Изображения страниц
PDF
EPUB

From the Coptic Liturgy, used by the Jacobites or Eutychians, called the Liturgy of St. Cyril. Renaudot, tom. i.

Priest.

The Prayer of Peace.

"Make us all worthy, O Lord, to stand before thee with a pure heart, and a soul full of thy grace, and to offer to thee this holy, rational, spiritual, and unbloody sacrifice, for the remission of our sins, and the pardon of the ignorances of thy people; because thou art a clement and merciful God, and to thee above we send up our homages of glory, honour and adoration, O Father, Son, and Holy Ghost, now and for ever," &c. Page 39.

The Anaphora (or Canon) of St. Cyril.

Friest. 66 Truly are the heavens and the earth full of the glory of thy sanctity, through thy only begotten Son, our Lord, God, Saviour, and King Jesus Christ. Fill this thy sacrifice, O Lord, with the blessing which is from thee, by the descent of thy Spirit upon it,

Amen: and bless with blessing, Amen: and purify with purification, Amen, these thy venerable gifts laid before thee, this bread and this chalice. For thy only begotten Son, our Lord, God, Saviour and King Jesus Christ, in that night, in which he delivered himself, that he might suffer for our sins, before the death, which of his own free will he accepted for us all." People, "We believe." Priest. "He took bread into his holy, immaculate, pure, blessed, and vivifying hands, and looked up to heaven, to God his Father, and Lord of all, and he gave thanks."

Priest.

Priest.

Priest.

"And he blessed it."
"And he sanctified it."

People, "Amen."

People, "Amen."

People, "Amen."

"And he brake it, and gave it to his holy disciples, and pure Apostles, saying: take, eat ye all of it; this is my body, which is broken for you, and shall be delivered for the remission of sins: do this in commemoration of me." People, "Amen."

Priest. "And in like manner after supper, he mixed wine and water in the chalice, and gave thanks." People, "Amen."

Priest.

"And blessed it."

"And sanctified it."

People, "Amen."

People, "Amen."

Priest. Priest. "And tasted, and gave it to his illustrious holy disciples, and Apostles, saying: take, drink ye all of it: this is my blood of the New Testament, which is poured forth for you, and shall be given for many, to the remission of sins: do this in commemoration of me." People, "Amen."

Priest. For as often as you shall eat of this bread, and shall drink of this chalice, shew forth my death, and confess my resurrection, and make a memorial of me, until I come." Pages 46, 47. ́*

The Priest says the Invocation secretly.

"And send down from thy high sanctuary..the Paraclete, thy holy Spirit.... upon us thy servants, and upon these venerable gifts, laid before thee, upon this bread, and upon this chalice, that they may be purified, and may be changed."

The Deacon. "Let us be attentive." People, " Amen."

The Priest signs the body thrice, raising his voice. "And may he make this bread, the body of Christ. People, "Amen."

Priest, signing the blood thrice. "And may he make this chalice the precious blood of the New Testament." People, "Amen."

Priest. "Of the same Lord, God, Saviour and King of us all, Jesus Christ." People, "Amen."

Priest. "That they may be to us all, who shall receive them, available to faith without disputing, charity without bypocrisy," &c. Pages 48, 49.

The rest as in the Liturgy of St. Basil, &c.

It may be observed, that in the Oriental Liturgies, the Invocation comes after, whereas in the Roman Liturgy it comes before, the consecration. But whether it be said before or after, it is referred to, and, morally, connected with the consecration. The Invocation expresses, in plain terms, the change of the bread and wine into the body and blood of Christ, and generally contains a prayer that this body and blood may be a cause of salvation to the communicants. When the Greek Bishops, who were present in the Council of Florence, were called upon to say, by what form of words the change is made: they answered, that it is by the words of Christ (viz. this is my body, this is my blood), that the bread is changed and transubstantiated into his body, and the wine into his blood. This they confirmed by the authority of all the Holy Doctors, and particularly of St. Chrysostom. See Lab. tom. xiii, Conc. Florent.

The greatest part of the preceding extracts, relating to the sacrifice. of the mass, the real presence, and the change of the bread and wine into the body and blood of Christ, which are offered to God, in the sacrifice, and received by the people in the holy communion, is taken from the Anaphora of the Liturgies referred to. The Anaphora corresponds with the Canon in the Roman Missal, and comprises the most sacred part of the public service, the oblation, consecration, and distribution of the holy mysteries. In the other parts of the ancient Liturgies, we see mention made of the ornaments or vestments of the Priests and Deacons ; of the preparation of the altar, and of the bread and wine for the sacrifice; of the use of

incense at the altar, in all Liturgical functions; of prayers for the forgiveness of sins; of the Epistle and Gospel; of the Creed or profession of faith; of the offering of the bread and wine; of the preface and Sanctus: not to speak at present of the invocation of the saints in heaven, and of supplications for the repose of the souls of the faithful departed.

Some of these extracts are taken from the Liturgies, or forms of public worship, used from the beginning in the Oriental Patriarchal Churches of Jerusalem, Antioch, Alexandria, and Constantinople, and in churches under their respective jurisdictions. Other extracts are taken from the Liturgies used by the different divisions of the Nestorian and Eutychian sects in the East, which retain the full substance of the ancient orthodox Liturgies of the Churches, in which these sects made their appearance, with the addition of a very few particular sentences, expressive of the Nestorian or Eutychian doctrines. But, on the nature of the sacrifice of the mass, on the oblation of the true body and blood of Christ really present under the appearances of bread and wine, on the reception of the same by the faithful in the holy communion, and on the miraculous change of bread and wine into the body and blood of our divine Saviour, these Liturgies of the Nestorians and Eutychians are as clear and expressive, as any of the ancient Liturgies of the orthodox churches. This language of the Nestorians and Eutychians was not borrowed from the Catholic Churches of Jerusalem, or Alexandria, or Constantinople, after the years 431 or 451, when these heretics were separated from the communion of the church: but it was the Liturgical language of the orthodox churches, with which Nestorius and Eutyches were in communion before their separation, and which had used the substance of the same form of public prayer and worship, from the first establishment of Christianity in them.

