Jesus, a wise man, if he may be called a man, for he performed many wonderful works. He was a teacher of such men as received the truth with pleasure. He drew over to him many Jews and Gentiles. This was the Christ ; and when Pilate, at the instigation of the chief men among us, had condemned him to the cross, they who had before conceived an affection for him, did not cease to adhere to him : for, on the third day, he appeared to them alive again ; the divine prophets having foretold these and many wonderful things concerning him. And the sect of the Christians, so called from him, subsists to this time."'1 (Antiq. 1. xviii. cap. iii. sect. 3.) This passage however, even if genuine, merely proves that Josephus had some general knowledge of our Saviour and his followers, but throws little light upon the nature of his religion. (2) Philo, according to Epiphanius (Haeres. xxxix.), speaks of the Christians under the name of " Jessaaans ; ' Eusebius also (E. H. ii. 17) thinks that he meant the Christians when he speaks of the " TherapeutaB." St Jerome (de Scrip. Ecc. c. xi.) says that he wrote a book concerning the first church of St Mark at Alexandria; but admitting that he refers to the Christians as the Therapeutae or Essenes, he does not essentially aid our enquiries into the customs of the primitive church. (See Bingham, Ant. P>. i. c. i. s. 1 ; Paley's Evid. c. vii.)
Q. Enumerate some of the Greek and Roman authors
LECT. II.] OF THE CHRISTIAN CHURCH.
5
who refer to the Christians, and state why they throw little light upon the subject of Christian Antiquities ?
A. Suetonius (Vit. Ner. c. 16; Vit. Claud, c. 25); Tacitus (Ann. 15, 44) ; Arrian, Antoninus, Dio Cassius, and other writers, probably regarded them as a heretical body of Jews, or a detestable and dangerous sect, and therefore take but little notice of them. (See Paley's Evidences, c. ii. ; and Tzchiner, Grseci et Romani Scriptores cur rerum Christianorum meminerint. Lips. 1824.)
Q. State briefly the substance of the information to be derived from Pliny, and Lucian of Samosata, with regard to the state of the early Church. When did they write ?
A. Pliny's letter clearly shews : (l) That they met on a certain day before it was light for religious worship. (2) That they worshipped Christ as God ; " Carmen Christo quasi Deo dicere secum invicem," implying that they had some set form of words which they rehearsed alternately. (3) That they celebrated the Lord's Supper, and their love-feasts, in an evening or night-assembly, and that these were probably accompanied with the reading and exposition of the scriptures. (4) That they were steadfast in their faith, and practised the duties which they inculcated. (5) That they were even then a nu- merous body.
Lucian of Samosata in Syria, who visited Antioch, Ionia, Greece, Italy, Gaul, and was patronized by the emperor M. Aurelius, died a.d. 180, at the age of 90. From his works entitled " de Morte Peregrini" (edit. Bipont. vol. viii. p. 272), Philopseudes (vol. vii. p. 266), and Pseudomantis (vol. v. p. 63), the following particulars regarding the Christians have been collected: (l) He calls them Christians. (2) He styles the author of Christianity a great man who lived in Palestine and was crucified there. (3) He calls their teachers prophets, masters of the synagogue, &c (4) He calls their rites new mysteries. (5) He mentions their fraternal union, their renunciation of Grecian idolatry, and their worship
6 EARLY JEWISH AND PROFANE ACCOUNTS [PART 1.
of their crucified lawgiver. (6) He records their institu- tions for the benefit of the poor and sick, and then' readi- ness to support them. (7) He mentions their $e~nn>a iroiKiXa, or love-feasts. (8) He speaks of their possession and use of sacred books, their community of goods as described in Acts iv., and, lastly, of their abstinence from certain kinds of food, and their rigorous discipline.
Note: — The folloAving is Melmoth's translation of Pliny's letter to Trajan, and the Emperor's answer.
PLINY THE GOVERNOR OF BITHYNIA TO THE EMPEROR TRAJAN.
" It is a rule, sir, 'which I inviolably observe, to refer myself to you in all my doubts ; for who is more capable of removing my scruples, or informing my ignorance ? Having never been present at any trials concerning those who profess Christianity, I am unacquainted not only with the nature of their crimes, or the measure of their punishment, but how far it is proper to enter into an examination concerning them. Whether, there- fore, any difference is usually made with respect to the ages of the guilty, or no distinction is to be observed between the young and the adidt ; whether repentance entitles them to a pardon ; or, if a man lias once been a Christian, it avails nothing to desist from his error ; whether the very profession of Christianity, un- attended with any criminal act, or only the crimes themselves inherent in the profession, are punishable ; in all these points I am greatly doubtful. In the meanwhile, the method I have observed towards those who have been brought before me as Christians, is this : — I interrogated them whether they were Christians ; if they confessed, I repeated the question twice again, adding threats at the same time ; when, if they still perse- vered, I ordered them to be immediately punished ; for I was persuaded, whatever the nature of their opinions might be, that a contumacious and inflexible obstinacy certainly deserved cor- rection. There are others also brought before me, possessed with the same infatuation, but being citizens of Rome*, I directed them to be carried thither. But this crime spreading (as is usually the case) while it was actually under prosecution, several instances of the same nature occurred. An information was pre- sented to me, without any name prescribed, containing a charge against several persons, who upon examination denied they were
* It was one of the privileges of a Roman citizen, secured by the Sempro- nian law, that he could not be capitally convicted but by the suffrage of the people ; which seems to have been still so far in force as to make it necessary to send the person here mentioned to Rome — Melmoth,
LECT. II.] OF THE CHRISTIAN CHURCH.
7
Christians, or had ever been so. They repeated after me an invocation to the gods, and offered religious rites with wine and frankincense before your statue, (which for this purpose I had ordered to be brought, together with those of the gods,) and even reviled the name of Christ : whereas there is no forcing, it is said, those who are really Christians into a compliance with any of these articles. I thought proper, therefore, to discharge them. Some of those who were accused by a witness in person, at first confessed themselves Christians, but immediately after denied it ; while the rest owned indeed that they had been of that number formerly, but had now (some above three, others more, and a few above twenty years ago) forsaken that error. They all worshipped your statue and the images of the gods, throwing out imprecations also at the same time against the name of Christ. They affirmed that the whole of their guilt or error was, that they met on a certain stated day before it was light, and addressed themselves in a form of prayer to Christ, as to some god, binding themselves by a solemn oath, not for the purposes of any wicked design, but never to commit any fraud, theft, or adultery ; never to falsify their word, nor deny a trust when they should be called upon to deliver it up ; after which it was their custom to separate, and then to re-assemble, to eat in common a harmless meal. From this custom, however, they desisted after the publication of my edict, by which, according to your orders, I forbade the meeting of any assemblies. After receiving this account, I judged it so much the more necessary to endeavour to extort the real truth, by putting two female slaves to the torture, who were said to administer in their re- ligious functions*; but I could discover nothing more than an absurd and excessive superstition. I thought proper, therefore, to adjourn all further proceedings in this affair, in order to con- sult with you. For it appears to be a matter highly deserving your consideration, more especially as great numbers must be involved in the danger of these prosecutions, this inquiry having already extended, and being still likely to extend, to persons of all ranks and ages, and even of both sexes. For this contagious superstition is not confined to the cities only, but has spread its infection among the country villages. Nevertheless, it still seems possible to remedy this evil, and restrain its progress. The temples, at least, which were almost deserted, begin now to be frequented ; and the sacred solemnities, after a long intermission, are again revived; while there is a general demand for the victims, which for some time past have met with but few pur- chasers. From hence it is easy to imagine what numbers might be reclaimed from this error if a pardon were granted to those who shall repent."
* Deaconesses.
8 EARLY JEWISH AND PROFANE ACCOUNTS [PART 1.
TRAJAN TO PLINY.
" The method you have pursued, my dear Pliny, in the pro- ceedings against those Christians which were brought before vou. is extremely proper ; as it is not possible to lay down any fixed plan by which to act in all cases of this nature. But I would not have you officiously enter into any inquiries concerning them. If indeed they should be brought before you, and the crime is proved, they must be punished, with this restriction, however, that when the party denies himself to be a Christian, and shall make it evident that he is not, by invoking our gods, let him (notwithstanding any former suspicion) be pardoned upon his repentance. Informations without the accuser's name subscribed ought not to be received in prosecutions of any sort ; as it is introducing a very dangerous precedent, and by no means agree- able to the equity of my government."
Q. When and by whom are the Apostolical Consti- tutions supposed to have been written '?
A. Although the author always represents himself to be Clement, a disciple of the Apostles, the constitutions plainly contradict him. Rosenmuller is of opinion that they were compiled by several individuals at different times, and did not attain their present form until the fifth century ; but it is probable, from internal evidence, that they were the work of some bishop of the eastern church, about the beginning of the fourth century. Epiphanius (who died a. d. 403, Haeres. 70, n. 10,) is the first author who mentions them under their present title, and he ex- pressly says that they were not considered to be the work of the Apostles, but that they contained much edifying matter.
Q. Of how many books do the Apostolical Consti- tutions consist, and what is the general scope of each '?
A. They consist of eight books. The first warns the laity against covetousness and injustice, and lays down severe rules as to their dress, reading, and treatment of females. The second relates to the duties of bishops, pres- byters, and deacons, and orders that the greatest deference should be paid to them ; the people are enjoined to as- semble every morning and evening, to hear the old and
LECT. II.] OF THE CHRISTIAN CHURCH.
9
new testaments read. The third treats of the widows ; for- bids them to administer baptism, confining this duty to the bishops and presbyters only, but yet allows the deaconesses to assist at the baptism of women. It is also specified that a bishop should be consecrated by three, or at least by two bishops, and denounces third and fourth marriages. The fourth book relates to the care of orphans, charities, and the education of the young. The fifth orders relief to be given to confessors ; proves the resurrection of the dead from scripture, and the nature of the phoenix ; charges Christians to avoid profane songs, and appoints certain feasts and festivals. The sixth treats of schismatics and heretics. It contains a profession of the faith of the apostles, and an account of the death of Simon Magus at Rome ; it specifies that baptism ought not to be deferred, or repeated, but ad- ministered in infancy; that the clergy ought only to marry once, and gives various rules relating to reception of peni- tents, the excommunicating the wicked, &c. The seventh book repeats and enlarges the rules relating to baptism and fasting. The eighth represents St Peter to have prescribed the mode of electing bishops ; Andrew of administering the Eucharist ; John of ordaining priests ; Philip of deacons ; Bartholomew of deaconesses ; Thomas of sub- deacons ; Matthew of readers ; James the son of Al- phseus gives directions relating to confessors and virgins; Thaddams to the widows ; Simon the Canaanite to bishops ; Matthew with regard to the water and oil ; and lastly, St Paul treats of the canons.
Q. State reasons for supposing that the Apostolical Canons are ancient.
A. (l) They do not contain anything which is not conformable to the discipline of the church from the end of the second to the beginning of the fourth century. (2) They contain a canon prohibiting the celebrating of Easter according to the Jewish time, a regulation made at several synods in the time of Victor, bishop of Rome, and three of the canons reject the baptism of heretics, which were
a 5
10 EARLY JEWISH AND PROFANE ACCOUNTS, &C. [PART t.
canons of the early councils of Synnada and Iconium. (3) They are more ancient than the council of Nice, because they are often cited both in that council, and those which were convened soon after, as well as by the writers of the fourth century, under the name of Ancient Laws, Canons of the Fathers, Ecclesiastical Canons, and even as "Aposto- lical Canons,''1 (see Dupin, Ecc. Hist. vol. i. p. 14; Beveridge, Synodicon, Proleg. p. iv.)
Q. What is the opinion of bishop Beveridge as to the author of the Apostolical Canons ?
A. Because Eusebius(E. H. vi. 13) says that Clemens Alexandrinus wrote a work against the Jews, entitled, " The Ecclesiastical Canon," and again " in his treatise concerning Easter, Clement acknowledges that for the be- nefit of posterity, he was urged to commit to writing those traditions that he had heard from. the aged presbyters," and because in the words of the eighty-fifth and last apostolical canon, some person, to distinguish himself from Clemens Romanus, who wrote the two epistles to the Co- rinthians, which are there acknowledged to be canonical scripture, inserts the words ' by me Clement,' — on these grounds Beveridge maintains that Clemens Alexandrinus was the author or compiler of the Apostolical Canons.
Q. What is the number of the Apostolical Canons, and in what estimation have they been held at different periods ?
A. They are eighty-five in number, and the first fifty, which were translated from Greek into Latin in the sixth century by Dionysius Exiguus, are considered of high authority by the western churches. About the same time John, patriarch of Constantinople, is supposed by some to have added the remaining thirty-five, and the whole num- ber was held in great esteem by the eastern church.
LECT. III.] NAMES OF THE PRIMITIVE CHRISTIANS.
11
lecture III.
ON THE NAMES ASSUMED BY AND APPLIED TO THE CHRISTIANS.
Q. Mention some of the names applied to the pro- fessors of the Christian religion which occur in the New Testament.
A. (1) ' 'Ay 101, saints, or the holy people ; (2) ttkjtcv- oavres, believers, or tticttoI, the faithful; (3) e/cXe/croi, the chosen, or elect ; (4) ixaQrjTai, the disciples ; (5) dSeX- (pol, the brethren; (6) Xaos tov Qeov, the people of God.
Q. When and where did the appellation of Chris- tians probably originate ?
A. In the eleventh chapter, v. 26, of the Acts of the Apostles, we are informed that while Paul and Barnabas were labouring together at Antioch, the disciples of our Lord first began to be called Christians, (a. d. 42, Burton.)
Q. Give reasons for supposing that the name ' Chris- tians1 neither originated with the Jews nor our Lord's disciples, but with the pagans.
A. (1) The form of the word (Xpiamavol) shews that it is a Latin derivative from Xpiuro^, Christ, and it was probably applied by the pagan inhabitants of Anti- och as a term of reproach to such an insignificant and contemptible sect. Thence the name might come into general use amongst the Romans. Tacitus (Annals, xv. 44) calls them Christians, and says, " Their name they derived from one Christus, who, in the reign of Tiberius, suffered under Pontius Pilate." Suetonius, in his life of Claudius, c. 25, referring to the Christians, relates that the Jews were expelled from Rome, because of their ceaseless tumults, to which they were instigated by one named Chrestus.
(2) From 1 Cor. i. 23, it appears that this name was offensive to the Jews. In Acts ii. 7, they style them Gali-
12
NAMES ASSUMED BY AND APPLIED TO [PART I.
leans, and in Acts xxiv. 5, Nazarenes ; again, "Agrippa said unto Paul, Almost thou persuadest me to be a Christian," Acts xxvi. 28.
(3) St Peter, Ep. 1. iv. 16, says, " If any man suffer as a Christian, let him not be ashamed,'" and in v. 14, " If ye be reproached for the name of Christ {kv 6v6/xuti XpidTov), happy are ye,"
Q. Why do ancient Christian writers speak of the name ' Christians' with approbation ?
A. Because it only expresses an attachment to the religion, without indicating an adherence to any party or sect in the church. " I honour Peter," says Gregory Nazianzen, who died a. d. 390, "but I am not called a Petrian ; I honour Paul, but I am not called a Paulian. I am named after no man, for I belong to God." (Orat. 31.) Epiphanius, who died a. d. 403, says, "No sect or church is called by the name of an apostle. We hear nothing of Petrians, Paulians, Bartholomasans, or Thad- dreans ; for all the apostles from the beginning had but one doctrine, preaching not themselves, but Christ Jesus the Lord. Hence, they gave to all the churches but one name ; not their own, but the name of Christ, from the time that they were first called Christians in Antioch." (Haer. 42.)
Q. Explain the meaning of the name Chrestiani, and shew how it came to be confounded with Christiani.
A. Tertullian, in his Apology, c. 3, written about a. d. 200, says, " The word ' Christian' is derived from ' anointing.' And even when it is by you wrongly pro- nounced ' Chrestian,' (for not even of the name is there any certain knowledge among you,) it is made from 'sweet- ness,' or from 'kindness.'" This mistake of the heathen writers, who were more familiar with the word ^pr]aTo\, good, as applied to the early Christians, is also mentioned by Justin Martyr, Apol. i. § 4; Theoph. ad Antol. i. 1; and Clemens Alex. Strom, ii. 4, says, " They who believe on Christ forthwith are, and are called ^prjaTol, good."
LECT. III.] THE PRIMITIVE CHRISTIANS.
13
Q. Interpret the symbolical words 'c^Ous and Abraxas as applied to Christians.
A. (l) 'I^0i)s, or Fishes, was an acrostic, derived from the initials of the several appellations of our Saviour : — Irjaov's XpiaTos, Qeov Ytos, ^coTyp, "Jesus Christ, the Son of God, the Saviour," the first letter of each being thus united in the word 'l^Ovs.
(2) Abraxas was a mystical word composed of the initials of the following words : IN, av, Father ; 21, bain, Son; rrn, rooach, Spirit; dchad, one, — i.e. one
God ; XpiaTos, Christ ; "Av0pw7ros, man, — i. e. God-man ; ILwTrip, Saviour.
Q. Give a brief account of the principal appellations ascribed to Christians by the fathers.
A. (l) Catholici, or catholics, to distinguish them from heretical bodies of Christians.
(2) Ecclesiastici, or men of the Church. Eusebius, Origen, Epiphanius, and Cyril of Jerusalem, frequently use this term as opposed to Jews, Gentiles, and heretics. It was not until a subsequent period that it was restricted to the clerical body.
(3) Dogmatici, ol too Aoy/mro*?, the professors of the true faith. This term was primarily only applied to religious teachers and rulers ; but it subsequently included all who were sound in the faith.
(4) The true Gnostics ; by this they were distinguished from the heretical Gnostics. Clemens Alexandrinus, Ire- nseus, and others, hint by this term that not merely the teachers, but all members of the Catholic Church, were in possession of true wisdom, derived from no impure foun- tain, and corrupted by no human additions.
(5) Theophoroi, Qeo<p6poi, Christophoroi, Xptarocpo- poi, were originally applied as titles of honour, but subse- quently were used as proper names.
(6) Fishes, (see above.) Hence the early Christians were sometimes, in allusion to the waters of bap- tism, called Pisciculi, or Fishes. (Tertull. de Bap. c. 1 ; Optat. contra Parmenon, iii. &c.)
14
NAMES ASSUMED BY AND APPLIED TO [PART I.
Q. State and explain briefly some of the chief names of reproach and derision conferred on the early Christians by their enemies.
A. (l) Jews. The Romans regarded them as a Jewish sect, like the Pharisees, Sadducees, and Essenes. Afterwards, when they distinguished them from the Jews, they were described by Suetonius (Yit. Ner. c. 16) as a class of men of a new and mischievous superstition, " genus hominum superstitionis nova? et malifica?."
(2) Nazarenes. Both Jews and Gentiles gave them this name. There was also a sect of Christians who observed circumcision and other Mosaic rites, who bore this title, and it is doubtful to which of them the impre- cation, " Send thy curse, 0 God, upon the Kazarenes," which the Jews repeated three times a day in their syna- gogues, was applied.
(3) Galileans. This name may have originated from the word used in Acts ii. 7 ; but Gregory Nazianzen (Orat. iii.) asserts that Julian the apostate was the author of it as a term of reproach, and made a law that they should be called by no other name. Theodoret, E. H. iii. 21, says that Julian's last words were : Nev'ncnKas Va\t~ Xaie, Thou hast conquered, O Galilean!
(4) Greeks, applied to them by Romans either from their wearing the Grecian pallium, or from this being a general name of all impostors.
(5) Magicians, or Sorcerers, from the accusation of Celsus and others, that our Saviour practised magic which he had learnt in Egypt, and that he delivered several magical books to St Peter and St Paul for the use of the disciples.
Q. Give a brief summary of some of the opprobrious epithets applied to the early Christians, (l) by individual writers, or such as were used in particular countries, or on particular occasions, (2) of such as were directed against the nature of their religion and worship.
A. 1. (a) Sibyllists, from their being charged, by Celsus and others, ^Orig. contra Celsum, v. p. 272 :
LECT. III.]
THE PRIMITIVE CHRISTIANS.
15
Tertull. ad Nat. ii. 12), with having corrupted the Sibyl- line books.
(b) Sarmentitii, from the faggots (sarmenta, sar- mina) which were kindled around them at the stake (se- maxis). From this latter word they were also called Semaxii. (See Tertull. Apolog. c. 50.)
(c) Parabolani, TrapdfioXoi, parabolarii, and de- sperati, from their being exposed to ravenous beasts ; this being the appellation of those desperados who fought for hire with the beasts in the amphitheatre. (Lactantius, Inst. Div. v. 9.)
(d) fiiaOdvcLToi, self-murderers, from their fearless- ness of death ; or (BioOdvaroi, from their expecting to live after death. Bingham, 1. ii. 8.
(e) Plautinse prosapise homines et Pistores, men of the race of Plautus, and Bakers. Plautus being said from his poverty to have hired himself to a baker, to grind in his mill. (Minucius Felix, Oct. c. 14.)
(f) Asinarii, worshippers of an ass ; creduli, credu- lous ; simplices, simpletons ; stupidi, stulti, fatui, imperiti, hebetes, idiots, fools, infatuated ; lucifugse, lucifuga natio, skulking, afraid of the light, Sic.
2. (a) ''AOeoi, Atheists, because they had renounced polytheism. (Eus. E. H. iv. 15.)
(6) Reoorepoi, Novelli, novissimi, nuperrimi, innova- tors, new lights, because they brought in new doctrines.
(c) ^ravpoXdrpai, worshippers of the cross, (2 Cor. i. 13), because from using the sign of the cross they were accused of worshipping it. (Tertull. Apol. c. 16.)
(d) 'OvoyoriTat, Asinarii, worshippers of an ass, from the Jews having been accused, as mentioned by Tacitus, of worshipping an ass.
(e) Lastly, the epithets Ovpavokdrpai, worshippers of the heavens, and ' IWioXd-rpai, worshippers of the sun, were supposed, without any great authority, to have been applied to them.
1G
NAMES AND CLASSES OF CHRISTIANS. [PART I.
lecture IV.
NAMES AND CLASSES OF CHRISTIANS.
Q. Into what two classes are Christians divided in the New Testament?
A. Hearers or learners, and teachers or governors.
Q. By what titles are the great body of the disciples spoken of?
A. 'O Xaos, the people; to ttoiuviov, the flock ; to 7t\»?0os tcov ttiotwv, the body of the believers ; >J eKKXrj- ala, the church ; l^iwTai, private persons ; and (Siwtikoi, laymen, or men devoted to secular pursuits.
