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First published 1920.

ORIGINAL PREFACE

ORIG INAL PREFACE

T HE following pages are intended
as a companion to Mr. Newman's
beautiful translation of the first part
of Bishop Andrewes' Devotions, which
originally appeared in the Tracts for
the Times, and has since been repub-
lished in a separate form. The Devo-
tions now presented to the reader are
n1uch less finished than the other por-
tion, and evidently were never arranged
by the holy Bishop who con1piled them.
But it may be truly said of him, as it
was of another, that the very dust of
his writings is gold. I have made little
alteration in the way of arrangement;
and have only where absolutely neces-
sary added a few words of paraphrase.
Some repetitions from the morning and
evening devotions will therefore be
found; and some few passages are
repeated twice. One or two repeti-
tions, and one or two fragments, so
much disarranged as hardly to be
v

ORIGINAL PREFACE

intelligible, have been omitted. The
original,
Tith a very few exceptions, is
in Latin; in the passages quoted from
Holy Scripture I have employed our
authorized version, except wl1ere it was
necessary for the purpose of more fully
explaining Bishop Andrewes' meaning,
to translate literally from the Vulgate.
The references are not given, except
where they are likely to be less known.
The Bishop's Pil1daric Ode at the end
is omitted, as incapable of a prose
translation.

J. M. N.

NOVEMBER 6, 1843.

[This reprint of Dr. Nealets version of
Bishop Andrewes' Latin Devotions is a
companion to the volume translated from
the Greek in the same series, to which
Professor Swete contributed an Intro-
duction.]

VI

CONTENTS

CONTENTS

.

ORIGINAL PREFACE . .
INTRODUCTION TO CONFESSION
MORNING PRAYER. . .
AN ACT OF INTERCESSION .
AN ACT OF THANKSGIVING .
AN ACT OF DEPRECATION .
INTRODUCTION TO THE EVENING
SACRIFICE . . . .
An Horology .
AN ACT OF PLEADING
[I] As respects God . .
[II] As respects ourselves, re-
latively to God . .
[III] As respects ourselves, re-
latively to our Nature .
[IV] As respects ourselves, re-
latively to our due
Obedience . . .
[V] As respects the Evil which
would arIse from our
Destruction . .
[VI] As respects the Good
which will arise from
our Salvation. . .

.

Page
v
I
5
10
I4
20

.

.

28
28

37

4 0

42

43

45

47
Vll

CONTENTS

Page
AN ACT OF THANI{SGIVING ø . 50
AN ACT OF PLEADING . . . 75
PREPARATION TO PRAYER . . 79
AN ACT OF DEPRECATION . 80
AN ACT OF PLEADING . . . 82
AN ACT OF CONFESSION . . 83
THE AGGRAVATION OF SIN . . 85
[PENITENCE] . . . . . 88
AN ACT OF CONFESSION . 97
AN ACT OF THANKSGIVING . . III .
[A BREVIARY OF PRA YER] . . 115
AN ACT OF THANKS . . . 117
THE LORDtS PRAYER PARAPHRASED 120
BEFORE READING THE HOLY
SCRIPTURES . . . 129
BEFORE GOING TO CHURCH . 13 1
SELF- EXAMIN A TION . . 133
AN ACT OF ADORATION. . . 134
BEFORE A TOURNEY . . . 13 6
THE SEVEN WORKS OF MERCY . 137
AN EUCHARISTIC PRAYER . . 13 8
A PREPARATION TO THANKS-
GIVING . . . . . 14 1
AN ACT OF HOPE . . . 142
DOXOLOGIES . . . . . 145
Vll1

CONTENTS

A PRAYER OF THOMAS BRAD-
WARDINE, ARCHBISHOP OF
CANTERBURY .
OF PENITENCE
AN ACT OF CONFESSION .
A SHORT PRAYER AFTER CON-
FESSION .. ..
A CAUTION BEFORE PREACHING,
FROM S. FULGENTIUS .
SUBJECTS FOR MEDITATION BEFORE
PENITENTIAL PRAYERS .
SUBJECTS FOR MEDITATION BEFORE
INTERCESSION .
SUBJECTS FOR MEDITATION BEFORE
THANKSGIVING . .
WARNINGS AND PREPARATORY
MEDITATIONS IN THE EVEN-
ING, RAISING OF THE MIND
TOWARDS GOD
A MORNING HYMN OF VERY
ANCIENT USAGE IN THE
CHURCH .
AN EVENING HYMN

Page

147
149
15 1

159

160

162

16 4
\

166

168

172
174

IX

INTRODUCTION TO CONFESSION

INTRODUCTION TO
CONFESSION
T wo things I recognise, 0 Lord, in
myself:
nature, which Thou hast made;
sin, which I have added:
I confess that by sin I have depraved
nature ;
but call to remembrance, that I am a wind
that passeth away,
and returneth not again ;
for of myself I cannot return again
from sin.
Take away from me that which I have
made ;
let that which Thou hast made remain

.
In me ;
that the price of Thy precious Blood
perish not !
Let not my wickedness destroy
what Thy goodness hath. redeemed.
o Lord my God, if I have so done
as to become Thy culprit,
can I have so done as no longer
to be Thy servant

II.

B

I

INTRODUCTION TO CONFESSION

INTRODUCTION TO
CONFESSION
T wo things I recognise, 0 Lord, in
myself:
nature, which Thou hast made ;
sin, which I have added:
I confess that by sin I have depraved
nature ;
but call to remembrance, that I am a wind
that passeth away,
and returneth not again ;
for of myself I cannot return again
from sin.
Take away from me that which I have
made ;
let that which Thou hast made remain

.
In me ;
that the price of Thy precious Blood
perish not 1
Let not my wickedness destroy
what Thy goodness hath. redeemed.
o Lord my God, if I have so done
as to become Thy culprit,
can I have so done as no longer
to be Thy servant

II.

B

I

'if
INTRODUCTION TO CONFESSION

If I have thence destroyed my
Innocence,
have I at all thence destroyed Thy
Mercy 1
If I have committed that for which
Thou mightest condemn me,
hast Thou at all lost that by which
Thou art wont to save 1
Truth, Lord: my conscience
meriteth damnation,
but no defence equals Thy compassion.
Spare me therefore ;
because it is not unbefitting Thy Justice,
nor unwonted to Thy Mercy,
nor difficult to Thy Power,
to spare the penitent.
Tholl Who hast created me,
do not destroy me ;
Thou Who hast redeemed me,
do not condemn me.
Thou Who hast created me
by Thy goodness,
let not Thy work come to nought
through my iniquity.
What is Thine in me, acknowledge;
wha is mine, take away.

2

INTRODUCTION TO CONFESSION

I..ook on me, the wretched,
o boundless Loving-kindness:
On me, the wicked,
o Compassion that extendest to all!
Infirm I come to the Almighty,
wounded I hasten to the Physician:
reserve for me the gentleness
of Thy Compassion,
Who hast so long held suspended the
sword
of Thy vengeance.
Blot out the number of my crimes,
renew the multitude of Thy compassions
However unclean, Thou canst cleanse me;
however blind, enlighten me ;
however weak, restore me ;
yea, though dead, raise me.
Of what kind soever I am, be it good
or bad,
I am ever Thine.
If Thou cast me out, who shall take
me in

If Thou disregard me, who shall look
on me

More canst Thou remit, than I commit;
more canst Thou spare, than I offend.
3

INTRODUCTION TO CONFESSION

Let not noxious pleasures overcome me ;
at the least let not any perverse habit
overwhelm me ;
[Preserve me]
from depraved and lawless desires ;
from vain, hurtful, impure imaginations;
from the illusions of evil spirits;
from pollutions of soul and of body.

4

MORNING PRAYER

MORNING PRAYER

O THOU That hearest the prayer,
unto Thee shall all flesh come..
At evening, and morning, and at
noonday,
will I pray and that instantly,
and Thou shalt hear my voice.
My voice shalt Thou hear betimes,
o Lord :
early in the morning
will I direct my prayer unto Thee,
and will look up.
Let my prayer be set forth
in Thy sight as the incense.
I have remembered Thee in my bed,
and thought upon Thee when I was
waking,
because Thou hast been my Helper.
I yield Thee thanks, Almighty Lord,
everlasting God,
for that Thou hast vouchsafed
to preserve me this night,
not according to my deserts,
but according to Thy holy Compassion.
5

MORNING PRAYER

Grant unto me, 0 Lord,
so to pass this day in Thy holy service,
that the submission of my obedience
may be acceptable unto Thee.
I lift up both heart and hands to the Lord
in the Heavens.
Behold, even as the eyes of servants
look unto the hand of their masters,
and as the eyes of a maiden
unto the hand of her mistress,
even so our eyes wait upon the Lord
our God,
until He have mercy upon us.
Look Thou upon me, and be merciful
unto me,
as Thou usest to do unto those that love
Thy Name.
Give Thy Angels charge over me,
to keep me in all my ways.
Shew me Thy ways, 0 Lord;
and teach me Thy paths.
Order my steps in Thy word,
and so shall no wickedness have dominion
over me.
Hold Thou up my goings in Thy paths,
that my footsteps slip not.

6

MORNING PRAYER

Put into my mouth words that are honest
and well chosen,
that my conversation and looks,
and my gestures, and all my works,
may be pleasing unto all men that see
and hear me ;
that I may find grace in all my speeches
and petitions.
o Thou Lover of men,
Thou That art very pitiful:
the Father of mercies,
That art rich in mercy to all that call
upon Thee,
I have sinned against Heaven and in
Thy sight,
and am no more worthy to be called
Thy son,
nor to be made one of Thyhired servants,
no not the lowest.
But I repent;
Woe is me! I repent;
Help Thou mine impenitence;
And if there be any comfort of love,
by Thy bowels and mercies,
by the multitude, by the riches, of Thy
Grace,

7

MORNING PRAYER

by Thy abundant mercy,
by the great love wherewith Thou hast
loved us,
be merciful to me a sinner,
be merciful to me of all sinners the
grea test,
the most wretched.
Deep calleth unto deep,
the deep of our misery,
unto the deep of Thy Compassion;
where sin hath abounded,
there let grace much more abound;
overcome our evil of Thy good;
let Mercy rejoice against Judgment.

But beyond and before all things,
I believe that Thou art the Christ,
the Son of the living God ;
Thou That didst come into the world to

.
save Sinners,
of whom I am chief,
save me.
Thou That didst come to redeem the
lost,
let not one whom Thou hast redeemed,
perish.

8

MORNING PRAYER

[Preserve me]
from the recollection of evil things,
that what I have seen and heard
from the wicked, in this world,
I may not remember,
nor ever tell to others ;
that I may hate every evil way.
I have deserved death ;
but yet I appeal from the Tribunal of
Thy Justice
to the Throne of Thy Grace.

9

AN ACT OF INTERCESSION

AN ACT OF INTERCESSION

, ET us pray] for the Catholic Church;
Lfor the Churches throughout the
whole world;
that is,fortheir verity, unity, and stability;
that in all charity may flourish,
and truth be a living principle.
For our Church;
that what is wanting initmaybe supplied;
what is unsound, corrected;
that all heresies, schisms, scandals,
as well public as private,
may be removed.
Correct the wandering,
convert the unbelieving,
increase the faith of the Church,
destroy heresies,
expose the crafty enemies,
bruise the violent.
[Pray we] for the Clergy ;
that they may rightly divide,
that they may rightly walk;
that wJlile they teach others, themselves
may learn.

10

AN ACT OF INTERCESSION

For the people;
that they seek not to be wise above
measure ;
but may be persuaded by reason,
and yield to the authority of superiors
For governments;
their stability and peace;
For our kingdom, incorporation, city;
that they may fare well and prosperously,
and be freed from all danger and
. .
Inconvenience.
For the King:
Help him now, 0 Lord,
o Lord, send him now prosperity;
crown him with the array of truth and
glory :
speak good things to his heart
for Thy Church and people.
For the prudence of his counsellors;
the equity and integrity of the judges;
the courage of the army ;
the temperance of the people,
and their godly simplicity.
For the rising generation,
whether in Universities,
or in Schools;

II

AN ACT OF INTERCESSION

that as they increase in age,
they may also increase in wisdom and
in favour
with God and man.
For them that shew themselves
benevolent,
whether to the Church,
or to the poor and needy;
reward Thou them sevenfold into their
bosom ;
let their souls dwell at ease,
and their seed inherit the earth.
Blessed is he that considereth the
needy.

That it may please Thee to reward all
our benefactors
with eternal blessings;
for the benefits they have bestowed on
us upon earth,
let them obtain everlasting rewards in
Heaven.
That it may please Thee to behold and
to relieve
the miseries of the poor and the
captives.

12

AN ACT OF INTERCESSION

That it may please Thee of Thy merciful
compassion
to restore the frail lapses of the flesh,
and to strengthen them that are falling ;
That it may please Thee graciously to
accept
our reasonable service.
That it may please Thee to raise our
minds
to heavenly desires.
That it may please Thee to regard us
with the eyes of Thy compassion.
That it may please Tl1ee to preserve the
souls
of us and ours
from everlasting damnation.
That it may please Thee to grant unto me,
with those for whom I have prayed,
or for whom I am in any way bound to
pray,
and with all the people of God,
an entrance into Thy kingdom;
there to behold Thy Presence in
righteousness,
and to be satisfied with glory.
We beseech Thee to hear us, good Lord!
13

AN ACT OF THANKSGIVING

AN ACT OF THANKSGIVING

T ET all Thy works praise Thee, 0
L Lord,
and Thy Saints give thanks unto
Thee.
It is a good thing to give thanks unto
the Lord,
and to sing praises unto Thy Name,
o Most High :
to tell of Thy loving-kindness
early in the morning,
and of Thy Truth
in the night season.
I will exalt Thee, my God, 0 King,
and praise Thy Name for ever and ever.
Every day will I give thanks unto Thee,
and praise Thy Name for ever and ever.
Who didst call the things that were not,
as though they were ;
by Whom all things were made
in Heaven and in earth,
visible and invisible ;
Who upholdest all things by the Word
of Thy Power;

14

AN ACT OF THANKSGIVING

Who dost not leave Thyself without
witness,
in that Thou doest good, and givest us
rain from Heaven,
and fruitful seasons,
filling our hearts with joy and gladness;
in that all things continue this day
according to Thine ordinance ;
for all things serve Thee ;
Who, having before taken counsel,
didst Thyself, with Thine own hands,
make man out of the dust of the
earth,
and didst breathe into his nostrils the
breath of life ;
and didst honour him with Thine Image;
and didst charge Thine Angels
concerning him;
and didst set him over the works of
Thine hands ;
and didst place him in a Paradise of
pleasure ;
and didst not despise him, even when he
despised Thy Law;
but didst open for him the door
unto repentance and life ;

15

AN ACT OF THANKSGIVING

giving him Thy gr
at and precious
promIse
concerning the Seed of the woman;
Who hast instructed our race,
by that which may be known of
God,
by that which is written in the
Law,
by the rite of Sacrifices,
by the oracles of the Prophets,
by the melody of the Psalms,
by the wisdom of the Proverbs,
by the experience of the Histories;
Who, when the fulness of time was
come,
didst send forth Thy Son,
Who took the seed of Abraham,
and made Himself of no reputation,
putting on the form of a servant ;
and being made of a woman,
made under the Law,
by the oblation of His Life accomplished
its obedience,
by the sacrifice of His Death removed
its curse;
redeeming our race by His Passion,
quickening it by His Resurrection;
16

