Saviour Christ; of the due receiving of His blessed body and blood under the form of bread and wine; against Idleness, against Gluttony and Drunkenness, against Covetousness, against Envy, Ire, and Malice; with many other matters as well fruitful as necessary to the edifying of Christian people and the increase of godly living." Accordingly the rubric in the second Prayer Book of Edward VI. (1552) said that "After the Creed, if there be no Sermon, shall follow one of the Homilies already set forth, or hereafter to be set forth by common authority." The death of the king, however, occurred before anything more was done. Shortly after the accession of Elizabeth the Book of the Homilies was reprinted (1560), and in 1563 a second book was added to it, presented to Convocation, and after some considerable delay authorised by the Sovereign.1 Meanwhile, as we have seen, the Article was rewritten, and made to refer to the second book as well as the first. The direction in it, that they are to be read in churches by the ministers diligently and distinctly, that they may be understanded of the people, should be noticed. It was rendered necessary by the dislike with which the Homilies were regarded by many of the clergy, who revenged themselves by reading them unintelligibly. The dislike was not confined to one party in the Church, for we find that in the "Admonition to Parliament" in 1571 one of the demands of the Puritans is this: "Remove Homylies, Articles, Injunctions." 2 The second book, which contains twenty-one Homilies in forty-three parts, professes to supply "Homilies of such matters as were promised and entituled in the former part of Homilies"; but, as a matter of fact, those 1 See Parker's Correspondence, p. 177. 2 For the Puritan objections to the reading of Homilies in church, see Rogers On the XXXIX. Articles, p. 326 (Parker Society). actually provided do not correspond exactly to the list of those promised at the close of the first book. Thus there are no Homilies expressly treating of Covetousness, Envy, Ire, and Malice; while there are several which were seemingly not contemplated when the first book was issued. The writer who is supposed to have had the chief hand in the preparation of the book is Bishop Jewel, but a considerable number of the Homilies were only translations or adaptations of works that had previously been issued. Thus those on the Passion and Resurrection are taken from Taverner's Postils, which had appeared so early as 1540. That on Matrimony is taken half from Veit Dietrick, of Nuremberg, half from S. Chrysostom; and two-thirds of the first part of that on Repentance are translated from Randolph Gualther. The Preface, or "Admonition to all ministers ecclesiastical," was from the pen of Bishop Cox. It should be added that the last Homily, viz. that against Disobedience and wilful Rebellion, was only added in 1571; the occasion which called it forth being the rebellion of the Earls of Northumberland and Westmoreland, which had taken place shortly before (1569), and to which the Homily itself clearly alludes. II. The Nature of the Assent demanded to the Homilies. The statement of the Article is that the Book of Homilies doth contain a godly and wholesome doctrine, and necessary for these times. It is obvious from this that the assent demanded to them is of a very general character, and cannot be held to bind us to the acceptance of every statement made in them. Nothing whatever is said about the historical statements contained in them, some of which are highly questionable, or even demonstrably false. And as to the doctrine, all that is asserted is that they "contain a godly and wholesome doctrine." On one subject certainly their teaching appears to be invested with a peculiar authority, viz. that of justification, owing to the express reference to them in Article XI. But on other matters a wide discretion is left to the individual, and he cannot fairly be called upon to maintain any particular view simply because it is taught in the Homilies. The formal doctrinal teaching of the Church of England is found in the Articles and the Book of Common Prayer; and so far as the Homilies agree with these, and bring out the sense of their teaching, they are authoritative. But that is all. So much is confessed by all parties, and it has been frequently pointed out that it is impossible to tie persons down rigidly to the acceptance of every doctrinal proposition contained in these thirty-three sermons.1 The matter is well put by Bishop Montague in his Appello Cæsarem, published in 1625 “I willingly admit the Homilies as containing certain godly and wholesome exhortations to move the people to honour and worship Almighty God; but not as the public dogmatical resolutions confirmed of the Church of England. The XXXVth Article giveth them to contain godly and wholesome Doctrine, and necessary for these times which they may do, though they have not dogmatical positions, or doctrine to be propugned and subscribed in all and every point, as the Books of Articles and of Common Prayer have. They may seem, secondly, to speak somewhat too hardly, and stretch some sayings beyond the use and practice of the Church of England, both then and now; and yet what they speak may receive a fair, or at least a tolerable construction and mitigation enough." 2 Still more important, as being of the nature of a 1 See especially Tracts for the Times, Nos. lxxxii. and xc. judicial decision upon this very point, is the statement осса 1 See the third part of the Homily Concerning Praydience (S.P.C.K. ed.). The judgment is given in full in Lee's Christian Doctrin, Earls for the Departed, Appendix XII. taken E Homily tl th cre call. cause ARTICLE XXXVI teach Episcoporum et Ministrorum Articl Consecratione. llus de Consecratione Archi the Horum et Episcoporum et de of theiione Presbyterorum et Diaall. Sc æditus nuper temporibus i sexti, et autoritate Parlafrequenilis ipsis temporibus condown ri omnia ad ejusmodi et ordinationem position onem matter is continet, et nihil habet e sit aut superstitiosum Cæsarem, m. Itaque quicumque "I wil illius libri consecrati sunt ab anno secundo andi godly gis Edwardi, usque ad honour an aut in posterum juxta dogmaticalis consecrabuntur aut The XVV rite, ordine, atque e, statuimus esse et fore whysecratos et ordinatos. Of consecration of Bishops and The book of Consecration of Arch bishops, and Bishops, and ordering of Priests and Deacons, lately set forth in the time of Edward the Sixth, and confirmed at the same time by authority of Parliament, doth contain all things necessary to such consecration and ordering: neither hath it anything, that of itself is superstitious or ungodly. And therefore, whosoever are consecrate or ordered according to the rites of that book, since the second year of the aforenamed King Edward, unto this time, or hereafter shall be consecrated or ordered according to the same rites, we decree all such to be rightly, orderly, and lawfully consecrated and ordered. ON its present form this Article dates from 1563, when it was entirely rewritten. The corresponding Article in the Edwardian Series was of a much more general character, referring to the Book of Common Prayer as a whole, and not only to the Ordinal. Of the Book of Prayers and Ceremonies of the Church of England. "The Book which of very late time was given to the Church of England by the King's authority and the |