Q. How were the governors of the early church denoted ?
A. Teachers, SiScigk a\o i ; leaders, tjyoufiet'oi ; shep- herds, Tro'tneves ; overseers, e7r'iaKoiroi ; elders, ir pea (iv re- pot; presidents, -n-poecTTWTes.
Q. By what titles are the inferior orders of the ministry designated in the New Testament ?
A. The deacons, Skxkovoi ; the widows, \rjpai ; or deaconesses, liaKoviaaai ; the attendants, virriperai ; and the inferior or younger, vewrepot.
Q. "It has been debated whether the constitution of the Christian Church was constructed in accordance with the Jewish temple-service, or with the worship of the synagogue." State some of the arguments for each opinion.
A. Tertullian compares the office of bishop to that of the high priest. Cyprian and Jerome consider the Mosaic economy as the prototype of the Christian Church ; while Chrysostom, Basil the Great, and Augustine, refer its origin to the Jewish synagogue. The advocates for the latter contend: (l) That although in the Epistle to the Hebrews a comparison is instituted between our Saviour and the high priest, yet no analogy is drawn between the
LECT. IV.] NAMES AND CLASSES OF CHRISTIANS.
17
Christian teachers and the Jewish priests : or rather, a resemblance between those priests and the believers in general is instituted, as in Rev. i. vi., and 1 Peter ii. 9. (2) That there is a greater analogy between the officers of the Christian Church and the synagogue, than between the three orders of the Christian ministry and the high priest, priest, and Levites. (3) The testimony of the fathers which favour the opposite hypothesis, only prove that the real origin of these Christian officers of the Church was overlooked, and that after the destruction of Jerusalem, the worship of the synagogue having ceased, the remem- brance of the temple-service was more lasting from its being described in the inspired writings.
Note: — The real fact appears to be, that as the referring to the temple-service favours episcopacy, all its impngners must necessarily hold the opposite opinion, and put forward such ar- guments as are suited to strengthen their position.
Q. How do Eusebius and Jerome classify the whole body of Christians ?
A. Eusebius (Demonst. Evang. vii. 2) says : "In every Church there are three orders of men. One of the riyov- fiivwr, superiors, i. e. rulers, leaders, or guides ; and two of the virofiefiriKOTwv, subjects, i. e. the people, the body of the church. The latter class comprehends two divisions, the unbaptized, and the faithful. The unbaptized are usually denominated KUTYi^ov/nevoi, catechumens, can- didates for baptism." Jerome speaks of five orders ; namely, bishops, presbyters, deacons, believers, and cate- chumens. Comment. Isa. c. xix.
Q. Who were the Kar^ov^evoi in the early church ? Give the derivation of the word. By whom and where were they instructed ? What Latin names were applied to them ?
A. Candidates for baptism undergoing preliminary instruction. The word is derived from Kara and tj-^ew, and is of frequent occurrence in the New Testament (Acts xviii. 25 ; Gal. vi. 6 ; Rom. ii. 19 ; 1 Cor. xiv. 19). Their
18
NAMES AND CLASSES OF CHRISTIANS. [PART f.
teacher was called Karrj^Trjs or Kcrr^ta--™;?, catechist ; the instruction given Karriyrjai^, catechesis ; \6yos Kart]- ■ytjTiKo<i, catechetical lessons; or KaTrj-^ia/uoi, catechism. The place of instruction was called KaTrj-^ovnet'elop, or, in the plural, ra Karrj-^ov fie vela, Karrj-^ovixevia, and some- times rd KaTrj-^ov/meva, the schools of the catechumens. When the Latins did not use these Greek terms, they denominated them Xovitii and novitioli, novices; tirones, or tirones Dei, beginners ; audientes, auditores, pupils, &c.
Q. At what age were persons eligible as catechumens ? How long did they remain under instruction ?
A. After mentioning the particular cases of the eunuch and St Paul, Tertullian de Bapt. xviii., says, •■ Wherefore the delaying of baptism is more profitable according to the condition, and disposition, and moreover, the age of each person." The Apostolical Constitutions speak of three years as the proper term, except in parti- cular cases, and Tertullian says, " Let them come when they are of riper years ; let them come when they are disciples, when they are taught whither they are coming ; let them become Christians when they are able to know Christ." Iso age in fact appears to have been fixed.
Q. Into what number of classes were the catechu- mens divided ?
A. Cave (Primitive Christianity, i. 8) following the Greek Canonists, says, " Of the catechumens there were two sorts, the TeXeiwrepoi or more perfect, such as had been catechumens of some considerable standing, and were even ripe for baptism ; the others were the dreXecrTepoi, the more rude and imperfect ; these were as yet accounted heathens, who applied themselves to the Christian faith, and were catechised and instructed in the more plain grounds and rudiments of the Christian religion. These principles were gradually delivered to them, according as they became capable to receive them, first the more plain, then the more difficult." Beveridge, Basnage, Suicer, and others, vary the names of these two classes. Bona. i. 16.
LECT. IV.] NAMES AND CLASSES OF CHRISTIANS.
19
n. 4, gives four classes, audientes, substrati or gemiflec- tentes, competentes, and electi. Bingham, without any authority, gives four classes, (l) Those who were under private instruction. (2) Those who received public in- struction (3) Those who were employed in devotional exercises. (4) Those who were duly qualified for baptism.
Q. Describe the mode of receiving catechumens. What were their exercises until their union with the be- lievers ?
A. The bishop examined the candidate, and if he approved of him, his name was enrolled in the records of the church. This reception was then ratified by prayer, imposition of hands, and the signing of the cross.
The exercises consisted generally in attending to vari- ous catechetical and doctrinal instructions, and the reading of scripture. Previous to baptism the candidates were subjected to strict examinations, and to a kind of exorcism, accompanied by the laying on of hands, signing with the cross, and insufflation. They also passed some time in fasting and prayer, and in learning to repeat the Creed and the Lord's Prayer.
Q. Explain the terms Yliarot, <£>coTify/uevoi, Men- vrjfievoi, TeXeioi, and others, as applied to complete mem- bers of the church.
A. (l) riicrToi, the faithful, were those who had been baptized after being instructed in the fundamental truths of Christianity, and were living in private in full commu- nion with the church, as distinguished from the clergy and others. This title, which was uniformly used by the fathers in a passive sense, occurs in the New Testament chiefly in the active form, o'i iruxTevovTes, or 7riaTev- aavra. Acts xvi. 1 ; 2 Cor. vi. 15 ; 1 Tim. iv. 12, v. 16.
(2) <b(DTi'(piix€voi, illuminati, the enlightened, was a name given them upon being baptized ; baptism being deno- minated <pu)Tiaiw<s, or (pwriatxa, illumination. It is ana- logous to expressions which occur in Eph. iii. 9 ; 2 Tim. i. 10, &c. The name (ptoTtaOevTes was applied to candidates for baptism. See Heb. vi. 4.
20
NAMES AND CLASSES OF CHRISTIANS. [PART I.
(3) Metivr]iuL€voi, the initiated. This name was most in use during the fourth and fifth centuries, when the arcani disciplina, the secret discipline, was so prevalent. The phrase, 'uTaaiv o'i ne/u.vr]fxei'oi, the initiated know, occurs about fifty times in Chrysostom and Augustin alone. The terms fivoTai, ^vaTaywynrol, and others borrowed from the heathen mysteries, were also often used.
(4) TeXeioi and TeXeiovfievoi, the perfect, also refer- red to the sacred mysteries. These were adopted from the New Testament where thev relate to Christian perfection.
iv eiri to TeXe'iov, or /uere^eiv tov reXetov, to attain unto perfection, meant to join the Church, and to parti- cipate in the Lord's Supper, which invariably followed after baptism, and was denominated TeXe-r*; reXenov, per- fection of perfections.
(5) The titles dSeXcpol, brethren ; dyioi, saints ; ck- Xsktoi, the elect ; dyairnrol, beloved ; viol Qeov, sons of God ; carissimi in Jesu Christo filii, dearly beloved in Christ, and others, were the special prerogatives of be- lievers.
Q. Mention some of the rights and privileges which belonged exclusively to those members of the Church who were in full communion.
A. (l) They were permitted to be present at all reli- gious assemblies, and to attend the missa fidelium, which followed the missa catechumenorum, when the catechu- mens and others were dismissed.
(2) They were permitted to hear and join in repeating the Lord's Prayer aloud.
(3) They were entitled to receive an explanation of the higher Christian mysteries.
(4) They had a voice with the rest of the faithful in the management of ecclesiastical affairs.
Q. What was the condition of the penitents and energumens in the early Church ?
A. (l) The penitents were those members who had been in full communion, but were undergoing penance for some misconduct.
LECT. IV.] NAMES AND CLASSES OF CHRISTIANS.
21
(2) The Energumens, evepyovnevoi, or Sai/novify/mevoi, persons possessed with an evil spirit, were under the special care of exorcists, and only permitted to join in portions of the public worship. If they were disordered in mind, they were compelled to remain in the eocedrce, or even in the outer porch, or the area of the church. From this circumstance they were denominated yeifxaXo/xevoi, or Xet/ud<[ovTes, or, as some think, from the agitations they were subjected to, like a ship at sea. They were not ad- mitted to the Lord's Supper until their complete restora- tion.
Q. What was the origin of the Ascetics and Ancho- rites ? By what other names were they called ?
A. The word dcnc^T^s was applied by profane writers to the Athletes, and those who were trained for Gladiators. It afterwards denoted those Christians who practised ex- treme austerities by spending their time in fasting and prayer. They renounced all worldly possessions, and con- fined themselves to a single life. They are supposed to have originated in Egypt after the Decian persecution.
The Anchorites, dfa-^wprjTai, solitaries ; ep^filrai, dwellers in the deserts, or hermits, were of a later date.
" Eusebius calls them aivovoaioi, and Epiphanius uses tlie same appellation, meaning persons more eminent for their sanctity and diligence in the exercises of fasting, prayers, and alms-deeds, and the like. Clemens Alexan- drinus styles them enXeKToiv enXeKTOTepoi, ' the elect of the elect ;' for all Christians were called ' the elect :' and therefore the ascetics are termed ' the elect of the elect,' because they were the more eminent or choice part of the Christian professors.11
22
PATRIARCHS, METROPOLITANS,
[PART I.
^ertttre V.
PATRIARCHS, METROPOLITANS, AND BISHOPS OF THE EARLY CHURCH.
Q. What names were given to the clergy to distin- guish them from the laity ?
A. (l) •Cleri, clerici, clergy, which is derived from K\rjpo<s, a lot. This name is derived from the Lord being considered their lot, or heritage, and not from their being chosen by lot.
(2) Spiritual persons were also known by the name of canonici, kcivokikoi, 01 tov kcivovos, o'i ev tw kclvovi, men of the canon, either from their being subject to the canons or general rules of the church, or from their being registered in the official list of the church, called a canon, navtov, clyios Kavcof, register, sacred register, KaraXoyos \epariKos, album, matricula, tabula clericorum, the list of the priesthood. In later times the clergy were so called in distinction from the monks, which latter were bound by the particular rules of their order.
(3) They were called eKKknaiarrTiicoi, o'i tov Soy/ua- to?, ecclesiastics, dogmatics, and gnostics, and oi tov (irinaTos, because the higher orders sat in the fitj/Ma, near the Opovos of the bishop.
(4) The word order, ordo, Taf(s tepaTiKtj, occurs as early as Tertulhan and Cyprian. Jerome considers it to be synonymous with gradus, degree, officium, office, potestas, power ; Bctfyuos, X<*>pa, d^la, a^'iwua, also occur in Greek writers.
Q. At what time does it appear that a distinction between the ' higher and lower orders' of the clergy arose? What was the KaTaXoyos \epaTin6s ?
A. It appears from the Apostolical Constitutions, Ter- tulhan, and Cyprian, that at the end of the second, or
EECT. V.] AND BISHOPS OF THE EARLY CHURCH. 23
beginning of the third century, such a distinction existed ; but it cannot be exactly determined when it arose. (Eus. H. E. vi. 43 ; Tertull. and Cyprian passim). Amalarius says, " that the other offices of the priesthood and deacons were instituted by the apostle Paul, because they were in- dispensable in the church, and that as the church increased other offices were created, and inferior officers appointed in aid of the superiors." (De Off. Eccl. ii. 6.) According to the authority of Cave, (Primitive Christianity, i. 8) " the whole KciraXoyos 'tepariKos, (as it is often called in the Apostolical Canons), i.e. the roll of the clergy of the an- cient church, (taking within it the compass of its first four hundred years), consisted of two sorts of persons ; — the iepovixeroi, who were consecrated to the more proper and immediate acts of the worship of God, and the vTrriperai, such as were set apart for the more mean and common services of the church."
Q. Explain what is meant by " apostles," " evange- lists," and " prophets," in the New Testament.
A. (l) 'AttocjtoXoi ; the word properly signifies am- bassadors or messengers, and was primarily applied by the Church to the twelve disciples whom our Lord selected to be the first preachers of the gospel, (Matt. x. 1 — 5 ; Luke vi. 13, 14) ; the name was afterwards applied to St Mat- thias, St Paul, Barnabas, (Acts xiv. 4), Epaphroditus, (Philipp. ii. 25), and others. Their office was originally to plant new churches, and to superintend them, (see Burton's Hist, of the Church, chap, iii.) In later times missionaries to foreign lands bore this title.
(2) Evayye\^.i<jTrj$. In the New Testament it means a teacher or preacher of Christianity, or some- times a fellow-labourer with the apostles. (See Eph. iv. 11 ; Acts xxi. 8 ; 2 Tim. iv. 5.) According to Euscbius, H. E. iii. 37, " they extended the preaching of the gos- pel and spread the seed of the kingdom of heaven far and wide. Then they travelled into distant parts, . . . and ex- tended the worship of the universal Creator."
(3) T\po<pt]Tr)<; means, firstly, an inspired man, who
24
PATRIARCHS. METROPOLITANS,
[part I.
foretold future events, as in Luke i. 67, ii. 25 ; Acts xxi. 9, &c. Secondh*, an expounder of the scriptures, especially one who expounded the Old Testament prophecies relating to the Messiah. Thirdly, a Prophet : who had the gift of speaking with tongues. (Burton, Hist. c. hi; Lect., Lect. vi.)
Q. Compare the three ranks of " bishops, priests, and deacons," (l) With the officers of the Jewish temple; (2) With those of the Jewish synagogue ?
A. (l) They correspond with the high-priest, priests, and Levites. The eTrianmroi in the church have been compared to the rulers of the synagogue mentioned Matt. ix. 1 ; Mark v. 22, &c. In Hebrew the ruler of the synagogue, who was styled head of the assembly, J"lp!pn HJiXl, had the oversight at once of the doctrines and discipline of the synagogue.
(2) The irpecrfivTepoi correspond to the D'Opb elders, who were so designated, not so much from their age, as their rank and authority. Whilst the second temple stood, the members of the Sanhedrim were styled, by preference, ■n-peafiuTepoi, or elders ; and hence in the Xew Testament they are classed together, ap-^ovres ical oi TrpeafiuTepoi, rulers and eldei'S (Acts iv. 5, 8), or ap^iepels /cat Trpe- cfiuTepoi, chief priests and elders (Matt. xxi. 23, &c), or ap^iepeis, Kai oi "ypafx/uareis, /cat oi 7rpeo~fivTepoi, chief priests, and scribes, and elders (Matt. xxvi. 41, &c.) But in Acts xi. 30, xiv. 23, they coincide more with the D^W^S, pastors or governors of the synagogue.
(3) The office of deacon, lianovos, has been com- pared to the |in, chazan, inspector, overseer, of the syna- gogue, whose principal duty was to preserve order and decorum, to assist in the reading of the law, and to lead the sino-ing. These however were not the official duties of the deacon of the Xew Testament, although some of them shortly afterwards devolved upon him.
Q. What appear to have been the names of the clergy, inferior to the deacons, in the early Church *? Into how many classes have the clergy been divided?
LECT. V.] AND BISHOPS OF THE EAHLY CHURCH. 25
A. Cornelius, bishop of Rome, who died a. d. 252, in writing to Fabius, bishop of Antioch, declares that the inferior order of the clergy at Rome comprehends five distinct classes : subdeacons, viroSiaKovovs ; acolyths, aVc- XouOous ; exorcists, e^opKio-Tcis ; readers, dvayvioaTas ; and door-keepers, TrvXwpovs, (Bus. E. H. vi. 43.) Sixty presbyters, one hundred deacons, ninety subdeacons, one hundred and ten readers, and twenty-five singers, besides one hundred door-keepers, were appointed by Justinian for the service of the cathedral of St Sophia at Constanti- nople. In the Greek Church the inferior orders were sub- deacons, and readers, which class included singers and acolyths. The Canonists divide the priesthood into nine classes: 1. singers; 2. door-keepers; 3. readers; 4. ex- orcists ; 5. acolyths ; which composed the inferior order ; 6. subdeacons ; 7. deacons ; 8. presbyters ; 9. bishops ; which composed the superior order.
The Roman Catholics reckon seven classes : of the su- perior order, three — 1. presbyters; 2. deacons; 3. sub- deacons. Of the inferior order, four — I, aoolyths ; 2. exorcists ; 3. readers ; 4. door-keepers.
Q. Under what two different classes may the duties of a bishop be generally arranged ?
A. (1) Those that relate to divine worship, whether performed by himself, or by others acting under his com- mission.
(2) Those that relate to the government and discipline of the Church, such as the oversight of all his churches, the clergy, and laity.
Q. What were the duties of a bishop relating to the offices of the Churoh ?
A. According to Justin Martyr (Apol. ii. p. 97) it was the duty of the 6 Trpoearm t<dv d§e\(p<iov, probably the bishop, to consecrate the eucharistic elements. The same distribution of the services is enjoined in the Apo- stolical Constitutions, viii. 12, 13. He was also to perform the duties of catechist and preacher. St Ambrose (De
A.R.C.C. B
26
PATRIARCHS, METROPOLITANS,
[part I.
Off. Sacr. l 1) expressly says that the peculiar office of the bishop is to teach the people. This duty was recog- nized and discharged by Chrysostom, Gregory Xazianzen, Cyprian, Augustine, Leo the Great, Gregory the Great, and others. These acts were not exclusively the duty of the bishop, but the following were: 1. The confirmation of baptized persons. 2. The ordination of the clergy, and consecration of other officers of the Church. 3. The re- conciling of penitents, or the restoration of offending mem- bers of the Church. 4. Various acts of consecration and benediction.
Q. What was the power of the bishop in the go- vernment and discipline of the Church ?
A. (l) The superintendence of religious ivorship. He appointed or enforced the use of the liturgy, and saw that every thing was done according to the established order. He had also a special control over processions, pilgrimages, fasts, and vows.
(2) The oversight of all the members of his diocese in regard to spiritual and ecclesiastical matters ; especi- ally with reference to adjudications, excommunications, penances, marriage, and the actions of the clergy, both those of the priesthood and the inferior servants of the church.
(S) The visitation of the clergy, churches, schools, cloisters, and religious establishments. This duty was at first rigidly exacted of the bishops, but at length they were allowed to appoint rural bishops (choriepiscopi), ex- archs, visiting presbyters (Trepiodevral), to perform this service. (Canons of Laodicea, a. d. 361, c. 57.)
(4) The presiding over all synods ivithin his dio- cese, and the management of the business transacted in them.
(5) The controlling and disbursing at pleasure both the occasional contributions and the stated revenues of the CJiurch. This was originally the duty of the deacons, but in process of time certain ceconomi, or managers, were
LECT. V.] AND BISHOPS OF THE EARLY CHURCH. 27
appointed under the direction of the archdeacons, all acting under the superintendence of the bishop.
(6) The exercise of a civil as ivell as an ecclesias- tical jurisdiction, especially in cases relating to marriages and divorces, and to the person or goods of the clergy. At first certain judges, evSmoi, and ovvSwoi, advocati, and consules, acted in his name. This power gave rise to all our ecclesiastical courts.
Q. Enumerate and explain the meaning of the in- signia or emblems of the bishop.
A. (l) A ring, annulus, emblematical of his es- pousals to the Church. It was called the ring of his espousals, annulus sponsalitius, annulus pronubus, and sometimes annulus palatii.
(2) The pastoral staff, or crook, SiKav'iKiov, pedum, which was usually bent or crooked at the top.
(3) The mitre, or fillet, mitra, or infula ; which was sometimes called a corona, are<pavos, crown, idSapis, dia- dema, and ridpa, tiara.
(4) Gloves, chirothecce, which were worn at the per- formance of any religious office.
(5) Sandals. Without these no priest was allowed to celebrate the eucharist. From the seventh and eighth centuries these are expressly mentioned, as one of the badges of the episcopal office, distinct from those of the priests.
(6) Caligm, or military boots, usually of a red or a violet colour, and were worn as emblematical of that spi- ritual warfare on which he had entered.
(7) Pallium, or pall, w/uorpopiov, \epd crroX*?, pallium superhumale, pectorale ; ephod, which was originally worn by all bishops, but at a subsequent period only by arch- bishops, metropolitans, and patriarchs.
(8) The cross. There were two kinds, a smaller one, which was worn on the breast, and a larger, which was carried before the bishop in processions.
b 2
28
PATRIARCHS, METROPOLITANS,
[PART I.
Q. Into what two classes were the bishops in the early Church divided ? What titles were included in each class ? A. Superior and inferior.
(1) The superior order included : I. The archbi- shops, ap-)(ieiriaK07vo%. This title was probably first given to the bishop of Alexandria, at least the first application of it is found in the second apology of Athanasius against the Arians. It was certainly given in the fourth and fifth centuries to the bishops of chief cities, such as Home, Alexandria, Antioch, and Constantinople ; but it was not adopted as an official title until the council of Ephesus,
A. D. 431.
(2) Patriarch, Trarpiapytyi. It was originally ap- plied to the archbishop, and first occurs in the acts of the council of Chalcedon, a. d. 451. It was synonymous with e%>a.pXo<i rrjs eirapylas (Socrates, E. H. v. 8.) It was un- doubtedly borrowed from the J ews, by whom it was applied to the primates of their church, after the destruction of Jerusalem. The bishops of Rome, Constantinople, Alex- andria, Antioch, and Jerusalem particularly, were called by this name, or Trpwros, primus, primate.