AN ACT OF THANKSGIVING

leaving nothing undone, that could be
done,
to make us partakers of the Divine Nature;
Who hath manifested in every place the
savour
of His knowledge,
by the preaching of the Gospel;
bearing Himself witness
with divers signs and wonders,
by marvellous holiness of life,
by mighty power even unto shedding
of blood,
by the incredible conversion of the
world to the Faith,
without assistance of authority,
without intervention of persuasion;
Who hast made us children of the Saints,
and heirs of the same vocation;
Who hast granted to Thy Church,
that she should be the Pillar and Ground
of the Truth;
and that the gates of hell
should not prevail against her ;
Who hast granted unto our Church,
that she should keep that which was
committed unto her,
and should teach us the way of peace ;
II. C 17

AN ACT OF THANKSGIVING

Who hast confirmed the throne of Thy
servant, our King;
Who makest peace in our borders,
and fill est us with the flower of
wheat;
Who hast made fast the bars of our gates,
and hast blessed our children within

us ;
\Vho hast clothed our enemies with
confusion ;
Who givest us everlasting felicity,
and makest us glad with the joy of Thy
countenance;
Who hast informed our princes,
and taught our senators wisdom;
Who hast given us pastors according to
Thine heart,
that feed us with knowledge and
understanding ;
Who hast turned our swords into
plough-shares,
and our spears into pruning-hooks;
Who hast caused that there should be
no decay,
no leading into captivity, and no
complaining in our streets ;

18

AN ACT OF THANI{SGIVING

Who didst bring me forth into life,
and didst bring me on to the Laver of
Regeneration,
and renewing of the Holy Ghost;
and hast made known to me Thy ways;
and hast winked at my sins, because
I should amend: (Wisdom xi. 23.)
Who hast not shut me up in the hand of
mine iniquity,
waiting to shew mercy upon me ;
Who hast not suffered my heart to be
hardened ;
but hast left me compul1ction of soul,
remembrance of my latter end,
conscience of committed sins;
Who hast opened to me a gate of hope,
while I confess and implore,
through the power of Thy Mysteries
and the Keys ;
Who hast not cut off, like a weaver,
my life,
nor made an end of me from day even
. to night;
nortakenmeawayin the midst of my days;
but hast holden my soul in life,
and hast not suffered my feet to slip.
19

AN ACT OF DEPRECATION

AN ACT OF DEPRECATION

TOOK down, 0 Lord our God,
Lfrom Thy lofty dwelling-place, and
from the Throne of Thy Glory.
Thou, Who dwell est on high, and
beholdest the humble,
look down upon us, and destroy us not;
yea ; rather deliver us from evil.
From all evil and misfortune,
deliver us.
As of old time Thou didst deliver our
fathers,
deliver us.
By whatsoever is dearto Thee, or beloved
by Thee,
deliver us.
In all our straits,
deliver us.
From the evils of the future state,
from Thine anger,
but yet more from Thy ceasing to be
angry,
from everlasting damnation,
from all the terrors of the life to come,
20

AN ACT OF DEPRECATION

from the wrathful countenance of the
Judge,
from being placed on the Left Hand,
from the hearing of that dreadful and
terrible voice,
DEPART FROM ME,
from being cast into outer darkness,
from eternal chains under darkness,
from the lake of fire and brimstone
where the smoke of their torments
goeth up for ever and ever,
deliver us.
Spare us, 0 Lord. Have mercy upon
us.
Deliver us ; and let us never be
confounded.
From spiritual evils;
from blindness and hardness of heart,
which lead to impenitence;
from softness and from hardness of
forehead,
from a seared conscience,
and ceasing from penitence after sin,
from a reprobate mind,
from contempt of Thy threatenings,
from the sin unto death,

21

AN ACT OF DEPRECATION

from the sin against the Holy Ghost,
have mercy upon us, and deliver us,
o Lord!
That I be not parched among the tares
and stubble,
nor grieve among those that are on the
left hand,
nor withered by the tempest,
nor 1 lament in the fire that is never
quenched,
nor be condemned to the flames,
nor suffer shame in Gehenna,
nor waste away among the overflowings
of Belial,
nor weep in the chains of darkness,
nor gnash the teeth in the banishment
of the reprobate;
being miserable, thrice miserable,
with the fiends in darkness, downward
in the abyss, which even Satan himself
dreadeth and abhorreth.
1 The conciseness of Bishop Andre,ves'
language in both this and the antithetical
petition below, renders it difficult to bring out
his meaning "\vithout having recourse to para-
phrase. It appears also that some of the words
have been mi3placcd: e.g. in the clauses, paleas,
zizania, dolere: a sinistris, arescere, the verbs
should be transposed.
22

AN ACT OF DEPRECATION

[On the one hand]
is the vision of God :
[On the other]
the hiding of His face.
It is hard to be separated from the
Saints ;
harder to be severed from God.
It is a thing full of shame to be bound
and cast out:
full of woe to be cast into the fire ;
full of sadness to call and not to be
heard ;
full of bitterness to ask l1npitied
for a drop of water, and not to gain it..
Deliver me from all evil and misfortune,
from men of corrupt minds,
from Ashur, (Hos. xi. 5.)
from Jeroboam, (1 Kings xii. 26.)
from Rehoboam, (1 Kings xii. 13.)
from the valley of Achor, (Josh. vii.
25, 26.)
from the evil spirit of the nlen of
Shechem, Uudg. ix. 23.)
from every stumbling - block, grief,
infamy,
from a deceitful tongue,
from perverse lips,

23

AN ACT OF DEPRECATION

from snares,
from all enemies, visible, invisible,
corporeal, spiritual,
from vices and sins,
from lusts and temptations,
from the attacks of demons,
(rom the spirit of fornication,
from the desire of vain glory,
from all uncleanness of soul and body,
from anger and ill-will,
from polluted thoughts,
from blindness of heart.
o Thou, Who didst once say to Thy
destroying Angel,
I t is enough ;
hold now Thine hand.
[Hear me] in my prayers and vows,
my straits and perils,
my infirmities and necessities,
my temptations and tribulations;
repel the concupiscence of gluttony,
- give the virtue of abstinence ;
chase the spirit of fornication,
give the love of chastity;
extinguish the covetousness of the world,
give poverty of spirit;

24

AN ACT OF DEPRECATION

restrain headstrong passion,
kindle in me the spirit of gentleness;
reinove the sorrow of this world,
increase spiritual joy;
repel boastfulness of mind,
bestow compunction of heart.
Give strength of Faith,
security of Hope,
the preservative of Salvation.
Give contempt of the world.
[Give me a place among those that]
shall enter into joy,
into the joy that is full,
into the joy that no man taketh away ;
[That I may have a portion]
on the Right Hand,
in tranquillity,
in a place of verdure, of dew,
in Paradise,
in a land of refreshment,
in Abraham's bosom,
in the Tabernacles of the Saints ;
that being on the Right Hand of God,
I may be made happy in His Rest,
rejoice in His Honour,
keep holy day in His Eternity,

25

AN ACT OF DEPRECATION

be glorified by Him That is thrice Holy,
be blessed among His Angels,
enjoy pleasure in His Light,
[amidst the] Psalms that are above,
[and] the Songs of Heaven.
Give me the girdle, the helmet,
the breast-plate,
the shield, the sandals, the sword,
above all things prayer.
Grant unto me the power and
opportunity of well doing,
that before the day of my decease I may
have wrought at least somewhat,
whose good fruit may remain;
that I may appear with righteousness,
and be satisfied with glory.
o Thou That didst add fifteen years
to the life of Hezekiah,
grant to me such a space of life,
at least a sttfficient space,
wherein I may be able to bewail my
Sins;
And, with Thy other blessings, send
(Best gift of all) a holy end;
a good and holy end of life,
a glorious and joyful Resurrection.
26

AN ACT OF DEPRECATION

Bless our increase
from the fruits of the earth and its
fulness ;
make peace in our borders ;
fill us with the flour of wheat;
satisfy our poor with bre'ad ;
make fast the bars of our gates;
bless our children amidst us ;
clothe our enemies with confusion ;
grant us seasonableness of weather ;
bestow on us the fruits of the earth;
repel carnal desires ;
restore health to the weak,
to the fallen grant renovation ;
to voyagers and travellers
[grant] a prosperous journey and a port
of safety ;
to the afflicted joy;
to the oppressed ease ;
to the captives liberty ;
health of mind,
soundness of body.

27

INTRODUCTION TO THE EVENING SACRIFICE

INTRODUCTION TO THE
EVENING SACRIFICE

YET me be mindful of Thy Name,
L 0 Lord, in the night,
And keep Thy law.
Let our evening prayer ascend to Thee,
and Thy Mercy descend to us ;
Thou That givest songs in the night;
That makest the outgoings of the
morning and evening to praise Thee ;
That givest to Thy beloved the sleep
of health.

AN HOROLOGY 1

o Thou, That hast put in Thine Own
Power
the Times and the Seasons,
give us grace that we may pray to Thee
in a convenient and opportune season ;
and deliver us.

1 This porti0n of the Private Devotions has
been reprinted, with additions, by Mr. Burns,
and will be found very useful in that form.
28

AN HOROLOGY

Thou, That for us men and for our
salvation,
wast born in the depth of night,
grant us to be renewed daily by the
Holy Ghost, .
until Christ Himself be formed in us,
to a perfect man ;
and deliver us.
Thou, That very early in the morning,
at the rising of the sun,
didst rise again from the dead,
raise us also daily to newness of life,
suggesting to us,for Thou knowest them,
methods of penitence;
and deliver us.
Thou, That at the third hour didst send
down
Thy Holy Ghost
on the Apostles,
take not that same Holy Spirit from us,
but renew Him every day in our hearts ;
and deliver us.
Thou, That at the sixth hour of the
sixth day
didst nail together with Thyself upon
the Cross
the sins of the world,

29

INTRODUCTION TO THE EVENING SACRIFICE

blot out the handwriting of our sins
that is against us,
and, taking it away, deliver us.
Thou, That at the sixth hour didst let
down
a great sheet from Heaven to earth,
the symbol of Thy Church,
receive into it us sinners of the
Gentiles,
and with it receive us into Heaven;
and deliver us.
Thou, That at the ninth hour for us
sinners and for our sins,
didst taste of death,
mortify our members which are upon
earth,
and whatsoever is contrary to Thy
Will;
and deliver us.
Thou, That didst will the ninth hour to
be the hour of prayer,
hear us while we pray at the hour of
prayer,
and grant unto us t11at which we pray
for and desire ;
and deliver us.

3 0

AN HOROLOGY

Thou, That at eventide wast pleased to
be taken down
from the Cross,
and laid in the grave,
take away from us, and bury in Thy
Septtlchre,
our SIns,
covering whatever evil we have committed
with good works;
and deliver us.
Thou, That late in the night,bybreathing
on Thine Apostles,
didst bestow on them the power
of the remission and retention of sins,
give unto us to experience that power
for their remission, 0 Lord, not for
their retention ;
and deliver us.
Thou, That at midnight didst raise David
Thy Prophet, and Paul Thine
Apostle,
that they should praise Thee,
give us also songs in the night,
and to be mindful of Thee upon our
beds;
and deliver us.

3 1

INTRODUCTION TO THE EVENING SACRIFICE

Thou, That with Thine own mouth hast
declared,
at midnight the Bridegroom shall come,
grant that the cry may ever sound in
our ears,
. Behold! the Bridegroom cometh
that we may never be unprepared to go
forth and meet Him ;
and deliver us.
Thou, that by the crowing of the cock
didst admonish Thine Apostle,
and didst cause him to return to
repentance,
grant that we, at the same warning, may
follow his example,
may go forth and weep bitterly,
for the things in which we have sinned
against Thee ;
and deliver us.
Thou, That at the seventh hour didst
command the fever
to leave the nobleman's son,
if there be any fever in our hearts,
if any sickness, remove it from us
also,
and deliver us.

3 2

AN HOROLOGY

Thou, That at the tenth hour didst grant
unto Thine Apostle
to discover Thy Son,
and to cry out with great gladness,
We have found the Messiah,
grant unto us also, in like manner, to
find the same Messiah,
and having found Him, to rejoice in like
manner ;
and deliver us.
Thou, That didst, even at the eleventh
hour of the day,
of Thy goodness send into Thy vineyard
those that had stood all the day idle,
promising them a reward,
give us the like grace,
and though it be late, even as it were
about the eleventh hour,
favourably receive us who return unto
Thee ;
and deliver us.
Thou, That at the sacred hour of the
Supper,
wert pleased to institute
the Mysteries of TIIY Body and
Blood,

II.

D

33

INTRODUCTION TO THE EVENING SACRIFICE

render us mindful and partakers of the
same,
yet never to condemnation, but to the
remission of sin,
and to the acquiring the promises
of the New Testament;
and deliver us.
Thou, That hast foretold Thy coming
to Judgment
in a day when we think not, and in an
hour when we are not aware,
grant that every day and every hour
we may be prepared, and waiting Thy
Advent;
and deliver us.
Thou, That sendest forth the light, and
createst the morning,
and makest Thy sun to rise upon the evil
and the good,
illuminate the blindness of our minds
by the knowledge of truth,
lift Thou up the light of ThyCountenance
upon us,
that in Thy light we may see light,
and at length in the light of Grace the
light of Glory.

34

AN HOROLOGY

Thou, That givest food to all flesh,
That feedest the young ravens when they
call upon Thee,
And hast led us from our youth up until
now,
fill our hearts with food and
gladness,
and stablish our souls by Thy
grace.
Thou, That hast made the evening the
end of the day,
so that Thou mightest bring the evening
of life to our minds,
grant us always to reflect
that our life passeth away like a
day:
to remember the days of darkness,
that they are many :
that the night cometh
wherein no man can work;
by good works to prevent the darkness,
lest we be cast out into outer darkness ;
and continually to cry unto Thee,
Tarry with us, 0 Lord,
for it draweth towards evening, and the
day of our life is now far spent.

35

INTRODUCTION TO THE EVENING SACRIFICE

The work of the Creator is Justice;
of the Redeemer, Pity;
of the Holy Ghost, holy inspiration:
[Who is] the other Comforter ;
the Unction;
the Seal ;
the Earnest.

3 6

AS RESPECTS GOD

AN ACT OF PLEADING

I: AS RESPECTS GOD

[I] From the Nature of God.
B ECAUSE the Lord is gracious and
merciful,
long-suffering and of great goodness;
He will not always be chiding,
neither keepeth He His anger for ever;
He hath not dealt with us after our sins,
neither rewarded us according to our
wickednesses ;
for as the heaven is high above the earth,
so great is His mercy towards them that
fear Him ;
as far as the east is from the west,
so far hath He removed our sins from us ;
like as a father pitieth his children,
even so is the Lord merciful unto them
that fear Him;
because He is long-suffering, and pitiful,
and of great mercy to all that call upon
Him;

37

AN ACT OF PLEADING

the Lord is loving unto every man,
and His mercies are over all His works;
He delighteth in mercy;
He is the Father of mercies;
He is Mercy;
because His nature is to shew mercy;
and punishment is His strange and
unaccustomed act.

[2] The Name of God.
Let the power of my Lord be great,
according as Thou hast spoken, say-
ing, The Lord is long-suffering and
of great mercy, forgiving iniquity and
transgression.

[3] The Name of Father.
I ascend unto my Father, and your
Father.
The Father of the Prodigal Son.
And what wilt Thou do with Thy great
name <

[4] The Name of Christ.
The Typical Lamb. Behold! the Lamb
of God !
3 8

1
t

AS RESPECTS GOD

The Redeemer. I know that my
Redeemer liveth.
The Saviour. We know that this is
indeed the Saviour.
The Mediator. There is one Mediator
between God and man.
The Advocate. We have an Advocate'
with the Father.
The Intercessor. [He ever liveth to
make intercession.]
The High Priest. [We have a great High
Priest.]
.
[5] The Name of the Holy Ghost.
The Typical Dove. He saw the Spirit
of God descending like a dove.
The Unction, or Anointing. The same
Anointing teacheth you of all things.
The Comforter. If I go not away, the
Comforter will not come.

