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 SYNAGOGUE AND THE CHURCH. 
 
c 
 
 LONDON: 
 R. CLAY, PRINTER, BREAD STREET HILL. 
 
THE SYNAGOGUE 
 
 THE CHURCH, 
 
 AN ATTEMPT TO SHOW, THAT THE GOVERNMENT, MINISTERS, 
 
 AND SERVICES OF THE CHURCH, 
 
 WERE DERIVED FROM THOSE OF THE SYNAGOGUE. 
 
 Cotrtrenscfc from \\z Original Hatin 211Bor& of Uitrtnga. 
 
 BY 
 
 JOSHUA L. BERNARD, A.M. 
 
 CURATE OF ST. MARY'S, DONNYBROOK. 
 
 " Look to the hole of the pit whence ye are digged." 
 
 LONDON : 
 B. FELLOWES, LUDGATE STREET. 
 
 1842. 
 
PREFACE. 
 
 Nothing is of more importance than 
 that we should have right notions respect- 
 ing a Christian Church, — its Ministry and 
 Services, — if we would avoid the extremes 
 of disregarding Church ordinances on the 
 one hand, or of unduly extolling them on 
 the other. Grievous errors are likely to 
 be introduced by mistaken notions on this 
 point : " there are some persons who, from 
 not finding in Scripture precise directions, 
 and strict commands, as to the constitution 
 and regulation of a Christian Church, — 
 the several orders of Christian Ministers, — 
 the distinct functions of each, — and such 
 other details, have adopted the conclusion, 
 or at least seem to lean more or less to 
 the conclusion, — that it is a matter entirely 
 left to each individual's fancy or conveni- 
 
 b 
 
VI PREFACE. 
 
 ence to join one Christian society or 
 another, or none at all ; to take upon him- 
 self, or confer on another, the ministerial 
 office, or to repudiate altogether any Chris- 
 tian ministry whatever; to join, or withdraw 
 from, any, or every religious assembly for 
 joint Christian worship, according to the 
 suggestion of his individual taste." " There 
 are others who think that we are bound 
 to seek for a distinct authoritative sanction, 
 in the Scriptures, or in some other ancient 
 writings, — some tradition, in short, for each 
 separate point which we would maintain. 
 They assume that whatever doctrines or 
 practices, whatever institutions, whatever 
 regulations respecting Church government, 
 we can conclude, either with certainty or 
 with any degree of probability, to have 
 been either introduced by the Apostles, 
 or to have prevailed in their time, or in 
 the time of their immediate successors, 
 are to be considered as absolutely binding 
 on all Christians for ever — as a model 
 from which no Church is at liberty to 
 depart." a 
 
 ■ Archbishop Whately's Kingdom of Christ, pages 110, 111. 
 
PREFACE. vi 
 
 On this point, as on many others, Scrip- 
 ture has given us no direct information in 
 a systematic form ; there are, indeed, inci- 
 dental allusions to it, and we find a divine 
 sanction clearly given to regular Christian 
 communities ; but we have no express 
 declaration as to what should be their 
 constitution. It will be of use, then, to 
 inquire into the constitution and practices 
 of the Jewish Synagogue, and to ascertain 
 whether, and how far, Christian Churches 
 were formed on that model — were, in fact, 
 of the character of Christianized Syna- 
 gogues. 
 
 This has been very generally overlooked 
 (at least in the present day), and hence 
 little knowledge or curiosity respecting 
 Synagogues is to be found, and the Temple 
 being imagined by some to be the model 
 of Christian Churches, the ministry and 
 services of the Church have been exalted 
 in a manner quite inconsistent with the 
 religion of Jesus; thus in direct opposition 
 to Scripture, Christian Churches have been 
 called Temples — the ministers, Priests (hie- 
 reis, Sacerdotes) — the communion tables, 
 
 b 2 
 
Vlll PREFACE. 
 