(3) Metropolitan, MrjTpo7roX'iT^. So called because each presided over the principal town of the district or province. The authority of this rank came into use soon after the apostolic age, but the title was first authorised by the council of Nice, (see Cave, Ch. Gov. and Bingham, ii. 16, 2) ; previous to that time other equivalent titles were used, such as ap-^ieTTiaKOTros, KefpuXij, e^apyos Trj$ eirap-yla^,, &c. The e^apyoi, in the eastern, were the same as metropo- litans and primates in the western Church. It is a disputed point whether the word originally denoted a civil or an ecclesiastical office.
(4) Absolute, or independent bishops, dtcecpaXoi and <xvTOK6<pa\oi, not subject to the authority of a superior. (5) The title of cardinals, and that of pope, in its mo- dern sense, are peculiar to the see of Rome,
LECT. V.] AND BISHOPS OF THE EARLY CHURCH. 29
Q. Mention the titles and explain the position of the inferior bishops.
A. (i) ' E7riaK07roL (TKoXafyvTes, vacui, vacantes, cessantes, quiescentes, bishops without cures, i. e. bishops who were only elect, or who for various reasons declined the duties of their office.
(2) Titular bishops, episcopi in partibus infidelium, episcopi gentium, regionarii. This title was first given in the twelfth and thirteenth centuries to bishops who had been consecrated, but had no stated diocese.
(3) Suffragan bishops. These were originally the same as diocesan bishops, who acted as assistants, or sub- stitutes, for their metropolitans. They were called suf- fragans, either because they could not be consecrated without the suffrage (sine suffragio) of the metropolitan, or, because they possessed the right of suffrage in the synods.- They were not the same as the chorepiscopi, but were probably increased in number at their abolition. Bi- shops who had no metropolitan power did not appoint suffragans previously to the tenth century. The suffragans were also styled vicar-generals, vicegerents, bishops in pon- tificalibus, vice-episcopi.
(4) Rural bishops, ^wpeTriaKoiroi, episcopi rurales, or villani. Some derive the word from chorus, a choir of singers. Others from cor episcopi, the heart of the bishop ; and others again from the Syriac word *1>D, which in connexion with the word bishop, designated a vicar of the bishop : but there is no reason why it should not be derived from ywpa, or -^oop'iov, country, and denote a country bishop.
(5) Intercessors, intercessor es, and interventores. These were peculiar to the African church. They dis- charged the several offices of a bishop during the vacancy of a see, but their authority could not be exercised beyond a year.
30
PRESBYTERS, DEACONS.
[part I.
ierture VI.
ON' THE PRESBYTERS, DEACONS, ARCHDEACON'S, DEACONESSES, AND OTHER INFERIOR MINISTERS OF THE EARLY CHURCH.
Q. Give a brief account of some of the official duties of presbyters.
A. (l) By appointment of the apostles and their successors their duty was to teach and preach. (2) They were avWeirovpyol, comministri, consacerdotes, joint or fellow-ministers, of the bishops in the administration of the sacraments, and in laying their hands on persons ordained. Subsecmently they regularly officiated —
(a) In the office of baptism, particularly after infant baptism generally prevailed, and fewer adults were to be baptized.
(b) In the sacrament of the Lord's Supper, by conse- crating the elements when the bishop was not present.
(c) Presbyters were the appropriate penitentiary priests, although they acted under the superintendence of the bishop.
(d) They performed the nuptial ceremonies ; they administered extreme unction, and performed all religious funei'al services.
(e) All forms of benediction and consecration, such as those of the anointing oil and chrism, except those which were peculiar to the bishop, were part of their duty.
{£) The 7rpoa(pu>vr](Teis, ev^rj tiZv tthjtwv, public praySk, and the ew'iKXrjais, collect, were offered by the bishop or presbyter indiscriminately, and both had a general superintendence of divine worship, together with the over- sight of the deacons and inferior officers of the Church.
(3) They undoubtedly took a part in the discipline of the Church, and had a seat and voice in the assemblies or synods.
LEC'T. VI.] AND INFERIOR MINISTERS OF THE CHURCH. 31
(4) Their most important office, however, was the cure of souls, specific and general, cura animarum el generalis, et specialis, as ministers of parishes.
Q. What were the different orders or classes of pres- byters ?
A. (l) They were divided into it pea j3v repot iro- Xews, city presbyters, and eiri-^u>ptoi TrpeafBurepot, re- gionarii, rural presbyters, which latter were held in less esteem.
(2) The dpyiirpeafivTepot, and irpwroirpeafiuTepoi, archpresbyters, and pastores primarii, were either those who held some superiority over their fellow-presbyters, or the oldest of the presbyters, whom the Greeks styled Trpw- T6ira.ira<s. Between the fifth and eighth centuries they acted as suffragans and vicar-generals of the bishops, and from having the care of the bishoprics during vacancies generally succeeded to them. They even aspired to epis- copal authority; but in the twelfth century Innocent III. made them subject to the archdeacons.
(3) The title decanus, dean, was unknown until the eleventh century. It is derived from ^eKa^dp-^oi, Seicdpxos, originally a military title, denoting a ruler over ten men. Rural deans were inferior officers under the archdeacons.
(4) The word irpeafivTepa, irpeafiuTis, presbytera, or presbyterissa, denotes either the wife of a presbyter, or a female officer of the church ; sometimes it denotes the matron of a cloister, and an abbess. It is of frequent occurrence in early writers.
Deacons.
Q. Mention the distinguishing characteristics of the office of a deacon.
A. (l) That of reading the Gospels, even in the communion service.
(2) The assisting the bishop or presbyter in the ad- ministration of the sacrament of the Lord's Supper.
Justin Martyr, Apol. i. §. 65 : " After the benediction
32
PRESBYTERS, DEACONS,
[part I.
of the minister (irpoecrTWTos), and the response of the peo- ple, they whom we call deacons distribute the consecrated bread, and wine and water, to each one who is present, and carry them to those who are absent."
According to the Apostolical Constitutions (viii. 13 or 18) the bishop distributed the bread, and the deacons presented the cup. In the absence of the bishop this duty was invariably discharged by the presbyter.
Duties of Deacons.
Q. What subordinate duties connected with the ad- ministration of the Eucharist devolved upon the deacons ?
A. (a) They took down and publicly proclaimed the name of each communicant.
(6) They received the contributions of the communi- cants, and delivered them to an inferior officer to keep and distribute.
(c) They had the charge of the sacred vessels and furniture which were employed in this service.
Q. Upon what minister did the reading of the scrip- ture devolve at different periods ?
A. Previous to the appointment of the ' readers,' the deacons performed their duty. Subsequently, whenever the bishop did not officiate in person, it was their duty to read the gospel at the celebration of the Lord's Supper ; but if the bishop officiated, the presbyter performed this duty. At Alexandria the archdeacon alone read the scrip- tures ; in other churches, the deacons, in many the pres- byters also ; and on festivals even the bishop, as at Con- stantinople on Easter-day.
Q. Enumerate the duties of the deacons in directing public worship.
A. They gave notice by set forms, called Tcpoacpw- vyaeis, of the commencement of each act of worship, by calling attention to it, and commanding silence, whence they were called lepoKtjpvices, Kypvues, praecones, tibicines sacri, heralds. With this they combined a general over-
I.ECT. VI.] AND INFERIOR MINISTERS OF THE CHURCH. 33
sight of the religious assemblies, and saw that everything was conducted with propriety.
Q. Quote some of the forms made use of by the deacons in calling attention to the different parts of divine service.
A. Aet]6ci)fjL€v, oremus, let us pray ; orate catechu- meni, let the catechumens pray ; attendamus, attention ; flectamus genua, kneel ; airokveaOe, you are dismissed ; TrpoeXOere, ite missa est, withdraw, the service is ended ; sursum corda, lift up your hearts ; sancta Sanctis, holi- ness becomes holy things ; and the like.
Q. Explain the ancient regulations with regard to deacons preaching.
A. Chrysostom when a deacon preached before his bishop Flavianius, at Antioch. Ephraim the Syrian did the like. St Ambrose denied them the right ; but the second council of Vaison, a.d. 529, by its second canon ordained, " If a presbyter be prevented by any bodily in- firmity from preaching, let some homilies of the holy fathers be read by the deacons."
Q. Might deacons give catechetical instruction, ad- minister baptism, and absolve penitents ?
A. (l) The bishops frequently devolved upon them the duty of preparing candidates for baptism, especially when a length of time was required. (2) They might administer baptism by permission of the bishops and pres- byters, as their substitutes, but not by their own authority. (3) In cases of necessity they were not only permitted, but were enjoined as a matter of duty, to absolve and restore penitents.
St Cyprian says, " If they (the sick) are seized by any dangerous disease, they need not wait my return, but may have recourse to any presbyter that is present ; or if a presbyter cannot be found, and their case becomes alarm- ing, they may make their confession before a deacon, that so they may receive imposition of hands, and go to the Lord in peace." (Ep. ad Cler. 13. al. 18.)
b 5
34
PRESBYTERS, DEACONS,
[part I.
Q. State what superintending, representative, and bursarial functions, were discharged by the deacons.
A. (l) They might, in the absence of the presbyter, suspend the subdeacons, readers, singers, and deaconesses, in cases of delinquency, until further examination.
(2) They inspected and made report to the bishops concerning the morals both of the clergy and laity. Hence they were called "the eyes and ears" of the bishop.
(3) In the Eastern Church they could sit and vote at general councils as proxies for their bishops. In the Western Church their votes as proxies were taken after those of the bishops, and not in the order of those whom they represented.
(4) They received and disbursed the alms of the Church. Hence they were styled the mouth, and the heart or soul of the bishop, and became essential to him as ac- countants and managers of his pecuniary affairs.
Archdeacons.
Q. State what appears to have been the real origin of the office of archdeacon.
A. That deacon who stood by the side of the bishop at the altar was called primus, primicerius diaconorum, the first, or chief deacon. It is probable that at first the deacon who was senior in years or office became arch- deacon, but in after times the most able were selected, it is uncertain whether by election or by the bishop.
Q. Give Bingham's account of the various offices of the archdeacon.
A. (l) To attend the bishop at the altar; (2) To assist him in managing the church revenues ; (3) in preach- ing ; (4) and in ordaining the inferior clergy. He also had power to censure deacons and the inferior clergy, but not presbyters.
Deaconesses.
Q. What were the names of the female ministers of the Church ?
LECT. VI.] AND INFERIOR MINISTERS OF THE CHURCH. 35
A. The TrpeafivTiSes, Trpeafivrepai, presbyter esses, and SiaKovlaaai, deaconesses, which were used synony- mously ; episcopal, episcopissae, wives of bishops, or female superintendents, antistae, \rjpai, vidua?, Trponadriixevai, mi- nistrae, ancillae, all denoting certain female ministers or assistants in the ministrations of the ancient Church. Their most usual appellation, however, was that of deaconess, StaKovlaaa, r) Sidaovos, diacona, a term which does not occur, except in St Paul, Rom. xvi. 1, where he speaks of " Phoebe our sister, which is a servant (Stdicovos) of the church which is at Cenchrea," but from the next verse, " She hath been a succourer (tt poo-rans) of many, and me also," it might happen that this irpoaraala, as Theodoret observes, only referred to domestic services.
Q. Arrange under different heads the several points of dispute which have been raised on the subject of dea- conesses.
A. (l) Pliny speaks of ancillae quaz ministraz dice- bantur. Lucian of Samosata and Libanius also mention them, and it appears from Pom. xvi. 1, 2, 12 ; 1 Tim. v. 3, seq. ; Titus ii. 3, seq. ; 1 Tim. iii. 11, that the terms SiaKovai, yfipm, it pea (Sure pai, indicate that their duty was to perform certain ministerial functions for their own sex. It is uncertain whether the office was derived from the Jews or not, and whether they did anything more as teachers than act as catechetical instructors to females.
(2) Sixty years was the requisite age, according to 1 Tim. v. 9 ; but Tertullian speaks of a person under twenty years of age being in the widow's office. Sozomen writes, H. E. viii. 9, and the council of Chalcedon ordered, that none should be eligible under forty.
Q. Mention some of the duties of deaconesses.
A. (a) To visit and take care of the poor and the sick, and also to minister to martyrs and confessors in prison.
(6) To prepare catechumens for, and to assist at, their baptism. It has been conjectured that the irpeafivTiles,
36
PRESBYTERS, DEACONS,
[PART I.
and irpoKaOriixevai, gave the instruction, and the younger deaconesses attended at the baptism of females, when their presence was necessary to administer the unction, and to attend to the arrangements with regard to dress. These were called vTroSeKTat, dvd^o-^oi, susceptores, exceptrices.
(c) To exercise a surveillance over the women, not only in the public services, but also in their private actions, and to make due reports of them to their pastors.
Q. When and why were deaconesses discontinued ?
A. At an early period ; but the order was first abo- lished in France by the council of Orange, a. d. 441. After this they gradually disappeared in the Western, but remained in the Eastern Church until the twelfth century.
The following reasons are given for the abolition of their office, (l) The cessation of the Agapae. (2) Con- stantine's making a provision for the poor and sick. (3) The rarity of adult baptism. (4) The arrogant and unruly conduct of some of them.
Q. How does Bingham prove, against Baronius and the council of Trent, that the inferior orders of the clergy in the primitive Church were not of apostolical, but only of ecclesiastical institution ?
A. Baronius (An. xliv.; Concil. Trident, sess. xxiii. 2) and the council of Trent assert that the five inferior orders, subdeacons, acolythists, exorcists, readers, and door-keepers, are of apostolical institution, but Cardinal Bona and other writers of the Church of Rome, who are not bound by the decrees of the council of Trent, make a distinction between the subdeacons and the other four orders. It was only, however, when the Romanists began to reckon bishops and presbyters to be but one order that the subdeacons were raised to be one of the sacred orders. The Apostolical Canons name only three inferior orders, subdeacons, readers, and singers ; but Cornelius, bishop of Rome, in his epistle to Fabius of Antioch, as recorded in Eusebius, E. H. vi. 43, says, " that there were forty-six presbyters, seven deacons, seven subdeacons,
LECT. VI.] AND INTERIOR MINISTERS OF THE CHURCH. 37
forty -six acolyths, exorcists, readers, and door-keepers ; in all, fifty-two," in the church at Rome. We may add that Theodosius appointed " sixty presbyters, one hundred dea- cons, forty deaconesses, ninety subdeacons, one hundred and ten readers, twenty-five singers, one hundred door- keepers ; making a retinue of five hundred and twenty- five ministers and attendants" for the service of the church of St Sophia at Constantinople. It appears also that they were not allowed to forsake their service, and to return to a mere secular life again.
Q. Describe briefly the origin, duties, and mode of appointment of singers, or precentors, in the early Church.
A. It appears from Pliny's Epistle to Trajan, as well as from the New Testament (Eph. v. 19, 20 ; Col. iii. 16) and ancient records, that psalmody was a portion of the service of the early Church, and that in subsequent times regular singers, kuvovikoi \|/aA.Tat, were appointed to per- form and lead others in performing that portion of divine worship. These were " called drofiaXeh, monitors, sug- gestors : for the custom in some places was for the singer or psalmist to begin a psalm or hymn, and sing half a verse by himself, and then the people answered in the latter clause ; and from this they were said virriyeiv, or ' succinere,' to sing after him, by way of Antiphona or responsal." They might be appointed by the presbyters according to the following form : " See that thou believe in thy heart, what thou singest with thy mouth ; and approve in thy works, what thou believest in thy heart." (Bingham, book iii. c. 7.)
Q. Who were the last of the lower orders of the clergy ? What was their origin and duty ?
A. The ostiarii, Trvkwpol, door-keepers. They were probably created in imitation of the door-keepers of the Jewish tabernacle, and might have had their origin when the ' disciplina arcani' was in use. They are mentioned by Cornelius, bishop of Rome, in the third century, but were discontinued from the council of Trullo, a.d. 692.
38
PRESBYTERS, DEACONS,
[part. I.
The bishop appointed them by delivering the keys of the church into their hands, and saying, " Behave thyself as one who must give an account to God of the things that are locked under these keys."
" Their office is commonly said to consist in taking care of the doors of the church in time of divine service, and in making a distinction between the faithful and the catechumens, and excommunicated persons, and such others as were to be excluded from the church... it belonged to them likewise to give notice of the times of prayer and church-assemblies ; which in time of persecution required a private signal, for fear of discovery." (See Bingham, b. iii. c. 6.)
Q. "Who were the subordinate servants of the church and clergy ?
A. (1) Ko7riarai, copiata? or fossarii, undertakes, grave-diggers, sextons. These were entrusted with the care of funerals, and the burial of the dead. They are called vespillones, bispellones, veKpoQaTrrai ; ordo fossa- riorum, fossores, grave-diggers — XeKTiKctptoi, bearers of the bier ; and collegiati decani, from becoming a regular ' collegium' at Constantinople. Some derive their name of KOTTiarai, from Koir'ia, rest, noircu^eiv, to rest ; others from kotticlv, to labour, and others again from /co7reTo?, mourning.
(2) The parabolani. Their duty was to take care of the sick, and the common belief is that their name is de- rived from epyov Trapdfiokov, negotium periculosum, or a dangerous offi.ce, or from irapa(idWeaOai, to expose one^s life to danger ; which was especially the case during the prevalence of contagious diseases, or persecution. Others derive it from TrapdfioXoi, in the sense of bestiarii, per- sons who exposed themselves in combat with wild beasts, and were therefore ready to undertake any hazardous duties.
(3) The sacrista, sacristanus, and sacristarius, was much the same as treasurer, the keeper of sacred things, sacrorum custos, qui ecclesia? Curetum curat (see Ducange and Durandus).
LECT. VI.] AND INFERIOR MINISTERS OF THE CHURCH. 39
(4) The custos, aedituus, was much the same as the sacrista. He is also sometimes called capManxis, which denotes particularly the keeper of the altar.
(5) The matricularii slept within the precincts of the church, and assisted in the processions, &c.
Q. Give a brief account of the origin and duties of the subdeacons.
A. The subdeacons, v-koSicikovoi, are supposed to correspond to the virtiperai of the New Testament. Cyprian makes frequent mention of them (Ep. viii. 20, 29, &c), and Cornelius in his letter to Fabius, bishop of Antioch, includes seven subdeacons ia his list of the clergy at Rome, (apud Eus. vi. c. 43). Some think they were not introduced quite so early into the Greek Church, as Athanasius is the first Greek writer who mentions them, (Ep. ad Solitar. Vit. Agent.)
Their duty was to prepare the sacred vessels and utensils of the altar, and to deliver them to the deacons at the proper time during divine service, — to attend to the doors of the church during the communion service, in order to prevent any one from going in or out during the time of the oblation, — to go on the bishop's embassies with his letters or messages to other churches, — and perhaps to conduct those that came in to their proper places.
Q. In what manner was the ordination of a sub- deacon performed ? What was their number in the Roman Church ?
A. The Apostolical Constitutions (see p. 9) repre- sent St Thomas as requiring bishops to ordain them with imposition of hands and prayer ; but it appears from Basil, who says that this and the inferior orders were ayjuporo- vrjroi, ordained without the imposition of hands, that this was not usual in the Greek Church. It appears from the fourth council of Carthage (a.d. 399) that the following was the mode of ordination in the Latin Church : " When a subdeacon is ordained (ordinatur), seeing he has no im- position of hands, (quia manus impositionem non accipit).
40
PRESBYTERS, DEACONS,
[part I.
let him receive an empty patin and an empty cup from the hands of the bishop, and an ewer and towel from the archdeacon." (See Bingham, book rii. ii. 2.)
In Rome seven subdeacons were appointed to assist the seven deacons, and in order to increase them and yet retain the sacred number, they created three classes of them, called — palatini, stationarii, and regionarii. This rule was not attended to in the other churches.
Q. When were the ' readers ' probably first ap- pointed ? How were they ordained ?
A. The avayvu>GTri<i, 6 dvayiyvwaKcuv, legens, lectw, i. e. reader, has been frequently regarded as institutions by the apostles, and by them derived from the Jewish synagogue. Compare Luke iv. 16 ; Acts xiii. 15, 27 ; 2 Cor. iii. 14. It is certain from Justin Martyr (Apol. i. 67) that some person did officiate as a ' reader,' but it does not appear that this was a subordinate officer. Tertullian (de Prses. Hasr. c. 41) is the first who distinguishes the 'lector' from the ' episcopus, presbyter, and diaconus.'
In the Greek church imposition of hands was sometimes used at their ordination, but the fourth council of Carthage (a. d. 399) speaks of nothing further than that the bishop should put the bible into the reader's hands in the presence of the people, with these words : " Take this book, and be thou a reader of the word of God : which office if thou fulfil faithfully and profitably, thou shalt have part with those that minister in the word of God." (Bing- ham, iii. 5, 3.)
Q. Who were the Acolyths in the early Church, and what were their duties?
A. The word clkoXovOo?, acolythus, acolyth, acolyte, acolythist, denotes a servant. The office corresponds to that of the Roman apparitor, or bedellus, pedellus, a bedel. It was, for four hundred years, an office peculiar to the Latin Church, and adopted from it by the Greek at a later period. Even when the word does occur in Greek writers, it is only another name for the order of subdea-
LECT. VI.] AND INFERIOR MINISTERS OF THE CHURCH. 41
cons, but among the Latins it denoted a distinct order. Cornelius says, there were forty-two acolythists, and but seven subdeacons, in the church of Rome. Cyprian also speaks of them frequently in his Epistles, (vii. 34, &c.)
They were the immediate attendants of the bishop and superior ministers, especially in processions and on festive occasions. Their duties in regard to religious wor- ship, and their ordination are thus specified by the fourth council of Carthage (a. d. 399, c. 6) : " When an acolyth is ordained, the bishop shall inform him how he is to be- have himself in his office ; and he shall receive a candlestick with a taper in it, from the archdeacon, that he may un- derstand that he is appointed to light the candles of the church. He shall also receive an empty pitcher, to signify that he is to furnish wine for the eucharist of the blood of Christ." (See Bingham, book iii. chap. 3.)
Q. State the result of Bingham's investigations into the origin and offices of the ' exorcists'1 in the early Church.
A. He considers : — (l) That exorcists did not at first constitute any distinct order of the clergy ; (2) That bi- shops and presbyters were in the first three centuries the usual exorcists of the Church ; (3) That in a certain sense, by prayer, and by resisting the devil, every Christian might be his own exorcist ; (4) That exorcists began to be known as a distinct order in the Church in the latter end of the third century.
