THE

CATECHISM

BALTIMORE,

Near the Cathedral.

GIFT

HP FLETCHER

PRINTED BY SANDS & NEILSON, S. E corner of Calvert and Market-streets.

That the faithful may approach the Sacraments with greater reverence and devotion, the Holy Synod commands all Bishops not only to explain, in a manner accommodated to the capacity of the receivers, the nature and use of the Sacraments, when they are to be administered by themselves; but also to see that every Pastor piously and prudently do the same, in the vernacular language, should it be necessary and convenient. This exposition is to accord with a form to be prescribed by the Holy Synod for the administration of all the Sacraments, in a Catechism, which bishops wijll take care to have

FAITHFULLY TRANSLATED INTO THE VERNACULAR LANGUAGE, AND EXPOUNDED TO THE PEOPLE BY ALL PASTORS.

THE

The Roman Catechism, of which an English translation is now submitted to the Public, was composed by decree of the Council of Trent; and the same venerable authority commands all Bishops " to " take care that it be faithfully translated into the vernacular language. " and expounded to the people by all pastors."*

The Fathers of the Council had examined with patient industry, and, in the exercise of their high prerogative, had defined, with unerring accuracy, the dogmas of faith which were then denied or disputed: but the internal economy of the Church, also, solicited and engaged their attention; and, accordingly, we find them employed in devising measures for the instruction of ignorance, the amelioration of discipline, and the reformation of morals.

Amongst the means suggested to their deliberative wisdom for the attainment of these important ends, the Roman Catechism has been deemed not the least judicious or effective. The ardor and industry of the " Reformers" were actively employed, not only in the publication of voluminous works, " to guard against which required, perhaps, " little labour or circumspection;" but, also, in the composition of " in- " numerable smaller works, which, veiling their errors under the sem- " blance of piety, deceived with incredible facility the simple and the u incautious."f To meet the mischievous activity of such men, and to rear the edifice of Christian knowledge on its only secure and solid basis, the instruction of it? authorised teachers; to afford the faithful a fixed standard of Christian belief, and to the Pastor a prescribed form of religious instruction; to supply a pure and perennial fountain of living waters to refresh and invigorate at once the Pastor and the flock,

* Cone. Trii Sess. 24. de Reform, cap. 7. f Pref. page 15.

viii PREFACE.

ped, facilitate the duty of public instruction, and render this Catechism, what it was originally intended to be, the manual of Pastors.

Such are the nature and object of the present work: a brief sketch of its history must enhance its worth, and may, it is hoped, prove acceptable to the learned reader.

* Pogianus, vol. 2, p. xviii. f Palavicino, lib. xxiv. c. 13. I Epistola? et orationes Julii Pogiani, edita? a Lagomarsini, Romae 1756, vol. 2. p. xx. § Oltrochius de vita ac rebus gestis, S. Caroli Borromsei, lib. 1. c. 8. annot. 3. apud. Pogianum, vol. 2. p. xx.

IT Foreiro's translation and commentary on Isaias may be seen in the " Recueil des grands critiques."

** " Datum est negotium a Pontifice Maximo tribus episcopis," &c. Pog. Ep. et Orat. vol. 3, p. 449.

ft "ad earn rem quatuor viros Pius delegit," &c. Pog. vol. 1, xvii.

PREFACE. ix

bishop of Zara.* The erudite and accurate Tirabos-chi has arrived at the same conclusion: he expressly numbers Calini amongst the authors of the Roman Catechism.f The MSS. notes, to which Largomarsini refers in proof of this opinion, mention, it is true, the names of Galesinus and Pogianus with that of Calini: Pogianus, it is universally acknowledged, had no share in the composition of the work; and the passage, therefore, must have reference solely to its style. With this interpretation the mention of Calini does not conflict: the orations delivered by him in the Council of Trent prove, that in elegance of Latinity he was little inferior to Pogianus himself; and the style, therefore, might also have employed the labor of his pen.

Other names are mentioned as possessing claims to the honor of having contributed to the composition of the Trent Catechism, amongst which are those of Cardinal Seripandus, Archbishop of Salerno, and legate at the Council to Pius the Fourth, Michael Medina, and Cardinal Antoniano secretary to Pius the Fifth; but Tiraboschi omits to notice their pretensions; and my inquiries have not been rewarded with a single authority competent to impeach the justness of the omission. Their names, that of Medina excepted, he frequently introduces throughout his history: in no instance, however, does he intimate that they had any share in the composition of the Roman Catechism; and his silence therefore I am disposed to interpret as a denial of their claim.

* Calini assisted at the Council, as Archbishop of Zara, and died Bishop of Terni, in

1570. It would appear from Tiraboschi that he belonged to no religious order. He is

called "huomo di molte lettere e molta pieta." See MSS. notes found in the library of

the Jesuit College in Fermo; also MSS. letters of Calini, apud Pogian. vol. 2. xxii. Palavicino Istoria del C. di Trento, 1. 15, c. 13.

f See Tiraboschi Storia della Letteratura Italiana, T. vii. part 1, p. 304, 308. vid. Script. Ordin. Prasdic. vol. 228. Romae, 1784.

I It was finished anno 1564. Catechismum habemus jam absolutum, &c. Letter of S. Charles Borromeo to Cardinal Hosius, dated December 27th, 1564, Pog. 2. xxxxxvii.

§ Ibid. To Cardinal Sirlet, Biblical literature owes the varies lectiones in the Antwerpian Polyglot.

IT Lagomarsini Not. in Gratian. Epist. ad Card. Commend. Romae, 1756. 2

x PREFACE.

other works of Pogianus, depose in favour of the superiority of his claim.* The work was put to press under the vigilant eye of the laborious and elegant Manutius,f published by authority of Pius the Fifth, and by command of the Pontiff translated into the languages of Italy, France, Germany, and Poland.^ To the initiated no apology is, I trust, necessary for this analysis of a controversy which the Translator could not, with propriety, pass over in silence, and on which so much of laborious research has been expended. To detail, however, the numerous approvals that hailed the publication of the work, recommended its perusal, and promoted its circulation, would, perhaps, rather fatigue the patience, than interest the curiosity of the reader.§ Enough, that its merits were then, as they are now, recognised by the Universal Church; and the place given amongst the masters of spiritual life to the devout A'Kempis, " second only," says Fontenelle, "to " the books of canonical Scripture," has been unanimously awarded to the Catechism of the Council of Trent, as a compendium of Catholic theology.

Thus, undertaken by decree of the Council of Trent, the result of the aggregate labors of the most distinguished of the Fathers who composed that august assembly, revised by the severe judgment, and polished by the classic taste of the first scholars of that classic age, the Catechism of the Council of Trent is stamped with the impress of superior worth, and challenges the respect and veneration of every reader.

In estimating so highly the merits of the original, it has not, however, escaped the Translator's notice, that a Work purely theological and didactic, treated in a severe, scholastic form, and therefore not recommended by the more ambitious ornaments of style, must prove uninviting to those who seek to be amused, rather than to be instructed. The judicious reader will not look for such recommendation: the character of the work precludes the idea: perspicuity, and an elaborate accuracy, are the leading features of the original; and the Translator

Jit was printed by Manutius before the end of July, 1566, but not published until the September following, when a folio and quarto edition appeared at the same time, accompanied with an Italian translation, from the pen of P. Alessio Figgliucoi, O. P. Sabutin. in vita Pii V. Pog. vol. 2, xl.

§ Amongst these authorities are Bulls 102, 105, of Pius V. in Bullar. p. 305, 307 ; Brief of Greg. XIII. 1583; Epist. Card. Borrom; Synods of Milan, 1565 ; of Bcneventum, 1567 ; of Ravenna, 1568 ; of Meaux, 1569; of Geneva, 1574 ; of Melun, (national) 1576; of Rouen, 1581; ofBourdeaux, 1583; of Tours, 1583; ofRhcims, 1583; ofTolouse, 1590; of Avignon, 1594 ; of Aquileia, 1586, &c. &c. &c.

PREFACE. xi

is, at least, entitled to the praise of not having aspired to higher excellencies. To express the entire meaning of the author, attending rather to the sense, than to the number of his words, is the rule by which the Roman Orator was guided in his translation of the celebrated orations of the two rival orators of Greece.* From this general rule, however just, and favorable to elegance, the Translator has felt it a conscientious duty not unfrequently to depart, in the translation of a work, the phraseology of which is, in so many instances, consecrated by ecclesiastical usage. Whilst, therefore, he has endeavoured to preserve the spirit, he has been unwilling to lose sight of the letter: studious to avoid a servile exactness, he has not felt himself at liberty to indulge the freedom of paraphrase: anxious to transfuse into the copy the spirit of the original, he has been no less anxious to render it an express image of that original. The reader, perhaps, will blame his severity: his fidelity, he trusts, may defy reproof; and on it he rests his only claim to commendation.

By placing the work, in its present form, before the Public, the Translator trusts he shall have rendered some service to* the cause of religion: should this pleasing anticipation be realised, he will deem the moments of leisure devoted to it well spent, and the reward more than commensurate to his humble labors.

Maynooth College,

PREFACE

THE CATECHISM

INTENTION OF THE COUNCIL— OBJECT AND AUTHORITY OF THE WORK— ITS USE AND DIVISION.

Such is the nature of the human mind, so limited are its in- Insufficitellectual powers, that, although by means of diligent and la-^n°reaborious inquiry it has been enabled of itself to investigate and sondiscover many divine truths; yet guided solely by its own lights it could never know or comprehend most of those things by which eternal salvation, the principal end of man's creation and formation to the image and likeness of God, is attained. — " The invisible things of God, from the creation of the world, Necessity " are," as the Apostle teaches, " clearly seen, being understood tion#eve a" " by the things that are made: his eternal power also and di- " vinity." (1) But "the mystery which had been hidden from " ages and generations" so far transcends the reach of man's understanding, that were it not " manifested to his saints to " whom God," by the gift of faith, " would make known the " riches of the glory of this mystery, amongst the Gentiles, " which is Christ," (2) it had never been given to human research to aspire to such wisdom.

But, as " faith cometh by hearing," (3) the necessity of the Andofauassiduous labour and faithful ministry of a legitimate teacher, *°^edw at all timef , towards the attainment of eternal salvation is manifest, for it is written, " how shall they hear without a preach-

,4 PREFACE.

"er? And how shall they preach unless they be sent?" (4)— And, indeed, never, from the very creation of the world, has God most merciful and benignant been wanting to his own; but " at sundry times and divers manners spoke, in times past, to the Fathers by the Prophets;" (5) and pointed out, in a manner suited to the times and circumstances, a sure and direct path to the happiness of heaven. But, as he had foretold that he would give a teacher, to be the light of the Gentiles and salvation to the ends of the earth; (6) " in these days "he hath spoken to us by his Son," (7) whom also by a voice from heaven, "from the excellent glory," (8) he has commanded all to hear and obey; and the Son "hath given some " Apostles, and some Prophets and others Evangelists and " others Pastors, and Teachers," (9) to announce the word of life; that we be not carried about like children with every wind o'f doctrine, but holding fast to the firm foundation of the faith, " may be built together into a habitation of God in the "Holy Ghost" (10)

istry should be invested with such authority that he says to them: " he that hears you hears me; and he that despises you " despises me;" (11) a declaration which he would not be understood to make to those only to whom his words were addressed, but likewise to all who, by legitimate succession, should discharge the ministry of the word, promising to be with them " all days, even to the consummation of the world."

Peculiar As this preaching of the divine word should never be mternecessity rUpte(] in the Church of God, so in these our days it becomes instruction necessary to labour with more than ordinary zeal and piety to days!'1686 nurture and strengthen the faithful with sound and wholesome doctrine as with the food of life: for "false prophets have gone "forth into the world" (13) "with various and strange doctrines" (14) to corrupt the minds of the faithful; of whom the

Lord hath said " I sent them not, and they ran; I spoke not to Activity of them, "yet they prophesied. "(15) In this unholy work, to such formers." extremes has their impiety, practised in all the arts of Satan, been carried, that it would seem almost impossible to confine it within bounds; and did we not rely on the splendid promises of the Saviour, who declared that he had built his Church on so solid a foundation, that the gates of hell should never prevail against it, (16) we should be filled with most alarming apprehension lest, beset on every side by such a host of enemies, assailed by so many and such formidable engines, the Church of God should, in these days, fall beneath their combined efforts. To omit those illustrious states which heretofore professed, in piety and holiness, the Catholic faith transmitted to them by their ancestors, but are now gone astray, wandering from the paths of truth, and openly declaring that their best claims to piety are founded on a total abandonment of the faith of their fathers: there is no region however remote, no place however securely guarded, no corner of the Christian republic, into which this pestilence has not sought secretly to insinuate itself. Those, who proposed to themselves to corrupt the minds of the faithful, aware that they could not hold immediate personal intercourse with all, and thus pour into their ears their poisoned doctrines, by adopting a different plan, disseminated error and impiety more easily and extensively. Besides those voluminous works, by which they sought the subversion of the Catholic faith; to guard against which, however, containing, as they did, open heresy, required, perhaps, little labour or circumspection; they also composed innumerable smaller books, which, veiling their errors under the semblance of piety, deceived with incredible facility the simple and the incautious.

The Fathers, therefore, of the general Council of Trent, anxious to apply some healing remedy to an evil of such mag- authority nitude, were not satisfied with having decided the more import- of £ns ant points of Catholic doctrine against the heresies of our times, but deemed it further necessary to deliver some fixed form of instructing the faithful in the truths of religion from the very rudiments of Christian knowledge ; a form to bet followed by those to whom are lawfully intrusted the duties of pastor and

teacher. In works of this sort many, it is true, have already employed their pens, and earned the reputation of great piety and learning. The Fathers, however, deemed it of the first importance that a work should appear, sanctioned by the authority of the Holy Synod, from which pastors and all others on whom the duty of imparting instruction devolves may draw with security precepts for the edification of the faithful; that. as there is " one Lord, one Faith," (17) there may also be one standard and prescribed form of propounding the dogmas of faith, and instructing Christians in all the duties of piety. Its subject As, therefore, the design of the work embraces a variety of ma er' matter, the Holy Synod cannot be supposed to have intended to comprise, in one volume, all the dogmas of Christianity, with that minuteness of detail to be found in the works of those who profess to treat of all the institutions and doctrines of religion. Such a task would be one of almost endless labor, and manifestly, ill-suited to attain the proposed end. But, having undertaken to instruct pastors and such as have care of souls in those things that belong peculiarly to the pastoral office and are accommodated to the capacity of the faithful; the Holy Synod intended that such things only should be treated of as might assist the pious zeal of pastors in discharging the duty of instruction, should they not be very familiar with the more abstruse questions of theological disputation. Principal Such being the nature and object of the present work, its bedteery- order requires that, before we proceed to develope those things ed by the severally which comprise a summary of this doctrine, we precommuni- mise a few observations explanatory of the considerations which stmcfion!1" should form the primary object of the pastor's attention, and which he should keep continually before his eyes, in order to know to what end, as it were, all his views and labors and studies are to be directed, and how this end, which he proposes to himself, may be facilitated and attained. First. The first is always to recollect that in this consists all Christian knowledge, or rather, to use the words of the Apostle, " this is eternal life, to know thee, the only true God, and Je- "sus Christ whom thou hast sent." (18) A teacher in the Church will, therefore, use his best endeavours that the faithful desire earnestly "to know Jesus Christ and him crucified," (1 9) that they be firmly convinced, and with the most heart-felt piety and devotion believe, that u there is no other name under " heaven given to men whereby they can be saved," (20) " for " he is the propitiation for our sins." (21)

But as "by this we know that we have known him, if we Second. " keep his commandments," (22) the next consideration, and one intimately connected with the preceding, is — to press also upon their attention that their lives are not to be wasted in ease and indolence, but that " we are to walk even as Christ walked," (23) " and pursue" with unremitting earnestness, "justice, god- " liness, faith, charity, patience, mildness:" (24) for, " he gave " himself for us, that he might redeem us from all iniquity, and " might cleanse to himself a people acceptable, a pursuer of " good works." (25) These things the Apostle commands pastors " to speak and to exhort."

But as our Lord and Saviour has not only declared, but has Third also proved by his own example, that " the Law and the Pro- " phets depend on love," (26) and as, according to the Apostle, charity is the end of the commandments, and the fulfilment of the law, (27) it is unquestionably a paramount duty of the pastor, to use the utmost assiduity to excite the faithful to a love of the infinite goodness of God towards us; that burning with a sort of divine ardor, they may be powerfully attracted to the supreme and all perfect good, to adhere to which is true and solid happiness, as is fully experienced by him who can say with the prophet: " What have I in heaven but thee? and be- " sides thee what do I desire upon earth?" (28) This, assuredly, is that more excellent way (29) pointed out by the Apostle, when he refers all his doctrines and instructions to charity, " which never faileth;" (30) for whatever is proposed by the pastor, whether it be the exercise of faith, of hope, or of some moral virtue; the love of God should be so strongly insisted upon by him, as to shew clearly that all the works of perfect Christian virtue can have no other origin, no other end than divine love. (31)

Fourth. But as in imparting instruction of any sort, the manner of communicating it is of considerable importance, so in conveying instruction to the people, it should be deemed of the greatest moment.— Age, capacity, manners and condition demand attention, that he who instructs may become all things to all men, and be able to gain all to Christ, (32) and prove himself a faithful minister and steward, (33) and like a good and faithful servant, be found worthy to be placed by his Lord over many things. (34) Nor let him imagine that those committed to his care are all of equal capacity or like dispositions, so as to enable him to apply the same course of instruction, to lead all to knowledge and piety; for some are, " as it were, new-born " infants," (35) others grown up in Christ, and others, in some sort, of full maturity. Hence the necessity of considering who they are that have occasion for milk, who for more solid food, (36) and of affording to each such nutriment of doctrine as may give spiritual increase, " until we all meet in the unity of faith " and of the knowledge of the Son of God into a perfect man, " into the measure of the age of the fulness of Christ." (37) This the example of the Apostle points out to the observance of all, for, " he is a debtor to the Greek and the Barbarian, to the " wise and to the unwise:" (38) thus giving all who are called to this ministry, to understand that in announcing the mysteries of faith, and inculcating the precepts of morality, the instruction is to be accommodated to the capacity and intelligence of the hearers; that, whilst the minds of the strong are filled with spiritual food, the little ones be not suffered to perish with hunger, "asking for bread, whilst there is none to break it to "them." (39)

Fifth. Nor should our zeal in communicating Christian knowledge

be relaxed, because it is sometimes to be exercised in expounding matters apparently humble and unimportant, and, therefore, comparatively uninteresting to minds accustomed to repose in the contemplation of the more sublime truths of religion. If the wisdom of the eternal Father descended upon the earth in the meanness of our flesh, to teach us the maxims of a heaveny life, who is there whom the love of Christ does not compel (40) to become little in the midst of his brethren; and, as a nurse fostering her children, so anxiously to wish for the salvation of his neighbour, that, as the Apostle testifies of himself, he desires to deliver not only the Gospel of Jesus Christ to them, but even his own life for them. (41)

But all the doctrines of Christianity, in which the faithful where the are to be instructed, are derived from the word of God, which ^cJj°Jsti. includes Scripture and Tradition. To the study of these, there- anity aie fore, the pastor should devote his days and his nights, always keeping in mind the admonitions of St. Paul to Timothy, which all who have the care of souls should consider as addressed to themselves: " Attend to reading, to exhortation, and to doc- " trine, (42) for all Scripture divinely inspired, is profitable to " teach, to reprove, to correct, to instruct in justice, that the " man of God may be perfect, furnished to every good work." (43)

But as the truths revealed by Almighty God, are so many, Division of and so various, as to render it no easy task to comprehend them, or having comprehended them, to retain so distinct a recollection of them as to be able to explain them with ease and promptitude when occasion may require; our predecessors in the faith have very wisely reduced them to these four heads — The Apostle's Creed — The Sacraments — The ten Commandments— and the Lord's Prayer. The Creed contains all that First Part. is to be held according to the discipline of the Christian faith, whether it regard the knowledge of God, the creation and government of the world; or the redemption of man, the rewards of the good and the punishments of the wicked. The doctrine Second of the seven Sacraments comprehends the signs, and, as it were, Partthe instruments of grace. The Decalogue, whatever has re-TnirdPart ference to the law, " the end whereof is charity." (44) Final- Fourth ly, the Lord's Prayer contains whatever can be the object of Part. the Christian's desires, or hopes, or prayers. The exposition, therefore, of these, as it were, common places of sacred Scripture, includes almost every thing to be known by a Christian. We, therefore, deem it proper to acquaint pastors that, when-

Appiica- over they have occasion, in the ordinary discharge of their dutionuftlie J '■., i c

Catechism ty, to expound any passage of the Gospel or any other part ot pef'oMiie" Scripture, they will find its substance under some one of the Sunday, four heads already enumerated, to which they will recur, as the source from which their exposition is to be drawn. Thus, if the Gospel of the first Sunday of Advent is to be explained, " There shall be signs in the sun and in the moon," &c. (45) whatever regards its explanation is contained under the article of the Creed, " He shall come to judge the living and the dead," and by embodying the substance of that article in his exposition, the pastor will at once instruct his people in the creed and in the Gospel. Whenever, therefore, he has to communicate instruction and expound the Scriptures, he will observe the same rule of referring all to these four principal heads, which, as we have already observed, comprise the whole force and doctrine of Holy Scripture. Why it be- He will, however, observe that order which he deems best gins with suited to persons, times and circumstances. Walking in the

nation of footsteps of the Fathers, who to initiate men in Christ the ree ' Lord and instruct them in his discipline begin with the doctrine of faith, we have deemed it useful to explain first in order what appertains to faith. Faith,how As the word faith has a variety of meanings in the Sacred here. °° Scriptures, it may not be unnecessary to observe that here we speak of that faith by which we yield our entire assent to whatever has been revealed by Almighty God. That faith thus understood is necessary to salvation no man can reasonably doubt, particularly as the Sacred Scriptures declare that " Without faith it is impossible to please God." (46) For as the end proposed to man as his ultimate happiness is far above the reach of the human understanding, it was, therefore, necessary that it should be made known to him by Almighty God. — This knowledge is nothing else than faith, by which we yield our unhesitating assent to whatever the authority of our Holy Mother the Church teaches us to have been revealed by Almighty God: for the faithful cannot doubt those things of which God, who is truth itself, is the author. Hence we see the great difference that exists between this faith which we

(45) Luke jad. 2b. (46) Heb. xi. 6.

give to God, and the credence which we yield to profane historians. But faith, though comprehensive, and diifering in degree and dignity, [for we read in Scripture these words "O thou of little faith, why didst thou doubt," (47) and " great is "thy faith," (48) and " Increase our faith," (49) also "Faith " without works is dead," (50) and " Faith which worketh by " charity;"] (51) is yet the same in kind, and the full force of its definition applies equally to all its degrees. Its fruit and advantages to us, we shall point out when explaining the articles of the creed. The first, then, and most important points of Christian faith are those which the holy Apostles, the great leaders and teachers of the faith, men inspired by the Holy Ghost, have divided into the twelve articles of the Creed: for The Creed as they had received a command from the Lord to go forth wh^ ,co,ra*

" into the whole world," as his ambassadors, and preach the the Apos- Gospel to every creature, (52) they thought proper to compose a form of Christian faith, (i that all may speak and think the " same thing;" (53) and that amongst those whom they should have called to the unity of faith, no schisms should exist; but that they should be perfect in the same mind, and in the same spirit. This profession of Christian faith and hope, drawn up by themselves, the Apostles called a " symbol," either because it was an aggregate of the combined sentiments of all; or because, by it, as by a common sign and watch-word, they might easily distinguish false brethren, deserters from the faith " unawares brought in," (54) " who adulterated the word of " God," (55) from those who had pledged an oath of fidelity to serve under the banner of Christ.

THE

CATECHISM

PART I.

ARTICLE I.

" I BELIEVE IN GOD, THE FATHER ALMIGHTY, MAKER OF HEAVEN AND EARTH."

Amongst the many truths which Christianity proposes to Division of our belief, and of which, separately, or collectively, an assured and firm faith is necessary, the first, and one essential to be believed by all, is that which God himself has taught us as the foundation of truth, and which is a summary of the unity of the divine essence, of the distinction of three persons, and of the actions which are peculiarly attributed to each. The pastor will inform the people that the Apostle's Creed briefly comprehends the doctrines of this mystery. For as has been observed by our predecessors in the faith, who, in treating this subject, have given proofs at once of piety and accuracy, the Creed seems to be divided into three principal parts, one describing the first Person of the divine nature, and the stupendous work of the creation — another, the second Person, and the mystery of man's redemption — a third, comprising in several most appropriate sentences, the doctrine of the third Person, the head and source of our sanctification. These sentences are called

articles, by a sort of comparison frequently used by our forefathers; for as the members of the body are divided by joints, (articulis) so in this profession of faith, whatever is to be believed distinctly and separately from any thing else, is appositely called an article. Import of " I believe in God"] The meaning of these words is this: " I beHeve I believe with certainty, and without a shadow of doubt profess " in God." mv belief in God the Father, the first person of the Trinity, who by his omnipotence created from nothing, preserves and governs the heavens and the earth, and all things which they encompass: and not only do I believe in him from my heart, and profess this belief with my lips, but with the greatest ardor and piety tend towards him, as the supreme and most perfect good. Let it suffice thus briefly to state the substance of this first article: but as great mysteries lie concealed under almost every word, the pastor must now give them a more minute consideration, in order that, as far as God has permitted, the faithful may approach, with fear and trembling, the contemplation of the glory of the divine Majesty.