 Altars — and the sacrament of the Lord's 
 Supper, a Sacrificed It is of the utmost 
 importance, then, that we should endea- 
 vour to ascertain what was the model 
 adopted by the Apostles in the constitution 
 of the Church ; they were Jews, and as 
 such likely to follow the customs of their 
 nation ; they had the choice between the 
 Temple and the Synagogue; which did 
 they adopt ? As such important conse- 
 quences follow, much interest attaches to 
 the inquiry. 
 
 Some have alleged that those who trace 
 the constitution of the Christian Church 
 to the Synagogue, are at variance among 
 themselves as to the precise constitution 
 of the Synagogue ; they certainly disagree, 
 in some minor points of detail, but not so 
 as to affect the present inquiry ; and indeed 
 it is evident that the disagreement or un- 
 certainty as to the minor points gives ad- 
 ditional weight to their authority in respect 
 to the points (and they are the principal) 
 in which they are clearly and fully agreed. 
 
 b See Index to the Tracts for the Times, a most valuable 
 work to those who wish an acquaintance with their doctrines. 
 
PREFACE. IX 
 
 Vitringa, who has prosecuted this inquiry 
 with much diligence and much success, was 
 horn at Lewarden, in Friesland, in the year 
 1659. At an early age he learned Greek 
 and Hebrew, and acquired such a know- 
 ledge of these languages, as to be able to 
 read the Scriptures in the originals. At 
 the age of sixteen he went to Franeker, 
 and read the usual course of Philosophy. 
 A desire to be under the professors of the 
 University of Leyden brought him to that 
 city, where he took his degree in 1679 : 
 the year after he was admitted to the 
 ministry, and almost immediately was called 
 to the chair of Oriental languages. In 
 1682 he obtained that of theology, and in 
 1693 he was made also professor of sacred 
 history. He passed the last years of his 
 life in constant suffering, and died of 
 apoplexy, in 1722, aged sixty- three years, 
 leaving behind him several works, the most 
 important of which is that now presented 
 to the public in a condensed form. He 
 was a learned, acute, industrious, candid 
 writer ; but as he wrote for the learned 
 world, his work is in Latin, as most such 
 
PREFACE. 
 
 books of that period are ; it is extremely 
 prolix, entering upon the discussion of 
 questions uninteresting to the generality of 
 readers, and digressing upon points quite 
 unconnected with his subject ; hence the 
 utility of an abridged translation. 
 
 The Editor has added a few references 
 to other authors, and some explanatory 
 remarks. The result of attentive study of 
 the work has convinced him that it is very 
 valuable, and especially for these times. 
 
CONTENTS. 
 
 PART I. 
 THE SYNAGOGUE. 
 
 CHAPTER I. 
 
 Signification of the words Synagogue and Church ... p. 1. 
 
 Meaning of the word Synagogue— of the word Church. The 
 words Church and Synagogue used in a twofold sense, 2. 
 
 CHAPTER II. 
 
 Jewish Places of Prayer . . . p. 4. 
 
 Jewish places of prayer of two kinds — Synagogues were built 
 upon elevated ground — sometimes outside cities and near some 
 river, 5 ; sometimes near sepulchres — were frequently without 
 any roof, 7 ; should be built wherever there were ten men of 
 full age and free condition, 8. The dedication of a Synagogue, 
 9. Many Synagogues frequently in the same city, 10; Syna- 
 gogues sometimes in private houses — Private places for prayer, 
 11 ; their windows opened toward Jerusalem, 13. 
 
CONTENT.". 
 
 CHAPTER III. 
 The Schools ... p. 14. 
 
 Jewish Schools of two kinds — the Public Schools — the Councils — 
 formation of Schools, 15 ; Customs of the Schools — mode of 
 teaching, 16. Reverence paid to Schools — mention of Schools 
 in the times of the Kings, 17; Schools of the Prophets; some- 
 times in cities, sometimes on mountains, sometimes in the wil- 
 derness — the sons of the Prophets, 18. Origin of the Schools 
 of the Prophets, 19; Prophecy not always a prediction of the 
 future, 20. 
 
