venient the people commonly receive the Sacrament of Christ's Body in their mouths, at the priest's hand."

Upon a review of the whole of these modifications of the "Order of the Communion," the following appears to have been the intention of the compilers of the first Liturgy of Edward VI., and, so far as its rules were observed, the custom during the period during which the Book was in force :

(1.) The Holy Eucharist was celebrated every Sunday and Holy-day throughout the year, pro. vision being made that there should always be some of the parishioners to communicate with the priest. The Office was commenced on Litany days, Wednesdays and Fridays, but no consecration took place except there were some to communicate with the priest; and on week days the use of it was altogether optional, though in this case also dependent on the fact of there being other communicants, besides the priest. No number of communicants requisite for Celebration was specified, and it may be inferred that one communicant besides the celebrant himself would have satisfied the letter of the rubric.

(2.) The non-communicant part of the congregation is ignored throughout the Office from the point where, after the Offertory, the communicants are collected in the quire, or in some convenient place near the quire. The sermon or homily, supposed to contain an exhortation to communicate, or the exhortation specially provided, in case the sermon or homily should contain no reference to the Holy Communion,— is addressed to the whole congregation; so is the exhortation "to be used in case the people are negligent to come;" and all are present, and supposed to present their offerings, at the Offertory. No further notice is taken of them beyond this, except that they are made to retire from the place where the communicants are assembled. There is no express command for them to "withdraw themselves" altogether, as in the "Order of the Communion," nor is there any recognition of them as being present, unless the rubric which provides for the punishment of those who should " occupy themselves ungodly" in the parish church be construed, as undoubtedly it may be, to apply to non-communicants who, remaining after the communicants have been collected together, should be guilty of any misconduct. There is no trace, however, of any intention that they should remain. No part of

the Celebration makes the slightest reference,

or can in any way be held applicable, to noncommunicant worshippers; the whole worship being essentially a Communion. Those who remained outside the quire, or apart from the place in which the communicants were collected, did so simply by sufferance, without being commanded or encouraged, or even directly authorised to do so. No provision was made for their edification, for the obvious reason that those who sought for edification would, agreeably to the nature of the Service, take their place among the communicants. Considering the state of public feeling (evidenced by the rebellion in Devonshire, which broke out on the very day on which the New Prayer Book came into force), of which doubtless the compilers of the Book were well aware, it was the course of wisdom and moderation neither to press, as the "Order of the Communion" had done, every person present to communicate,-unless he were a person requiring to be specially dealt with by the priest and "brought to grace,”-nor yet to insist on those who had no mind to communicate quitting the Church. The fact of their being ignored altogether in the remainder of the Service, was sufficiently significant, while it afforded them no just ground for complaint; and it might be reasonably hoped that in course of time the practice of communicating would become more general.

V.-Further changes made in the Second Prayer Book of Edward VI., 1552.

This state of things, however, did not continue long. The new Service Book had scarcely been brought into use before its revision was proposed. It was taken in hand, as before, by a Commission of Bishops and Divines under the presidency of Archbishop Cranmer, in the year 1550, though it did not receive the sanction of Convocation and Parliament till the year 1552, nor was brought into use till All Saints' Day of that year.

There has been a very general opinion that the foreign Reformers, especially Bucer and Peter Martyr, had a hand in this revision, and some have even supposed that it was influenced by Calvin. This, however, does not appear to have been the case. Although the opinions of both Bucer and Martyr were invited, their suggestions seem to have found little favour with the Divines occupied in the revision; as has been conclusively shown by the Rev. Glocester Ridley in his life of Bishop 9 See Note B. Appendix.

Ridley, 10 by Archbishop Laurence in the notes to his Bampton Lectures, and by Dr. Cardwell in the Preface to his Edition of the two Books of Edward VI. The alterations were the subject of much debate in Convocation as early as the year 1550,3 and they may be taken to express the mind of those in authority as modified by the progress which the doctrines of the Reformation had made in the public mind in England no less than elsewhere.

The principal alterations, and those more particularly which affect the question in hand, are the following:-The term "the Mass" is omitted in the title, which runs thus: "The Order for the Administration of the Lord's Supper or Holy Communion." The word "altar" is expunged, and the word "table” substituted. The directions respecting the "table" are, that it shall have "at the Communion time a fair white linen cloth upon it,” and "stand in the body of the church, or in the chancel, where Morning Prayer and Evening Prayer be appointed to be said." The priest is directed to stand "at the north side of the table," instead, as in the former Book, "afore the middle of the altar." In the place of the Introit and the Angelical Hymn, after the collect for Purity, the Ten Commandments are introduced, the hymn being removed to the post-Communion. The sermon or homily is followed immediately by the Offertory; the exhortations being placed after the prayer for "the whole State of Christ's Church," to the title of which the words "militant here in earth" are added, and which is separated from the Consecration Prayer, and concludes with the petition for "all them which in this transitory life be in trouble, sorrow, need, sickness, or any other adversity;" the thanksgiving for the Saints and prayer for the departed being altogether omitted.

