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is unnecessary; they are before our readers, to the evidence of whose senses we appeal.

SECT. III. Of the Ordinances and Constitutions of the Church.

Why do you make profession of admitting and embracing all the ordinances and constitutions of the Church. Because Christ has so commanded. "He that heareth you,

heareth me; and he that despiseth you, despiseth me," Luke x. 16.

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As my Father hath sent me, even so I send you," John xx. 24, Hence St. Paul, Heb. xiii. 17, tells us, “Obey them that have the rule over you, and submit yourselves."

Why does the church command so many holidays to be kept? Is it not enough to keep the Sunday holy?

God in the old law did not think it enough to appoint the weekly sabbath, which was the Saturday; but also ordained other festivals, as that of the passover, in memory of the delivery of his people from Egyptian bondage, that of the weeks or pentecost, that of tabernacles, &c. and the church has done the same in the new law, to celebrate the memory of the chief mysteries of our redemption, and to bless God in his saints. And in this protestants seem to agree with us, by appointing almost all the same holidays in their common prayer-book.

Is it not said in the law (Exod. xx. 9), "Six [days shalt thou labour and do all thy work," &c.? Why then should the Church derogate from this part of the commandment?

This was to be understood in case no holiday came in the week; otherwise the law would contradict itself, when, in the 23rd chapter of Leviticus, it appoints so many other holidays besides the Sabbath, with command to abstain from all servile work on them.

As to fasting days, do you look upon it sinful to eat meat on those days without necessity ?

Yes: because it is a sin to disobey the Church: "If he neglect to hear the Church, let him be to thee as a heathen and a publican." Matt. xviii. 17.

Does not Christ say (Matt. xv. 11), "That which goeth into the mouth doth not defile a man?"

True: it is not any uncleanness in the meat, as many ancient heretics have imagined, or any dirt or dust which may stick to it by eating it without first washing the hands (of which case our Lord speaks in the text here quoted), which can defile the soul; for every creature of God is good, and whatsoever corporal filth enters in at the mouth is cast forth into the draught: but that which defiles the soul, when a person cats meat on a fasting day, is the disobedience of heart, in transgressing the precept of the Church of God. In like manner, when Adam ate of the forbidden fruit, it was not the

apple which entered in by the mouth, but the disobedience to the law of God which defiled him.

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After asking why the numerous ordinances of the Romish Church are professed, why are we not told the true cause of their institution by the Church herself? After perusing the Romish "Profession of Faith," in the beginning of this book, we understand plainly enough that the first step to becoming a good Roman Catholic is to give up our Reason, and not only to believe whatever that "Church" says is infallible, but whatever the Pope (if he be the Church) may, at any future period, command to be believed. But we cannot find in the Scriptures, nor can the Romish Church, that Christ commanded the theatrical displays exhibited in the Church of Rome. He tells us his kingdom is not of this world—the kingdom of Popery is of a widely different constitution. Has the finery of her decorations, her baubles and processions, any resemblance to the simple form of worship practised by the Primitive Christians? Are the placing of Dolls in ornamented boxes, &c. ordinances of Christ as representations of his own birth, and as displayed by the Romish Church? But English Romanists should reside in a Papal territory to see these mummeries in their purity; and even then they must join in them, or they would be denounced as heretics*. The texts of the first paragraph have been already quoted, and to which we have replied. But "he who heareth you heareth me," &c. is always appealed to to sanctify every impropriety of the Romish Church, when not even the shadow of a scriptural text can be found that may be so misapplied as to afford even a reference. Neither should it be said that "Protestants

* English Romanists would not feel any peculiar gratification in meeting the procession of the Host half-a-dozen times on a dirty day, where, upon each occasion, they must drop on their knees in the streets. We have already said Papists must yield up all their senses to their Church, and their Church, in return, permits them to see her own processions and other fine shows. We cannot afford space for enter ing into a detail of these mummeries of a religion, the bulk of which consists of external ceremonies; we shall briefly notice them in the proper places as we proceed.

seem to agree" with such absurd ordinances of Popery :Protestants never can agree to such ordinances *: but it must not be forgotten that, in the reform of abuses, the Protestant Church "made no alterations for NOVELTY'S sake:" her sole object was to restore Christianity, as nearly as possible, to its primeval simplicity.

What the feasts commanded to be kept by the old Law have to do with the fasts ordained by Popery, we do not clearly perceive: but the impiety of comparing the mandate of any secular priest to the command of God himself to our first parents, sounds to all Christian ears-those of Papists alone excepted-as one of the many assertions of the Romish Church which appear absolutely blasphemous. But, although we disapprove of the comparison, we must admit that it is well managed to place the sinfulness of the matter in disobeying the "Church," since neither Christ nor his apostles deemed it any sin at all. There is no crime in voluntarily fasting the Scriptures tell us the sin lies in condemning those who do not fast. But, before we enter upon our Scriptural proofs, we must take leave to ask, why is the line from St. Matthew only quoted to show that it is wrong for those who are hungry to eat when they can get food? We have frequently complained of the very meagre and inapplicable sentences adduced; but in the present case whole pages might, we must candidly acknowledge, have been brought forward directly bearing on the question; but, as the Pope and Dr. Challoner have passed them by, we will content ourselves with a few extracts, and refer to others too numerous to quote.