 CHAPTER IV. 
 The Origin of the Synagogue ... p. 23. 
 
 Synagogues very ancient — Public worship before the Deluge — 
 Worship in the times of the Patriarchs, 21. Jewish writers 
 derive the Synagogue from the times of Moses, 25. Holy 
 Convocation on the Sabbath, not the origin of the Synagogue. 
 Tlie Tabernacle of the Congregation no foundation for the 
 Synagogue, 27 ; Israelites should worship only where Jehovah 
 had placed his name, 28 ; Public worship neither enjoined 
 nor provided for in the books of Moses, 30. No proof of the 
 existence of the Synagogue in the times of the Judges, 31. 
 Meaning of the phrase — " before the Lord," 32. The Syna- 
 gogue did not exist in the times of the Kings, as appears — 
 First, from the Lamentations of Jeremiah, 33. Secondly, from 
 the observance of Fasts in the Temple, 34. Thirdly, from the 
 prevailing Idolatry of these times, 35. Fourthly, from the 
 Mission of Jehoshaphat. Fifthly, from the wonder and fear of 
 Josiah at the finding of the book of the Law, 36. Sixthly, 
 from the duties assigned to the Levites, 38. Objection from 
 a passage in the Psalms, 39. The Synagogue dates its origin 
 from the times of Ezra. This appears, First, from the number 
 
CONTENTS. Xlll 
 
 of copies of the Scriptures in these times, 41. Second!)', from 
 the numher of Scribes, 42. Thirdly, from the public reading 
 of the Law. First Synagogues were most probably in Gentile 
 Countries, 43. 
 
 CHAPTER V. 
 The Furniture of the Synagogue ... p. 44. 
 
 Principal articles of Furniture four in number. I. The Ark. 
 
 II. The Pulpit. III. The Seats. IV. The Lamps, 40. 
 Lights burned in private houses. Minor articles of Furniture 
 were — I. The Sacred Volume, 48. II. The Trumpets, 49. 
 
 III. The Veil. IV. The Alms Chests, 52. Libraries attached 
 to Synagogues. 
 
 CHAPTER VI. 
 The Government of the Synagogue ... p. 53. 
 
 In early ages regal and judicial offices united. Every Jewish 
 city of repute had its council of Presbyters or Elders ; as ap- 
 pears from the History of Susannah, 54 ; from Philo — from 
 Josephus — from Maimonides — from Benjamin of Tudela — 
 Synagogues sometimes governed by one Rabbi, 57. Govern- 
 ment of Modern Synagogues, 58. The New Testament con- 
 firms this account of the Government of the Synagogue, 59. 
 
 CHAPTER VII. 
 The Discipline of the Synagogue ... p. 60. 
 
 Punishments of the Synagogue of two kinds — Excommunication 
 — Excommunicated person excluded from the Synagogue, 62. 
 Power of excommunicating rested with the Council, 63. Allu- 
 sion to excommunication in the New Testament — the punish- 
 ment when first inflicted, 64. Flagellation in the Synagogue, 
 65. Whv our Lord was never excommunicated, 67. 
 
CONTENTS. 
 
 CHAPTER VIII. 
 
 The Alms collected in the Synagogue ... p. 69. 
 
 Hebrew word, signifying righteousness, used also for Alms — 
 reason for this. Relief given to the poor, either compulsory 
 or voluntary, 71. Origin of voluntary relief, 73. Alms were 
 collected in the Synagogue for a twofold purpose. Origin of 
 the custom of transmitting Alms to Judaea, 74. Distribution 
 of the Alms collected in the Synagogue, 77. 
 
 CHAPTER IX. 
 
 The Presbyters of the Synagogue ... p. 78. 
 
 Election of the Presbyters of a Synagogue — at first lay with the 
 Civil Governor, 79 ; afterwards with the Sanhedrim, 80 ; who 
 invariably consulted the people, 81. Election of Presbyters in 
 Modern Synagogues. Manner of ordination, 82. The Presi- 
 dent of the Synagogue and his Presbyters of the same order, 
 83 ; Salaries of the Presbyters, 85 ; their privileges. 
 