The word " believe," therefore, does not here mean " to think," " to imagine," " to be of opinion," but, as the Sacred Scriptures teach, it expresses the deepest conviction of the mind, by which we give a firm and unhesitating assent to God revealing his mysterious truths. As far therefore, as regards the use of the word here; he, who firmly and without hesitation is convinced of any thing, is said "to believe." (1) Nor

Certainty is the knowledge derived through faith to be considered less ot v aim.

certain, because its objects are not clearly comprehended ; for

the divine light in which we see them, although it does not render them evident, yet sheds around them such a lustre as leaves no doubt on the mind regarding them, " For God, who " commanded the light to shine out of darkness, hath shone in " our hearts," (2) " that the Gospel be not hidden to us, as to " those that perish." (3) Excludes From what has been said, it follows that he, who is gifted cunoslty* with this heavenly knowledge of faith, is free from an inquisitive curiosity: for when God commands us to believe, he does not propose to us to search into his divine judgments, or inquire into their reasons and their causes, but demands an immutable faith, by the efficacy of which, the mind reposes in the knowledge of eternal truth. And indeed, if, whilst we have the testimony of the Apostle, that " God is true and every man a liar:" (4) it would argue arrogance and presumption to disbelieve the asseveration of a grave and sensible man affirming any thing as true, and urge him to support his asseveration by reasons and authorities; what temerity and folly does it not argue in those, who hear the words of God himself, to demand reasons for the heavenly and saving doctrines which he reveals? Faith, therefore, excludes not only all doubt, but even the desire of subjecting its truths to demonstration.

But the pastor should also teach, that he who says, " I be- Open pro- " lieve," besides declaring the inward assent of the mind, which is an internal act of faith, should also openly and with alacrity profess and proclaim what he inwardly and in his heart believes: for the faithful should be animated by the same spirit that spoke by the lips of the prophet, when he said: " I believe and therefore did I speak," (5) and should follow the example of the Apostles who replied to the princes of the earth: " We cannot " but speak the things which we have seen and heard." (6) This spirit should be excited within us by these admirable words of St. Paul: "lam not ashamed of the Gospel, for it is the power " of God unto salvation, to every one that believeth;" (7) sentiments which derive additional force from these words of the same Apostle: " With the heart we believe unto justice; but " with the mouth confession is made unto salvation." (8)

" In God"] From these words we may learn, how exalted Christian are the dignity and excellence of Christian philosophy, and what philosophy a debt of gratitude we owe to the divine goodness; we to whom human it is given at once to soar on the wings of faith to the know- wisdomledge of a being surpassing in excellence and in whom all our desires should be concentrated. For in this Christian philosophy and human wisdom differ much, that guided solely by the light of nature, and having made gradual advances by reasoning on sensible objects and effects, human wisdom, after long and laborious investigation, at length reaches with difficulty the contemplation of the invisible things of God, discovers and understands the first cause and author of all things: whilst on the contrary Christian philosophy so enlightens and enlarges the human mind, that at once and without difficulty it pierces the heavens, and illumined with the splendors of the divinity contemplates first the eternal source of light, and in its radiance all created things; so that with the Apostle we experience with the most exquisite pleasure, " and believing rejoice with joy un- " speakable," (9) that " we have been called out of darkness "into his admirable light." (10) Justly therefore do the faithful profess first to believe in God, whose majesty with the prophet Jeremiah, we declare "incomprehensible," (11) for, as the Apostle says, " He dwells in light inaccessible, which no " man hath seen or can see:" (12) and speaking to Moses, he himself said " No man shall see my face and live." (13) The mind, to be capable of rising to the contemplation of the Deity whom nothing approaches in sublimity, must be entirely disengaged from the senses; and this the natural condition of man in the present life renders impossible. Human "God," however, "left not himself without testimony; dohowever, " inS g°°d fr°m heaven; giving rains and fruitful seasons, fillcapable of jn„ our hearts with food and gladness." (14) Hence it is that

knowledge philosophers conceived no mean idea of the Divinity; ascribed from °his to mm nothing corporeal, nothing gross, nothing compound; works. considered him the perfection and fulness of all good, from whom, as from an eternal, inexhaustible fountain of goodness and benignity, flows every perfect gift to all creatures; called him the wise, the author of truth, the loving, the just, the most beneficent; gave him, also, many other appellations expressive of supreme and absolute perfection; and said that his immensity filled every place, and his omnipotence extended to every thing. This the Sacred Scriptures more clearly express, and more fully develope, as in the following passages: " God is a " spirit;" (15) " Be ye perfect, even as your Father, who is in " heaven, is also perfect;" (16) " all things are naked and open " to his eyes;" (17) "Oh! the depth of the riches of the wis- " dom and of the knowledge of God;" (18)" God is true;" (19)

" I am the way, the truth and the life;" (20) " Thy right hand " is full of justice;" (21) " Thou openest thy hand, and fillest " with blessing- every living1 creature;" (22) and finally: " Whi- " ther shall I go from thy spirit, or whither shall I flee from thy " face? If I ascend into heaven, thou art there; if I descend in- " to hell thou art there; if 1 take wing in the morning, and " dwell in the uttermost parts of the sea; even there also shall " thy hand lead me, and thy right hand shall hold me, &c." (23) and " Do I not fill heaven and earth, saith the Lord?" (24) These are great and sublime truths regarding the nature of God; and of these truths philosophers attained a knowledge, which, whilst it accords with the authority of the inspired volume, results from the investigation of created things.

But we must, also, see the necessity of divine revelation, ifTheknowwe reflect that not only does faith, as we have already observ- rived from ed, make known at once to the rude and unlettered those Jjj* ™™ truths, a knowledge of which philosophers could attain only by secure, long and laborious study; but also impresses this knowledge with much greater certainty and security against all error, than if it were the result of philosophical enquiry. But how much more exalted must not that knowledge of the Deity be considered, which cannot be acquired in common by all from the contemplation of nature, but is the peculiar privilege of those who are illumined by the light of faith?

This knowledge is contained in the articles of the Creed, which disclose to us the unity of the divine essence, and the distinction of three persons; and also that God is the ultimate end of our being, from whom we are to expect the fruition of the eternal happiness of heaven: for we have learned from St. Paul, that " God is a rewarder of them that seek him." (25) The greatness of these rewards, and whether they are such as that human knowledge could aspire to their attainment, (26) we learn from these words of Isaias uttered long before those of the Apostle: " From the beginning of the world they have " not heard, nor perceived with the ears: without thee, O God, " the eye hath not seen what things thou hast prepared for them that wait for thee." (27)

Unity of From what has been said, it must also be confessed that there is but one God, not many Gods; for as we attribute to God supreme goodness and infinite perfection, it is impossible that what is supreme and most perfect could be common to many. If a being want any thing that constitutes this supreme perfection, it is therefore imperfect and cannot be endowed with Ihe nature of God. This is also proved from many passages of the Sacred Scripture; for it is written, " Hear, O Israel, the Lord " our God is one Lord:" (28) again, "Thou shalt not have "strange gods before me," (29) is the command of God: and again he often admonishes us by the prophet " I am the first, " and 1 am the last, and besides me there is no God." (30) The Apostle also expressly declares: "one Lord, one faith, one " baptism." (31) It should not, however, excite our surprise if the Sacred Scriptures sometimes give the name of God to creatures: (32) for when they call the prophets and judges gods, they do so not after the manner of the Gentiles who, in their folly and impiety, formed to themselves many gods; but in order to express, by a manner of speaking then not unusual, some eminent quality or function conferred on them by the divine munificence. Christian faith, therefore, believes and professes, as is declared in the Nicene Creed in confirmation of this truth, that God in his nature, substance and essence is one; but soaring still higher it so understands him to be one that it adores unity in trinity and trinity in unity. Of this mystery we now proceed to speak, as it comes next in order in the Creed. Propriety "The Father"] As God is called " Father" for more

of the word . .

' Father," reasons than one, we must first determine the strictly appropn- T GPd atec' meamnS °f the word in the present instance. Some also on whom the light of faith never shone, conceive God to be an eternal substance from whom all things had their beginning, by whose providence they are governed and preserved in their order and state of existence. As, therefore, he, to whom a family owes its origin and by whose wisdom and authority it is governed, is called a Father; so by analogy from things human, God was called Father, because acknowledged to be the creator and governor of the universe. The Sacred Scriptures also use the same appellation, when, speaking of God, they

declare that to him the creation of all things, power, and admirable providence, are to be ascribed: for we read, " Is not " he thy Father that hath possessed thee, and made thee, and " created thee?" (33) And again, " Have we not all one Fa- " ther? Hath not one God created us?" (34)

But God, particularly in the New Testament, is much more ^ia\n a frequently, and in some sense peculiarly called the Father of manner Christians, who " have not received the spirit of bondage in ther" of " fear, but have received the spirit of adoption of sons, whereby Cnnstians- " they cry abba Father;" (35) "for the Father hath bestowed "on us that manner of charity, that we should be called, and " be the sons of God:" (36) " and if sons, heirs also, heirs, in- " deed, of God, and joint-heirs with Christ," (37) " who is the "first-born amongst many brethren, (38) for which cause he "is not ashamed to call them brethren." (39) Whether, therefore, we look to the common title of creation and conservation; or to the special one of spiritual adoption, the term " Father," as applied to God by Christians, is alike appropriate.

But the pastor will teach the faithful that, on hearing the Tta name word " Father," besides the ideas already unfolded, their minds ther" imshould rise to the contemplation of more exalted mysteries. — P11?^ P1"" Under the name of " Father," the divine oracles begin to un- persons, veil to us a mysterious truth which is more abstruse, and more deeply hidden in that inaccessible light in which God dwells — a mysterious truth which human reason not only could not reach, but even conceive to exist. This name implies, that in The Trithe one essence of the Godhead is proposed to our belief, not mtyonly one person, but a distinction of persons: for in one Divine nature there are three persons; the Father, begotten of none; the Son, begotten of the Father before all ages; the Holy Ghost, proceeding from the Father and the Son from all eternity.

But in the one substance of the Divinity the Father is the TheFather first person, who with his only begotten Son and the Holy person, Ghost is one God and one Lord, not in the singularity of one person, but in the trinity of one substance. These three persons, (for it would be impiety to assert that they are unlike or unequal in any thing) are understood to be distinct only in their peculiar relations. The Father is unbegotten, the Son begotten of the Father, and the Holy Ghost proceeds from both; and we confess the essence of the three Persons, their substance, to be so the same, that we believe that, in the confession of the true and eternal God, we are piously and religiously to adore distinction in the Persons, unity in the essence and equality in the Trinity. When we say that the Father is the first person, we are not to be understood to mean that in the Trinity there is any thing first or last, greater or less — let no Christian be guilty of such impiety, for Christianity proclaims the same eternity, the same majesty of glory in the three Persons — but the Father, because the beginning without a beginning, we truly and unhesitatingly affirm to be the first person, who, as he is distinct from the others by his peculiar relation of paternity, so of him alone is it true that he begot the Son from eternity: for, when in the Creed we pronounce together the words " God" and " Father," it intimates to us that he is God and Father from eternity. Curiosity But as in nothing is a too curious enquiry more dangerous, ed frfexa- or error more fatal, than in the knowledge and exposition of mining the this, the most profound and difficult of mysteries, let the pastheTrinity. tor instruct the people religiously to retain the terms used to express this mystery, and which are peculiar to the essence and person; and let the faithful know that unity belongs to essence, and distinction to Persons. But these are truths which should not be made matter of too subtle disquisition, when we recollect that " he, who is a searcher of majesty, shall be overwhelm- " ed by glory." (40) We should be satisfied with the assurance which faith gives us, that we have been taught these truths by God himself; and to dissent from his oracles is the extreme of folly and misery. He has said: " Teach ye all nations, bap- " tising them in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of "the Holy Ghost;" (41) and again, "there are three who " give testimony in heaven; the Father, the Word, and the " Holy Ghost; and these three are one." (42) Let him, however, who by the divine bounty believes these truths, constantly beseech and implore God, and the Father, who made all things out of nothing, and orders all things sweetly, who gave us power to become the sons of God, and who made known to

THE COUNCIL OF TRENT. 3{

us the mystery of the Trinity; that admitted, one day, into the eternal tabernacles, he may be worthy to see how great is the fecundity of the Father, who, contemplating and understanding himself, begot the Son like and equal to himself; how a love of charity in both, entirely the same and equal, which is the Holy Ghost, proceeding from the Father and the Son, connects the begetting and the begotten by an eternal and indissoluble bond; and that thus the essence of the Trinity is one and the distinction of the three persons perfect.

" Almighty"] The Sacred Scriptures, in order to mark Wh the the piety and devotion with which the God of holiness is to power and

m majesty of

be adored, usually express his supreme power and infinite ma- God are jesty in a variety of ways ; but the pastor should impress par- by^m'any ticularly on the minds of the faithful, that the attribute of om- names, in

nipotence is that by which he is most frequently designated. Scriptures. Thus he says of himself, " I am the Almighty God;" (43) and That of again, Jacob when sending his sons to Joseph thus prayed for Almighty them " May my Almighty God make him favourable to you." quent. (44) In the Apocalypse also it is written, " The Lord God, " who is, who was, and who is to come, the Almighty:'1'' (45) and in another place the last day is called " the day oiAlmigh- " ty God." (46) Sometimes the same attribute is expressed in many words; thus: " no word shall be impossible with God:" (47) "Is the hand of the Lord unable?" (48) " Thy power is " at hand when thou wilt." (49) Many other passages of the same import might be adduced, all of which convey the same idea which is clearly comprehended under this single word " Almighty." By it we understand that there neither is, nor its meancan be imagined any thing which God cannot do; for he can ing' not only annihilate all created things, and in a moment summon from nothing into existence many other worlds — an exercise of power which, however great, comes in some degree within our comprehension — but he can do many things still greater, of which the human mind can form no conception. But though God can do all things, yet he cannot lie, or deceive, or be deceived; he cannot sin, nor be ignorant of any thing, or cease to exist. These things are compatible with those beings only

whose actions are imperfect, and are entirely incompatible with the nature of God, whose acts are all-perfect. To be capable of these things is a proof of weakness, not of supreme and infinite power, the peculiar attribute of God. Thus, whilst we believe God to be omnipotent, we exclude from him whatever is not intimately connected, and entirely consistent with the perfection of his nature. Q But the pastor should point out the propriety and wisdom of

tence, why having omitted all other names of God in the Creed, and of havattributiof m$ proposed to us that alone of " Almighty as the object of our God men- beiief- for by acknowledging God to be omnipotent, we also of the Creed, necessity acknowledge him to be omniscient, and to hold all things in subjection to his supreme authority and dominion. — When we doubt not that he is omnipotent, we must be also convinced of every thing else regarding him, the absence of which would render his omnipotence altogether unintelligible. Besides, nothing tends more to comfirm our faith, and animate our hope, than a deep conviction that all things are possible to God: for whatever may be afterwards proposed as an object of faith, however great, however wonderful, however raised above the natural order, is easily and at once believed, when the mind is already imbued with the knowledge of the omnipotence of God. Nay more, the greater the truths which the divine oracles announce, the more willingly does the mind deem them worthy of belief; and should we expect any favour from heaven, we are not discouraged by the greatness of the desired boon, but are cheered and confirmedby frequently considering, that there is nothing which an omnipotent God cannot effect. Necessity With this faith, then, we should be specially fortified whenof faith in '. , ' _ ,

God " Al- ever we are required to render any extraordinary service to migity." our neighbour, or seek t0 obtain by prayer any favour from God. Its necessity in the one case, we learn from the Redeemer himself, who, when rebuking the incredulity of the Apostles, says to them, "If you have faith as a mustard-seed, "you shall say to this mountain, remove from hence thither, " and it shall remove; and nothing shall be impossible to you;" (50) and in the other, from these words of St. James, " Let

"him ask in faith, nothing wavering; for he that wavereth is "like a wave of the sea, which is moved and carried about by " the wind. Therefore, let not that man think that he shall re- "ceive any thing of the Lord." (51) This faith brings with it also many advantages. It forms us, in the first place, to all humility and lowliness of mind, according to these words of the Prince of the Apostles: " Be you humbled, therefore, under the "inighty hand of God." (52) It also teaches us not to fear where there is no cause of fear, but to fear God alone, (53) in whose power we ourselves and all that we have are placed; (54) for our Saviour says, " I will show you whom you shall "fear; fear ye him, who, after he hath killed, hath power to " cast into hell." (55) This faith is, also, useful to enable us'to know and exalt the infinite mercies of God towards us: he who reflects on the omnipotence of God, cannot be so ungrateful as not frequently to exclaim, " He that is mighty hath done great " things to me." (56)

When, however, in this article we call the Father " Almia:h- Not three

ty," let no person be led into the error of excluding, therefore, but one from its participation the Son and the Holy Ghost. As we say m's y' the Father is God, the Son is God, the Holy Ghost is God, and yet there are not three Gods, but one God, so, in like manner, we confess that the Father is Almighty, the Son Almighty, and the Holy Ghost Almighty, and, yet, there are not three Almighties, but one Almighty. The Father, in particular, we call Almighty, because he is the source of all origin; as we also attribute wisdom to the Son, because the eternal word of the Father; and goodness to the Holy Ghost, because the love of both. These, however, and such appellations may be given indiscriminately to the three Persons, according to the rule of Catholic faith.

" Creator of Heaven and Earth"] The necessity of From having previously imparted to the faithful a knowledge of the Tn^vvhy^ omnipotence of God, will appear from what we are now about ^od made to explain with regard to the creation of the world. For when already convinced of the omnipotence of the Creator, we more readily believe the wondrous production of so stupendous a

*

work. For God formed not the world from materials of any sort, but created it from nothing, and that not by constraint or necessity, but spontaneously and of his own freewill. Nor was he impelled to create by any other cause than a desire to communicate to creatures the riches of his bounty; for essentially happy in himself, he stands not in need of any thing; as David expresses it: " I said to the Lord, thou art my God, for " of my goods thou hast no need." (57) But as, influenced by his own goodness, " he hath done all things whatsoever he " would," (58) so in the work of the creation he followed no external form or model; but contemplating and, as it were, imitating the universal model contained in the divine intelligence, the supreme Architect, with infinite wisdom and power, attributes peculiar to the Divinity, created all things in the beginning: "he spoke and they were made, he commanded and they " were created." (59) The words " heaven" and " earth," include all things which the heavens and the earth contain; for, besides the heavens, which the Prophet called " the work of his fingers," (60) he also gave to the sun its brilliancy, and to the moon and stars their beauty: and that they may be " for " signs and for seasons, for days and for years," (61) he so ordered the celestial bodies in a certain and uniform course, that nothing varies more than their continual revolution, yet nothing more fixed than that variety. Creation of Moreover, he created from nothing spiritual nature, and an- Angels. ge]s innumerable to serve and to minister to him; and these he replenished and adorned with the admirable gifts of his grace and power. That the devil and his associates, the rebel angels, were gifted at their creation with grace, clearly follows from these words of the Sacred Scriptures: " The dsvil stood not in " the truth;" (62) on which subject St. Augustine says, " In " creating the angels he endowed them with good will, that is, " with pure love, by which they adhere to him, at once giving "them existence, and adorning them with rrace." (63) Hence we are to believe that the angels were never without "good " will," that is, the love of God. As to their knowledge we have this testimony of the Holy Scripture: " Thou, Lord, my

',' 33) Aug. lib. 12. de Civit. Dei, cap. 9.

"King, art wise according to the wisdom of an Angel of God, " to understand all things upon earth.1' (64) Finally, David ascribes power to them in these words: " Mighty in strength, " executing his word:" (65; and on this account, they are often called in Scripture the u powers" and " the hosts of heaven." But although they were all endowed with celestial gifts, very Their fal1many, however, having rebelled against God, their Father and Creator, were hurled from the mansions of bliss, and shut up in the dark dungeons of hell, there to suffer for eternity the punishment of their pride. Speaking of them, the Prince of the Apostles says: "He spared not the angels that sinned; but de- " livered them, drawn down by infernal ropes, to the lower " hell, into torments, to be reserved unto judgment." (66)

The earth, also, God commanded to stand in the midst of Creation of the world, rooted in its own foundation, and "made the moun- " tains to ascend, and the plains to descend into the place which " he had founded for them." That the waters should not inundate the earth, " he has set abound which they shall not pass " over, neither shall they return to cover the earth." (67) He next not only clothed and adorned it with trees, and every variety of herb and flower, but filled it, as he had already filled the air and water, with innumerable sorts of living creatures.

Lastly, he formed man from the slime of the earth, immor- Of Man. tal and impassible, not however by the strength of nature, but by the bounty of God. His soul he created to his own image and likeness; gifted him with free will, and tempered all his motions and appetites, so as to subject them, at all times, to the dictate of reason. He then added the invaluable gift of original righteousness, and next gave him dominion over all other animals — By referring to the sacred history of Genesis the pastor will make himself familiar with these things for the instruction of the faithful.

What we have said, then, of the creation of the universe, is God the to be understood as conveyed by the words " heaven and earth," ^eator and is thus briefly set forth by the prophet : " Thine are the " heavens, and thine is the earth : the world and the fulness " thereof thou hast founded :" (68) and still more briefly by

fhe Fathers of the Council of Nice, who added in their Creed these words, " of all things visible and invisible." Whatever exists in the universe, and was created by God, either falls under the senses, and is included in the word " visible," or is an object of perception to the mind, and is expressed by the word " invisible." ™ve?aend We are not' hovvever> to understand that the works of God, governor, when once created could continue to exist unsupported by his omnipotence: as they derive existence from his supreme power, wisdom and goodness, so, unless preserved continually by his superintending providence, and by the same power which produced them, they would instantly return into their original nothing. This the Scriptures declare, when they say, " How " could any thing endure, if thou wouldstnot? or be preserved, " if not called by thee?" (69) But not only does God protect and govern all things by his providence; but also by an internal virtue impels to motion and action whatever moves and acts, and this in such a manner, as that although he excludes not, he yet prevents the agency of secondary causes. His invisible influence extends to all things, and, as the wise man says; "It " reacheth from end to end, mightily, and ordereth all things " sweetly." (70) This is the reason why the Apostle, announcing to the Athenians the God whom not knowing they adored, said: " He is not far from every one of us: for in him " we live and move and have our being." (7 1 ) the work of ^et ^us muc^ sun*ice f°r tne explanation of the first article the three of the Creed: it may not, however, be unnecessary to add that the creation is the common work of the three Persons of the Holy and undivided Trinity — of the Father, whom, according to the doctrine of the Apostles, we here declare to be " Crea- "tor of heaven and earth; — of the Son, of whom the Scrip- " ture says, " all things were made by him;" (72) and of the Holy Ghost, of whom it is written, " The Spirit of God mov- " ed over the waters;" (73) and again, " By the word of the " Lord the heavens were established; and all the power of " them by the Spirit of his mouth." (74)

ARTICLE II.

" AND IN JESUS CHRIST, HIS ONLY SON, OUR LORD.

That wonderful and superabundant are the blessings which The great flow to the human race, from the belief and profession of this ^hichlow article we learn from these words of St. John: " Whosoever from the " shall confess that Jesus is the son of God, God abideth in him profession " and he in God:" (1) and also from the words of Christ our °fe*his arti" Lord, proclaiming the Prince of the Apostles blessed for the confession of this truth: " Blessed art thou, Simon Bar-Jona: " for flesh and blood have not revealed it to thee, but my Fa- " ther who is in heaven." (2) This sublime truth is the most firm basis of our salvation and redemption.

But as the fruit of these admirable blessings is best known by How we considering the ruin brought on man, by his fall from that most "estimate happy state in which God had placed our first parents, let the their value pastor be particularly careful to make known to the faithful, the cause of this common misery and universal calamity. When Adam had departed from the obedience due to God, and had violated the prohibition, " of every tree of Paradise thou shalt " eat; but of the tree of knowledge of good and evil, thou shalt " not eat, for in what day soever thou shalt eat it, thou shalt " die the death," (3) he fell into the extreme misery of losing the sanctity and righteousness in which he was created; and of becoming subject to all those other evils, which are detailed more at large by the holy Council of Trent. (4) The pastor, therefore, will not omit to remind the faithful, that the guilt and punishment of original sin were not confined to Adam, but justly descended from him, as from their source and cause, to all posterity. The human race, having fallen from their elevated dignity, no power of men or angels could raise them from

their fallen condition, and replace them in their primitive state. To remedy the evil, and repair the loss, it became necessary that the Son of God, whose merits are infinite, clothed in the weakness of our flesh, should remove the infinite weight of sin, and reconcile us to God in his blood. Belief and The belief and profession of this our redemption, as God

of this arti- declared from the beginning, are now, and always have been, jJjJtaS necessary to salvation. In the sentence of condemnation, provation. nounced against the human race immediately after the sin of Adam, the hope of redemption was held out in these words, which denounced to the devil, the loss which he was to sustain The pro- \>y man's redemption: " I will put enmities between thee and Saviour. " the woman, and thy seed and her seed: she shall crush thy " head, and thou shalt lie in wait for her heel." (5) The same promise he again often confirmed, and more distinctly signified his counsels to those chiefly whom he desired to make special objects of his predilection: amongst others to the patriarch Abraham, to whom he often declared this mystery, but then more explicitly when, in obedience to God's command, he was prepared to sacrifice his son Isaac: " Because," says he, " thou " hast done this thing, and hast not spared thy only begotten " son for my sake; I will bless thee and I will multiply thy " seed, as the stars of heaven, and as the sand that is by the sea " shore. Thy seed shall possess the gates of their enemies, " and in thy seed shall all the nations of the earth be blessed; " because thou hast obeyed my voice." (6) From these words it was easy to infer that he, who was to deliver mankind from the ruthless tyranny of Satan, was to be descended from Abraham; and that, whilst he was the Son of God, he was to be born of Same pro- the seed of Abraham according to the flesh. Not long after to newed6" Preserve tne memory of this promise, he renewed the same covenant with Jacob, the grandson of Abraham. When in a vision Jacob saw a ladder standing on the earth, and its top reaching to heaven, and the angels of God ascending and descending by it, (7) he also heard the Lord saying to him, as the Scripture testifies: "lam the Lord God of Abraham thy Father, and the " God of Isaac; the land, wherein thou sleepest, I will give to " thee and to thy seed; and thy seed shall be as the dust of the

" earth: thou shalt spread abroad to the west and to the east, " and to the north and to the south; and in thee and thy seed " all the nations of the earth shall be blessed." (8) Nor did God cease afterwards to excite in the posterity of Abraham, and in many others, the hope of a Saviour, by renewing the recollection of the same promise; for, after the establishment of the Jewish republic and religion, it became better known to his people. Many types signified, and prophets foretold the numerous and invaluable blessings which our Redeemer, Christ Jesus, was to bring to mankind. And, indeed, the prophets, whose minds were illumined with light from above, foretold the birth of the Son of God, the wondrous works which he wrought whilst on earth, his doctrine, manners, kindred, death, resurrection, and the other mysterious circumstances regarding him; (9) and all these as graphically as if they were passing before their eyes. With the exception of the time only, we can discover no difference between the predictions of the prophets, and the preaching of the apostles, between the faith of the ancient patriarchs, and that of Christians — But, we are now to speak of the several parts of this Article.

