"and deacons, and all the people, stand in great "silence." It was considered a peculiar custom of the church of Alexandria in the fifth century, that the pope or patriarch of Alexandria continued sitting during the reading of the gospel. In the church of Constantinople the custom is preserved still. The priest exclaims, "Zopía (Wisdom)-Stand up-Let us hear the holy gospel "." In the west it has always been usual to stand when the gospel is read; and the church of England has for many ages adopted the custom. k The gospel was read from the pulpit in places where there were several clergy. This was also customary in the English church', and it is recognised in the injunctions of king Edward the Sixth". The injunctions of queen Elizabeth direct, that in cathedral and collegiate churches there should be a "gospeller," or particular person to read the gospel", who was to wear a cope. This also had long been the custom of the English church. In places where there were no assistant ministers, the priest himself read the gospel at the north corner of the holy table, which thence obtained the name of cornu evangelii. When the gospel was i Apost. Const. lib. ii. c. 57. 1 Ξένον δὲ κακεῖνο παρὰ ̓Αλεξανδρεῦσι τούτοις· ἀναγινωσκομένων γὰρ τῶν εὐαγγελίων, οὐκ ἐπανίσταται ὁ ἐπίσκοπος· ὃ παρ' ἄλλοις οὔτ ̓ ἔγνων οὔτε ἀκήκοα. Sozom. Hist. Eccl. lib. vii. c. 19. k Goar, Rituale Græc. p. 69. p. 7. ended, the churches of "Sparrow's Collection,p.124. There is still a " gospeller” in the church of Durham, and in other English cathedrals. • Gavantus says, the epistle is chanted on solemn occasions, "juxta cornu altaris, ubi celebrans legit epistolam-et est dextra pars ecclesiæ, intrantibus in eam." Tom. i. p. 202. The gospel is read at the other, or north corner of the altar. Spain and Gaul anciently sung an alleluia, or anthem". A custom like this prevails in many churches in England, where, the gospel being ended, the people say, "Thanks be to thee, O Lord, for thy holy gospel," or, "Thanks be to thee, O Lord." Besides the lessons from the canonical scriptures, it was often customary, in the primitive church, to read the epistles or writings of churches, bishops, or fathers. Thus the epistle of Clement to the Corinthians was often read, as well as the epistle of the church of Smyrna, describing the martyrdom of Polycarp, &c. But this, like many other ancient usages, has gradually become obsolete throughout the Christian church, and perhaps it is not desirable that it should be revived". With regard to the particular passages of scripture which the church of England has selected for the gospel of each day, the same observations may be made as have been already offered on the epistles. They have generally been fixed in their present positions for above twelve hundred years; a fact which I have endeavoured to prove elsewhere. SECTION VI. THE CONSTANTINOPOLITAN CREED. This creed was chiefly composed by the orthodox Fathers of the first general council of Nice, A. D. 325, to define the Christian faith, in opposition to the heresy of Arius. As sanctioned by this assembly, it ended with "I believe in the Holy Ghost," the remainder was added by the second general P See vol. i. p. 159. 173. 9 Eusebius, Hist. Eccl. lib. iii. c. 16. r Bona, Rer. Liturg. lib. ii. c. 6, § 2. S ⚫ Chapter iii. council, held at Constantinople A.D. 381, in which the heresy of Macedonius, with regard to the divinity of the Holy Spirit, was condemned. The latter part of this creed seems, however, to have been used by the Christian church even before the council of Constantinople, as it occurs in a creed preserved by Epiphanius, which is probably much older than that council'. In the fifth century, the western churches added to this creed the words filioque, in conformity with the doctrine, that the Holy Spirit proceeds from the Son, as well as from the Father, which in after-times produced controversies and schisms between the eastern and western churches". It appears that it was some time before the Constantinopolitan creed began to be used in the liturgies of the Christians. There is no reason to think that any creed was ever used in the liturgy during the first ages of the church. It was probably introduced to exclude heretics more