However, the patriarch of the Lutherans, as we have seen, has himself justified, approved, and even recommended this practice; (Ecolampadius, Bucer and others have said almost as much in favour of it; and among the modern Lutherans we can cite one,' who has done great credit to the whole party by his learning and his virtues. "As for the invocation of "saints," says he, "the danger that Protestants "imagine they discover in it, will quickly vanish, "provided that they of the Roman Church declare, "that they pretend not to ask the saints, who are "with God, to pray for them, in any other sense "or with any other intention than they ask the saints "who are upon the earth; and that in whatever "terms this prayer is conceived, it is always under"stood in the way of intercession; that thus the "words: Holy Mary, deliver me at the hour of "death, signify: Holy Mary, intercede for mè "with your Son, that he would deliver me at the "hour of death." Now this is a declaration that we have often made, and that we still make, and we repeat it after and with the council of Trent.

The Confession of faith of the Remonstrants or Arminians absolutely rejects the invocation of saints, if not as savouring of idolatry, at least as futile and vainly imagined. But Grotius, who for a long time supported the Arminians by his writings and his credit in Holland, and who, from his attachment to that party, lost his liberty at the time when his friend Barneveld lost his life for the same cause; Grotius, after having more deliberately examined the principles of the Reformation and those of the

! M. Molanus, Euv. posth. de Bossuet, tom. I. p. 67.

Church, not only abandoned the prejudices of the Arminians against the invocation, but himself defended and proved it by the same arguments that we draw from Scripture and Tradition, and he concludes in these words: "After what I have just “said, I imagine that every reader, not carried away by his prejudices, will see that it is much

66

more reasonable to believe that the martyrs ob"tain some knowledge of our affairs, than to think "that they obtain none."

1

In fine, the Confession of faith of the Anglican Church puts the invocation of saints in the number of what it calls "fond things vainly invented, and "grounded upon no warranty of Scripture, but "rather repugnant to the word of God."

There have, however, been able English theologians, who have thought it necessary to adopt other ideas about the invocation of saints, at a time when this question was better cleared up and understood than in the year 1552. I shall content myself with producing the testimony of one of your most distinguished prelates,' who had made the question the subject of particular and deep investigation. "I do not deny, but the saints are mediators, as "they are called, of prayer and intercession, but

in general, and for all in general. They interpose "with God by their supplications, and mediate by "their prayers." And in a treatise expressly composed upon this subject, the doctor admits that the blessed in heaven do recommend to God, in their

1 Votum pro pace. Art. 22,-3 Dr. Montague, bishop of Chichester and Norwich, Antidote, p. 20.-Treat. Invoc. of Saints, p. 103.

66

prayers, their kindred, friends, and acquaintance on earth. And having given his reason for this, he inserts this declaration: "This is the common voice "with general concurrence, without contradiction of "reverend and learned antiquity, for aught I could if ever read, or understand and I see no cause or reason to dissent from them, touching intercession "in this kind........Indeed, I grant, Christ is not "wronged in his mediation; it is no impiety to say, as they (of the Roman Church) do; Holy Mary, pray for me: me: holy Peter, pray for me...... "Could I come at them, or certainly inform them "of my state, without any question, or more ado, I "would readily and willingly say, Holy Peter; "blessed Paul, pray for me; recommend my case "unto Christ Jesus our Lord. Were they with me, by me, in my kenning, I would run with my

66

66

3

open arms, and GONUPETEIN, fall upon my knees, "and with affection desire them to pray for me "........I see no absurdity in nature, no incongruity "unto analogy of faith, no repugnancy at all to "sacred Scripture, much less, impiety, for any "man to say, holy angel guardian, pray for me." Behold here our invocation taught, with but a trifling difference, by the learned bishop of Norwich. He only hesitates at one point; he sees not how the saints hear us; if he were sure of being heard, he would not hesitate a moment to invoke them, But we can have, in fact we have this certainty, without knowing the manner how our invocation reaches the saints. This knowledge is reserved for the other world. The possibility is all that we are

Treat. Invoc. of Saints, p. 118.-2lb d. p. 119.- Ibid. p. 97.

given to understand in this. St. Augustin' felt the difficulty of Dr. Montague; but he was not, like him discouraged by it. He did not conceive how the saints heard and assisted us, and yet he equally believed that they did both. The bishop of Norwich did not doubt, neither do Protestants in general doubt, that the angels are informed of all that concerns us, and hear our prayers, although certainly they know not the manner how this is done. We have only, therefore, to raise the saints to an equality with the angels. Now we have the positive assurance that the saints are like unto them; and St. John describes them to us in heaven as sharing the functions, the joy, the triumphs, and the knowledge of the angels.

You have just seen the Protestants divided among themselves respecting the invocation of saints; some treating it as folly, impiety, and idolatry; others finding in it nothing of the kind, but on the contrary approving of it, and going so far as to exhort the people to the practice of it. Supposing that it were necessary now to decide the question upon the simple authority of one or other of these two parties, which of the two should, in your opinion, carry the day? It is plain that they had, none of them, any desire to spare the Catholic Church, that they had rather a common interest in discovering its errors and defects, and exposing them in the most public manner. It is plain that they could not have split upon the invocation of saints, and abandoned one another in favour of the Church, but from a personal conviction and the irresistible

'Lib de Cur. pro Mort. C. XXVI.

power of argument. It alone could make them surmount their repugnance to justify our belief, and their aversion to the article which their schismatical brethren gave out as the decisive reason of their separation. Nothing, therefore, but the solidity of proofs could have compelled them to renounce so important an advantage, and to give us the advantage over Protestants themselves. The others, on the contrary, pushed on by a keener animosity, have discovered in us, or imagined for us, errors and defects which we have not. They have said: Our separation is not a schism, if Catholics are idolaters. By charging us with this crime, they exculpated themselves from the greatest crime we had to lay to their charge. Their anxiety to find us idolaters caused them to maintain that we were so, and that our means of defence did not clear us from the charge. Thus, to form against us, and obstinately to maintain, this imputation of idolatry, they only. had to yield themselves to the inclinations of their heart, and to consult the interests of their cause; whereas the former, in order to justify us, had their prejudices to subdue; and their unwillingness to be of service to their adversaries to overcome. The agreement of these latter with Catholics is, therefore, a decisive proof in favour of the invocation of saints, and the opposition of the other can be no argument against it.

To conclude, it is manifest that the invocation of saints supposes their intercession. For if they were indifferent about us, it would be quite useless to pray to them. Their intercession, considered in itself, does not necessarily suppose our invocation; but it invites and encourages us to invoke them. When once we know that, secure of their own salva