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THE VINDICATION OF IGNATIUS FROM ARROGANCY,

inner sanctuary of the Christian temple: and there, as the saved ones, received with psalmody, in anticipation of the ending of their pilgrimage. Nor ought I to omit in the parallel, how, as the year rolled round, they were wont in palm-bearing processions to resort to the churches on the festival substituted in the Christian Church for the feast of Tabernacles; and, not without similar anticipations of personal salvation and triumph,-to place their palms, that symbolized it, on the altar, and hymn their hosannahs, to give greeting to

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the bishops and presbyters of the Church, the earthly operators of their supposed salvation. The sealed ones, on the other hand, are here symbolized as the real saved ones; and like the palm-bearing Israelites at the feast of Tabernacles, celebrating, although not till after a long interval of tribulation, the actual triumphant accomplishment of their earthly pilgrimage, then as received into the heavenly presence amidst the hymnings of angels, and rendering their hosannahs of salvation alone to their Saviour, God, and the Lamb.

THE VINDICATION OF IGNATIUS FROM ARROGANCY. In the last number of this periodical, an attempt, and we hope a successful attempt, was made to vindicate Ignatius from the charge of prelatical arrogance, with which spurious writings, passed under his revered name, have branded his character and reputation in the Church of God.

It was then shewn that there is good ground for believing that the number of epistles written by him on his way from Antioch to Rome, to seal his testimony to Jesus with his blood, was only three; and that these three are much shorter than those contained in the Greek MSS.

The love of pre-eminence and dictatorial authority disappears, and earnest love for the Saviour and zeal for the spiritual welfare of the Churches alone remain.

The design of the writer in introducing this subject to the readers of the "Christian Guardian," is however rather to vindicate episcopacy than Ignatius. But the former could not be done without the latter; for the reputed writings of that venerable, but much wronged and misrepresented bishop, have ever been the store-house of those who have laid claim to an extravagant and unscriptural authority on behalf of the episcopal office. This has been the armoury from which have been furnished their most formidable weapons.

Your correspondent would maintain the scriptural and earliest patristic proof of the existence of epis

copal government, as at least generally prevailing in the Churches, against that spirit of opposition to such administration as is now unhappily extending itself, from the abuse of the episcopal office, and the misconduct of too many who are invested with it.

It is owing to either the interpolation of the Epistles of Ignatius, or the actual fabrication of some by hands of a later age and far different school, that such a prejudice has been felt and manifested by many at different times, not only against the Bishop of Antioch himself, but also against the office which he bore.

Archbishop Ussher admits the justice of the complaints to which some of the extravagant expressions in the interpolated or spurious epistles have given birth:-such for instance as the following,-"Do nothing without the bishop, of those things which pertain to the Church;" "It is necessary therefore that whatever you do, you should do nothing without the bishop;" "Bishops are to be honoured as the conclave of God and the band

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of the Apostles;' "Revere your bishop as Christ;" and, as a final specimen of this, (as Ussher calls it,) "hyperbolical exaggeration" of episcopal authority,-whereas Tertullian says, "We honour the emperor next to God, and as inferior to God alone,"—the Epistle to the Smyrnæans contains the following, Honour,' says he (i.e. Solomon), my son, God and the king;' but I say " (a true progenitor

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of Tractarianism) "honour God indeed as the cause and Lord of all, but the bishop as high priest, bearing the image of God,—of God in his government, of Christ in his priestly office; and after him, it behoves you to honour also the king." [See Proverbs xxiv. 21, and a longer recension of the Epistle to the Smyrnæans, ch. xi.: which the Archbishop of Armagh condemns as the work of "the depraver or interpolator of the Ignatian Epistle to the Smyrnæans, laying claim moreover to the authority of even Solomon himself."] Thus was the pontificale set above the regale; just that which Romanizing and Tractarian bishops and clergy have attempted and are attempting to do now.

But enough. How opportune then is the Rev. Mr. Cureton's learned Work, coming to the aid of all moderate and scripturally-minded upholders of episcopacy, just when most wanted.

