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Heaven, reconciles God to Men. This was the ancient Chriftian Divinity, and it is the Summary, and Design of my first Letter, and the Clergy will never have the juft Reverence, they ought to have for their own Character, nor the People that Refpect, they fhould have for their Perfons, till these Truths are openly profeffed in the Church. * Jefus Chrift faith Saint Cyprian, was the Author, and Inftitutor of this Sacrifice. And our Lord after Supper offered up the Cup of Wine mixt with Water, and if we are the Prieffs of God, and Chrift, I cannot tell, whom we should rather follow than God, and Chrift. And if Jefus Chrift our Lord, and God is the H. Prieft of God the Father, and first offered himself to the Father, and commanded this to be done in commemora tion of himself, there that Priest is truly his vicegerent, who imitates, what Christ did. So in his Book de opere & Eleemofynis. Locuples, & dives es & Dominicum celebrare te credis,qua CORBONAM omnino non refpicis, qua in Dominicum fine facrificio venis; qua partem de facrificio, quod pauper obtulit fumis. Thinkest thou, who hast a great Estate, and Riches, that thou canst rightly celebrate the H. Communion, who hast no regard to the Offertory for the Poor, and who comes to the Lord's Supper without an Oblation, and who par ticipates of the Sacrifice, which the poor Man offered.

To the modern Teftimonies I have cited for this Doctrine I beg leave to add two, or more out of the Writings of our learned Divines, who have wrote of the H. Sacrament of the Lord's Supper, as of a Sacrifice, as plainly altogether, as I have done

Epift. LXIII. ad Cacil. Jefus Chriftus Dominus, & Deus no fter facrificii bujus auctor, & Doctor.

1 Nam fi Jefus Christus Dominus, & Deus nofter ipfe est fummus facerdos Dei patris, & facrificium patri feipfum primus obtulit de boe fieri in fui commemorationem præcepit, utique ille facerdos vice Chrifli vere fungitur qui id quod Chriftus fecit imitatur.

Dr. Dans

Dr. Dan. Brevint late Dean of Lincoln in his excellent TM little Book entituled The Chriftian Sacrament, and Sacrifice, to ufe his own words, " hath

endeavoured to fet this H. Sacrament at Liberty and without regard to Papifts, or Proteftants to enlarge it to its full Liberty, and rescue it out of the Hands of fuch, as have not treated rightly of it, and to restore it to the full Meaning, and Institution of Christ. He obferves that as the Primitive Hereticks, whom the Spirit of Antichrist fet up, endeavoured to deroy the natural Body, which is the human Nature of Christ: Sobis Sacramental Body hath not received much better Entertainment from two contrary Parties, who make it either a falfe God, or an empty Ceremony. I forbear to transcribe any more, referring the Rea• der to the Discourse it felf, which I wish were reprinted for the Honour of God,and the Benefit of the Church Dr.Taylor plainly afferts this H. Sacrament to be a Sacrifice. In the x Sect. of the iv. Ch. of his Rule of H. Living where he faith that the Celebration of the H. Sacrament fucceeds to the most folemn Rite of natural, and Judaical Religion, the Law of Sacrificing. And that as Christ reprefents to his Father the great effective Sacrifice which he offered on the Cross as a Means of atonement, and Expiation for all Mankind: fo be hath appointed that the fame Ministry shall be done прon Earth too in our manner, and according to our Proportion; and therefore bath instituted, and feperated an Order of Men, by facramental Reprefentation to pray unto God after the fame manner, that our Lord, and H. Priest doth, that is, to offer to God, and reprefent in this folemn Prayer, and Sacrament Christ as already offered, whereby our Prayers may for his Sake, and in the fame manner of Interceffion be offer'd up to God.\

m Printed in 12° at the Theater in Oxford 1673 "Epift. Dedicat.

Pag..3.

And fo in the Office for the H. Communion in his Collection of Offices: Be thou well pleased, O Lords with this our Service, and Duty, and grant that with a holy Fear, and pure Confcience we may finish this Service, prefenting a holy Sacrifice holily unto thee that thou mayest receive it in Heaven, and smell a fweet Odour in the Union of the eternal Sacrifice, which our bleffed Lord perpetually offers, and accept it Graciously, as thou didst entertain the Gifts of Abel, the Sacrifice of Noah, the Services of Mofes, and Aaron, the Peace Offering of Samuel, &c. So in the Prayer of Confecration: Have Mercy upon us, O Heavenly Father, according to thy glorious Mercies, and promifes fend thy H. Ghost upon our Hearts, and let him alfo defcend upon thefe Gifts, &c. and bless and fanctify thefe Gifts So in the Prayer of Oblation: We humbly prefent unto thee, O Lord, this prefent Sacrifice of remembrance, and Thanksgiving, &c. So alfo in the Prayer for the Catholick Church all after the ancient Practice. Receive, O Eternal God, this Sacrifice for, and in behalf of all Christian People, &c. The Bp. of Sarum on XXXI. Article writes of the Holy Eucharist in thefe words: In two other refpects it may also more Strictly be called a Sacrifice. One is because there is an Oblation of Bread, and Wine made in it, which being facrificed, are confumed in an act of Religion. To this many Paffages in the Writings of the Fathers relate. This was the Oblation which was made at the Altar by the People. And though at first the Christians were reproached, as having a strange fort of Religion, in which they had neither Temples, Altars, nor Sacrifices, because they had not those things in fo grofs a manner, as the Heathens had, yet both Clemens-Romanus,Ignatius, and all the fucceeding Writers of the Church, do frequently mention the Oblations that they made, and in the ancient Liturgies they did with particular Prayer's offer the Bread, and Wine to God, as the Creator of all things. These were called the Gifts, and Offerings,