They were charged with the more especial care of the encrgumens, and it was their duty to pray over them, and to use the appointed means for their recovery. Their ap- pointment and office is thus described by the fourth council of Carthage (a. d. 399, c. 7) : <! When an exorcist is or- dained, he shall receive at the hands of the bishop a book, wherein the forms of exorcising are written ; the bishop saying, ' Receive thou these, and commit them to memory, and have thou power to lay hands upon the energumens, whether they be baptized, or only catechumens.'" (Bing-
42
PRESBYTERS, DEACONS,
[part I.
ham, book iii. c. 4 ; Cave, Primitive Christianity, chap. iii. p. 235.)
Q. There were certain officers in the Church who ranked with the clergy. Who were they, and what were their duties ?
A. (a) Catechists. They did not constitute any order, and their duties were often discharged by the bishops and others of the clergy.
(6) Capellani. Capella primarily means a kind of hood, but in the fifth century it began to be used as a name for oratories and private churches. The first instance of such a place of worship occurs in the life of Constantine, who set apart a military tent for this purpose, and it is certain that the succeeding emperors maintained court preachers, clerici palatii, who were the ministers, or capel- lani of these private or court chapels, which afterwards became very numerous throughout France, Germany, and Italy.
(c) Hermeneutici, interpreters, were employed to assist the clergy in such churches as were composed of people speaking different languages, and also acted as translators of the bishop's correspondence.
Q. Give a brief notice of some of the officers of the Church who did not belong to the priesthood.
A. Beginning at the lowest, they were : —
(1) The mansionarii, stewards, called also irpoatxovapiot, irapa/xovapioi, who managed the church glebes.
(2) oiKovo/uLoi, persons appointed by the bishop and archdeacon to assist in managing the church property, especially during vacancies, who were distinct from the stewards of collegiate or other ecclesiastical bodies.
(3) KeLfxrihiapyai, cimeliarchs, thesaurii, sacellii, sa- cristan, treasurers. Me7<xs aKevo(pv\a%, chancellor of ex- chequer ; /txeyas aaKeXXapios, treasurers of monasteries, &c.
(4) Notarii, notaries, who reported the acts of coun- cils, &c, and drew up legal documents.
LECT. VI.] AND INFERIOR MINISTERS OF THE CHURCH. 43
(5) Apocrysarii, or responsales, agents of foreign churches, first at Constantinople, and afterwards at Rome, or elsewhere.
(6) Syncelli, avyKeWot, spiritual advisers of prelates, and patriarchs.
(7) Syndici, avvStKot, defensores, officers who redressed the wrongs of the poor or injured, and had a general oversight of the rights of the Church.
(8) Patrons, or protectors of the Church ; defenders of the faith ; and various other titles are enumerated by the writers on christian antiquities. (See Bingham, b. iii. 11.)
44
CHURCHES AND SACKED PLACES [PART 1.
ierture vn.
ON THE CHURCHES AND SACRED PLACES OF THE EARLY CHURCH.
Q. Give the substance of Hooker's remarks on places appropriated to prayer in the Old Testament.
A. " Adam had where to present himself before the Lord (Gen. iii. 8) ; Adam's sons had whither to bring their sacrifices (Gen. iv. 3) ; the patriarchs used altars (Gen. xiii. 4) ; and mountains (Gen xxii. 1) ; and groves (Gen. xxi. 33) ; to the selfsame purpose. In the wilder- ness, the people were commanded by God to make a moveable tabernacle (Ex. xxvi). The like charge was given them against the time they should come to settle themselves in the promised land ; ' Ye shall seek that place which the Lord your God shall choose.' (Deut. xii. 5, 7.) When God had chosen Jerusalem, and in Jerusalem mount Moriah (2 Chron. iii. 1), there to have His standing habitation made, it was the chiefest of David's desire (2 Chron. vi. 7 ; Ps. cxxxii.), to have performed so good a work. After the overthrow of the first house of God, a second was, instead thereof, erected. Besides this temple there were, both in other parts of the land and even in Jeru- salem, by process of time, no small number of synagogues for men to resort unto." (Abridged from Hooker, book v. ch. xi. 1 ; see also Prideaux's Connection, book vi. part 1 ; Lightfoot's Commentary on the Acts.)
Q. How does Mede controvert the opinion of many Reformed writers, that the primitive Christians met at uncertain and unsanctified places ?
A. " The apostle reproving the Corinthians for using prophane banquetings and feastings in a sacred place, says, ' Have ye not houses to eat and drink in ?' ' rj Trj<i €KKkri<jia<i tov Qeov KaTcKppoveire ;' ' or despise ye the church of God?' Here I take the word e/ocXqcn'a
LECT. VII.] OF THE EARLY CHURCH.
45
or church, to note, not the assembly, but the place ap- pointed for sacred duties, and that from the opposition thereof to ot/c/a, their own houses, * Mt] yap oiKias ovk e^eTe ei? to ecrOletv /ecu irlveiv ; 1 ' Have ye not houses to eat and to drink in?' These are places proper for ordi- nary and common repast, and not the Church or House of God ; which is again repeated in the last verse of that chapter : ' FA cie Tt<> -rreiva, ei> o'U(p eaOieTio? ' If any man hunger, let him eat at home.'
" Thus most of the fathers took eKKXijala in this pas- sage, namely, as most of the words signifying an assembly or company are wont to be used also for the place thereof; as 'Ayopa, BovXq, tZweSpiov, Synagoga, Colle- gium, &c." (Works, book n. p. 319, Discourses on 1 Cor. xi. 22.)
Q. What is Mede's opinion with regard to the places of worship used by the apostles ?
A. " They were some capable and convenient room within the walls or dwelling of some pious disciple, dedi- cated by the religious bounty of the owner to the use of the Church ; and that usually an 'Avcoyeov, or 'YTrepwov, an upper room, such as the Latins call Coznaculum, being according to their manner of building, the most large and capacious of any other, so likewise the most retired and freest from disturbance, and next to heaven, as having no other room above it. Such an Hyperoon was the Ccenaadum Sion, which was afterwards enclosed with a goodly church, where our Saviour instituted the sacra- ment of the Eucharist, and afterwards appeared to the disciples (John xx. 21.)" Mede also thinks that kut oikov in Acts ii. 4G, ought to be translated the house where they met to celebrate the Eucharist, and that the 'Xivepwov at Troas (Acts xx. 7), and the eKK\r]<ria at Csosarea Cap- padocia; (Acts xviii. 22), were both churches.
Q. How does Mede answer the objection that " it is not likely, no not possible, they (the Christians) should have any such places (churches), living under a pagan and per- secuting state and empire ? "
46
CHURCHES AND SACRED PLACES
[part I.
A. (l) As the- persecutions of the first two centuries ■were of no long endurance, so the Churches enjoyed long times of peace and quietness between them. He then quotes Clemens Romanus (Ep. Ad. Cor. i. 40) ; who in exhorting the Corinthians to preserve order in the church says, "God has ordained both where and by what persons (nov tc /cat c)ta t'ivwv ewiTeXeKjOai OeXei) he wishes their oblations to be presented ;" Ignatius (ad Mag. c. vii.) says, " But being come together unto the same place (e7ri to ai/To), have one common prayer... wherefore come ye all together as unto one temple of God {iravTes ovv u>s eva vaov awepxeaOe Qeov.)" Tertullian also (de Idol. vii. a. d. 198) laments that the Christian should come from making idols into the church (ab idolis in ecclesiam venire), from the workshop of the enemy into the house of God, (in domum Dei).
(2) As five of the persecutions fell in the third century, where there is abundant testimony from Tertul- lian, Hippolytus (de Antichristo, a. d. 221), Gregory of Neocaesarea (a.d. 252), St Cyprian (a. d. 250), to prove their existence at that time.
(3) As it appears from Theodoret that churches existed in Persia, which was a pagan kingdom, therefore why should they not be built in the civilized Roman Empire ?
Upon these arguments, stated at length, he considers the objection to be groundless.
Q. By what names were edifices for public worship distinguished by the early Christians ?
A. i. Domus Dei, Ecclesia, the Lord's house, the Church, (Tert. de Idol. 7 ; adv. Yalen. c. 2) ; ot/cos ckk\>j- <r<a5, the house of the Church, and twv eKKXrjaiwv oikos, the house of the Churches, (Eus. E. H. vii. 30, viii. 13, ix. 9) ; " In dominicum sine sacrificio venis, you who come into the Lord's house without a sacrifice," occurs in Cyprian (on "Works and Alms, c. 12); KupiaKrj, and to KvpiaKov, the Lord's house, (Eus. E. H. ix. 10; de Laud. C. M. 17); ora- toria, TrpoaevKTrfpia, evKTtipia, oikoi evKrripioi, oratories, or houses of prayer were in early use, but were soon ap- plied to the lesser churches.
LECT. VII.] OF THE EARLY CHURCH.
47
ii. ' AvaKTopov, basilica, royal palace, or house of the king, were names transferred to designate churches, especially the large edifices erected by Constantine and other emperors.
iii. T'trXoi, or tituli, " either from a name metaphori- cally borrowed from goods belonging to the prince's ex- chequer, that had some sign imprinted on them, that they might be known whose they were ; so the sign of the cross was put on the churches, to make it known that they were marked out and distinguished for God's service : or else they were called tituli, because the respective presbyters did anciently derive and receive their several titles from them." (Philipot's Antiquitas Theologica, p. 10 ; Baronius, a.d. 112; Mede, book ii. p. 328; Staveley, History of Churches in England, p. 18 ; Harington on Consecration of Churches, p. 29.)
iv. TpoTraia, tropaza, is used by Eusebius, E. H. ii. 25, and is supposed to refer to the cross which appeared to Constantine, and the Labarum, on which the inscription, rod aravpou Tpoiraiov, was inscribed. Tpowma and /xapTvpiov were also employed to designate churches erected in honour of martyrs.
v. Nads, a temple, and fiw/mos, an altar, although re- jected at first, were after the time of Constantine brought into use ; fanum and delubrum were never adopted, " un- less poetically, for the verse sake." (Staveley, p. 14.)
Q. Give a brief account of Christian Churches, (l) from the time of Constantine to Justinian, (a.d. 315 — 365) ; (2) from Justinian to the tenth century. From what funds were abbeys built ?
A. (l) Constantine ordered all the churches which had been seized during the persecution of Diocletian to be restored to the Christians free of expense, and during his reign we read of the solemn dedication of large churches at Tyre, Jerusalem, and elsewhere. Heathen temples also after their eytcaivia, or dedication, were fitted up for the Christians ; but the most remarkable church was that of
48 CHURCHES AND SACRED PLACES [PART I.
St Sophia, which was rebuilt by Theodosius the Great, at Constantinople, in the year 557, and was so magnificent that the emperor is said to have exclaimed, ve/acqKa ct* 'S.oXo/u.wv, " I have surpassed thee, Solomon."'
(2) From the fifth to the eighth centuries no churches of any note were built in the East, but in Italy, Spain, France, England, Scotland, and Germany, through the in- strumentality of Theodoric (died a. d. 526), the Byzantine style of building was extensively adopted in the archi- tecture of numerous churches. The buildings also of Char- lemagne and his successors were regarded as wonders of art and magnificence, but they are not to be compared to the later cathedrals. In the tenth century, owing chiefly to the expectation of the world's coming to an end, and of the approach of the millennium, church architecture was entirely neglected.
(3) During the 11th, 12th, and 13th centuries more attention was paid to church-building, especially to abbeys and monasteries, the money being raised by the sale of in- dulgences. Pontius, bishop of Aries, set the example, a.d. 1016, and Mauritius, bishop of Paris, also built Xotre Dame, and four abbeys, by this means. This plan was chiefly adopted by the popes, &c.
Q. In what form were the early ecclesiastical struc- tures built?
A. They were generally oblong, and sometimes with parallel sides, but more frequently elliptical, like the sides of a ship. The Apostolical Constitutions, ii. 57, direct, TrpwTov fiev 6 oikos eaTco e.7ri,at]Kr]s (i. e. oblong),... octtis eot/ce mji. The metaphor of the church being like to a ship was in use in the times of Ter- tullian, (De Bap. 8, 12; de Pud. 13), and Cyprian. It was a mystical reference to the ark of Noah, and the boat of St Peter. After the time of Constantine the form of a cross was chiefly adopted, mavpav vlicr/v, aravpoeiSt}, and GTavpooTa.
Other forms were figura dromica, (SpofxiKri), which
LEC'T. VII.] OF THE EARLY CHURCH.
49
mav refer either to the rectangular shape, or long galleries running parallel with the Avails. The name Trulla, the shape of a mason's trowel, in Greek TpovWos, related only to a round circular part of a church or palace, which had other parts to complete the ohlong shape. (Bingham, viii. 3, 1.)
Q. What were the usual sites and positions of churches?
A. Sites : — (l) The summit of some high hill or elevated ground.
(2) The tombs of martyrs and confessors, which were called fiapTvpia or memoriae.
(3) Subterranean churches, called KpvTrrai, cryptas, oratoria et sacella subterranea, which served both for de- votional purposes and for sepulchres of the dead.
Position, or asjiect. They reversed the order of the Jews, by placing the altar towards the east. The Apo- stolic Constitutions, ii. 57, direct 6 oTko? earco eirifxnKris, kut dvaroXds Terpan/ueuo^, " Let the church be oblong, turned towards the east." But this custom was not uni- versal, as appears from Socrates, E. H. v. 22.
Q. State briefly what was the arrangement and con- stituent parts of a church from the fourth century.
A. The body of the church was separated into three divisions, corresponding to the threefold division of the christian community — the clergy, including all the officials; the faithful, or believers; and the catechumens : and to the division of the Jewish temple into the holy of holies, the sanctuary, and the court. The three divisions were — (l) The bema, or sanctuary, a sacred enclosure around the altar appropriated to the clergy. (2) The naos, or nave, appropriated to the faithful, the lay members. (3) The narthex, or ante-temple, the place of the penitents and catechumens. Some writers, however, divide the narthex into outer and inner, and also reckon the exedra?, or outer buildings, as a portion of the church, and thus enumerate five divisions.
a. r. c. c. c
50
CHURCHES AND SACRED PLACES
[part I.
Q. By what names was the inner part, or sanctuary, of a church known?
A. It was called the chorus, or choir, from the clergy chanting the service in it ; firjua, from dvafidiveiv, to ascend, from its being an elevated platform ; dyiov, dylaa/ia, dylwv, sanctum, sanctuarium, sacrarium, because most of the sacred rites were performed there ; 'icparelov, irpea- fiurrjpiov, ^iriKOUiKov, Ovaiacrrrjpiov, altar, dfiaTov, d^urov, not to be entered or trodden. As kings and emperors alone of the laity were allowed a seat within this enclosure, it was called dvaKTopov, royal -palace ; and, lastly, as it was divided from the nave by rails, in the form of net- work (cancelli), it was called rd evbov twv kikX'iSwv, locus intra cancellos, the chancel. (Theodoret, H. E. v. 18.)
Q. Of what shape was the Bema of a church ? What did it contain, and for what purposes was it used ?
A. It was a semicircular or elliptical recess, with a corresponding arch overhead, and was generally raised above the nave by one or two steps.
Within it was the bishop's throne (Qpovoi, KaOeSpu), which was usually veiled (velata), and on each side of it lower seats for the clergy were placed ; hence the expres- sions, avvOpovot, Gpovoi TrpwToi Kal SevTepoi, dpovos xai avu^eWia. In the midst of it stood the altar of the most holy place, to twv aylwv dyiov Ouaiaarrj piov, the sacred, mysterious, or spiritual table, Tpd-rveXa iepd, imvcttiky}, ■7rvevna.TiK.r1 ; mensa sancta, or tremenda, the sacred, or awful table.
The TrapaTpd-KeCpv, mensula, i. e. side-table, which was also called irpoOeais, paratorium, oblationarium, sacra- rium, or secretarium, on which the deacons placed the alms and elements, Avas generally placed on the right side, and on the other stood the oKevo(pv\dKiov, diaconicum be- matis, or diaconicum majus, a recess in which the sacramental vessels were deposited until cleaned and removed to the sacristy, or gazophylacium magnum, or diaconicum majus.
LECT. VII.]
OF THE EARLY CHURCH.
51
The relics were placed in this part of the church, and the sainted dead were buried in it.
Q. Mention some of the different appellations which were given to the nave of a church.
A. It was called vavs, or navis, because it denoted the middle, or larger part of the church ; and veto? to dis- tinguish it from the irpovaos, or outer part of the building, and the sanctuary. It was also called oratorium populi, because the people met in it for religious worship ; eKuXtjala, the place of assembly, and quadratum populi, the quad- rangle, in contrast to the oval of the chancel.
Q. In describing the nave of a church, what details are worthy of remark ? In what part of the church were the epistle and gospel read?
A. (l) In a central position stood the a/u.j3u>i>, ambo. firjua twv avwyvwGTwv, suggestum lectorum, or reader's desk, so called from avaf&aiveiv, to ascend, because it was raised above the level of the surrounding seats. It was sometimes called the pulpitum (pulpit), and tribunal ecclesia?, in contradistinction to firj/aa, or tribunal chori. (Cyprian. Ep. 33, 34). The choristers, kuvovikoi ^ukrai, were placed near it, and next to them the faithful, and behind them the catechumens and penitents. The females generally sat on the south, and the males on the north of the altar. The scriptures and public documents were read from the ambo, but the epistle and gospel were chaunted from the (cornu epistoloz) south, and (cornu evangelii) north side, and the sermon was originally preached from the steps of the altar. At a subsequent period a suggestum or pulpit was erected in front of the bema in the nave and sur- rounded by railings, called cancelli.
Q, Describe the position of the narthex of an ancient church.
A. It was the outer division of the church within the walls, and called ■trpovao';, ante-temple, irpoirvka, por- ticus, or portico, and vdp9rj%, or ferula, from its oblong shape, resembling a staff, being formed of a narrow oblong
c 2
52
CHURCHES AND SACRED PLACES, &C.
[part r.
cross section of the church. There were three doors from it into the nave, the middle one of which, immediately op- posite the altar, was the grand entrance.
Q. Name some of the outer buildings of an ancient church, and state the uses to which they were applied.
A. The enclosure around the church was called Trepl- /3o\o?, aTocts, 7rep«TTwov, TeTpacTTwoi', tet pacxTuXov, and the enclosed area was called atrium, impluvium, cuQpiov, &c. In it the energumens (see p. 22), and that class of penitents called 7rpocn<\aiovT€$, flentes, or sometimes ^et- naCofxevoi, or yeinaXovTes, from standing in the open air, were stationed. The dead were not generally buried in it until the sixth century.
The chief buildings in this area were the baptisteries, fia-KTiGTY]pia, in which the catechumens were instructed, and ecclesiastical meetings were held ; the diaconicum magnum, a building in which the robes of the clergy and the sacred utensils were deposited, was also built here. This was also called KeijuijXiap-^e^ov, ya'CpcpvXa.Kiov, and (TK.evo(pv\aKiov, vestiarium mutatorium, and was used by the clergy and people like a modern vestry. The 7ra<iTo(p6pia, a name borrowed from the septuagint translation of Ezekiel xl. 17, were buildings attached to churches for the use of the clergy. Libraries and schools were often included in these buildings, as also ^evoSo^ela, houses for strangers, and hospitals.
Note : — A brief account of the privileges, towers, bells, or- gans, doors, pavements, walls, and windows of churches in later times, will be given in the Second Part of this work.
LECT. VIII.] DISCIPLINE OF THE EARLY CHURCH.
53
ierture VIII.
THE PENITENTIAL DISCIPLINE OF THE EARLY CHURCH.
Q. By what word do we express the Greek word fxeravoia, and the Latin pcenitentia ? What several things are implied in it ?
A. The equivalent English word is ' penitence' or 're- pentance,' which implies a change of mind, or a compunction of heart, with all the discipline preparatory or subsequent to it.
" The Greeks (as their expression imports) seem chiefly to have had in view that after-thought, that change of mind, of purpose, and inclination, which is always a considerable branch of this great duty.
" On the other hand, the Latins seem most to have fixed upon that compunction of spirit, that grief of heart, where- with a true penitent always afflicts his soul. We have followed the latter, and have borrowed our expression from them." (Marshall's Penitential Discipline, Introduction.)
Q. What is meant by 'excommunication,' and whence was the practice apparently derived ?
A. An exclusion from the Lord's Supper, and the agapas which followed it. It originated in the adoption of the discipline of the Jewish synagogue ; but it did not, like it, extend to the relations of civil life.
Q. What was understood by ' public penance' ?
A. Certain disciplinary conditions, on the completion of which the Church restored to communion those of her members who had previously been excommunicated for unworthiness, and who were desirous of being reconciled and re-united to her body.
Q. In what manner did our Saviour direct the case of a brother trespassing against another to be treated ?
54
THE PENITENTIAL DISCIPLINE
[PART I.
To whom did he address himself, and with what promise did he accompany his injunctions ?
A. First, There was to be a private admonition ; if that did not avail, it was to be repeated in the presence of one or two witnesses. If this method proved unsuccessful, the Church he belonged to was to be interested in the matter ; he was to be solemnly convened and rebuked in public. But if nothing of all this would be available, then, as the last remedy, he was to be expelled from it ; to be as a heathen man and a publican. (Matt, xviii. 15 — 17.)
It also appears (Matt, xviii. 1) that He was not ad- dressing the mixed multitude, but His own immediate disciples, and that He gave this promise of the ratification of their decree, " Verily, verily I say unto you, whatso- ever ye shall bind on earth shall be bound in heaven : and whatsoever ye shall loose on earth shall be loosed in hea- ven," (Matt, xviii. 18); and again our Lord, after his resurrection, solemnly renewed these powers by saying, " As my Father hath sent me, even so send I you .... whosesoever sins ye remit, they are remitted unto them ; and whosesoever sins ye retain, they are retained.1' (John xx. 21, 23.)
Q. How does St Paul direct the Corinthians to treat offending brethren ? What judgment does he pass upon them when excluded from the Church ? How did he him- self treat two offenders ?
A. He first says, " In the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, when ye are gathered together . . . deliver such an one (the incestuous fornicator) unto Satan for the destruc- tion of the flesh " (1 Cor. v. 4, 5) ; and again, " I have written unto you not to keep company, if any man that is called a brother be a fornicator, ... or covetous, or an ido- later, or a railer, or a drunkard, or an extortioner ; with such an one no not to eat;" which eating, by referring to 1 Cor. x. 16 — 18, evidently refers not to eating at ordi- nary meals, but to the administration of the Lord's Supper. Again in 1 Cor. xvi. 22, St Paul writes, " If any man
LECT. VIII.]