1 Cor. ch. x. v. 25 to 33.-Whatsoever is sold in the shambles, that eat, asking no questions for conscience sake;

* Making saints to worship them (of which we shall speak hereafter) is not the province of the Reformed Church; her days of obligation, as defined in our Common Prayer-Book, are those dedicated to the saints who were famed in the Scriptures only. But as Popish saints were good and bad, and more of them had than good, we celebrate the memory of the good ones on "All Saints" Day.

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for the earth is the Lord's, and the fulness thereof. If any of them that believe not bid you to a feast, and ye be disposed to go, whatsoever is set before you, eat, asking no questions for conscience sake, &c. &c. &c.

We deem it altogether unnecessary to give very copious extracts on this subject, since it is spoken of by Christ and the Apostles in almost every Epistle and every Gospel in the New Testament. The whole of the 14th chap. of the Epist. to the Romans, treats of "Days and Meats" being "Indifferent," and to which we also refer our readers it cannot be misunderstood by any person capable of reading it-it speaks thus: "I know and am persuaded by the Lord Jesus that there is nothing unclean of itself, but to him that esteemeth any thing to be unclean, to him it is unclean:"-" the kingdom of God is not meat and drink; but righteousness, and peace, and joy in the Holy Ghost," &c. &c. One short extract more we think it proper to make here: if we were to say we think it obviously written to guard the early Christians against Popery, we should, by our Roman Catholic brethren, be deemed "illiberal;" and yet not one of their priests can deny the accuracy of the quotation we are about to make, and in which the Apostle positively avers he speaks in the spirit of the Holy Ghost. The chapter to which we allude (1 Tim. iv.) commences thus :

1. Now the Spirit speaketh expressly, that in the latter times some shall depart from the faith, giving heed to following spirits [i. e. seducing spirits, who teach false doctrines, affect the power of working miracles, &c.] and doctrines of devils.

2. Speaking lies in hypocrisy, their conscience seared with a hot iron, [i. e. lost to all sense of humanity].

3. Forbidding to marry, and commanding to abstain from meats which God hath created to be received with thanksgiving:

4. For it is sanctified by the word of God and prayer, &c. However the Popish Clergy may command that none of their congregation should eat, and however great the power of the Pope to empower them to do so, we trust that we have clearly shown that both he and Dr. Challoner might have found many texts of Scripture more applicable to their subject than the solitary line which they have produced from the 18th chapter of St. Matthew, and which solely relates to How often we should forgive injuries *.

As the next chapter is a very long one, we shall vary a little from our usual plan, by giving a few paragraphs at a time, adducing our authorities, and commenting upon them as we proceed.

CHAP. III.-OF THE SACRAMENTS.

What do you mean by a sacrament?

An institution of Christ consisting in some outward sign or ceremony, by which grace is given to the soul of the worthy receiver.

How many such sacraments do you find in scripture ?

These seven: Baptism, Confirmation, Eucharist, (which Protestants call the Lord's Supper), Penance, Extreme Unction (or the anointing of the sick), Holy Orders, and Matrimony.

What scripture have you for Baptism?

John iii. 5. "Except a man be born of water and of the spirit, he cannot enter into the kingdom of God." Matt. xxviii. 19. "Go, teach

* Although we are not here told why good folk should fast for any other reason than "because it is a sin to disobey the Church," yet this "Church" has her reasons for so commanding, and which we shall beg leave to give in her own words, as they are expressed in the Child's "First Catechism;" a book published under the authority of the Popish Bishops, and to which we shall again have occasion to refer. Of course that which is the most deeply impressed upon the mind of infants by their instructors, is intended to be the most firmly established in their hearts throughout their future lives; and this premised, our readers may judge for themselves of the great ease and certainty of Papists "going to heaven" if they will but believe their priests.

Q. Why does the "Church" command us to fast?

A. That, by fasting, we may SATISFY GOD FOR OUR SINS!!!

What Protestant, who could believe in such doctrine as this, would not envy the state of the poorest of our unhappy and starving Irish fellow-subjects? But that their souls should be drugged with such tenets as the above, is, we fear, the very greatest of their misfortunes. We should thank any of our Popish brethren-lay or clerical-who would inform us where they could find such a doctrine in the Scriptures? But, alas! they cannot; and therefore they must, once more, thrust in their "infallibility."

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