 CHAPTER X. 
 
 The Chazzans, or Deacons of the Synagogue ... p. 87. 
 
 Every Synagogue had its Chazzan. His duties were — 1. To take 
 the book of the Law from the Ark. 2. To call out the readers. 
 3. To stand by them. 4. To blow the trumpet, 88. 5. To 
 wave the napkin. 6. To take care of the Synagogue, 89. 
 The Legate of the Church — the President was, ex officio, the 
 Legate. In modern Synagogues, the Chazzan is the Legate. 
 The election of Chazzans, 90. Chazzans of the Council — of 
 the Temple, 92 ; of cities. 
 
CONTENTS. XV 
 
 CHAPTER XI. 
 
 The Discourses delivered in the Synagogue ... p. 93. 
 
 Preaching usual in the Synagogue — nature of the Discourses 
 delivered in the Synagogue — they were highly allegorical, 96 ; 
 very fabulous, 97 ; sometimes in parables, 98. Name given 
 to the Discourses delivered in the Synogogue, 100. Persons 
 privileged or permitted to preach. 
 
 CHAPTER XII. 
 
 The Ritual of the Synagogue. 
 
 I. The Form of Prayer p. 103. 
 
 Prayers used in the Synagogue of two kinds — the Public Liturgy 
 of the Synagogue consisted principally of two formulas. 1. The 
 Schemah, 104. Allusion to the Schemah in the Gospel of St. 
 Luke. 2. The Schemon-Esre, 105. The nineteen Eulogies 
 of the Schemon-Esre — the Schemon-Esre may be divided into 
 three parts, 113 ; shorter form used instead of the Schemon- 
 Esre — Order of Prayer, 114. Order of Private prayer — 
 Morning — Evening. Order of Public prayer, 118.— Morning 
 prayer — the Kaddisch — Afternoon prayer, 121. — Evening 
 prayer. Order of prayer on Sabbath and Festival-days, 122. 
 Three services in the Synagogue during the day — the Bene- 
 diction pronounced in the Synagogue, 123 ; Form, when no 
 Priest was present, 124. 
 
 II. The Reading of the Law and the Prophets. . p. 124. 
 
 Manner of reading the Law — Doxology before — after — Scrupu- 
 lous accuracy of the Jews when reading the Law, 125 ; quali- 
 fications required in those who read in the Synagogue, 127 ; 
 
CONTENTS, 
 
 preference given to a Priest or Levite — Interpretation of the 
 Law, 129. Five passages never interpreted — Manner of read- 
 ing the Prophets, 131 ; when read, 133; number of Verses 
 rea( J — Hagiographa seldom read, 134. Mention of the reading 
 of the Law and the Prophets in the New Testament. 
 
 PART II. 
 
 THE CHURCH COMPARED WITH THE SYNAGOGUE. 
 
 CHAPTER I. 
 
 Probable Source from which the Apostles derived the Rites and 
 Ceremonies of the Church. ... p. 135. 
 
 No form of Government or of Worship prescribed in Scripture 
 for the Christian Church — Strong presumption that the Apo- 
 stles would introduce (as much as possible) Jewish Customs, 
 136 ; a presumption, that the Apostles took the Synagogue for 
 their Model, and not the Temple, 138. 
 
 CHAPTER II. 
 
 Analogy between the Church and the Synagogue as Places of 
 Prayer ... p. 139. 
 
 Chinches and Synagogues used for similar purposes — called by 
 the same names, 140 ; built in a similar manner — similarly 
 dedicated, 141 ; might be built in any place, 142. In later 
 times both were assimilated to the Temple, 143. Minor 
 points of agreement, 144. 
 
CONTENTS. 
 
 CHAPTER III. 
 
 The Government of the Early Church compared Kith (hat of 
 the Synagogue. ... p. 145. 
 