OF THE EARLY CHURCH.
55
love not the Lord Jesus Christ, let him be anathema ma- ranatha."
After the offender is excluded from the Church, he leaves him to the judgment of God, by saying, " What have I to do to judge them also that are without ? do not ye judge them that are within ? But them that are with- out God judgeth. Therefore put away from among yourselves that wicked person." (1 Cor. v. 12, 13.)
At a subsequent period he informs Timothy that he has delivered Hymenals and Alexander unto Satan, that they may learn not to blaspheme. (1 Tim. i. 20.)
Q. What information may be obtained from Clemens Romanus and Hennas relating to the treatment of offend- ers in the primitive church ?
A. Clemens says, "Do ye therefore who laid the first foundation of these broils, submit yourselves to your priest, and be disciplined unto penance (7rat$eu6t)Te eio fieravoiay, ' be instructed unto repentance,' Wake,) bend- ing the knees of your hearts, and laying aside all indecent arrogance of speech, learn to be obedient. For it is better to be found in the flock of Christ little, so you be withal approved there, than to be cast out of his fold for your pride and misbehaviour." § 57.
Hermas says, " Who are they who are rejected from the tower," (which signifies the Church), " and are placed near it, but not in it ? " He is answered, " They are such as have sinned, and would afterwards do penance for their fault. They are therefore not put far out, be- cause upon their penitence they may be useful in the fabric." Again, " Do you think," says the person there introduced to Hermas, " that those who do penance are presently for- given ? No ! for such must afflict their souls, and humble themselves, and go through many severities ; and when they have submitted to everything appointed for them, then perhaps He who made and fashioned them will have mercy upon them, and administer to them some remedy." (Book iii. Simil. 7.)
56
THE PENITENTIAL DISCIPLINE
[PAKT I.
Speaking of repentance after baptism, he writes, " If any one after that great and holy calling shall be tempted of the devil, and so shall fall into sin, he hath but one repentance;" and again, <; To the servants of God there is but one repentance." (Book ii. Mand. 4.)
Q. What indications are there of the existence of a peni- tential system in Ignatius, Justin Martyr, and Irenaeus"? How do the Apostolical Canons, Origen, and Tertulhan, speak of it"?
A. (l) They who denied the authority of the bishop u were to be cut oft' from the body of Christ ; " i. e. were to be excommunicated, and not to be restored until they had made their submission : again he savs, " God extends His pardon to all penitents if they come with one accord into the unity of Christ : " (Ignatius, Ep. ad Philad. 8) ; and again, "It is fit that we should walk more circum- spectly for the future ; and whilst we have time we should turn to God by repentance ;" (ad Smyr. 8).
(€) Justin (Apol. 1, versus finem), says that none are allowed to partake of the Eucharist except such " as live as Christ hath commanded,"' ^Oyrius fiiovvn ws 6 yipiGTos 7rapecwnei').
(3) Irenseus (Book i. c. 13), mentions that of divers women who had been led away, " some had performed public penance (qwedam quidem etiam in manifesto Exho- mologesin faciunt i, whilst others not abiding the shame of it, and despairing of mercy, have either quite revolted from the faith, or else are wavering and undetermined, and so are neither directly in the Church, nor yet quite out of it ;" again, a deacon's wife who had been corrupted, •• being brought with much ado to a sense of her crime, passed her whole life in penitential humiliations, and in that solemn Exhomologesis, which was a known attendant upon them."
(4) Almost every canon imposes excommunication as a punishment both upon the clergy and laity, if they transgress so far as even to pray with, or receive an ex- communicated person, (see canons 8 — 13).
LECT. VIII.] Or THE EARLY CHURCH. 57
(5) Origen writes, (cont. Cels. iii. ed. Ben. t. i. p. 481), u How severe is the discipline of Christians against offenders, especially against such as offend by incontinence, who are expelled from all communion Avith us... we Christians lament and mourn for those who yield to lust, or to any other enormity, as lost and dead to God ; and upon proof of their change for the better, we receive them again, like persons risen from the dead, though not till after a longer time of trial than that which preceded their first admission into the Christian communion ; and even then we receive them upon the condition of their being quite excluded from all office and dignity in the Church of God, since they have happened to behave themselves amiss in it."
(6) Tertullian in his Apology, (c. 39), says, " We are a body formed by our joint cognizance of religion, by the unity of discipline, by the bond of hope. We come together in a meeting and a congregation as before God — we call the sacred writings to remembrance — we strengthen our discipline by inculcating precepts. Here too are ex- ercised exhortations, corrections, and godly censure. For our judgment cometh with great weight, as of men well assured that they are under the eye of God ; and it is a very grave forestalling of the judgment to come, if any shall have so offended as to be put out of the communion of prayer, of the solemn assembly, and of all holy fellow- ship."
Q. If a crime was known to be committed which was thougbt to deserve a censure, and if the party came not of his own accord, what steps, according to the Apo- stolical Constitutions, were taken by the Church against the offender ?
A. " He was convened by the bishop, first in secret, and if he thereupon submitted and reformed, all was well ; otherwise he was to be admonished, and persuaded in the presence of two or three witnesses ; and if those endea- vours proved ineffectual, the whole Church was to be acquainted with his case, and to be interested in it ; and
c 5
58
THE PENITENTIAL DISCIPLINE
[part I.
then if he still continued obstinately resolved against sub- mission after these joint endeavours to mollify him, the highest sentence of excommunication was to be pronounced against him ; under which he was to continue, as much disregarded as a mere heathen, until he was softened into submission, and bent to the discipline." (Apostolical Con- stitutions, book ii. cc. 37, 38, 39, 41.)
Q. The penitents were divided into four classes. What were they, and what steps did they take to be re- conciled to the Church ?
A. (1) T]poo-K\<uovTe<s, flentes, mourners, or iveep- ers. These were in fact candidates for penance, and were wont to prostrate themselves in the porch of the church, to beg for reconciliation. Tertullian (De Pcenit. c. 9), says, ■'They were accustomed to fall down at the presbyter's feet, and kneel to the friends of God, and entreat all the bre- thren to intercede for them."
(2) 'AKpowfxevot, audientes, hearers. These were ad- mitted to the performance of penance, and had their station in the narthex, where they were allowed to hear the scrip- tures read and explained ; but they could not join in the common prayers.
(3) 'Y7ro7rj7TToi/T69, TovvkK Ivovtes, substrati, or genu- tfectentes, the prostrators or kneelers. These were sta- tioned near the ambo, and were permitted to hear the prayers offered up, particularly for them, by all the people, and to receive the bishop's imposition of hands and bene- diction, but only in a kneeling posture. They continued in this class three, and sometimes seven years.
(4) "ZwiardiuLsvoi, consistentes, bystanders. They were allowed to stand with the believers after the other classes had been dismissed. They were in fact allowed to communicate in prayers, but not to partake of the Eucharist. (See Bingham's Antiquities, book 18, chap, i ; Riddell's Manual, iv. 4, 3 ; Coleman, ch. xvii. 2.)
Q. Who admitted offenders to perform penance, and Avhat negative duties were essentially required of them ?
LECT. VIII.]
OF THE EARLY CHURCH.
59
A. The bishop or presbyter. They required, (l) the first three classes to kneel in worship, whilst the faith- ful were permitted to stand.
(2) That all classes should express their penitential sorrow by a public confession of their sin, with sighs, tears, and lamentations, before the whole Church. (See Cyprian, Ep. 46.)
(3) That during the whole term of penance they should lay aside ornaments, and refrain from all expres- sions of joy. Eusebius (E. H. v. 28) relates of Natalius, who had been seduced into heresy, " that having put on sackcloth, and covered himself with ashes, he fell at the feet, not only of the clergy, but even of the laity." So also Tertullian de Pcenit. c. 9 ; Cyprian de Lapsis, and others.
(4) That the males should cut off their hair and shave their beards.
(5) That they should refrain from bathing, feasting, and contracting marriage, during the time of their penance.
Q. With what positive requirements were penitents called upon to comply, in order to obtain pardon ? What is the meaning of the word ' e^ofioXoyyicw ? '
A. They were (a) to perform their part at every religious assembly. (6) To abound in works of love, charity, and almsgiving, (c) To attend upon the sick, particularly on those who were afflicted with contagious diseases, and to assist at the burial of the dead. The latter was supposed to be peculiar to the African church.
All these duties were sometimes expressed by the term e^oixoXoyrjcri1;, confession, which included not only words, but works ; not only sorrow for sin, but a purpose of future amendment.
Q. Enumerate the general principles relating to the restoration of excommunicated members of the early Church to their former standing.
A. (l) The time for the continuance of penance in the several grades, varied from three, to seven, or ten
GO
THE PENITENTIAL DISCIPLINE
[PAllT I.
years ; but this depended upon the bishop, and eventually led to the abuse of indulgences.
(2) The penitence was to be legitima, plena, justa, attended both in public and private with lamentations and tears.
(3) In case of dangerous sickness, the bishop, pres- byter, or even deacon, if authorised by the bishop, might restore penitents to the Church; but if they recovered, they were to complete their penance.
(4) The clergy who underwent penance were for ever excluded from discharging their official duties^ and no one who had been a penitent could afterwards be ordained.
Q. Relate some particulars as to the mode of re- ceiving returning penitents into the primitive Church.
A. (l) The restoration was not only a public act, but performed as a part of public worship. (2) They must be restored by the same bishop, or his successor, as had excluded them. (3) The restoration usually took place in Passion-week, (hence called hebdomas indulgentise), and was usually performed by the bishop immediately before the administration of the Eucharist. The individuals, clothed in the garb of penitents, knelt before the bishop in front of the ambo, or the altar, and he admitted them by prayer and imposition of hands. In the case of heretics, the bishop anointed their foreheads, eyes, noses, and ears, with chrism, saying, " This is the sign of the Holy Ghost." (4) There was probably some set form of prayers to be used, but none is extant ; the rite was called " dare pacem," and the fifty-first psalm was generally sung. (5) The Eucharist was administered to them immediately after their restoration.
Q. At what period, and for what reasons, were private substituted for public penances ? What was the rule with regard to penance for scandalous offences?
A. Leo (a. d. 440) was the first bishop of the Latin Church, who, by express authority and grant, substituted private confession to, and absolution from a priest, for the
LECT. VIII.]
OF THE EARLY CHURCH.
61
public act of the Church ; but it appears both from Jerome and Augustine, that this system had been connived at for a length of time. Leo, in a letter to the bishops of Cam- pania, directs them to discontinue the usage of publishing out of a paper the nature of such crimes as had been pri- vately confessed, and that because private confession to the priest was, in his opinion, sufficient to the expiation of guilt ; and that although the shrinking from public penance argued a want of faith, yet, lest from fear or shame many might be driven from the advantages of penance, he au- thorised the change, and from that time the public ' cxho- mologesis' was comparatively little used. This rule however was only to apply to secret offences ; for as to notorious sins, which caused public scandal, especially the sins of idolatry, bloodshed, and unclcanness, he was still of opinion that they should be expiated by public discipline. (See Marshall's Penitential Discipline, ch. iii. sect. 1.)
Q. By what arguments does St Augustine maintain the necessity of public penance ?
A. lie thus addresses certain guilty parties, "You who have so offended, come in and perform your penance in the face of the Church, that you may have the benefit of its prayers. And let no man here pretend to excuse himself by saying, ' I repent before God, I perform it se- cretly within my own heart ; God will pardon me as knowing my sincerity.1 For at this rate, the keys would in vain be given to the Church ; and the powers of binding and loosing would signify nothing. And shall we then go about to defeat the gospel, and to vacate the words of Christ ? or shall we cheat you with a promise of granting what he hath denied you?" (Horn. 49, c. 3.)
Q. At what period were penitentiary priests esta- blished ? What was their office ?
A. Socrates (E. H. book v. c. 19) relates "that when the Novatians separated themselves from the Church because they would not communicate with those who had lapsed during the persecution under Dccius (a. d. 249), the
62
THE PENITENTIAL DISCIPLINE
[PART I.
bishops added to the ecclesiastical canon a penitential presbyter {kuvovi tov TvpeafivTepov tov eir\ Trj<s neravolas), that they who fell into any sins after baptism might make confession of them before the presbyter thereto appointed." They were abolished by Nectarius, bishop of Constantinople (a. d. 389), and, as Sozomen adds, his example was followed by almost all the bishops of the East ; but that they con- tinued in the Western Churches, and chiefly at Rome, to prepare men for the public penance of the Church. (E. H. book vii. c. 16.)
" Their office was not to receive private confessions in prejudice to the public discipline ; much less to grant abso- lution privately upon bare confession before any penance was performed ; (which was a practice altogether unknown to the ancient Church ;) but it was to facilitate and promote the exercise of public discipline, by acquainting men what sins the laws of the Church required to be expiated by public penance, and how they were to behave themselves in the performance of it ; and only to appoint private penance for such private crimes as were not proper to be brought upon the public stage, either for fear of doing harm to the penitent himself, or giving scandal to the Church." (Bing- ham, Antiq. book xviii. ch. 3 ; see Gregory Nyssens Ca- nonical Epistle, and the accounts of Socrates and Sozomen, in the appendix to Marshall's Pen. Discip.)
Q. From whence arose the custom of redeeming public ' Canonical Penance' by pecuniary and other com- mutations ? Of what nature were they ?
A. The councils of Ancyra (a. d. 314) and Nice (can. 12, a.d. 325) had intrusted the bishops with a discretionary power of relaxing the penitent's sentence, iXavOficoTTOTepov ti Trepl avTwv fiovXevaaaOcu), and of shortening the time he should continue under it, as they should observe his behaviour to be more or less deserving. The general council of Chalcedon (can. 16, a. d. 451), empowers every bishop in his own Church to show favour to penitents at his own discretion (uv9t vTtav), and from
LECT. VIII.] OF THE EARLY CHURCH.
63
this arose the system of indulgences, which were some- times granted at the intercession of the martyrs in prison, as appears from Cyprian, and sometimes at the request of the civil magistrate. By the ' Penitentiary' of Theodore, archbishop of Canterbury, a.d. 668, a penitent, "Instead of living for a year upon bread and water, was to sing fifty psalms upon his knees, or give a certain sum to the poor, or procure a presbyter to say mass for him, or to prostrate himself one hundred times upon the ground, and at each prostration to repeat a Patcr-noster." The ecclesiastical laws of king Edgar (a.d. 967) mention "the building of churches, and endowing them ; the making of bridges and mending the public roads ; the repetition of so many psalms, and especially liberal alms, as the known ways of buying off canonical penance." (See Marshall's Pen. Dis. c. 3, § 2 ; Bingham, book xvm. ch. iv. § 7 ; Hart's Eccl. Records, p. 253 ; and for the Exhomologesis of the early Church, Bishop Kaye's Tertullian, p. 251, and Dodgson's Translation of Tertullian, p. 376.)
Q. Mention the five external means of grace by whose ordinary use the early Church conveyed a remission of sins. How may they be classed, and how far are they authoritative ?
A. (l) The absolution or great indulgence of bap- tism. (2) The absolution of the Eucharist. (3) The absolution of the word and doctrine. (4) The absolution of imposition of hands and prayer. (5) The absolution of reconcilement to the Church and her communion by a relaxation of her censures.
The first two may be called sacramental absolution ; the third declaratory ; the fourth precatory ; and the fifth judicial absolution.
" All of them are authoritative, so far as they are done by the ministerial authority and commission which Christ has given to his Church, to reconcile men to God by the exercise of such acts and means as conduce to that
04
THE PENITENTIAL DISCIPLINE
[part I.
end in a subordinate and ministerial way according to his appointment." (Bingham, Antiq. book xix. ch. i. § 2.)
Q. Of what nature according to the ' ancients' was the absolution granted by the ministry of the Eucharist ?
A. To those who had never lapsed it conveyed a pardon for their venial sins ; and to penitents, who had lapsed, it was an absolution from their greater sins, and a loosing of the bonds of excommunication, without any other formality attending it. " Such penitents as are ready to leave the body shall have the communion without the reconciliatory imposition of hands," (Council of Orange, a d. 441); but if they recovered they were to complete their penance, and not to hold themselves reconciled with- out imposition of hands also. (Concil. Carth. iv. cc. 76, 78, a. d. 348; see also Eus. E. II. vi. 45 ; and Bingham, Antiq. xix. 1, 3.)
Q. How far is absolution by the administration of the Word and Doctrine declaratory and effective ? Why ?
A. It is partly declarative, and partly operative, both in penitential discipline, and out of it, because Christ's ministers are authorized to declare to mankind the terms of reconciliation and salvation, and thus produce faith and repentance, which arc the terms of salvation, and the means whereby they obtain remission of sins ; " for faith cometh by hearing, and hearing by the word of God." Again, they have power to declare to an individual, when according to the best of their judgment they discern in him the necessary conditions of salvation, that he is in a salvable state. Hence as the word of reconciliation is committed to Christ's ministers, they are said to be instru- mental in reconciling men to God, and procuring their remission of sins.
Q. What were the words of indicative form of abso- lution, and when was it introduced into the Church ?
A. It consisted of the words ' Ego te absolvo,' ' I absolve thee,"' instead of the deprecatory form, ' Christ
LECT. VIII.]
OF THE EAULY CHURCH.
05
absolve thee.1 It was not used until the twelfth century, as has been shewn by Morinus (de Pcenitentia, vm. 8 — 13), and also by bishop Usher from the works of Thomas Aquinas. (Answer to the Jesuit's Challenge, p. 89.)
Q. In what sense, according to Bingham, may the indicative form of absolution be allowed?
A. (l) As an act of jurisdiction by freeing a peni- tent from excommunication. (2) When the words ' Ego te absolvo1 are interpreted to mean no more than the de- claration of God's will to a penitent sinner, that upon the best judgment the priest can make of his repentance, he esteems him absolved before God, and accordingly pro- nounces and declares him absolved. (3) It may be used in the performance of any external act of the ministry, which is used as a means to obtain remission of sins of God: as in the administration of Baptism or the Eucharist. Our Church has not appointed the indicative form of absolution to be used in all these senses, but only once in the office of the sick. (Bingham, Antiq. book xix. chap ii. § 5.)
66
JEWISH RELIGIOUS SERVICES,
[PART I.
lecture ix.
OX THE JEWISH RELIGIOUS SERVICES, AND THE FORMS OF PRAYER USED BY THE EARLY CHURCH.
Q. Upon what grounds do we base the use of pre- composed forms of prayer '?
A. (l) Because the ancient Jews used them. (2) Because our Saviour sanctioned their use, by habitually attending the Jewish services, and by teaching his disciples the Lord's Prayer. (3) Because the Apostles used pre- composed forms. (4) Because the early Christian writers testify to this fact.
Q. Shew that the ancient Jews joined in precom- posed set forms of prayer.
A. As we have no certain account of the practice of the Jews before the time of Moses, there is no need to enter into an argument to ascertain their custom with regard to forms of prayer.
The first recorded instance of their using it between the Exodus and the return from the captivity, occurs in Exodus xv., which records the song of thanksgiving which Moses composed after the destruction of the Egyptians in the Red Sea.
That this was a precomposed form of prayer to God is evident: — (l) Because its style is highly poetical, and according to Josephus it was written in hexameter verse (ev e^aueTpy tovw), and because it appears from ver. 1, that as Moses and the people sang it, they must all have learnt the words and the tune. (2) Miriam and the women joined in the song, and accompanied it with their timbrels and with dancing, ver. 20. Wherefore, unless Moses and all the men and women broke forth simul- taneously into the same extemporaneous words, and sang them (alternately according to Philo and ver. 21) in the
LECT. IX.] AND PRAYERS USED BY THE EARLY CHURCH. 67
same tune, and were accompanied by the women with the same extemporaneous instrumental music and dancing, we must conclude that this song was a precomposed form of prayer.
Deut. xxi. 7, 8. The elders of the cities of refuge were to use the precomposed form of prayer, " Our hands have not shed this blood, neither have our eyes seen it. Be merciful, 0 Lord, unto thy people Israel, whom thou hast redeemed, and lay not innocent blood unto thy people Israel's charge." And in Judges, ch. v., Deborah and Barak sang a form, many parts of which were addressed to God. David appointed the " Levites to stand every morning to thank and praise the Lord, and likewise at even," 1 Chron. iii. 30 ; a custom which Solomon con- tinued, and which was restored after the captivity (Nehem. xii. 24, 45, 46). But, independent of other proofs, Jose- phus (A. 7, 10) expressly affirms that the Psalms of David were then sung.
In fact, it is allowed that the Jews had set forms of worship for all parts of divine service, and that Christ and his Apostles joined in them. It is also known that both in the service of the temple, and in the service of the synagogue, which differed in many respects from each other, there was a certain constant form of words in which the public prayers were offered up.
Q. What were the constituent parts of the Jewish temple-worship in the time of our Saviour ?
A. In the daily temple-service, previous to the offering of the sacrifice, the president called upon them to pray. In their first prayer they acknowledged the benefits they had received from God, and earnestly suppli- cated him for power to walk as he had commanded them. After this they rehearsed the ten commandments, and repeated their phylacteries, which were composed of four portions of scripture (Ex. xiii. 3 — 10, xiii. 11 — 16 ; Deut. vi. 4 — 9, xi. 13 — 21) written on separate pieces of parch- ment. After reading their phylacteries at the time of
68
JEWISH RELIGIOUS SERVICES, [PART I.
offering of incense, they repeated three or four prayers more. After these things the priests lifted up their hands and uttered this blessing : " The Lord bless thee, and keep thee ; the Lord make his face to shine upon thee, and be gracious unto thee. The Lord lift up his countenance upon thee, and give thee peace." (Numb. vi. 24.) To which the people answered, " Blessed be the Lord God, the God of Israel, from everlasting to everlasting."
After this blessing, the meat-offering and the drink- offering were offered, and then began the singing of psalms and the music. The constant and ordinary psalms which they sung were these : on the first day of the week, Ps. xxvi., on the 2nd, Ps. xlviii., 3rd, Ps. lxxxii., 4th, Ps. xciv., 5th, Ps. lxxxi., 6th, Ps. xciii., and on the Sabbath-day, Ps. xcii.; on this day also, as there was an additional sacrifice appointed (Numb, xxviii. 9), the Levites sang in the morn- ing the song of Moses in Deut. xxii., and in the evening that other song of Moses in Ex. xv.
Besides this, there was an additional sacrifice appointed on the first day of the year, called the Feast of Trumpets (Numb. xix. 1), and at this time they sang Ps. lxxxi., and at the evening; service Ps. xxix.