" Jesus"] This is the proper name of the man-God, and sig- Meaning nifies Saviour; a name given him not accidentally, or by the name jejudgment or will of man, but by the counsel and command ofsu®' b? , God. For the angel announced to Mary his mother: " Behold why given. " thou shalt conceive in thy womb and shalt bring forth a Son, "and thou shalt call his name Jesus.'1 (10) He afterwards not only commanded Joseph, who was espoused to the Virgin, to call the child by that name, but also declared the reason why he should be so called: " Joseph," says he, " Son of David, " fear not to take Mary thy wife, for that which is born in her " is of the Holy Ghost; and she shall bring forth a Son, and "thou shalt call his name Jesus, for he shall save his people "from their sins." (11) In the Sacred Scriptures we meet with many who were called by this name — the son of Nave, for instance, who succeeded Moses, and, by special privilege denied to Moses, conducted into the land of promise the people whom Moses had delivered from Egypt; (12) and Josedech,

whose father was a priest. (13) But how much more appropriately shall we not deem this name given to him, who gave light and liberty and salvation, not to one people only, but to all men, of all ages — to men oppressed, not by famine, or Egyptian, or Babylonish bondage, but sitting in the shadow of death and fettered by sin, and rivetted in the galling chains of the devil— to him who purchased for them a right to the inheritance of heaven, and reconciled them to God the Father. In those men who were designated by the same name, we recognize so many types of Christ our Lord, by whom these blessings were accumulated on the human race. All other names, which were predicted to be given by divine appointment to the Son of God, are to be referred to this one name Jesus, (14) for whilst they partially glanced at the salvation which he was to purchase for us, this fully embraced the universal salvation of the human race. The name " Christ"] To the name "Jesus" is also added that of why added " Christ," which signifies " the anointed;" a name expressive Jesus honor and office, and not peculiar to one thing only, but common to many; for, in the old law priests and kings, whom God, on account of the dignity of their office, commanded to be anointed, were called Christs: (15) — Priests, because they commend the people to God by unceasing prayer, offer sacrifice to him and deprecate his wrath. — Kings, because they are intrusted with the government of the people, and to them principally belong the authority of the law, the protection of innocence, and the punishment of guilt. As, therefore, both seem to represent the majesty of God on earth, those who were appointed to the royal or sacerdotal office, were anointed with oil. (16) Prophets also were usually anointed, who, as the interpreters and ambassadors of the immortal God, unfolded to us the secrets of heaven, and by salutary precepts, and the prediction of future events, exhorted to amendment of life. When Jesus Christ our Saviour came into the world, he assumed these three characters of Prophet, Priest and King, and is, therefore, called " Christ," having been anointed for the discharge of these functions, not. by mortal hand, or with earthly ointment, but by

(13) Agg. i. 1. (14) Is. vii. 14. viii. S. ix. 6. Jer. xxiii. 6.

the power of his heavenly Father, and with a spiritual oil; for the plenitude of the Holy Spirit, and a more copious effusion of all gifts, than any created being is capable of receiving, were poured into his soul. This the prophet clearly indicates, when he addresses the Redeemer in these words: " Thou hast lov- " ed justice, and hatest iniquity; therefore God, thy God, " hath anointed thee with the oil of gladness before thy fellows." (17) The same is also more explicitly declared by the pro phet Isaiah: " The Spirit of the Lord," says he, " is upon me, " because the Lord hath anointed me; he hath sent me to preach " to the meek." ( 1 8) Jesus Christ, therefore, Was the great prophet and teacher, (19) from whom we have learned the will of God, and by whom the world has been taught the knowledge of the Father; and the name of Prophet belongs to him preeminently, because all others who were dignified with that name were his disciples, sent principally to announce the coming of that Prophet who was to save all men. Christ was also a Priest, not, indeed of the tribe of Levi, as were the priests of the old law, but of that of which the prophet David sang: " Thou art a Priest for ever according to the order of Melchi- " sedech." (20) This subject the Apostle fully and accurately developes in his epistle to the Hebrews. (21) Christ not only as God, but as man, we also acknowledge to be a King: of him the angel testifies: " He shall reign in the house of Jacob for- " ever, and of his kingdom there shall be no end." (22) This kingdom of Christ is spiritual and eternal, begun on earth, but perfected in heaven: and, indeed, he discharges by his admirable providence the duties of King towards his Church, governing and protecting her against the open violence and covert designs of her enemies, imparting to her not only holiness and righteousness, but also power and strength to persevere. But, although the good and the bad are contained within the limits of this kingdom, and thus all by right belong to it; yet those, who, in conformity with his commands, lead unsullied and innocent lives, experience, beyond all others, the sovereign goodness and beneficence of our King. Although descended from the most illustrious race of kings, he obtained not this kingdom

by hereditary or other human right, but because God bestowed on him as man all the power, dignity and majesty of which human nature is susceptible. To him, therefore, God delivered the government of the whole world, and to this his sovereignty, which has already commenced, all things shall be made fully and entirely subject on the day of judgment. (23) Christ the a His only Son"] In these words, mysteries more exalted God, and with regard to Jesus are proposed to the faithful, as objects of true God. fae\r belief and contemplation — that he is the Son of God, and true God, as is the Father who begot him from eternity. We also confess that he is the second person of the Blessed Trinity, equal in all things to the Father and the Holy Ghost; for, in the divine Persons nothing unequal or unlike should exist, or even be imagined to exist; whereas we acknowledge the essence, will and power of all to be one; a truth clearly revealed in many of the oracles of inspiration, and sublimely announced in this testimony of St. John: " In the beginning was the Word, " and the Word was God, and the Word was with God." (24) His eternal But, when we are told that Jesus is the Son of God, we are

generation not to un(jerstand any thing earthly or mortal of his birth; but mcompre- .

hensible. are firmly to believe, and piously to adore that birth by which, from all eternity, the Father begot the Son; a mystery which reason cannot fully conceive or comprehend, and at the contemplation of which, overwhelmed, as it were, with admiration, we should exclaim with the prophet: " Who shall declare his " generation?" (25) On this point, then, we are to believe, that the Son is of the same nature, of the same power and wisdom with the Father; as we more fully profess in these words of the Nicene Creed: " And in Jesus Christ, his only begotten Son, born of the Father before all ages, God of God, true " God of true God, begotten, not made, consubstantial to the "Father, by whom all things were made." Amongst the different comparisons employed to elucidate the mode and manner of this eternal generation, that which is borrowed from thought seems to come nearest to its illustration; hence St. John calls the Son " the word:" (26) for as the mind, in some sort looking into and understanding itself, forms an image of itself, which Theologians express by the term " word;" so

God, as far, however, as we may compare human things to divine, understanding himself, begets the eternal Word. Better, however, to contemplate what faith proposes, and, in the sincerity of our souls, believe and confess that Jesus Christ is true God and true man— as God, begotten of the Father before all ages — as man, born in time of Mary, his virgin mother. Whilst we thus acknowledge his twofold nativity, we believe him to be one Son, because his divine and human natures meet Hi3 unity in one person. As to his divine generation he has no brethren or ° Person* coheirs, being the only begotten Son of the Father, whilst we mortals are the work of his hands: but, if we consider his birth as man, he not only calls many by the name of brethren, but regards them as brethren — they are those who, by faith, have received Christ the Lord, and who really, and by works of charity, approve the faith which they internally profess; and hence it is that he is called by the Apostle: " the first " born amongst many brethren." (27)

" Our Lord"] Of our Saviour many things are recorded in Why called Scripture, some of which clearly apply to him as God, and names"6 some as man; because from his different natures he received the different properties which belong to each. Hence, we say with truth, that Christ is Almighty, Eternal, Infinite, and these attributes he has from his divine nature: again, we say of him that he suffered, died, and rose again, which manifestly are properties compatible only wTith his human nature.

Besides these, there are others common to both natures; as why called when in this article of the Creed, we say: "our Lord;" a'ourLord'' name strictly applicable to both. As he is eternal as well as the Father, so is he Lord of all things equallyjwith the Father; and, as he and the Father are not, the one, one God, and the other, another God; but one and the same God: so likewise he and the Father are not, the one, one Lord, and the other, another Lord. As man, he is also, for many reasons appropriately called "our Lord;" and first, because he is our Redeemer, who delivered us from sin. This is the doctrine of St. Paul: " He humbled himself," says the Apostle, "becom- " ing obedient under death; even to the death of the cross: for " Which cause God hath also exalted him, and hath given him

11 a name that is above all names, that at the name of Jesus ev- "ery knee should bend, of those that are in heaven, on earth " and under the earth; and that every tongue should confess " that the Lord Jesus Christ is in the glory of God the Father.1' (28) And of himself he says, after his resurrection : " All "power is given me in heaven and on earth." (29) He is, also, called " Lord," because in one person both natures, the human and divine, are united ; and though he had not died for us, he had yet deserved, by this admirable union, to be constituted common Lord of all created things, particularly of those who, in all the fervor of their souls, obey and serve him. Matter for It remains, therefore, that the pastor exhort the faithful to supplied by the consideration of these his claims to the title of " our Lord ;" thisArticle. j^^ we^ who, taking our name from him are called Christians, and who cannot be ignorant of the extent of his favors, particularly in having enabled us to understand all these things by faith, may know the strict obligation we, above all others, are under, of devoting and consecrating ourselves for ever, like faithful servants, to our Redeemer and our Lord. This we promised when, at the baptismal font, we were initiated and introduced into the Church of God ; for we then declared that we renounced the devil and the world, and gave ourselves unreservedly to Jesus Christ. But if, to be enrolled as soldiers of Christ, we consecrated ourselves by so holy and solemn a profession to our Lord, what punishments should we not deserve were we, after our entrance into the Church, and after having known the will and laws of God, and received the grace of the sacraments, to form our lives upon the laws and maxims of the world and the devil ; and if, when cleansed in the waters of baptism, we had pledged our fidelity to the world and to the devil, and not to Christ our Lord and Saviour ? What heart so cold as not to be inflamed with love by the benevolence and benificence exercised towards us by so great a Lord, who, though holding us in his power and dominion, as slaves ransomed by his blood, yet embraces us with such ardent love as to call us not servants, but friends and brethren ?" (30) This, assuredly, supplies the most just and, perhaps, the strongest claim to induce us always to acknowledge, venerate and adore him as our Lord.

ARTICLE III.

WHO WAS CONCEIVED OF THE HOLY GHOST, BORN OF THE VIRGIN MARY."

J _ tion of the

what has been said in the preceding Article, the faithful are giv- Son of en to understand that, in delivering us from the relentless tyranny of Satan, God has conferred a singular and invaluable blessing on the human race: but, if we place before our eyes the economy of redemption, in it the goodness and beneficence of God shine forth with incomparable splendor and magnificence. The pastor, then, will enter on the exposition of this third Article, by developing the grandeur of this mystery, which the Sacred Scriptures very frequently propose to our consideration as the principal source of our eternal salvation. Its meaning he will teach to be, that we believe and confess that the same Jesus Christ, our only Lord, the Son of God, when he assumed human flesh for us in the womb of the Virgin, was not conceived, like other men, from the seed of man, but in a manner transcending the order of nature, that is, by the power of the Holy Ghost; (1) so that the same person, remaining God as he was from eternity, became man, (2) what he was not before. That such is the meaning of these words is clear from the confession of the Holy Council of Constantinople, which says: " who for " us men, and for our salvation, came down from heaven, and " became incarnate by the Holy Ghost of the Virgin Mary, and " was made man." The same truth we also find unfolded by St. John the Evangelist, who imbibed from the bosom of the Saviour himself, the knowledge of this most profound mystery. When he had thus declared the nature of the divine Word: " In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God,

" and the Word was God," he concludes, " And the Word was " made flesh, and dwelt amongst us." (3) Thus, " the Word," which is a person of the divine nature, assumed human nature in such a manner that the person of both natures is one and the same: and hence this admirable union preserved the actions and properties of both natures, and, as we read in St. Leo, that great pontiff, " The lowliness of the inferior was not consumed " in the glory of the superior, nor did the assumption of the in- " ferior diminish the glory of the superior." (4) The work But as an explanation of the words, in which this Article is but of the expressed, is not to be omitted, the Pastor will teach that when

sonseofthe we say tliat the ^on °^ Gocl was conceive(^ ^J tne P°wer of the Trinity. Holy Ghost, we do not mean that this Person alone of the Holy Trinity accomplished the mystery of the incarnation. Although the Son alone assumed human nature, yet all the Persons of the Trinity, the Father, the Son, and the Holy Ghost, were authors of this mystery. It is a principle of Christian faith, that whatever God does extrinsically, is common to the three Persons, and that one neither does more than, nor acts without another. But that one emanates from another cannot be common to all; for the Son is begotten of the Father only, the Holy Ghost proceeds from the Father and the Son: but whatever proceeds from them extrinsically, is the work of the three Persons without difference of any sort, and of this latter description is the incarnation of the Son of God. Why spe- Of those things, notwithstanding, that are common to all, the tributed to Sacred Scriptures often attribute some to one person, some to Ghos^°ly anotner: tllus5 to tne Father they attribute power over all things; to the Son, wisdom; to the Holy Ghost love; and hence, as the mystery of the incarnation manifests the singular and boundless love of God towards us, it is, therefore, in some sort peculiarly attributed to the Holy Ghost. In what In this mystery we perceive that some things were done

in what which transcend the order of nature, some by the power of na-

Bupematu- ture. thu^ jn bel;eving tnat the body of Christ was formed from

the most pure blood of his Virgin Mother, we acknowledge

the operation of human nature, this being a law common to the

formation of all human bodies. But what surpasses the order

(3) John, i. 1-14. (4) Serin, i. de Nat.

of nature and human comprehension is, that, as soon as the Blessed Virgin assented to the announcement of the angel in these words, " Behold the handmaid of the Lord, be it done " unto me according to thy word," (5) the most sacred body of Christ was immediately formed, and to it was united a rational soul; and thus, in the same instant of time, he was perfect God and perfect man. That this was the astonishing and admirable work of the Holy Ghost cannot be doubted; for according to the order of nature, no body, unless after a certain period of time, can be animated with a human soul.

Again, and it should overwhelm us with astonishment: as The Divisoon as the soul of Christ was united to his body, the Divinity to the hubecame united to both; and thus at the same time his body christf ° was formed and animated, and the Divinity united to body and soul. Hence, at the same instant, he was perfect God and perfect man, and the most Holy Virgin, having at the same TheVirgin moment, conceived God and man, is truly and properly, called ^uly ™°- Mother of God and man. This, the Angel signified to her God and when he said: " Behold, thou shalt conceive in thy womb, and man" " shalt bring forth a Son, and thou shalt call his name Jesus; " he shall be great, and shall be called the Son of the Most "High." (6) The event verified the prophecy of Isaiah: " Behold a virgin shall conceive, and bring forth a Son." (7) Elizabeth also, when filled with the Holy Ghost, she understood the conception of the Son of God, declared the same truth in these words: " Whence is this to me, that the Mother of my " Lord should come to me?" (8) But, as the body of Christ The soul was formed of the pure blood of the immaculate Virgin without of Christ the aid of man, as we have already said, and by the sole ope- edfromhis ration of the Holy Ghost; so also, at the moment of his con- conception ception, his soul was replenished with an overflowing fulness grace, of the Spirit of God, and a superabundance of all graces; for God gave not to him, as to others adorned with grace and holiness, his Spirit by measure, as St. John testifies; (9) but poured into his soul the plenitude of all graces so abundantly, that "of his fulness we have all received." (10)

Although possessing that Spirit by which holy men attained Christ the the adoption of sons of God, he cannot, however, be called the j^°

'

not by adopted Son of God; for being the Son of God by nature, the grace, or name of adoption can, on no account, be deemed applicable to him.

These heads comprise the substance of what appeared to us

to demand explanation regarding the admirable mystery of the

How we conception. To reap from them abundant fruit to salvation,

fmitunu? ^e ^tn^u^ should, particularly recall to their recollection, and

salvation frequently reflect, that it is God who assumed human flesh : but

belief of that the manner of its assumption transcends the limits of our t lsartlcle-comprehension, not t0 say 0f our powers of expression: finally, that he vouchsafed to become man, in order that we mortals may be regenerated children of God. When to these subjects, they shall have given mature consideration, let them, in the humility of faith, believe and adore all the mysteries contained in this Article, nor indulge a curious inquisitiveness by investigating and scrutinizing them — an attempt scarcely ever unattended with danger. Christ " Born of the Virgin Mary"] These words comprise

Virgin. another part of this Article of the Creed, in the exposition of which the pastor should exercise considerable diligence; because the faithful are bound to believe, that Christ our Lord was not only conceived by the power of the Holy Ghost, but was also " born of the Virgin Mary." The words of the Angel, who first announced the happy tidings to the world, declare with what transports of joy, and emotions of delight, the belief of this mystery should be meditated by us: " Behold," says he, "I bring you good tidings of great joy, that shall be "to all the people." (11) The song chanted by the heavenly host clearly conveys the same sentiments: "Glory," say they, " to God in the highest: and on earth, peace to men of good " will." (12) Hence, also, began the fulfilment of the splendid promise made by Almighty God to Abraham, that in his seed all the nations of the earth should be blessed; (13) for JSiary, whom we truly proclaim and venerate as Mother of God, because she brought forth him who is, at once, God and man, was descended from King David.(14) But as the conception itself transcends the order of nature, so also, the birth of the man-God presents to our contemplation nothing but what is divine. (11) Luke, ii. 10. (12) Luke, ii. 14. (13) Gen. xxii. 18. ( 14) Math. i. 1, 6

Besides, a circumstance wonderful beyond expression or con- Manner of ception, he is born of his Mother without any diminution of her maternal virginity; and as he afterwards went forth from the sepulchre whilst it was closed and sealed, and entered the room in which his disciples were assembled, " the doors being shut;" (15) or, not to depart from natural events which we witness every day, as the rays of the sun penetrate, without breaking or injuring, in the least, the substance of glass; after a like, but more incomprehensible manner, did Jesus Christ come forth from his mother's womb without injury to her maternal virginity, which, immaculate and perpetual, forms the just theme of our eulogy. This was the work of the Holy Ghost, who, at the conception and birth of the Son, so favoured the Virgin Mother as to impart to her fecundity, and yet preserve inviolate her perpetual virginity.

The Apostles, sometimes, calls Jesus Christ the second ^'lired Adam, and institutes a comparison between him and the first: to Adam, for " as in the first all men die, so in the second all are made Eve.7 " alive;" (16) and as in the natural order, Adam was the father of the human race; so, in the supernatural order, Christ is the author of grace and of glory. The Virgin Mother we may also compare to Eve, making the second Eve, that, I Mary, correspond with the first; as we have already shown that the second Adam, that is, Christ, corresponds with the first Adam. By believing the serpent, Eve entailed malediction and death on mankind; (17) and Mary, by believing the Angel, became the instrument of the divine goodness in bringing life and benediction to the human race. (18) From Eve we are born children of wrath; from Mary we have received Jesus Christ, and through him are regenerated children of grace. To Eve it was said: " In sorrow shalt thou bring forth children:" (19) Mary was exempt from this law, for preserving her virginal integrity inviolate, she brought forth Jesus the Son of God, without experiencing, as we have already said, any sense of pain.

The mysteries of this admirable conception and nativity be- T7Pes and ing, therefore, so great and so numerous, it accorded with the h^concepviews of Divine Providence to signify them by many types and j™n ""'

ativity.

prophesies. Hence the Holy Fathers understood many things which we meet in the Sacred Scriptures to relate to them, particularly that gate of the sanctuary which Ezekielsaw closed; (20) the stone cut out of the mountain without hands, which became a great mountain and filled the universe; (21) the rod of Aaron, which alone budded of all the rods of the princes of Israel; (22) and the bush which Moses saw burn without being consumed. (23) The holy Evangelist describes in detail the history of the birth of Christ, (24) and, as the Pastor can easily recur to the Sacred Volume, it is unnecessary for us to say more on the subject The lea- But he should labour to impress deeply on the minds and thi^mys'te- nearts °f ^e faithful these mysteries, " which were written for ry conveys, "our instruction:" (25) first, that by the commemoration of so great a benefit they may make some return of gratitude to God, its author; and next, in order to place before their eyes, as a model for imitation, this striking and singular example of humility. What can be more useful, what better calculated to subdue the pride and haughtiness of the human heart, than to reflect, frequently, that God humbles himself in such a manner as to assume our frailty and weakness, in order to communicate to us his grace and glory — that God becomes man, and that he " at whose nod," — to use the words of Scripture, " the pillars " of heaven fear and tremble," (26) bows his supreme and infinite majesty to minister to man — that he whom the angels adore in heaven is born on earth! ! When such is the goodness of God towards us, what, I ask, what should we not do to testify our obedience to his will? With what promptitude and alacrity should we not love, embrace and perform all the duties of Christian humility? The faithful should also know the salutary lessons which Christ teaches at his birth, before he opens his divine lips; — he is born in poverty, — he is born a stranger under a roof not his own, — he is born in a lonely crib — he is born in the depth of winter! These circumstances, which attend the birth of the man-God, are thus recorded by St. Luke: " And it " came to pass, that, when they were there, her days were ac- " complished that, she should be delivered, and she brought forth

" her first-born son and wrapped him up in swaddling clothes, " and laid him in a manger, because there was no room for them "• in the inn." (27) Could the Evangelist comprehend under more humble terms the majesty and glory that filled the heavens and the earth? He does not say, there was no room in the inn, but " there was no room for him who says: mine is the earth "and the fulness thereof;" (28) and this destitution of the man- God another Evangelist records in these words, " He came un- " to his own, and his own received him not." (29)

When the faithful have placed these things before their eyes, j£ ^wfhit let them also reflect, that God condescended to assume the confers on lowliness and frailty of our flesh in order to exalt man to the highest degree of dignity; for this single reflection alone supplies sufficient proof of the exalted dignity of man conferred on him by the divine bounty — that he who is true and perfect God vouchsafed to become man; so that we may now glory that the Son of God is bone of our bone, and flesh of our flesh, a privilege not given to angels, " for no where," says the Apostle, " doth he take hold of the angels; but of the seed of Abraham " he taketh hold." (30)

We must also take care, that these singular blessings rise not The influin judgment against us; that, as at Bethlehem, the place of his it should nativity, he was denied a dwelling; so also, now that he is no J^fife™ longer born in human flesh, he be not denied a dwelling in our hearts, in which he may be spiritually born: for, through an earnest desire for our salvation, this is the object of his most anxious solicitude. As then, by the power of the Holy Ghost, and in a manner superior to the order of nature, he was made man and was born, was holy and even holiness itself; so does it become our duty " to be born, not of blood nor of the will of " flesh, but of God;" (31) to walk as new creatures in newness of spirit; (32) and to preserve that holiness and purity of soul that become men regenerated by the Spirit of God. (33) Thus shall we reflect some faint image of the holy conception and nativity of the Son of God, which are the objects of our firm faith, and believing which we revere and adore " in a " mystery, the wisdom of God which was hidden." (34)

ARTICLE IV.

SUFFERED UNDER PONTIUS PILATE, WAS CRUCIFIED, DEAD, AND BURIED."

knowledge How necessary the knowledge of this Article, and how assiduand fre- ous the pastor should be in stirring up, in the minds of the faithquent ex- x ° r'

position of ful, the frequent recollection of our Lord's passion, we learn tusartlce- from the Apostle when he says, that he knows nothing but Christ, and him crucified. (1) In illustrating this subject, therefore, the greatest care and pains should be taken by the pastor, that the faithful, excited by the remembrance of so great a benefit, may be entirely devoted to the contemplation of the goodness and love of God towards us. What this The first part of this Article (of the second we shall treat

part of the

article pro- hereafter,) proposes to our belief, that when Pontius Pilate goouTtaHef. verned tne province of Judea, under Tiberius Caesar, Christ the Lord was nailed to a cross. Having been seized as a malefactor, mocked, outraged, and tortured, in various forms, he was finally crucified. Nor can it be a matter of doubt that his soul, as to its inferior part, was not insensible to these torments; for as he really assumed human nature, it is a necessary consequence that he really, and in his soul, experienced a most acute sense of pain. Hence these words of the Saviour: " My soul " is sorrowful, even unto death." (2) Although human nature was united to the divine person, he felt the bitterness of his passion as acutely as if no such union had existed; because in the one person of Jesus Christ were preserved the properties of both natures, human and divine; and, therefore, what was passible and mortal remained passible and mortal; and again,

what was impassible and immortal, that is his divine nature, continued impassible and immortal.