 The Church, as well as the Synagogue, governed by a Council — 
 these Councils similar — in the name given to their members — 
 in the qualifications required in the members — in their consti- 
 tution, 149. At first all Churches were under the control of 
 the Church at Jerusalem — in after-times all Churches inde- 
 pendent, 151. New Titles sprang up in the Church in the 
 second and third centuries, [155. The Church and Syna- 
 gogue each passed through three different states as to Govern- 
 ment, 157. 
 
 CHAPTER IV. 
 
 The Discipline of the Early Church compared with that of the 
 Synagogue. . . . p. 159. 
 
 Excommunication a punishment of the Christian Church — en- 
 joined and enforced by the Apostle Paul, 160; continued to 
 be inflicted in after-ages, 163. Analogy between Excommuni- 
 cation as inflicted in the Church and in the Synagogue. 
 
 CHAPTER V. 
 
 Analogy between the Church and the Synagogue as to the 
 Collection and Distribution of Alms. . . . p. 166. 
 
 Much Alms-giving in the Early Church — Analogy between the 
 Church and the Synagogue in this respect, 167. 
 
 CHAPTER VI. 
 
 The Presbyters of the Church compared with those of the 
 Synagogue. ... p. 169. 
 
 The Apostles had absolute power in the selection of Ministers — 
 in after-times the people were always consulted — agreement 
 
CONTENTS. 
 
 between the Church and the Synagogue in the election and 
 ordination of Ministers, 172. Stipend of Presbyters. 
 
 CHAPTER VII. 
 
 Orders of Ministers in the Early Church. ... p. 177. 
 
 The Presidents of the Presbyteries of the Church assumed to them- 
 selves exclusively the title of Bishops — this supposition the only 
 way of reconciling Ecclesiastical History with Scripture — 
 argument of those who contend for a threefold order in the 
 times of the Apostles, 179. Analogy contended for, untenable 
 — orders in the Early Church determined from the Analogy 
 of the Synagogue, 182. Controversy a verbal one, 183. 
 
 CHAPTER VIII. 
 
 The Deacons of the Church com/pared with those of the Syna- 
 gogue. ... p. 186. 
 
 Analogy between the Chazzans and the Deacons — as to names — 
 as to offices, 187- Objection. — The seven officers mentioned 
 in the sixth of Acts not Deacons, 188. Number of Deacons 
 — appointment of Deacons, 193. The Bishop, the Angel or 
 Legate of the Christian Church. 
 
 CHAPTER IX. 
 
 l%e Discourses delivered in the Early Christian Church com- 
 pared with those delivered in the Synagogue. ... p. 195. 
 
 Analogy between these Discourses — in names — in manner of 
 delivery — in style, 196 ; as to place — as to time — as to persons 
 permitted to preach, 197. Women forbidden to preach, 198. 
 Doctors sat when preaching, 199. 
 
CONTENTS. 
 
 CHAPTER X. 
 
 The Public Worship of the Early Church compared with that 
 of the Synagogue. ... p. 200. 
 
 No Liturgy of the Early Church handed down — Prayers of the 
 Early Church similar to those of the Synagogue — similar for- 
 mulae in both — Customs of the Synagogue introduced into the 
 Church, 202. Responses and ejaculations of the Church 
 similar to those of the Synagogue, 204. Worship in the 
 Church and Synagogue three times a day, 205. The reading 
 of the Scriptures in the Church. 
 
 CHAPTER XL 
 
 Refutation of the Arguments of those who derive the Rites and 
 Ceremonies of the Church from the Temple. ... p. 208. 
 