Also at the Passover, besides many other forms, they used to sing the hymn called the Egyptian Hallel, because it was sung in remembrance of their delivery out of Egypt, which consisted of the 113 — 118 Psalms. And this, as some observe, was sung at the beginning of every month, and on the Feast of Dedication, and the Feast of the Weeks, and the Feast of Tabernacles. And the latter part of it is generally supposed to be the hymn which our Saviour sung with His disciples at the conclusion of His last supper.
Q. In what did the service of the synagogue differ from that of the temple, and what were the component parts of this service ?
A. There were no sacrifices, but only these three things : I. Prayers. II. Reading of the Scriptures. III. Preaching and expounding them.
LECT. IX.] AND PRAYERS USED BY THE EARLY CHURCH. GO
I. Their public prayers were all by stated forms. Among these the most ancient and solemn were those which were called Shemoneh Esreh, that is, the eighteen prayers, which are said to have been appointed by Ezra and the great synagogue from the time of the capti- vity. Another prayer was afterwards added, against the Christians.
II. The reading of the Scripture was of three sorts. (1) The Kiriath Shema. (2) Reading of the Law. (3) Reading of the Prophets.
(1) The Kiriath Shema consisted of the reading of three portions of Scripture. The 1st, Deut. iv. 4 — 9; 2nd, Deut. xi. 1 — 13 ; 3rd, Numb. xv. 37 to the end. And because the first of these portions in the Hebrew Bible begins with the word Shema, i. e. hear, they called all these together the Shema, and the reading of them Kiriath Shema, that is, the reading of the Shema.
This reading is accompanied with several prayers and benedictions, both before and after it.
(2) , (3) The five books of the law were divided into fifty-four sections, most probably by Ezra, and one of them was read in their synagogues every sabbath-day, the last section of Deuteronomy being read on the sabbath of the Feast of Tabernacles. When Antiochus Epiphanes forbid them to read the law, they substituted fifty-four sections of the prophets in their place; and when the Mac- cabees restored the reading of the law, a section of each was read. This appears from Acts xiii. 15, for when St Paul entered the synagogue at Antioch in Pisidia, it is said, that " he stood up to preach, after the reading of the law and the prophets," and in v. 27, St Paul distinctly says, " that the prophets were read at Jerusalem every sabbath-day."
III. The expounding of the Scriptures was performed at the time they were read, and the preaching to the people from them after the reading of both the law and the prophets was finished. Thus when our Saviour taught
70
JEWISH RELIGIOUS SERVICES, [PART I.
the Jews at Nazareth, he was called upon as a member of that synagogue to read the lesson for the day out of the prophets, and he expounded it immediately afterwards ; but at all other places he taught the people by discourses after the reading of both the law and the prophets was over; and from Acts xiii. 15, it appears that St Paul acted in the same manner. (Lightfoot, Temple-service, chap. 9, sect. 4 ; Prideaux, Connection of Scripture History, part 1, chap. 6 ; see also Bingham, Antiq. book xni. chap. 5, sect. 4 ; Hammond's View of the Directory, p. 136.)
Q. How many times in a week, and how many times a day, did the Jews attend the synagogue service? How much of the law and the prophets was read at each time ? How often were the prayers to be repeated ?
A. On Mondays, Thursdays, and Saturdays, besides on fast and feast-days, and in the morning, evening, and night of each day.
The law being divided into portions for each week, on Monday they began to read half of the portion for that week, and on Thursday the remaider ; and on Saturday, the sabbath-day, they read the weekly portion over again, both morning and evening. And when the reading of the prophets was added to that of the law, they read them in the same order.
They also attended the synagogues three times on each of these days to pray unto God, that is, in the morn- ing at the time of the morning sacrifice, and in the even- ing at the time of the evening sacrifice, and at the begin- ning of the night, because till then the evening sacrifice was still burning on the altar.
The nineteen prayers were to be repeated thrice either publicly or privately every day, by every person of age, and the Shema every morning and evening by all males of free condition ; but the women and servants were ex- cused. (See Deut. vi. 7, xi. 19.)
Q. How does it appear that the Apostles joined in the use of the Lord's Prayer ?
LECT. IX.] AND PRAYERS USED BY THE EARLY CHURCH. 71
A. Our Saviour commanded his disciples to use it, because in St Matthew vi. 9, he uses the word ovtws, which in strictness means so, or thus; but even if it means after this manner, yet he afterwards, when his disciples requested him to teach them to pray as John had also taught his disciples, prescribed the use of these very words, expressly bidding them, When ye pray, say, Our Father, &c. Luke xi. 1, 2, i. e. he gave them this pecu- liar form, as a badge of their belonging to him ; according to the custom of the Jewish doctors, who always taught their disciples a peculiar form to add to their own. (Wheat- ley, Introduction to Comm. on Com. Prayer ; Lightfoot, vol. ii. p. 158.)
Objection I. : — If our Lord had intended that this prayer should be used as a set form, He would not have added the doxology, when He delivered it at one time, as it is recorded in St Matthew, and omit it when He deli- vered it upon another occasion, as in St Luke.
Answer. It is by no means a settled point that the doxology in St Matthew is a part of the original text; and the objection is equally strong on the supposition that the prayer was intended as a directory for prayer. The utmost that can be concluded is that our Saviour does not insist upon the use of the doxology in all cases.
Objection II. : — The words of this prayer are im- proper to be used now ; because therein we pray that God's kingdom may come now, which came many ages since, viz. at our Saviour's ascension into heaven.
Answer. It is true that the foundation of God's kino-- dom was then laid; but as the greatest part of mankind are not yet included in it, and we know that they must be included in it, the prayer is as appropriate as ever it was. And with regard to those parts where Christianity already prevails, there can be no impropriety in praying that they may act up to their belief.
Objection III. : — (l) Supposing our Saviour did pre- scribe it as a form, yet it was only for a time, till they
72
JEWISH RELIGIOUS SERVICES,
[part I,
should be more fully instructed, and enabled to pray bv the assistance of the Holy Ghost.
(2) That before Christ's ascension, the disciples had asked nothing in his name, whereas they were taught, that after his ascension they should offer up all their prayers in his name. Now this prayer, say the objectors, having nothing of his name in it, could not be designed to be used after his ascension.
(3) Therefore, though we read in the Acts of several prayers made by the Church, yet we find not any intima- tion that they ever used this form. (Ch. i. 24, ii. 42, iv. 24, &c.)
Answer, (l) If this prayer was not commanded to be used for ever, and therefore we may discontinue it, the same rule must apply to all things in the Scriptures, which are not expressly declared by our Saviour to be binding for ever, and thus we lay aside every ordinance on the same plea.
(2) We can only offer the prayer to God at all in the name, i.e. the mediation of Christ; for it is only through Him that we can call God our Father, and are heirs of God, and joint-heirs with himself.
(3) To the third, we might as well say, that the Apostles did not baptize in the name of the Father, Son, and Holy Ghost, as the command to do that was equally binding as to use this prayer. But besides, except in Acts i. 24 and iv. 24, we are only told that they prayed, without any mention of their imitating the Lord's Prayer ; and even in these passages there is no proof of their prayers being offered up in the name of Christ.
Q. How would you prove that the Apostles and pri- mitive Christians joined in the use of divers precomposed set forms of prayer, besides the Lord's Prayer and Psalms ?
A. (l) As to the Apostles, we are told that Peter and John, after they had been threatened, and commanded not to preach the Gospel, " went to their own company, and reported all that the chief priests and elders had said
LECT. IX.] AND PRAYERS USED BY THE EARLY CHURCH. 73
unto them. And when they heard that, they lift up their voice to God with one accord, (o'i <5e annuo avTe<s, onodvua^ov npav (p(iivt)v Trpo% tou Qcov, Acts iv. 23, 24), and said, Thou art God, &c."
Now as " the whole company lift up their voice with one accord," and therefore used these words with audible voices at the same time, this must have been a precomposed form.
Objection, (l) It is possible that one only might do so in the name of all the rest, who joined mentally with him, though not in an audible manner.
Answer, (l) Scripture never attributes that to a whole congregation or multitude, which is literally true of a single person only, except in such cases as when the thing related requires the consent of the whole multitude, but could not conveniently be performed or done by every one of them in their own person.
Again, the adverb o/moOv/uaSov, 'with one accord,' is so placed that it cannot be joined to any other verb except ripau, and hence the idea that one person acted for them all is not tenable.
Objection. (2) The apostles having had no notice of St Peter's coming, it is impossible that any form could have been composed to suit the occasion, as this did.
Answer, (l) The adversaries ought to answer our argument, more than we their objection. (2) There is no- thing in the prayer but what might have been in daily use under the circumstances, when men were threatening the preachers of the gospel, and the miraculous gifts were con- tinued in the Church, and there is no reason to think that the whole congregation was inspired to utter the words simultaneously.
Objection. (3) The Scriptures, when they relate what was spoken under similar circumstances, mean only that they each separately used words to this effect.
Answer. As they joined vocally in this prayer, if each used his own words, the confusion would be like that
A. R. C. C D
74
JEWISH RELIGIOUS SERVICES,
[part I.
at Ephesus, and the writer would hardly have thought it seemly to attempt to record the prayer uttered under such circumstances. How much more reasonable is our expla- nation !
Q. Bingham says, " There can he no pnhlic prayer, hut it will he a set form, at least to the congregation." Give his reasons.
A. " For though we suppose the minister to pray extempore, and vary the method, the form, and the phrase, every time he prays ; yet, to make it common prayer to a congregation, it will he a form to them, though a new form every time, in spite of all contradiction. And I have often wondered that discerning men should not ohserve this, before they charged all forms of prayer as void of the spirit, or a stinting of the spirit ; since if they were so, extemporary forms would be as much stinting the spirit of the congregation as any other; and, perhaps, in some measure, more so, since in stated forms, which every one knows heforehand, men may be supposed to make them their own hearty prayers by preceding meditation ; whereas, in extemporary forms, every man must wait until he hears what is said, and then join in that form, or else not pray at all, but only privately by himself, not in public or common prayer jointly with the rest of the con- gregation." (Antici. book xiii. ch. v. sect. 1. See Hooker, Eccl. Pol. v. 26.)
Q. Shew from Scripture that the Apostles and pri- mitive Christians joined in the use of psalms, and conse- quently had precomposed forms of prayer.
A. St Paul and Silas when in prison, " prayed and sang praises to God " (Acts xvi. 25) ; and as the other " prisoners heard them," they must have done so audibly and contemporaneously, otherwise they would have disturbed each other.
Again, St Paul blames the Corinthians, because, when they came together, " every one had a psalm, had a doc- trine," (1 Cor. xiv. 26), where it is evident he blames them for creating confusion by their not all joining in the same psalm ; and we may presume that they attended to his exhortations, as we find in his second Epistle they had reformed their abuses.
Thus also in his Epistle to the Ephesians, (v. 19) the
LECT. IX.] AND PRAYERS USED BY THE EARLY CHURCH. 75
Apostle exhorts them " to speak to themselves with psalms, and hymns, and spiritual songs, singing and making melody in their hearts to the Lord." And he bids the Colossians (iii. 16) " to teach and admonish one another in psalms, and hymns, and spiritual songs, singing with grace in their hearts to the Lord." From all which texts of Scripture we must necessarily conclude, that joint psalmody was instituted by the Apostles, as a constant part of divine worship ; and as a great portion of these hymns and psalms are prayers to God, Ave may conclude from this that the Apostles and primitive Christians did join in the use of precomposed forms of prayer.
Q. Shew the probability that the Apostles did not commit to writing any form for the administration of the Eucharist.
A. (l) The variety of ceremonies shews that the Apostles established no fixed and perpetual laws with regard to sacred rites, nor ever committed to writing any fixed form, manner, or number of prayers, which at all times and places should accompany the celebration of the Eucharist.
(2) This is evident also from the profound silence of the earliest periods. For if the shortest imaginable liturgy of this kind had existed, it would have been inserted in the series of the sacred Scriptures, or at least Pope Damasus, or Pope Gelasius, would have classed it with the Apocryphal writings ; Origen, Eusebius, and Jerome, who were the most indefatigable searchers after ancient books, would surely not have omitted to notice them : the Fathers and Councils would not have passed them over in silence, but would have produced them to confute the heretics, and have refuted their errors from the very liturgies of the Apostles. From arguments of this kind we conclude that the Apostles never committed any liturgies to writing.
(3) If any such form had been committed to writing by the Apostles, the Churches of the first four centuries would have preserved it everywhere in the identical words which they used, as they did the Acts of the Apostles and
D2
76
JEWISH RELIGIOUS SERVICES,
[part I.
the other Scriptures, nor would any one have dared to add to, or subtract from them. But we all know that Basil epitomised the liturgy of James, that Chrysostom altered its form, and substituted other prayers, as Proclus his successor shews in his work " De Traditione Divinae Li- turgiae."
Tertullian (De Corona Militis) treats of the two sacraments of Baptism and the Eucharist, and in c. 4, thus argues, " If you were to demand the passages of Scripture which authorize these and other modes of discipline, you will find none. Tradition will be put forward to you as their origin, custom their confirmation, faith their observer." If a written form of Apostolic Liturgy had then existed, why should he, when treating of the eucharistical rites, appeal to tradition, and not to the writing ? Cyprian also, in his epistle to Csecilianus, appeals to tradition for the cus- tom of mixing water with the eucharistical wine. The archbishop of Carthage then was ignorant of the Liturgy of James : otherwise he would have proved his point at once, as the Quinisextan Council (can. 32) appealed to this very Liturgy to refute the Armenians, who used water only at the Eucharist. Even in the fourth century, Basil the Great, bishop of Csesarea in Cappadocia (De Sp. c. 27), was not only ignorant of the existence of Apostolic Litur- gies, but gives reasons why the Apostles left no Liturgies in writing.
Q. What appears to have been the original of stated forms of divine service ? Who appointed them, and why are their remains imperfect ?
A . Such forms as were of Divine institution were no doubt always used without any variation ; e. g. the form of Baptism, the Lord's prayer, the singing of psalms, the forms of benediction, such as, "The Lord be with you;" " The grace of our Lord Jesus Christ," &c. ; but it is equally clear that the heads of the different Churches arranged the services as they thought proper, only keeping to the analogy of faith and sound doctrine ; expressed the creeds as was
LECT. IX.] AND PRAYERS USED BY THE EARLY CHURCH. 77
most suitable to their peculiar circumstances ; and ordered such rites and ceremonies as were calculated for the edifi- cation of their congregations. As these forms were only in force in particular dioceses, and were little known be- yond them ; as they were probably known more by practice tban by writings, for we never read of the heathen perse- cutors finding any of them ; as even service-books of after- ages exist only in fragments ; and lastly, as the ancient forms were altered to suit the wants of subsequent periods : all these reasons easily account for the fact, that the re- mains of the forms of Divine service of the early Church are so scanty and imperfect.
Q. How is it proved that the Churches of whole pro- vinces gradually conformed to the order of Divine Service used by the metropolitans ?
A. We first discover the rudiments of this in the French Churches ; for, in the council of Adge, a canon was made about the year 506, " that one and the same order should be equally observed in all churches of the province, in all parts of Divine service ;" and subsequent councils or- dered, " that in the celebrating Divine offices, the provincial bishop should observe the same order as was observed by the metropolitan and again, " the same order of psalmody shall be kept in all churches." About the same period, (a. d. 517), the council of Gironde made a decree that in the whole province of Catalonia, " the same order of mass, and custom in psalmody, and other ministrations, should be observed in all churches of the province, as was ob- served in the metropolitan church ; " again, the council of Toledo ordered uniformity in order that they might neither offend the weak, nor appear to ignorant or carnal men to have any schism in the Church. At length, when new kingdoms sprung up out of the ruins of the Roman em- pire, national forms of Divine offices were used in all the churches of these several nations.
Q. What evidence is there of the use of set forms of prayer in the second century ?
78
JEWISH RELIGIOUS SERVICES,
[part I.
A. (1) Pliny says that "the Christians were used to meet on a certain day, before it was light, and sing a hymn (carmen dicere) alternately to Christ, as God" (sec p. 7) : this must have been a precomposed hymn, and there is no reason for thinking that the rest of their service would not be so also.
(2) Ignatius (see Lect. on Ecc. Hist. p. 38) is said to have introduced the custom of singing hymns in praise of the Holy Trinity alternately into the church of Antioch, and as he composed these hymns, and in his epistle to the Magncsians he orders them " to do nothing without the bishops and the presbyters ; nor attempt anything agree- able to their private fancies ; but when they met together at one place to have one prayer and supplication" (fila Trpoaev^, n'ia cierjais, ch. vii.), it is not improbable that he meant to enjoin them to adhere to the form of prayers agreed upon by the bishops and presbyters of that church.
(3) Lucian (see p. 6) describes that at his going into one of the Christian assemblies, " he heard that prayer which began with the Father, and ended with the hymn of many names, (t^v ev-^t)v aVo 7raTpo<s ap^diievos, /cat Trjv iroXvwvvikov wSr}u e<s reAos €Tri9ek. Philop). He is sup- posed to allude to the Lord's Prayer, and to one or other of the doxologies, " Glory be to, &c." or, " Glory be to God on high, &e."
(4) Justin Martyr (see Lect. on Ecc. Hist. p. 44) speaks of the Christians using at their assemblies koivus eJ^a?, ' common prayers,' which some contend were pre- scribed forms ; and again he says, that in the Christian assemblies the presiding minister (6 TrpoecrTws) offered up prayer and thanksgiving, as far as he was able (oat] Svvapts avrio), and that hereupon the people answered Amen ! Now these Greek words may mean, ' with as loud a voice as he could command,' or, as the old Latin translation ren- ders it, ' totis viribus, ' or, ' as well as he could, to the best of his ability,1 which latter meaning is supposed to favour the use of extemporary prayers ; but as Gregory Nazianzen
LECT. IX.] AND PRAYERS USED BY THE EARLY CHURCH. 79
(E. II. p. 152) applies ocrri Suvctfxis to singing the hymn of Moses, and as Justin lived among Jews, and was familiar with the set forms with which our Saviour and his Apostles complied, without condemning them, this phrase cannot prove anything against the use of them by Christians. (See Falkner, Libertas Ecclesiastica, book i. chap. 4, sect. ii. ; Comber, Origin of Liturgies, ch. ii. p. 47.)
(5) Irenaeus (Lib. i. c. 1 ; see Lect. on E. H. p. 54), says that the Valentinians (E. H. p. 58) quoted the words " els iraaa'i tcls yeveds tujv aiojvcov tou aiwvos, for ages of ages," winch either refer to the Gloria Patri, or the conclusion of some thanksgiving, to prove the truth of their system of aeons.
(6) Clemens Alexandrinus (Stromata, vii. c. 6 ; sec E. H. p. 55) speaks of the congregation using " (pwvrjv t^V Koivriv, a common voice," in their prayers, and also of a form of absolution used by the Valentinians.
(7) Tertullian says (De Bap. c. vii. ; see E. H. p. 48), " that they used the Lord's Prayer as a form enjoined by Divine command ; " " that the form of baptism was ap- pointed by Christ to be always in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost ; " and also that the Church observed various rites and ceremonies nowhere enjoined in Scripture. (See Bingham, Antiq. book xiii. ch. 5, sect, v.)
Q. Tertullian (Apology, c. xxx.) says, " We Christians, without a prompter, because we pray from the heart (sine moni- tore, quia da pectore,) are ever praying for all kings." Shew that this does not mean to pray extempore.
A. If the people prayed simply according to their own con- ceptions, then the minister had no power to dictate to them his conceptions, so that all public prayer must cease ; but the words may mean either first, that they prayed memoriter, saying their prayers by heart, and needing no prompter, as the heathens did ; in which sense it is an argument in favour of liturgies : or, second- ly, that they prayed sincerely from the heart, and freely out of the loyalty of their own heart without compulsion, contrary to the hollow exclamations of the heathen populace ; who required to be bribed with largesses, and even to be prompted, before they would cry out in the accustomed form, " De nostris annis tibi Jupiter
80
JEWISH RELIGIOUS SERVICES,
[part I.
augeat annos," as II am on d Lestrange and Dr Comber interpret it ; which seems to be the truest sense ; so that it remains no argument against liturgies, unless a man will say, there can be no such thing as sincerity and heartiness in a form of prayer ; which would be to condemn the whole Catholic Church in the time of Tertullian ; from whose testimonies it is evident that forms wore generally used in most parts of Divine service. (See Bingham, Antiq. book xiii. v. 5 ; Dodgson's Translation of Tertullian, p. 70; Bishop Kaye's Tertullian, ch. vi. p. 411.)
Q. Quote the substance of the testimony of writers of the third century to prove that 'set forms' of prayer were then in use.
A. (1) Origen (see Lect. on E. H. p. 59), in his eleventh homily upon Jeremiah, mentions one of the prayers which was in constant use in the Church; and in the sixth book against Celsus, he says, " The Christians used the or- dered or prescribed prayers (rah irpo(TTayd€iaai<i ei^eus . . . y^pwixevoi), as became them, continually, night and day."
(2) St Cyprian (for an account of Cyprian and his works, see Lect. on E. H. p. 57) testifies, that not only was the Lord's Prayer used as a form, but that in the administration of the Sacraments certain set forms were always used.
(3) Firmilian (E. H. p. 58) speaks of a certain wo- man " who took upon her to consecrate the Eucharist with the venerable invocation and ceremony of predication, then commonly used in the Chm-ch." He adds that she also used in baptizing the common and appointed interrogatories.
(4) Gregory Thauinaturgus (E. H. p. 60) left the Xeocjesareans a form of Divine Service to which " they would not suffer one ceremony, or one word, or one mys- tical form, to be added." (Basil, de Spir. Sanct. c. xxix.)
(5) It appears from a complaint of the council of Antioch against Paul of Samosata, (E. H. p. 83), that cer- tain hymns had been long used in the church.
Note : — It is needless to carry the evidence further, as from the writings of Arnobius, Lanctantius, Eusehius, Athanasius, &c. it is manifest that in their time regular set forms of worship were in general use everywhere.
