Primitive Christian Worship Part 18

[Footnote 98: This hymn is variously read. In the edition of Mr.

Husenbeth (H. 497.) it is: "O Peter, blessed shepherd, of thy mercy receive the prayers of us who supplicate, and loose by thy word the bands of our sins, thou to whom is given the power of opening heaven to the earth, and of shutting it when open."--"Beate pastor, Petre, clemens accipe voces precantum, criminumque vincula verbo resolve, cui potestas tradita aperire terris coelum, apertum claudere." H. 497.]

Let it not be answered that many a Christian minister is now called a good shepherd. Let it not be said that the very words of our ordination imply the conveyance of the power of loosing and binding, of opening and shutting the gates of heaven. When prayer is contemplated, we can think only of One, HIM, who has appropriated the t.i.tle of Good Shepherd to {262} himself. And we must see that Peter cannot, by any lat.i.tude of interpretation, be reckoned now among those to whom the awful duty is a.s.signed of binding and loosing upon earth.

The same unsatisfactory a.s.sociations must be excited in the mind of every one who takes a similar view of Christian wors.h.i.+p with myself, by the following supplication to various saints on St. John's day:

"Let the heaven exult with praises[99], Let the earth resound with joy; {263} The sacred solemnities sing The glory of the Apostles.

O ye Just Judges of the age, And true lights of the world, We pray you with the vows of our hearts, Hear the prayers of your suppliants.

Ye who shut the heaven by a word, And loose its bars, Loose us by command, we beseech you, From all our sins.

Ye to whose word is subject The health and weakness of all, Cure us who are diseased in morals, Restore us to virtues.

So that when Christ shall come, The Judge at the end of the world, He may make us partakers Of eternal joy.

To G.o.d the Father be Glory, And to his only Son, With the Spirit the Comforter, Now and for ever. Amen[100]."

[Footnote 99: Having inserted in the text a translation of this hymn from a copy with which I had been long familiar, I think it right to insert here the two forms side by side. They supply an example of the changes to which we have already alluded.

_Lille_, 1823. _Norwich_, 1830.

OLD VERSION. POPE URBAN'S VERSION.

Exultet coelum laudibus, Exultet orbis gaudiis, Resultet terra gaudiis, Coelum resultet laudibus, Apostolorum gloriam Apostolorum gloriam Sacra canunt solemnia. Tellus et astra concinunt.

Vos saecli justi judices Vos saeculorum judices Et vera mundi lamina, Et vera mundi lumina, Votis precamur cordium Votis precamur cordium Audite preces supplic.u.m. Audite voces supplic.u.m.

Qui coelum verbo clauditis Qui templa coeli clauditis Serasque ejus solvitis, Serasque verbo solvitis, Nos a peccatis omnibus Nos a reatu noxios Solvite jussu, quaesumus. Solvi jubete quaesumus.

Quorum praecepto subditur Praecepta quorum protinus Salus et languor omnium, Languor salusque sentiunt, Sanate aegros moribus, Sanate mentes languidas, Nos reddentes virtutibus. Augete nos virtutibus.

Ut c.u.m judex advenerit Ut c.u.m redibit arbiter Christus in fine saeculi, In fine Christus saeculi, Nos sempiterni gaudii Nos sempiterni gaudii Faciat esse compotes. Concedat esse compotes.

Deo Patri sit gloria, Jesu, tibi sit gloria Ejusque soli Filio, Qui natus es de virgine, c.u.m Spiritu paracleto, c.u.m Patre et Almo Spiritu, Et nunc et in perpetuum. In sempiterna saecula.

Amen. Amen.

(H. 243.) ]

[Footnote 100: Or as in the present Roman Breviary:--

Let the world exult with joy, Let the heaven resound with praise; The earth and stars sing together The glory of the Apostles.

Ye judges of the ages And true lights of the world, With the prayers of our hearts we implore, Hear the voices of your suppliants.

Ye who shut the temples of heaven, And loose its bars by a word, Command ye us, who are guilty, To be released from our sins; we pray.