 Archbishop Usher's opinion as to the origin of Church Govern- 
 ment — is supported by the authority of the Fathers, 210. 
 Reasons that probably induced the Fathers to institute a com- 
 parison between the Church and the Temple, 211. The 
 Analogy between Priests and Levites, and between Bishops 
 and Deacons, no foundation for deriving the Church from the 
 Temple, 214. Analogy between the duties of the Priests and 
 Levites and those of the Bishops and Deacons, not sufficient 
 to prove the derivation of the Church from the Temple, 215. 
 The designation of Christian Worship by phrases borrowed 
 from the Temple, no foundation, 217 ; meaning of such 
 phrases, 218. The forms of the Temple the Shadow, the 
 reality in the Church, 221. The Ministers of the New Dis- 
 pensation being called Priests, no foundation for deriving the 
 orders of the Church from the Temple, 223. Varied applica- 
 tion of the word Priest in the Christian Church, 224. Analogy 
 between Ministers of the Christian Church and the Jewish 
 Priests, very slight, 229. 
 
CONTENTS. 
 
 APPENDIX/ 
 
 Note A. Whether the Proseucha was distinct from the 
 
 Synagogue 237 
 
 B. The Libertines 239 
 
 C. Jewish love of Antiquity 240 
 
 D. The Sabbath 241 
 
 E. In what sense the Levites were the Teachers of 
 
 Israel 244 
 
 F. On the titles Rab, Rabbi, &c, given to Jewish 
 
 Doctors 216 
 
 G. On the Feast of Tabernacles 250 
 
 H. The Recitation of the Schemah 251 
 
 I. Whether the Septuagint Version was read in the 
 
 Synagogue ..... 252 
 
 K. Meaning of the Phrase—" Husband of one Wife" 253 
 
 L. On Church Government 255 
 
 ERRATUM. 
 In page 56, for " Benjamin of Toledo" read " Benjamin of Tudela. 
 
THE 
 
 SYNAGOGUE AND THE CHURCH. 
 
 PART I. 
 THE SYNAGOGUE. 
 
 CHAPTER I. 
 
 Signification of the Words Synagogue and Church. 
 
 The Greek word translated Synagogue, signi- Meaning of 
 
 n • i ii vi o the word 
 
 ties, simply, an assembly, without any reference synagogue. 
 to the character or motives of the individuals 
 assembled. The Septuagint translators use the 
 word in this sense ; they apply it not only to 
 the people of Israel legally convened, but also 
 to the rebellious company that followed Korah, 
 Dathan, and Abiram. 
 
 The word translated Church, (ecclesia,) on Meaning of 
 the contrary, always conveys some idea of the church. 
 nature of the assembly ; it answers to the Hebrew 
 word kahal, which' denotes an assembly legally 
 
2 Signification of the Words [Part I. 
 
 convened. Thus the Jewish people, when assem- 
 bled as a body politic to receive the law, are 
 called KAHAL; a and St. Stephen, referring to this 
 assembly, styles it ecclesia ; b nay, more, the 
 turbulent crowd in the temple of Diana at 
 Ephesus, is also called ecclesia, because it 
 was a legal assembly. 
 
 In the New Testament, the word ecclesia is 
 used in an extended, and also in a limited 
 sense ; it signifies the whole Christian community, 
 the entire body of believers, — governed by one 
 Spirit, united by one faith, with one supreme 
 head, Jesus Christ, in heaven ; it is also applied 
 to the Christian community in one city, or even 
 to the congregation accustomed to assemble in 
 one house ; d but still, in every case, a legal bond 
 of union, enters into the idea conveyed by the 
 word. The followers of Christ may be so dis- 
 persed, so scattered throughout the world, as to 
 have no opportunity of meeting together; they 
 then cease to be a congregation (sunagoge), 
 but they do not cease to be a Church (ecclesia) ; 
 they have still their legal bond of union, they 
 have still the same Head, they are united by the 
 same faith, supported by the same hope. 
 The words Nothing is more usual in classic authors, than 
 synagogue for the same word, to signify, sometimes the 
 
 used in a 
 
 twofold . ... 
 
 sense. a Deut. ix. 10. Acts vm. 38. 
 
 c Acts xix. 32. d Philemon. 1 Cor. xvi. 19. 
 
