Obrazy na stronie
PDF
ePub

Yet, as it agrees more closely with the liturgy of Antioch in the fourth century than with any other, I may fairly use it as a confirmation of the antiquity of that liturgy. In its order, its substance, and many of its expressions, the liturgy of Clement is identical with that of St. James. But the author has evidently permitted his learning and devotion to enrich the common formularies with numerous ideas full of piety and beauty.

We must therefore be content to receive the evidence of the Clementine liturgy in subservience to, and in confirmation of, that liturgy of the patriarchate of Antioch, which I have already traced by authentic documents to the fourth century. According to the Clementine liturgy, the lessons from the Old and New Testament were first read; after which the sermon was delivered". Then follow prayers for the catechumens, energumens, competents, and penitents; and after their successive dismissal, the prayer of the faithful', the kiss of peace, and the ablutions of hands succeeds. The Anaphora or Canon now begins, with the apostolical benediction of "The grace of our Lord Jesus Christ, and the love of God"," &c. The form Sursum corda, &c. follows; and the thanksgiving, in which the author appears to have exerted all his powers to render it worthy of the occasion. However, all the topics of the thanksgiving in St. James's liturgies are introduced, though at great length *. After this follows the hymn Tersanctus, and a long continuation of thanksgiving in the same strain.

a Apost. Const. lib. viii. c. 5, p. 392, edit. Clerici.

r

Ibid. c. 6-11. p.393-398.

S

Cap. 11. p. 398.
t C. 12. p. 399-402.

Then a commemoration of our Saviour's deeds and words at the last supper, a verbal oblation, somewhat different from that of St. James, the invocation of the holy Ghost, and solemn prayers for all men and things, to which the people answered Amen ". After this, there is a prayer of the deacon, and benediction of the faithful. Then the form Tà ayia Toiç ayious, &c. and the communion".. The office terminates with a prayer of thanksgiving, another prayer by the deacon, and a benediction". All this accords remarkably with the liturgy of the patriarchate of Antioch in the fourth century. And we may consider it as a proof, that the order and substance, together with many of the expressions of that liturgy, were used in the third century.

[ocr errors]

A remarkable sign of antiquity in the Clementine liturgy, is, the omission of the Lord's Prayer between the prayer of the deacon and benediction of the faithful, which precedes the form rà ayia, &c. It seems that the Lord's Prayer was used in this place, according to the liturgy of Antioch, before the council of Chalcedon. We have seen that Chrysostom and Cyril enable us to trace back this custom to the fourth century. Without doubt, the Lord's Prayer was used in this position all through the patriarchate of Antioch in the early part of the fourth century. Yet it does not occur in this part of the Clementine liturgy. Now it is not credible that the author would have omitted this Prayer, if it had been long used before his time. Yet from the manner and language of Chrysostom and Cyril

[blocks in formation]

we perceive that it must have been used long before their time. They both seem to regard this prayer as coeval with the rest of the liturgy; they do not allude to the idea that it had not been formerly used in that part of the liturgy. Since, then, the Lord's Prayer was not used, or was but recently used, in the time of the author of the Apostolical Constitutions, and yet appears to have been long used in the time of Cyril and Chrysostom, we must infer that the Apostolical Constitutions were written much before the time of Chrysostom and Cyril. The liturgy of Clement may therefore be justly referred to the end of the third century or beginning of the fourth; and by means of it we can ascertain what parts of the liturgies of St. James may be traced back from the fifth to the third century.

Having shewn that there are strong reasons for believing, that the same liturgy, in point of substance and order, prevailed all through the patriarchate of Antioch in the fourth century, it would seem to follow as a matter of course, that this liturgy had been long prevalent there: certainly, where such a case has been made out, I have a right to infer this, unless something can be brought from the monuments of antiquity which contradicts the inference. We have just perceived a verification of the justice of such a conclusion from the Clementine liturgy, which may be referred to the third century. We are about to receive a proof, that the same order of liturgy had been used in the second century. Justin Martyr was a native of Samaria, and lived within the district which was afterwards known as the patriarchate of Antioch. Justin describes the order of the Christian liturgy in his

days; and, as far as it goes, his description agrees exactly with the liturgy of Antioch in after-times. He speaks of the lessons, the sermon, the prayer of the faithful, and the kiss of peace. He mentions the thanksgiving to God, through Christ and the Holy Spirit, for the benefits which he has conferred on us ". He appears to speak of the words of our Lord'. If he does not refer directly to the verbal oblation of bread and wine, he considers an oblation to be made. The invocation of the Holy Ghost is probably to be inferred from his speaking of the bread and wine being sanctified by the prayer".