[6] The Promises of God.
Remember Thy word unto Thy servant,
wherein Thou hast caused me to put my
. trust ;
which God, That cannot lie, promised,
and confirmed by an oath ;

39

AN ACT OF PLEADING

which our unbelief shall not make of
none effect ;
if we believe not, yet He abideth faithful;
He cannot deny Himself.
[7] The Practice of God.
Our fathers trusted in Thee; they trusted
in Thee,
and Thou didst deliver then1.
Call tQ remembrance, 0 Lord, Thy
tender mercies,
and Thy loving-kindnesses, which hath
been ever of old.
Lord, where are Thy old loving-
kindnesses 1
Look at the generations of old, and see;
did any ever trust in the Lord, and was
confounded

did any abide in His fear, and. was
forsaken

II: AS RESPECTS OURSELVES,
RELA TIVEL Y TO GOD
[1] As the Work and Creation of HisHands.
Despise not Thou the work of Thine
own hands.

4 0

AS RESPECTS OURSELVES

We are the clay, and Thou the Potter ;
and we are all the works of Thine hands.
Thou hatest nothing that Thou hast
made. (Wisd. ii. 24.)
[2] As the Image of His Countenance;
and so not to be destroyed.
Let us make man in Our Image, after
Our Likeness.
Who is renewed in knowledge, after the
Image of Him that created him.
[3] As the Price of His Blood;
and so not to be despised.
Ye are bought with a price,
With the precious Blood of a Lamb
without blemish, and without spot.
[4] As called by His Name.
Despise not the express image of Thyself.
We are called by Thy Name.
Thy people are called by Thy Name.
A chosen vessel to bear Thy Name.
[5] As Members of the Body of Christ;
and so not to be cut off.
Ye are the Body of Christ, and members
in particular.

4 1

AN ACT OF PLEADING

Know ye not, that your bodies are the
members of Christ <
Know ye not, that your body is the
Temple
of the Holy Ghost Which is in you <
[6] As having a Title in Christ.
I am Thine; save me.
Behold, 0 Lord, I am Thy servant;
I am Thy servant, and the son of Thine
handmaid ;
An unprofitable servant, yet a servant;
A lost son, yet a son ;
Weare all Thy people.
Carest Thou not that we perish
Yea,
Thou carest.

III: AS RESPECTS OURSELVES,
RELATIVELY TO OUR NATURE
[1] Our Weakness.
Have mercy upon me, 0 Lord, for I am
weak.
Remember what my substance is.
He remembered that they were but flesh;
4 2

AS RESPECTS OURSELVES

a wind that passeth away, and cometh
not again.
For He knoweth our frame.
He remembereth that we are dust.
The days of man are but as grass;
for he flourisheth as a flower of the field.
For as soon as the wind goeth over it,
it is gone;
and the place thereof shall know it no
more.

[2] The Misery of Our Condition.
Weare come to great misery.
He looked upon them when they were
in trouble ;
and heard their prayer.

IV: AS RESPECTS OURSELVES,
RELATIVELY TO OUR DUE
OBED IENCE
[1] Because we repent.
A broken and a contrite heart, 0 God,
Thou wilt not despise.
For I will confess my wickedness;
and be sorry for my sin.

4'-<

AN ACT OF PLEADING

[2] Because we pray.
For I will call daily upon Thee.
How long wilt Thou be angry with Thy
people that prayeth

I forgave thee all that debt, because thou
desiredst Me.
[3] Because we forgive.
Forgive, and ye shall be forgiven.
When ye come to pray, forgive,
if ye have aught against anyone,
that your Father Which is in Heaven
may also forgive you.
But if ye forgive not men their trespasses,
neither will your Father forgive your
trespasses.
[4] Because we purpose for the future.
My soul breaketh out for the very
fervent desire
that it hath alway unto Thy judgments.
My hands also will I lift up unto Thy
Commandments which I have loved.
I have sworn, and am stedfastly purposed
to keep Thy righteous judgments.
44

AS RESPECTS THE EVIL

Thy servants, who desire to fear Thy
Name.
That servant, which prepared not
himself,
neither did according to his Lordts will,
shall be beaten with many stripes.

V : AS RESPECTS THE EVIL
WHICH WOULD ARISE
FROM OUR DESTRUCTION
[1] It will bring no advantage.
What profit is there in my blood,
when I go down to the pit <
Shall the dust praise Thee <
or shall it declare Thy truth <
For in death no man remembereth Thee;
and who will give Thee thanks in the pit<
Dost Thou shew wonders among the
dead

or shall the dead rise up again, and
praise Thee

Shall Thy loving-kindness be shewed
in the grave,
and Thy faithfulness in destruction <
45

AN ACT OF PLEADING

Shall Thy wondrous works be known
in the dark,
and Thy righteousness in the land where
all things are forgotten

For the grave cannot praise Thee;
death cannot celebrate Thee;
they that go down into the pit cannot
hope for Thy truth.
The living, the living, he shall praise
Thee.

[2] Our creation will have been in vain.
Hast Thou made all men for nought <
Enternotintojudgmentwith Thyservant;
for in Thy sight shall no man living be
justified.
If Thou, Lord, wilt be extreme to mark
what is done amiss,
o Lord, who may abide it <
If He will contend with him,
he cannot answer Him one of a thousand.

[3] The enemies of God will triumph.
Give not Thine Heritage to reproach,
that the heathen should bear rule over it;
4 6

AS RESPECTS THE GOOD

wherefore should they say among the
people,
Where is their God

Remember this, 0 Lord, how the enemy
hath rebuked,
and how the foolish people have
blasphemed Thy Name.
The presumption of them that hate Thee
increaseth ever more and more.
W"herefore should the Egyptians speak
and say,
For mischief did He bring them out,
to slay them in the mountains, and to
consume them from the face of the earth

The Canaanites shall say,
He was not able to bring them into the
land which He sware ;
therefore He slew them in the wilderness.

VI: AS RESPECTS THE GOOD
WHICH WILL ARISE FROM
OUR SALVATION
[I] The glory of Godts Name.
Deliver us, 0 Lord, for the glory of
Thy Name:

47

AN ACT OF PLEADING

so we that are Thy people, and the sheep
of Thy pasture,
shall give Thee thanks for ever :
and will alway be shewing forth Thy
praise from generation to generation.

[2] The conversion of others.
Then shall I teach Thy ways unto the
wicked ;
and sinners shall be converted unto Thee.

[3] Example.
For this cause I obtained mercy,
that in me first Jesus Christ might
shew forth al110ng-suffering,
for a pattern to them which should
hereafter believe in Him
to life everlasting.
[4] The sake of God Himself.
I, even I, am He That blotteth out thy
transgressions for Mine own sake.
o Lord, hearken and do ;
defer not for Thine own sake.
[For His sake] Whom God hath set
forth to be a propitiation.

4 8

AS RESPECTS THE GOOD

Look upon the face of Thine Anointed.
Turn not away the presence of Thine
Anointed.

[5] The Descent of the Saviour.
Have mercy on me, 0 Lord, Thou Son
of David ;
David said unto Shimei, Thou shalt not
die;
and the king sware unto him.

[6] The office of the Saviour.
The Spirit of the Lord God is upon Me,
because He hath anointed Me ;
He hath sent lVIe to preach the Gospel
unto tIle poor,
to bind up the broken-héarted.
I came to call sinners.
God sent His Son, that tIle world through
Him should be saved.

II.

E

49

AN ACT OF THANKSGIVING

AN ACT OF THANKSGIVING

[I] The Excellence of God's Majesty.
G LORIFY Thou Me, 0 Father, with
Thine own self,
with the glory which I had with Thee
before the world ,vas.
Melchisedeck was Priest of the Most
Higll God.
[2] His Exaltedness.
He that is higher than the highest
regardeth. (Eccles. v. 8.)
[3] His Eternity.
The Lord, the everlasting God. (Gen.
xxi. 33.)
[4] lIis Omnipresence.
Do I not fill Heaven and earth, saith
the Lord 1
[5] His Omniscience.
Whither shall I go then from Thy Spirit

or whither shall I go then from Thy
Presence

50

AN ACT OF THANKSGIVING

If I climb up into Heaven, Thou art
there;
if I go down into hell, Thou art there
. also.
Thou knowest all things.
For Thou only knowest the hearts of
the children of men.

[6] His Omnipotence.
With God nothing shall be impossible.
I am the Almighty God.
[7] The height of His Wisdom.
o the depth of the riches of the wisdom
and knowledge of God ;
how unsearchable are His judgments !
and His ways past finding out !
[8] His unshaken Truth.
The truth of the Lord endureth for ever,
Heaven and earth shall pass away,
but My words shall not pass away.
[9] His exquisite Justice.
His Justice endureth for ever.

51

AN ACT OF THANKSGIVING

[10] The fountain, ocean, abyss of His
1''''1 ercy .
Deep calleth unto deep.
[II] He is merciful in passing by and
overlooking sin.
I beseech you by the meekness and
gentleness of Christ.
I will not destroy it for tents sake.
He passeth by transgressions.
The times of ignorance God winked at.

[12] He is patient, long-suffering.
Or despisest thou the riches of His
forbearance, and long-suffering <

[13] Pitiful.
But He was so merciful, that He forgave
their misdeeds,
and destroyed them not.

[14] He punisheth unwillingly.
o Ephraim, what shall I do unto thee <
o Judah, what shall I do unto thee <
52

AN ACT OF THANKSGIVING

Yet many years didst Thou forbear them;
for Thy great mercies' sake
Thou didst not utterly consume them,
nor forsake them.
He hath not dealt with us after our sins,
neither rewardeth us according to our
. iniquities.
She hath received of the Lord's hand
double for all her sins.
Like as a father pitieth his own children,
even so is the Lord merciful unto them
that fear Him.
[15] Compassionate.
He repenteth Him of the evil.
[16] His anger is soon quenched.
He will not alway be chiding;
neither keepeth He His anger tor ever.
[17] He is ready to pardon.
I forgave thee all that debt, because thou
desiredst Me.
[18] Ready to be reconciled.
Reconciling the vlorld unto Himself,
not imputing their trespasses unto them.
53

AN ACT OF THANKSGIVING

[19] Ready to be propitiated.
Bring forth the best robe, and put it
on him ;
and put a ring on his hand, and shoes
on his feet : etc.
He is good and kind to the unthankful
and to the evil.
[20] Munificent.
Giving the reward of a day for the toil
of an hour.
To-day shalt thou be with Me in
Paradise.
Giving sigh
to the blind,
loosing the bound,
clothing the naked,
raising the fallen,
upholding the falling,
healing the sick,
gathering the dispersed,
feeding the living,
sustaining the fain
,
quickening the dead,
casting down the proud,
setting up the humble,
redeeming the captives,
helping in time of need.

.54

.

AN ACT OF THANKSGIVING

Who is like unto Thee, 0 Lord, among
the Gods

glorious in holiness, fearful in praises,
doing wonders

[Let us praise God for]
Angels, the guardians of men ;
Archangels, announcing, by their illu-
mination, mightier events;
the voice of the Archangel :
Virtues, that do wonders;
Virtues being made subject unto Him.
Powers, that ward off the attacks of
tiends, at His command:
Principalities, perfect in government;
Dominations, that bestow gifts in
plenteousness;
Thrones, that judge at the tribunal;
whether they be thrones, or dominions,
or principalities, or powers,
all things were created by Him and
for Hiln.
C11erubim, glittering with knowledge;
He placed Cherubim before paradise ;
Seraphim, ardent with love;
above it stood the Seraphim: each
one had six wings.

55

.

AN ACT OF THANKSGIVING

The morning stars,
rulers of the world,
lovers of men,
chief ministers of the Divine Will ;
[we laud God for the] perseverance
of Angels ;
[we pray that we] going from strength
to strength,
may be associated with their choirs.

[We praise Him for]
The Patriarchs and their faith,
The Prophets and their hope,
The Apostles and their labours,
The Evangelists [and their truth],
The Martyrs and their blood,
The Confessors and their zeal,
The Doctors and their study,
The Asceticks and their tears,
The Virgins, flowers of purity,
celestial gems,
brides of the Immaculate Lamb;
The Innocents and their beauty,
flowers of the Church,
mirrors of virtue,
tabernacles of the Holy Ghost.

.

56

AN ACT OF THANKSGIVING

For those, whose faith was strong, and
whose life approved;
in whose heart was charity,
in whose mouth verity,
in whose life piety.

[We praise Him] for
light,
the waters and the Heaven,
the earth and the plants,
the luminaries,
the fishes and the fowls,
the wild and tame beasts,
the Rest of the Sabbath.

For the formation of man,
after counsel held,
with His Own hands,
with the breath of life,
in the Image [of God],
for the dominion over the crea-
tures,
the care of Angels,
the location in paradise,
that he was not forsaken, when he had
sinned.

57

AN ACT OF THANKSGIVING

For the Promise of the Seed of the
woman,
that which may be known of God,
the works of the Law written in
the heart,
the oracles of the Prophets,
the music of the Psalms,
the wisdom of the Proverbs,
the experience of the Histories.

For our birth,
bringing up,
preservation,
direction,
instruction,
civilized state,
religion.

For Redemption,
the Great Mystery of godliness,
His being made of no reputation,
His humiliation,
taking the seed of Abraham.
union to it,
oblation of life,
sacrifice of death.

58

AN ACT OF THANKSGIVING

For all the good that He did therein,
all the evil He suffered,
in His passage from the cradle to
the Cross.

For the whole design of Grace,
the Holy Incarnation,
the poverty of His nativity,
His lying in the manger,
His Circumcision, subjecting Him
to the law,
the first-fruits of His Blood,
the precious name, JESUS,
His Epiphany to sinners of the
Gentiles,
His Presentation in the Temple,
His Flight into Egypt,
His desire of hearing,
His eagerness to enquire,
His humility in obeying His
parents.

For His Holy Baptism,
the appearance therein of the Trinity,
His Fasting,
His Temptation,

59

.

