upon as any sacramental sign or symbol, as water and wine are in the other sacraments, exactly representing the inward spiritual grace that is signified by them. To all which we might add also, that it is the nature of a sacrament to have promises annexed to them, promises of spiritual things. And what promises do we find in Scripture made to matrimony, to confirmation, to orders, and the rest.

But whatsoever other things the papists would obtrude upon us as sacraments, it is certain that we find our Saviour solemnly instituting two, and but two, sacraments in the New Testament, to wit, these here mentioned, baptism and the Lord's supper. And therefore, when the apostle compares the law with the Gospel, he instances in these two sacraments only, and none else: "And were all baptized into Moses in the cloud, and in the sea; and did all eat the same spiritual meat;" 1 Cor. x. 2, 3. And he again joins these two together, saying, "For by one Spirit are we all baptized into one body, whether we be Jews or Gentiles, whether we be bond or free; and have been all made to drink into one spirit," chap. xii. 13. And thus do the fathers observe, how when one of the soldiers pierced our Saviour's side, and there came out blood and water, John, xix. 34. the two sacraments of the New Testament were thereby intimated to us.

2. Confirmation from the FATHERS. And if we look into the fathers, we shall find them, when speaking of the sacraments of the New Testament, still mentioning neither fewer nor more than two, even baptism and the Lord's

Percussum est enim latus ejus, ut evangelium loquitur, et statim manavit sanguis et aqua, quæ sunt ecclesiæ gemina sacramenta; aqua in qua est sponsa purificata, sanguis ex quo invenitur esse dotata. — Aug. de Symb. ad Catech. cap. 6. Dormit Adam ut fiat Eva, moritur Christus ut fiat ecclesia; dormienti Adæ fit Eva de latere, mortuo Christo Janceâ percutitur latus, ut profluant sacramenta quibus formatur ecclesia. Id. in Joh. Tract. 9. De latere in cruce pendentis lanceâ percusso sacramenta ecclesiæ profluxerunt.—Ibid. Tract. 15. 'H‡ñλbe dà yàp üdwg nai alμa οὐκ ἁπλῶς, οὐδὲ ὡς ἔτυχεν αὐται ἐξῆλθον αἱ πηγὰι· ἀλλ ̓ ἐπειδὴ ἐξ ἀμφοτέρων ἡ ἐκκλησία συνέστηκε· καὶ ἴσασιν οι μυσταγωγούμενοι· δι ̓ ὕδατος μὲν ἀναγεννώμενοι, δι' αἱματος δὲ καὶ σαρκὸς τρεφόμενοι, ἀρχὴν λαμβάνει τὰ μυστήρια. —Chrysost. in Joh. Hom. 85. Ut Moses virgâ percutiens petram produxit fontem viventis aquæ, sic Christus mortem crucis degustans, sanguinem et aquam produxit de latere suo, quibus duobus sacramentis sancta induitur ecclesia.-Rab. Maur, de Sacrament. Euchar, cap. 9.

supper. As Augustine": At this time, after that the judgment of our liberty was made most manifest by the resurrection of our Lord Jesus Christ, neither were we burdened with the heavy performance of those signs which we now understand; but the Lord himself, and the apostolical doctrine, delivered, instead of many, but some few things, and those most easy to be performed, most noble to be understood, and most chaste in their observation, such as are the sacrament of baptism, and the celebration of the body and blood of the Lord.' And so Chrysostom*: 'If,' saith he, no one can enter into the kingdom of heaven unless he be born again by water and the Spirit; and he that doth not eat the flesh of the Lord, nor drink his blood, is cast out of eternal life,' &c. Where we see they mention these two sacraments, but not a word of penance, not a word of orders, not a word of any of the rest.

So Fulbertus Carnotensis: There are three things requisite to the proficiency of Christian religion: of which the first is to understand and firmly to hold the mystery of the Trinity, and the verity of one Deity; the second to know the reason or cause of the saving baptism; the third is in what the two sacraments of life, the body and blood of the Lord, are contained.' And Algerus: 'Christ conforms one body of Christ and the church, by a double sacrament,' not a sevenfold. And Paschasius saith, The sacraments of

" Hoc tempore postquam resurrectione Domini nostri Jesu Christi manifestissimum judicium nostræ libertatis illuxit, nec eorum quidem signorum quæ jam intelligimus operatione gravi onerati sumus, sed quædam pauca pro multis, eademque factu facillima et intellectu augustissima, et observatione castissima, ipse Dominus et apostolica tradidit disciplina, sicuti est baptismi sacramentum et celebratio corporis et sanguinis Domini. - Aug. de Doctrina Christ. lib. iii. cap. 9.