He mentions prayers made by the priest at this time, besides the prayer of the faithful before the thanksgiving; and he informs us that the people answered Amen at the close of the liturgy. As far as this goes, it gives every reason to say, that the liturgy of Antioch was substantially the same in the

* τῇ τοῦ ἡλίου λεγομένῃ ἡμέρᾳ πάντων κατὰ πόλεις ἢ ἀγροὺς μενόντων ἐπὶ τὸ αὐτὸ συνέλευσις γίνεται, καὶ τὰ ἀπομνημονεύματα τῶν ἀποστόλων, ἢ τὰ συγγράμματα τῶν προφητῶν ἀναγινώσε κεται μέχρις ἐγχωρεῖ· εἶτα, παυσαμένου τοῦ ἀναγινώσκοντος, ὁ προεστὼς διὰ λόγου τὴν νουθεσί αν καὶ πρόκλησιν τῆς τῶν καλῶν τούτων μιμήσεως ποιεῖται· ἔπειτα ἀνιστάμεθα κοινῇ πάντες, καὶ εὐχὰς πέμπομεν. Apolog. I. ed. Thirlby, p. 97.

5 ἔπειτα προσφέρεται τῷ προς εστῶτι τῶν ἀδελφῶν ἄρτος, καὶ ποτήριον ὕδατος καὶ κράματος. καὶ οὗτος λαβὼν, αἶνον καὶ δόξαν τῷ πατρὶ τῶν ὅλων, διὰ τοῦ ὀνόματος τοῦ υἱοῦ, καὶ τοῦ πνεύματος τοῦ ἁγίου, ἀναπέμπει· καὶ εὐχαριστίαν ὑπὲρ τοῦ κατηξιώσ

θαι τούτων παρ' αὐτοῦ ἐπὶ πολὺ ποιεῖται. Ibid. Ρ. 96.

* τὴν δι ̓ εὐχῆς λόγου τοῦ παρ' αὐτοῦ εὐχαριστηθεῖσαν τροφὴν, κ. τ. λ. p. 96.

ἢ πάντας οὖν οἳ διὰ τοῦ ὀνόματος τούτου θυσίας (αὐτῷ προσφέρουσιν) ἃς παρέδωκεν Ἰησοῦς ὁ Χριστὸς γίνεσθαι, τουτέστιν ἐπὶ τῇ εὐχαριστίᾳ τοῦ ἄρτου καὶ τοῦ ποτηρίου, τὰς ἐν παντὶ τόπῳ τῆς γῆς γινομένας ὑπὸ τῶν Χρισ στιανῶν, προλαβὼν ὁ Θεὸς μαρτυρεῖ εὐαρέστους ὑπάρχειν αὐτῷ. Justin. Dialog. cum Tryph. pars ii. p. 386, ed. Thirlby. b See note Z.

• οὗ συντελέσαντος τὰς εὐχὰς καὶ τὴν εὐχαριστίαν, πᾶς ὁ παρ ὼν λαὸς ἐπευφημεί λέγων, ̓Αμήν. p. 96. Apolog. i.

time of Justin, as it was one or two hundred years afterwards.

In conclusion, I may remark, that there are satisfactory means of ascertaining the order, substance, and generally the expressions, of the solemn liturgy used all through the patriarchate of Antioch and Jerusalem, before the year 451; that the liturgy thus ascertained, coincides with the notices which the Fathers of that country give concerning their liturgy, during the fifth and fourth centuries; that this liturgy was used in the whole patriarchate of Antioch in the fourth century, with little variety; that it prevailed there in the third century, and even in the second. The liturgy of St. James in Greek and Syriac may therefore be considered to be derived from the most primitive times. And should we say, that the same form in its principal features had existed from the time of the Apostles, I think that we should have good reasons for making the assertion. We cannot, however, rely on the expressions of this liturgy as a sure guide to the sentiments of the earliest ages. Unsupported by corroborative testimony, they are of little value beyond the fifth century, and only a certain portion can be corroborated by testimonies of the fourth and third centuries. Nor can we affirm that every part of the substance of the liturgy in the fifth century had existed from the beginning; but we may safely say, that whatever parts of the liturgy had existed from the beginning had likewise existed always in the same order relatively to each other; and this order it is, which essentially and mainly constitutes the identity of liturgies.

I have not as yet considered whether the liturgies

« PoprzedniaDalej »