LECT. IX.] AND PRAYERS USED BY THE EARLY CHURCH. 81
Q. How docs Hooker disprove the common conceit, that to serve God with any set form of common prayer is superstitious ?
A. "As though God himself did not frame to his priests the very speech wherewith they were to bless the people, (Numb, vi. 23) ; or as if our Lord, even of purpose to prevent this fancy of extemporal and voluntary prayers, had not left us of his own framing one, which might remain both as a part of the church liturgy, and serve as a pattern to frame all other prayers with efficacy, yet without superfluity of words. If prayers were no otherwise accepted of God than being conceived always new, according to the exigence of present occasions ; if it be right to judge him by our own bellies, and to imagine that he doth loathe to have the self-same supplications often iterated, even as we do to be fed every day without alteration or change of diet ; if prayers be actions which o\ight to waste away themselves in the making ; if being made to remain that they may be resumed and used again as prayers, they be but instruments of super- stition : surely we cannot excuse Moses, who gave such occasion of scandal to the world, by not being contented to praise the name of Almighty God, according to the usual simplicity of God's Spirit, for that admirable victory given them against Pha- raoh, unless so dangerous a precedent were left for the casting of prayers into poetical moulds, and for framing of prayers which might be repeated often, although they never had again the same occasions which brought them forth at first." (Eccl. Pol. v. xxvi.2.)
D 5
82
HABITS, GESTURES, AND DAYS OF
[part I.
lecture X.
OF THE HABITS AND GESTURES, AND OF THE DAY3 OF DIVINE SERVICE OF THE EARLY CHURCH.
Q. How can it be shewn from analogy and tradition that even in the first three centuries some clerical dress was worn during the celebration of Divine service ?
A. (l) It is probable from analogy that the Apo- stles and early Christian teachers would in their ministration adopt in some degree at least the dresses of the Jewish priesthood ; in fact, Hegesippus, as related by Eusebius, (E. H. ii. 23), says that St James "never wore woollen, but linen garments." Eusebius also, in his notice on a fragment of the letter of Polycrates, the bishop of Ephesus, to Vic- tor, bishop of Rome, says, that " St John was a priest that bore the sacerdotal plate," (6's eyevtjOrj \epevi, to ireTakov 7re(popi]Kw$, E. H. iii. 31, v. 24), and Epiphanius refers to Eusebius and Clemens Alexandrinus, and says that James the brother of our Lord " wore the sacerdotal plate upon his forehead," (TreraXov e7r« Trj$ Ke(pa\r}s efpopeaev, Hasres. 78, 29, 2).
(2) It is but reasonable to suppose that the clergy would not, at a time when they were scarcely tolerated by the state, publicly wear distinctive garments ; but as we know that they had expensive vessels and orna- ments for their churches, it is not improbable to suppose that they also had vestments for the officiating clergy.
(3) It appears from Clemens Alexandrinus (a. d. 192 — 217, Feed, iii. 11) that the xvhole assembly were to engage in public worship ' in a becoming dress,' earoXia- /uvoi Koa/mlwi, and also from the Apostolical Constitutions, and the Mystical Catechism of Cyril of Jerusalem, that great ceremonies were used in the administration of the sacraments of Baptism and the Eucharist. Surely the
LECT. X.] DIVINE SERVICE OF THE EARLY CHURCH. 83
minister at the font and altar would not be the only person there in his usual dress !
Q. What evidence is there to shew that the clergy in the fourth century ministered in peculiar dresses ?
A. (]) Cqnstantine the Great gave a rich vestment embroidered with gold to Macarius, bishop of Jerusalem, to be worn by him when he administered the sacrament of Baptism.
(2) Athanasius (see Lect. on E. H. p. 114) was ac- cused of laying a tax on the Egyptians to buy linen vestments {TrXaTTovrai KaTriyoplav . . . irepi GTiyaplbov Xivwv, Athanas. Apol. ii. ; "vitcov'kdv Xivwv (popov, Sozomen, ii. 22) for the church, which charge presupposes that they were then in common use.
(3) St Jerom (see E. H. p. 4) says, " What harm or enmity, I pray, is it against God, if I use a more cleanly garment ? If a bishop, presbyter, or deacon, or any other of the ecclesiastical order, come forth in a white vestment when they administer the sacraments?" (Contra Pelag. i.) He says also, in his epitaph upon Nepotian, " that Nepotian. for his ordinary wearing, used the pallium, ' the cloak that was in common use among Christian philosophers :' but in his ministrations he used a tunicle (tunicam), which he ordered his uncle Heliodore to send as his legacy to St Jerom." (Ep. iii. ad Heliodor.)
(4) St Chrysostom (see Lect. on E. H. p. 154) writes, " Their (the deacons') honour, crown, and glory, did not consist so much in their walking about the church in a white and shining garment, (Xcukov -^iTuivlaKou koi aico- aTtXfiovTa), as in their power to repel unworthy communi- cants from the Lord's table " (Horn. 77, al. 73, in Mattb. p. 705); Sozomen also, alluding to an assault made upon St Chrysostom's church, says, " The priests and deacons were beaten and driven out of the church, as they were in the vestments of their ministration 11 (ws el^ov a^fxaro^, viii. 21).
(5) Nazianzen (see E. H. p. 152) represents the
S4
H.VE1TS. GESTURES. AND DAYS OF
[part I.
deacons standing ei> e'l/uaai Trancpavowcrir, ' in their bright and shining garments:' and in his will he leaves to his dea- con a Katxaaov, and a any^apiov, which was a surplice or white garment worn during Divine service.
(6) The council of Loadicea (Canons xxii. xxiii. a. d. 361) forbids subdeacons, singers, or readers, to use the wpapicv, which was worn by bishops, presbyters, and deacons. The fourth council of Carthage (c. xli. a. d. 399) forbade the deacons the use of the white surplice, nisi in sacro ministerio, except in the discharge of the ministerial office. In this and in the similar decrees of the councils of Braga and Toledo, a distinction is clearlv indicated be- tween the official garb, and ordinary attire.
Xote : — There is nothing to shew what were the peculiar forms of the vestments of the clergy of the first five centuries, but it is probable that in the sixth century the ancient Greek and Roman costumes were adopted both when ministering in church and in civil life : (1) Because from having been super- seded by the barbarian invasions, they were recommended for their antiquity, and were hallowed by previous use. (2) Because their use prevented the adoption of the garb of the monks to which they were so much opposed. (3) The assumption of this costume was greatly facilitated by being combined with the in- signia and ornaments of the Jewish priests. The bishops, patri- archs, and metropolitans, adopting the pallium of Tertullian, called u>iio(p6ptov, and the monks the -re-pdyusvov of Greek writers, which was afterwards known as their cappa or cowl.
Bellarmin has ascertained that with a few characteristic changes, the distinctive badges of the several orders had re- mained substantially the same. This costume was originally white, and, notwithstanding a temporary change to black robes at Constantinople, has always been the prevailing colour during Divine service. In the seventh and eighth centuries, red, blue, and green, were worn as clerical vestments. Innocent III. pre- scribed white, the emblem of purity, for confessors and young people, red as a suitable memorial of apostles and martyrs, green for Sunday and feast-days, and black for fasts, funerals, lent, &c. ; violet also was worn at particular periods of the year.
Q. What postures were observed by the early Chris- tians in their addresses to, and adoration of. God"?
A. Four kinds were generally practised and allowed :
LECT. X.] DIVINE SERVICE OF THE EARLY CHURCH. 85
(1) Standing. (2) Kneeling. (3) Bowing. (4) Prostration. Sitting, which some add as a fifth, was never allowed as an ordinary posture of devotion,
Q. At what parts of the year did the primitive Chris- tians stand up at their prayers ? What was their reason? Give your authorities for your explanation.
A. On the Lord's day, and the fifty days between Easter and Pentecost, in memory of our Saviour's resur- rection. An author, who assumes the name of Justin Martyr (Quaest. et Respons. ad Orthodox, qusest. cxv.), quotes Irenseus, who derives it from Apostolical authority, for this custom. Tertullian speaks of its having been handed down from ancient tradition (De Cor. Mil. c. hi.) Clemens Alexandrinus (Strom, vii.) mentions it, and Peter, bishop of Alexandria, agrees with him. At length the council of Nice ratified the custom. (Canon xx.) Epi- phanius, Jerome, Augustine, Basil, and others, concur in mentioning this as the usual custom ; and there is no evidence of any subsequent change having been made. The council of Trullo, in the year 692, and the third council of Tours in 813, make mention of it.
The fourth council of Carthage (a. d. 399) commands those who are performing penance to kneel at these times as well as at others.
Q. How does it appear that the early Christians were ordinarily in the habit of kneeling when they prayed ?
A. As they were commanded to stand at the prayers on the Lord's day, and on the fifty days between Easter and Pentecost, it is probable that they ordinarily knelt on other occasions. As our Saviour " kneeled down, and prayed," (Luke xxii. 41) ; as St Stephen, St Peter, and St Paul (Acts vii. 59, 60, ix. 40, xxi. 5 ; Eph. hi. 4) did the same ; and Clemens Romanus (1 Ep. Cor. 48), Hermas (Past. p. 1, Vis. 1), Tertullian, &c. speak of its being usual, there can be no question of this having been the custom.
Q. On what occasions did the early Christians (1) bow the head, and (2) prostrate themselves on the ground ?
86
HABITS, GESTURES, AND DAYS OF [PART L
A. (l) Chiefly when they received the bishop's or priest's benedictions, and in all direct and formal addresses to God for his mercy and favour on the people. Thus the catechumens, energumens, candidates for baptism, and penitents, after the prayers appointed for each class of them were finished, bowed their heads to receive the blessing.
(2) Prostration was only used in cases of deep humi- liation, as in the case of Theodosius the Great, mentioned by Thcodoret, and in cases of returning apostates. (So- crat. iii. 13 ; Theod. v. 18, a!. 19.)
Q. Shew that sitting was no allowed posture of devotion amongst the early Christians.
A. Some authors, depending upon a false interpretation of a passage in Tertullian (de Orat. c. xvi.), who says " quod ad- signata oratione adsidendi mos est quibusdam," think that sitting is a proper position for prayer; but the whole passage runs thus : " Moreover I see not clearly the reason why it is the custom with some, prayer being concluded, to sit dozen : unless if that Hermas, whose writing is commonly entitled ' The Shep- herd,' having finished his prayer, had not sat down upon his bed, but had done something else, we might insist upon the observ- ance of this also. Surely not : for even ' when I had prayed and set down upon my bed' (Past. 1. 2, Procem.), is put simply in the course of narration, not as a model of discipline. Other- wise one must pray nowhere save where there is a bed : nay, one will act contrary to the writing (scripture), if he sit down ou a chair or a bench." He adds : " Moreover seeing that the heathen do likewise, in sitting down after praying to their puppets (sigillaribus), it deserveth to be blamed in us, were it only that it is observed in the case of idols." It would appear then, that so far from sitting being a proper position for prayer, that he adds, "that doing so under the eye of the Living God is an irreligious act, the Angel of Prayer still standing by, unless we are reproaching God for that our prayer has wearied us."
Again, they say that the Apostles received the communion at its first institution in a sitting posture, whereas they were lying along on beds or couches. (For a full discussion of this question, which will recur in the consideration of the rubrics of our own Communion Service, see, amongst other authors, Falkner's Libertas Ecclesiastica, ch. 3, " Of devout and becoming Gestures in the Service of God Daille, de Objec. Cult. Relig. lib. ii. c. ii.)
LECT. X.] DIVINE SERVICE OF THE EARLY CHURCH. 87
Q. Mention briefly some of the ceremonies used by the early Christians at their entrance into their churches.
A. (l) They washed their hands and face, in token of innocency and purity ; a custom mentioned by Tertullian, (de Orat. c. 13), by Eusebius (E. H. x. 4), by Chrysostom (Horn. 52, in Matth. &c), and for this purpose fountains and cisterns were commonly set in the courts before the churches, and afterwards in the porches. (2) In some places the people pulled off their shoes. (3) Persons in authority invariably laid aside their insignia of office. (4) The men uncovered their heads, and all complied reverently with the usual regulations, which were enforced by the deacons. (5) Mede, in his discourse on Psalm cxxxii., says, " What reverential guise, ceremony, or worship, they used at their ingress into God's house, in the ages next to the Apostles (and some I believe they did), is wholly buried in silence and oblivion. The Jews before them used to bow themselves down before the mercy-seat. The Christians after them, in the Greek and Oriental churches, have, time out of mind, and without any known beginning thereof, used to bow in like manner, with their posture toward the altar, or holy table, saying that of the publican in the Gospel, ' God be merciful to me a sinner ;' as ap- pears by the Liturgies of St Chrysostom and St Basil, and as they are still known to do at this day. Which custom of theirs, not having been found to have been ordained or established by any decree or canon of any council, and being so agreeable to the use of God's people in the Old Testament, may, therefore, seem to have been derived to them from very remote and ancient tradition."
Q. How does it appear that the 'Ancients' in their devotions uncovered their heads, and lifted up their hands towards heaven, sometimes in the form of a Cross ?
A. In accordance with St Paul's injunction the men prayed with the head uncovered. Tertullian gives another reason also : " We pray looking up, with hands spread open, because without guilt, with head uncovered, because
88
HABITS. GESTURES, AND DAYS OF
[part [,
we are not ashamed " (Apol. xxx.) ; whereas, the women remained covered. Again, he says, " that they usually prayed with their arms expanded, and their hands lift up to heaven, sometimes in the form of a cross, to represent our Saviour's passion" (non attolimus tantum manus, sed etiam expandimus e Dominica passione) de Orat. c. 11.
Q. Prove that the primitive Christians worshipped toward the East, and give reasons for their doing so.
A. This custom was derived from the ceremonies of Baptism, in which they renounced the devil with their faces to the "West, and then they turned about to the East, and made their covenant with Christ ; for which reason they worshipped God after the same way that they had first entered into covenant with him. The chief authorities are —
I. Tertullian, who says, " The suspicion of our wor- shipping the sun arises from hence, because it is well known that we pray towards the quarter of the East " (Apol. i. 16) ; and again, (contra Yalen. hi.), he says, " The East was the figure of Christ ; and therefore both their churches and their prayers were directed that way." Clemens Alexandrinus says, " They worshipped toward the East, because the East is the image of our spiritual nativity, and from hence the light first arises, and shines out of darkness ; and the day of true knowledge, after the man- ner of the sun, arises upon those who he buried in ignor- ance.'" (Strom, vii.) And St Augustin affirms (de Serm. Dom. in Monte, lib. ii. c. v.), " When we stand at our prayers, we turn to the East, whence the heavens, or the light of heaven arises."
II. Another reason given by some is, " that the East was the place of paradise, our ancient habitation and country, which we lost in the first Adam by the fall, and whither we hope to be restored again, as to our native abode and rest, in the second Adam Christ our Saviour." Gregory !Nyssen (Horn. v. de Orat. Doin.), Basil (de Spirit. Sanct. c. xxvii.), the Apostolical Constitutions (lib. ii, c. 57), and others, give this reason.
LECT. X.] DIVINE SERVICE OF THE EARLY CHURCH. 89
III. Another reason was, " that the East was the most honourable part of the creation, as being the seat of light and brightness."
IV. Lastly, because " Christ made his appearance on earth in the East, and then ascended into heaven, and there will appear again at the last day.'1
All these have reference to the ceremonies used at baptism.
Q. Why did the ancient Christians bow at the name of Jesus ?
A. Because the Jews blasphemed and reviled the name of Jesus, calling hini a blasphemer, a magician, and an impostor, not only in Judaea, but also sent emissaries to all the synagogues in the world, to tell them that a certain impious and lawless sect had risen up under one Jesus, a Galilean impostor, (a'lpeats Tis aQeos nal avofxos eyr'jyeprai a.7ro Itjaov ni/os FaXcXalou irXavov), as Justin relates in his Dialogue with Trypho. The custom is also supposed to be used in opposition to the Arians and other heretics, who held erroneous views of our Saviour's nature.
Q. How often in a week did the early Christians meet for public worship ?
A. It is supposed that whilst the Jewish temple stood the Christian assemblies were held every day ; for we read of the Apostles going up to the temple at the hour of prayer (Acts hi. 1), and of their " continuing daily with one accord in the temple, and breaking bread /car' oikov" (Acts ii. 46) : but it appears (from Acts xx. 7 ; 1 Cor. xvi. 2), that their more solemn meetings were held on the first day of the week, or the Lord's day. Pliny mentions their meeting one day of the week only (see page 7). Justin Martyr says, " that on the day called Sunday there was a general meeting of all that lived both in city and country," {t?i tov r/Xlov Xeyo/j.evr) i)/uep(f, ttcivtwv Kara. TroXeis tj aypous fxevovTwv eirl to avro avveXevois yiverai); but as it was customary at a subsequent period for the Christians of the city and country to hold a general assembly on the
90
HABITS, GESTURES, &C.
[part I.
Lord's day, and for those of the city to meet on other days besides, Pliny and Justin may allude only to this greater assembly ; or perhaps the Christians, to avoid perse- cution, might hold only one public assembly during the week.
Q. What is the meaning of 'stationary days?1 When and upon what authority were they instituted ?
A. On the Wednesday and Friday of every week a half-fast (semi-jejunium) was kept, which terminated at three in the afternoon. These were voluntary fasts, and the days were called dies stationarii. Wednesday being selected, because on that day the Jews took counsel to kill our Lord, and Friday, because that was the day on which our Lord suffered. They were observed on the authority of tradition, and the name is derived from the military term statio, from their keeping guard like soldiers (si statio de militari exemplo nomen accipit ; nam et militia Dei sumus. Tert. de Orat. c. xix.) Clemens Alexandrinus speaks of the fasts of the fourth and sixth days, or Wednesdays and Fridays (t^s TeTpaSos kcu rrj? 7rapaaKevr]s. Strom, vii.) Tertullian says, " Why do we set apart the fourth and sixth days of the week for our stations?" (cur stationibus quartam et sextam sabbati dicamus? de Jejun. c. xiv.) Epiphanius and the Apostolical Constitutions derive the origin of these fasts from Apostolical institution, which, as Beveridge observes, is a good authority for their anti- quity. (Epiph. Haeres. lxxv. sect, vi.; Const. Ap. vii. c. xiv. ; Bever. Cod. Can. Vindic. lib. iii. c. x. sect, ii.)
LECT. XI.] MOUNTING AND EVENING PRAYERS.
91
Eerture XL
ON THE MORNING AND EVENING PRAYERS, AND THE LITURGIES OF THE PRIMITIVE CHURCH.
Q. Give reasons for supposing that the early Chris- tians held assemblies for public worship every day.
A. As the Church had in Tertullian's time the oppor- tunity of keeping solemn festivals for fifty days together, and as the stationary days, Wednesday and Friday, were regularly observed, there is no reason to suppose that morning assemblies might not be held every day. Cyprian assures us that " they received the Eucharist every day ;" and he thinks, with Tertullian, that the petition, " Give us this day our daily bread," in the Lord's Prayer, refers to a daily participation of the Eucharist. These necessarily presuppose a meeting for its administration ; and as it was always accompanied with prayers, there must have been a public assembly for the purpose every day.
Q. From what circumstances does Bingham conjecture that the primitive Christians had public assemblies for prayer every evening ?
A. Cyprian mentions that some persons communicated in the evening after supper, and this would undoubtedly be accompanied by evening prayer ; after him the Apostolical Constitutions not only mention an evening assembly, but give an order of prayer for it. The council of Laodicea distinctly orders the same prayers to be used at the after- noon and evening services.
The Greeks called it \v^va\j/la, and the Latins lucer- narium, because it generally commenced about the time of lighting the lamps. It was also styled sacrificium vesper- tinum, or the evening sacrifice, and missa vespertina.
Q. At what period, and among what class of Chris- tians, do the ' canonical hours ' appear to have had their origin ?
92
MORNING AND EVENING PRAYERS,
[part 1.
A. Tertullian (de Jejun. c. x.) in disputing, as a Mon- tanist, against the Catholics, mentions the third, sixth, and ninth hours of prayer; hut he does not intimate that either of the parties observed these hours in their public assem- blies, nor does Cyprian, who recommends them to Christians in their private devotions, even hint that the Church had then authorized them by any rule. The monasteries of Mesopotamia and Palestine, in the fifth century, introduced the custom of meeting publicly at these hours for per- forming their psalmody and devotions; but the monks of Bethlehem were the first who appointed regular services for them, and Bona (de Psalm, xi. 1) clearly proves that the completorium, or ' bed-time service,' which was first introduced by Benedict in the sixth century, was utterly unknown to the ancients as distinct from the lucemaris, or ' evening service.1 Hence it would appear that the ' ca- nonical hours ' were gradually introduced into the eastern monasteries, and from them at a subsequent period into the Church.
St Jerom says that the monks " sung the psalter in order; in the morning, at the third, sixth, and ninth hours ; and at evening and at midnight," (Epitap. Paula?, ep. xxvii. c. x.), and St Chrysostom tells us, " They had their midnight hymns, their morning prayers, their third, and sixth, and ninth hours, and, last of all, their evening prayers." (Horn. xiv. in Tim.)
Q. What rule do the Apostolical Constitutions lay down for bishops with regard to the canonical hours?
A. " Ye shall make prayers. In the morning, giving thanks to the Lord, because he hath enlightened you, re- moving the night, and bringing in the day : at the third hour, because at that time the Lord received sentence from Pilate : at the sixth, because in it he was crucified : at the ninth, because all things were shaken when the Lord was crucified, and shuddered with horror at the audacity of the impious Jews, not enduring the insult that was put upon their Lord : at evening giving thanks, because He
LECT. XI.] AND LITURGIES OF THE PRIMITIVE CHURCH. 93
hath given the night to be a rest from our daily labours : at cock-crowing, because that hour brings the welcome news of the day, to work the works of light." (Lib. viii. c. 34.)
Q. To what separate events in our Saviour's history have the canonical hours been supposed to refer by mo- dern writers ?
A. " He was born, and He rose again at midnight. At Prime (or 7 a. m. according to our reckoning) He was brought before Pilate. At the third (or 9 a. m.) He was devoted to crucifixion by the Jews, and scourged. At the sixth (or noon) He was crucified. At the ninth (or 3 p. m.) He expired. At vespers He was taken down from the cross ; at which hour He had the day before eat the Passover, washed his Apostles' feet, and consecrated the Eucharist. At Completorium, or Compline, He endured the agony in the garden."
Q. Describe the order of a Morning Service, as pre- scribed in the Apostolical Constitutions.
A. (l) It began with the sixty -third Psalm (ac- cording to our arrangement), " 0 God, thou art my God ; early will I seek thee," which is called ' the morning psalm ' (op9pivo<i \j/a\fxos).
