BISHOP TAYLOR.

"It is much insisted upon that it be enquired whether when we say we believe Christ's Body to be really in the Sacrament we mean that Body, that Flesh, that was born of the Virgin Mary, that was crucified, dead and buried; I answer, I know none else that he had or hath: there is but One Body of Christ, natural and glorified * * * * And therefore, when any of the Protestant divines or any of the Fathers deny that Body which was born of the Virgin Mary, that was crucified, to be eaten in the Sacrament, as Bertram, as S. Hierom, as Clemens Alex. expressly affirm, the meaning is easy; they intend that it is not eaten in a natural sense."

BISHOP COSIN.

"All that remains is, that we should with faith and humility admire this high and sacred mystery, which our tongue cannot sufficiently explain, nor our heart conceive."

BISHOP SPARROW.

"When the Priest hath said at the delivery of the Sacrament, The Body of our Lord Jesus Christ which was given for thee, preserve thy body and soul into everlasting life, the communicant is to answer Amen. By this Amen, professing his faith of the presence of Christ's Body and Blood in that Sacrament."

BISHOP BEVERIDGE.

"When we hear the words of Consecration repeated as they came from our Lord's own mouth, 'This is my Body which is given for you,' and "This is my blood which was shed for you and for many for the remission of sins; ' we are then stedfastly to believe that although the substance of the bread and wine still remain, yet now it is not common bread and wine, as to its use; but the Body and Blood of Christ in that Sacramental sense wherein he spake the words. * * * When it comes to our turn to receive it, then we are to lay aside all thoughts of bread and wine, and the Minister, and everything else that is or can be seen stedfastly believing it to be, as our

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Saviour said, 'His Body and Blood,' which our Church teacheth us are verily and indeed taken and receiyed by the faithful in the Lord's Supper."

"I shall only add the express words of institution, wherein Christ said of the bread This is My Body,' Matt. xxvi. 26, and of the wine 'This is My Blood of the New Testament shed for many for the remission of sins,' v. 28. And if the Bread be His Body and the Wine His Blood, it must needs follow, that whosoever eats the one and drinks the other as he ought to do, is made partaker of the Body and Blood of Christ. The Fathers are very frequent in asserting this truth. I shall instance but a few. St. Cyril of Jerusalem **** Therefore saith St. Hilary,' Of the truth of the Flesh and

Blood there is no place left to doubt, for now by the profession of the Lord Himself, it is truly Flesh and truly Blood' * * * * And St. Chrysostom, 'Wherefore it is necessary we should learn the Miracle of the Mysteries, &c.' All which could not be unless we were partakers of the Body and Blood of Christ in the Sacrament."

BISHOP WILSON.

"We offer unto Thee, our King and our God, this bread and this cup. We give Thee thanks for these and for all Thy mercies, beseeching Thee to send down Thy Holy Spirit upon this Sacrifice, that He may make this bread the Body of thy Christ, and this cup the Blood of Thy Christ, and that all we who are partakers thereof, may thereby obtain remission of our sins, and all other benefits of His Passion."

ARCHBISHOP LAUD.

"As for the Church of England, nothing is more plain than that it believes and teaches the true and real presence of Christ in the Eucharist."

ARCHBISHOP SHARP.

"We do indeed own that Christ is really present in the Sacrament to all worthy receivers, and in our communion service we pray to God to grant that we may eat the Flesh of His dear Son and drink his Blood &c. All this we own, and it is very necessary we should."

These (and they are a few only amongst very many) are the testimonies of Divines, Bishops and Archbishops of the English Church. If then we err in asserting the doctrine of the "Real Presence," we err not only along with the ancient Fathers, but with Hooker, Taylor, Wheatly, Beveridge and a host of others. The above passages (not having the originals at hand) have been chiefly cited from a Tract lately published, entitled, "The Doctrine of the Catholic Church in England on the Holy Eucharist, illustrated by Extracts from her great Divines. Oxford, 1841."

PSALM XXV. 14.

THE SECRET OF THE LORD IS WITH THEM THAT FEAR HIM; AND HE WILL SHEW THEM HIS COVENANT.

DEARLY BELOVED BRETHREN-it was our privilege this morning to administer unto you, by God's assistance, that most Holy Sacrament of the Body and Blood of Christ (1), which in his parting hour he commanded to be of all men received in remembrance of Him (2), and the due reception of the which by Faith is the means whereby the members of his mystical Church are distinguished from those which be Christians in name only, but not in deed also (3) : for to such as do rightly, worthily, and by Faith receive it, the Body and Blood of Christ is, as our Catechism hath it, "verily and indeed taken" (4) in that Holy Sacrament: and albeit it be a mystery which no man may expound, how, or after what manner, Christ can thus be present under the form of Bread and Wine, whenas at the

(1) "The most comfortable Sacrament of the Body and Blood of Christ." -Exhortation.

(2) "Take, eat: this is my Body." "Drink ye all of it: for this is my Blood of the new testament, which is shed for many for the remission of sins." -St. Matth. xxvi. 26, 27, 28.

(3) Except ye eat the flesh of the Son of Man, and drink his blood, ye have no life in you."-St. John vi. 53.