AN ACT OF THANKSGIVING

His want, in that He had not where
to lay His head,
the hunger and thirst that He endured,
the cold and heat,
the weariness, while He went about
doing good,
His watchings, 1.
His continuance all nioht {In prayer.
z:, ,J
For His meek conversation,
Who endured such contradiction of
.
SInners ;
when He was hurried to the precipice
for a good word ;
when about to be stoned
for a good work.
[We bless Thee, 0 Saviour],
Who didst endure to be insulted of
men,
to be called a Samaritan, a glutton,
a demoniac, a deceiver,
and wast content that Barabbas should
be preferred to Thee;
for Thy sermons, homilies,
conversations, discourses,
intercessions, prayers,
examples,

60

AN ACT OF THANKSGIVING

.
s1gns,
mysteries,
and for the power of the Keys ;
for the blessings conveyed by all the
grace and loving-kindness of Thy
miracles ;
for the parables of
the Two Debtors,
the Good Samaritan,
the Publican and the Pharisee,
the Servant that owed ten thousand
talents,
the Good Shepherd,
the Prodigal Son,
the Called at the Eleventh Hour.
For Thy Sayings;
For God sent not His Son into the
world to condemn the world; but
that the world through Him might
be saved.
I came not to judge the world, but to
save the world.
I came not to call the righteous, but
sinners to repentance.
The Son of Man is not come to de-
stroy ments lives, but to save them.
61

AN ACT OF THANKSGIVING

The Son of Man is come to seek and
to save that which was lost;
And to give His Life a ransom for many.
Come unto Me, all ye that labour and
are heavy laden,
and I will give you rest.
Him that cometh unto Me I will in
no wise cast out.
F ather, forgive them ; for they kno\v
not what they do.
To-day shalt thou be with me in
Paradise.
I will give unto this last, even as
unto thee.
For the instances of Thy Mercy;
The Syrophenician or Canaanitish
woman;
the woman of Samaria;
the woman with an issue of blood;
the woman taken in adultery;
S. Mary Magdalene;
Zacchæus ;
the thief;
S. Peter;
S. Thomas;
S. Paul;
Nicodemus.
62

AN ACT OF THANKSGIVING

This Man receiveth sinners.
[For Thy long-suffering when]
they contradicted Thee;
drew Thee to the brow of the hill ;
twice would have stoned Thee;
and that for a good \vork;
blasphemed Thee ;
preferred Barabbas unto Thee;
gave Thee up unto the Gentiles to
crucify Thee.
For the death of CHRIST;
His obedience unto the death of the
Cross.
His straitening [till it was accom-
plished] .
For all that He suffered,
in Gethsemane,
in Gabbatha,
in Calvary.
For the pain,
the shame,
the curse, of the Cross.
That He deigned to be betrayed,
and that by His own disciple;
that He deigned to be sold,
and that for thirty pieces of silver;
63

AN ACT OF THANKSGIVING

to be troubled in His mind,
to be weary,
to fear,
to be exceeding sorrowful, even unto
death,
to be in an agony,
with strong crying,
and tears,
to sweat great drops of blood,
even to the bedewing of the ground :
Gethsemane,
that His Disciples should slumber,
one of them betray Him with a
kiss,
the rest should be offended because
of Him,
and flee ;
to be left alone,
and denied by Peter,
and that with an oath,
and a curse ;
to be subjected to the powers of
darkness,
to be laid hands on,
taken as a thief,
bound,
carried away,
64

AN ACT OF THANKSGIVING

hurried to Annas,
Caiaphas,
Pilate,
Herod,
Pilate the second time,
the Prætorium,
Gabbatha,
the Cross.
Thou That wast silent before the judge,
restrain my tongue ;
Thou That didst deign to be bound,
restrain my hands.
[We praise Thee]
in that Thou wast struck with the
palm of the hand before Annas,
accused before Caiaphas,
attacked by false witnesses,
condemned for blasphemy,
derided manifold,
mocked by the servants,
buffeted,
struck with the palm of the hal1d,
wast blinded,
stricken,
spit upon,
reviled,
blasphemed :
II.

F

65

AN ACT OF THANKSGIVING

Thy Head was crowned with thorns,
and struck with the reed,
Thine Eyes dim with tears,
Thine Ears filled with reviling,
Thy Mouth given to drink of gall and
vInegar,
Thy Face marred with spitting,
Thy Back ploughed with the scourge,
Thy Neck bent down with the Cross,
Thy Hands extended,
The Knees bent as in prayer,
Thy Feet pierced with nails,
Thy Heart oppressed with grief,
Thy Side pierced with the lance;
Thy Blood flowing in all sides
plenteously around Thee;
Thy SOltl in bitterness,
and Thy cry of agony,
Eli, Eli !
[We praisè Him that
He deigned] to be accused before Pilate
of sedition,
to be denied by His Own,
rejected for Barabbas.
He deigned] to be sent bound to Herod,
to be clothed with a white robe,
to be mocked.
66

AN ACT OF THANKSGIVING

[He deigned] to be sent back to Pilate,
to be clamoured against for death,
to be condemned to a shameful death,
to be given up to the will of the
soldiers,
to be arrayed in purple,
to be crowned with thorns,
to be mocked with a reed for a sceptre,
to be bowed the knee to,
to be called King in derision,
to be spit upon,
to be smitten on the Head with the
. reed,
to be stripped of the purple.
[He deigned] to be bound to a column
in the judgment-hall,
to be beaten with rods,
to be scourged,
to be baptized with a baptism of blood,
to suffer bruises and wounds,
to be demanded with clamour for
crucifixion,
to be exhibited as a spectacle of woe,
Behold the Man!
to be cried out against the more
vehemently,
to be condemned to the Cross.

67

AN ACT OF THANKSGIVING

[He deigned] to be laden with the Cross,
led to the place of punishment,
to sink under the Cross,
to have myrrh given Him to drink,
to endure the shame of being stripped,
the agony of being extended on the
Cross,
to be pierced with nails,
to have Hands and Feet riven,
to be crucified between two thieves,
to be reckoned among the trans-
gressors,
to be reviled by the passers by, .
to be blasphemed by the very thieves,
on Golgotha.
[He deigned] to be forsaken of God,
to be mocked in His cry to God,
to thirst,
to have vinegar given Him to drink,
to bow the Head,
give up the Ghost,
that His side should be pierced with
the spear,
to be blasphemed after death,
to be called a deceiver,
to suffer unknown sufferings.
68

\

AN ACT OF THANKSGIVING

By Thy woes, which I unworthy here
commemorate,
preserve my soul from the woes of
hell !
The Seven Last Words.
[1] Father, forgive them; for they
know not what they do.
[2] Woman, Behold thy son!
[3] To-day shalt thou be with Me in
Paradise.
[4] Eli, Eli.
[5] I thirst.
[6] It is finished.
[7] Father, into Thy hands I com-
mend My spirit.
Thou, Who didst deign
that Thy glorious Head should be
wounded,
forgive thereby whatever, by the senses
of my head, I have sinned.
That Thy holy Hands should be pierced,
forgive thereby, whatever I have done
am1SS
by unlawful touch,
or illicit operation.

69

AN ACT OF THANKSGIVING

That Thy precious Side should be
opened,
forgive thereby whatever I have
offended
by lawless thoughts,
in the ardour of passion.
That Thy blessed Feet should be riven,
forgive thereby whatever I have done
by the means of feet swift to evil.
That Thy whole Body should be
distended,
forgive thereby whatever iniquity I have
committed
by the intervention of all my members.

And I, too, 0 Lord, am wounded in soul;
behold the multitude,
the length, the breadth, the depth,
of my wounds;
and by Thine, heal mine.

Thy Precious Death,
Thy riven Side,
the streams of Water and Blood,
the begging of Thy Body,
Thy taking down from the Cross,
7 0

AN ACT OF THANKSGIVING

Thy Burial in the garden of another,
Thy three dayst sepulture:
By all these things I remind and
beseech Thee ;
I pray Thee that Thou would est deign to
lay all these things before Thy Father,
pleading them for my sake;
all the sufferings which Thou barest;
the Love above all by which Thou barest.
[We praise Him for]
His Transfiguration;
His triumph over Principalities, and
leading them captive,
and over the powers of Darkness in
Himself;
His mighty Resurrection;
His appearance to S. Mary Magdalene,
to the women,
to S. Peter,
to the two that went to Emmaus,
to the Ten without S. Thomas,
to the Eleven,
at the sea of Tiberias,
to S. James,
to the Five Hundred,
in Bethany.

7 1

AN ACT OF THANKSGIVING

His Glorious Ascension,
Session at the Right Hand,
distribution of gifts,
continual pleading for us,
return to Judgment.
For the Holy Ghost,
Come, Holy Ghost, our souls in-
spIre,
And lighten with celestial fire;
Thou the Anointing Spirit art,
Who dost Thy sevenfold gifts impart.
In the Old Testament,
Thy moving upon the face of the
waters,
Thy emission into all things living,
Thy Inspiration of man,
of Bezaleel,
of the Seventy Elders,
Thy descent upon the Prophets.
Thy visible Advent;
As a shadow ;
The coming upon and overshadowing
at the Incarnation of Christ.
As a Dove ;
Thy coming in the shape of a dove upon
Christ in Baptism.

7 2

AN ACT OF THANI{SGIVING

As fiery tongues ;
after the Ascension :
Thy Invisible Advent;
on the Apostles gathered together in
prayer,
on Cornelius,
on the twelve Ephesians.
Thy often visitations thenceforth;
In calling;
calling away from sin ;
calling out of the world,
recalling from backsliding ;
In our calling on Thee ;
in 1 Thy pleading for us ;
Thy distribution of Graces, Ministra-
tions, Operations.
The Graces of the Spirit; Works,
Fruits.
The compunction caused by Thy
reproval,
the Unction of Thy Teaching,
and calling to Memory,
Thy shedding forth of Love,
Thy helping our infirmities, in praying,

1 V ocatia, invocat-io, advocatio. The anti-
thesis cannot well be preserved in English.

73

AN ACT OF THANKSGIVING

Thy witnessing our Adoption,
Thy Sealing in Thy mysteries,
the Earnest of our Inheritance.
Thy visiting us,-to visit the heart,
dwelling in us,
purifying us,
shining on us,-illumination,
strengthening us,
adorning us,
leading us to perfection;
The Guide unto Truth,
the suppliance of strength.

74

.

AN ACT OF PLEADING

AN ACT OF PLEADING
T HE Triumph of Mercy,
Thy Namets Sake,
the glory of Thy Name,
the truth of Thy Promise,
intervention of Thine Oath,
comfort of Love,
bowels of mercies.
Thy Mercy which is manifold,
great, (Psal. Ii. 1)
ancient, (Psal. xxv. 6)
plenteous, (Psal. cxxx. 7)
everlasting, (Psal. cxxxvi.)
exceeding, (Eph. ii. 4)
marvellous, (Psal. cxvii. 8)
the riches of Thy Mercy, (Eph. i. 7)
its abundance, (Eph. i. 8)
its excess, (I Tim. i. 14)
its superabundance, (Rom. v. 20)
its exceeding riches, (Eph. ii. 7)
its victory over all Thy works, (Psal.
cxlv. 9)
over justice, (S. James ii. 13)
the satisfaction and merits of Christ,
the consolation of the Holy Ghost.
75

AN ACT OF PLEADING

Thy Mercy
by which it is that we are not con-
sumed, (Lam. iii. 22)
that preventeth, (Psal. lxxix. 8)
followeth, (Psal. xxiii. 6)
surroundeth, (Psal. xxxii. 10)
forgiveth, (Psal. ciii. 3)
crowneth, (Psal. ciii. 4)
hath length, breadth, depth, height,
(Eph. iii. 18)
is from everlasting, (Psal. xxv. 6)
to everlasting, (Psal. lxxxix. 2)
reacheth to Heaven, (Psal. cviii.
4)
reacheth to hell, (Psal. lxxxvi. 13)
is over all, (Rom. ii. 32)
is tender, (S. Luke i. 78)
sweet, (Psal. lxix. 16; cxxix. 21)
better than life, (Psal. lxiii. 3)
as is Thy Majesty, (Ecclus. ii.
18)
pardoning unto seventy times seven,
(S. Matt. xviii. 12)
hating nothing that it hath made,
neglecting neither the young ravens,
(S. Matt. vi. 26)

7 6

AN ACT OF PLEADING

nor the sparrow,
willing that all should be saved,
(I Tim. ii. 4)
willing not that any should perish,
(2 S. Pet. iii. 9)
bringing back the lost sheep on the
slloulder, (S. Luke xv. 5)
sweeping the house for the lost
drachma, (S. Luke xv. 6)
forgiving the ten thousand talents,
(S. Matt. xviii. 27)
binding up the wounds of the half
dead, (S. Luke x. 34)
joyfully meeting the Prodigal Son,
(S. Luke xv. 20)
that freed the fugitive Jonah,
received the denying Peter,
did not reject the incredulous
Thomas,
converted the blaspheming Saul,
liberated the woman taken in
adultery, '
received Mary Magdalene,
opened Paradise to the thief,
standeth at the door and knock-
eth,

77

AN ACT OF PLEADING

the Lord Himself entreating His own
servants, (2 Cor. v. 20)
whose place is the Throne of Grace,
the Mercy-seat,
whose time is the Day of Salvation.
I have deferred repentance,
and Thou hast prolonged patience
by Mercy,
o Thou Fountain inexhaustible!

7 8

PREPARATION TO PRAYER

PREPARATION TO PRAYER

T ET my prayer ascend,
Lcome up to Thee, (2 Chron. xxx. 27)
enter, (Psal. lxxxviii. 2)
appear in Thy presence, (Psal. cxli. 2)
find grace,
approach unto Thee; (Psal. cxix. 109)
and let it not return unto me void,
but as Thou knowest, and canst, and
wilIest.
Hear, (Psal. cxix. I49)
bow down Thine Ear, (Psal. lxxxvi. 1 ;
Dan. ix. 19)
hearken and consider, (Psal. xlv. 10;
Lam. i. 12)
understand,
listen, (Psal. lxiv. 1)
hearken and do. (Dan. ix. Ig.)

79

AN ACT OF DEPRECATION

AN ACT OF DEPRECATION

C AST not Thy servant away in anger,
(Psal. xxvii. 9)
nor hide Thine Eyes,
nor cover Thy Face, Uob xiii. 24)
nor interpose a cloud,
nor shut Thine Ear, (Lam. iii. 8)
nor forsake me, (Psal. xxxvii. I)
nor leave me for ever,
nor despise me, (Psal. xxvii. 9)
nor be silent, (Psal. xxxviii. 13)
nor slumber, (S. Matt. viii. 24)
nor stand afar off, (Psal. x. I)
nor repel me, (Psal. xliv. 23)
nor utterly take Tl1Y loving-kindness
from me, (Psal. lxxxix. 33)
nor falsify Thy Truth,
nor rebuke me in Thine indignation,
(Psal. vi. I)
nor chasten me in Thy displeasure,
(Psal. xxxviii. I)
nor cast me away from Thy Presence t
nor count me a reprobate from among
Thy children,

80

AN ACT OF DEPRECATION

nor take Thy I-Ioly Spirit from me,
(Psal. lvii. 11)
nor forget me for ever, (Psal.lxxiv. 19)
nor be wroth very sore, (Isaiah lxiv. 9)
nor shut me up nor consume me ill
the hand of mine iniquity, (Psal.
xvi. 9 ; Isa. lxiv. 7)
nor tarry, (Hab. ii. 1)
nor gather my soul with sinners,
(Psal. xxvi. 9)
If by Thy permission, we suffer for a
while the power of the enemy,
yet let us not in any wise be swallowed
up by his insatiable jaws.
Let the lion be conquered by the lamb,
the mighty spirit by feeble flesh.

II.

G

81

AN ACT OF PLEADING

AN ACT OF PLEADING

R EMEMBER what my substance is,
dust and ashes,
grass and a flower,
flesh and a wind that passeth away,
corruption and tl1e worm,
as a stranger and sojourner upon earth,
inhabiting a house of clay,
whose days are few and evil,
to-day and not to-morrow, (Prov.
xxvii. I)
at morning and not till evening,
(Is. xxxviii. 13)
now and not presently,
in a body of death,
in a world of corruption,
that lieth in wickedness;
Remember this. (Psal. lxxiv. 18.)