(2) Immediately after this, without mention of any other psalmody, or the reading any lessons out of the Old or New Testament, follow the prayers for the several orders of catechumens, energumens, candidates for baptism, and penitents, which were performed partly by the deacon's 7rpoa(pwvt](jts, ' bidding ' the people pray ; and repeating the several petitions they were to make for those several orders of men ; and partly by the bishop's invocation or benediction said over them, as they bowed down to receive the blessing before their dismission.
(3) When these several orders were sent away, there followed the prayers, which, on the Lord's day, began the communion service ; and which, upon that account, were usually styled evyal iriarwv, ' the prayers of the faithful,'
94
MORNING AND EVENING PRAYERS, [PART L
or communicants ; because none but tbose who had a right to communicate in the Eucharist might be present at them. These were the prayers for the peace of the world, and all orders of men in the Church, which always went before the consecration of the Eucharist. And though there was no consecration of the Eucharist on these ordinary days, yet these several prayers were always used in the daily morning service.
(4) After the prayer for the whole state of the Church was ended, and the deacon had said, " Keep us, 0 God, and preserve us by thy grace," which concludes the former prayer, he exhorted the people to pray for peace and prosperity the day ensuing, and all their lives, in this manner : —
" Let us beg of God liis mercies and compassions, that, this morning and this day, and all the time of our pilgrimage, may be passed by us in peace and without sin : let us beg of God that he would send us the angel of peace, and give us a Christian end, and be gracious and merciful unto us. Let us commend ourselves, and one another, to the riving God, by his only-begotten Son."
(5) Immediately after this common prayer of the deacon and people together (the deacon having bid the people commend themselves to God), the bishop makes this commendatory prayer, which is then called evyapi- arla opOptvrj, 'the morning thanksgiving,' and is in the following words : —
" O God, the God of spirits, and of all flesh, with whom no one can compare, and who art above all need, that givest the sun to govern the day, and the moon and the stars to govern the night : look down now upon us with the eyes of thy favour, and receive our morning thanksgivings, and have mercy upon us. For we have not spread forth our hands to any strange god. We have not chosen unto ourselves any new god (Scot wpcxnpaTos) among us, but thou the eternal and immortal God ; O God, who hast given to us our being through Christ, and our well-being (to eh elvai) through him also, vouchsafe, by him, to make us worthy of everlasting life, with whom, unto thee, be glory, ho- nour, and adoration, in the Holy Ghost, world without end. Amen."
LECT. XI."] AND LITURGIES OF THE PRIMITIVE CHURCH. 95
After this the deacon bids them bow their heads, and receive the imposition of hands, or the bishop's benediction, which follows under the title of y^eipoOeala opOpivr), ' the imposition of hands in morning-prayer,' in the form of words here annexed : —
" O God, faithful and true, that shewest mercy to thousands and ten thousands of them that love thee ; who art the friend of the humble, and defender of the poor, whose aid all stand in need of, since all things serve thee ; look down upon this thy people, who bow their heads unto thee, and bless with thy spiritual bene- diction : keep them as the apple of an eye ; preserve them in piety and righteousness, and make them worthy of everlasting life, through Christ Jesus, thy beloved Son, with whom, unto thee, be glory, honour, and adoration, in the Holy Ghost, now and for ever, world without end. Amen."
This said, the deacon dismisses the congregation with the usual form, UpoeXOere ev e\pr]vri, 'Depart in peace.' (Abridged from Bingham, Antiq. book xiii. ch. ix.)
Q. In what particulars did the Evening differ from the Morning Service, according to the Apostolical Con- stitutions ?
A. (l) The hundred and forty-first Psalm, accord- ing to our version, " Lord, I call upon thee : haste thee unto me ; and consider my voice, when I cry unto thee," &c. called tov eirCKv-^viov ^aknov, * the evening psalm,' was substituted for the sixty-third, " 0 God, thou art my God; early will I seek thee," &c. of the morning service.
(2) After this psalm was ended, then followed the same prayers for the catechumens, energumens, penitents ; and common prayers for the world and the Church, that were used in the morning service : but after them the deacon bid the people pray in a certain form for the even- ing, which is styled Tvpoa<fywvr\ai<s kTrCkvyywi, ' the even- ing bidding prayer,' which is in these words : —
" Help us, and raise us up, O God, through thy Christ. Having been raised up, let us pray for the mercies of the Lord, and his compassions ; let us pray for the angel of peace ; (tov ayyeXov tov em Ttjs elptiut]?, referring, it is supposed, to the dis- tribution of the offices of the angels into different departments) ;
96
MORNING AND EVENING PRAYERS,
[PART I.
for things which are good and convenient ; for a Christian end ; that this evening may pass in peace and without sin ; and that the whole course of our life may be blameless. Let us commend ourselves, and one another, to the living God, through his Christ."
Then let the bishop pronounce this prayer.
" O God, who art without beginning and without end, the maker and governor of all things through Christ, the God and Father of him before all things, the Lord of the Spirit, and King of things intellectual and sensible, (ko! twv votjroiv kcu ala-OrjTuiv (ia<Ti\ev<;, et eorum qu£e intelligi ac sentiri possunt rex. Cote- lerius), thou that hast made the day for works of light, and the night to give rest to our weakness ; for the day is thine, and the night is thine ; thou hast prepared the light and the sun ; do thou now, most kind and gracious Lord, receive this our evening thanksgiving. Thou that hast led us through the length of the day, and brought us to the beginning of the night, keep and pre- serve us by thy Christ ; grant that we may pass this evening in peace, and this night without sin ; and vouchsafe to bring us to eternal life through thy Christ ; through whom be unto thee glory, honour, and adoration, in the Holy Spirit, for ever. Amen."
After this, the deacon bids the people KXlvaTe Trj y^eipoOeala, ' bow down to receive the benediction with imposition of hands,' and the bishop says : —
" O God of our fathers, and Lord of mercy, who by thy wisdom hast created man a rational being, and of thy creatures upon earth most dear unto thee, who hast given him dominion over the earth, and of thy good pleasure hast made us to be kings and priests ; the one to secure our lives ; and the other thy lawful worship : — Be pleased now, O Lord Almighty, to bow down and shew the light of thy countenance upon thy people, who bow the neck of their heart before thee ; and bless them by Christ, by whom thou hast enlightened us by the light of know- ledge, and hast revealed thyself unto us : with whom is due unto thee, and the Holy Ghost, the Comforter, all wrorthy adoration from every rational and holy nature, world without end. Amen."
The deacon then says, UpoeXOere ev elptjuri, ' Depart in peace.' (Const. Apost. viii. 36, 37.)
Q. What is meant by the 'irpoaev^rj ewOivr),'' men- tioned in the Apostolical Constitutions?
A. It is a prayer or hymn appointed for the morn-
LECT. XI.] AND LITURGIES OF THE PRIMITIVE CHURCH. 97
ing; but as it is placed among many other private prayers, it was probably only intended for private use. Other writers call it 'the hymn,' and 'the angelical hymn,1 and ' the great doxology,' from the first words of it, " Glory be to God on high," which was the angels' hymn at our Saviour's birth. The following is the original, and Bing- ham's translation, slightly modified:
Aofa ev v\|/i<xToi? ©tip, «a\ ewt yrj? e\pt}vr], ev avQpui-Koi'; ev- coKta.' alvovpev tre, vpvovfiev <re, co^oXoyov/xev ere, irpoaKvvovnev <re Ota tov peyaXov ap^iepeuiv ae tov ovtu Qeov, dyevvt}Tov eva, UtrpocriTov piovov eta rr]v fxeyaXrjv gov Co£av' KVpie (3a<ri- Xev eirovpavie, Qee TlaTep wav- TOKpaTop- K^if o Geo? o Ila-
Trjp TOV XpiCTTOU, TOV UHWjXOV
afxvov, os a'lpet tijv u/xapTtav tov KO(Tfxov Trpoace^ai Tt)v ierj-
(TIV t]/Ji(UV 6 Kadtj/ULCVO^ eVl TCOV
Xepoi//3i'/^" 6ti <tv /J.ovo<; ayios* <tv p.6vo? Kvpios Itja-ov;, Xpi- (TTos tov Oeov iratrrj? ye\>r\Tr\s
(pV(T€(0?, TOV /ja<7l/\£0)S tjfJllOV Si'
oil <roi Go£a, Tiixrj, nai <r£/3o?. Constitut. lib. vii. c. 47-
Glory be to God on high, and in earth peace, good-will towards men. We praise thee, we laud thee, we glorify thee, we worship thee through the great High-Priest, thee the true God, the only Unhegotten, whom no one can approach for thy great glory, O Lord, hea- venly king, God the Father Almighty : Lord God, the Fa- ther of Christ, the immaculate Lamh, that taketh away the sins of the world, receive our prayer, thou that sittest be- tween the Cherubims. For thou only art holy, thou only art the Lord, O Jesus, the Christ of God for all created nature, our King; by whom, unto thee, be glory, honour, and adoration.
Athanasius directs virgins to sing, early in the morn- ing, the sixty-third Psalm, and the song of the Three Children, and when it is light to say this psalm, " Glory be to God on high ; on earth peace, good-will towards men. We laud thee, we bless thee, we worship thee ;" and what follows, (de Virg. Tom. ii. p. 122, ed. Ben.) It was always used in the Communion Service, (although not in the same form exactly, as we shall see in the Second Part). St Chrysostom says that it was used daily at morning prayer, and in the beginning of the sixth century, according to Mabillon, it was sung in Gaul at Matins,
A.R. C. C. E
98
MORNING AND EVENING PRAYERS,
[PART I.
every LorcTs-day, Easter-day, and the greater festivals. Smith (of the Greek Church, p. 224) says that it makes up a necessary part of the morning devotion of the Greek Church, upon Sundays, and the other more solemn festivals, and, indeed, on all other days.
Q. What is the form of doxology prescribed for the Evening Prayer by the Apostolical Constitutions ? What is it styled ?
A. It is styled Ev^tj eairepivo<i, an 'evening prayer,' or 'thanksgiving;' but it is uncertain whether it was in- tended for public or private use. It is in these words :
AiVeiVe, Traces, YLvpiov' at- veTre to ovofxci Kupi'ou' alvov/xev ere, vfxvovfiev ere, evXoyovpev ere, Sia Ttjv fxeyaXr/v <rov Sofai/' K.vpte fiacriXev, o Ylartjp tov
XplCTTOV, TOV a/XUipOV ^a/JLVOV,~J
OS a'lpei Tt]v a/xapTiav tov koct- ixov' cro\ trpenei cu'i/os* cro\ Trpenei v/xvos' cro\ Bo£a Trpewei tw Qeu>
KGCI FlaTpl S(Ct TOV YlOV iv
Ylvev/xaTi tu> Travaylu), eh tous aitoi/a? tojk alwviav' Afxrjv. Nuk itTroXveis tov dovXov crov, Seo-7r<>- to, KCtTct to prjfxa crov, ev etptjvri' oti eiciov 0! ocpdaXfxol
fXOV TO <TU)Tt]ptOV <TOV" O 6T01-
ixncra<; kuto ■npocrumov mavTiov Ttav XatHv, <pM<; eh cc7roi<aXv\lriv eduwv, Kai 2o'£ai/ Xaov crov 'Icr-
pctijx, Constitut. Lib. vii. c 49.
" Praise the Lord, ye serv- ants ; O praise the name of the Lord. We praise thee, we laud thee, we give thee thanks for thy great glory, O Lord our king, the Father of Christ, that spotless Lamb, that taketh away the sin of the world. All praises, and hymns, and glory, are justly rendered unto thee, our God and Father, through thy Son, in the most Holy Spirit, in all ages, world with- out end. Amen. Lord, now lettest thou thy servant depart in peace, according to thy word ; for mine eyes have seen thy salvation, which thou hast prepared before the face of all people; a light to lighten the Gentiles, and the glory of thy people Israel." (Luke ii. 29 — 32.)
Q. Give the derivations and meanings of the words Liturgy and Mass.
A. The word Liturgy is derived from the Greek Xeirovpyla, which is compounded of the two words Xetrov public, and epyov, a work or office, and denotes any public office or ministry. Plato, Aristotle, and Demos-
LECT. XI.] AND LITURGIES OF THE PRIMITIVE CHURCH. 99
thenes, use it in this sense. But as no action or ministry- can be more public than that of a priest officiating in divine service, the ancient fathers and ecclesiastical writers denoted by it that service which was used in the celebra- tion of the Eucharist, and joined with it the epithet mystic or sacred; the Greek fathers always did so, but the Latin only sometimes. The name was afterwards applied to the context and order of the service, and even to the book itself in which the rites were prescribed, the title being prefixed and the name of the author added, as the Liturgy of Antioch, of Basil, of Chrysostom, and others.
The Latins, even from the earliest periods, called the sacred Liturgy by the name of Missa, which is not a Hebrew, as Baronius and others imagine, but a Latin word, derived from the missa, or missio, or dimissio, of the people. From missa came missale, or the order of performing the missa, which was also called the Sacramentarium.
Note : — In this Lecture, under the name of the Liturgy, we shall understand the order of the prayers, lessons, and ceremonies, which were used in the celebration of the Eucharist.
Q. To what four classes may all the ancient Liturgies be reduced? Give their names, and state the districts in which they were used.
A. (l) The Great Oriental Liturgy, which pre- vailed in all churches from the Euphrates to the Helles- pont, and thence to the southern extremity of Greece.
(2) The Alexandrian, or the ancient Liturgy of Egypt, Abyssinia, and the country extending to the west- ward along the Mediterranean sea.
(3) The Roman, which prevailed throughout the whole of Italy, Sicily, and the civil diocese of Africa.
(4) The Gallican, which was used throughout Gaul, and the whole of Spain, and probably at Ephesus, until the fourth century. (Palmer's Origines Liturgicse, p. 8.)
Q. Discuss the question whether any written Liturgies were extant in the first four centuries.
E 2
100
MORNING AND EVENING PRAYERS.
[part I.
A. If any written Liturgy had been extant in the time of Tertullian he would have mentioned it, when treat- ing of the Eucharist (de Cor. Mil.) ; and Cyprian, when contending that water ought to be mixed with the wine at the Eucharist, would not have appealed to tradition only for his authority (Ep. ad Ca?cilium) ; neither would St Basil have said that no wi-itten Liturgy had been left by holy men, (Invocationis verba in ostensione panis Eucha- ristire, et poculi benedictionis, quis Sanctorum nobis scripto reliquit. De Sp. Sanct. c. 27), and assign as a reason for it, that it was necessary to take this precaution, in order to insure secrecy with regard to the rites of the Eucha- rist. (Pulehre quidem illi, niniiruni docti arcanorum venera- tionem silentio conservare. Nam, quae intueri fas non est initiatis, quomodo conveniebat horum doctrinam publicitus circumferri scriptam. Basil lib. c. § 6.) It is even asserted that the Creeds were never written, but were only com- mitted to memory, and why not the Liturgy also, especi- ally as Gregory the Great affirms that the Apostles con- secrated the elements at the Eucharist by using only the Lord s prayer ?
To this it is answered, that the writings of Justin Martyr, Tertullian, and other fathers, shew that long prayers, including those for the emperor and the Roman senate, were in use. Origen and Cyprian, and especially Cyril in his Lectures, also shew that this was the case. Xow at the time these Catechetical Lectures were written Cyril was only a presbyter and teacher of the catechumens, and therefore, as his own was not written, he must have referred to the ancient Liturgy of Jerusalem, which was in use not later than the third century. He does not indeed distinctly quote the prayers themselves, yet it cannot be denied that the prayers and rites occupied a considerable space of time, and were interspersed with the responses of the people ; therefore, to say notliing of the Apostolical Constitutions, which are allowed to belong at latest to the commencement of the fourth century, it was
LECT. XI.] AND LITURGIES OF THE PRIMITIVE CHURCH. 101
a moral impossibility that all these prayers should have been recited by memory, and for all things to be clone according to St Paul's direction, (1 Cor. xiv. 40). Again, if St Basil and St Chrysostom reformed and curtailed the Liturgies then in use, they must have been in use from an earlier period, and there would have been no greater difficulty in committing their abbreviated forms to memory than the former extended Liturgies, but we know that they committed them to writing.
To the argument, why were not the ancient Liturgies produced to convince the heretics of their errors ? it may be answered, that if these books were not written by the Apostles, but only composed by private individuals for the use of particular Churches, and therefore without Apostolic authority, what conviction would they have conveyed to the mind of a heretic ? was it not much more satisfactory to appeal to the unbroken tradition of what the Apostles used to do ? In fact, there was no reason why the clergy should not, for their own use at least, have committed their Liturgical forms to writing, especially in times of quietness. Justin, for instance, has pretty accurately described the mode of administering the Lord's Supper, and Tertullian and others have left us copies of their Creeds.
It is also supposed that Gregory's letter has been mis- interpreted, but at most, it only proves what the Apostles did when in circumstances of difficulty.
Q. Did St James compose the Liturgy which is at- tributed to him ?
A. Allatius, Bona, Bellarmin, and Prosper Lamber- tinus, receive the Liturgy of James of Jerusalem as genuine. They ground their belief upon the unbroken tradition of the Greek Church, which always received it. They say that Basil the Great reduced it to a compendium ; that Chrysostom added some and omitted other prayers from it ; that Cyril of Jerusalem transferred a great part of it into his fifth Mystagogical Catechism ; and that the Synod
102 MORNING AND EVENING PRAYERS, [PART I.
of Trullo (Can. 32.) produced it to refute the custom of the Armenians in using water only for the Eucharist. They also say that the Syrians agreed with the Greeks in holding that St James wrote the first Liturgy, and affirm that the other Liturgies were framed in accordance with it. John Maro, in the sixth or seventh century, and others in their commentaries upon it, allege that this tradition had come to them in an unbroken order from the times of the Apostles.
On the other side, Cardinal Perron, Natalis Alexander, Dupin, Le JSourry, and other ritualists, reject it as suppo- sititious, and this is generally allowed to be the true state- ment, because the author quotes many passages from the epistles of St Paul, which were not written in the lifetime of St James. Bellarmin, in answer, says "that this Liturgy had been so enlarged by subsequent writers, that it was very difficult to distinguish what really was written by St James." Why not say the whole was falsely attributed to St James ? The word homousion does not occur once in it. Were the fathers at Nice ignorant of this fact? Was Macarius a successor of James at Jerusalem ? Was Eu- sebius, that diligent reader of books, ignorant of it when he could allege nothing at first against the word, except its being new and unheard of by the fathers ? Why did he so carefully investigate the works of the ancient fathers when he could at once have proved his point from an Apostle ? Why did no one appeal to it ? Why were the learned bishops content with the evidence of Dionysius of Rome and Dionysius of Alexandria ? Evidently because the Liturgy of St James was not then written, or because they knew it to be supposititious.
And even if it be granted to the learned men who hold this opinion, that the word homousion was used by some fathers before the time of Arius, at least it was not used in the Eucharistic service. Surely such great con- troversies could not have arisen about it if the eastern
LECT. XI.] AND LITURGIES OF THE PRIMITIVE CHURCH. 103
Christians, and especially the Greeks, had clearly known that the word was hallowed by being used in a Liturgy well known amongst them.
And lastly, to what purpose did the Constantinopolitan fathers labour to convict the Macedonians of error, when they could easily have been silenced by the following prayer of the Liturgy of St James?
" O Lord our God, the incomprehensible word of God, of one eternal and inseparable substance (homousion) with the Father and the Holy Ghost, accept the immortal and seraphic hymn at thy holy and unbloody sacrifices." (Abridged from Krazer, de Liturgiis.)
Q. Give a brief historical account of the great Oriental Liturgy. What different Liturgies have been included under this name, and where did they prevail ?
A. It includes, first : The Liturgy of Antioch, which prevailed from beyond the Euphrates to the Mediterranean, and from Cappadocia to Arabia. Secondly : The Liturgy of St Basil of Ccesarea, which in the fourth century pre- vailed from the Hellespont to the Euphrates, and, with the exception of proconsular Asia, Phrygia, and some maritime provinces, over the whole of Asia Minor. Thirdly : The Liturgy of St Chrysostom, which was used at Constanti- nople in the fourth century, and from time immemorial in the Churches of Tbi'ace, Macedonia, and Greece.
Q. To what period may the Liturgy of Antioch be certainly referred?
A. The patriarchate of Antioch anciently comprised Judsoa, Mesopotamia, and the southern portion of Asia Minor. Now there still exists at the present day, in these very places, a heretical sect of Christians, called Jacobites or Monophysites, who affirm that the human nature of Christ is absorbed in the divinity, and made one with it. For this error they were anathematized by the council of Chalcedon, a.d. 451. Notwithstanding this they persevered in their heresy, and upon the invasion of the Mohammedans, in the seventh century, obtained the mastery
104
MORNING AND EVENING PRAYERS,
[part I.
over their orthodox opponents, whom they termed Mel- cliites or Royalists, from their attachment to the emperors of the east. Both parties have long used a Liturgy, which they agree in attributing to St James, the first bishop of Jerusalem; that of the Monophysites is now written in Syriac, whilst that of the Melchites is in Greek ; and they have so far conformed to the Constantinopolitan form, as only to use their original Liturgy at St James's feast once a year ; yet it is a remarkable fact that it coincides al- most word for word with the Syriac of the Monophysites. Hence it is evident that, previously to a. d. 451, they had a common Liturgy, and this is satisfactory to prove that they always attributed it to St James.
Again, from certain portions of this service, compared with the works of Theodoret, Jerome, Chrysostom, Ephrem the Syrian, Cyril of Jerusalem, and the Apostolical Consti- tutions, which all belong to the same patriarchate, we can prove that some common Liturgy was in existence in it at the beginning of the fourth century; and lastly, we can trace it back even to Justin Martyr's age.
We cannot however " trace back the appellation of St James's Liturgy, as given to that of Jerusalem and Antioch, beyond the fifth century. I am persuaded that this ap- pellation began after the time of Basil, exarch of Csesarea, about a. d. 380." (See Palmer's Dissertation on Primitive Liturgies, § i. and Bishop Bull's xiiith Sermon.)
Q. Under what circumstances, and to what extent, was the Liturgy composed by St Basil adopted by the Eastern Churches?
A. Basil the Great became bishop of the exarchate of Caesarea, in Cappadocia, about a.d. 370. His juris- diction extended from the Hellespont to the Euphrates, and, with a few exceptions, over the whole of Asia Minor. He undoubtedly composed a Liturgy, or rather adapted for the use of his Churches the existing forms, and one bearing his name has been long used in Asia Minor. It is also conjectured that when, prior to the council of
LECT. XI.] AND LITURGIES OF THE PRIMITIVE CHURCH. 105
Chalcedon, a. d. <