Ye whose commands forthwith Sickness and health feel, Heal our languid minds, Increase us in virtues, That when Christ, the Judge, shall return, In the end of the world, He may grant us to be partakers Of eternal joy.

Jesus, to thee be glory, Who wast born of a virgin, With the Father and the Benign Spirit, Through eternal ages. Amen. {264} ]

Many a pious and humble Catholic of the Roman Communion, I have no doubt, would regard these prayers as little more than an application to Peter and the rest of the Apostles for absolution, and would interpret its several clauses as an acknowledgment only of that power, which Christ himself delegated to them of binding and loosing sins on earth.

But the gulf fixed between these prayers, and the lawful use of the power given to Christ's ordained ministers on earth, is great indeed. To satisfy the mind of this, it is not necessary to enter upon even the confines of the wide field of controversy, as to what was really conveyed by Christ to his Apostles. I would ask only two questions.

Could any of us address these same words to one of Christ's ministers on earth? And could we address our blessed Saviour himself in stronger or more appropriate language, as the Lord of our destinies--the G.o.d who heareth prayer--the Physician of our souls?

Suppose for example we were celebrating the anniversary of Christ's Nativity, of his Resurrection, or his Ascension, what word in this hymn, expressive of {265} power, and honour, and justice, and mercy, would not be appropriate? What word would not apply to Him, in most perfect accordance with Scripture language? And can we without offence, without doing wrong to his great Name, address the same to our fellow-servants, even though we may believe them to be with Him in glory?

Let the heaven exult with praises-- Let the earth resound with joy; The sacred solemnities sing The glory of the Lord.

O Thou just Judge of the age, And true light of the world, We pray Thee with the supplications of our hearts Hear the prayers of Thy suppliants, Thou who shuttest the heavens by a word, And loosest its bars.

Loose us by command, we beseech Thee, From all our sins.

Thou to whose word is subject The health and weakness of all, Cure us who are diseased in morals, Restoring us to virtue.

So that when Thou shalt come, The Judge at the end of the world, Thou mayest make us partakers Of eternal joy.

Glory to Thee, O Lord, Who wast born of a virgin, With the Father and the Holy Spirit, For ever and ever. Amen.

Only for a moment let us see how peculiarly all these expressions are fitting in a hymn of prayer and praise {266} to our G.o.d and Saviour, recalling to our minds the words of inspiration; and then again let us put the question to our conscience, Is this language fit for us to use to a fellow-creature?

Let the heaven exult with praises, Let the heavens rejoice, and Let the earth resound with joy: let the earth be glad ... (exultet is the very word used in the Vulgate translation of the Psalm)--before the Lord, for He cometh to judge the earth.--Ps. xcvi (xcv). 11.

The holy solemnities sing Ye shall have a song, as in the The glory of the Lord. night when a holy solemnity is kept ... And the Lord shall cause His glorious voice to be heard.

Isa. x.x.x. 29. Let the heaven and earth praise Him. Ps. lxix (lxviii). 34.

Thou just Judge of mankind, All judgment is committed And true light of the world, unto the Son. John v. 22. That was the true Light, which lighteth every man that cometh into the world. John i. 9.

With the prayers of our hearts we With my whole heart have I pray Thee, sought Thee. Ps. cxix (cxviii).

Hear the prayers of Thy suppliants. 10. Hear my prayer, O G.o.d.

Ps. lxi (lx). 1. Whom have I in heaven but Thee? Ps. lxxiii (lxxii). 25. And this is the confidence that we have in Him, that if we ask any thing according to His will, He heareth us. 1 John v. 14.

Thou who shuttest heaven by I have the keys of death and of Thy word, h.e.l.l. These things saith He that And loosest its bars, is holy, He that is true: He that hath the key of David. He that openeth and no man shutteth, and shutteth and no man {267} openeth. I have set before thee an open door, and no man can shut it. Rev. i. 18; iii. 7,8

Release us by command, we pray Thy sins be forgiven thee.