82

AN ACT OF CONFESSION

AN ACT OF CONFESSION

I HAVE sil1ned ;
of a verity, 0 Lord, and I am made
of sins; for even my life maketh
it manifest.
I confess it unto Thee, seeing that if
1 would, 1 could not conceal it from
Thee, 0 Lord.
Who can bring a clean thing out of
an unclean

1 am a sinner, of unclean seed,
of an unclean womb.
My mother conceived me in sin;
a root of bitterness,
a shoot of a wild olive-tree.
,I have sinned with my fathers; 1
have done amiss and dealt wickedly,
(Ps. cvi. 6)
I have done perversely, I have com-
mitted wickedness: (I Kings viii. 47)
1 have borne myself frowardly in the
covenant;
1 have cast away the law: (Is. v. 24)
rejected discipline; (Prov. xv. 32)

83

AN ACT OF CONFESSION

vexed Thy Holy Spirit; (Is. lxiii. 10)
done the imaginations of my heart:
Uer. xviii. 12)
. gone on from sin to sin ;
have not feared Thee;
have not returned; (S. Luke xv. 18)
not even when recalled; Uer. v. 13)
nor when afflicted; Uer. v. 3 ; Prov.
xxiii. 35)
but have hardened my heart; (Heb.
iii. 13)
provoked Thee; (I Kings xvi. 33)
and all this Thou hast seen; (Lam.
iii. 59)
and held Thy peace. (Ps. 1. 21.)

84

THE AGGRAVATION OF SIN

THE AGGRAVATION OF SIN

I TS measure,
its harm,
its scandal.
Its quality,
Its iteration,-how often

Its continuation,-how long

The person,-by whom

his age, condition, state, enlighten-
ment.
Its manner,
Its motive,
Its time,
Its place.
Folly, ingratitude, hardness, contempt.
The various kinds of sin ;
the cord and the cart-rope; (Is.
v. 18)
in necessary things,
in things superfluous,
omission or defect,
the not doing what ought to be
done;

85

THE AGGRAVATION OF SIN

commiSSion, or excess,
the doing what ought not to be
done ;
by heart within, in thought;
by mouth, } without {
n word,
by deed, , in fact.
Against God, my neighbour, my
own body.
By knowledge and by ignorance.
Willingly and unwillingly.
Of old and of late.
In boyhood and youth;
in mature and old age.
Things done once ;
repeated often,
Hidden and open.
Things done in anger,
or from the lust of the flesh and
the world.
Before and after my call.
Asleep by night, and awake by
day.
Things concerning myself alone,
and things connected with others.
Things remembered, and things
forgotten.

86

THE AGGRAVATION OF SIN

Whatever I may have done wrong,
from my youth till now, till this
moment, .
knowingly or ignorantly, within or
without,
asleep or awake,
by words, deeds, or thoughts,
through the fiery darts of the enemy,
through the unclean desires of the
flesh,
I have sinned against Thee ;
Have mercy on me, 0 God, and forgive
me !

87

PENITENCE

[PENITENCE]

G RIEF, for the wound.
Shame for the spots, filth, defile-
ment.
Sorrow, for the guilt.
Horror, for the punishment.
Weariness, of the servitude, yoke.
Fear, indignation,
judgment, revenge,
hatred, humiliation,
flight of occasions,
striking the breast,
striking the thigh,
putting away luxuries,
sackcloth, fasting,
prayer, devotion,
commemoration, the works of mercy.
Grant that I may ever sorrow,
and ever joy in that sorrow.

HAVE MERCY!
Look on me and have n1ercy,
despise me not,
88

PENITENCE

call to remembrance Thy loving-
kindness,
let Thy tender mercies speedily pre-
vent us,
be not angry, regard not my sin
with indignation,
be gracious, restrain,
put off, Thine anger,
nor set against me, nor impute,
nor remember, nor observe my sin,
nor enter into judgment, nor despise,
nor cast from Thy presence.
How long
for ever c:
Be placable, ready to perform,
exorable.
Let not Thine anger come upon me,
but let Thy Grace prevent me !
Shew mercy upon me ; now and in the
hour of death !
Let not the fault of the flesh avail to
punishment;
yea rather let the kindness of Thy mercy
prevail to pardon !

89

PENITENCE

Guilt, Defilement, Sickness, Slavery.
I-The Guilt.
Space, away with, remove, scatter,
pardon, shew mercy, forgive, set free
from the punishment,
be propitious, be reconciled,
turn Thee again.
II-The Pollution.
Turn Thy face from my sins; turn it
not from my misery.
Pass by, dissimulate, tolerate,
cover, cleanse, purge,
wash away, whiten, destroy.
III-The Sickness.
Cure, medicine, heal, lighten,
extirpate.
IV-The Slavery.
Vindicate from, snatch from, free,
preserve.
I resolve.
I have determined, longed, I desire,
envy, study, clear myself,
to turn from, to forsake, to leave,
to say it is enough,

<)0

PENITENCE

to say, I will no more do so,
to be converted to Thee,
to turn my feet to Thee,
to raise my hands to Thee,
to turn from all else,
to scatter my own will,
to make crooked straight,
to surround myself with a hedge.

I am weak.
That I would, I do not: that I do, I
would not.
The children are come to the birth,
and there is not strength to bring
forth.
Thoughts, arising in my heart, pre-
vent me.
The floods have entered into my soul.
The law of my members subjects me.
o Lord, I am oppressed, undertake
for me,
Who will deliver me <
Help, 0 God, make haste to help me ;
assist, save me, 0 God ;
succour, Let God arise;
convert, Rise, 0 Lord;
seek, arise to aid ;

91

PENITENCE

open Thine eyes to see; bow down
Thine ear to hear :
incline my heart; open my ears;
illuminate my eyes;
confirm my hands; direct my steps;
try my reins; chasten my flesh;
draw me, and we will run after Thee ;
keep me in with a bridle; keep me
near Thee ;
let me not return to my evil ways ;
nor fall into any temptation, but
such as is common to man ;
Let not the enemy prevail against me ;
nor the waterflood overvlhelm me ;
Hedge up my way with thorns;
take away occasions of sin and
scandal.

REST FOR THE MIND.
Sin lieth yet before the door.
I will not destroy it for tents sake.
In the mount of the Lord it shall be seen.
The Lord, the Lord God, merciful and
gracious, long-suffering,
abundant in goodness and truth, keeping
mercy forthousands,forgiving iniquity
and transgression and sin.
9 2

PENITENCE

If they will accept of the punishment of
their iniquity, then will I remember
My covenant.
When all these things are come upon
thee,
and thou shalt return unto the Lord
thy God,
thou shalt call them to mind,
then the Lord thy God will have
compassion upon thee.
Why art thou cast down, 0 my soul

and why art thou so disquieted
within me <
o put thy trust in God, for I shall yet
praise Him.
Turn again then unto thy rest, 0 my
soul,
for the Lord hath dealt bountifully
with me.
o think upon Thy servant, as concerning
Thy Word,
wherein Thou hast caused me to put
my trust.
Accept me according unto Thy Word,
that I may live,
and let me not be disappointed in my
hope.

93

PENITENCE

He will not always be chiding, neither
keepeth He
His anger for ever.
He hath not dealt with us after our sins;
neither rewarded us according to our
wickednesses.
But He was so merciful that He forgave
their misdeeds,
and destroyed them not :
Yea, many a time turned He His wrath
away,
and would not suffer His whole dis-
pleasure to arise.
He remen1bered that they were but
flesh :
a wind that passeth away, and cometh
not again.
Come now, and let us reason together,
saith the Lord:
though your sins be as scarlet, they
shall be as white as snow;
and though they be red like crimson,
they shall be as wool.
In returning and rest shall ye be saved.
And therefore will the Lord wait, that
He may be gracious Ul1tO you.

94

PENITENCE

A bruised reed shall He not break ;
and smoking flax shall He not quench.
I, even I, am He that blotteth out thy
transgressions for Mine Own Sake :
return unto Me, for I have redeemed
thee.
And even to your old age I am He,
and even to hoar hairs will I carry you.
I have made, and I will bear;
even I will carry and will deliver you.
Surely He hath borne our griefs, and
carried our sorrows ;
He was wounded for our transgressions; .
He was bruised for our iniquities;
the chastisement of our peace was
upon Him; and with His stripes are
we healed.
All we like sheep have gone astray ;
we have turned everyone to his own
way;
and the Lord hath laid upon Him the
iniquity of us all.
And it shall be, that before they call, I
will answer :
\\,hile they are yet speaking, I will
hear :

95

PENITENCE

Have I any pleasure at all that the
wicked should die; and not that he
should return from his way and live

Repent, and turn yourselves from all
your transgressions ;
so iniquity shall not be your ruin.
As I live, I have no pleasure in the
death of a sinner, but that the wicked
turn from his way and live :
turn ye, turn ye from your evil ways,
for why will ye die, 0 house of Israel

(Ezek. xxxiii. 11.)
As for the wickedness of the wicked,
he shall not fall thereby in the day
that he turneth from his wicked-
ness. (Ezek. xxxiii. 12.)
If the wicked turn from his wickedness,
and do that which is lawful and right,
he shall live thereby.
Let the wicked forsake his way, and the
unrighteous man his thoughts,
and let him return unto the Lord, and
He will have mercy upon him;
and unto our God, for He will abund-
antly pardon.

96

AN ACT OF CONFESSION

AN ACT OF CONFESSION

G OD, Thou knowest my foolishness,
and my faults are not hid from 1-'hee.
I also acknowledge them, and my sin is
ever before me.
I have not covered my transgressions,
like Adam. Uob xxxi. 33.)
I incline not my heart to any evil thing,
(Ps. cxli. 4)
But I will acknowledge my sin unto
Thee, (Ps. xxxii. 5)
and all that is within me ; (Ps. ciii. I)
and all r.ay bones shall say t
(Ps. xxxv. IO)
I have sil1ned :
I have gone astray, like a sheep that is
lost ;
as a bullock unaccustomed to the
yoke; Uer. xxxi. 18)
I have returned like a dog to his
vomit;
as a sow that was washed, to her
wallo
Ning in the mire.

II.

H

97

AN ACT OF CONFESSION

I give glory to the Lord God of Israel,
saYIng,
I have sinned; and thus and thus
have I done.
Break not the bruised reed ;
quench not the smoking flax;
Let not the waterflood drown me,
neither let the deep sVlallow me up,
and let not the pit shut her mouth
upon me.
Lord, Thou knoVlest all my desire,
and my groaning is not hid from Thee.
Thou knowest, Lord, that I speak the
truth in Christ, and lie not,
my conscience also bearing me witness
in the Holy Ghost,
that I have great heaviness and con-
tinual SOrrO\iV in my heart,
becaus{
I have thus sinned against Thee
'\ .
that I am a burden to myself, 1n that
I cannot sorrow more;
that I beseech from Thee
a contrite heart,
groanings that cannot be uttered,
tears of blood.
Woe is me ! for my dryness,
9 8

AN ACT OF CONFESSION

for the hardness of my heart,
for the dryness of my eyes.
Lord, I repent; I repent, 0 Lord!
help Thou mine impenitence;
and more and more bruise, and wound,
and pierce, and strike my heart.
Behold, 0 Lord,
that I am indignant with myself
on account of the foolish and vain and
mischievous and dangerous desires
of my flesh:
that I abhor myself
for the madness and baseness and
vileness of those desires,
worthy of confusion and reproach;
that all the day long my confusion is
before me,
and the shame of my face hath covered me.
Woe is me !
that I did not reverence nor dread
the incomprehensibleness of the
Glory,
the tremendous Power,
the awfulness of the Presence,
the exquisite Justice,
the admirable Goodness.

99

AN ACT OF CONFESSION

How have I been drawn away by mine
own lusts!
how have I hated reproof!
and have not obeyed the voice of
my teachers !
Behold, 0 Lord,
that fearfulness and trembling are come
upon me,
and the fear of death hath fallen upon
me!
What fear , what terror , what trembling,
what agony, what extremity have I yet
to see !
What confusion will seize me !
What shades will surround me !
How terrible is Thy judgment-seat, 0
God!
when the thrones are set and the
Angels in presence,
and men brought in and the books
opened,
and the works investigated
and the thoughts scrutinized,
and the hidden things of darkness
made known:
What will be the ;udgment against me

100

AN ACT OF CONFESSION

when there is the incorruptible Judge,
and the tremendous Tribunal,
and the excuseless defence,
and the irrefragable accusation,
and the fearful punishment, and the
eternal Gehenna,
and the pitiless angels, and the open
hell-mouth,
and the roaring river of fire,
and that fire inextinguishable,
and the prison of darkness, and that
darkness rayless,
and the bed of live coals, and the
restless worm,
and the indissoluble chains, and the
unmeasurable chaos,
and the gulf that cannot be passed, and
the lament that cannot be consoled,
and none to assist, to advocate, to free!

Behold, 0 Lord,
I adjudge myself worthy of, and
amenable to, and guilty of,
eternal punishment;
yea, and of all the straits of this
world:

101

AN ACT OF CONFESSION

From Thee, 0 Lord, I have merited
death, from Thee, the Just One;
but yet to Thee, 0 Lord, I appeal, to
Thee, the Merciful One ;
from the tribunal of Justice, to the
Mercy-seat of Grace;
permit, 0 Lord, this appeal:
if Thou dost not, we perish !
And, 0 Lord, carest Thou not that
we perish <
Thou Who wilt have all mentobe saved,
Who art not willing that any should
perish <

Behold me, 0 Lord,
condemned by my own judgment!
Behold me; and enter not Thou, 0
Lord, into judgment with Thy servant!
I am less than the least of all Thy
merCies ;
I am not vvorthy to be the lowest of
Thine hired servants;
I am not worthy to gather the crumbs
that fall from Thy table :
I am not worthy to touch the hem of
Thy garment.

102

AN ACT OF CONFESSION

Andnow,O Lord,humbling myselfunder
Thy mighty hand,
I bend my knees to Thee, and fall down
to the ground, on my face.
I stretch forth my hands unto Thee;
my soul gaspeth unto Thee as a
thirsty land.
I dare not so much as to lift up
mine eyes unto Heaven,
but I smite upon my breast.
Out of the deep hath my soul cried unto
Thee, and all that is within me ;
for Thy great mercy, and for the
multitude of Thy loving-kindnesses,
for Thy Name-sake, for the glory of
Thy Name,
be merciful to my sin :
for it is great; for it is exceedingly great.
For the multitude, the great multitude,
the riches, the abundance,
the superabundance of Thy loving-
kindnesses,
be merciful unto me, 0 Lord, a
Sinner :
Lord, 0 Lord, be merciful unto me
of sinners the greatest.

10 3

AN ACT OF CONFESSION

Lord let Thy Mercy rejoice against
Thy Justice, in my sin.
o my Lord, where sin hath abounded,
there let Grace more exceedingly
abound.
o Lord, hear: 0 Lord, forgive; 0 Lord,
hearken, and do ;
defer not for Thine Own Sake, 0 my
God!
I believe that, for a Great Mystery of
godliness,
for us men, and for our Salvation,
Jesus the Man,
the Son of the Father,
the Anointed of the Spirit,
our Lord, both as Creator and
Redeemer,
vias God manifest in the flesh ;
that He worketh efficaciously and
manifestly,
by illumination of science, and infusion
of grace,
in reprehension, and teaching, and long-
suffering,
and assistance, and witnessing, and
consolation:
the gifts and graces of the Spirit.

