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"I thank Jesus Christ our Lord, who hath enabled me, for that he counted me faithful, putting me into the ministry, who was before a blasphemer and a persecutor, and injurious; but, I obtained mercy, because I did it ignorantly in unbelief." But, as this text is rather intricate and involved, the following may serve better to explain: Romans, vi. 17. " God be thanked, that ye were the servants of sin; but ye have obeyed, from the heart, that form of doctrine which was delivered you;" or, "into which ye have been moulded;" or, "unto which -conformed." This latter passage may thus be paraphrased: "God be thanked, that ye (who were once the servants of sin) have now, by grace, obeyed, from the heart, that form of doctrine which was delivered you;" or, participially, "God be thanked that ye, having been the servants of sin, have," &c. i. e. "have become the servants of righteousness."

3. The Greek word, which is here rendered "I thank," (éžoμodoyouμai,) as it is elsewhere translated "I confess," so it might here have been rendered " I adore, praise," or "glorify, thee:" "I give praise or glory to thee," &c. which expresses rather concurrence than thanksgiving.

Hence it appears, that human intellect is neither the means of attaining, nor the measure of comprehending, "the mysteries of the Kingdom of Heaven :" that God reveals them to the meek and lowly: that "the world by wisdom knows not God:" that "knowledge puffeth up, but charity edifieth :" that divine illumination is a gift and not an attainment: that "the wise in their own eyes are fools in God's:" that from the "willingly ignorant," and wilfully disobedient, "the Gospel is hid

den:" that what wisdom cannot accomplish, grace can and does attain; and that "where sin has abounded, grace has even yet more" or super-" abounded."

Lastly, it is evident, that Jesus glorifies his Father for "revealing," and not for “hiding," the mysteries and truths of his Gospel: that God "giveth grace to the lowly:" that "mysteries" (as says the son of Sirach, iii. 19.) " are revealed to the meek :" all which is done "to stain the pride of human glory, to hide pride from man," and to exalt the wisdom and grace of God; whose secret is with them that fear him, and he will shew them his covenant;""guiding the meek in judgment, and teaching the humble his way;" while "the wisdom of this world is carnal, earthly, and sensual;" whereas, "the wisdom from above" enlightens and purifies, and the love of God edifies, the soul.

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The Greek scholar is referred to the original of the two passages, to which the rule, herein laid down, as to eucharistic verbs, applies; and the reader of Hebrew is referred to the original of Isaiah, xii. 1.

St. Matt. ch. xi. 25. Εξομολογεμαί σοι, Πάτερ, Κύριε τῶ οὐρανῶ καὶ τῆς γῆς, ὅτι [ἀπέκρυψας ταῦτα ἀπὸ σοφῶν καὶ συνετῶν, καὶ] ἀπεκάλυψας αὐτὰ νηπίοις.

Rom. ch. vi. 17. Χάρις δὲ τῷ Θεῷ, ὅτι [ἦτε δοῦλοι τῆς ἁμαρτίας,] ὑπηκέσατε δὲ ἐκ καρδίας εἰς ὃν παρεδόθητε τύπον διδαχῆς.

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.1 .Isa. xii אודך יהוה כי (אנפת בי) ישב אפך ותנחמני

"O Lord, I will praise thee, that, (having been angry with me,) thine is turned away, anger and thou comfortedst me."

Che Ritualist.

III. NOTES ON THE RUBRIC OF THE LITURGY; i. e. on the Rules and Directions, printed originally in Red letters,* (hence the Name, Rubrica, red,) but now in Italics, in the Book of Common Prayer.

HAVING adopted the term RITUALIST as part of our Title, it will naturally be expected, that we should have somewhat to say on the subject of Rites and Ceremonies this expectation is as just as it is rational; but, while we admit, that we occasionally may, and, if life be continued to us, will, devote a portion of our pages to the explication of Forms and Rubrics; it is not at all our intention, to attempt to make our readers mere ritualists; but rather to cultivate, both in ourselves and in them, the use of forms, without the trammels of formality; looking through the sign to the thing signified: just as a devout Christian uses the means of grace, for the sake of obtaining the gift of grace, in the use of the means.