The Prayer for the Church Militant is followed by an exhortation to be used "at certain times when the curate shall see the people negligent to come to the Holy Communion," and which, taken in conjunction with the direction to place the "table" in the accustomed place of Morning Prayer, shows that the whole Service proceeds on the assumption that the Holy Eucharist will be celebrated in

10 Bk. V. sec 6, p. 333.

1 Bampton Lecture for 1804, Sermon II., note 30.

2 Editor's Preface, p. xxv., see especially note i.

2 Heylyn Ecclesia Restaurata. London, 1670. p. 107.

due course, as part of the regular Service; the Communion of the faithful being an essential part of it, and intended for the whole congregation present. This exhortation is as follows:"We be come together at this time, dearly beloved brethren, to feed at the Lord's Supper, unto the which, in God's behalf, I bid you all that be here present, and beseech you, for the Lord Jesus Christ's sake, that ye will not refuse to come thereto, being so lovingly called and bidden of God Himself." The exhortation then proceeds in the same terms as the present exhortation to be used if the people be negligent, down to the words, "hangeth over your heads for the same," except that instead of the words “I, for my part, shall be ready," the priest says, "I, for my part, am here present."

At this point the exhortation changes from the tone of expostulation to that of severe rebuke: "And whereas ye offend God so sore in refusing this holy banquet, I admonish, exhort, and beseech you that unto this unkindness ye will not add any more. Which thing ye shall do, if ye

stand by as gazers and lookers on them that do communicate, and be no partakers of the same yourselves. For what thing can this be accounted else, than a further contempt and unkindness unto God? Truly, it is a great unthankfulness to say nay, when ye be called; but the fault is much greater when men stand by and will neither eat nor drink this Holy Communion with others. I pray you what can this be else, but even to have the mysteries of Christ in derision? It is said unto all : Take ye and eat, Take and drink ye all of this, do this in remembrance of Me. With what face, then, or with what countenance, shall ye hear these words? What will this be else but a neglecting, a despising, and mocking of the Testament of Christ? Wherefore, rather than you should so do, depart you hence, and give place to them that be godly disposed. But when you depart, I beseech you, ponder with yourselves from whom you depart. Ye depart from the Lord's table, ye depart from your brethren, and from the banquet of most heavenly food. These things if ye earnestly consider, ye shall by God's grace return to a better mind, for the obtaining whereof we shall make our humble petitions, while we shall receive the Holy Communion."

Following this sharp exhortation, which isto be said only when the people are negligent to come 4 Now the second Exhortation in our Prayer Book.

our

to the Holy Communion, there is another to be said "sometime also, at the discretion of the curate." This is substantially the same as that now used for giving warning for the celebration of the Holy Communion, for which there was no occasion when the celebration took place, as part of the regular morning Service, every Sunday and Holy-day. It commences with the words: "Dearly beloved, forasmuch as duty is to render to Almighty God, our heavenly Father, most hearty thanks for that He has given His Son our Saviour Jesus Christ, not only to die for us, but also to be our spiritual food and sustenance, as it is declared unto us, as well by God's Word as by the Holy Sacraments of His Blessed Body and Blood, the which being so comfortable a thing," &c., continuing almost verbatim like the present exhortation for "giving warning," except that the words "in the mean season" are omitted, and the clause warning off blasphemers and other grievous sinners by the example of Judas, which stands in that exhortation now, is wanting, being contained in the next exhortation, always appointed to be used in the Second Book, without reference, as in the former Book, to the question whether in the sermon or a homily the people have or have not been "exhorted to the worthy receiving of the Holy Sacrament."

This exhortation, taken from the "Order of the Communion," and substantially the same as the 3rd now in use, agrees with the First Book (1549) in that the clause warning blasphemers and other grievous sinners, "not to come to this holy Table" (which now is transferred to the exhortation for "giving warning",") is embodied in it between the words sundry kinds of death," and the words "Judge therefore yourselves, brethren." In the "Order of the Communion" this clause formed a separate exhortation, after which the priest is to "pause a while to see if any man will withdraw himself."