10 4

AN ACT OF CONFESSION

[Give me grace] unceasingly to return
thanks
to Thy Word and only Son:
as the Purifier of our nature, in His
Conception and Nativity;
the Liberator of our persons, in His
Passion, Cross, and Death;
the Victor over hell, in His Descent;
over death, in His Resurrection ;
our Precursor, in His Ascension;
our Advocate, in His Session;
the Restorer of our faith, in His
Second Advent:
Who to our destroyer opposes Himself
as our Saviour,
to Abaddon, as Jesus ;
to Satan, the adversary, as our
Mediator;
to the devil, the calumniator, as our
Advocate;
to the Accuser, as our Intercessor ;
to him that leadeth us captive, as our
Redeemer.
[Grant] that Christ Himself may be
formed in us,
that we may be made conformable to
His image ;

10 5

AN ACT OF CONFESSION

that when I am lukewarm in prayer, and
stand in need of any Grace,
or of celestial consolation,
I may remember Thy session of Inter-
ceSSion,
and of return to judgment;
when I am inflamed by passion and evil
concupiscence,
I may bear in mind Thy tremendous
and fearful tribunal,
and that the last trllmpet may cease-
lessly sound in mine ears.
That for the sake of Thine Anointed,
I may receive, 0 Father Who anointest,
Thine Anointing,
the grace that bringeth salvation, Thy
ineffable gift of the Holy Spirit,
in healthful compunction, and clearness
of knowledge,
fervent prayer and diffusion of charity,
the witness of the Seal and the Earnest;
that I may l1ever extinguish the Spirit,
nor strive against Him, nor grieve Him,
nor ever insult Him, 0 Lord.
That \ve may be called in Thy Church,
and being lively members thereof in
wish and will, as it is Catholic,

106

AN ACT OF CONFESSION

we may be partakers in the Communion,
as it is holy,
of holy persons and holy things,
of holy prayers and the holy Liturgy,
to a trust in the remission of sins,
and hope of resurrection and transla-
tion unto life eternal.
Lord, increase my faith as a grain of
mustard-seed!
let it not be dead, nor temporary, nor
hypocritical;
but let it operate through charity,
co-operate with works, be the
supplier of virtue,
conquer the world, and be most holy.
o God of Truth, the Prince of Peace,
let there be peace and truth in our
days ;
let the multitude of them that believe
be of one heart and of one soul.
o Thou, That dost not break the
bruised reed,
nor quench the smoking flax,
establish all them that stand in truth
and grace,
restore them that are falling through
error or sin.

10 7

AN ACT OF CONFESSION

I beseech Thee, 0 Lord, of Thy Mercy,
let Thine anger be turned away from
this city, and from this house,
for we have sinned against Thee.
Be Thou pleased favourably to regard
this place and all this land,
tempering justice with mercy.
Grant that I may love them that love me,
though I know them not ;
and bring then1, as me, into Thy
heavenly kingdom,
and grant that I may shew them the
mercy of God,
[by remembering them] in my prayers;
That I, with those for whom I have
prayed,
and those for whom I am in any way
soever bound to pray,
and with all the people of God,
may have an entrance into Thy
kingdom ;
there to appear in righteousness, and to
be satisfied with glory.
Blessed is the people, 0 Lord, that can
rejoice in Thee;

108

AN ACT OF CONFESSION

they shall walk in the light of Thy
countenance;
their delight shall be daily, 0 Lord,
in Thy Name;
in Thy glory shall they make their
boast.
My mouth shall speak the praise of the
Lord,
and let all flesh bless His Holy Name
for ever.
o magnify the Lord with me ;
and let us exalt His Name together!
Hearken unto me, ye that fear God;
and I will tell you what He hath done
for my soul.
Be Thou exalted, 0 God, above the
heavens;
and Thy glory above all the earth.
I will give thanks unto Thee, 0 Lord,
\vith my whole heart,
in the assembly of the righteous, and
in the congregation.
Open my mouth, that I may bless Thy
Name;
set me free from all things else for the
telling of Thy Praise;

log

AN ACT OF CONFESSION

I will sing unto Thee in the sight of
the Angels.
Accept the praises, which I desire to offer,
an unworthy sinner, verily unworthy:
but yet I would fain they may be
devoted and grateful to Thee!
Thou art worthy, Lord God, to receive
them ;
Thou art my God, and I will praise
and exalt Thee:
I will sing unto the Lord as long as I live;
I will praise my God while I have any
being.
Glory to God in the highest:
on earth peace; goodwill towards men!
Glory and blessing, virtue and power,
honour and thanksgiving,
riches and holiness,
praise and wisdom,
power and salvation,
be to our God That liveth for ever;
That sitteth upon the throne, and
to the Lamb That was slain.
Amen: Hallelujah!
Hosanna in the highest : blessed be He
That cometh in the Name of the Lord!
110

AN ACT OF THANKSGIVING

AN ACT OF THANKSGIVING

I T would rather behove me, 0 Lord,
a sinner, and impenitent, and so,
wholly unworthy,
to lie prostrate before
rhee,
and with tears and groanings to intreat
the pardon of my sins,
than to praise
rhee with polluted
mouth;
yet trusting in
rhine innate goodness,
I will adore Thee ;
oh, receive Thou the praises that it is
in my heart to sing.
I praise Thee, I bless Thee, I worship
Thee, I glorify Thee ;
Thou art worthy, 0 Lord, to receive
the praises and the thanks,
Whom I, a sinner, am unworthy to
invoke,
and to name, and even to conceive in
my heart.
Blessed art Thou, 0 Lord,
Who hast created and brought me
forth into this life,

III

AN ACT OF THANKSGIVING

and hast ordered that I should be a
living soul and not senseless matter:
a man, not a brute;
civilized, not barbarous;
free, not a slave ;
legitimate, not spurious;
of good parentage;
not sprung from vile extraction, and
as vile myself;
endued with sense, not an idiot;
sound in senses, not blind nor deaf;
sound in limbs, not halt nor maimed;
educated, not exposed;
brought up to literature, not to a
mechanical trade ;
a Christian, not a pagan ;
preserved from dangers and infamy,
not overwhelmed thereby;
in the days of peace, not tossed in
tempestuous struggles;
of competent fortune, so that I need
neither to flatter nor to borrow;
set free from many sins;
endued with the gifts of grace, in
redemption and calling;
with the gifts of nature and fortune.
112

AN ACT OF THANKSGIVING

Who according to Thy great mercy, hast
begotten us again unto a lively hope,
by the resurrection of Jesus Christ :
unto an Inheritance incorruptible
and undefiled,
and that fadeth not away ;
reserved in Heaven for us :
Who hast blessed me with all spiritual
blessings
in heavenly things in Christ;
Who comfortest me in all my tribulation,
that as the pas
ions of Christ abound
In me,
so also my consolation should
abound through Christ.
To Thee, 0 God of my fathers, I give
thanks ;
Thee I praise, Who hast in some
measure endued me with wisdom
and courage;
and hast shewed me that which I
requested of Thee,
and hast opened my mouth:
[and hast caused me to be] the work of
Thine hands, and the price of Thy
blood ;

II.

I

113

AN ACT OF THANKSGIVING

and the image of Thy countenance, and
the servant of Thy purchase;
and the seal of Thy Name, and the
child of Thine adoption ;
and the temple of Thy Spirit, and a
member of Thy Church.

114

A BREVIARY OF PRAYER

[A BREVIARY OF PRAYER]

T HE address;
Jet prayer ascend; turn not away
Thine ear :
Confession of
sins ; because-
lamentations; through-
supplication ; according to-
Profession of
faith and hope.
Confession of benefits:
praise, worship, giving of thanks,
for creation, bringing-up,
government, preservation,
ordering, redemption:
by the Conception,
Nativity,
Life,
Passion,
Death,
Resurrection,
Ascension.
115

Deprecation of
Sin,
Punishment.
Comprecation of
Grace,
Reward.

A BREVIARY OF PRAYER

Intercession for all creatures,
the human race,
the Church,
governments,
our own,
ourselves.

Benediction;
Commendation.
Nightly and daily exercise
of penitence, for evils done ;
of gratitude, for good received.
Peculiar
of age, ) { an old man,
vocation, if in the clergy,
state; 1 .a Bishop.

1 The clauses introduced by vel sic are either
omitted or incorporated with the above.

116

AN ACT OF THANKS

AN ACT OF THANKS

O LORD, I am .less than all Thy
merCies,
and all Thy truth, which Thou hast
shewed unto Thy servant;
and what can I say more unto Thee <
for Thou, Lord God, knowest Thy
servant.
What is Thy servant, Lord God, and
what is my house,
that Thou should est look on such a
dead dog as I am <
that Thou hast loved me hitherto <
what shall I render unto the Lord for
all the benefits that He hath done
unto me <
what thanks can we render unto God
for all the joy wherewith we joy
before Him

Thou Who hast deigned, 0 Lord, in
this holy day and at this hour,
to raise my mind to Thy praise,
and to offer Thee the glory due
unto Thee,

117

AN ACT OF THANKS

Receive, 0 Lord, this spiritual sacrifice
from my soul,
and receiving it to Thee unto Thy
spiritual Altar,
be pleased in its stead to send me
the grace of Thy Most Holy
Spirit.
Visit me in Thy goodness;
forgive me every sin, as well voluntary
as involuntary.
Deliver me from eternal punishment :
yea, and from all the miseries of this
world.
Change my thoughts into piety;
sanctify my spirit, soul and body;
and give me grace to worship and
to please Thee in piety and holi-
ness of life,
even until the very end of my days.
To Him, That is able to do exceeding
abundantly
above all that we ask or think,
according to the power that worketh
In us,
To Him be glory in the Church in
Christ,

118

AN ACT OF THANI{S

throughout all ages, world without
end.
My soul shall be satisfied as it were
with marrow and fatness ;
and my mouth shall praise Thee \vith
joyful lips.

119

THE LORD'S PRAYER PARAPHRASED

THE LORDtS PRAYER
PARAPHRASED

T ET Thy Name be invoked by us ;
L be Thou our shield, and our ex-
ceeding great reward ;
whatever word proceedeth from Thee,
let it not be in us to say against it either
good or bad.
Give us bread to eat,
and raiment to put on,
and now forgive the sin and injustice of
Thy servants;
and let us not take our own thought in
our hearts on the day for the morrow,
o Lord;
and let not evils take hold on us.

.

[2] Let. Thy Name be blessed, now and
evermore :
give us not, for the wickedness of the
people, into the hands of hypocritical
rulers;
let it be unto us, 0 Lord, as Thou shalt
will :

120

THE LORDtS PRAYER PARAPHRASED

let not thistles grow instead of wheat,
and cockle instead of barley.
I have sinned: what shall I do unto
Thee, 0 Thou keeper of men <
I will make a covenant with my senses,
that I may not even think upon evil.
Six times deliver me from straits;
and the seventh let not evil touch me.
[3] Holiness unto the Lord :
let us be unto Thee a royal priesthood;
let us go out and come in according
unto Thy mouth;
let us not live by bread alone,
but by every word which proceedeth
out of Thy mouth;
take away our transgressions, iniquities,
and sins ;
not into temptation: not into bitterness;
from the destroying Angel, and every
hurtful stroke,
Good Lord deliver us !
[4] Blessed be the Name of the Lord,
henceforth, world without end,
from the rising up of the sun unto the
going down of the same ;

121

,
THE LORD 7 S PRAYER PARAPHRASED

be Thou our Hope, and our Portion in
the land of the living ;
teach us to do the thing that plea seth
Thee, for Thou art our God;
let Thy loving Spirit lead us forth into
the land of righteousness;
the eyes of all wait upon Thee, 0 God,
that Thou mayest give them their
meat in due season: open Thou Thine
hand, and :fill all things living with
plenteousness;
have mercy upon us, 0 God, after Thy
great goodness;
according to the multitude of Thy
mercies do away our offences;
let not the enemy prevail against us ;
neither the son of wickedness approach
to hurt us ;
let no evil befall us, neither any plague
come nigh our dwelling.

[5] Let Thy Name be our strong tower,
into which we may run and be safe;
through Thee kings reign: their hearts
are in Thy hand,
and Thou turnest them as the rivers
of water ;

122

THE LORDtS PRAYER PARAPHRASED

o Lord, turn them unto good :
let there not be a multitude of thoughts
in our heart ;
Qut Thy counsel, 0 Lord, let that
stand.
Two things have I asked of Thee; deny
them not to me before I die: give me
neither poverty nor riches; feed me
with food convenient for me.
Who can confidently say, I am clean
from my sin <
be merciful unto Thy servants, who
have sinned against Thee,
and heal Thou their souls ;
remove my path far from an occasion of
s1nn1ng ;
and let me not approach to the doors
of the house thereof;
send not unto us a cruel messenger;
but remove all evil far from our houses.

[6] Let not Thy Name be evil spoken of
through us among the heathen ;
Let all nations and kings that will not
serve Thy kingdom
come to an end: yea let them be
utterly laid waste;

12 3

THE LORD'S PRAYER PARAPHRASED

let all Thy counsel stand; and all that
Thou hast decreed come to pass ;
give seed to the sower;
and the staff of life for our food ; .
be not wroth with us very sore, and
remember not our sins for ever;
behold, look, we are all Thy people;
let us not put the stumbling-block of our
iniquity before our face; (Ezek. xiv. 4)
set not Thy face against us for evil.

[7] Our Father, Holy art Thou;
Holy is Thy Name above every name;
to be reverenced and hallowed of all,
but of some more than others,
and of me more than any.
Yet have I not done so, nor attempted
thereto what in me lay.
Woe is me ! that I have not; I confess
it openly.
I grieve from my heart, mind, soul,
spirit;
suppliant I ask for pardon, suppliant
for grace,
that henceforward I may so speak, do,
live,

12 4

THE LORDtS PRAYER PARAPHRASED

that Thy Name by me may be
hallowed,
yea, and would that by others
through me !
Thy kingdom, the end of my wishes,
t11at I may come to it in the state of
glory,
come to me in the state of
Grace ;
in Thy earthly kingdom, by Thy
Grace let me so perform something,
as that I may attain to a place in
Thy heavenly kingdom,
though the lowest at the feet of
Thy Saints.
Let the will of the flesh and or the man
depart from me ;
let Thy holy, just, and gracious will
be done
in the earth, and by the earth,
which I am,
as it is in Heaven.
Give us what pertaineth to health, peace,
and sufficiency,
give us Angels t bread unto Life
Eternal.

12 5

THE LORD'S PRAYER PARAPHRASED

Forgive me my debts, my huge sum of
debts,
my foul backslidings, my frequent
relapses, my daily wallowings.
To Thee, 0 Lord, justice, and to
me confusion of face.
My destruction cometh from myself.
If Thou, Lord, wert extreme to mark
what is done amiss,-
o Lord, who may abide it <
But with Thee there is mercy,
with God redemption;
with God is plenteous redemption
from sin ;
and He shall deliver from all
iniquities;
deliver me, Lord, from mine ;
deliver my soul from the nethermost hell.
Deep crieth unto deep,
that it may deliver from the deep.
Other things also there be which I feel
less,
but which be not of less weight,
perchance of greater,
concerning which Iaskforillumination,
that I may be able to confess them.

126

THE LORDtS PRAYER PARAPHRASED

And lead me not, nor suffer me to be led,
nor suffer me to fall into temptation,
mindful of my weakness, and
. pitying it,
and of my so often proved in-
firmi ty .
But deliver me from evil:
evil in myself, the flesh, and its
temptation,
evil in tl1e devil, and his suggestions,
evil in the punishments which most
righteously and justly I have
deserved,
evil il1 the world to come;-
spare me there :-afflict, 0 Lord, if
needs, and wound me here ;
evil in the present world;
spare me also in this ;
evil in t11is world, and its accidents;
evil in the disease wherewith I
struggle ;
evil in the business in which I am
engaged ;
evils past, present, and to come;
froin all these things set me free,

:.
j 0 Lord,

12 7

THE LORD'S PRAYER PARAPHRASED

and preserve me, Thy servant, for
evermore,
even though the last among the last.
I beseech Thee, 0 Lord, according
to all Thy mercy,
let Thy most righteous indignation be
turned from me ;
for most grievously, and often, most
often and grievously, have I sinned
against Thee.
and especially forgive my latest and
freshest sins against Thee.
Let Thine anger be turned away from
me,
from my parents, brothers, and sisters,
from my Bishop, and household,
from my relations, friends, neighbour-
hood, country,
from all Christian people : Amen.