* Ει γὰρ οὐ δύναται τὶς εἰσελθεῖν εἰς τὴν βασιλείαν τῶν οὐρανῶν, ἐὰν μὴ δι ̓ ὕδατος καὶ Πνεύματος ἀναγεννηθῆ, καὶ ὁ μὴ τρώγων τὴν σάρκα τοῦ Κυρίου, καὶ τὸ αἷμα αὐτοῦ πίνων, inßiCantai tñç alwviov (wñs. — Chrysost. de Sacerdotio Orat. S.

Horum

Tria sunt ad profectum Christianæ religionis proposita. primum est intelligere et firmiter tenere mysterium Trinitatis, et unius veritatem Deitatis; secundum, salutaris baptismi rationem nôsse vel causam; tertium, in quo duo vitæ sacramenta, id est Dominici corporis et sanguinis, continentur.—Fulb. Carnot. Epist. 1.

Christus duplici sacramento conformat unum corpus Christi et ecclesiæ.-Alger. de Sacram. Altaris vel Eucharistia, lib. i. cap. 19.

a Sunt autem sacramenta Christ in ecclesia baptismus et chrisma,

Christ in the church are baptism and chrism, as also the body and blood of the Lord.' Where by chrism' we must understand that ceremony which, as we saw before, was used in the church at the administration of baptism. Thus do we see the ancients, in their enumeration of sacraments, still reckon up no more than two. So that Rupertus Abbas Tuitiensis propounds the question: What,' saith he, ‘and how many are the principal sacraments of our salvation?' And he answers, Holy baptism, and the holy eucharist of his body and blood, the double gift of the Holy Spirit.' As if he should have said, in the words of this Article, 'There are two sacraments ordained of Christ in the Gospel, that is to say, baptism and the Lord's supper.'

THE SACRAMENTS WERE NOT ORDAINED OF CHRIST TO BE GAZED UPON, OR TO BE CARRIED ABOUT, BUT THAT WE SHOULD DULY USE THEM. AND IN SUCH ONLY AS WORTHILY RECEIVE THE SAME, THEY HAVE A WHOLESOME EFFECT OR OPERATION: BUT THEY THAT RECEIVE THEM UNWORTHILY, PURCHASE TO THEMSELVES DAMNATION, AS THE APOSTLE ST. PAUL

SAITH.

In this the latter part of this Article are contained three things; first, that the sacraments were not ordained of Christ to be gazed upon, or carried about, which, concerning the sacrament of the Lord's supper especially, is repeated again in the Twenty-eighth Article. The second is, that such as worthily receive the sacraments, the sacraments have a wholesome effect and operation in them, of which I shall have occasion to speak, when treating upon the sacraments particularly. The third is the words of the apostle Paul, "They that receive them unworthily purchase to themselves damnation," 1 Cor. xi. 29. But of this I shall speak also particularly in the Twenty-ninth Article, and therefore need not insist upon any of them here.

corpus quoque Domini et sanguis. -Pasch. de Corp. et Sang. Domini, cap. S.

b Quæ ergo et quot sunt præcipua salutis nostræ sacramenta? Sacrum baptisma, sancta corporis ejus et sanguinis eucharistia, geminum Spiritûs Sancti datum.-Rupert. Abbas Tuit. de Victor. Verbi, lib. xii. cap. 11.

ARTICLE XXVI.

Of the Unworthiness of the Ministers, which hinders not the Effects of the Sacraments.