But, if we find it here recorded with such historical minute- ^hy £\e

7 _ time of the

ness, that Jesus Christ suffered when Pilate was procurator of passion is Judea, (3) the pastor will explain the reason — it is, that by fix- recorded. ing the time, as the Apostle does, in the sixth chapter of his first Epistle to Timothy, so important and so necessary an event may be ascertained by all with greater certainty; and to show that the event verified the prediction of the Saviour: " They " shall deliver him to the Gentiles, to be mocked, and scourged, and crucified." (4)

That he suffered the particular death of the cross is also to JJStdied be traced to the economy of the divine councils, " that whence on a cross, "death came, thence life might arise." The serpent, which overcame our first parents by the fruit of the tree, was himself overcome by Christ on the wood of the cross. Many reasons, which the Holy Fathers have evolved in detail, may be adduced to show the congruity of the Saviour's having suffered the death of the cross, rather than any other; but enough that the faithful be informed by the pastor, that that species of death, because confessedly the most ignominious and humiliating, was chosen by the Saviour, as most consonant, and best suited to the plan of redemption; for not only amongst the Gentiles was the death of the cross deemed execrable and loaded with disgrace and infamy, but also amongst the Jews; for in the law of Moses, the man is pronounced " accursed, who hangeth on a " tree." (5)

But the historical part of this Article, which has been narra- Historical ted by the Holy Evangelists with the most minute exactness, is Article not not to be omitted by the pastor; in order that the faithful may *° be oimt" be familiarly acquainted with, at least, the principal heads of this mystery, which are of more immediate necessity to confirm the truth of our faith. For on this Article, as on a sort of foundation, rest the religion and faith of Christians, and on this foundation, when once laid, the superstructure rises with perfect security. If any other truth of Christianity presents difficulties to the mind of man, the mystery of the cross must, assuredly, be considered to present still greater difficulties. We

can scarcely be brought to think that our salvation depends on the cross, and on him, who for us, was fastened to its wood. But in this, as the Apostle says, we may admire the supreme wisdom of divine Providence; " for seeing that in the wisdom "of God, the world by wisdom knew not God: it pleasethGod " by the foolishness of our preaching, to save them that be- " lieve." (6) We are not, therefore, to be surprised, that the Prophets, before the coming of Christ, and the Apostles after his death and resurrection, laboured so industriously to convince mankind that he was the Redeemer of the world, and to bring them under the power and obedience of him wTho was crucified. Figures Knowing, therefore, that nothing is so far above the reach phecies of °f human reason as the mystery of the cross, Almighty God, the passion immediately from the fall of Adam, ceased not, both by figures of the Sa- and by the oracles of the Prophets, to signify the death by vloun which his son was to die. Not to dwell on these figures, Abel who fell a victim to the envy of his brother, (7) Isaac who was commanded to be offered in sacrifice, (8) the lamb immolated by the Jews on their departure from Egypt, (9) and also the brazen serpent lifted up by Moses in the desert, (10) were all figures of the passion and death of Christ the Lord. That this event was foretold by many Prophets, is a fact too well known to require developement here. Not to speak of David, whose Psalms embrace the principal mysteries of redemption, (11) the oracles of Isaias are so clear and graphic, (12) that he may be said rather to have recorded a past, than predicted a future event. (13) Christreal- Dead and buried"] When explaining these words, the pastor will propose to the belief of the faithful, that Jesus Christ, after his crucifixion, was really dead and buried. It is not without just reason that this is proposed as a separate and distinct object of belief: there were some who denied his death upon the cross. The Apostles, therefore, were justly of opinion, that to such an error should be opposed the doctrine of faith contained in this Article of the Creed, the truth of which is placed beyond the possibility of doubt, by the concurring

(!3) Flier. Epist. ad Paulin. ante finem.

testimony of all the Evangelists, who record that Jesus " yield- " ed up the ghost." (14) Moreover, as Christ was true and perfect man, he, of course, was, also, capable of dying, and death takes place by a separation of the soul from the body. When, therefore, we say that Jesus died, we mean that his soul was disunited from his body; not that his divinity was so separated. On the contrary, we firmly believe and profess **1S dVfimthat, when his soul was dissociated from his body, his divinity to his soul continued always united both to his body in the sepulchre, and w'hiist'seto his soul in Limbo. It became the Son of God to die, " that parted by

, death.

" through death he might destroy him who had the empire " of death, that is to say, the devil; and might deliver them, " who through fear of death, were all their life-time subject "to servitude." (15)

It was the peculiar privilege of the Redeemer to have died His death when he himself decreed to die, and to have died, not so much vo un ary' by external violence, as by internal assent: not only his death but also its time and place were ordained by him, as we learn from these words of Isaias: " He was offered because it was " his own will." (16) The Redeemer, before his passion, declared the same of himself: " I lay down my life," says he, " that I may take it again. No man taketh it away from me; " but I lay it down of myself, and I have power to lay it down; "and I have power to take it again." (17) As to time and place, when Herod insidiously sought the life of the Saviour, he said: " Go, and tell that fox: behold I cast out devils, and " perform cures this day and to-morrow, and the third day I " am consummated. But yet I must walk this day, and to-mor- " row, and the day following, because it cannot be that a prophet perish out of Jerusalem." (18) He, therefore, offered himself not involuntarily or by external coaction; but of his own free will. Going to meet his enemies, he said, " I am he;" (19) and all the punishments which injustice and cruelty inflicted on him he endured voluntarily.

When we meditate on the sufferings and torments of the Re- and, theredeemer, nothing is better calculated to excite in our souls, sen- stronger timents of lively gratitude and love, than to reflect that he en- cIaim to

J ° ourgrati-

(14) Mat. xxvii. 50. Mark, xv. 37. Luko, xxiii. 46. John, xix. 30. love.

dured them voluntarily. Were any one to endure, by compulsion, every species of suffering, for our sake, we should deem his claims to our gratitude very doubtful; but were he to endure death freely, and for our sake only, having had it in his power to avoid it; this indeed is a favour so overwhelming, as to deprive even the most grateful heart, not only of the power of returning due thanks, but even of adequately feeling the extent of the obligation. We may hence form an idea of the transcendant and intense love of Jesus Christ towards us, and of his divine and boundless claims to our gratitude. Why the But if, when we confess that he was buried, we make this, as

hed" is it were, a distinct part of the Article, it is not because it pre- ^Uii^ar- sents any difficulty which is not implied in what we have said tide. of his death; for believing, as we do, that Christ died, we can also easily believe that he was buried. The word "buried" was added in the creed, first, that his death may be rendered more certain, for the strongest proof of a person's death is the interment of his body; and, secondly, to render the miracle of his resurrection more authentic and illustrious. It is not, however, our belief, that the body of Christ was alone interred: these words propose, as the principal object of our belief, that God was buried, as, according to the rule of Catholic faith, we also say with the strictest truth, that God was born of a virgin, that God died; for, as the divinity was never separated from his body which was laid in the sepulchre, we truly confess that God was buried. The body As to the place and manner of his burial, what the Evangelincorrupt ists record on these subjects will be found sufficient for all the in ithhjSe" PurPoses °f ^ie pastor's instructions. (20) There are, however, two things which demand particular attention; the one, that the body of Christ was, in no degree, corrupted in the sepulchre, according to the prediction of the Prophet: " Thou wilt Burial,Pas-"not give thy Holy One to see corruption;" (21) the other, deTth,refer and ll regards the several parts of this Article, that burial, pastoChristasgion and also death, apply to Jesus Christ, not as God, but as

man,notas .

God. man: to suffer and die are incidental to human nature only, although they are also attributed to God, because predicated

(20) Mat. xxvii. 60. Mark, xv. 46. Luke, xxiii. 53. John, xix. 38.

with propriety of that person who is, at once, perfect God and perfect man.

When the faithful have once attained the knowledge of these P!gmty of

things, the pastor will next proceed to explain those particulars suffers, of the passion and death of Christ, which may enable them, if not to comprehend, at least to contemplate the infinitude of so stupendous a mystery. And, first, we are to consider who it is who suffers. To declare, or even to conceive in thought, his dignity, is not given to man. — Of him, St. John says, that he is " the Word which was with God:" (22) and the Apostle describes him in these sublime terms: " this is he, whom God " hath appointed heir of all things, by whom also he made the " world; who being the brightness of his glory, and the figure " of his substance, and upholding all things by the word of his " power, making purgation of sins, sitteth on the right hand of " the majesty on high." (23) In a word, Jesus Christ, the man-God, suffers! The Creator suffers for the creature — The Master for the servant — He suffers, by whom the elements, the heavens, men and angels were created, " of whom, " by whom, and in whom, are all things." (24)

It cannot, therefore, be matter of surprise that, whilst he Reflection, agonized under such an accumulation of torments, the whole frame of the universe was convulsed, and, as the Scriptures inform us, " the earth trembled, and the rocks were rent, and " the sun was darkened, and there was darkness all over the " earth." (25) If, then, even mute and inanimate nature sympathised with the sufferings of her dying Lord, let the faithful conceive, if they can, with what torrents of tears they, " the " living stones of the edifice," (26) should evince their sorrow.

The reasons why the Saviour suffered are also to be ex- Reasons plained, that thus the greatness and intensity of the divine Jj^T ¥. love towards us may the more fully appear. Should it then be ]ft reason, asked why the Son of God underwent the torments of his most us. bitter passion, we shall find the principal causes in the hereditary contagion of primeval guilt; in the vices and crimes which have been perpetrated from the beginning of the world to the present day; and in those which shall be perpetrated to the

consummation of time. Tn his death and passion the Son of God contemplated the atonement of all the sins of all ages, with a view to efface them for ever, by offering for them to his Eternal Father, a superabundant satisfaction; and thus the principal cause of his passion will be found in his love of us. Second Besides, to increase the dignity of this mystery, Christ not

atone for only suffered for sinners; but the very authors and ministers of MtuaTsta a11 tlie tormentsne endured were sinners. Of this the Apostle reminds us in these words addressed to the Hebrews: " Think, " diligently, on him who endured such opposition from sinners " against himself; that you be not wearied, fainting in your " minds." (27) In this guilt are involved all those who fall frequently into sin; for, as our sins consigned Christ our Lord to the death of the cross, most certainly, those who wallow in sin and iniquity, as far as depends on them, "crucify to them- " selves again the Son of God, and make a mockery of him." (28) This our guilt takes a deeper die of enormity when contrasted with that of the Jews: according to the testimony of the Apostle, " if they had known it, they never would have crucified " the Lord of Glory:" (29) whilst we, on the contrary, professing to know him, yet denying him by our actions, seem, in some sort, to lay violent hands on him. (30) Christ deli- But that Christ the Lord was also delivered over to death vered over ^y ^e Father and by himself, we learn from these words of

the Father Isaias: " For the wickedness of my people have I struck him;" hUnseff. (W) an<^ a ^t\e before, when, filled with the Spirit of God, he sees the Lord covered with stripes and wounds, the same prophet says: " We all, like sheep, have gone astray, every one " hath turned aside into his own way: and the Lord hath laid " on him the iniquities of us all." (32) But of the Saviour it is written, " if he wrill lay down his life for sin, he shall see a long-lived seed." (33) This the Apostle expresses in language still stronger when, on the other hand, he wishes to show us how confidently we should trust in the boundless mercy and goodness of God: " He that spared not even his own Son," says the Apostle, " but delivered him up for us all, how hath " he not also, with him, given us all things?" (34)

(27) Heb. xii. 3. (28) Heb. vi. 6. (29) 1 Cor. ii. S. (30) Tit. i. 16. (31) Isaias, liii. 8. (32) Isaias, liii. 6. (33) Isaias, liii. 10. (34) Rom. viii. 32.

The next subject of the pastor's instruction is the bitterness Bitterness of the Redeemer's passion. If however we bear in mind thatgion.1 P " his sweat became as drops of blood, trickling down upon the "ground;" (35) and this, at the sole anticipation of the tor- Iments and agony which he was soon after to endure, we must, at once, perceive that his sorrows admitted of no increase; for if, and this sweat of blood proclaims it, the very idea of the impending evils was so overwhelming, what are we to suppose their actual endurance to have been?

That our Lord suffered the most excruciating torments of II. mind and body is but too well ascertained. In the first place, there was no part of his body that did not experience the most agonizing torture — his hands and feet were fastened with nails to the cross — his head was pierced with thorns and smitten with a reed — his faca was befouled with spittle and buffetted with blows — his whole body was covered with stripes — Men m. of all ranks and conditions were also gathered together " against " the Lord and against his Christ." (36) — Jews and Gentiles were the advisers, the authors, the ministers of his passion — Judas betrayed him (37) — Peter denied him (38) — all the rest deserted him (39) — and, whilst he hangs from the instrument of his execution, are we not at a loss which to deplore, his agony or his ignominy — or both? Surely no death more shameful, none more cruel could have been devised than that which was the ordinary punishment of guilty and atrocious malefactors only — a death the tediousness of which aggravated the protraction of its exquisite pain and excruciating torture! His IVagony was increased by the very constitution and frame of his body. Formed by the power of the Holy Ghost, it was more perfect and better organised than the bodies of other men can be, and was, therefore, endowed with a superior susceptibility of pain, and a keener sense of the torments which it endured: and as to his interior anguish of mind, that, too, was no doubt V. extreme: for those amongst the paints who had to endure torments and tortures, were not without consolation from above, which enabled them not only to bear their violence patiently, but, in many instances, to feel, in the very midst of them, elate

with interior joy. " I rejoice," says the Apostle, " in my suf- " ferings for you and fill up those things that are wanting of the " sufferings of Christ, in my flesh for his body, which is the " Church;" (40) and in another place, " I am filled with com- " fort; I exceedingly abound with joy in all our tribulation." (41 ) Christ our Lord tempered with no admixture of sweetness the bitter chalice of his passion; but permitted his human nature to feel as acutely, every species of torment, as if he were only man, and not, also, God. imrs bof8S" The blessings and advantages which flow to the human race, which it is from the passion of Christ, alone remain to be explained. In ous source, the first place, then, the passion of our Lord was our deliverj ance from sin; for, as St. John says: " He hath loved us and " washed us from our sins in his own blood;" (42) " He hath "quickened you together with him;" says the Apostle, "for- " giving you all offences, blotting out the hand writing of the " decree that was against us, which was contrary to us, and he n " hath taken away the same, fastening it to the cross." (43) He has rescued us from the tyranny of the devil, for our Lord himself says: " Now is the judgment of the world; now shall the " prince of this world be cast out; and I, if I be lifted up from " the earth, will draw all things to myself.'' (44) He dischargjy' ed the punishment due to our sins; and, as no sacrifice more grateful and acceptable could have been offered to God, he reconciled us to the Father, (45) appeased his wrath, and propiv tiated his justice. Finally, by atoning for our sins, he opened to us heaven, which was closed by the common sin of mankind, according to these words of the Apostle: " We have, there- " fore, brethren, a confidence in the entering into the Holies " by the blood of Christ." (46) Type and ^or are we without a type and figure of this mystery in the figure of old iaw • those who were prohibited to return into their native demption. country, before the death of the high-priest, (47) typified that, until the supreme and eternal High-Priest, Christ-Jesus, had died, and by dying opened heaven to those who, purified by the sacraments, and gifted with faith, hope and charity, become

partakers of his passion; no one, however just may have been his life, could gain admission into his celestial country.

The pastor will teach that all these inestimable and divine Christ purblessings flow to us from the passion of Christ; first, because rcehdaes^dp"ur the satisfaction which Jesus Christ has, in an admirable man- tionner, made to his Eternal Father, for our sins, is full and complete; and the price which he paid for our ransom not only equals but far exceeds the debts contracted by us. Again, the sacrifice was most acceptable to God, for when offered by his Son on the altar of the cross, it entirely appeased his wrath and indignation. This the Apostle teaches, when he says: a Christ loved us, and delivered himself for us, an oblation and " a sacrifice to God for an odour of sweetness." (46) Of the redemption which he purchased the prince of the Apostles says: " You were not redeemed with corruptible things, as gold and " silver, from your vain conversations of the tradition of your " fathers; but with the precious blood of Christ, as of a lamb "unspotted and undefiled." (47)

Besides these inestimable blessings, we have also received In his pasanother, of the highest importance. In the passion alone, we have f^ Ug ^ the most illustrious example of the exercise of everv virtue. Pa- example of

every vir~

tience, and humility, and exalted charity, and meekness, and obe- tue. dience, and unshaken firmness of soul not only in suffering for justice-sake, but also in meeting death, are so conspicuous in the suffering Saviour, that we may truly say, that, on the day of his passion alone, he offered, in his own person, a living exemplification of all the moral precepts, which he inculcated during the entire time of his public ministry. This exposition of the saving passion of Christ the Lord, we have given briefly— Would to God! that these mysteries were always present to our minds, and that we learned to suffer, to die, and to be buried with Christ: that, cleansed from the stains of sin, and rising with him to newness of life, we may, at length, through his grace and mercy, be found worthy to be made partakers of the glory of his celestial kingdom.

ARTICLE V.

HE DESCENDED INTO HELL, THE THIRD DAY HE AROSE AGAIN FROM THE DEAD."

Know- "He descended into hell"] To know the glory of the

thisArticle sepulture of our Lord Jesus Christ, of which we have last most nn- treated, is highly important; but of still higher importance is it to the faithful to know the splendid triumphs which he obtained, by having subdued the devil and despoiled the powers of hell. Of these triumphs, and, also, of his resurrection, we are now about to speak; and, although the latter presents to us a subject which might, with propriety, be treated under a separate and distinct head, yet, following the example of the holy Fathers, we have deemed it judicious to embody it with his descent into hell. What its jn the first part of this Article, then, we profess that, immeproposes to diately after the death of Christ, his soul descended into hell, our belie. afi(j ^welt there whilst his body remained in the grave: and also that the same Person of Christ was, at the same time, in hell and in the sepulchre. Nor should this excite our surprise; for we have already, frequently said, that, although his soul was separated from his body, his divinity was never separated from soul or body. Meaning jjut as the pastor, by explaining the meaning of the word word 'hell' hell, in this place, may throw considerable light on the expoticle.S f" sition of this Article, it is to be observed, that by the word hell, is not here meant the sepulchre, as some have, not less impiously than ignorantly, imagined; for, in the preceding Article we learned that Christ was buried; and there was no reason why the Apostles, in delivering an article of faith, should repeat the same thing in other and more obscure terms. Hell,

then, here signifies those secret abodes in which are detained the souls that have not been admitted to the regions of bliss; a sense in which the word is frequently used in Scripture. Thus, the Apostle says, that, " at the name of Jesus, every knee should *' bend, of those that are in heaven, on earth and in hell:" (1) and in the Acts of the Apostles, Peter says, that Christ the Lord was again risen, "having loosed the sorrows of hell." (2)

These abodes are not all of the same nature, for amongst its differthem, is that most loathsome and dark prison in which the.ent mean"

souls of the damned are buried with the unclean spirits, ineter- I. nal and inextinguishable fire. This dread abode is called Gehenna, the bottomless pit, and, strictly speaking, means hell. Amongst them is also the fire of purgatory, in which the souls II. of just men are cleansed by a temporary punishment, in order to be admitted into their eternal country, " into which nothing "defiled entereth." (3) The truth of this doctrine founded, as holy councils declare, (4) on Scripture, and confirmed by apostolical tradition, demands diligent and frequent exposition, proportioned to the circumstances of the times in which we live, when men endure not sound doctrine. Lastly, the third kind of m abode is that into which the souls of the just, who died before Christ were received, and where, without experiencing any sort of pain, and supported by the blessed hope of redemption, they enjoyed peaceful repose. To liberate these souls, who, in the bosom of Abraham, were expecting the Saviour, Christ the Lord descended into hell.

But, we are not to imagine that his power and virtue only, The soul but we are also firmly to believe that his soul also, really and rea]iy ^ substantially descended into hell, according to-this conclusive.scended testimony of David: " Thou wilt not leave my soul in hell." (5) But, although Christ descended into hell, his supreme power was still the same; nor was the splendour of his sanctity in any degree obscured. His descent served rather to prove, that whatever has been already said of his sanctity was true; and that, as he had previously demonstrated by so many miracles, he was truly the Son of God.

This we shall easily understand by comparing the descent

Difference of Christ, in its causes and circumstances, with that of the just hisdescent — They descended as captives; (6) He as free and victorious oU?ers.at °f amongst the dead, to subdue those demons by whom, in consequence of primeval guilt, they were held in captivity — they descended, some to endure the most acute torments, others, though exempt from actual pain, yet deprived of the vision of God, and of the glory for which they sighed, and consigned to the torture of suspense; Christ the Lord descended, not to suffer, but to liberate from suffering the holy and the just who were held in painful captivity, and to impart to them the fruit of his passion. His supreme dignity and power, therefore, suffered no diminution by his descent into hell. Why he Having explained these things, the pastor will, next, proceed

I. to teach that the Son of God descended into hell, that, clothed with the spoils of the arch-enemy, he may conduct into heaven those holy fathers, and the other just souls, whose liberation from prison he had already purchased. This he accomplished in an admirable and glorious manner, for his august presence, at once shed a celestial lustre upon the captives; filled them with inconceivable joy; and imparted to them that supreme happiness which consists in the vision of God; thus verifying his promise to the thief on the cross: " Amen, I say to thee, " this day thou shalt be with me in Paradise." (7) This deliverance of the just was, long before, predicted by Ozeas, in these words: O Death! I will be thy death, O Hell! I will " be thy bite;" (8) and also by the Prophet Zachary: " Thou, " also, by the blood of thy testament, hast sent forth thy pri- " soners out of the pit, wherein is no water;" (9) and lastly, the same is expressed by the Apostle in these words: " Des- " poiling the principalities and powers, he hath exposed them "confidently, openly triumphing over them in himself." (10)

II. However, to comprehend still more clearly the efficacy of this mystery, we should frequently call to mind, that not only those who were born after the coming of the Saviour, but,*also, those who preceded that event from the days of Adam, or shall succeed it to the consummation of time, are included in the redemption purchased by the death of Christ. Before his death

and resurrection, heaven was closed against every child of Adam: the souls of the just, on their departure from this life, were borne to the bosom of Abraham; or, as is still the case with those who require to be freed from the stain of sin, or die indebted to the divine justice, were purified in the fire of purgatory.

Another reason, also, why Christ descended into hell is, that III. there, as well as in heaven and on earth, he may proclaim his power and authority; and that " every knee of things in hea- " ven, and on earth, and under the earth, should bend at his "name." (11) And here, who is not filled with admiration and astonishment when he contemplates the infinite love of God to man! Not satisfied with having undergone for our sake a most cruel death, he penetrates the inmost recesses of the earth, to transport into bliss the souls whom he so dearly loved, and whose liberation from prison he had achieved at the price of his blood!

We now come to the second part of the Article, and how The seindefatigable should be the labours of the pastor in its exposi- of"hePArtion; we learn from these words of the Apostle to Timothy: tide. " Be mindful that the Lord Jesus Christ is risen again from "the dead:" (12) words, no doubt, addressed not only to Timothy, but to all who have care of souls. But the meaning of Its meanthe Article is, that after Christ the Lord had expired on the ing* cross, on the sixth day and ninth hour, and was buried on the evening of the same day by his disciples, who with the permission of the governor Pilate, laid the body of the Lord, when taken down from the cross, in a new tomb, in a garden near at hand; his soul was reunited to his body early on the morning of the third day after his death, that is on the Lord's day; and thus he, who was dead during those three days, returned to life, and rose from the embraces of the tomb — By the word Resurrecresurrection, however, we are not, merely to understand that rj°" fo Pthe

Christ was raised from the dead : a privilege common with him natural

ii. !• power of

to many others: but that he rose by his own power and virtue, man.

a singular prerogative peculiar to him alone: for it is incompatible with our nature, nor was it ever given to man to raise himself, by his own power from death to life. This was an exercise of power reserved for the omnipotent hand of God, a these words of the Apostle declare: " for, although he was crucified through weakness, yet he liveth by the power of God." (13) This divine power, having never been separated, either from his body whilst in the grave, or from his soul whilst disunited from his body, existed in both, and gave to both a capability of reuniting; and thus did the Son of God, by his own power, return to life, and rise again from the dead. This David foretold, when, filled with the Spirit of God, he prophesied in these words: " His right hand hath wrought for him salva- " tion, and his arm is holy." (14) This we, also, have from the divine lips of the Redeemer himself: " I lay down my life," says he, " that I may take it again; and I have power to lay it " down, and power to take it again." (15) To the Jews he also said, in confirmation of his doctrine: " Destroy this temple, " and in three days, I will raise it up." (16) Although the Jews understood him to have spoken thus of the magnificent temple of Jerusalem, built of stone; yet, as the Scripture testifies in the same place, "he spoke of the temple of his body.'' (17) We sometimes, it is true, read in Scripture, that he was raised by the Father; (18) but this refers to him as man; as those passages, which, on the other hand, say that he rose by his own power, relate to him as God. (19) Christ 'the It is also the peculiar privilege of Christ to have been the ten of the first who enjoyed this divine prerogative of rising from the dead.' dead, for he is called in Scripture " the first-begotten of the " dead," (20) and also the first born from the dead:" (21) the Apostle also says, " Christ is risen from the dead, the first " fruits of them that sleep: for by a man came death, and by a " man the resurrection of the dead; and, as in Adam all die, " so, also, in Christ all shall be made alive: but every one in M his own order; the first fruits Christ, then they that are of " Christ, who have believed in his coming." (22) These words of the Apostle are to be understood of a perfect resurrection, by which we are resuscitated to eternal life, being no longer subject to death. In this resurrection Christ the Lord holds the first place; for, if we speak of resurrection, that is, of a

return to life, subject to the necessity of again dying, many were thus raised from the dead before Christ; (23) all of whom, however, were restored to life to die again; but Christ, the Lord, having conquered death, rose again to die no more, according to this clear testimony of the Apostle: " Christ rising " again from the dead, dieth now no more, death shall no long- " er have dominion over him." (24)

" The Third Day"] In explanation of these additional words Christ rose of the Article, the pastor will inform the people, that Christ did ^eai "jj™j not remain in the grave during the entire of these three days, daybut, as he lay in the sepulchre during an entire natural day, during part of the preceding day and part of the following, he is said with strictest truth, to have lain in the grave for three days, and on the third day, to have risen again from the dead. To Why on declare his divinity, he deferred not his resurrection to the end day- ir of the world; whilst at the same time, to prove his humanity, and the reality of his death, he rose not immediately, but, on the third day after his death, a space of time sufficient to prove that he had really died.