IN PREACHING
The world is the sea;
men, fishes ;
church, boat;
preacher, fisher ;
word, net.

128

BEFORE READING THE HOLY SCRIPTURES

BEFORE READING TI-IE
HOLY SCRIPTURES

O PEN Thou mine eyes, that I may
see wondrous things in Thy law.
Take away, 0 Lord, the veil from my
heart, while I read the Scriptures.
Blessed art Thou, 0 Lord: teach me
Thy statutes.
Word of the Father, give me Thy Word,
T ouch my heart; lighten the senses of
my heart.
Open my lips, and !ill them with Thy
praise.
Be Thou, Lord, in my heart and in my
mouth.
In my mouth, that I may rightly and
worthily set forth Thy oracles,
the power of Thy Most Holy Spirit
sanctifying me. ..
o Thou, That Coal of double nature,
Which touching the lips of the
Prophet, didst purify him from sin,
touch my lips who am a sinner, set
me free from every stain, and make
me fit to set forth Thy Oracles.

II.

K

129

BEFORE READING THE HOLY SCRIPTURES

o Lord, open Thou my lips, and my
mouth shall show forth Thy praise.
o Lord, give me the tongue of the
learned, that I may know what to
say : and if there be any word for the
edification of them that need it, give
it, that Thou mayest minister grace
unto the hearers.
Grant that I may speak boldly.
I open my mouth wide, 0 Lord: do
Thou fill it.

13 0

BEFORE GOING TO CHURCH

BEFORE GOING TO CHURCH

B UT I will come unto Thy House in
the multitude of Thy mercies;
and in Thy fear will I worship toward
Thy holy temple.
Hear, 0 Lord, the voice of my prayer,
when I cry unto Thee,
when I stretch forth my hands
toward the mercy-seat of Thy holy
temple.
We wait for Thy loving-kindness, 0
God,
in the midst of Thy temple.
Remember, 0 Lord, our brothers that
are standing around us,
and praying with us at this holy hour,
for their zeal and devotion ;
Remember them also who on reasonable
causes are absent,
and pity them and us according to the
multitude of Thy loving-kindnesses,
a Lord.

13 1

BEFORE GOING TO CHURCH

Lord, I have loved the habitation of Thy
house,
and the place where Thine honour
dwelleth :
that . I may hear the voice of
thanksgiving,
and tell of all Thy wondrous
works.
One thing I have desired of the Lord,
which I will require,
even that I may dwell in the house of
the Lord all the days of my life, to
behold the fair beauty of the Lord,
and to visit His temple.
My heart hath talked of Thee, Seek ye
My face;
Thy face, Lord, will I seek.
Open me the gates of righteousness ;
that I may go into them, and give
thanks unto the Lord.

13 2

SELF-EXAMINATION

SELF-EXAMINA TION

H AVE I penitence, grief, shame, pain,
horror, weariness, for my sin <
[Do I pray,] if not seven times, as David,
yet at least thrice, as Daniel <
If not, as Solomon, at length,
yet shortly, as the Publican <
If not, like Christ, the whole night,
at least for one hour <
If not on the ground, and in ashes,
at least not in my bed <
If not in sackcloth,
at least not in purple and fine linen

If not altogether freed from all,
at least from immoderate desires <
[Do I give,] if not, as Zaccheus, four-
fold,
at least, as the Law commands, with
the fifth part added
(Lev. v. 16.)
If not as the rich,
yet as the widow

If not the half,
yet the thirtieth part <
If not above my power,
yet up to my power

133

AN ACT OF ADORATION

AN ACT OF ADORATION

O GOD the Father, of Heaven,
Who didst marvellously create the
world out of nothing,
Who governest and sustainest Heaven
and earth with Thy power,
Who, for our sakes didst give Thine
Only-Begotten to be put to death:
o God the Son, Redeemer of the world,
Who didst deign to be born of the Virgin,.
Who didst wash us from our sins in
Thy precious blood,
Who rising from the dead didst
ascend Victor into Heaven:
o God the Holy Ghost, the Comforter,.
Who in the form of a dove didst
descend upon Jesus,
Who didst appear upon the Apostles,
like cloven tongues of fire,
Who visit est and confirm est with TllY
grace the hearts of Thy saints;
Holy, Supreme, Eternal, Blessed, and
Glorious Trinity,
ever laudable, yet ever ineffable;
134

AN ACT OF ADORATION

Father of goodness, Son of love,
Spirit of bounty,
Whose Majesty is inscrutable,
and Power incomparable,
and Goodness inestimable,
Whose Work is life,
Whose Love is grace,
Whose Contemplation is glory;
Deity, Divinity, Unity, Trinity,
Thee I adore, Thee I invoke, Thee
with the whole affection of my
heart,
I bless now and ever,
Thou, Who art Lord of both quick and
dead,
Whose are we, whom this present
world yet retaineth in the flesh,
Whose are they also, whom the life to
come hath already received, freed
from the body,
give to the quick loving-kindness and
grace ;
give to the dead rest and eternal light ;
Give to Thy Church truth and peace;
and to us sinners penitence and
pardon.

135

BEFORE A JOURNEY

BEFORE A JOURNEY

G o before Thy servant this day;
if Thou Thyself go not forth with me,
carry me not up hence.
Thou, Who didst guide the Israelites by
an Angel,
the wise men by a star ;
Who (didst preserve] Peter in the waves,
and Paul in shipwreck;
be present with me, 0 Lord, and
dispose my way ;
go with me, and lead me out, and lead
me back.
Let God arise, and let His enemies be
scattered ;
away from me, ye wicked ; I will keep
the commandments of my God.

13 6

THE SEVEN WORKS OF MERCY

THE SEVEN WORKS OF
MERCY

CORPOREAL
V ISIT: give drink: give meat:
redeem the slave :
Clothe : tend the sick : and lay the dead
in grave.

SPIRITUAL
C OUNSEL: rebuke: instruct in
wisdom's way:
Console: forgive: endure unmov'd:
and pray.

137

AN EUCHARISTIC PRAYER

AN EUCHARISTIC PRAYER

T HE things which I believe to have
been done for me,
which I call to remembrance, for which
I return thanks,
which I remember, of which I put
Thee in remembrance, which I
commemorate,
which I offer, which I pray Thee to
offer ;
of these things make me a partaker, and
apply them to me.
By the things which Thou didst, and
bearest,
Thy Oblation and Sacrifice,
Thy emptying Thyself, Thy humb-
ling Thyself,
Thy Incarnation, Thy Conception,
Thy Birth, Thy Circumcision, the
first-fruits of Thy Blood,
Thy Baptism, Thy Fasting,
Thy Temptation, Thy Houselessness,
Thy Hunger, Thy Weariness,

13 8

.
AN EUCHARISTIC PRAYER

Thy Thirst, Thy Sleeplessness, Thy
Injuries:
Thy patience, endurance,
Thy apprehension as a thief, bonds,
By Gethsemane, Gabbatha, Golgotha,
Thy obedience unto Death, Thy
endurance to the Cross:
Let my prayer ascend ; Turn not
away Thine Ear.
As Thou didst deliver our Fathers,
deliver us, 0 Lord!
Noah from the deluge,
Abraham from U r of the Chaldees,
Isaac from sacrifice,
[Lot from Sodom,]
Jacob from Laban and Esau,
Joseph from the calumnies of his
mistress,
the prison,
Job from the temptations, .
Moses from Pharaoh, and from being
stoned,
Thy people from the Red Sea, and
from Babylon,
David from Saul, Goliath, Keilah,
Ahitophel, Absalom, Doeg, Sheba,
139

AN EUCHARISTIC PRAYER

Elias from J ezebel,
Hezekiah from Rabshakeh and the
sickness,
Esther from Haman,
J oash from Athaliah,
Jeremiah from the pit,
the Three Children from the furnace,
Jonah from the belly of the whale,
the disciples from the storm,
Peter from the prison of Herod,
Paul from the shipwreck, stoning,
evil beasts ;
Even so deliver us, 0 Lord, that put
our trust in Thee.

14 0

A PREPARATION TO THANKSGIVING

A PREPARATION TO
THANKSG IVING

B E Thou exalted, Lord, in Thine
Own strength ;
So will we sing and praise Thy power.
All Thy works praise Thee, 0 Lord:
and T11Y Saints give thanks unto
Thee.
o Lord, open Thou my lips;
and my mouth shall shew forth Thy
. praise.

14 1

AN ACT OF HOPE

AN ACT OF HOPE

I N Thee, 0 Lord, have I trusted;
let me never be confounded.
My hope from my motherts breasts;
from my youth.
Thy word, in which Thou hast given
me hope.
l\
y flesh also shall rest in hope.
The valley of Achor: the Gate of hope.
There is hope in thine end.
Hope maketh not ashamed. Weare
saved by hope.
The God of Hope;
Though He slay me, yet will I hope in
Him.
Thou That art the Saviour of them that
hope in Thee :
We have hoped in Thy Holy Name,
in the covering of Thy wings,
in Thy shadow, under Thy feathers.
Thou, Lord, art my Hope,
The Hope of all the ends of the
earth.

14 2

AN ACT OF HOPE

Put thy hope in God.
I would, that more: I fear, lest-
I grieve that I cannot: I should joy, if-

I believe with David,
to see the goodness of the Lord in the
land of the living.
with S. Paul,
that Christ Jesus came into the world
to save sinners :
with S. John,
that if any man sin, we have an
Advocate with the Father, Jesus
Christ the Righteous : and He is the
Propitiation for our sins; and not
for ours only, but also for the sins
of the whole world:
with S. Peter,
that Thou art the Christ, the Son of
the living God :
with Nathanael,
that Thou art the Son of God ; Thou
art the King of Israel :
with the Samaritans,
that This is indeed the Christ, the
Saviour of the world:

143

AN ACT OF HOPE

with Martha,
that Thou art the Christ, the Son of
God, which should come into the
world:
with the Eunuch,
that Jesus Christ is the Son of God;
with the Synod of the Apostles
and Presbyters,
that we shall be saved through the
grace of our Lord Jesus Christ:
with S. Andrew,
that we have found the Messiah,
Which is the Christ.
(Gal. ii. 16. I Tim. ii. 5, 6. S. James
ii. 22.)

144

DOXOLOGIES

DOXOLOG IES

G LORY to God in the highest; on
earth peace ; good will towards men.
(S. Luke ii. 14.)
Hosanna to the Son of David.
(S. Matt. xxi. 9.)
Hosanna ; blessed is the King of Israel
that cometh in the name of the
Lord. (S. John xii. 13.)
Holy, Holy, Holy, Lord God Almighty,
Which was, and is, and is to come.
(Rev. iv. 8.)

OF THE ANGELS
Worthy is the Lamb That was slain
to receive power, and riches, and
wisdom, and strength, and honour,
and glory, and blessing.
OF ALL CREATURES
Blessing, honour, glory, and power, be
unto Him That sitteth upon the
throne, and unto the Lamb for ever
and ever.

II.

L

145

DOXOLOGIES

OF THE MARTYRS
Salvation to our God Which sitteth
upon the throne, and unto the Lamb.
Amen: Blessing, and glory, and wis-
dom, and thanksgiving, and honour,
and power, and might, be unto our
God for ever and ever.

OF THE ELDERS
Alleluia: Salvation, and glory, and
honour, and power, unto the Lord
our God. (Rev. xix. 5, 7.)

14 6

A PRAYER OF THOMAS BRADW ARDINE

A PRAYER OF THOMAS
BRADWARDINE, ARCH-
BISHOP OF CANTERBURY

T HYSELF, my God, I love, for
Thyself, above all things. For
Thyself I long. Thyself I desire as a
final end. Thyself, for Thyself, not for
aught else, I always and in all things
hitherto seek. With my heart and
whole strength, \vith groaning and
weeping, with continual labour and
grief. What therefore wilt Thou give
me as my final end < If Thou dost not
bestow on me Thyself, Thou bestowest
on me nothing. If Thou dost not give
me Thyself, Thou givest me nothing.
If I find not Thyself, I find nothing.
Thou dost not then reward me, but
torture me. For even before that I
sought Thee, I hoped to hold and
possess Thee at last. And with this
honeyed hope, I was sweetly consoled
in all my labours. But now, if Thou
147

A PRAYER OF THOMAS BRADWARDINE

deniest me Thyself, and that for ever,
and not for a season, whatever else
Thou shalt give me, shall I not always
languish with love, mourn with lan-
guishing, grieve with mourning, weep
with grieving, because I shall ever
remain void and empty
Shall I not
mourn inconsolably
complain unceas-
ingly
grieve interminably
This is
not Thy wont, God of goodness, of
clemency, and love; it is in no wise
fitting, in no point seemly. Grant,
therefore, 0 my gracious God, that in
the present life I may ever love Thy-
self, for Thyself, above all things; and
in the future world may find Thee, and
hold Thee for ever.

14 8

OF PENITENCE

OF PENITENCE

C ONTRITION; bitterness of soul;
compunction of heart;
a torn, a broken, a contrite soul;
sorrow before God : groaning : indig-
nation.
CONFESSION: acknowledgment: prayer
deprecating the past and the future.
All have sinned;
If Thou, Lord ; . . . who shall abide

No flesh shall be justified before Thee.
He cannot answer one of a thousand.
What then 1 whether in vain

God hath granted repentance unto
life. (Acts xi. 18.)
A place is left for repentance, if sin
only lieth at the door. (Gen. iv. 7.)
Yet now there is hope concerning
this thing. (Ezra x. 2.)
There may be a lengthening. (Dan.
v. 27.)
And God solicits
by proclaiming, (Is. xlv. 7) com-
plaining, Uer. viii. 4)

149

OF PENITENCE

by oath, (Ezek. xxxiii. 4) by waiting,
(Is. xxx. 18)
promising, if paradise to innocence,
the kingdom of heaven to penitence;
threatening, unless-
(S. Luke xiii. 5. S. John viii. 24)
Prayer sacrificeth the mind, conquereth
the devil, pleaseth God.
Fasting sacrificeth the body, conquereth
the flesh, benefiteth ourselves.
Almsgiving sacrificeth the goods, con-
q,uereth the world, benefiteth our
neighbour.

15 0

AN ACT OF CONFESSION

AN ACT OF CONFESSION

B EHOLD me, 0 Lord, behold me ;
the greatest, the worst, the most
wretched of sinners. And what sllall
I now say, or in what shall I open my
mouth
What shall I answer, when I'
am guilty, guilty, guilty! I will go
over my sins unto Thee in the bitterness
of my soul; 0 that it may be in its
bitterest bitterness! Behold, for my
peace I had great bitterness. 0 Lord,
by these things men live, and in all
these things is the life of Thy Spirit:
so wilt Thou recover me, and make me
to live. Like a crane or a swallow, so
will I lament; I will mourn as a dove.
I beseech Thee, 0 Lord, by all Thy
mercy, let Thy n10st righteous indig-
nation and fury be turned away from
me, because I have sinned, and that
grievously. I have sinned against Thee,
most often and grievously, I have
sinned against Thee!

15 1

AN ACT OF CONFESSION

0 Father of mercies, I beseech Thy
Fatherly loving-kindness, despise not
an unclean worm, a dead dog, a putrid
corpse; despise not me ! Yea rather
regard me, 0 Lord, regard me with
those eyes wherewith Thou didst regard
Magdalene in the banquet, Peter in the
hall, the thief on the cross; that with
Peter I may weep, with the thief may
confess, with Magdalene may love;
may love much, yea very much, for
that many sins are forgiven me. Spare
me, 0 Lord; spare me, a penitent: at
the least desiring to be a penitent, and
preparing thereto ; recollecting my sins
with bitterness, indignant with myself
concerning them, remembering and
laying hold of Thy most bitter Passion.
Spare, 0 Lord, have mercy! Spare
me, 0 Lord, have mercy on me! pity
me, because it is not difficult to Thy
power, nor unbefitting Thy justice; nor
unusual to Thy clemency.