Chap. I.] Synagogue and Church. 3 
 
 assembly itself, sometimes the place of assem- 
 bling ; thus we read " frequens curia," a full 
 meeting of the senate; " parietes hujus curiae," the 
 walk of this senate house. The Greek words 
 rendered Synagogue, and Church, have also this 
 twofold signification. It is, however, to be 
 remarked, that in the New Testament, the word 
 Synagogue signifies in general, the place of 
 assembling, whereas the word Church, (with 
 perhaps a single exception/) is used to denote, 
 not the place of assembling, but the believing 
 servants of Christ, congregated together for the 
 worship of God, and for mutual edification. 
 
 e Luke xviii. 20. Matt. vii. 5. f 1 Cor. xi. 22. 
 
 B 2 
 
Jewish Places oj Prayer. [Pakt I. 
 
 CHAPTER II. 
 
 Jewish Places of Prayer. 
 Jewish The Jewish places of prayer were of two kinds : 
 
 places of 
 
 prayer two- — those for public prayer, called in general 
 Synagogues ; a those for private prayer, which 
 were usually rooms set apart for the purpose, in 
 the upper stories of private dwellings. 
 The syna- The synagogue should be built upon the most 
 SpolTeie- elevated ground in the neighbourhood, and should 
 ground, be higher than all other buildings. b The ob- 
 servance of this rule was considered of the 
 utmost importance, there being a vulgar notion, 
 " that total destruction awaited every city 
 whose houses were higher than its synagogue." 
 A feeling of reverence may have dictated this 
 rule ; a feeling that it added to the honour and 
 sanctity of a place of worship, if it were loftier, 
 and more expensively built, than common dwell- 
 
 a Vide Appendix, Note (A.) 
 
 b Castles and towers might be higher, provided the more 
 elevated parts were not used for either religious or domestic 
 purposes. 
 
Chap. II.] Jewish Places of Prayer. 5 
 
 ings : it may have arisen from the desire 
 to assimilate the synagogue to the Temple, 
 the Temple having been built upon an emi- 
 nence. 
 
 Synagogues were frequently built outside the sometimes 
 
 . , . . -, outside the 
 
 city, that they might be near some river or sepul- city, near a 
 chre. In some instances, the Jews may have 
 been obliged to build them without the walls : 
 hated and disliked by the Gentiles, they may 
 have found a difficulty in procuring a site within 
 the city ; but it is probable that in most cases, 
 they selected the suburbs from choice. A site 
 outside the city would be much more suitable, 
 removed from all bustle and annoyance, and 
 thus better adapted for religious exercises ; pure 
 water, too, being necessary to the due perform- 
 ance of Jewish worship, would be a reason for 
 building the synagogue near to a river. St. 
 Luke makes mention of a synagogue built near 
 the river side ; d and Juvenal, speaking of one 
 
 c There is a prophecy in Isaiah respecting the Temple : 
 " And it shall come to pass in the last days, that the moun- 
 tain of the Lord's house shall be established in the top of the 
 mountains, and shall be exalted above the hills, and all 
 nations shall flow unto it," chap. ii. 2. So anxious were the 
 Jews in the time of Maccabseus that this prophecy should be 
 literally fulfilled, that they cut down a portion of Mount 
 Acra that it might not be higher than the Temple. (Josephus's 
 Jewish War, book vi. chap. 5.) 
 
 d Acts. xvi. 1 3. De Dieu, in his note on this passage, says 
 that the Jews built their synagogues at the water-side, after 
 
6 Jewish Places of Prayer. [Part I. 
 
 outside the walls of Rome, informs us, that it 
 was in a locality that abounded with water. 6 
 Sometimes Synagogues were sometimes built near the 
 sepulchre, sepulchres of devout persons ; f sometimes they 
 were built round sepulchres, so as to enclose them 
 within their walls. Synagogues thus circum- 
 stanced, were esteemed more sacred. There 
 was a notion amongst the Jews, that the souls of 
 the deceased hovered round the tombs in which 
 their bodies were deposited, and that by their 
 intercession, suppliants, who frequented their 
 tombs, obtained the more easily their requests 
 from God ; g and though some Jews strongly 
 
 the example of Isaac, who meditated by the well Lahai-roi, 
 (Gen. xxiv. 62.) It is, however, more likely that in this, as 
 well as in many other practices, they followed the example set 
 them by the heathen. 
 