After this exhortation comes the short exhortation, which in both the "Order of the Communion" and in the Book of 1549, as well as in the present Book (1552) precedes the Confession and Absolution. After the words "make your humble confession to Almighty God," instead of "and to His holy Church here gathered together in his Name," the Book of 1552 has "before this congregation here gathered together in His holy Name," This is now the first of the three Exhortations. Viz., the 1st of our Prayer Book.

which, though a verbal alteration, confirms the correctness of the construction before put upon those words, and the inadmissibility of the construction which would refer them to a congregation of non-communicants supposed to be present, seeing in how positive and severe terms all non-communicants have been bidden to "depart." The confession is still ordered to be made in the name of all those that are minded to receive the Holy Communion, either by one of them, or else by one of the ministers, or by the priest himself;" again confirming the inference before drawn, that the words "in the name of," &c., originated in the fact that one person alone read the Confession on behalf of all the communicants; and negativing the idea that by these words a distinction was intended between communicants and non-communicants supposed to be likewise present.

The Absolution is followed by the "Comfortable Words," the "Sursum Corda," and Trisagion," including the "proper prefaces," which in this Book are ordered to be used not on the feasts themselves only, as in the Book of 1549, but seven days after Christmas Day, Easter Day, and Ascension Day," and six days after Whitsunday; that for the "Feast of Trinity," alone being limited to the day itself. After the "Trisagion" comes the Prayer of Access, and after that the Consecration Prayer,-appended in the Book of 1549 to the Prayer for the whole state of Christ's Church,-in nearly the same terms as in that book; except that after the words "His own oblation" is added "of Himself," and that the invocation of the Holy Spirit is omitted; the clause "with thy Holy Spirit and Word vouchsafe to bl+ess and sanc+tify these Thy gifts and creatures of bread and wine, that they may be unto us the Body and Blood of Thy most dearly beloved Son Jesus Christ," being exchanged for " grant that we receiving these Thy creatures of bread and wine, according to Thy Son our Saviour Jesus Christ's holy institution, in remembrance of his death and passion, may be partakers of his most blessed Body and Blood."

calls it "the bread," and "the cup ;" and a corresponding change is made in the words of administration, from "The Body of our Lord Jesus Christ which was given for thee,-The Blood of our Lord Jesus Christ which was shed for thee, preserve thy body and soul unto everlasting life," to the less pregnant words : "Take and eat this, in remembrance that Christ died for thee, and feed on him in thy heart by faith with thanksgiving: Drink this in remembrance that Christ's Blood was shed for thee, and be thankful."

For the matters to be "sung by the clerks" during and after the Communion, the Book of 1552 substitutes, after all have communicated, the Lord's Prayer, to be repeated after the priest by the people. Instead of the one postCommunion Collect of the Book of 1549, there are two in the Book of 1552, to be used alternatively, the first being the prayer of Oblation of the former Book, transposed and modified so as to suit the purpose of a thanksgiving prayer, and the other the same as that in the Book of 1549, with some slight alterations.

Some important rubrics were appended to the Office in this Book of 1552. Whereas in that of 1549 the non-celebration of the Holy Eucharist for want of communicants is not contemplated except on Wednesdays and Fridays, and other week days, and in chapels annexed and other places not being parish churches, the Book of 1552 contemplates the possibility of there being "no Communion upon the Holy-days," but not upon the Sundays, and gives similar directions as to the mode of concluding the Service after the Offertory. A second rubric provides that "there shall be no celebration of the Lord's Supper, except there be a good number to communicate with the priest, according to his discretion;" a case the occurrence of which on a Sunday it is evident from the preceding rubric that the compilers did not contemplate. The

NOTE-p. 316.-I mean that he has a pre-eminent claim to be regarded as the expositor of their views. My words, however, have been criticized:-" Mr. Scudamore is quite in error in speaking of Jewel as one who may be said to have been almost one of them."-The Anglican Authority, p. 10. If I had said that he was one of them, it would have been an error indeed; but will any unbiased reader who knows that only ten years later Jewel's Apology was "sent forth with the consent of the Bishops" and with the approbation of the Queen, as the authorised exponent of their work, blame me for the obiter dictum, that he might be said to have been almost one of them"?--See Collier's Eccl. Hist. Part II. B. vi. p. 479. "Jewel's Apology," says Mr. Lathbury," was usually

64

"discretion" of the priest in regard to the number of communicants required is limited by a third rubric, which prescribes that "if there be not above twenty persons in the parish, of discretion to receive the Communion yet there shall be no Communion except four, or three at the least, communicate with the priest." In cathedral and collegiate churches all priests and deacons are enjoined to communicate with the celebrant "every Sunday at the least."