(4) Q.-What is the inward part, or thing signified? Ans.-The Body and Blood of Christ, which are VERILY and INDEED taken and received by the faithful in the Lord's Supper.-Church Catechism. Again : "To such as rightly, worthily, and with faith receive the same, the Bread which we break, is a partaking of the Body of Christ, and likewise the Cup of Blessing is a partaking of the Blood of Christ."-Article xxviii. 1 Cor. x. 16.

same time he sitteth at the right hand of his Father in Heaven (5): yet to those who have Faith (6) to receive it, the doctrine is plainly enough revealed in the words of Holy Scripture. On this subject however we would in passing merely quote the words of our own venerable Archbishop Cranmer, who discoursing on the subject of the Lord's Supper spake as followeth :"Christ saith of the Bread, "This is my Body," and of the Cup he saith, "This is my Blood." Wherefore, we ought to believe that in the Sacrament we receive truly the Body and Blood of Christ. For God is Almighty, as ye heard in the Creed. He is able, therefore, to do all things what He will. And, as St. Paul writeth, He calleth those things which be not as if they were. Wherefore, when Christ taketh bread and saith, "Take eat, this is my Body," we ought not to doubt but we eat his very Body. And when He taketh the cup and saith, "Take, drink, this is my Blood," we ought to think assuredly that we drink his very Blood, and this we must believe, if we will be counted Christian men.'

Such were the words of our pious and admirable Archbishop, and such, dear brethren, was the doctrine of the Primitive Catholic Church-a doctrine which it is our business not curiously to investigate, but meekly to receive (7). And hereby ye may well discern the reason of that antient and godly discipline by the which she was wont to repel from the Holy Communion those persons who by the inconsistency of their life and conver

(5) This difficulty was felt by the carnally minded Jews. "The Jews' therefore, strove among themselves, saying, How can this man give us his flesh to eat? Then Jesus said unto them, Verily, verily, I say unto you, except ye eat the flesh of the Son of Man and drink his blood, ye have no life in you.

..Many, therefore, of his disciples, when they had heard this, said, This is an hard saying; who can hear it? When Jesus knew in himself that his disciples murmured at it, he said unto them, Doth this offend you? What and if ye shall see the Son of Man ascend up where he was before?" They knew not the mystical import of our Lord's words; "It is the spirit that quickeneth; the flesh profiteth nothing: the words that I speak unto you, they are spirit, and they are life."-St. John vi. 52-63.

(6) "The Body of Christ is given, taken, and eaten in the supper, only after an heavenly and spiritual manner. And the means whereby the Body of Christ is received and eaten in the supper is Faith."-Article xxviii.

(7)" He (Bishop Ridley) always believed and maintained a Real presence by grace to faith, and not a mere figure only: and although there were some English fanatics, such as John Webb, George Roper, and Gregory Paske, who believed that the Sacrament was only a bare sign of Christ's body, and nothing

sation did shew themselves not meet to be partakers of those Holy mysteries, for it is easy to see what horrid profanation it were in such persons to presume to meddle with the very Body and Blood of Christ (8): and this she did out of a pious and a holy desire for the benefit of those whom she did thus excommunicate, being willing, as St. Paul saith, "to deliver such unto Satan for the destruction of the flesh, that the spirit might be saved in the day of the Lord Jesus (9)." Now this discipline and ordinance hath never at any time been rescinded in the Church, and as ye may read very largely expressed in the Rubric preceding our Sacramental service, is even at the present moment in fullest force amongst ourselves (10); although owing to that miserable compliance with the lax spirit of the times which doth so wither up

more than a remembrance of it; yet this was not the opinion of our martyrs." -Wordsworth's Biography. From Foxe and Ridley, iii. 147.

"As to the manner of the presence of the body of our Lord in the blessed Sacrament, we that are Protestant and Reformed according to the ancient Catholic Church, do not search into the manner of it with perplexing inquiries; but, after the example of the primitive and purest Church of Christ, we leave it to the power and wisdom of our Lord, yielding a full and unfeigned assent to his words."-Bishop Cosin's History of Transubstantiation. In "Tracts for the Times."

Bless, O Lord, we beseech thee, these thy Gifts, and sanctify them unto this holy use, that by them we may be made partakers of the Body and Blood of thine only begotten Son Jesus Christ, and fed unto everlasting life of Soul and Body."-Communion Service of our Church at the Coronation of the Sovereign.

(8) "Whosoever shall eat this bread and drink this cup of the Lord, unworthily, shall be guilty of the Body and Blood of the Lord."-1 Cor. xi. 27. (9) 1 Cor. v. 5,

(10) And if any of those be an open and notorious evil liver, or have done any wrong to his neighbours by word or deed, so that the congregation be thereby offended; the Curate having knowledge thereof, shall call him and advertise him, that in any wise he presume not to come to the Lord's Table until he hath openly declared himself to have truly repented and amended his former naughty life, that the congregation may thereby be satisfied, which before were offended; and that he hath recompensed the parties, to whom he hath done wrong, or at least declared himself to be in full purpose so to do as soon as he conveniently may.

The same order shall the Curate use with those betwixt whom he perceiveth malice and hatred to reign; not suffering them to be partakers of the Lord's Table, until he know them to be reconciled. And if one of the parties so at variance, be content to forgive from the bottom of his heart all that the other hath transgressed against him, and to make amends for that he himself hath offended; and the other party will not be persuaded to a godly unity, but remain still in his frowardness and malice; the Minister in that case ought to admit the penitent person to the Holy Communion, and not him that is obsti nate. Provided that every Minister so repelling any, as is specified in this, or the next precedent paragraph of this Rubrick, shall be obliged to give an