ristical service. Such appears to be St. Austin's settled judg ment in this article, grounded, as I said, upon St. Paul's. It is a most ridiculous pretence of Father Harduin, (which he pursues through many tedious pages m,) that, according to St. Austin, Christ's natural body is the sign, and his mystical body the thing signified in the Eucharist: for nothing is plainer from St. Austin, than that the bread and wine are the only signs, and that the things signified by them are both the natural and the mystical body of Christ, both his flesh and his Church. As the word offer is a word of some latitude, he supposes both to be offered in the Eucharist; one by way of memorial before God, and the other as a real and spiritual sacrifice unto God.

Having thus traced this matter down through four centuries, and part of the fifth, I cannot think it of moment to descend lower, since the earliest are of principal value, and are alone sufficient. The Fathers were very wise and excellent men, saw very clearly what many learned moderns have had the misfortune to overlook, and agreed perfectly well in many points, about which the moderns have been strangely divided. The Fathers well understood, that to make Christ's natural body the real sacrifice of the Eucharist, would not only be absurd in reason, but highly presumptuous and profane; and that to make the outward symbols a proper sacrifice, a material sacrifice, would be entirely contrary to Gospel principles, degrading the Christian sacrifice into a Jewish one, yea, and making it much lower and meaner than the Jewish, both in value and dignity". The right way therefore was, to make the sacrifice spiritual: and it could be no other upon Gospel principles. Thus both extremes were avoided, all perplexities removed, and truth and godliness secured.

So then here I may take leave of the ancients, as to the present article. The whole of the matter is well comprised and clearly expressed in a very few words, by as judicious a Divine as any our Church has had : "We offer up our alms; we offer "up our prayers, our praises, and ourselves: and all these we "offer up in the virtue and consideration of Christ's sacrifice, represented before us [I would only add, and before God] by "way of remembrance or commemoration; nor can it be proved,

m Harduin. de Sacramento Altaris,

cap. x.

'n How contemptibly the Romanists speak of a material sacrifice in that

view, may be seen in Bishop Morton, (p. 438.) who has collected their sentiments upon it.

"that the ancients did more than this: this whole service was "their Christian sacrifice, and this is ours." A learned foreigner has likewise very briefly and justly expressed the nature of the Christian sacrifice; whose words I have thrown to the bottom of the page", for the learned reader.

I shall now shut up this chapter with two or three short corollaries, which naturally offer, and may be of some use.

1. The first is, that this sacrificial view of the Eucharist squares exactly with the federal view before given. For if it be really a spiritual sacrifice, in or by which every faithful communicant devotes himself entirely to God; and if the sacerdotal offering up our Lord's mystical body be (as St. Austin explains this matter) a sacerdotal devoting all the faithful joining it, to God's service, and to God's glory; then may we again justly conclude, that the sacramental service is a federal, as well as a sacrificial solemnity: because, in this case, the administrator's decoting the communicants, and their devoting themselves to God, is tantamount to a solemn renewing former engagements or covenants made with him, under such symbols as God has appointed, and promised to ratify on his part.

2. From hence may be understood, how Christians, at large, are priests unto God: for every one that sacrificeth, is so far a priest. Therefore Justin Martyr represents Christians in common as so many priests, offering their sacrifices in the Eucharist'. And Isidorus, so late as the fifth century, does the likes, reckoning every man a priest, when he offers up his own body, or himself, a sacrifice unto God, by sacrificing his lusts and passions. Nevertheless, the proper officers, who minister in holy things, and who offer up to God both the sacrifices and sacrificers,

• Archbishop Sharpe, vol. vii. serm. xi. p. 253. If any one is disposed to trace this matter down, even to the dark ages, he will find that most of the Greek and Latin Liturgies contain the same notion with the Fathers, of the spiritual sacrifice in the Eucharist. See Covel, Acc. of Gr. Church, pref. p. 47. book, p. 36, 41, 46, 53, 67, 68, 175. Deyling. Observat. Miscellan. p. 310, &c.

P Oblatio omnis quæ fit a credentibus sub Novo Testamento, est incruenta, et vero castissima, et simplicissima, quia spiritualis. Sive quis se ipsum, sive o@pa suum, affectum, omnesquesuas facultates et actiones Deo

are priests in a more eminent and emphatical sense; as Isidorus observes in the same place, and as the reason of the thing itself sufficiently evidencest. I may further note, that as Christians at large were considered as priests, on account of their offering spiritual sacrifices, so their consecration to such their priesthood was supposed to be performed in or by Baptism: or, in other words, their baptism was their consecration".

3. A third corollary is, that the Socinians, or others, who reject both the sacrificial and federal view, do not only causelessly depreciate a venerable sacrament and sacrifice, but at the same time do the greatest disservice imaginable to practical religion. For as the sacrificial notion of the Eucharist, here explained, carries in it the most instructive and compendious lesson of Christian practice, so does the federal notion of the same carry in it the strongest engagements to bind us for ever to it. The removing these awakening hints, and the dissolving these sacred ties, under fair and smooth pretences of supporting practical Christianity, is betraying great want of judgment or want of sincerity; because there cannot be a more dangerous or more fatal way of subverting, by little and little, all true Christian morality.

CHAP. XIII.

Of the Preparation proper for the HOLY COMMUNION.