This premised, we shall, at once, commence a Series of Observations, on the Rubrical Directions, in the Liturgy of our English Church; not descending to every minute particular, in this first attempt; but leaving that to future pages.

1."The ORDER for Morning and Evening Prayer, &c."

MORNING PRAYER.

"And here it is to be noted, That such Ornaments of the Church, and of the Ministers thereof, at all times of their Ministration, shall be retained, and be in use, * "Red-letter days," as applied to Holydays, is a term still in use.

as were in this Church of England, by the Authority of Parliament, in the Second Year of the Reign of King Edward the Sixth." [A.D. 1548*.] As Edward's injunctions do not describe these "Ornaments of the Ministers," we may infer that they were nearly the same, as those referred to in the 58th Canon; wherein it is written, "Every minister saying the Public Prayers, or ministering the Sacraments, or other Rites of the Church, shall wear a decent and comely Surplice with sleeves."'—" Furthermore, such Ministers as are Graduates shall wear upon their Surplices, at such times, such Hoods as, by the Orders of the Universities, are agreeable to their Degrees; which no Minister shall wear (being no Graduate) under pain of Suspension. Notwithstanding it shall be lawful for such Ministers as are not Graduates, to wear upon their Surplices, instead of Hoods, some decent Tippet of black, so it be not silk." The other Canons, giving similar directions, are the 17th, 24th, and 25th.

II. On the Introductory Sentences.- "The Minister shall read with a loud voice some one or more of these sentences," &c.

The last of these sentences is from 1 John, i. 8, 9: "If we say that we have no sin, we deceive ourselves,

1548 means 1548 by ecclesiastical computation, and 1549 by civil reckoning: this sort of double dating, which was in use 'till A. D. 1751, was confined to the 83 days (84 in leap-years) between January 1 and March 25: the former being, as it now is, the first day of the civil year, and the latter being the first day of the ecclesiastical year, or [Our] Lady-Day. In our Common Prayer Books, before the alteration of the Old (or Julian), to the New (or Gregorian), Style, (of which we shall treat hereafter,) there was the following Rubric: "Note, That the Supputation of the Year of our LORD, in the Church of England, beginneth with the TwentyFifth Day of March."

and the truth is not in us; but, if we confess our sins, He is faithful and just to forgive us our sins," &c. It often happens that the clerical reader of this sentence changes the "He" into "God." Why does he not rather read "more of these sentences," so that the word "He" may have direct reference to the antecedent "God"? If he is so great a stickler for grammatical accuracy, (which he would best shew by his rubrical obedience -which is better than sacrifice"-to positive orders,) let him read the 4th sentence, i. e. Psal. li. 17: "The sacrifices of God," &c.; or the 5th, i. e. Joel, ii. 13: "Rend your hearts, and not your garments; and turn unto the Lord your God," &c.; to either of which the "He,"now so unwarrantedly and unnecessarily adopted, would then be, even in his esteem, properly subjoined: respect is not more shewn in trifles, than is obedience in little things.

III. On the Lord's Prayer.-"The People also kneeling, and repeating* it with him," (the Minister) both here, and wheresoever else it is used in Divine Service." If the ante-communion service be, as it is named in the Rubric after the Nicene Creed, a part of "Divine Service," then ought "the People" also to repeat it with him," before the Decalogue or Ten Commandments, as much as at any other time.

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IV. On the Reading of the Psalms.—" Then shall follow the Psalms in order as they are appointed." Here, as in the Rubric before the "Venite," "O come, let us sing," &c. there is no express order for the clerk or the people to read the alternate verses. What, then,

Why do we hear some repeat what they ought not; and, what they ought, omit?

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