It is now about four years since M. Merle d'Aubigné wrote, "Episcopacy is on its trial in England;" and every day since then has proved the acuteness and profoundness of his judgment and foresight. It is on its trial, and must be saved by its own merits, and early and scriptural authority, and not by the extravagance and finesse of those who are arrayed in its dignity.

An overbearing spirit in some, and a want of light and vigilance in others of our bishops, have done much to bring the order into discredit. Now then we thankfully accept Mr. Cureton's labours.

These labours have been bestowed upon MSS., a brief account of the discovery of which we promised in the last number.

The circumstances of their discovery are as follows:-Some manuscripts which came into the possession of the trustees of the British Museum, originally the property of the late Mr. Rich, the English Resident at Bagdad, led to the hope in Mr. Cureton's mind, that a copy of one at least of the Epistles of Ignatius in Syriac might be obtained. More however than he anticipated, was placed within his power through the

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instrumentality of Mr. Tattam, Archdeacon of Bedford, who visited Egypt in the years 1838 and 1839. But it was in the year 1843, and as the result of the Archdeacon's second visit to the monks of St. Mary Deipara, in the Nitrian Desert, which he kindly undertook in the hope of being able to purchase more of the valuable Syriac manuscripts, that the eyes of Mr. Cureton were gladdened by the arrival of four hundred additional volumes in the British Museum. No time was lost; and soon Mr. Cureton enjoyed, as he writes, "the rare satisfaction" of having his hopes realized by finding amongst them not only several additional passages quoted by various authors, but also three entire epistles, to St. Polycarp, to the Ephesians, and to the Romans,-in a volume of very considerable antiquity. A few years later brought the remainder of the manuscripts into the possession of the British Museum, through the liberality of the Lords Commissioners of Her Majesty's treasury, and amongst these the learned editor of the " Corpus Ignatianum,” had the happiness of discovering another copy of the three Epistles of Ignatius. Mr. Cureton's conviction of these three Epistles being "the genuine and authentic letters of the celebrated bishop and martyr of Antioch," will be best expressed in his own words, "If," he says, "the arguments which I have hitherto advanced, with respect to the Ignatian Epistles, have appeared as forcible to my readers upon the perusal, as they have done to myself in the enquiry, there can remain little doubt upon their minds as to the spuriousness of those passages and epistles which are not acknowledged by the Syriac version."

And here we may close, though a few explanatory remarks upon two or three somewhat obscure passages in the epistles themselves would not be out of place, but it is not our desire to encumber our pages with any critical remarks, or by any display of ecclesiastical research. Our object is practical, and we trust calculated to compose the disturbed minds of many an humble Christian in the present

LITURGICAL REVISION.

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sheep, who through the blood of the everlasting covenant, has purchased His Church; and unto whom, if we be not joined in that spiritual union, which is the work of the Holy Ghost, and the incorruptible seed of the Word of God;-for "Thus," as said Bishop Latimer, preaching before Edward VI. "cometh in our new birth;"-it will not signify in eternity to what Church we have been joined in outward communion, or under what form of Church government we have lived here.

LITURGICAL REVISION.

THE subjects of "Church Reform," and "Liturgical Revision," having of late been frequently discussed in the pages of the "Christian Guardian," the following Prayer has been composed for that work, with the view of directing the attention of all "Church Reformers" to the unspeakable importance of earnest supplication at the throne of grace for the accomplishment of their desires. Though it is designed rather as an outline, to be filled up by others, than as a prayer for general adoption, in its present form, yet it may possibly be found of some little service, even in its present form, either in the family circle, or at the social meetings of such christian friends as are agreed in a desire for Church Reform; the writer will therefore here present it, with references to suitable collects, which may be used together with it.

D.

'FORM OF PRAYER, &c. Trust in the Lord with all thine heart; and lean not unto thine own understanding. In all thy ways acknowledge Him, and He shall direct thy paths, Prov. iii. 5, 6.-See also Ps. xxxvii. 4, 5.