Here the Fathers of the first Council of Constantinople add- " A?cotrhd"

ed the words, " according to the Scriptures," which they re- Scripceived from Apostolic tradition, and embodied with the creed, whyadded

because the same Apostle teaches the absolute necessity of the t0 th,e

creed, mystery of the resurrection, when he says : " If Christ be not

"risen again, then is our preaching vain, and your faith is also " vain, for you are yet in your sins." (25) Hence, admiring our belief of this Article, S. Augustine says: " It is of little "moment to believe that Christ died: this, the Pagans, Jews, " and all the wicked believe; in a word, all believe that Christ " died; but, that he rose from the dead is the belief of Christians: to believe that he rose again, this we deem of great " moment." (26) Hence it is, that our Lord very frequently spoke to his disciples of his resurrection; and seldom or never of his passion without adverting to his resurrection. Thus, when he said: " The Son of Man shall be delivered to the " Gentiles, and shall be mocked and scourged and spit upon; " and after they have scourged him, they will put him to death;"

he added: " and the third day he shall rise again.'' (27) Also,

when the Jews called upon him to give an attestation of the

truth of his doctrine by some miraculous sign, he said : " A

" sign shall not be given them but the sign of Jonas the Pro-

" phet : for as Jonas was three days and three nights in the

" whale's belly, so shall the Son of Man be three days and three

" nights in the bosom of the earth." (28)

Three To understand, still better, the force and meaning of the

I- end and object: thirdly, the blessings and advantages of which ofthTre- it is to us the source. With regard to the first, it was necessurrection: sarv that he should rise again, in order to manifest the justice of God; for it was most congruous that he, who. through obedience to God, was degraded, and loaded with iguominy, should by him be exalted. This is a reason assigned by the Apostle in his Epistle to the Philippians: " He humbled him- " self," says he, " becoming obedient unto death; even unto " the death of the cross; for which cause God, also, hath ex- " alted him." (29) He rose, also, to confirm our faith, which is necessary to justification; the resurrection of Christ from the dead by his own power, affords an irrefragable proof of his divinity. It also nurtures and sustains our hope, for, as Christ rose again, we rest on an assured hope, that we too, shall rise again: the members must necessarily arrive at the condition of their head. This is the conclusion which St. Paul draws from the reasoning which he uses in his epistles to the Corinthians, (30) and Thessalonians; (31) and Peter, the prince of the Apostles, says: " Blessed be God and the Father of our " Lord Jesus Christ, who, according to his great mercy, hath re- " generated us unto a lively hope, by the resurrection of Jell- " sus Christ from the dead, unto the inheritance incorruptible.^ ^8.ec".an (32) Finally, the resurrection of our Lord, as the pastor will inculcate, was necessary to complete the mystery of our salvation and redemption: by his death, Christ liberated us from the thraldom of sin, and restored to us, by his resurrection, the most important of those privileges which we had forfeited by sin. Hence these words of the Apostle: " He was delivered

" up for our sins, and rose again for our justification." (33) That nothing, therefore, may be wanting to perfect the work of our salvation, it was necessary that, as he died, he should, also, rise again from the dead.

From what has been said we can perceive the important ad- Its blgSS. vantages which the resurrection of our Lord has conferred on ings the faithful: in his resurrection, we acknowledge him to be the immortal God, full of glory, the conqueror of death and hell; and this we are firmly to believe and openly profess of Christ Jesus.

Again, the resurrection of Christ effectuates our resurrec- n. tion, not only as its efficient cause, but also as its model. Thus, with regard to the resurrection of the body, we have this testimony of the Apostle: " by a man came death, and by a man " the resurrection of the dead." (34) To accomplish the mystery of our redemption in all its parts, God made use of the humanity of Christ as its efficient instrument, and hence, his resurrection is the efficient cause of ours. It is also, the model: his resurrection was the most perfect of all; and, as his body, rising to immortal glory, was changed, so shall our bodies also, before frail and mortal, be restored and clothed with glory and immortality: in the language of the Apostle: " we " look for the Saviour our Lord Jesus Christ, who will reform " the body of our lowness, made like to the body of his glo- "ry." (35)

The same may be said of a soul dead in sin: how the resur- in. rection of Christ is proposed to such a soul the model of her resurrection, we learn from the same Apostle, when he says: " Christ is risen from the dead by the glory of the Father, so " we also may walk in newness of life; for if we have been " planted together in the likeness of his death, we shall be also " in the likeness of his resurrection;" and a little after, " know- " ing that Christ, rising from the dead, dieth no more, death " shall no more have dominion over him; for in that he died to " sin, he died once: but in that he liveth, he liveth unto God. " So do you also reckon, that you are dead to sin, but alive un- " to God in Christ Jesus our Lord." (36)

From the resurrection of Christ, therefore, we should derive two important lessons of instruction: the one, that, after we have washed away the stains of sin, we should begin to lead a new life, distinguished by integrity, innocence, holiness, modesty, justice, beneficence, and humility: the other, that we should so persevere in that newness of life, as never more, with the divine assistance, to stray from the paths of virtue on which we have once entered. IV* Nor do the words of the Apostle prove only that the resurrection of Christ is proposed as the model of our resurrection: they, also, declare that it gives us power to rise again; and imparts to us strength and courage to persevere in holiness and righteousness, and in the observance of the commandments of God. As his death not only furnishes us with an example, but also supplies us with strength to die to sin; so also, his resurrection invigorates us to attain righteousness: that worshipping God in piety and holiness, we may walk in the newness of life to which we have risen; for the Redeemer achieved principally by his resurrection, that we, who before died with him to sin, and to the world, may rise, also, with him again to a new discipline and manner of life. Principal The principal proofs of this resurrection from sin which de- £r°0£sJ?famand observation, are comprised in these words of the Apostion from tie: " If you be risen with Christ, seek the things that are above, " where Christ is sitting at the right hand of God." (37) Here, he distinctly tells us, that they, whose desire of life, honours, riches, and repose, are directed chiefly to the place in which Christ dwells, have truly risen with him: but when he adds, " Mind the things that are above, not the things that are on the " earth;" (38) he gives this, as it were, as another standard, by which we may ascertain if we have truly risen with Christ; for as a relish for food indicates a healthy state of the body; so, with regard to the soul, if we relish " whatever is true, whate- " ver is modest, whatever is just, whatever is holy," (39) and experience within us a sense of the sweetness of heavenly things; this we may consider a very strong proof, that with Christ we have risen to a new and spiritual life.

ARTICLE VI.

* HE ASCENDED INTO HEAVEN, SITTETH AT THE RIGHT HAND OF GOD, THE FATHER ALMIGHTY."

"He ascended into Heaven'1] Filled with the Spirit of Triumph God, and contemplating the blessed and glorious ascension fe^0™~ of our Lord into Heaven, the prophet David exhorts all h°w to be to celebrate that splendid triumph, with the greatest joy and by Chrisgladness. " Clap your hands," says he, " all ye nations, shout tians- " unto God with the voice of joy. God is ascended with jubi- " lee, and the Lord with the sound of trumpet." (1) The pastor will hence learn the obligation imposed on him, of explaining this mystery with unremitting assiduity, and of taking especial care that the faithful not only see it with the light of faith, and of the understanding; but still more, that, as far as it is in his power to accomplish, they make it their study, with the divine assistance, to reflect its image in their lives and actions.

With regard, then, to the exposition of this sixth Article, First Part

, . , , ' '..■„*..... „ ' oftheArtiwhich has reference, principally, to the divine mystery of the cie: What ascension; we shall begin with its first part, and point out its ^ ^ ^es force and meaning. That Jesus Christ, having fully accom- leve. plished the work of redemption, ascended, as man, body and I. soul, into heaven, the faithful are unhesitatingly to believe; for as God, he never forsook heaven, filling, as he does, all places with his divinity.

The pastor is, also, to teach that he ascended by his own n. power, not by the power of another as did Elias, who was taken up into heaven in a fiery chariot; (2) or as the prophet Habacuc; (3) or Philip, the deacon, who were borne through the air by the divine power, and traversed the distant regions of

'

HI. the earth. (4) Neither did he ascend into heaven, solely by the exercise of his supreme power as God, but, also, by virtue of the power which he possessed as man: although human power alone was insufficient to raise him from the dead, yet the virtue, with which the blessed soul of Christ was endowed, was capable of moving the body as it pleased, and his body, now glorified, readily obeyed its impulsive dominion. Hence, we believe that Christ ascended into heaven as God and man, by his own power. — We now come to the second part of the Article.

Article.1 6 MiGHTY"] In these words we observe a trope, that is, the A trope, changing of a word from its literal, to a figurative meaning, a thing not unfrequent in Scripture, (5) when, accommodating its language to human ideas, it attributes human affections and human members to God, who, spirit as he is, admits of nothing corporeal. But as, amongst men, he who sits at the right hand is considered to occupy the most honourable place, so, transferring the idea to celestial things, to express the glory which Christ, as man, enjoys above all others, we confess that he sits What the at the right hand of his Eternal Father. This, however, does teth" " St" not imply position and figure of body; but declares the fixed means and permanent possession of royal and supreme power and glory, which he received from the Father; as the Apostle says: " raising him up from the dead, and setting him on his u right hand in the heavenly places, above all principality, and " power, and virtue, and domination, and every name that is " named, not only in this world, but also in that which is to " come: and he hath subjected all things under his feet." (6) These words manifestly imply that this glory belongs to our Lord, in so special a manner, that it cannot consist with the nature of any other created being; and hence, in another place, the Apostle asks: " To which of the angels said he at any time, " sit on my right hand, 'till I make thine enemies thy footstool?" (7) History of jjut tne past0r will explain the sense of the Article, more at

sion. large, by detailing the history of the ascension, of which the

(4) Acts, viii. 39. (5) Dionys. Areop. Epist. ix.

(6) Eph. i. 20, 21, 22. Athan. Serm. 1 contra Arian. Basil, lib. de Spir. Sanct. c. vi. (7) Heb. i. IS.

evangelist St. Luke has left us an admirable description, in the

the first place, that all other mysteries refer to the ascension, refer to it as to their end and completion; as all the mysteries of religion end&comcommence with the Incarnation of our Lord, so his sojourn on Pletionearth terminates with his ascension into heaven. Moreover, Tenor of the other Articles of the Creed, which regard Christ the Lord, ou^s y$~ show his great humility and lowliness: nothing can be conceiv- compared ed more humble, nothing more lowly, than that the Son of God ascension, assumed the frailty of our flesh, suffered and died for us; but nothing more magnificently, nothing more admirably proclaims his sovereign glory and divine majesty, than what is contained in the present and preceding Articles, in which we declare that he rose from the dead, ascended into heaven, and now sits at the right hand of his Eternal Father.

When the pastor has accurately explained these truths, he Jfeasons of

1 J r ' the ascenwill next inform the faithful, why our Lord ascended into hea- sion. ven. — He ascended because the glorious kingdom of the highest heavens, not the obscure abode of this earth, presented a suitable dwelling-place to him whose glorified body, rising from the tomb, was clothed with immortality — He ascended, not H. only to possess the throne of glory, and the kingdom which he purchased at the price of his blood, but, also, to attend to whatever regards the salvation of his people. — He ascended,to prove UL thereby that "his kingdom is not of this world," (9) for the kingdoms of this world are terrene and transient, and are based upon wealth and the power of the flesh ; but the kingdom of Christ is not, as the Jews expected, an earthly, but a spiritual and eternal kingdom. Its riches, too, are spiritual, as he shows by placing his throne in the heavens, where they, who seek most earnestly the things that are of God, abound most in riches and in abundance of all good things, according to these words of St. James : — " Hath not God chosen the poor in this " world, rich in faith and heirs of the kingdom which God hath " promised to them that love him ?" (10)

He also ascended into heaven, in order to teach us to follow IV. him thither in mind and heart, for as, by his death and resurrection, he bequeathed to us an example of dying and rising

(8) Acta, i. (D) John, xviii. 96. (10) James, ii. 5.

again in spirit; so by his ascension he teaches us, though dwelling on earth, to raise ourselves in thought and desire to heaven, " confessing that we are pilgrims and strangers on the "earth, (11) seeking a country;" "fellow-citizens with the " saints, and the domestics of God;" (12) " for," says the same Apostle, "our conversation is in heaven." (13) v* The extent and unspeakable greatness of the blessings, which

the bounty of God has bestowed on us with a lavish hand, were long before, as the Apostle interprets him, sung by. David in these words: " He ascended on high, led captivity captive,

VI. "and gave gifts to men." (14) On the tenth day after his ascension, he sent down the Holy Ghost, with whose power and plenitude he filled the multitude of the faithful, then present, and fulfilled his splendid promise: " It is expedient for you that " I go, for if I go not, the Paraclete will not come to you; but,

VII. " if I go, I will send him to you." (15) He also ascended into heaven, according to the Apostle, " that he may appear in the "presence of God for us," (16) and discharge for us the office of advocate with the Father: " My little children," says St. John, " these things 1 write to you, that you may not sin, but " if any man sin, we have an advocate with the Father, Jesus "Christ, the just, and he is the propitiation for our sins." (17) There is nothing from which the faithful should derive greater joy than from the reflection, that Jesus Christ is constituted our advocate and intercessor with the Father, with whom his influence and authority are supreme.

Vin. Finally, by his ascension, he has prepared for us a place, as he had promised, and has entered, as our head, in the name of us all, into the possession of the glory of heaven. (18) Ascending into heaven, he threw open its gates, which had been closed by the sin of Adam; and, as he foretold his disciples, at his last supper, secured to us a way by which wre may arrive at eternal happiness. In order to demonstrate this by the event, he introduced, with himself, into the mansions of eternal bliss, the souls of the just whom he had liberated from prison. Its other A series of important advantages followed in the train of ajantag- t^g acjmirakie profusion of celestial gifts: in the first place, the

merit of our faith was considerably augmented; because faith Ihas for its object those things which fall not under the senses, and are far raised above the reach of human reason and intelligence. If, therefore, the Lord had not departed from us, the merit of our faith would not be the same, for Jesus Christ has said: " Blessed are they who have not seen and have believ- *' ed." (19) In the next place, it contributes much to confirm II. our hope: believing that Christ, as man, ascended into heaven, and placed our nature at the right hand of God the Father, we are animated with a strong hope that we, as members, shall also ascend thither, to be there united to our head, according to these words of our Lord himself: u Father, I will, that " where I am, they, also, whom thou hast given me, may be " with me." (20)

Another most important advantage, flowing from the ascen- in. sion, is, that it elevates our affections to heaven, and inflames them with the Spirit of God; for, most truly has it been said, that, "where our treasure is, there, also, is our heart." (21) And, indeed, were Christ the Lord dwelling on earth, the contemplation of his person, and the enjoyment of his presence, must absorb all our thoughts, and we should view the author of such blessings only as man, and cherish towards him a sort of earthly affection: but, by his ascension into heaven, he has spiritualised our affection for him, and has made us venerate and love as God, him who, now absent, is the object of our thoughts, not of our senses. This we learn, in part, from the example of the Apostles, who, whilst our Lord was personally present with them, seemed to judge of him, in some measure, humanly, and, in part, from these words of our Lord himself: " It is expedient for you that I go." (22) The affection, with which they loved him when present, was to be perfected by divine love, and that, by the coming of the Holy Ghost; and, therefore, he immediately subjoins: "If I go not, the Paraclete " will not come to you."

Besides, he thus enlarged his dwelling place on earth, that Ivis, his Church, which was to be governed by the power and guidance of the Holy Spirit ; and left Peter, the prince of the Apostles, as chief pastor, and supreme head upon earth, of the

universal Church. " Some, also, he gave Apostles, some Pro- " phets and other some Evangelists, and other some Pastors "and Doctors," (23) and, thus, seated at the right hand of the Father, he continually bestows different gifts on different men; according to the words of St. Paul: " To every one of us is "given grace, according to the measure of the giving of " Christ." (24) V. Finally, what was already said of his death and resurrection,

the faithful will deem not less true of his ascension; for, although we owe our redemption and salvation to the passion of Christ, whose merits opened heaven to the just, yet his ascension is not only proposed to us as a model, which teaches us to look on high, and ascend in spirit into heaven; but also imparts to us a divine virtue which enables us to accomplish what it teaches.

ARTICLE VII.

FROM THENCE HE SHALL COME TO JUDGE THE LIVING AND THE DEAD."

Jesus Christ is invested with three eminent offices and The three functions, those of Redeemer, Patron, and Judge. But as, in JjJjgJ of the preceding Articles, we have shown that the human race was redeemed by his passion and death; and as, by his ascension into heaven, it is manifest that he has undertaken the perpetual advocacy and patronage of our cause; it next follows, that, in this Article, we set forth his character as judge. The scope Meaning and intent of the Article is to declare, that, on the last day, he °f,tneTAr"

will judge the whole human race: the Sacred Scriptures inform Judgment, us, that there are two comings of Christ, the one, when he assumed human flesh, for our salvation, in the womb of a virgin; the other, when he shall come, at the end of the world, to judge mankind. This coming is called, in Scripture, " The day of the Lord:" " The day of the Lord," says the Apostle, " shall come, as a thief in the night;" (1) and our Lord himself says: " Of that day and hour nobody knoweth." (2) In proof of the last judgment, it is enough to adduce the authority of the Apostle: " We must all," says he, " appear before the judg- " ment seat of Christ, that every one may receive the proper " things of the body, according as he hath done, whether it be " good or evil." (3) Sacred Scripture abounds in testimonies to the same effect, which the pastor will meet, every where, throughout the Inspired Volume, (4) and which not only establish the truth of the dogma, but also place it, in vivid colours, before the eyes of the faithful; that as, from the be-

(1) 1 Thess. v. 2. (2) Matth. xxiv. 36. Mark, xiii. 32. (3) 2 Cor. v. 10. (4) 1 Kings, ii. 10. Isaias, ii. 12, 19 et xiii. 9. Jerem. xxx. 23. Dan. vii. 9. Joel, ii. 1.

ginning, the day of the Lord, on which he was clothed with our flesh, was sighed for by all, as the foundation of their hope of deliverance; so also, after the death and ascension of the Son of God, the second day of the Lord may be the object of our most earnest desires; " looking for the blessed hope and com- " ing of the glory of the great God." (5) Two judg- But, with a view to the better explanation of this subject, the pastor is to distinguish two distinct periods at which every one must appear in the presence of God, to render an account of all his thoughts, words, and actions, and receive sentence accord- Particular, ingly, from the mouth of his judge: the first, when each one departs this life; for he is instantly placed before the judgment seat of God, where all that he had ever done, or spoken, or thought, during life, shall be subjected to the most rigid scruti- Gcneral. ny 5 anc* tms *s ca^e& the particular judgment: the second, when, on the same day, and in the same place, all men shall stand together, before the tribunal of their judge, that, in the presence and hearing of a congregated world, each may know his final doom: an announcement which will constitute no small part of the pain and punishment of the wicked, and of the remuneration and rewards of the just; when the tenor of each Why a ge- man's life shall appear in its true colours. This is called the ment UdS~ aenera^ judgment; and it becomes an indispensable duty of the pastor to show why, besides the particular judgment of each individual, a general one should also be passed upon the assem- I. bled world. The first reason is founded on circumstances that must augment the rewards, or aggravate the punishments of the dead. Those who depart this life sometimes leave behind them children who imitate the conduct of their parents, dependants, followers; and others who admire and advocate the example, the language, the conduct of those on whom they depend, and whose example they follow; and as the good or bad influence of example, affecting, as it does, the conduct of many, is to terminate only with this world; justice demands that, in order to form a proper estimate of the.good or bad actions of all, a general judgment should take place. n Moreover, as the character of the virtuous frequently suffers from misrepresentation, whilst that of the wicked obtains

the commendation of virtue; the justice of God demands that the former recover, in the presence and with the suffrage of a congregated world, the good name of which they had been unjustly deprived before men.

Again, as the good and the bad perform their good and bad actions not without the cooperation of the body, these actions are common to the body as their instrument; and the body, therefore, should participate with the soul in the eternal rewards of virtue, or the everlasting punishments of vice; and this can only be accomplished by means of a general resurrection and of a general judgment.

Finally, it was important to prove, that in prosperity and ad- IV versity, which are sometimes the promiscuous lot of the good and of the bad, every thing is ordered by an all-wise, all-just, and all -ruling Providence: it was therefore necessary not only, that rewards and punishments should await us in the next life; but that they should be awarded by a public and general judgment: that thus they may be better known and rendered more conspicuous to all; and that, in atonement for the querulous murmurings to which, on seeing the wicked abound in wealth, and flourish in honours, even the Saints themselves, as men, have sometimes given expression; a tribute of praise may be offered by all to the justice and providence of God. " My feet," says the Prophet, " were almost moved, my steps had well nigh " slipt; because I had a zeal on occasion of the wicked, seeing " the prosperity of sinners:" and a little after: " Behold these " are sinners, and yet abounding in the world, they have ob- " tained riches; and I said, then have I in vain justified my " heart, and washed my hands among the innocent: and I have " been scourged all the day: and my chastisement hath been " in the morning." (6) This has been the frequent complaint of many, and a general judgment is, therefore, necessary, lest, perhaps, men maybe tempted to say that God, " walking about "the poles of heaven," (7) regards not the earth. Wisely, therefore, has this truth been made one of the twelve articles of the Christian creed, that should any be tempted to doubt for a moment, their faith may be confirmed by the satisfactory reasons which this doctrine presents to the mind. Besides, the y

just should be encouraged by the hope, the wicked appalled by the terror of a future judgment; that knowing the justice of God the former may not be disheartened, and, dreading his eternal judgments, the latter may be recalled from the paths of vice. Hence, speaking of the last day, our Lord and Saviour declares, that a general judgment will one day, take place, and describes the signs of its approach; that seeing them, we may know that the end of the world is at hand. (8) At his ascension also, to console his Apostles, overwhelmed with grief at his departure, he sent angels, who said to them: " This Jesus " who is tak^n up from you into heaven, shall so come as you " have seen him going into heaven." (9) Christ not That this judgment is ascribed to Christ our Lord, not only God, but as God, but also as man, is expressly declared in Scripture; man uni- ^or although the power of judging is common to all the Persons versal of the blessed Trinity, yet it is specially attributed to the Son, because to him also, in a special manner, is ascribed wisdom. But that, as man, he will judge the world, is confirmed by the testimony of our Lord himself when he says: " As the Father " hath life in himself; so he hath given to the Son also, to have " life in himself; and he hath given him power to do judgment, man? aS " because he is the Son of man." (10) There is a peculiar propriety in Christ's sitting in judgment on this occasion; that, as sentence is to be pronounced on mankind, they may see their judge with their eyes, and hear him with their ears, and thus learn their final doom through the medium of the senses. Most just it is also that he, who was most iniquitously condemned by the judgment of men, should himself be, afterwards, seen by all men sitting in judgment on all. Hence the prince of the Apostles, when expounding, in the house of Cornelius, the principal dogmas of Christianity, and teaching that Christ was suspended from a cross, and put to death by the Jews, and rose the third day to life, added, "and he has commanded us to preach, " and to testify to the people, that this is he, who was appoint- " ed of God to be the judge of the living and the dead." (11)

Siyns The Sacred Scriptures also inform us, that the general judgwhich are *

to precede ment shall be preceded by these three principal signs, the

the faith, and the coming of Antichrist. " This Gospel of the " kingdom," says our Lord, " shall be preached in the whole " world, for a testimony to all nations, and then shall come the " consummation." (12) The Apostle also, admonishes us that we be not seduced by any one, "as if the day of the Lord were " at hand; for, unless there come a revolt first, and the man of " sin be revealed, the son of perdition," (13) the judgment will not come.

The form and procedure of this judgment the pastor will easily learn from the oracles of Daniel, (14) the writings of the Evangelists and the doctrine of the Apostle. The sentence, al- The Jagt so, to be pronounced by the judge, is here deserving of more sentence, than ordinary attention. Looking to the just standing on his The good# right, with a countenance beaming with joy, the Redeemer will pronounce sentence on them, with the greatest benignity, in these words: " Come, ye blessed of my Father, possess the " kingdom prepared for you from the beginning of the world." (15) That nothing can be conceived, more delightful to the ear than these words, we shall comprehend, if we only compare them with the sentence of condemnation to be hurled against the wicked; and call to mind, that by them, the just are invited from labour to rest, from the vale of tears to the mansions of joy, from temporal misery to eternal happiness, the reward of their works of charity.

Turning next to those who shall stand on his left, he will The bad. pour out his justice on them in these words: " Depart from me " ye cursed, into everlasting fire, prepared for the devil and " his angels." (16) These first words, " depart from me," express the heaviest punishment with which the wicked shall be visited — their eternal banishment from the sight of God, unrelieved by one consolatory hope of recovering so great a good. This Divines call " the pain of loss," because, in hell, the wicked shall be deprived of the light of the vision of God. (17) The words " ye cursed," which are added, must augment, to an extreme degree, their wretched and calamitous condition. If, when banished from the Divine presence, they could hope for blessing of any sort, it might be to them some source of

horn. 23. August, Serm. IS I. detemp. Greg. lib. 9. moral, cap. 46.

consolation ; but deprived of every such expectation that

could alleviate calamity, the divine justice, whose severity

their crimes have provoked, pursues them with every species

of malediction. The words, "into everlasting fire," which

follow, express another sort of punishment, called by Divines

" the pain of sense ;" because, like other corporal punishments,

amongst which, no doubt, fire produces the most intense pain,

it is felt through the organs of sense. When, moreover, we

reflect that this pain is to be eternal, we are at once satisfied

that the punishment of the damned admits of no increase.