which were offered to God in imitation of Abel, who of fered the Fruits of the Earth in a Sacrifice to God. Both Juftin Martyr, Irenæus, the Conftitutions and all the ancient Liturgies, have exprefs words relating to this. Another refpect in which the Eucharift, is called a Sacrifice, is becaufe it is a Commemoration, and Reprefentation to God of the Sacrifice, that Chrift offered for us upon the Crofs.--Upon thefe accounts we do not deny but that the Eucharift may be well called a Sacrifice. But ftill it is a commemorative Sacrifice, and not Propitiatory. And afterwards: All that the firft Ages may fay in Homilies, or Treatifes of Piety, concerning the pure Offering, that, according to Malachi, all Chriftians offered to God in the Sacrament, the Sacrifice and unbloody Sacrifice of Chriftians, must be anderstood to relate, to the Prayers, and Thanksgivings, that accompanied it; fo the Commemoration, that was made in it of the Sacrifice once offered upon the Crofs, and finally to the oblation of the Bread, and Wine, which they fo often compare both to Abel's Sacrifice, and to Melchifedeck's offering Bread and Wine. And I wifh his Lordfhip had been pleased to add exprefly, what is implied, that the Eucharift was alfo called a Sacrifice by the Ancients, because the oblation of Bread, and Wine, which they compared to other External Sacrifices, was always brought to the Priest to be offered, or placed with reverence by him on the Holy Table, or Altar, as a Sacrifice to God.

To thefe Authorities of learned Men in Print, I fhall add others of no lefs moment out of an interleaved Book of Common-Frayer, with Notes, which I hap

? This Book was imprinted in Fol. at London by Robert Barker, Printer to the King's Moft Excellent Majefty, Anno Dom. 1617. I cannot tell who was the Author, or Collector of the Notes, but perhaps fome other Perfon may by these following Obfervations: At the third Exhortation to the Communion, he refers to his Ser

mon

I happened to meet with and value very much. In the Prayer of Confecration on these words, Sufficient Sacrifice, & paulo poft, that his precious Death. THAT. This word refers to the Sacrifice mentioned lin. 8. for we ftill continue and remember that Sacrifice, which Chrift once made upon the Crofs. And this Sacrifice which the Church makes (as a Sacrifice is taken pro mactatione & occifione victime) is only Commemorative, and Sacramental; for in that fenfe Chrift only offered it really upon the Crofs by his own Death. And fo likewife as it is taken for a visible Sacrifice, Chrift only offered it; for here it is invifible. But as it is taken for a fufficient Sacrifice to take away the Sins of the World: So indeed it was offered upon the Cross, as having power in it felf to abolish all Sin whatsoever. But it doth not abolish any Man's Sin for all that, unless it be applied, and the ways to apply it to Man are divers; by Faith; by good Works; by the unbloody offering up of the fame Sacrifice; by the receiving his most precious Body, and Blood. And if we compare the Eucharift with the Sacrifice once made upon the Cross with reference to the killing, and destroying of the Sacrifice, or with reference to the vifibility of it, in that fenfe we call it only a Commemorative Sacrifice, as the Fathers do. Chryfoft. Hom. contra Judæos part 2. Lombard. Sent. lib. 4. hift. 12. But if we compare the Eucharift with Chrift's Sacrifice made once upon the Crofs, as concerning the effect of it, ne fay, that That was a fuffici

mon on the Pharifee, and Publican, Luke xviii. 13. part 2. At the Prayer before Confecration, vid. Conc. noftram, in 1 Cor. 11. whosoever shall eat, &c. He speaks of Bishop Overall, as then Bifhop of Norwich. At Baptifm. Vide Concionem meam ad Joh. iii. Except ye be born of Water, &c. Liber Constit. Ecclefia Anglicana, qui compofitus eft ab illo qui πολλῶν ἀνάξιΘ ἄλλων, 7.0. He often calls him my Lord Overall in his Notes. In the Catechifm at thefe words, Secondly, in God the Son, who hath redeemed me, &c. Vide Concionem meam in hunc locum tempore pomeridiano. At the Office of Burial, Vide Concionem noftram ad Pl. 96. O worflip the Lord in the Beauty of holiness.

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