munion, seriously exhorting the unprepared to forbear. So was the custom of old in the Greek Church. The Priest admonishes all that are coming to that holy Sacrament, driving away the unworthy, but inviting the prepared, and that with a loud voice, and hands lifted up, standing aloft, where he may be seen and heard of all.

Those that after these exhortations stay to receive, the Church supposing prepared, invites to draw near; and after their humble confession, the Priest or Bishop absolves and comforts them with some choice sentences taken out of holy Scripture. After which the Priest says, LIFT UP YOUR HEARTS. For certainly at that hour when we are to receive the most dreadful Sacrament, it is necessary to lift up our hearts to God, and not to have them grovelling upon the earth; for this purpose the Priest exhorts all to leave all cares of this life and domestic thoughts, and to have our hearts and minds in heaven upon the Lover of mankind. The people

fore, rather than ye 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 ye depart; ye depart from the Lord's table, ye depart from your brethren, and from the banquet of most heavenly food," &c. &c. Then follows in the old books what is similar to the first exhortation in the present book.

And sometime shall this be said also at the discretion of the Curate. "Dearly beloved, forasmuch as our duty is to render to Almighty God, our heavenly Father, most hearty thanks, for that He hath 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 Sacrament of His blessed Body and Blood," &c. &c.

q Chrys. in Heb. vi. Hom. IX. vol. xii. p. 100.

then answer, WE LIFT THEM UP UNTO THE Lord, assenting to the Priest's admonition. And it behoves us all to say seriously; for as we ought always to have our minds in heaven, so especially at that hour we should more earnestly endeavour it.

The Priest then goes on, LET US GIVE THANKS TO OUR LORD GOD, and many thanks we ought to render Him, that calls and invites such unworthy sinners as we be to so high grace and favour, as to eat the flesh and drink the blood of the Son of God.

The people answer, IT IS MEET AND RIGHT So TO DO: for when we give thanks to God, we do a work that is just, and of right due to so much bounty.

"Then follow for great days some proper prefaces, containing the peculiar matter or subject of our thanks that day, which are to be said seven days after," (Rubric,) except Whitsunday preface, which is to be said but six days after, because Trinity Sunday is the seventh day after, which hath a peculiar preface. By this it appears that the Church intends to prorogue and continue these high feasts several days, even eight days together, if another great feast comes not within the time, which requires a peculiar service. But when we say that the Church would have these high feasts continued so long, it is not so to be understood, as if she required an equal observance of those several

days, for some of those days she commands by her Canons and Rubrics, some she seems only to com mend to us to be observed; some are of a higher festivity, some of less. The first and the last, namely, the octave of the first, are usually the chief days for solemn assemblies; yet every of those days should be spent in more than ordinary meditation of the blessings of the time, and thanksgiving for them; according to that which the Lord commanded to the Jews concerning the feast of tabernacles, Lev. xxiii. 36. Upon every one of the days of that feast an offering was to be made, but the first and last were the solemn convocations.

The reason of the Church's proroguing and lengthening out these high feasts for several days, is plain. The subject matter of these feasts, as namely, Christ's Birth, Resurrection, Ascension, the sending of the Holy Ghost, is of so high a nature, so nearly concerning our salvation, that one day is too little to meditate of them, and praise God for them as we ought. A bodily deliverance may justly require a day of thanksgiving and joy; but the deliverance of the soul, by the blessings commemorated on those times, deserve a much longer feast. It were injurious to good Christian souls to have their joy and thankfulness for such mercies confined to a day, therefore holy Church, upon the times when these unspeakable blessings were wrought for us by her most seasonable commands and counsels, here

invites us to fill our hearts with joy and thankfulness, and let them overflow eight days together.

See above, of the continuation of great solemnities, pp. 101, 139, 143, and of the service of octaves, p. 142.

But two queries here may be fit to be satisfied. I. Why eight days are allowed to those high feasts, rather than another number?

For which the reasons given are divers; one is from the example which Almighty God sets us, commanding His people, the Jews, to keep their great feasts some of them seven days, and one, namely, the feast of tabernacles, eight days, Lev. xxiii. If the Jews were to keep their feasts so long by a daily burnt-offering, (which were but as types of the Christian's great feasts,) the Christian's ought by no means to come short of them, but offer up to God as long, daily, hearty thanksgivings, presenting ourselves, souls and bodies, a reasonable, holy, and lively sacrifice unto Him. Other reasons for an octave to great feasts are given, which are mystical. The octave, or eighth day, signifies eternity; for our whole life is but the repetition or revolution of seven days. Then comes the eighth day of eternity, to which, by God's mercy, we shall be brought, if we continue the seven days of our life in the due and constant service and worship of God. Or else, which is much the same in sense, the eighth day is a returning to the first, it is the first day of the

week begun again, signifying, that if we constantly serve God the seven days of our life, we shall return to the first happy estate that we were created in.

II. How the prefaces appointed for these eight days can be properly used upon each of them; for example, how can we say eight days together, "Thou didst give Thine only Son to be born this day for us?" as it is in the preface.

To which the answer may be, that the Church does not use the word day, for a natural day of twenty-four hours, or an ordinary artificial day, reckoning from sun to sun; but in the usual ac ceptation of it in holy Scripture, where by the word day, is signified the whole time designed to one and the same purpose, though it lasts several natural days. Thus all the time that God appoints to the reclaiming of sinners by merciful chastisements or threatenings, is called "the day of their vistation," Luke xix. 42, 44. So all the time allotted us for the working out of our salvation, though it be our whole life long, is called a day, "Work while it is day, the night comes when no man can work ;" and most directly to our purpose speaks St. Paul," Exhort one another daily, while it is called to-day," or this day, that is, while you live in this world. In like manner, all that time which is appointed by the Church for the thankful com

r Heb. iii. 13.