effectually from the communion, none of whom were ever allowed to partake of the bread and cup by the Christian church. It is said that Peter Fullo, patriarch of Antioch, was the first who inserted the creed in the liturgy, about A. D. 471". About the year 511 it was received into the liturgy of Constantinople by Timotheus, patriarch of that church". In these liturgies the creed was placed in the part which followed the t See Bingham, Antiquities of the Christian Church, book x. ch. 4, for much information connected with this subject. "See Bingham as above; also bishop Pearson on the Creed, article viii. V Πέτρον φησὶ τὸν κναφέα δέκα καὶ ὀκτὼ πατέρων τῆς πίσω dismissal of the catechumens and hearers, and before the solemn prayers or canon. In the year 589, the churches of Spain appointed it to be said with a loud voice before communion, that the true faith might receive the testimony of acceptance from the communicants*. In after-times the Constantinopolitan creed was received into the liturgy of the French, Irish, English, and Roman churches. The Roman church was probably the last which adopted the use of this creed in the liturgy. Berno says, that the creed only began to be sung at Rome about the year 1012'; but Martene shows with some degree of probability that it had been read for some time before". It has been observed of the eastern, and it is equally true of the western churches, that the creed was not recited while the catechumens or infidels were present. After their dismissal, the creed was recited as a further test of the orthodoxy of those that remained and professed to be faithful. In the course of ages, however, the ancient exclusion of catechumens and infidels became obsolete, because the Christian religion was universally prevalent. Thus it was in England, as in most other countries. The distinction between the missa catechumenorum, or that part of the liturgy which catechumens might attend and the missa fidelium, or that part when the faithful or Christians only were present, gra τεως σύμβολον, καθ' ἑκάστην σύναξιν λέγεσθαι παρεσκεύασεν. Theodor. Lect. ibid. p. 563. * Concil. 3 Tolet. anno 589. canon 2. "Quo et fides vera manifestum testimonium habeat, et ad Christi Corpus et Sanguinem prælibandum pectora populorum fide purificata accedant." y Berno Abbas de Reb. ad Missam pertinentibus, c. 2. z Martene de Ant. Eccl. Rit. lib. i. c. 4, art. 5, p. 376, 377. dually became extinct. Hence we find that in the middle ages the sermon, or instruction to the people, was sometimes delivered after the creed and offertory; thus excluding the creed from that part of the office which was originally intended for the faithful only. This custom of the church of England is still visible in our liturgy, where the sermon follows the creed, instead of preceding it, according to the primitive rule. In the next section some proofs and further remarks will be offered on this subject. How long the Constantinopolitan creed has been used by the English church on this occasion it would be hard to determine, but we find it in the ancient liturgies of the churches of Salisbury, York, and Hereford, in the same position which it still occupies in ours. The creed was not said on week days when there was no feast or other solemn occasion. The same rule also was adopted in the Roman church, where it has continued to the present day. I believe in one God the Father Almighty, Maker of heaven and earth, and of all things visible and invisible. And in one Lord Jesus Christ, the only-Begotten Son of God, Begotten of his Father before all worlds, God of God, Light of Light, Very God of very God, Begotten, not made, Being a Durantus says that the sermon followed the creed in his time, that is, in the sixteenth century. "Post symboli pronunciationem sequitur prædicatio." De Rit. Eccl. Ca Πιστεύομεν εἰς ἕνα Θεὸν Πατέρα, παντοκράτορα, ποιητὴν οὐρανοῦ καὶ γῆς, πάντων ὁρατῶν τε καὶ ἀοράτων. καὶ εἰς τὸν ἕνα Κύριον Ἰησοῦν Χριστὸν, τὸν υἱὸν τοῦ Θεοῦ, τὸν μονογενῆ, τὸν ἐκ τοῦ Πατρὸς γεννηθέντα πρὸ πάντων τῶν αἰώνων, Θεὸν ἐκ Θεοῦ, φῶς ἐκ φωτὸς, Θεὸν ἀληOvòv EK Oεou ȧλŋðivoũ, yevvn tholicæ, lib. ii. c. 25. b Miss. Sarisb. fol. 11. 73. Miss. Ebor. Ordo Missæ infra Fest. Pentecost. Miss. Herefordens. Dom. 1. Adventus. c Ibid. |