The faith- These are considerations, which the pastor should very frefrequently quently press upon the attention of the faithful ; the truth which

judgment, ncacious in bridling the perverse propensities of the heart, and withdrawing souls from sin. (18) Hence we read in Ecclesiasticus: " Remember thy last end, and thou shalt never sin." (19) And, indeed, it is almost impossible to find one so prone to vice, as not to be capable of being recalled to the pursuit of virtue, by the reflection — that the day will come when he shall have to render an account before a most rigorous judge, not only of all his words and actions, but even of his most secret thoughts, and shall suffer punishment according to his deserts. But the just man must be more and more excited to cultivate justice, and, although doomed to spend his life in want, and obloquy, and torments, he must be transported with the greatest joy, when he looks forward to that day on which when the conflicts of this wretched life are over, he shall be declared victorious in the hearing of all men; and admitted into his heavenly country, shall be crowned with divine, and these, also, eternal honours. It becomes, therefore, the duty of the pastor, to exhort the faithful to model their lives after the best manner, and exercise themselves in every practice of piety; that thus they may be enabled to look forward with greater security, to the great coming day of the Lord, and even, as becomes children, desire it most earnestly.

(18) Aug. serm. 128. de temp. Greg. horn. 39. in Evang. Bernard, serm. 1. in festo omnium Sanctorum. ( 1 9) Eccles. vii. 40.

ARTICLE VIII.

" I BELIEVE IN THE HOLY GHOST."

Hitherto we have expounded, as far as the nature of the Necessity subject seemed to require, what regards the first and second Per- °he H0iy sons of the Holy Trinity. It now remains to explain what the Ghost. Creed contains with regard to the Third Person, the Holy Ghost. On this subject, also, the pastor will omit nothing that study and assiduity can effect; for on this, and the preceding Articles, error were alike unpardonable. Hence, the Apostle is careful to instruct some amongst the Ephesians, with regard to the Person of the Holy Ghost. (1) Having asked if they had received the Holy Ghost, and having received for answer, that they did not so much as know the existence of the Holy Spirit, he immediately subjoins: "In whom, therefore, were " you baptised?" — to signify that a distinct knowledge of this Article is most necessary to the faithful. From it they derive this special fruit — considering, attentively, that whatever they possess, they possess through the bounty and beneficence of the Holy Spirit, they learn to think more modestly and humbly of themselves, and to place all their hopes in the protection of God, which is the first step towards consummate wisdom and supreme happiness.

The exposition of this Article, therefore, should begin with Meaning the meaning here attached to the words, Holy Ghost; for, as words^Hothis appellation is equally true when applied to the Father and fr Gnostthe^Son, (both are spirit, both holy,) and also includes angels, and the souls of the just; care must be taken that the faithful be not led into error by the ambiguity of the words. The pastor, then, will teach, in this Article, that by the words Holy Ghost,

is understood the third Person of the blessed Trinity; a sense in which they are used, sometimes, in the Old, and frequently in the New Testament. Thus David prays: " Take not thy " Holy Spirit from me;" (2) and in the Book of Wisdom we read: " Who shall know thy thoughts, except thou give wis- " dom, and send thy Holy Spirit from above?" (3) And in another place: " He created her in the Holy Ghost." (4) We are also commanded, in the New Testament, to be baptised, " in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy " Ghost;" (5) we read that the most holy Virgin conceived of the Holy Ghost; (6) and we are sent by St. John to Christ, "who baptiseth us in the Holy Ghost;" (7) with a variety of other passages in which the words Holy Ghost occur. Why the Nor should it be deemed matter of surprise, that a proper son of the name is not given to the third, as to the first and second Perholy Trim- song. ^ secon(j Person is designated by a proper name, and proper called Son, because, as has been explained in the preceding Articles, his eternal birth from the Father is properly called generation. As, therefore, that birth is expressed by the word generation; so the Person, emanating from that generation, is properly called Son, and the Person, from whom he emanates, Father. But as the production of the third Person is characterised by no proper name, but is called spiration and procession; the Person produced is, consequently, characterised by no proper name. As, however, we are obliged to borrow, from created objects, the names given to God, and knew no other created means of communicating nature and essence than that of generation; we cannot discover a proper name to express the manner in which God communicates himself entire, by the force of his love. Unable, therefore, to express the emanation of the third Person, by a proper, we have recourse to the common name of Holy Ghost; a name, however, peculiarly appropriate to him who infuses into us spiritual life, and without whose holy inspiration, we can do nothing meritorious of eternal life. The Holy But the people, when once acquainted with the import of quallyGod the name, should, first of all, be taught that he is equally God Fatherand w^ ^e father and the Son, equally omnipotent, eternal, perthe Son.

feet, the supreme good, infinitely wise, and of the same nature with the Father and the Son. All this is, obviously enough, *: implied by the force of the word " in," when we say: " I be- "lieve in the Holy Ghost;" which, to mark the particularity of our faith, is prefixed to each Person of the Trinity; and is also clearly established by many passages of Scripture: when, II. in the Acts of the Apostles, St. Peter says: " Ananias! why " hast thou conceived this thing in thy heart?" he immediately adds: " thou hast not lied to men but to God;" (8) calling him, to whom he had before given the name Holy Ghost, immediately after, God.

The Apostle, also, writing to the Corinthians, interprets III. what he says of God, as said of the Holy Ghost: " There are," says he, " diversities of operations, but the same God, who "workethall in all;" "but," continues he, " all these things " one and the same spirit worketh, dividing to every one ac- " cording as he will." (9) In the Acts of the Apostles, also, IV. what the phophets attribute to one God, St. Paul ascribes to the Holy Ghost; thus Isaias had said: "I heard the voice of the " Lord, saying: whom shall I send? and who shall go for us? " and I said: Lo! here, am I, send me. And he said: go, and " thou shalt say to this people: Blind the heart of this people, " and make their ears heavy, and shut their eyes! least they " see with their eyes, and hear with their ears:" (10) Having cited these words, the Apostle adds: " Well did the Holy " Ghost speak to our fathers, by Isaias the prophet." (1 1 )

Again, the Sacred Scriptures, by annexing the Person of the Holy Ghost to those of the Father and the Son; as when baptism is commanded to be administered, " in the name of the Fa- " ther, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost," leaves no room whatever to doubt the truth of this mystery: for, if the Father is'God, and the Son God, why not confess that the Holy Ghost, who is united with them in the same degree of honour, is also God? Besides, baptism administered in the name of any VI creature, can be of no effect: " Were you baptised in the name "of Paul?" (12) says the Apostle, to show that such baptism could have availed them nothing to salvation. Having, therefore, been baptised in the name of the Holy Ghost, we must acknowledge the Holy Ghost to be God.

VII. But this same order of the three Persons, which proves the divinity of the Holy Ghost, is observable in the epistle of St. John: " There are three who give testimony in heaven: the Fa- " ther, the Word, and the Holy Ghost, and these three are one;" (13) and, also, in that noble eulogy, or form of praise to the Trinity: " Glory be to the Father, and to the Son, and to the " Holy Ghost," which closes the psalms and divine praises.

VIII. Finally, not to omit an argument which goes, most forcibly, to establish this truth, the authority of Holy Scripture proves, that whatever faith attributes to God, belongs equally to the Holy Ghost: to him is ascribed, in Scripture, the honour of temples: " Know you not," says the Apostle, " that your mem- "bers are the temple of the Holy Ghost;" (14) and also sanctification, (15) vivification, (16) to search the depths of God, (17) to speak by the prophets, (18) and to be present in all places; (19) all of which are attributed to God alone.

The Holy The pastor will, also, accurately explain to the faithful, that distinct the Holy Ghost is God, so as to be the third Person in the person divine nature, distinct from the Father and the Son, and profrom the; . . *

Father and duced by their will. To say nothing of other testimonies of the on: gcrjpture? the form of baptism, taught by the Redeemer, (20) furnishes an irrefragable proof that the Holy Ghost is the third Person, self-existent in the divine nature, and distinct from the other Persons: a doctrine taught, also, by the Apostle, when he says: " The grace of our Lord Jesus " Christ, and the charity of God, and the communication of " the Holy Ghost, be with you all. Amen." (21) This same truth, is still more explicitly declared in the words which were here added by the Fathers of the first Council of Constantinople, to refute the impious folly of Macedonius: " And " in the Holy Ghost the Lord and giver of life, who proceed- " eth from the Father, and the Son: who, together with the " Father and the Son, is adored and glorified; who spoke by " the prophets." Thus, by confessing the Holy Ghost to be "Lord," they declare, how far he excels the angels, who are the perfection of created intelligence; for, " they are all," says

(13) 1 John, v. 7. (14) 1 Cor. vi. 19. (15) 2 Thess. ii. 13. 1 Pet. i. 2. (16) John, vi. 64. (17) 2 Cor. iii. 6. 1 Cor. ii. 10. (18) 2 Pet. i. 21. (19) Wis. i. 7. (20) Matth. xxviii. 19. (21) 2 Cor. xiii. '".

the Apostle, "ministering spirits, sent to minister for them " who shall receive the inheritance of salvation." (22)

They, also, designate the Holy Ghost: " The giver of life," Why callbecause the soul lives more by an union with God, than the eer 0nife/>" body is nurtured and sustained by an union with the soul. As, then, the Sacred Scriptures ascribe to the Holy Ghost this union of the soul with God, with great propriety, is he denominated " the giver of life."

With regard to the words immediately succeeding: " who His pro- " proceedeth from the Father and the Son," the faithful are to fre0s^°tnhe be taught, that the Holy Ghost proceeds, by eternal procession, Father and from the Father and the Son, as from one principle: a truth propounded to us by an ecclesiastical rule, from which the least departure is unwarrantable, confirmed by the authority of the Sacred Scriptures, and defined by the Councils of the Church. Christ himself, speaking of the Holy Ghost, says: " He shall glorify me, because he shall receive of mine;" (23) and we, also, find that the Holy Ghost is, sometimes, called, in Scripture, " the Spirit of Christ," sometimes, " the Spirit of " the Father;" is, one time, said to be sent by the Father, (24) another time, by the Son; (25) thus signifying, in unequivocal terms, that he proceeds alike from the Father and the Son. " He," says St. Paul, "who has not the Spirit of Christ belongs " not to him." (26) In his epistle to the Galatians, he also calls the Holy Ghost the Spirit of Christ: " God," says he, " hath " sent the Spirit of his Son into your hearts, crying: Abba, Fa- " ther." (27) In the Gospel of St. Matthew, he is called the Spirit of the Father: " It is not you that speak, but the Spir- " it of your Father that speaketh in you;" (28) and our Lord " himself said, at his last supper: " When the Paraclete com- " eth, whom I will send you, the Spirit of Truth, who pro- " ceedeth from the Father, he shall give testimony of me." (29) On another occasion, he declares, that he is to be sent by the Father: "whom," says he, "the Father will send in " my name." (30) Understanding by these words, the procession of the Holy Ghost, we come to the inevitable conclusion, that he proceeds from the Father and the Son. This exposition embraces the doctrine to be taught with regard to the Person of the Holy Ghost. The gifts It is, also, the duty of the pastor to teach that there are cer- \y Ghost, tain admirable effects, certain exalted gifts of the Holy Ghost, which are said to originate and emanate from him, as from a perennial fountain of goodness. Although the extrinsic works of the most Holy Trinity are common to the three Persons, yet many of them are attributed, epecially, to the Holy Ghost; giving us to understand that they arise from the boundless love of God towards us: for as the Holy Ghost proceeds from the divine will, inflamed, as it were, with love, we can comprehend that these effects which are referred, particularly, to the Holy Ghost, are the result of the boundless love of God towards us.

Hence it is, that the Holy Ghost is called a gift; for by a gift, we understand that which is kindly and gratuitously bestowed, without reference to anticipated remuneration. Whatever gifts and graces, therefore, have been bestowed on us, b\ Almighty God, and " what have we," says the Apostle, "that we have not received from God?" (31) we should piously and gratefully acknowledge, as bestowed by the grace and gift of the Holy Ghost.

These gifts are numerous: not to mention the creation of the world, the propagation and government of all created beings, as noticed in the first Article; we proved, a little before, that the giving of life is, particularly, attributed to the Holy Ghost, and the propriety of this attribution is further confirmed by the testimony of the prophet Ezekiel: " I will give you spirit " and you shall live." (32) The prophet Isaias, however, enumerates the effects peculiarly attributed to the Holy Ghost: " The spirit of wisdom, and understanding, the spirit of coun- " sel and fortitude, the spirit of knowledge and piety, and the " spirit of the fear of the Lord;" (33) effects which are called the gifts of the Holy Ghost, and, sometimes, the Holy Ghost. Wisely, therefore, does St. Augustine admonish us, whenever we meet the word Holy Ghost, in Scripture, to distinguish whether it means the third Person of the Trinity, or his gifts

and operations: (34) they are as distinct as the Creator is from the creature. The diligence of the pastor, in expounding these truths, should be the greater, as it is from these gifts of the Holy Ghost that we derive rules of Christian life, and are enabled to know if the Holy Ghost dwells within us.

But the grace of justification, " which signs us with the ho- Justifying

" ly spirit oi promise, who is the pledge ot our inheritance," transcen- (35) transcends his highest gifts: it unites us to God, in the jj£ "he^Hoclosest bonds of love — lights up within us the sacred flame of h Ghost, piety — forms us to newness of life — renders us partakers of the divine nature — and enables us." to be called and really to " be the sons of God." (36) (37)

(34) D. August, lib. 15. de Trinit. cap. xviii. 19. (35)Eph. i. 13.

ARTICLE IX.

BELIEVE THE HOLY CATHOLIC CHURCH."

Article is pastor should explain this ninth Article to the faithful, (1) if we

fully ex- attend to the following important considerations: that, as S.

plame. Augustine observes, (2) the prophets spoke more plainly and

explicitly of the Church than of Christ, foreseeing that on this

a much greater number may err and be deceived, than on the

mystery of the incarnation : after ages were to behold wicked

men, who, imitative as the ape, that would fain pass for one of

the human species, arrogate to themselves exclusively the name

of Catholic, and, with effrontery as unblushing as it is impious,

assert that with them alone is to be found the Catholic Church

— Secondly, that he, whose mind is deeply impressed with this

truth, will experience little difficulty in avoiding the awful dan-

Who is to ger °f heresy ; for a person is not to be called a heretic so soon

be called a as he errs in matters of faith : then onlv is he to be so called,

heretic. . J

when, in defiance of the authority of the Church, he maintains impious opinions, with unyielding pertinacity. As, therefore, so long as he holds what this Article proposes to be believed, no man can be infected with the contagion of heresy; the pastor should use every diligence, that the faithful, knowing this mystery, and prepared against the wiles of Satan, persevere in the true faith.

But this Article hinges upon the preceding one, for, having already established that the Holy Ghost is the source and giver

of all holiness, we here confess our belief in the Church which he has endowed with sanctity.

As the word Ecclesia (church) which is borrowed from the ^eanmg

\ ' m ot the word

Greek, has been applied, since the preaching of the Gospel, to Ecclesia; sacred things, it becomes necessary to explain its meaning. The urc word Ecclesia (church) means a calling forth; but writers, afterwards used it to signify a council or assembly. Nor does it matter whether the word is used in reference to the professors of a true or false religion: in the Acts of the Apostles it is said of the people of Ephesus, that, when the town-clerk had appeased a tumultuous assemblage, he said: " and if you enquire " after any other matter, it may be decided in a lawful assem- " bly" (Ecclesia) ; (3) The Ephesians, who were worshippers of Diana, are thus called by the Apostle, " a lawful assem- " bly" (Ecclesia) : Nor are the Gentiles only, who know not God, called a church or assembly, (Ecclesia) : the councils of wicked and impious men are also, sometimes, called by the same name: " I have hated the assembly (Ecclesiam) of the " malignant," says the Psalmist, " and with the wicked I will not sit." (4) However, in ordinary Scripture-phrase, the word was afterwards used to designate the Christian commonwealth only, and the assemblies of the faithful; that is, of those who were called by faith to the light of truth, and the knowledge of God; who, forsaking the darkness of ignorance and error, worship the living and true God in piety and holiness, and serve him from their whole hearts. In a word, " the Church," says S. Augustine, " consists of the faithful dispersed through- " out the world." (5)

Under the word " Church" are comprehended no unimpor- Mysteries tant mysteries, for, in this " calling forth," which the word word com- Ecclesia (church) signifies, we at once recognize the benig- Pnsesnity and splendour of divine grace, and understand that the Church is very unlike all other commonwealths: they rest on human reason and human prudence: this, on the wisdom and councils of God; for he called us by the interior inspiration of the Holy Ghost, who, through the ministry and labour of his pastors, and preachers, penetrates into the hearts of men.

(3) Acts, xix. 39. (4) Ps. xxv. 5. (5) S. Aug. in Ps. cxlix.

In what it Moreover, from this calling we shall better understand the from the end which the Christian should propose to himself, that is, the s^nagogue knowledge and possession of things eternal, when we reflect why the faithful, living under the law, were, of old, called a synagogue, that is, a congregation: as S. Augustine observes, " they were so called, because, like cattle which usually go " together, they looked only to terrestrial and transitory "things;" (6) and hence the Christian people are called a Church, not a synagogue, because, despising terrestrial and transitory things, they aspired only to things heavenly and eternal. Other Many other names, replete with mysteries, are employed,

the Ch'ch. by an easy deflection from their original meaning, to designate the Christian commonwealth: by the Apostle it is called " the " House and Edifice of God," when writing to Timothy, he says, " If I tarry long, that thou mayest know how thou ought- "est to behave thyself in the house of God, which is the " Church of the living God, the pillar and ground of truth." (7) I. It is called a house, because it consists, as it were, of one family, governed by one Father, and enjoying a community of II# all spiritual goods. It is also called the flock of Christ, of W.- which he is "the door and the shepherd." (8) It is called the spouse of Christ: "I have espoused you to one husband," says the Apostle to the Corinthians, " that I may present you " a chaste virgin to Christ:" (9) and writing to the Ephesians, he says: " Husbands, love your wives, as Christ, also, loved " the Church, and delivered himself up for it:" (10) and, also, speaking of marriage, he says: " This is a great sacrament, IV. but I speak in Christ and in the Church." (11) Finally, the Church is called the body of Christ, as may be seen in the epistles of S. Paul to the Ephesians, (12) and Colossians: (13) appellations each of which has considerable influence in exciting the faithful to prove themselves worthy the boundless clemency and goodness of God, who chose them to be his people. The Ch'ch Having explained these things, it will be necessary to enuut and" nierate the several component parts of the Church, and point

(6) Aug. in Ps. lxxvu. et Ixxxi. (7) 1 Tim. m. 15.

out their difference, in order that the faithful may the better comprehend the nature, properties, gifts and graces of the Church, the object of God's special predilection; and unceasingly offer to the divine majesty the homage of their grateful praise. The Church consists principally of two parts, the one called the Church triumphant, the other, the Church militant. (14) The Church triumphant is that most glorious and Triumphhappy assemblage of blessed spirits and of those souls who ant ' have triumphed over the world, the flesh, and the devil, and, now exempt from the troubles of this life, are blessed with the fruition of everlasting bliss. The Church militant is the Militant. society of all the faithful still dwelling on earth, and is called militant, because it wages eternal war with those implacable enemies, the world, the flesh and the devil. We are not, however, hence to infer that there are two Churches: they are two constituent parts of one Church; one part gone before, and now in the possession of its heavenly country; the other, following every day, until, at length, united to its invisible head, it shall repose in the fruition of endless felicity. (15)

The Church militant is composed of two classes of persons, Composed the good and the bad, both professing the same faith and par- and the taking of the same sacraments; yet differing in their manner b of life and morality. The good are those who are linked together not only by the profession of the same faith, and the participation of the same sacraments; but also by the spirit of grace, and the bond of charity: of whom St. Paul says: " The "Lord knoweth who are his." (16) Who they are that compose this class we, also, may remotely conjecture; pronounce with certainty we cannot. (17) Of this part of his Church, therefore, our Lord does not speak, when he refers us to the Church, and commands us to hear and to obey her: (1 8) unknown as is that portion of the Church, how ascertain with certainty, whose decision to recur to, whose authority to obey? The Church, therefore, as the Sacred Scriptures, and the writings of the holy men who are gone before" us, testify, includes within her fold the good and the bad; and this interpretation is sus-

(14) Aug. Ench. c. 10. (15) Aug. lib. ii. de Civ. Dei, c. 9.

tained by the Apostle, when he says: " There is one body and fomUaerSi-& "one spirit." (19) Thus understood, the Church is known, sons of the and is compared to a city built on a mountain, and seen from every side. (20) As al! must yield obedience to her authority, it is necessary that she may be known by all. That the Church is composed of the good and the bad we learn from many parables- contained in the Gospel: thus, the kingdom of heaven, that is, the Church militant, is compared to a net cast into the sea, (21) to a field in which tares were sown with the good grain, (22) to a threshing floor on which the grain is mixed up with the chaff, (23) and, also, to ten virgins, five of whom were wise, and five foolish; (24) and, long before, we trace a figure and striking resemblance of the Church in the ark of Noah, which contained not only clean, but also unclean animals. (25) But, although the Catholic faith uniformly and truly teaches that the good and the bad belong to the Church, yet the same faith declares that the condition of both is very different: the wicked are contained in the Church, as the chaff is mingled with the grain on the threshing floor, or as dead members, sometimes, remain attached to a living body. Those who Hence, there are but three classes of persons excluded ed from fr°m ner pale, infidels, heretics and schismatics, and excomher pale. mUnicated persons; infidels, because they never belonged to, and never knew the Church, and were never made partakers of any of her sacraments; heretics and schismatics, because they have separated from the Church, and belong to her, only as deserters belong to the army from which they have deserted. It is not, however, to be denied that they are still subject to the jurisdiction of the Church, inasmuch as they are liable to have judgment past on their opinions, to be visited with spiritual punishments, and denounced with anathema. Finally, excommunicated persons, because excluded by her sentence from the number of her children, belong not to her communion until restored by repentance. But with regard to the rest; however wicked and flagitious, it is certain that they

still belong to the Church; and of this the faithful are frequently to be reminded, in order to be convinced that, were even the lives of her ministers debased by crime, they are still within her pale, and, therefore, lose no part of the power, with which her ministry invests them.

But portions of the Universal Church are, also, usually Simons called a Church, as when the Apostle mentions the Church of the word at Coiinth, (26) at Galatia, (27) at Laodicea, (28) at Thes- Chlirch' salonica. (29) The private houses of the faithful he, also, calls Churches: the Church in the house of Priscilla and Aquila he commands to be saluted: (30) and in another place, he says: " Aquila and Priscilla, with their domestic Church, " salute you much." (31) Writing to Philemon, he makes use of the same word, in the same sense. (32) Sometimes, also, the word Church is used to signify the prelates and pastors of the Church: " If he will not hear thee," says our Lord, "tell it to the Church." (33) Here the word Church means the authorities of the Church. The place in which the faithful assemble to hear the word of God, or for other religious purposes, is, also, called a Church; (34) but, in this Article, the word is specially used to signify the good and the bad, the governing and the governed.

The distinctive marks of this Church are also to be made Distincknown to the faithful, that thus they may be enabled to esti- of the mate the extent of the blessing, conferred by God on those Churchwho have had the happiness to be born and educated within her pale. The first mark of the true Church is described in the Creed of the Fathers, and consists in unity: " My dove is " one, my beautiful one is one." (35) So vast a multitude, I. scattered far and wide, is called one, for the reasons mention- m y' ed by S. Paul in his epistle to the Ephesians: " One Lord, one " faith, one baptism." (36) This Church has, also, but one ruler and one governor, the invisible one, Christ, whom the Eternal Father " hath made head over all the Church, which " is his body;" (37) the visible one, him, who, as legitimate

successor of Peter the prince of the Apostles, fills the apostolic chair. A visible That this visible head is necessary to establish and preserve cessary to unity in the Church is the unanimous accord of the Fathers; unity"6 an(i on this, the sentiments of S. Jerome, in his work against Jovinian,are as clearly conceived, as they are happily expressed: " One," says he, " is chosen, that, by the appointment of " a head, all occasion of schism may be removed;" (38) and to Damasus, " Let envy cease, let the pride of Roman ambi- " tion be humbled: I speak to the successor of the fisherman, " and to the disciple of the cross. Following no chief but " Christ, I am united in communion with your Holiness, that " is, with the chair of Peter. I know that on that rock is " built the Church. Whoever will eat the lamb outside this " house is profane: whoever is not in the ark of Noah shall " perish in the flood." The same doctrine was, long before, established by SS. Irenaeus, (39) and Cyprian: (40) the latter, speaking of the unity of the Church, observes, " The Lord " said to Peter, ' I say to thee Peter! thou art Peter; and up- '"on this rock I will build my Church:' (41) he builds his " Church on one; and although, after his resurrection, he gave " equal power to all his Apostles, saying, ' As the Father hath " ' sent me, I also send you. Receive ye the Holy Ghost;' (42) " yet, to display unity, he disposed, by his own^authority, the " origin of this unity, which had its beginning with one, &c." Again, Optatus of Milevis says: " It cannot be ascribed to ig- " norance on your part, knowing, as you do, that the episcopal u chair, in which, as head of all the Apostles, Peter sat, was, " first, fyced by him in the city of Rome; that^ in him alone " may be preserved the unity of the Church; and that the oth- " er Apostles may not claim each a chair for himself; so that, " now, he, who erects another, in opposition to this single chair, " is a schismatic and a prevaricator." (43) In the next place, S. Basil has these words: " Peter is made the foundation, be- " cause he says: ' Thou art Christ, the Son of the living God:'

(38) S. Hyeron. lib. 1. contr. Jovin. in med. et epist. 57.

(39) Iren. lib. 3. contr. haeres. cap. 3.

(40) B. Cyprian, de simp, prseel. in principio fere. . (41) Math. xvi. 18. (42) John, xx, 21, 22. (43) Optat. Initio lib. 2. ad Parmen.