IF we have hitherto gone upon sure grounds, with respect to the nature, ends, and uses of the holy Communion, there can be no doubt made, but that so sacred and so salutary an institution ought to be held in great reverence, and to be observed with all joy and thankfulness, tempered with godly fear. If we consider it either as a Divine ordinance coeval with Christianity, and perfective of it, or as a solemn memorial of God made man, or as an instrument whereby God vouchsafes to receive us, Christ to dwell in us, and the Holy Ghost to shed his blessed influences upon us; or if we consider it as the noblest part of Christian worship, the

t Cum omnes credentes N. T. sint sacerdotes respectu status spiritualis, et juris appropinquandi Deo in summo Pontifice Jesu; ministri verbi, dispensatores mysteriorum Dei, quatenus a Deo electi sunt, ut circa sacra publica versentur, respectu quodam œconomico et externo, in externa Ecclesiæ Toλireia fundato. Hunc titulum sibi peculiari modo vendicant. Vitringa in Isa. lxvi. 21. p. 951. Conf. Vitring.

in Apocalyps. p. 335. N. B. This argument is discussed at large by Mr. Dodwell, De Jure Laico Sacerdotali, and by other tracts going along with his.

u Tertullian. de Monogam. cap. vii. p. 529. Origen. in Levit. hom. ix. 238. Cyrill. Hierosol. Catech. xviii. cap. 33. p. 301. Ambrosiaster. de Sacram. lib. iv. cap. 1. p. 365. ed. Bened.

renewing of our covenant with God, the sacrificing of the heart, and the devoting of the affections, and all that we have, to his service, and to his glory; or if we further consider it as a badge of our most holy profession, and as a band or cement of union, whereby we abide in Christ, and have fellowship with all the family of heaven; in which soever of these views we contemplate this holy ceremony, it must appear to be a matter of. infinite concern to us, and highly deserving our most affectionate and devout regards. How we ought to express our esteem of it, is the next thing to be inquired into: and the general rule here is, that we take care to do it in such a way, as may best answer those heavenly and salutary purposes for which this holy Sacrament was ordained. Our esteem or disesteem of it will be seen by our conduct; by our frequenting or not frequenting it, by our preparing or not preparing for it, as also by our manner of behaviour at the time of receiving, or after. My present concern is with the preparatory part. There is something of a preparation of heart, mind, and ways, required for all religious offices; much more for this, which is the flower and perfection of all: and now the only remaining question is, what preparation is here requisite, or whereof it consists. The nature and ends of the institution, laid down above, will be our sure marks of direction, and cannot mislead us, if carefully attended to. Let us come to particulars.

1. Baptism, it is well known, must go before the Eucharist, like as Circumcision was previous to the Passover. A person must be admitted into covenant first, in order to renew; must be initiated, in order to be perfected; must be born into the Christian life, before he takes in the additional food proper to support and increase it. Of this there can be no dispute, and so I need not say much of it. There is an instance in antiquity, as high as the third century, of a person who had long been a communicant, and who afterwards found reason to doubt whether he had been validly baptized, and thereupon scrupled the coming again to the Lord's table. His bishop advised him, in that case, (considering how long he had been a communicant, and honestly all the time,) to go on without scruple; not presuming to give him Baptism, which now seemed to be superseded by the long and frequent use of this other Sacrament. The case was very particular, and

x Hebr. xii. 22, 23, 24.

z Euseb. Ecc. Hist. lib. vii. cap. 9. y Eccles. v. I, 2. I Sam. vii. 3. But Timothy, afterwards Bishop of 2 Chron, xxxv. 6. the same see, (about A. D. 380.) de

the resolution, probably, wise and just: both the scruple on one hand, and the determination on the other, (made with some hesitancy, and scarce satisfactory to the party,) shew how acknowledged a principle of the Church it then was, that Baptism is ordinarily a most essential part of the qualification required for receiving the holy Communion. Confirmation besides, is highly expedient, but Baptism is strictly necessary.

2. A competent knowledge of what the Communion means is another previous qualification. St. Paul teaches, that a person, coming to the Lord's table, should examine or approve himself, and that he should discern the Lord's body: both which do suppose a competent knowledge of what the Sacrament means, and of what it requires. And from thence may be drawn a very just and weighty argument against infant communion. But I return to the point in hand. As to the measure of the competent knowledge required for receiving the Communion, it must of course vary, according to the various opportunities, abilities, circumstances of the parties concerned; to be judged of by themselves, with the assistance of their proper guides. Great care was anciently taken in instructing the adults, called catechumens, in order to Baptism: something of like kind will be always proper, in such circumstances as ours, for the preparing persons for the first time of receiving the holy Communion.

crament.

3. A sound and right faith, as to the main substance of the Christian religion, is another previous qualification for this SaFor whether we consider it as a renewal of our baptismal profession and covenant, which is engaging to observe the Gospel terms; or whether we consider it as an instrument of pardon and grace, and a pledge of the inheritance among the saints in light; sound faith must undoubtedly be required, to answer such ends and uses of it. Scripture has not directly said so, as there was no occasion for it; since the very nature of the thing, taking in Scripture principles, very fully and plainly declares it. Accordingly, we find, as early almost as we have any records left, that true and sound faith was very particularly required in those that came to the Lord's tabled. Besides a