Thee, Matt. ix. 22. Bless the Lord, O From all our sins. my soul ... who forgiveth all thine iniquities. Ps. ciii. 2. This is your blood of the New Testament, which is shed for many for the remission of sins. Matt.

xxvi. 28. Have mercy upon me, O G.o.d ... according to the mult.i.tude of Thy tender mercies, blot out my transgressions. Wash me throughly from mine iniquity, and cleanse me from my sin. Ps. li (l).

Thou to whose word is subject Bless the Lord, O my soul ...

The health and weakness of all, who healeth all thy diseases. Ps.

ciii (cii). 2, 3.

Do Thou heal us who are morally Create in me a clean heart, O diseased, G.o.d, and renew a right spirit Restoring us to virtue; within me. Ps. li. 10 (4.) That when Thou, the Judge, shalt appear in the end of the world, Thou mayest grant us to be partakers of eternal joy.

This would be a Christian prayer, a primitive prayer, a scriptural prayer, a prayer well fitting mortal man to utter by his tongue and from his heart, to the G.o.d who heareth prayer; and him who shall in sincere faith offer such a prayer, Christ will never send empty away. But if this prayer, fitted as it seems only to be addressed to G.o.d, be offered to the soul of a departed saint--I will not talk of blasphemy, and deadly sin, and idolatry,--I will only ask members of the Church of Rome to weigh all these things well, one by one. These are not subjects for crimination and recrimination. {268}

We have had far too much of those unholy weapons on both sides. Speaking the truth in love, I should be verily guilty of a sin in my own conscience were I, with my views of Christian wors.h.i.+p, to offer this prayer to the soul of a man however holy, however blessed, however exalted.

The next part of our work will be given exclusively to the wors.h.i.+p of the Blessed Virgin Mary. {269}

PART III.

CHAPTER I.

SECTION I.--THE VIRGIN MARY.

The wors.h.i.+p of the blessed Virgin Mary is so highly exalted in the Church of Rome, as to require the formation of a new name to express its high character. Neither could the Latin language provide a word which would give an adequate idea of its excellence, nor could any word previously employed by the writers in Greek, meet the case satisfactorily. The newly invented term Hyperdulia, meaning "a service above others," seems to place the service of the Virgin on a footing peculiarly its own, as raised above the wors.h.i.+p of the saints departed, and of the angels of G.o.d, cherubim and seraphim, with all the hosts of princ.i.p.alities and powers in heavenly places. The service of the Virgin Mary thus appears not only to justify, but even to require a separate and distinct examination in this volume. The general principles, however, which we have already endeavoured to establish and ill.u.s.trate with regard as well to the study of the Holy Scriptures as to the evidence of primitive antiquity, are equally applicable here; and with those principles present to our minds, {270} we will endeavour now to ascertain the truth with regard to the wors.h.i.+p of the Virgin as now witnessed in the Roman Catholic Church.

Of the Virgin Mary, think not, brethren of the Church of Rome, that a true member of the Anglican branch of the Catholic Church will speak disparagingly or irreverently. Were such an one found among us, we should say of him, he knows not what spirit he is of. Our church, in her Liturgy, her homilies, her articles, in the works too of the best and most approved among her divines and teachers, ever speaks of Saint Mary, the blessed Virgin, in the language of reverence, affection, and grat.i.tude.

She was a holy virgin and a holy mother. She was highly favoured, blessed among women. The Lord was with her, and she was the mother of our only Saviour. She was herself blessed, and blessed was the fruit of her womb. We delight in the language of our ancestors, in which they were used to call her "Mary, the Blissful Maid." Should any one of those who profess and call themselves Christians and Catholics, entertain a wish to interrupt the testimony of every succeeding age, and to interpose a check to the fulfilment of her own recorded prophecy, "All generations shall call me blessed," certainly the Anglican Catholic Church will never acknowledge that wish to be the genuine desire of one of her own sons. The Lord hath blessed her; yea, and she shall be blessed.