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Lord have mercy upon us," &c. In their addresses to her, they dignify her with the following titles:

"Holy Mary, Holy Mother of God, Holy Virgin of Virgins, Mother of Christ, Mother of Divine Grace, Mother Most Pure, Mother Most Chaste, Mother Undefiled, Mother Untouched, Mother Most Amiable, Mother Most Admirable, Mother of our Creator, Mother of our Redeemer, Virgin Most Prudent, Virgin Most Venerable, Virgin Most Renowned, Virgin Most Powerful, Virgin Most Merciful, Virgin Most Faithful, Mirror of Justice, Seat of Wisdom, Cause of Joy, Spiritual Vessel, Vessel of Honour, Vessel of Singular Devotion, Mystical Rose, Tower of David, Tower of Ivory, House of Gold, Ark of the Covenant, Gate of Heaven, Morning Star, Health of the Weak, Refuge of Sinners, Comforter of the Afflicted, Help of Christians, Queen of Angels, Queen of Patriarchs, Queen of Prophets, Queen of Apostles, Queen of Martyrs, Queen of Confessors, Queen of Virgins, Queen of all Saints, PRAY FOR US."

The council of Trent decreed, that "all bishops and pastors who have the care of souls, do diligently instruct their flocks, that it is good and profitable to desire the intercession of saints reigning with Christ in heaven," and which is to this day strictly observed. The following is extracted from their manual, in the Litany, where they thus address their saints:

"Holy Mary, Holy Mother of God, Holy Virgin of Virgins, St. Michael, St. Gabriel, St. Raphael, All ye holy angels and archangels, all ye holy orders of blessed spirits. St. John Baptist, St. Joseph, all ye holy patriarchs and prophets. St. Peter, St. Paul, St. Andrew, St. James, St. John, St. Thomas, St. James, St. Philip, St. Bartholomew, St. Matthew, St. Simon, St. Thadee, St. Matthias, St. Barnaby, St. Luke, St. Mark, All ye

holy apostles and evangelists; all ye holy disciples of our Lord; all ye holy innocents. St. Stephen, St. Laurence, St. Vincent, St. Fabian and St. Sebastian, St. John and Paul, St. Cosmas and Damian, St. Gervase and Protase, All ye holy martyrs. St. Sylvester, St. Gregory, St. Ambrose, St. Augustine, St. Jerome, St. Martin, St. Nicholas, All ye holy bishops and confessors; all ye holy doctors. St. Anthony, St. Bennet, St. Bernard, St. Dominick, St. Francis, All ye holy priests and Levites; all ye holy monks and hermits. St. Mary Magdalene, St. Agatha, St. Lucy, St. Agnes, St. Cecily, St. Catherine, St. Anastasia, All ye holy virgins and widows; all ye men and women, saints of God, MAKE INTERCESSION FOR US."

They believe in the necessity of confession and absolution. Here follows the method of confession, as it stands in their manual :

"The penitent, kneeling down, at the side of his ghostly father, makes the sign of the cross and asks his blessing. Pray, father, give me your blessing, for I have sinned. Then he says the confiteor in Latin, or in English, as far as mea culpa; through my fault. After this he accuses himself of his sins, either through the order of God's commandments, or such other order, as he finds most helpful to his memory, adding after each sin, the number of times that he has been guilty of it, and such circumstances as may considerably aggravate the guilt; but carefully abstaining from such as are impertinent or unnecessary, and from excuses and long narrations."

"After he has confessed all that he can remember, he concludes with this or the like form :"

'For these, and all other my sins, which I cannot at this present call to my remembrance, I am heartily sorry, purpose amendment for the future, most humbly ask

pardon of God, and penance and absolution of you, my ghostly father.'

"And so he may finish his confiteor, and then give ear to the instructions and advice of the confessor. The priest then pronounces absolution, saying, I absolve thec. This is not conditional, or declaratory, but absolute and judicial. Auricular confession was first decreed in the fourth council of Lateran, under Innocent III. in 1215.”

"Whilst the priest gives him absolution, let him bow down his head, and with great humility, call upon God for mercy, and beg of him that he would be pleased to pronounce the sentence of absolution in heaven, whilst his minister absolves him on earth."

"Let him be careful to perform his penance in due time, and in a penitential spirit."

They do not allow those who are in their communion ever to go to any other place of worship, which they call denying their religion." In their examination, before they go for absolution, the following question is asked, p. 211.

"Have you by word or deed denied your religion? or gone to the churches or meetings of heretics, so as to join any way with them in their worship? or to give scandal? how often?"

They do not allow their priests to marry; this is a law of the church, which they acknowledge to be not sanctioned by scripture. They say that he who has the care of souls, ought not to be encumbered with the troubles of domestic life, but that in all things he should be devoted to God. Pope Gregory VII. about the year 1073, first enjoined this at Rome. He also established it in England. Anselm was the first archbishop who restrained the English clergy from marrying, in a Synod held at Westminster in 1102.

With regard to the primary doctrines of this church, they say, that man cannot be justified by faith alone, and that a genuine faith can only be known by good works, agreeably to the words of the apostle, "show me thy faith without thy works, and I will show thee my faith by my works."

Concerning the infallibility of the pope, they believe that he may err in matters which relate to private opinion, depending on the testimony of man, as a private doctor; but that he cannot err when, in a general council, he makes decrees of faith, or general precepts.

They do not admit that they worship images so as to adore them, but they keep them to preserve the remembrance of the object. Nor do they allow that they worship the Virgin Mary. They say that they revere her, and they think this consistent with scripture, because it is written,Hail thou that art highly favoured, the Lord is with thee, blessed art thou among women.' Luke, i. 28. and again ver. 48. From henceforth all generations shall call me blessed.'

They make a distinction between mediator, and intercessor. They believe in one Mediator concerning redemption, but that we may have many mediators for intercession. Thus they inform us, that Moses was an intercessor for the Hebrews, Job for his friends; that when prayers are offered for the sick, the congregation are looked up to as intercessors, agreeably to the apostle. James, v. 14–16. "Is any sick among you? let him call for the elders of the church, and let them pray over him, anointing him with oil in the name of the Lord. And the prayer of faith shall save the sick, and the Lord shall raise him up; and if he have committed sins, they shall be forgiven him. Confess your faults one to another, and pray one for another, that ye

of

- may be healed; the effectual fervent prayer a righteous man availeth much." In like manner, they say, that they desire the blessed in heaven to be their inter

cessors.

MYSTERY OF THE NUMBER 666.

Rev. xiii. 18.

Many writers have supposed, that the account in Daniel, respecting the image which was set up by Nebuchadnezzar, was a type of the papal power, and that the worship of that image referred to the worship of the Roman Catholic church. Thus they have confirmed themselves in this opinion, from the passage in the Revelation, concerning the image and worship of the beast, ver. 18. "Here is wisdom; let him that hath understanding count the number of the beast, for it is the number of a man, and his number is six hundred, threescore and six."

The sacred scripture does not say that we cannot fully understand this passage, which has been considered most difficult of comprehension; on the contrary, we are commanded to gain a knowledge of it. In order, therefore, to show the fallacy of such a supposition as the above, I shall, although many have been the attempts of commentators in all ages of the Christian church to develope this great mystery, add one to the list. And were I not constrained, by the existing facts which had taken place in the time of John, to believe that this passage was so understood by him, I should have been silent respecting this most abstruse and important text.

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