1. Collect, "Prevent us, O Lord,
in all our doings," &c.
2. Collect, for the Seventh Sunday
after Trinity.

3. Collect, for the Nineteenth Sun

day after Trinity. 4. The " Prayer for Unity," in the Service for the Sovereign's Ac

cession.

CLERICUS SUBURBANUS.

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Almighty and everliving God, by whose Spirit the whole body of the Church is governed and sanctified, we humbly beseech thee most mercifully to receive these our prayers, which we offer in thy Son's name unto thy Divine Majesty; beseeching thee to inspire continually the universal Church with the spirit of truth, unity, and concord; and to grant that all they that do confess thy holy Name may agree in the truth of thy holy Word, and live in unity and godly love. Send down, O heavenly Father, upon all "the Churches" of the saints, the healthful spirit of thy grace, that, as in the days of old, "walking in the fear of the Lord, and in the comfort of the Holy Ghost," they may be "mu!tiplied," (Acts ix. 31); and, being "established in the faith," may "increase in number daily," (xvi. 5). We beseech thee also, most merciful Father, favourably to regard the supplications of us thine unworthy servants, who humbly entreat thee, of thy great goodness, especially to look down in mercy upon the united Church of England and Ireland, established in this realm, now grievously disturbed by intestine strifes, and miserably distracted by the unhappy divisions and angry contentions at this time so fearfully prevalent among its ministers and members. Look down, O Lord, in mercy; pardon our offences; and heal our unhappy divisions. Pour out of thy Spirit upon the whole

Church, and upon every member of the same, from the highest unto the lowest. Send down upon all our bishops and our clergy the blessed influences of thy Holy Spirit in rich abundance, to preserve them from every error, to guide them into all truth, to make them all of one heart and of one mind in the belief of thy heavenly truth, and to enable them with one mouth faithfully to proclaim the same. Grant also to all thy people grace so to hear and receive what they shall deliver out of thy most holy Word, or agreeable to the same, that they may in all things obey thy blessed will, in holiness and righteousness before thee, through the power of the Holy Ghost. Give also, we most humbly beseech thee, to our gracious Queen, to the great council of the nation, to the archbishops and bishops, and to all our rulers, both in Church and State, such heavenly light and understanding, and sound scriptural wisdom, that they may be all enabled so to perform the various duties of their respective stations, as to promote the glory of thy great Name, and the temporal and eternal good of their fellow-men. Graciously dispose and incline their hearts, Ŏ

thou, who hast the hearts of all men in thy control, sincerely to desire a sound and scriptural reform of all practical abuses and defects in the working of our ecclesiastical system, and a wise and timely revision of our public services, to be in all respects conducted on sound and scriptural principles; and give them grace and strength to bring the same to good effect. Raise up among us faithful and able men, well qualified by thee to accomplish these important works, in such a manner as to promote thy glory, and the best interests of thy whole Church. Hear us, O Lord, according to thy gracious promise, given unto us by thy blessed Son, that when two or three are gathered together in His name, thou wilt grant their requests; and grant that those things which we have faithfully asked, according to thy will, may effectually be obtained, to the relief of our necessities, and to the setting forth of thy glory; through Jesus Christ our Lord, to whom with thee and the Holy Ghost, be all honour and glory, world without end. Amen.

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PRINCIPLES OF CHURCH REFORM ILLUSTRATED.
By REV. J. JORDAN, Vicar of Enstone, Oxon.
[Continued from p. 126.]

II. THE principles we have hitherto
considered, are more immediately ap-
plicable to what are termed the tem-
poralities of a Church; although of
course, indirectly, they have a very
powerful influence on its spiritual
efficacy. Those we have now to treat
of, however, are directly of a spiritual
nature, and their bearing, whether for
good or evil, is immediately upon the
due and effectual exercise of those
functions, which are the proper attri-
butes of the ministers of the Church
of Christ. In dealing with these, it
will be useful to divide our subject in
such a manner as to discuss, sepa-
rately and distinctly, the constitution
of our Church, and the reforms needed
therein; and afterwards, the changes
and improvements that are requisite

in the liturgical services we employ ; and these two topics may be briefly named constitutional and liturgical reforms.

