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and that they may have the hope that as God has formerly used them, so he may again; and consequently that they may consider them as having the symbolical virtue which I before ascribed to them. We find that God has made use of such things of old. We find, in the old law, that he was pleased to raise up a dead man simply by his coming in contact with the bones of one of his prophets-Elisha. A dead man was taken to the tomb, was cast into his sepulchre, in consequence of an alarm being given he was cast in hastily, and the moment he touched the blessed prophet's bones, he rose restored to life. What did God do, then? Did he not thereby show the worth of the bones of his saints? The very relics were the means he took even when there was no faith in their extraordinary influence to raise the dead to life, simply by their very contact. Does not this even seem to imply a certain virtue given by him to them-a certain power. We read in the same manner, that handkerchiefs were brought to touch the body of Paul, that they were taken to the sick, and the sick were healed. That was a relic in the Catholic sense of the word; and having touched the body of a saint, God was pleased to make use of it for this purpose. We find that a woman touched the hem of our Saviour's garment, and the very hem was hallowed, for out of it went that virtue from the Saviour which pervaded all that belonged to him, so as to be the means of working miracles, even without his exercising an act of his will. These examples, therefore, show how God does make use of the relics of his saints, or things that have belonged to them, as instruments for his greatest works. There is the foundation laid, and consequently-for what I before remarked-for the destruction of all ideas of superstition. There is the experience granted by God himself, that he chooses to make use of these instruments; and consequently there is ground for the belief, that it may please him, on other occasions, likewise to do so. Having adduced these examples, therefore, from the Scriptures, to show the ground-work upon which respect is shown to relics, and the species of confidence which is placed in them, I have nothing left to do but to show, as I have already done again and again, what, from the very beginning of the church, was the universal belief.

The first demonstration of this belief was manifested in the care and anxiety with which the Christians sought to save the bodies of the martyrs. The moment a martyr was put to death, we have, throughout all ecclesiastical history, examples of the eagerness the Christians showed to snatch up the body. They deemed it necessary to be at considerable expense, either to bribe the guards, or otherwise induce them to give up the bodies of the martyrs, in order to give them such a burial as I shall show you just now. This spirit showed itself still farther. They most carefully gathered up all their blood, every particle of it that they could. We have innumerable attestations to this. We

have, in St. Prudentius, a description of an ancient painting, which, he says, he saw in a catacomb of the martyrdom of St. Hippolytus, who was dragged to death at the heels of horses, in consequence of bearing the same name as the person fabled to have been so treated. The judge, hearing the resemblance of the name, ordered him to undergo the same punishment. He states, that in this picture was most minutely described the body of the saint torn to fragments, and scattered in every direction, and a band of pious Christians, not only gathering up every particle and morsel they could, but also with sponges taking up the blood in the whole of the track, in order to preserve it; and he repeats again and again this custom of preserving the blood of the martyrs in sponges or linen cloth. Accordingly, as I said before, we find sponges and vials with the sediment of blood constantly in the tombs. Not only so, but another species of relic is very common, is the instrument of their martyrdom. There is in the museum at Rome, attached to the Vatican, a number of Christian antiquities, which begins with a collection of instruments of torture found in ancient catacombs. I know, from personal observation, that none are admitted but those that are discovered in Christian tombs, and can be most accurately verified. The Christians, therefore, gathered up all these things-all that belonged to the martyrs, and preserved them.

The

The next way in which this attention to relics was demonstrated, was in building up oratories in places where the martyrs had suffered. tombs of the martyrs were their altars, not only from the very earliest times but afterwards. We have an example in St. Ambrose, who writes to his sister Marcellina, that he had built a church which yet exists at Milan, and is known by the name of St. Ambrose. It is said that when he declared in public that it was his intention to open and consecrate it, a number of persons cried out, " You must consecrate it in the same way as you consecrated the Roman Basilica;" to which he replied, "If God will give me grace to discover relics of the saints, I will;" because he had consecrated the other church, by depositing there the bodies of the saints. He was so fortunate as to find the bodies of two martyrs, which were there deposited.

Now nothing remains, but that I should read you a few out of many passages, to show you that the early Christians believed all that we do regarding the relics.

I begin with one church, and that is the Church of Smyrna-one of the seven churches spoken of in the Apocalypse-one of the seven churches founded by St. John. St. Polycarp, who was one of the last who had seen St. John, and was his personal disciple (and consequently we cannot suppose that at that time the doctrine taught by Christ and his apostles was completely obscured), was martyred, and the Christians of the church at Smyrna wrote a letter, giving an account of his execu

tion. "We find," he says, "our subtle enemy, the devil, did his utmost, that not the least remainder of his body should be taken away by us, although many desired to do it, and to be made partakers of his holy flesh. And to that end he suggested it to Nicetas, the father of Herod, and brother of Alcé, to go to the governor, and hinder him from giving us his body to be buried. Lest," says he, "forsaking him that was crucified, they should begin to worship this Polycarp. And this he said, at the suggestion and instance of the Jews, who also watched us, that we should not take him out of the fire; not considering that neither is it possible for us ever to forsake Christ, nor worship any other besides him. For him, indeed, as the Son of God, we do adore; but for the martyrs, we worthily love them, as the disciples and followers of our Lord, and upon account of their exceeding great affection for their Master and their King; of whom may we also be made companions and fellow-disciples. The centurion, therefore, seeing the contention of the Jews, put his body into the fire, and so consumed it. After which, we taking up his bones, more precious than the richest jewels, and tried above gold, deposited them where it was fitting—where, being gathered together as we have opportunity, with joy and gladness, the Lord shall grant unto us to celebrate the birthday of his martyrdom, both in memory of those who have suffered, and for the exercise and preparation of those who may hereafter suffer."