" and hears in reply that he is a rock; but although a rock, he " is not such a rock as Christ, for in himself Christ is, truly, an " immoveable rock, but Peter, only by virtue of that rock; for " God bestows his dignities on others: He is a priest and he " makes priests; a rock and he makes a rock: what belongs to " himself, he bestows on his servants." (44) Lastly, St. Ambrose says: " Should any one object, that the Church is con- " tent with one head and one spouse, Jesus Christ, and requires "no other; the answer is obvious; for, as we deem Christ u not only the author of all the Sacraments, but, also, their in- " visible minister; (he it is who baptises, he it is who absolves, " although men are appointed by him the eternal ministers of " the sacraments) so has he placed over his Church, which he " governs by his invisible spirit, a man to be his vicar, and the "minister of his power: a visible Church requires a visible " head, and, therefore, does the Saviour appoint Peter head " and pastor of all the faithful, when, in the most ample terms, " he commits to his care the feeding of all his sheep; (45) de- " siring that he, who was to succeed him, should be invested " with the very same power of ruling and governing the entire Church."

them, that there is but one and the same Spirit, who imparts how t0 h,e

. preserved,

grace to the faithful^ as the soul communicates life to the

members of the body. (46) Exhorting the Ephesians to preserve this unity, he says, " Be careful to keep the unity of the " Spirit in th# bond of peace." (47) As the human body consists of many members, animated by one soul, which gives sight to the eye#, heariag to the ears, and to the other senses, the power of discharging their respective functions; so, the mystical body of Christ, which is the Church, is composed of many faithful. The hope, to which we are called, is, also, one, as the Apostle tells us in the same place: (48) we all hope for the same consummation, eternal life. Finally, the faith, which all are bound to believe and to profess, is one: " Let there be no schisms amongst you;" (49) and baptism,

which is the seal of our solemn initiation into the Christian faith, is, also, one. (50N Holiness Another distinctive mark of the Church is holiness, as we learn from these words of the prince of the apostles: " You "are a chosen generation, a holy nation." (51) The Church is called holy, because she is consecrated and dedicated to God; (52) as other things, such as vessels, vestments, altars, when appropriated and dedicated to the worship of God, although material, are called holy; and, in the same sense, the first-born, who were dedicated to the Most High God, were, also, called holy. (53)

It should not be deemed matter of surprise, that the Church, although numbering amongst her children many sinners, is called holy; for as those who profess any art, although they should depart from its rules, are called artists; so the faithful, although offending in many things, and violating the engagements, to the observance of which they had, solemnly, pledged themselves, are called holy, because they are made the people of God, and are consecrated to Christ, by baptism and faith. Hence, S. Paul calls the Corinthians sanctified and holy, although it is certain that amongst them there were some, whom he severely rebuked as carnal, and, also, charged with grosser crimes. (54) She is, also, to be called holy, because, as the body, she is united to her head, Christ Jesus, (55) the fountain of all holiness, from whom flow the graces of the Holy Spirit, and the riches of the divine bounty. S. Augustine interpreting these words of the prophet: " Preserve my " soul because I am holy," (56) thus admirably expresses himself: " Let the body of Christ boldly say, let also, that one " man, exclaiming from the ends of the earth boldly say, with " Christ his head, and under Christ his head; I am holy: for "he received the grace of holiness, the grace of baptism and " of remission of sins;" and a little after: " If all Christians and " all the faithful, having been baptised in Christ, have put him " on, according to these words of the Apostle: ' as many of you as have been baptised in Christ, have put on Christ:'

" (57) if they are made members of his body, and yet say they " are not holy, they do an injury to their head, whose mem- " bers are holy." (58) (59) Moreover, the Church alone has the legitimate worship of sacrifice, and the salutary use of the sacraments, by which, as the efficacious instruments of divine grace, God establishes us in true holiness; so that to possess true holiness we must belong to this church. The Church, therefore, it is clear, is holy, (60) and holy, because she is the body of Christ, by whom she is sanctified, and in whose blood she is washed. (61) (62)

The third mark of the Church is, that she is Catholic, that,, }l\: .t

is, universal; and justly is she called Catholic, because, as S. Augustine says: " She is diffused by the splendor of one faith " from the rising to the setting sun." (63) Unlike republics of human institution, or the conventicles of heretics, she is not circumscribed within the limits of any one kingdom, nor confined to the members of any one society of men; but embraces, within the amplitude of her love, all mankind, whether barbarians or Scythians, slaves or freemen, male or female. Therefore is it written, " Thou hast redeemed us to God in thy " blood, out of every tribe, and tongue, and people, and nation, U and hast made us to our God, a kingdom." (64) Speaking of the Church, David says: " Ask of me, and I will give thee the " Gentiles for thy inheritance, and the utmost parts of the earth "for thy possession:" (65) and also, "I will be mindful of " Rahab and of Babylon knowing me;" (66) and " This man " and that man is born in her." (67) To this Chruch, " built " on the foundation of the Apostles and Prophets," (68) belong all the faithful who have existed from Adam to the present day, or who shall exist, in the profession of the true faith, to the end of time; all of whom are founded and raised upon the one corner stone, Christ, Avho made both one, and announced peace to them that are near, and to them that are afar. She is, also, called universal, because all who desire eternal salva-

(57) Gal. iii. 27. (5SJ Eph. v. 26, 27, SO. (59) S. Aug. in Psal. lxxxv. 2. (60) Eph. i. 1-4. (HI) Eph. i. 7, 13. v. 26.

(62) De sanctitate Ecclesise vide Justin, mart, in utraque Apol. Tert. in Apol. Aug. contr. Fulg.c. 17. Gregor. Moral. L. 37. c. 7.

tion must cling to and embrace her, like those who entered the ark, to escape perishing in the flood. (69) This, therefore, is to be taught as a most just criterion, to distinguish the true from a false Church. j^\. The true Church is, also, to be known from her origin, which

city. she derives, under the law of grace, from the Apostles; for

her doctrines are neither novel nor of recent origin, but were delivered, of old, by the Apostles, and disseminated throughout the world. Hence, no one can, for a moment, doubt that the impious opinions which heresy invents, opposed, as they are, to the doctrines taught by the Church from the days of the Apostles to the present time, are very different from the faith of the true Church. That all, therefore, may know the true Catholic Church, the Fathers, guided by the Spirit of God, added to the Creed the word " apostolic;" (70) for the Holy Ghost, who presides over the Church, governs her by no other than Apostolic men; and this spirit, first imparted to the Apostles, has, by the infinite goodness of God, always continued in the Church. But as this one Church, because governed by the Holy Ghost, cannot err in faith or morals, it necessarily follows, that all other societies arrogating to themselves the name of Church, because guided by the spirit of darkness, are sunk in the most pernicious errors both doctrinal and moral.

Figures of But as the figures of the Old Testament have considerable influence in exciting the minds of the faithful, and recalling to their recollection these most salutary truths, and are, principally on this account, mentioned by the Apostle, the pastor will not pass by so copious a source of instruction. Amongst these figures the ark of Noah holds a conspicuous place. It was constructed by the command of God, (71) in order, no doubt, to signify the Church, which God has so constituted, as that whoever enters her, through baptism, may be safe from all danger of eternal death, while such as are not within her, like those who were not in the ark, are overwhelmed by their own crimes. n- Another figure presents itself in the great city of Jerusa-

(69) Gen. vii. 7. (70) De verse Ecclesise nolis vide Aug. contra epist.

fundamenti, cap. 4. Tertul. lib. toto de prsescript. (71) Gen. vi. 14.

lem, (72) which, in Scripture, often means the Church. In Jerusalem only was it lawful to offer sacrifice to God, and in the Church of God only are to be found the true worship and true sacrifice which can, at all, be acceptable to God. Finally, with regard to the Church, the pastor will teach how to be- Church to lieve the Church can constitute an article of faith. Reason, and how?' it is true, and the senses are competent to ascertain the existence of the Church, that is, of a society of men devoted and consecrated to Jesus Christ; nor does faith seem necessary in order to understand a truth which is acknowledged by Jews and Turks: but it is from the light of faith only, not from the deductions of reason, that the mind can comprehend the mysteries, which, as has been already glanced at, and as shall be, hereafter, more fully developed, when we come to treat of the Sacrament of Orders, are contained in the Church of God. As, therefore, this Article, as well as the others, is placed above the reach, and defies the strength, of the human understanding, most justly do we confess, that human reason cannot arrive at a knowledge of the origin, privileges and dignity of the Church; these we can contemplate only with the eyes of faith.

This Church was founded not by man, but by the immortal The God himself, who built her upon a most solid rock: " The by whom " Highest Himself," says the Prophet, "hath founded her." founded> (73) Hence, she is called "The inheritance of God," (74) " The people of God," (75) and the power, which she possesses, is not from man but from God. As this power, therefore, cannot be of human origin, divine faith can alone enable us to understand that the keys of the kingdom of Heaven are deposited with the Church, (76) that tojier has been confided the power of remitting sins; (77) of denouncing excommunication; (78) and of consecrating the real body of Christ; (79) and that her children have not here a permanent dwelling, but look for one above. (80)

We are, therefore, bound to believe that there is one Holy Webeiieve Catholic Church-, but, with regard to the three Persons of the *££?

Church.

(73) Ps. Ixxxvi. 5. (74) Ps. ii. 8. (75) Osee. ii. 1. (76J Mat. xvi. 19. (77) John, xx. 23. (78j Mat. xviii. 17. (79) Heb. xiii. 10. (80) Heb. xiii. 14.

Holy Trinity, the Father, the Son, and the Holy Ghost, we not only believe them, but, also, believe in them; and hence, when speaking of each dogma, we make use of a different form of expression, professing to believe the holy, not in the Holy Catholic Church; (81) by this difference of expression, distinguishing God, the author of all things, from his works, and acknowledging ourselves debtors to the divine goodness for all these exalted benefits bestowed on the Church.

(81) Aug. serm. 131. de temp.

This Arti- The Evangelist, S. John, writing to the faithful on the dicarefully vme mysteries, tells them, that he undertook to instruct them explained. on \foe subject; " that you," says he, " may have fellowship " with us, and our fellowship be with the Father and with his " Son Jesus Christ." (1) This "fellowship" consists in the Communion of Saints, the subject of the present Article. Would, that, in its exposition, pastors imitated the zeal of S. Paul and of the other Apostles! (2) for not only does it serve as an interpretation of the preceding Article, and is a point of doctrine productive of abundant proof; but it also teaches the use to be made of the mysteries contained in the Creed; because the great end, to which all our researches and knowledge are to be directed, is our admission into this most august and blessed society of the saints, and our steady perseverance therein, •" giving thanks, with joy, to God the Fa- " ther who has made us worthy to be partakers of the lot of " the saints in light." (3) In what The faithful? therefore, in the first place, are to be inform- "theCom-ed that this Article is, as it were, a sort of explanation of the

munion of

Saints"

consists. ("I) 1 John, i. 3. (2) Aug. in Joan. Tract. 32. (3; Col. i. 12.

preceding one, which regards the unity, sanctity and catholicity of the Church: for the unity of the Spirit, by which she is governed, establishes among all her members a community of spiritual blessings, whereas the fruit of all the Sacraments is common to all the faithful, and these Sacraments, particularly baptism, the door, as it were, by which we are admitted into the Church, (4) are so many connecting links which bind and unite them to Jesus Christ. That this Communion of Saints implies a communion of Sacraments, the Fathers declare in these words of the Creed: u I confess one baptism." (5) After baptism, the Eucharist holds the first place in reference to this communion; and after the Eucharist, the other Sacraments; for, although common to all the Sacraments, because all unite us to God, and render us partakers of him whose grace they communicate to us, this communion belongs, in a peculiar manner, to the Eucharist, by which it is directly accomplished. (6)

But there is, also, another communion in the Church, which demands attention: every pious and holy action, done by one, belongs to and becomes profitable to all, through charity, " which seeks not her own." (7) In this we are fortified by the concurrent testimony of S. Ambrose, who, explaining these words of the Psalmist: "I am a partaker with all them that '' fear thee," observes: " As we say that a member is par- " taker of the entire body, so are we partakers with all that "fear God." (8) Therefore, has Christ taught us to say, " our" not "mj/" bread;" (9) and the other petitions of that admirable prayer are equally general, not confined to ourselves alone, but directed, also, to the general interest and salvation of all. This communication of goods is, often, very apposite- a scriptuly illustrated in Scripture by a comparison borrowed from the[allll,?J^'' members of the human body; in the human body there are commumany members, but though many, they, yet, constitute but one m°n' body, in which each performs its own, not all, the same functions. All do not enjoy equal dignity, or discharge functions alike useful or honourable; nor does one propose to itself its

(7) 1 Cor. xiii. 5. (8)S. Ambr. in Ps. cxviii. serm. 8, v. 63. (9) Mat. vi. 11.

own exclusive advantage, but that of the entire body. (10) Besides, they are all so well organised and knit together, that if one suffers, the rest, naturally, sympathise with it, and if, on the contrary, one enjoys health, the feeling of pleasure is common to all. The same may be observed of the Church; although composed of various members; of different nations, of Jews, Gentiles, freemen and slaves, of rich and poor; yet all, initiated by faith, constitute one body with Christ, who is their head. To each member of the Church, is, also, assigned its own peculiar office; and as some are appointed apostles, some teachers, but all for the common good; so to some it belongs to govern and teach, to others to be subject and to obey. This com- But, the advantages of so many and such exalted blessings, howfar bestowed by Almighty God, are preeminently enjoyed by those common to ^q iea(j a Christian life in charity, and are just and beloved ed. of God; whilst the dead members, that is, those who are bound

in the thraldom of sin, and estranged from the grace of God, although not deprived of these advantages, so as to cease to be members of this body, are yet as dead members, deprived of the vivifying principle which is communicated to the just and pious Christian. However, as they are in the Church, they are assisted in recovering lost grace and life by those who are animated by the Spirit of God, and are in the enjoyment of those fruits, which are, no doubt, denied to such as are, entirely, cut off from the communion of the Church. (11) " Graces But the gifts, which justify and endear us to God, are not "tousiy" alone common: " graces gratuitously granted," suchasknow-

"granted" ledge, prophecy, the gifts of tongues and of miracles, and othcommon to ° ' r r ■" ° °

them withers of the same sort, (12) are common also, and are granted 1 e g0° ' even to the wicked; not, however, for their own, but for the general good; for the building up of the Church of God. Thus, the gift of healing is given, not for the sake of him who heals, but for the sake of him who is healed. In fine, every true Christian possesses nothing which he should not consider common to all others with himself, and should, therefore, be prepared promptly to relieve an indigent fellow-creature; for

he that is blessed with worldly goods, and sees his brother in want, and will not assist him, is at once convicted of not having the love of God within him. (13) Those, therefore, who belong to this holy communion, it is manifest, enjoy a sort of happiness here below, and may truly say with the Psalmist: " How a lovely are thy tabernacles, O Lord of hosts! my soul longeth f and fainteth for the courts of the Lord. Blessed are they u who dwell in thy house, O Lord!" (14)

ARTICLE X.

" THE FORGIVENESS OF SINS."

The belief The enumeration of this amongst the other Articles of the ticlenects- Creed, is alone sufficient to satisfy us, that it conveys a truth, sary to sal- which is not only in itself a divine mystery, but also a mystery very necessary to salvation. We have already said that, without a firm belief of all the Articles of the Creed, Christian piety is wholly unattainable. However, should a truth, which ought to bring intrinsic evidence to every mind, seem to require any other authority in its support; enough that the Redeemer, a short time previous to his ascension into heaven, " when " opening the understanding of his disciples, that they might " understand the Scriptures," bore testimony to this article of the Creed, in these words: " It behoved Christ to suffer, and " to rise again from the dead the third day, and that penance " and remission of sins, should be preached, in his name, unto Obligation " a^ nations, beginning at Jerusalem." (1) Let the pastor but of the pas- weigh well these words, and he will readily perceive, that the plain it to Lord has laid him under a most sacred obligation, not only of t epeop e. makjng kn0Wn to the faithful, whatever regards religion in general, but also of explaining with particular care, this article of the Creed. On this point of doctrine, then, it is the bounden duty of the pastor to teach that, not only is " forgiveness of " sins" to be found in the Catholic Church, as Isaias had foretold in these words: " The people that dwell therein shall have " their iniquity taken away from them;" (2) but, also, that in her resides the power of forgiving sins; (3) which power, if exercised duly, and according to the laws prescribed by our

Lord, is, we are bound to believe, such as, truly to pardon and remit sins.

But, when we first make a profession of faith at the baptism- remitsaii al font, and are cleansed in its purifying waters, we receive sins and this pardon entire and unqualified; so that no sin, original or ments duo actual, of commission or omission, remains to be expiated, ° iem* no punishment to be endured. The grace of baptism, however, does not give exemption from all the infirmities of nature: on the contrary, contending, as we each of us have to contend, against the motions of concupiscence, which ever tempts us to the commission of sin, there is scarcely one to be found amongst us, who opposes so vigorous a resistance to its assaults, or who guards his salvation so vigilantly, as to escape all the snares of Satan. (4)

her were entrusted the keys ot the kingdom of heaven, by which each one, if penitent, may obtain the remission of his sins, even though he were a sinner to the last day of his life. This truth is vouched by the most unquestionable authority of the Sacred Scriptures: in St. Matthew, the Lord says to Peter: "I will give to thee the keys of the kingdom of heaven; " and whatever thou shall bind on earth shall be bound also in "heaven; and whatever thou shalt loose on earth, shall be " loosed also in heaven;" (5) and again, " whatever you shall " bind on earth, shall be bound also in heaven; and whatever "you shall loose on earth, shall be loosed also in heaven." (6) Again, the testimony of St. John assures us that the Lord, breathing on the Apostle, said u Receive ye the Holy Ghost, " whose sins you shall forgive, they are forgiven them; and " whose sins you shall retain, they are retained." (7) Nor isThispower the exercise of this power restricted to particular sins, for no auxins! t0 crime, however heinous, can be committed, which the Church has not power to forgive: as, also, there is no sinner, however abandoned, none however depraved, who should not confidently hope for pardon, provided he sincerely repent of his past transgressions. (8) Neither is the exercise of this power

(8) Ambros. lib. 1. de poenit. c. I. & 2. Aug. in Ench. c. 93.

restricted to particular times; for whenever the sinner turns from his evil ways, he is not to be rejected, as we learn from the reply of our Lord to the prince of the Apostles, asking how often we should pardon an offending brother, whether seven times: " Not only seven times," says the Redeemer, " but even seventy times seven." (9) But is con- But if we look to its ministers, or to the manner in which it shops and 1S to be exercised, the extent of his power will not appear so priests. great; for it is a power not given to all, but to bishops and priests only; and sins can be forgiven only through the sacraments, when duly administered. — The Church has received no power otherwise to remit sin. (10) Its inesti- Bat to raise the admiration of the faithful, for this heavenly mable val- gjf^ bestowed on the Church by the singular mercy of God towards us, and to make them approach its use with the more lively sentiments of devotion; the pastor will endeavour to point out the dignity and the extent of the grace which it imparts. If there be any one means better calculated than another to accomplish this end, it is, carefully to show how great must be the efficacy of that which absolves from sin, and restores the unjust to a state of justification. This is, manifestly, an effect of the infinite power of God, of that same power which we believe to have been necessary to raise the dead to life, and to summon creation into existence. (11) But if it be true, as the authority of St. Augustine assures us itis,(12) that, to recall a sinner from the state of sin to that of righteousness, is even a greater work than to create the heavens and the earth from nothing, though their creation can be no other than the effect of infinite power; it follows that we have still stronger reason to consider the remission of sins, as an effect proceeding from the exercise of this same infinite power. With great truth,therefore,have the ancient Fathers declared,thatGod alone can forgive sins, and that to his infinite goodness and power alone is so wonderful a work to be referred: " I am he," says the Lord himself, by the mouth of his prophet, " I am he, who

(10) Trid. sess. 14. c. 6. Hier. epist. 1. post med. Ambr. de Cain et Abel, c. 4.

(12) Aug. lib. 1. de pecc. merit, c. 23. 1. 50. hom. 2:5. Ambr. dc Abel, cap. 4.

"• blotteth out your iniquities." (1 3) The remission of sins seems to bear an exact analogy to the cancelling of a pecuniary debt: as, therefore, none but the creditor can forgive a pecuniary debt, so the debt of sin, which we owe to God alone, (and our daily prayer is: " forgive us our debts,") (14) can, it is clear, be forgiven by him alone, and by none else.

But this wonderful gift, this emanation of the divine bounty, First givwas never communicated to creatures, until God became man. Christ, as Christ our Lord, although true God, was the first who, as man, manreceived this high prerogative from his heavenly Father: " That you may know," says he to the paralytic, " that the " Son of Man hath power on earth to forgive sins, rise, take " up thy bed, and go into thy house." (15) As, therefore, he became man, in order to bestow on man this forgiveness of sins, he communicated this power to bishops and priests in the Church, previously to his ascension into heaven, there to sit for ever at the right hand of God. Christ, however, as we have already said, remits sin by virtue of his own authority, all others by virtue of his authority delegated to them as his ministers.

If, therefore, whatever is the effect of infinite power claims Thegreatour highest admiration, and commands our profoundest rever- gjfts° ence; we must readily perceive that this gift, bestowed on the Church by the bounteous hand of Christ our Lord, is one of inestimable value. The manner, too, in which God, in the fullness of his paternal clemency, resolved to cancel the sins of the world, must powerfully excite the faithful to the contemplation of this great blessing: it was his will that our offences should be expiated in the blood of his only begotten Son, that lie should voluntarily assume the imputability of our sins, and suffer a most cruel death; the just for the unjust, the innocent for the guilty. (16) When, therefore, we reflect, that " we " were not redeemed with corruptible things, as gold or silver, " but with the precious blood of Christ, as of a lamb unspotted and undefiled;" (17) we are naturally led to conclude that we could have received no gift more salutary than this

power of forgiving sins, which proclaims the ineffable providence of God, and the excess of his love towards us. sinhow ^^s reflection must produce, in all, the most abundant spirgreat an itual fruit; for whoever offends God, even by one mortal sin, instantly forfeits whatever merits he may have previously acquired through the sufferings and death of Christ, and is entirely shut out from the gate of heaven, which, when already closed, was thrown open to all by the Redeemer's passion. And, indeed, when this reflection enters into the mind, it is impossible not to feel impressed with the most anxious solicitude, in contemplating the picture of human misery which it presents to our view. But if we turn our attention to this admirable power with which God has invested his Church; and, in the firm belief of this Article, feel convinced that to every sinner is offered the means of recovering, with the assistance of divine grace, his former dignity; we can no longer resist sentiments of exceeding joy, and gladness, and exultation, and must offer immortal thanks to God. If, when labouring under some severe malady, the medicines prepared for us by the art and industry of the physician, generally become grateful and agreeable to us; how much more grateful and agreeable should those remedies prove, which the wisdom of God has established to heal our spiritual maladies, and restore us to the life of grace; remedies which, unlike the medicines used for the recovery of bodily health, bring with them, not, indeed, uncertain hope of recovery, but certain health to such as desire to be cured. ful^hould Tne faitnful) therefore, having formed a just conception of have re- the dignity of so excellent and exalted a blessing, should be exthe^exer- horted to study how to turn it religiously to good account;

cise of tins for ^ wj10 makes no use ot what is really useful and necessapower. J

ry, affords a strong presumption that he despises it; particularly as, in communicating to the Church the power of forgiving sins, the Lord did so with the view, that all should have recourse to this healing remedy; for as, without baptism, no man can be cleansed from original sin, so, without the sacrament of penance, which is another means instituted by God to cleanse from sin, he who desires to recover the grace of baptism, forfeited by actual mortal guilt, cannot recover lost innocence.

But here the faithful are to be admonished to guard against Danger of the danger of becoming more propense to sin, or slow to repen- be\voidtance, from a presumption that they can have recourse to this ed> plenary power of forgiving sins, which, as we have already said, is unrestricted by time; for as such a propensity to sin, must, manifestly, convict them of acting injuriously and contumaciously to this divine power, and must, therefore, render them unworthy of the divine mercy; so, this slowness to repentance must afford great reason to apprehend, lest overtaken by death, they may, in vain, confess their belief in the remission of sins, which their tardiness and procrastination have, deservedly, forfeited. (18)

(IS) Aug. in Joan. Tract. 33. & lib. 50. homil. 41. Ambross. lib. 2. de prenit. c. 1. 2.&11.

ARTICLE XL

Import- That this Article supplies a convincing proof of the truth

Article. °f our ^a'^ 1S evinced by the circumstance of its not only being proposed in the Sacred Scriptures, to the belief of the faithful, but also fortified by numerous arguments. This we scarcely find to be the case with regard to the other Articles: a circumstance which justifies the inference that on it, as on its most solid basis, rests our hope of salvation; for according to the reasoning of the Apostle, " If there be no resurrection " of the dead, then Christ is not risen again; and if Christ be " not risen again, then is our preaching vain, and your faith is "also vain." (1) The zeal and assiduity, therefore, of the pastor in its exposition should not be inferior to the labour which impiety has expended in fruitless efforts to overturn its truth. That eminently important advantages flow to the faithful from the knowledge of this Article will appear from the sequel. The resur- And, first, that in this Article the resurrection of mankind maaMnd *s ca^ed " tne resurrection of the body," is a circumstance why call- which deserves attention. The Apostles had for object, (for

surrection it is not without its object,) thus to convey an important truth, Hy.hebo" the immortality of the soul. Lest, therefore, contrary to the Sacred Scriptures, which, in many places, teach the soul to be immortal, (2) any one may imagine that it dies with the body, and that both are to be resuscitated, the Creed speaks only of " the resurrection of the body." The word, "caro," which is used in the symbol, translated literally, means " flesh:" a

word, which, though of frequent occurrence in Scripture to signify the whole man, soul and body, as in Isaias, " All flesh is grass;" (3) and in S. John, " The Word was made flesh;" (4) is, however used, here, to express the body only; thus giving us to understand, that, of the two constituent parts of man, one only, that is the body, is corrupted, and returns to its original dust; whilst the soul remains incorrupt and immortal. As then, without dying, a man cannot be said to return to life; so the soul, which never dies, could not, with propriety, be said to rise again. The word body, is, also, mentioned, in order to confute the heresy of Hymeneus and Philetus, who during the life-time of the Apostle, asserted, that whenever the Scriptures speak of the resurrection, they are to be understood to mean not the resurrection of the body, but that of the soul, by which it rises from the death of sin to the life of grace. (5) The words of this Article, therefore, clearly confute the error, and establish a real resurrection of the body.