1. Of CONSTITUTIONAL REFORMS:i. The first principle that we have now to speak of, is one that immediately and appropriately follows the observations with which we concluded our last paper, arising, in fact, out of them, and serving, therefore, both to illustrate and to enforce them. This principle is the necessity for the emancipation of the Church from the secularizing influence of the State. Our statesmen and lawyers have imbibed the notion, and maintain it as a truism, that the power of appointment to bishoprics, deaneries, and even some other benefices, is an inherent prero

PRINCIPLES OF CHURCH REFORM ILLUSTRATED.

gative of the Crown. Thus, only as lately as on the 30th of March last, Lord John Russell, the first minister of the Crown, in a speech on the recent insolently aggressive policy of the Pope of Rome, is reported to have said, "I think nothing is more fairly proved than this, that the circumscription of dioceses must be consented to by the sovereign authority; and that the appointment of bishops is not spiritual but temporal. The consecration of bishops, Dr. Twiss fairly considers a spiritual matter; but that bishops can be appointed without the consent of the sovereign authority, and an express agreement that the Pope, or some other authority, shall have the power to appoint them, is what I think all good authorities on this subject would deny, and they would deny it in common with the public law of Europe, and in common with the practice of every country in Europe. "So again, while commenting upon, and explaining the case of Lalor, in Ireland, which Sir James Graham had just cited, Lord J. Russell says, "He had exercised, by appointments to benefices, in matrimonial causes, dispensations, and other matters, jurisdiction appertaining to the episcopal office, to the detriment of the authority, dignity, and regality of the Crown.

He was

proceeded against, in point of fact, for having usurped episcopal jurisdiction; not for doing anything, by direct means, against the authority, or temporal power, or regality of the Crown, but for exercising episcopal jurisdiction, and the right appertaining to and vested in the Crown." Now it may be all very well for lawyers, whose antiquity is bounded by the reign of our Richard I., and who account all the ages preceding that as periods whereunto the memory of man extendeth not, to ignore the preceding history of the Church, and to disregard its state in the primitive times; but from the beginning it was not so; and if we trace back the original of these things, so as to see what they were in the earliest ages, and what Scripture itself shews to have been the first custom in the Church, we shall find that in those primitive times, bishops were

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appointed, not by regal power, but by popular and clerical election. Thus Bingham, writing of the election of bishops, says, "If any one made use of the secular powers to gain a promotion in the Church, by a rule of the Apostolical canons, he was to be deposed; and all that communicated with him were to be suspended from christian communion," vol. vi. p. 396. And again, after fully treating of, and proving the mutual and equal right of people and clergy, not merely to bear testimony, but to give their votes, at and for the election of a bishop, up to the time of the Council of Chalcedon, A.D. 451; that is, 126 years after the Council of Nicæum, A.D. 325; when some assert that there was a change, Bingham thus concludes:-"I shall say no more upon this head, but only allege a canon of the fourth Council of Carthage, which comprises the whole practice of the Church, in relation to this matter; decreeing, that the ordination of a bishop should always be by the consent of four parties-the clergy, the laity, the provincial bishops, and the Metropolitan, whose presence or authority was principally necessary in all such cases. . . . This seems to have been the most common and ordinary practice of the Church," vol. i. 424-451, and vi. 391-393. Thus

there cannot be the slightest question or doubt as to the fact, that in all the earliest ages of the Church, not only was the exercise of secular power to aid promotion eschewed, but the choice of the bishop, his election, and appointment, were vested in the Church itself, that is, in the people and clergy united; and it was only after long contentions and strife between the people and their spiritual rulers, that the former lost their rights to the latter, from whom eventually they were wrested by the temporal powers.

It is easy to shew how the temporal jurisdiction, which is now regarded as an indefeasible right, originated : -The last quotation from Bingham informs us, that one of the parties, whose concurrence and consent were necessary in the appointment of bishops, was the Metropolitan. This

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