ALTHOUGH IN THE VISIBLE CHURCH THE EVIL BE EVER MINGLED WITH THE GOOD, AND SOMETIME THE EVIL HAVE CHIEF AUTHORITY IN THE MINISTRATION OF THE WORD AND SACRAMENTS: YET FORASMUCH AS THEY DO NOT THE SAME IN THEIR OWN NAME, BUT IN CHRIST'S, AND DO MINISTER BY HIS COMMISSION AND AUTHORITY, WE MAY USE THEIR MINISTRY, BOTH IN HEARING THE WORD OF GOD, AND IN THE RECEIVING OF THE SACRAMENTS. NEITHER IS THE EFFECT OF CHRIST'S ORDINANCE TAKEN AWAY BY THEIR WICKEDNESS, NOR THE GRACE OF GOD'S GIFTS DIMINISHED FROM SUCH AS BY FAITH AND RIGHTLY DO RECEIVE THE SACRAMENTS MINISTERED UNTO THEM, WHICH BE EFFECTUAL, BECAUSE OF CHRIST'S INSTITUTION AND PROMISE, ALTHOUGH THEY BE

MINISTERED BY EVIL MEN.

NEVERTHELESS IT APPERTAINETH TO THE DISCIPLINE OF THE CHURCH, THAT INQUIRY BE MADE OF EVIL MINISTERS, AND THAT THEY BE ACCUSED BY THOSE THAT HAVE KNOWLEDGE OF THEIR OFFENCES: AND FINALLY, BEING FOUND GUILTY BY JUDGMENT, BE DEPOSED.

· con

THE visible church,' as we have seen before, is a gregation of faithful men ;' yet all are not truly faithful men that are of this congregation: but the church, whilst floating in the world, is like Noah's ark, wherein there are both clean and unclean beasts; and like the floor our Saviour speaks of, wherein there is both wheat and chaff. So that though in the triumphant church above all are good and none bad, all saints and no sinners; yet the militant church below hath bad as well as good, sinners as well as saints, in it. Neither are the people only, but the priests also, often thus tainted with sin, and rebels against that God whose

:

ambassadors they are not only such as the sacraments are administered to, but such also as administer the sacraments are frequently defiled with sin, though consecrated unto Christ. Their office indeed is holy; but their persons are often sinful their work is always a good and godly work; but their hearts are frequently evil and wicked hearts. But howsoever, as their persons are not the better for their office, so neither is their office any whit the worse for their persons. If their persons be sinful, it is not their office can make them truly holy; and seeing their office is truly holy, it is not their persons can make it sinful. So that the sacraments are still holy sacraments, though administered by unholy priests: as though the sun shines upon dirt, yet the sun is not thereby dirty; so though the sacraments be administered by sinners, the sacraments are not therefore sinful. And as the sacraments are not sinful in themselves, because administered by sinful persons, so neither are they ineffectual as to those they are administered to, by reason of their sins they are administered by; or, as the title of this Article fitly words it, the unworthiness of the ministers hinders not the effect of the sacraments.' It is better indeed to have the sacraments administered by worthy than by unworthy ministers; but howsoever, the sacraments may be as effectual when administered by unworthy as by worthy ministers. So that the effect of the office is not

a Certus est enim sanctum esse sacramentum Christi, etiamsi per minùs sanctum vel non sanctum hominem ministratum est.-Aug. contra Crescen. Gram. lib. iv. cap. 20. An verò solis vel etiam lucernæ lux cùm per cænosa diffunditur nihil inde sordium contrahit, et baptismus Christi potest cujusque sceleribus inquinari? Si enim ad ipsas res visibiles quibus sacramenta tractantur animum conferamus, quis nesciat eas esse corruptibiles? Si autem ad id quod per illas agitur, quis non videat non posse corrumpi, quamvis homines per quos agitur pro suis moribus vel præmia recipiant, vel poenas luant. Id. de Baptismo contra Donat. lib. iii. cap. 10.

b Ac per hoc abluit Christus et per maculosam non sanctè dantis, sed melius per mundam sanctè dantis conscientiam. Dat fidem Christus: et per ministrum malum, sed meliùs per bonum: fit Christus origo Christiani et per dispensatorem infidelem, sed meliùs per fidelem: Christianus radicem in Christo figit per colonum reprobum, sed meliùs per probum: potest Christus esse caput Christiani per Felicianum, sed meliùs per Primianum. Aug. contra Crescon. Gram. lib. iv. cap. 20.