But it will be the duty of the pastor to illustrate this truth Proofs of by examples taken from the Old and New Testaments, and jectioiTTf from all ecclesiastical history. In the Old Testament, some the body. were restored to life by Elias, (6) and Elizeus; (7) and in the New, besides those who were raised to life by our Lord, (8) many were resuscitated by the Apostles, and by others. (9) Their resurrection confirms the doctrine conveyed by this Article, for believing that many were recalled from death to life, we are also naturally led to believe the general resurrection of all; and the principal fruit which we should derive from these miracles is to yield to this Article our most unhesitating belief. To pastors, ordinarily conversant with the Sacred Volumes, many Scripture proofs will, at once, present themselves; but, in the Old Testament, the most conspicuous are those afforded by Job when he says, "that in his flesh he shall see God;" (10) and by Daniel when, " speaking of those who sleep in the dust of the earth," he says, "some shall awake to eternal life, others to eternal

"reproach." (II) In the New Testament the principal passages are those of S. Matthew, which record the disputation which our Lord held with the Sadducees; (12) and those of the Evangelists which relate to the last judgment. (13) To these we may also add, the accurate reasoning of the Apostle, on the subject, in his epistles to the Corinthians, (14) and Thessalonians. (15) Illustrated But, incontrovertibly as is this truth established by faith, it iisons. w\\\, notwithstanding, be of material advantage to show from analogy and reason, that what faith proposes to our belief, nature acknowledges to accord with her laws, and reason with her dictate. To one, asking how the dead should rise again, the Apostle answers: " Foolish man! that which thou sowest is " not quickened, except it die first; and that which thou sow- " est, thou sowest not the body that shall be; but bare grain " as of wheat, or of some of the rest; but God giveth it a bo- " dy as he will:" and a little after, " It is sown in corruption, " it shall rise in incorruption." (16) S. Gregory, calls our attention to many other arguments of analogy tending to the same effect: " The sun," says he, " is every day withdrawn " from our eyes, as it were, by dying, and is again recalled, as it were, by rising again: trees lose, and again, as it were, by " a resurrection, resume their verdure: seeds die by putrefaction, and rise again by germination.'' (17) Proved by The reasons, also, adduced by ecclesiastical writers, are from rea- well calculated to establish this truth. In the first place, as son' the soul is immortal, and has, as part of man, a natural propensity to be united to the body, its perpetual separation from it must be considered contrary to nature. But as that which is contrary to nature, and offers violence to her laws, cannot be permanent, it appears congruous that the soul should be reunited to the body; and, of course, that the body should rise again. This argument, our Saviour himself employed, when, in his disputation with the Sadducees, he deduced the resurrection of the body from the immortality of the soul. (18)

In the next place, as an all-just God holds out punishments to the wicked, and rewards to the good, and as very many of the former depart this life unpunished for their crimes, and of the latter unrewarded for their virtues; the soul should be reunited to the body, in order, as the partner of her crimes, or the companion of her virtues, to become a sharer in her punishments or her rewards. (19) This view of the subject has been admirably treated by S. Chrysostom in his homily to the people of Antioch (20.) To this effect, the Apostle speaking of the resurrection, says, " If in this life only, we have hope " in Christ, we are of all men the most miserable." (21 ) These words of S. Paul cannot be supposed to refer to the misery of the soul, which, because immortal, is capable of enjoying happiness in a future life, were the body not to rise; but to the whole man; for, unless the body receive the due rewards of its labours, those, who, like the Apostles, endured so many afflictions and calamities in this life, should necessarily be " the most miserable of men." On this subject the Apostle is much more explicit in his epistle to the Thessalonians: " We " glory in you," says he, "in the churches of God, that you " may be counted worthy of the kingdom of God, for which, al- " so you suffer: seeing it is a just thing with God to repay tri- " bulation to them that trouble you; and to you who are trou- " bled, rest with us, when the Lord Jesus shall be revealed " from heaven with the angels of his power; in a flame of " fire, yielding vengeance to them who know not God, and " who obey not the Gospel of our Lord Jesus Christ." (22)

Again, whilst the soul is separated from the body, man cannot enjoy the consummation of happiness, replete with every good; for as a part, separated from the whole, is imperfect, the soul separated from the body must be imperfect; and, therefore, that nothing may be wanting to fill up the measure of its happiness, the resurrection of the body is necessary. By these, and similar arguments, the pastor will be able to instruct the faithful in this Article.

09) Damasc. lib. 4. de fide orthod. cap. 23. Ambros. lib. de fide resurr. (20) S. Chrysostom. homil. 49 and 50. (21) 1 Cor. xv. 19.

Theresur- He should also, carefully explain, from the Apostle, who all not the are to be raised to life. Writing to the Corinthians, S. Paul

same.

says, "as in Adam all die, so, also, in Christ all should be made " alive." (23) Good and bad, then, without distinction, shall all rise from the dead, although the condition of all shall not be the same — those who have done good shall rise to the resurrection of life; and those who have done evil, to the resurrection of judgment.

All shall When we say "all," we mean those who shall have died bedie to rise ^

again. fore the day of judgment, as well as those who shall then die. That the Church acquiesces in the opinion which asserts that all, without distinction shall die, and that this opinion is more consonant to truth, is recorded by the pen of S. Jerome, (24) whose authority is fortified by that of S. Augustine. (25) Nor does the Apostle, in his epistle to the Thessalonians, dissent from this doctrine, when he says: " The dead who are in " Christ shall rise first, then we who are alive, who are left, " shall be taken up together with them in the clouds to meet " Christ, into the air." (26) S. Ambrose explaining these words says, " In that very taking up, death shall anticipate, " as it were by a deep sleep, and the soul, having gone forth " from the body, shall instantly return; for those who are alive, " when taken up, shall die, that, coming to the Lord, they may " receive their souls from his presence; because in his presence " they cannot be dead." (27) This opinion is fortified by the authority of S. Augustine in his book on the City -of God. (28)

All shall jjuf as ft is 0f v^a] importance to be fully convinced that the

rise in their ' J

own bodies identical body, which belongs to each one of us during life, shall, though corrupt, and dissolved into its original dust, be raised up again to life; this, too, is a subject which demands accurate explanation from the pastor. It is a truth conveyed by the Apostle in these words: " This corruptible must put " on incorruption;" (29) emphatically designating by the word " this," the identity of our bodies. It is also, evident from the prophecy of Job, than which nothing can be more express: " I " shall see my God," says he, " whom I myself shall see, and

" mine eyes behold, and not another." (30) Finally, if we only consider the very definition of resurrection, we cannot, reasonably, entertain a shadow of doubt on the subject; for resurrection, as" Damascene defines it, is " a return to the state from " which one has fallen." (31) Finally, if we consider the arguments by which we have already established a future resurrection, every doubt on the subject must at once disappear. We have said that the body is to rise again, that " every one " may receive the proper things of the body, according as he P hath done, whether it be good or evil."(32) Man is, therefore, to rise again, in the same body with which he served God, or was a slave to the devil; that in the same body he may experience rewards, and a crown of victory, or endure the severest punishments, and never ending torments.

Not only will the body rise, but it will rise endowed with ^"tethfe

whatever constitutes the reality of its nature, and adorns and bodies shall

rise, ornaments man; according to these admirable words of S. Augustine: " There shall, then, be no deformity of body; if some " have been overburdened with flesh, they shall not resume its " entire weight: whatever shall exceed the proper habit shall " be deemed superfluous. On the other hand, should the body " be wasted by the malignity of disease, or the debility of " old age, or be emaciated from any other cause, it shall be " recruited by the divine power of Jesus Christ, who will not 11 only restore the body, but repair whatever it shall have lost " through the wretchedness of this life." (33) In another place he says; '< Man shall not resume his former hair, but shall be " adorned with such as will become him, according to these " words of the Redeemer, ' The very hairs of your head are all " ' numbered:' (34) God will restore them according to his "wisdom." (35)

The members, because essential to the integrity of human None shall nature, shall all be restored : the blind from nature or disease, e^ the fame, the maimed, and the paralysed shall rise again with perfect bodies : otherwise the desires of the soul, which so

(30 Job, xix. 26, 27. (31) Damasc. lib. iv. de fid. orthod. 28.

(34) Luke, xii. 7. (35) S. Aug. Ench. c. lxxxvi.

rise maimstrongly incline it to a union with the body, would be far from satisfied; and yet we are convinced, that, in the resurrection, these desires shall be fully realized. Besides, the resurrection, like the creation, is clearly to be numbered amongst the principal works of God. As, therefore, at the creation, all things came perfect, from the hand of God; so, at the resurrection shall all things be perfectly restored by the same omnipotent hand. The scars These observations are not to be restricted to the bodies of tvrs16 shaH *'ie martyrs *> of whom S. Augustine says: " As the mutilation remain to which they suffered would prove a deformity, they shall rise the mem- " with all their members; otherwise those who were beheadwickedtl,e " ed would rise without a head. The scars, however, which shall be re- " they received, shall remain, shining like the wounds of increase " Christ, with a brilliancy far more resplendant than that of

[shmentUn~ " Sold and of Precious stones " (36) The wicked, too, shall rise with all their members, although they should have been lost through their own fault; for the greater the number of members which they shall have, the greater shall be their torments ; and, therefore, this restoration of members, will serve to increase, not their happiness, but their misery. Merit or demerit is ascribed not to the members, but to the person to whose body they are united: to those, therefore, who shall have done penance, they shall be restored as sources of reward ; and to those who shall have contemned it, as instruments of punishment. If the pastor bestow mature consideration on these things, he can never want words or ideas to move the hearts of the faithful, and enkindle in them the flame of piety ; that, considering the troubles of this life, they may look forward, with eager expectation, to that blessed glory of the resurrection which awaits the just. The bodies It now remains to explain to the faithful, in an intelligible andof "the manner> how the body, when raised from the dead, although bad shall substantially the same, shall be different in many respects, mortal. To omit other points, the great difference between the state of all bodies when risen from the dead, and what they had previously been, is, that, before the resurrection, they were

(36) Lib. xxii. de Civ. Dei, c. 20.

subject to dissolution; but, when reanimated, they shall all, without distinction of good and bad, be invested with immortality. This admirable restoration of nature is the result Th^j' ^ of the glorious victory of Christ over death; as it is written, the victory "He shall cast death down headlong for ever:'' (37) and, "O over death " Death! I will be thy death;" (38) words which the Apostle thus explains, " and the enemy death shall be destroyed last;" (39) and S. John, also, says, " Death shall be no more." (40) There is a peculiar congruity in the superiority of the merits of Christ, by which the power of death is overthrown, (41) to the fatal effects of the sin of Adam; and, it is consonant to the divine justice, that the good enjoy endless felicity; whilst the wicked, condemned to everlasting torments, " shall seek death, " and shall not find it; shall desire to die, and death shall fly "from them." (42) Immortality, therefore, will be common to the good and to the bad.

Moreover, the bodies of the saints, when resuscitated, shall The <luali- ... . . ties of a

be distinguished by certain transcendant endowments, which glorified

will ennoble them far beyond their former condition. Amongst ° y these endowments, four are specially mentioned by the Fathers, which they infer from the doctrine of S. Paul, and which are called " qualities." (43)

The first is " impassibility" which shall place them beyond Impassibithe reach of pain or inconvenience of any sort. Neither the piercing severity of cold, nor the glowing intensity of heat can affect them, nor can the impetuosity of waters hurt them. " It " is sown," says the Apostle, " in corruption, it shall rise in " incorruption." (44) This quality, the school-men call impassibility, not incorruption; in order to distinguish it as a property peculiar to a glorified body. The bodies of the damned, though incorruptible, shall not be impassible: they shall be capable of experiencing heat and cold and of feeling pain.

The next quality is "brightness," by which the bodies of Brightness the saints shall shine like the sun ; according to the words of

(43) De his Aug. Serm. 99. de temp. Ambr. in com. in 1. ad Cor. c. 15.

our Lord recorded in the Gospel of S. Matthew: " The just " shall shine as the sun, in the kingdom of their Father." (45) To remove the possibility of doubt on this subject, he left us a splendid exemplification of this glorious quality in his transfiguration. (46) This quality the Apostle sometimes calls glory, sometimes brightness; " He will reform the body of our " lowness, made like to the body of his glory:" (47) and again, " It is sown in dishonour, it shall rise in glory." (48) Of this glory the Israelites beheld some image in the desert; when the face of Moses, after he had been in the presence of, and had conversed with God, shone with such resplendant lustre that they could not look on it. (49.) This brightness is a sort of refulgence reflected from the supreme happiness of the soul — an emanation of the bliss which it enjoys, and which beams through the body. Its communication is analogous to the manner in which the soul itself is rendered happy, by a participation of the happiness of God. Unlike the former, this quality is not common to all in the same degree. All the bodies of the saints shall, it is true, be equally impassible: but the brightness of all shall not be the same: for, according to the Apostle, " One is the glory of the sun, another the glory of the " moon, and another the glory of the stars: for star differed! " from star in glory: so, also, is the resurrection of the dead.'' (50)

Agility. To this quality is united that of " agility," as it is called,

by which the body shall be freed from the burden that now presses it down; and shall acquire a capability of moving with the utmost facility and celerity, wherever the soul pleases, as S. Augustine teaches in bis book on the City of God (51) and S. Jerome on Isaias. (52) Hence these words of the Apostle: " It is sown in weakness, it shall rise in power." (53)

Subtility. Another quality is that of " subtility," a quality which subjects the body to the absolute dominion of the soul, and to an entire obedience to her controul: as we infer from these words of the Apostle: " It is sown a natural body, it shall rise a spir-

" itual body." (54) These are the principal points on which the pastor will dwell in the exposition of this Article.

But in order that the faithful may know what fruit they are Advantato reap from a knowledge of so many and such exalted myste- meditation ries; the pastor will proclaim, in the first place, that to God, °^*lsAr" who has hidden these things from the wise, and made them L known to little ones, we owe a debt of boundless gratitude! How many men, eminent for wisdom and learning, who never arrived at a knowledge of this truth? Aware, then, of his special predilection towards us in making known to us this sublime truth — to us who could never aspire to such knowledge — it becomes our duty to pour forth our gratitude in unceasing praises of his goodness and clemency.

Another important advantage to be derived from deep re- H. flection on this Article is, that in it we shall experience a balm, to heal the wounded spirit, when we mourn the loss of those who were endeared to us by friendship or connected with us by blood; a balm which the Apostle himself administered to the Thessalonians when writing to them " concerning those I who slept." (55)

But in all our afflictions and calamities the thought of a future resurrection must bring relief to the troubled heart; as we learn from the example of Job, who supported himself under an accumulation of afflictions and of sorrows, solely by the hope of, one day, rising from the grave, and beholding the Lord his God. (56)

It must also, prove a powerful incentive to the faithful to use Iy every exertion to lead lives of rectitude and integrity, unsullied by the defilement of sin; for, if they reflect, that those riches of inconceivable value, which God will bestow on his faithful servants after the resurrection, are now proposed to them as rewards: they must find in the reflection the strongest inducement to lead virtuous and holy lives. On the other hand, nothing will have greater effect in subduing the passions, and withdrawing souls from sin, than frequently to remind the sinner of the miseries and torments with which the justice of God will visit the reprobate, who, on the last day, shall rise to the resurrection of judgment. (57)

ARTICLE XII.

LIFE EVERLASTING."

Why the The wisdom of the Apostles, our guides in religion, sugckof the gested to them the propriety of giving this Article the last creed. place in the Creed, which is the summary of our faith; first, because, after the resurrection of the body, the only object of the Christian's hope, is the reward of everlasting life; and secondly, in order that perfect happiness, embracing, as it does, the fulness of all good, may be ever present to our minds, and absorb all our thoughts and affections. In his instructions to the faithful, the pastor, therefore, will unceasingly endeavour to light up in their souls, an ardent desire of the proposed rewards of eternal life; that thus they may look upon whatever difficulties they may experience in the practice of religion, as light and even agreeable, and may yield a more willing and an entire obedience to God. Its mean- But as many mysteries lie concealed under the words which are here used, to declare the happiness reserved for us; they are to be explained in such a manner as to make them intelligible to all, as far as their respective capacities will allow. The faithful, therefore, are to be informed, that the words, " life everlasting," signify not only that continuity of existence, to which the devils and the wicked are consigned, but also, that perpetuity of happiness which is to satisfy the desires of the blessed. In this sense they were understood by the " ruler," mentioned in the Gospel, when he asked the Redeemer: " Lord! what shall I do to possess everlasting life?" (1) As if he had said, what shall I do, in order to arrive at the enjoyment of everlasting happiness? In this sense they

ing

are understood in the Sacred Volumes, as is clear from a reference to many passages of Scripture. (2) The supreme happiness of the blessed is thus designated, principally to exclude the notion that it consists in corporeal and transitory things, which cannot be everlasting. (3)

The word " blessedness" is insufficient to express the idea, Why callparticularly as there have not been wanting men, who, inflat- blasting. ed with the vain opinions of a false philosophy, would place the supreme good in sensible things; but these grow old and perish, whilst supreme happiness is defined by no limits of time. Nay, more, so far is the enjoyment of the goods of this life from conferring real happiness, that, on the contrary, he who is captivated by a love of the world, is farthest removed from true happiness: for it is written: " Love not the world, " nor the things that are in the world; if any one love the " world, the love of the Father is not in him:" (4) and a little after, " The world passeth away and the concupiscence there- " of." (5) The pastor, therefore, will be careful to impress these truths on the minds of the faithful, that they may learn to despise earthly things, and to know that, in this world, in which we are not citizens, but sojourners, (6) happiness is not to be found. Yet, even here below, we may be said, with truth, to be happy in hope; " if denying ungodliness and "worldly desires, we live soberly, and justly, and godly in this " world; looking for the blessed hope and coming of the great " God, and our Saviour Jesus Christ." (7) Many " who seem " to themselves wise," (8) not understanding these things, and imagining that happiness was to be sought in this life, became fools and the victims of the most deplorable calamities.

These words, " Life everlasting," also teach us that, con- True haptrary to the false notions of some, happiness once attained can Piness never be lost. Happiness is an accumulation of good without everlasting admixture of evil, which, as it fills up the measure of man's desires, must be eternal. He who is blessed with its enjoyment must earnestly desire its continuance, and, were it transient and uncertain, would necessarily experience the torture of continual apprehension. (9) ^iness^of ^e intensity °f tne happiness which the just enjoy in their thejust in- celestial country, and its utter incomprehensibility to all but incompre- to themselves alone, are sufficiently conveyed by the very words hensible: which are here used to express that happiness. When, to express any idea, we make use of a word common to many others, we do so, because we have no proper term by which to express it clearly and fully. When, therefore, to express happiness, we adopt words which are equally applicable to all who are to live for ever, as to the blessed; we are led to infer that the idea presents to the mind something too great, too exalted, to be expressed fully by a proper term. 'True, the happiness of heaven is expressed in Scripture by a variety of other words, such as, the "Kingdom of God," (10) "of Christ,'1 (11) "of heaven," (12) "Paradise," (13) "the Holy City," " the New Jerusalem," (14) "my Father's house;" (15) yet it is clear that none of these appellations is sufficient to convey an adequate idea of its greatness. a power- The pastor, therefore, will not neglect the opportunity which tive to vir- tms article affords, of inviting the faithful to the practice of pitue- ety, of justice, and of all the other virtues, by holding out to

them such ample rewards as are announced in the words " life " everlasting." Amongst the blessings which we instinctively desire, life is, confessedly, esteemed one of the greatest; by it principally, when we say " life everlasting," do we express the happiness of the just. If, then, during this short and chequered period of our existence, which is subject to so many and such various vicissitudes, that it may be called death rather than life, there is nothing to which we so fondly cling, nothing which we love so dearly as life; with what ardor of soul, with what earnestness of purpose, should we not seek that eternal happiness, which, without alloy of any sort, presents to us the pure and unmixed enjoyment of every good? The happiness of eternal life is, as defined by the Fathers, " an exemption from all evil,

(9) Vid. Aug. de Civ. Dei, lib. 12. cap. 20. lib. 22. c. 29, & SO. de libero arbit. cap. 25. de verb. Domini, serm. 64, &serm. 37, de Sanctis.

" and an enjoyment, of all good." (16) That it is an exemption from all evil, the Scriptures declare in the most explicit terms: " they shall no more hunger and thirst," says S. John, " neither "shall the sun fall on them, nor any heat;" (17) and again, " God shall wipe away all tears from their eyes: and death " shall be no more, nor mourning, nor crying, nor sorrow, shall "be any more, for the former things are past away." (18) But the glory of the blessed shall be without measure, and their solid joys and pleasure without number. The mind is incapable of comprehending or conceiving the greatness of this glory: it can be known only by its fruition, that is, by entering into the joy of the Lord, and thus satisfying fully the desires of the human heart. Although, as S. Augustine observes, it would seem easier, to enumerate the evils from which we should be exempt, than the goods and the pleasures which we shall enjoy; (19) yet we must endeavour to explain, briefly and clearly, those things which are calculated to enflame the faithful with a desire of arriving at the enjoyment of this supreme felicity.

Before we proceed to this explanation, we shall make use of Happiness

a distinction, which has been sanctioned by the most eminent essential writers on religion; it is, that there are two sorts of goods, *° accesone an ingredient, another an accompaniment of happiness. The former, therefore, for sake of perspicuity, they have called essential; the latter, accessary. Solid happiness, which we may designate by the common appellation, " essential," consists in the vision of God, and the enjoyment of his eternal beauty who is the source and principle of all goodness and perfection: " This," says our Lord, " is eternal life, that they " may know thee, the only true God, and Jesus Christ whom " thou hast sent." (20) These sentiments S.John seems to interpret, when he says: " Dearly beloved! We are now the " sons of God; and it hath not yet appeared what we shall be. " We know that when he shall appear, we shall be like to "him: because we shall see him, as he is." (21) These words

(16) Chrysost. in 30. cap. ad Theod. lapsum. Aug. de Civ. Dei, lib. 22. cap. 30. Anselni. epist. 2. et de similit. c. 47. et seq. (17) Apoc. vii. 16.

(18) Apoc. xxi. 4. (19) Serm. vi. 4. de verb. Domini et de Symb. ad

inform us that the happiness of heaven consists of two things: to see God such as he is in his own nature and suhstance, and to be made like unto him.

. Those who enjoy the beatific vision, whilst they retain their

the beatific own nature, shall assume a certain admirable and almost divine

the blessed f°rm> so as to seem goc^s rather than men; and why they assume this form, becomes at once intelligible, if we only reflect that every thing is known from its essence, or from its resemblance and external appearance: but, as nothing resembles God, so as to afford, by that resemblance, a perfect knowledge of municated bim, no creature can behold his divine nature and essence, unto them. |ess admitted by the Deity to a sort of union with himself; according to these words of S. Paul: " We now see through a " glass in a dark manner, but then face to face." (22) The words, " in a dark manner," S. Augustine understands to mean that we see him in a resemblance calculated to convey to us some faint notion of the Deity. (23) This, S. Denis clearly shows, when he says: " The things above cannot be known by " comparison with the things below; for, the essence and sub- " stance of any thing incorporeal must be known, through the " medium of that which is corporeal: particularly as a resem- " blancemust be less gross and more spiritual, than that which " it represents, as we know, from universal-experience. Since, " therefore, we can find nothing created, equally pure and spi- " ritual with God, no resemblance can enable us, perfectly to " comprehend the divine essence." (24) Moreover, all created things are circumscribed within certain limits of perfection; but God is circumscribed by no limits, and therefore nothing created can reflect his immensity. The only means, therefore, of arriving at a knowledge of the divine essence, is that God unite himself in some sort to us; and, after an incomprehensible manner, elevate our minds to a higher degree of perfection, and thus render us capable of contemplating the beauty of his nature. This the light of his glory will accomplish: illumined by its splendour, we shall see God, the true light, in his • own light. (25) The blessed always see God present, and by

(24) Dionys. Areop. de divin. nom. c. 1. (26) Ps. xxxv. 10.

this greatest and most exalted of gifts, " being made partakers of " the divine nature,"" (26) they enjoy true and solid happiness. Our belief of this truth should therefore be animated by an assured hope of one day arriving, through the divine goodness, at the same happy term; according to these words of the Nicene Creed: "I expect the resurrection of the dead, and the "life of the world to come." These are divine truths which defy the powers of human language, and mock the limits of human comprehension. We may, however, trace some resem- An illus~

r ■".•'- tration of

blance of this happy change in sensible objects, for as iron, this truth.

when acted on by fire, becomes ignited, and, whilst it is substantially the same, seems changed into fire, which is a different substance; so the blessed, who are admitted into the glory of heaven, and who burn with a love of God, although they cease not to be the same, are yet affected in such a manner, as that they may be said with truth to differ more from the inhabitants of this earth, than iron, when ignited, differs from itself when cold.

To say all in a few words: supreme and absolute happiness, In what eswhich we call essential, consists in the possession of God; for8^^, c'onwhat can he want to consummate his happiness, who possesses sists- God, the fountain of all good, the fullness of all perfection?

To this happiness, however, are appended certain gifts, The acwhich are common to all the blessed, and which, because ^a^iness!" more within the reach of human comprehension, are generally found more effectual in exciting the mind and inflaming the heart. (27) These the Apostle seems to have in view, when, in his epistle to the Romans, he says: " Glory, and honor, and " peace, to every one that worketh good." (28) The blessed shall enjoy glory, not only that glory which we have already shown to constitute essential happiness, or to be its inseparable accompaniment; but also that glory which consists in the clear and comprehensive knowledge, which each of the blessed shall have of the singular and exalted dignity of his companions in glory.

But how distinguished must not that honour be which is con- The first. ferred by God himself, who no longer calls them servants but

(26) 2 Pet. i. 4. (27) Aug de Civ. Dei, lib. xxii. c. 30. (2S) Rom. ii. 10.