That I should thus, for leeks and
garlick, have left the Bread of Angels!
That I should thus, for the husks of
15 2

AN ACT OF CONFESSION

swine, have despised my Father's table!
Woe wretched, woe frenzied me! Who
fascinated me to such madness
0
that Thou wouldst deign to receive me
again! At least I desire to return:
better was it with me then, my state
being as it is now. Full therefore of
confusion, unworthy to name, or invoke,
or think upon Thy Name, were it not
for Thine innate goodness: yet, relying
on that very goodness, supplicant,
humble, prostrate, I return to Thee;
nor ask I for any thing, but that which
Thou hast bestowed most often, and
bestowest most willingly; that, which
unless Thou wert again and again to
bestow, flesh could not abide, none
could stand. Have mercy on me a
sinner, the greatest of sinners, and for
that very reason needing the greatest
mercy. And Thy mercy is the greatest:
it reacheth to the Heaven above, it
freeth from the lowest hell; it is mar-
vellous. Magnify Thy mercy to me;
if Thou seekest to glorify it infinitely,
extend it to me; at no time, in no
153

AN ACT OF CONFESSION

place, hath it been, will it be, more
gloriolls in the pardon of a sinner. If
Thou wilIest, Lord, that I should leave
Thee, give me another Thyself: else
I will not give Thee up. Let the Spirit
of Truth lead me into Truth.
8J To Thee, 0 Lord, I confess, because,
if I would, I cannot conceal: to Thee
my very many, my very great, my very
heinous sins. I profess also to grieve,
as Thou knowest. But I need more
grief: I plainly need it. I am far from
that which I ought to have. I can sin
much; I cannot repent much. My
dryness! my dryness! woe unto me!
I cannot much: I would much. I
know that much is not enough. Would
that I had such grief, or' even more!.
But of myself I cannot obtain it. I am
parched, I am parched like a potsherd.
Woe is me! Thou, 0 Lord, increase
the fountain of tears that I have;
supply that I have not: give me
a molten heart, unutterable groans!
Meanwhile, since my mind is willing,
accept me according to that I have, not
154

AN ACT OF CONFESSION

according to that I have not. I will
extend it, since I cannot increase it,
through all the years of my life.

After so many backslidings, with
what confidence can I now return

With none. Altogether confused, alto-
gether covered with confusion, I sit, I
walk, I lie down. Nor should I dare
to do it, nor could I do aught but
despair, and act like the desperate,
unless there were yet a hope left. And
what hope
That Thou wilt extend
Thy mercy to seventy times seven.
That measure of forgiveness Thou hast
enjoined to us. Hast Thou enjoined
this to us, and wilt not Thou Thyself
practise the same
Yea and much
more. That be far from Thee, that
Thou shouldst require more perfection
in us than existeth in Thyself: that we
must forgive until seventy times seven
but Thou wilt not forgive. For Thy
mercy surpasseth ours, as far as Thyself
surpasseth us. I then, trusting in Thy
mercy, that forgiveth at the least
seventy times seven, stand afar off;
155

"

AN ACT OF CONFESSION

and lowlily, as I ought, and most
humbly striking my breast, say and
repeat, again and again, God have
mercy on me a Slnner, on me a most
wretched sinner, on me the chief of
sinners, on me who am altogether sin,
on me, who am a very hyperbole of sin,
o Thou to Whom prayer can never be
made without a hope of pardon.

Shall God forgive, and thou not
repent
God forbid! I do in a sort
repent: I fear me not sufficiently. I
would that it were more: I should
rejoice, were it more; I grieve that it
is no more. For I wish that I could
more, and grieve that I can no more.
I confess that my very grief is to be
lamented; and I grieve that it is thus
to be lamented. And who will give me
to lament it more 1 I would do so,
were it in my power: but it is not. It
is in my power to know that I ought;
to wish that I did; to will is present
with me; but how to perform that
which is good, I find not.

Do Thou, 0 Lord, give me power:
15 6

AN ACT OF CONFESSION

if Thou wilt, Thou cal1st : Thou canst
turn even the hard rock into a pool.
Give tears: give a fountain of waters
to my head. Give the grace of tears.
Drop down, ye heavens, from above,
and bedew the dryness of my heart.
Give me, 0 Lord, this grace. None
were more welcome to me; neither
riches, nor all the good things of this
world were to be coveted in comparison
of tears: tears, such as Thou didst give
David of old, or Jeremiah, S. Peter, or
S. Mary Magdalene. At least give me
a dropping eye: let me not altogether
be a flint. . If I may not water my
couch, nor wash Thy feet: if I may
not weep bitterly as Peter, plentifully as
Jeremia11-(and yet, Oh that it might be
even thus 1) at least one or two little
tears, which Thou may est put into Thy
bottle, and write in Thy book. But if
I cannot gain this much, woe is me!
like a pumice, like very lime, fervent in
cold water. Careless of my state where
I least ought to be so ; without feeling.
Mourning enough, when there is no
157

AN ACT OF CONFESSION

occasion: cold, arid, dead, where there
is the greatest.

At least give me of the tears of Christ,
which He shed plentifully in the days
of His flesh. Bestow on me from that
store: in Him there is superfluity for
my deficiency.

15 8

A SHORT PRAYER AFTER CONFESSION

A SHORT PRAYER AFTER
CONFESSION

O MY Saviour Christ, Christ my
Saviour! who will grant that I may
die rather than again offend Thee 1
Christ my Saviour, 0 my Saviour! Lord,
let a new manner of life prove that a new
spirit hath. descended on me : for true
penitence is new life; and true praise
unremitted penitence, and the observa-
tion of a perpetual sabbath from sin,
its occasions, fuel, and danger. For as
penitence destroys old sins, so do new
sins destroy penitence.
o God, my heart is ready;
so saith the Psalmist:
but I fear, Lord, lest mine should
not be ready.
I would that it were: I grieve, if it
be not.
Lord, prepare it : assist my disposal, and
supply my preparation of it.
I will put my sins before my sight;
that they may not be put before Thine.
159

A CAUTION BEFORE PREACHING

A CAUTION BEFORE
PREACHING, FROM
S. FULGENTIUS

T ET the preacher labour to be heard
L intelligently, willingly, obediently.
And let him not doubt, that he will
accomplish this rather by the piety of
his prayers, than the eloquence of his
speech. By praying for himself, and
those whom he is to address, let him
be their beadsman, before their teacher;
and approaching God with devotion, let
him first raise to Him a thirsting heart,
before He speaks of Him with his
tongue; that he may speak what he hath
been taught, and pour out what hath
been poured in.

I cease not therefore to ask fron1 our
Lord and Master, that He may, either
by the communication of His Scrip-
tures, or the conversations of my
brethren, or the internal and sweeter
doctrine of 11:is Own Spirit, deign to
160

A CAUTION BEFORE PREACHING

teach nle things so to be proposed and
asserted, that I may ever hold me fast
to the truth: from this very Truth I
desire to be taught the many things
I know not: I have received the few
I know.

I beseech this Truth, that loving-
kindness preventing and following me,
It would teach me the wholesome
things that I know not; keep me in
the true things I know; correct me
wherein I am (which is human) in
error, confirm me wherein I waver;
preserve me from false and noxious
things, and make that to proceed from
my mouth which as it shall be chiefly
pleasing to the truth itself, so it may
be accepted by all the faithful, through
JESUS CHRIST OUR LORD. AMEN

II.

M

161

SUBJECTS FOR MEDITATION

SUBJECTS FOR
MEDITATION BEFORE
PENITENTIAL PRAYERS

T HOU art careful and troubled
about many things; but one thing
is needful.
But we will give ourselves continu-
ally to prayer, and to the ministry of
the Word.
Watch ye, therefore, and pray always,
that ye may be accounted worthy to
escape all these things that shall come
to pass.
Love the Lord all thy life, and call
upon Him for thy salvation.
Humble thy soul greatly; for the ven-
geance of the ungodly is fire and worms.
A man can receive :dothing except it
be given him.
If He prayed Who was without sin,
how much more becometh it a sinner
to pray
(S. Cyprian.)
God hears the heart, not the voice:
162

SUBJECTS FOR lVIEDITATION

we do more by groans than words.
(S. August.)
Christ groaned for this reason, to set
us an example of groaning. (Arnob.)
God needeth not that we should be
suppliants, nor loveth subjection; this
is our own advantage, and hath an eye
to our profit. (Arnob.)
Prayer ascends, mercy descends.
(S. August.)
The grace of God is fuller than
prayer: God ever granteth more than
we ask.
God commandeth thee to ask, and
teacheth thee how to ask, and promiseth
that which thou askest, and is angry if
thou askest not; and yet askest thou not

Prayer is the breviary of faith, the
interpreter of hope.
We go to God by prayers, not by steps.
Faith pours forth prayer; let it be
poured forth in prayer.
Go on thus:-
Continuing in prayer:
always praying, and not fainting;
in spirit and in truth.

16 3

SUBJECTS FOR MEDITATION

SUBJECTS FOR
MEDITATION BEFORE
INTERCESSION

T HANKS be to God for His un-
speakable gift.
The Apostle meaneth by the unspeak-
able gift of God, the mutual offices, and
prayers, and thanksgivings of many for
him.
Moreover, as for me, God forbid that
I should sin against the Lord in ceasing
to pray for you.
In this life we know that we can be
assisted by prayers: but when we shall
have come before the tribunal of Christ,
neither Job, nor Daniel, nor Noah, can
intercede for us, but each carrieth his
own load.
The Spirit itself maketh intercession
for us with groanings which cannot be
uttered.
Can thine or my groanings be called
unutterable, when there are often none,
16 4

SUBJECTS FOR MEDITATION

when they are often cold < But be-
cause there is no day, no moment, in
which the Saints supplicate not God:
one more, one less, fervently, and all
make One Dove; hence the unutterable
groanings, namely, the groanings of
each for all, which profit all them who
are 1 in the body of the Church.
He who prays for others, labours for
himself.
If thou prayest for thyself alone, thou
alone wilt pray for thyself.
If thou prayest for all, all will pray
for thee.

1 vVe should probably read constitutis for
constituti.

16 5

SUBJECTS FOR MEDITATION

SUBJECTS FOR
MEDITATION BEFORE
THANKSG IVING

P RAISE is not comely in the mouth
of fools,
It is good before Thy Saints.
All Thy works praise Thee, 0 Lord,
and Thy Saints give thanks unto Thee.
Blessed is the people that know the
joyful sound.
All sacrifice is little in comparison
with thanksgiving..
We may speak much, and yet come
short. (Eccl. xliii. 27.)
Woe to them that are silent con-
cerning Thee, 0 Lord : for even they
that speak are dumb. (S. Aug. Conf. I.)
He attaineth not to Thy Works, but
keepeth more silence; and it seemeth
to proceed from the mouth of sucklings.
For as it was your mind to go astray
from God: so, being returned, seek
Him ten times more. (Baruch iv. 28.)
166

SUBJECTS FOR MEDITATION

That as once in sins, so now we may
abound in good works and the praises
of God.
But what am It Lord
Make me, 0 Lord, to be at leisure
for my penitence and Thy praises.

16 7

WARNINGS AND MEDITATIONS

WARNINGS AND PREPARA-
TORY MEDITATIONS IN
THE EVENING, RAISING OF
THE MIND TOWARDS GOD

I N war there is the note of charge,
fitted for the onset;
of recall, whereby
struggles are recalled :
So the mind of man, as it must be
excited in the morning, so in the
evening, as by a note of recall, is it to
be called back to itself.and its Leader,
j a scrutiny and inquisition or ex-
By amination of self;
thanksgivings.
I-Scrutiny and Inquisition; an Exam-
ination.
A good man would rather know his in-
firmity, than the foundations of the earth,
or the heights of the heavens. (S. Aug.)
But that knowledge of our own
infirmity is not attained but by diligent
inquisition: without which the mind is
x68

WARNINGS AND MEDITATIONS

for the most part blind, and sees
nothing of that which pertains to it.
There are many hiding-places and
recesses in the mind, &c. (Cicero.)
You must come to the knowledge of,
before you can amend, yourself.
An unknown sin grows worse and
worse, (Seneca,) and is deprived of cure.
The heart is deceitful above all things.
The Old Man is bound up in a
thousand folds.
Therefore take care of thyself.
Points chiefly to be inquired.
Done, Read,
Said, Written,
befits a Christian, a
I Priest, Father, &c.
may confirm faith, obe-
dience,
increase knowledge,
the good
government of mind,
body,
work out the Sal-
vation of thyself,
others.
169

What
hast
thou that
to-day

WARNINGS AND MEDITATIONS

We see that God Himself concluded
each day of the old Creation in no other
mal1ner, than by an examination of the
works of each.
And He beheld that all were good.
Cato exacted from himself an account
of every dayt s business, and also Pytha-
goras. (Cicero.)

Ausonius from Pythagoras:
Nor let sweet sleep upon thine eyes
descend,
Till thou hast judged its deeds at
each day's end.
King David, when the day was over,
meditated, and searched out his
spirit.
In this Areopagetic nightly examina-
tion,
be\vare that thou shew thyself the
judge, not t11e patron, of thy sins:
and say in the tribunal of thy mind,
say with grief and indignation,
who will set scourges over my
thoughts,
and the discipline of wisdom over
my heart 1 (Eccles. xxiii. 2.)

17 0

WARNINGS AND MEDITATIONS

.
If we judged ourselves, we should
, not be judged.
Prayer is the guardian of the sleeping,
the confidence of the waking.
(S. Greg. Nyss.)
And we think him not safe who is
undefended by the arms and the
guard of prayer.
Rightly therefore teacheth Rabbi
J[archi
] that penitence must not
be procrastinated till the morrow.
Behold the hope of advantage and
eternal salvation shall have deceived
itself for ever, unless even in this
very night thou shalt have freed
thy soul.
And if an examination of this kind
takes place for some days, or,. at
farthest, one month, with penitence, it
may suffice to form a perfect habit of
virtue.

17 1

A MORNING HYMN

A MORNING HYMN OF
VERY ANCIENT USAGE
IN THE CHURCH

G LORY be to God on high,
on earth peace,
good will towards men.
We praise Thee,
we bless Thee,
we worship Thee,
we glorify Thee,
we give thanks to Thee,
for Thy great glory,
o Lord God, Heavenly King,
God, the Father Almighty,
Lord, the Only-Begotten Son,
J esu Christ,
and Holy Ghost.
Lord God,
Lamb of God,
Son of the Father,
That takest away the sins of the world,
have mercy upon us.

17 2

A MORNING HYMN

Thou That takest away the sins of the
\vorld,
receive our prayer.
Thou That sittest at the Right Hand of
the Father,
have mercy upon us.
For Thou only art Holy,
Thou only art the Lord,
Jesus Christ,
with the Holy Ghost,
in the Glory of God the Father.
Amen.

173

AN EVEr
"ING HYMN

AN EVENING HYMN

O JOYFUL Light of the holy glory
of the Father, Immortal, Heavenly,
Holy, Blessed, Jesus Christ:
beholding the evening light
we glorify the Father, and the Son, and
the Holy Spirit of God.
Worthy art Thou in all seasons
to be hymned with sacred voices,
Son of God,
Giver of hope;
\Vherefore the world glorifieth Thee.

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