Besides the Liturgies cited above, Renaudot produces thirty-six other Liturgies used by the Syrian Jacobites, or Eutychians. They are taken from books used in their churches. They vary in the form of words, but all express the substance of the same doctrines of faith, relating to the sacrifice of the mass, the real presence and transubstantiation, as well as to the invocation of the Saints in heaven, and prayers for the dead.

It is impossible to read these Oriental Liturgies, these forms of public worship, embodying the doctrines of faith professed by the churches in which they were used, and to notice the ancient and universal doctrinal uniformity which they present, in the simplicity of their language; without candidly acknowledging, that the true body and blood of Christ were believed to be really present under the appearances of bread and wine, and were offered as the Chris

[ocr errors]

tian sacrifice, and received as the holy sacrament of the new law, in those churches in the East, in which Christianity was first established by the Apostles. With these evidences before his eyes, who will say, that a church, which has rejected the sacrifice of the mass, and the doctrines of the real presence and transubstantiation, has thereby adopted the pure worship and doctrines of primitive Christianity?

[ocr errors][merged small]

III. ON COMMUNION WITH THE SAINTS IN HEAVEN. ON IM PLORING THEIR INTERCESSION, PARTICULARLY THAT OF THE BLESSED VIRGIN MARY, ALSO ON SUPPLICATIONS, FOR THE REPOSE OF THE SOULS OF THE FAITHFUL DEPARTED.

66

From the Liturgy of St. James. Renaudot, tom. ii. Deacon. The Memorial of Saints. Again and again we commemorate the truly happy, and praised by all the generations of the earth, the holy, blessed, ever Virgin Mary, the Mother of God; and at the same time we celebrate the memory of the Prophets, Apostles, Evangelists, Preachers, Martyrs, and Confessors; and of Blessed John Baptist, the Precursor; of the glorious St. Stephen, the first Martyr and first Deacon, and commemorating each one of them, we pray to the Lord."

The Priest bowing down, says, "O Lord, who hast power of life and death, and art the God of mercies and of love to men, do thou vouchsafe to make us worthy to celebrate the memory of all those, who have pleased thee from the beginning of the world; of the holy Fathers and Patriarchs; of the Prophets and Apostles, of John the Precursor and Baptist, of St. Stephen the first of Deacons and first of Martyrs, and of the holy Mother of God, and ever Virgin, Blessed Mary, and of all the Saints." Raising his voice. "We intreat thee, O Lord, who by thy creating power dost shew, that what (to us) is impossible, is possible (to thee); establish us in this blessed assembly: assign us to this church; place us by thy grace amongst thy elect, who are written in heaven. Wherefore, we celebrate their memory, that whilst they are standing before thy throne, they may be mindful of our poverty and weakness, and may,together with us, offer to thee this tremendous and unbloody sacrifice, for the protection of the living, for the consolation of the weak and unworthy, such as we are, for the repose and good name of those, who have already departed in the true faith, our Fathers, our Brothers, and our Masters, through the grace and mercy," &c. People, "Amen." Page 36.

J

[ocr errors]
[merged small][merged small][ocr errors]

Again and again, we commemorate all the faithful departed, those who are departed in the true faith, from this holy altar, and from this town, and from every country; those who in the true faith have slept and are come to thee, the God and Lord of Spirits, and of all flesh. We pray, we beseech, we intreat Christ our God, who has taken their souls and spirits to himself, that, through the innumerable acts of his mercy, he would render them worthy to receive the pardon of their offences, and the remission of their sins, and would bring us and them to his kingdom in heaven. Wherefore let us cry aloud and say, kyrie eleison," thrice.

The Priest, bowing down, says, "Be mindful, also, O Lord, of the orthodox Priests, already departed, of the Deacons and Subdeacons, Singers, Lectors, Interpreters, Cantors, Exorcists, Monks, Religious, Hearers, perpetual Virgins, and secular persons, who are departed in the true faith, and of those, whom each one specifies in his mind." Raising his voice. "O Lord God of Spirits and of all flesh, be mindful of all whom we commemorate, who are gone out of this life, in the orthodox faith; grant rest to their souls, bodies, and spirits, deliver them from the infinite damnation to come, and make them worthy of that joy, which is found in the bosom of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob: where the light of thy countenance shines in splendour, where there are no sorrows, no distresses, no lamentations. Impute not to them their sins. Enter not into judgment with thy servants, because no man living shall be justified in thy sight; nor is any one of the human race free from the guilt of sin, or pure from stain, but only our Lord Jesus Christ, thy only begotten Son, through whom we also hope to obtain mercy, and remission of sins, which is given through him, both to us and to them."

People. "Grant them rest, and be propitious, and forgive, O God, the follies and defects of us all, whether done knowingly or through ignorance," &c. Pages 37, 38.

From the Liturgy of St. Mark.

Renaudot, tom. i.

Priest. "We pray and beseech thee, O God, kind lover of mankind, protect this city, for the sake of thy Martyr and Evangelist Mark, who shewed us the way of salvation, and by the grace, and mercies, and goodness of thy only begotten Son," &c. Page 139.

Priest. "Be mindful, O Lord, of our forefathers from the beginning, of the Fathers, Patriarchs, Apostles, Martyrs, Confessors, Bishops, Saints, Just, of every Spirit of those who have departed in the faith of Christ, whom we commemorate this day, and of our

« ПредыдущаяПродолжить »