Looking at the effect of the several alterations made in the Second Book of Edward VI., as affecting the points involved in the present inquiry, the following inferences appear to be not only legitimate, but indisputable :

(1.) The Holy Eucharist was celebrated as a rule every Sunday. On Holy-days as well as common week-days it was left optional, depending on the fact of there being four, or at least three, to communicate with the priest. The possibility of the absence of even that minimum number on Sunday was not contemplated.

If any,

(2.) Non-communicants were in express terms bidden to depart from the church on the ground that their presence, while refusing to communicate, was an act of contempt towards the Sacrament, and of offence towards God. nevertheless, remained in the Church during the Celebration, they did so, not only without the sanction of the Church, but contrary to her intention as declared in the Office, and in open disobedience to her express command.

Thus matters continued during the remainder of the reign of Edward VI. His death changed for a time the whole aspect of affairs. The leading Reformers were now called upon to seal their endeavours to restore the primitive order of the Church, -the Communion of all the faithful in the celebration of the Holy Eucharist,with the blood of martyrdom.

regarded as the acknowledged confession of the Church of England."-History of Convocation, p. 168, note, 2nd Ed. He quotes Bancroft and Cooper to that effect. Parker, it appears, "intended to comprise the Articles, the Catechism, (Nowell's) and the Apology in one volume, to be put forth as the authorised documents of the English Church."-Ibid. This was not done; but Bancroft, in 1610, urged his suffragans to use all their influence with the lower clergy "that they might induce their parishioners to be willing, every parish to buy one [copy] of the works of Bishop Jewel;" they having lately been "printed together in one volume to the end that every parish in England should have one of them."-Cardwell's Docum. Arnals, vol. II., pp. 160, 161.

AND

And art thou ready, Saviour dear!
And is Thy Table spread for me,

But the poor soul that should draw near
Still all unreadiness for Thee?

Hast Thou come down with tender care
Thy weary people's hearts to bless,
And Host, and Feast-dost Thou prepare
A Table in the wilderness ?

SECT. 4.-By the Rev. Dr. Biber. A REVIEW OF THE DOCTRINE AND INTENTION OF THE REFORMED CHURCH OF ENGLAND, AS SHOWN BY HER OFFICES, FROM THE ACCESSION OF ELIZABETH IN 1558, TO THE FINAL REVISION OF THE LITURGY IN 1662.

I. PRAYER BOOKS OF ELIZABETH, 1559, and JAMES I., 1604. II.-THE PRAYER BOOK AS REVised after THE RESTORATION, 1662. III.-THE REVISED PRAYER BOOK IN RELATION TO THE PRESENT INQUIRY. IV.— RETROSPECT AND PRACTICAL CONCLUSION.

AFTER an interval of five years, during which the provisions for the public worship of the Church made in the reign of Edward VI. were put aside, and the former system of the Latin Mass was resumed, the accession of Elizabeth opened the way for the restoration of the English Service. A preliminary proclamation. against unauthorized changes, allowing some portions of the service to be read in English, but unaccompanied by comments of any kind,

Luke xiv., 17, 18.

And will faint souls refuse to eat
The Heavenly food while yet they may,-
Their sin excuse with self-deceit,
And cold and heartless turn away?
Teach me, my God! the "better part,"
When I some vain excuse would plead ·
What stills not my own anxious heart,
How could it e'er with Thee succeed?

-DR. MONSELL'S Spiritual Songs.

had for its object to give time for the consideration of the question which of the two Prayer Books of King Edward's time should be adopted as the basis of the new order of worship, and what alterations it might be desirable to make in it. The result was the adoption of the Second Book of Edward VI., and its publication early in the year following the Queen's accession. This book,1 commonly called "The First Book of Queen Elizabeth," was, like that of 1552, preceded by an Act of Uniformity, enjoining its use from St. John the Baptist's Day, 1559. A Latin translation of it, entitled "Liber Precum Publicarum, seu Ministerii

1 See rickering's reprint of" The Book of Common Prayer, commonly called The First Book of Queen Elizabeth. Printed by Grafton, 1559." The designation "The First Book of Queen Elizabeth is, however, scarcely appropriate; for the book, as a whole, did not undergo any further revision during her reign; few changes only, for the most part unimportant, and none affecting the present question, being made in subsequen editions of the book.