This is a very striking narrative; it shows the eagerness of Christians to have the body of the saint; it shows that they accounted the body more precious than jewels, more than gold. They buried it in a place where they are to meet, and trust they may meet to celebrate the birthday of his martyrdom over his relics. But the striking circumstance that I meant is this, How comes it that the Jews, or any others, could for a moment have suspected, or have had ground to surmise, or to object at least, that the Christians would worship him, and that they would desert Christ? Assuredly, if there had never been any respect shown to the bodies of the saints, if no outward marks of honour or veneration had been exhibited, how could it possibly have come into their heads to make such a charge as this-that there was danger of his being worshipped? It, therefore, supposes that such a practice existed before, and was well

known to them.

There is a similar example in the Church of Antioch. St. Ignatius again, one of the fathers within one hundred years after Christ, suffered martyrdom at Rome. He was bishop of Antioch, and his body was conveyed back to Antioch. It is said that it was carried back as an inestimable treasure. But regarding the circumstance of his body being carried back, there are some very strong observations in Chrysostom, another of the fathers. He says, that, 66 When the faithful had taken away his bones with eagerly desirous hands, and had laid them

together honourably and reverently, they deposited them in a distinguished place in the city. These were afterwards removed to the martyr's residence-Antioch, and those towns which lay between each city, received a double blessing, as well as at the first when the martyr was led bound from Antioch to Rome. So now, when, with splendid triumphs, he was brought back thither, they gathered around him as bees around a honey-comb." Thus with regard to Ignatius, it was considered a blessing to a city for the relics of the martyr to pass through it. But now St. Chrysostom speaks of the blessing. He says, "When, therefore, he had, at Rome, laid down his life, or rather when he had gone to heaven, he returned again crowned; that city, Rome, received his blood, but you have honoured his relics; they beheld him struggling and dying, but you possess him perpetually; and God, having borrowed of you this precious treasure for a short time, brought him back to you with increased honour, for you sent forth a bishop, and you have received a martyr; and not only you, but the intermediate cities."

Thus, therefore, we find the relics of the saints honoured by the immediate disciples of the apostles, by those who knew them, and had learnt from them.

Afterwards (I could multiply extracts without end), in the writings of St. Basil and St. Ambrose, we have a letter from St. Basil to St. Ambrose, in reply to one from the Archbishop of Milan to the Bishop of Cappadocia, who wrote all that way to ask him to get some portion of the relics of St. Dionysius; so that it shows, on the one hand, the communion between all parts of the church; for a bishop in Italy writes to one in Asia, to ask him to send the relics of a particular saint; and, on the other hand, what veneration was shown to the relics. He writes back, that much against the will of those who possessed them, the relics had been taken up and sent, and indeed he had no doubt whatsoever of their being perfectly genuine.

There is a passage again in the same saint whom I quoted before— and who is so enthusiastic in his honour of them-he says, "See how the relics of the martyrs still breathe! Who can doubt of the martyrs being still alive? Who can believe they have perished?" Then he says, "Deity dwells in the bones of the martyrs, and, by his power and presence, miracles are wrought." St. Asterius writes, "Wherefore decently disposing of the bodies of martyrs, let us preserve them; by them we are fortified and protected." St. John Chrysostom says, "That which neither riches nor gold can effect, the relics of martyrs can; gold never dispelled disease, nor warded off death: but the bones of martyrs have. God has taken to himself their souls, and left to us their bodies, that these may be a monument among us."

There is no end to the testimony, for reasons that I will explain in a few

words. About this time, we have two circumstances appearing in church history, which go to show what the belief of the Christians was. The first is in the writings of the Sophist Eunapius, about the year three hundred and eighty, which is directed to show that the Christians worshipped the martyrs. He charges them, in the first place, with taking great care of their bodies, and placing them under their altars; and, in the second place, with showing them divine adoration and worship— that is as good as charging them with idolatry; so you see that this is not a modern accusation against us; it is a very old tale, it is a very old charge. It begins as early as the year three hundred and eighty, when there was precisely the same practice which we now follow, and the same belief as we now hold: and the whole of the Christian church was charged, by a heathen, with being idolatrous. This shows, at least, that there must have been very great veneration and honour paid to the relics of the saints.

A few years after, we have Vigilantius maintaining that the relics of saints are not to be honoured: and we have an express treatise of St. Jerome against him, in which he speaks of this. Therefore here, again, the whole church are condemned: for they believed our doctrines on this very point. St. Jerome makes a very accurate distinction: "We worship not, we adore not the relics of the martyrs; but we honour them, that their honour may be referred to him who says, 'He that receiveth you receiveth me:"" just what we say in modern times, that in honouring his servants, we consider that we honour God, who chose them as his servants and champions.

About this time we have an endless number of writers who teach the same doctrine; and I remember being particularly struck with one of the letters of St Austin, meant as a letter of recommendation to some friends who were travelling in Italy. During his own time, a portion of the relics of St. Stephen the first martyr, which had been discovered in the east were brought into Africa. St. Austin, than whom no one was more remote from any thing like superstition or credulity, gives us a very minute account of what happened in the introduction of his bones, and he says, "that to his own knowledge, the bishop indeed, of the very neighbouring diocese to his, was cured instantly of a painful disease which he had had upon him for many years, and for which he was to undergo a painful operation in a few days." But regarding these relics in the church, the circumstance which I wish to mention is this, that in the letter of recommendation to some friends who were travelling, he says, "A person very estimable for his virtues " --and makes a long encomium upon his character-" but what is still more precious, he possesses a portion of the relics of St. Stephen." If any one were to write a letter of the same kind now, it would be considered superstitious; yet see who it is that writes, see at what an age-and

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