 e " Substitit ad veteres arcus, madidamque Capenam ; 
 Hie ubi nocturnse Numa constituebat amicae. 
 Nunc sacri fontis nemus, et delubra locantur 
 Judaeis." Sat. iii. 11. 
 
 f Benjamin of Toledo, in his Itinerary, speaks of a splendid 
 synagogue at the tomb of the prophet Ezekiel, (supposed to 
 have been built by Jechonias, assisted by the 35,000 Jews who 
 followed him after his liberation by Evil Merodach.) This 
 sj'nagogue was looked upon as a sanctuary, and persons of the 
 highest rank and from the most remote places resorted thither 
 for prayer. It was on the bank of the Euphrates. 
 
 g It is to this superstition that the prophet Isaiah in all pro- 
 bability refers, when he accuses the Jews of " remaining 
 among the graves and lodging in the monuments," ch. lxv. 4. 
 But it may be objected, Did not the Jews consider sepulchres 
 as unclean ? Were not graves carefully marked out lest any 
 
Chap. II.] Jewish Places of Prayer 7 
 
 disclaim this notion, and assert, that they fre- 
 quent these tombs to learn a lesson of humility, 
 and to be put in mind of death, (the common lot 
 of all ;) still there is little doubt, but that the 
 general opinion was in favour of the intercession 
 of departed spirits. Some of their writers have 
 even gone so far as to explain, how the prayer 
 of the suppliant on earth reaches the departed 
 spirit ; and it is expressly stated in the Gemara, 
 that the reason why the Lord hid the body 
 of Moses was, " lest the Israelites in exile 
 should come to his tomb, and pray, saying, O 
 Moses, our master, intercede for us, we beseech 
 thee." 
 
 The synagogue, like the Temple, was fre- Frequently 
 quently without a roof. This, coupled with the roof.° U a 
 fact, that the Jews had no images in their places 
 of worship, and that when praying, they lifted 
 
 one should touch them ? Why, then, build a synagogue in 
 close connexion with what they considered impure ? We 
 answer, they carefully avoided the pollution ; it being enacted 
 that no person should either read, or pray, or carry phy- 
 lacteries, but at a distance from the tomb, of at least four 
 cubits. That the feelings of the Jews were in favour of 
 building their synagogues near to the tombs, appears from the 
 New Testament; there tbey are represented as "building 
 the tombs of the prophets, and garnishing the sepulchres of 
 the righteous," Matt, xxiii. 29 : and in the Cippi Hebraici, it 
 is related, that at the feast of Purim, they were accustomed 
 to go to the tomb of Mordecai, singing psalms and thanks- 
 givings, with cymbals and dances. 
 
dition. 
 
 8 Jewish Places of Prayer. [Pakt I. 
 
 up their eyes to heaven, may have given rise to 
 the Satirist's accusation : — 
 
 " They adore nothing but the clouds, and the divinity of 
 heaven." h 
 
 Synagogues had in general round them, planta- 
 tions of trees ; a circumstance rather extraor- 
 dinary, when we consider the prohibition in the 
 book of Deuteronomy. 1 
 should be There were several canons relating to the 
 
 built where- 
 
 ever there building of a synagogue, but on none was more 
 
 W6rc ten 
 
 men of full stress laid, than on that which enacts, " That a 
 JfeVcon- synagogue shall be built in every place, where 
 there are ten men of full age, and free condition." 
 The reason of the selection of this number is 
 not very evident; like the number seven, it is 
 used in Scripture, to denote an indefinite num- 
 ber/ The first instance on record of an assembly 
 of ten men, is to be found in the book of Ruth j 1 
 
 h " Nil praeter nubes, et cceli numen adorant." 
 
 Juvenal, Sat. xiv. 98. 
 Another thing may have given rise to the accusation. The 
 Jews, after they had intercourse with the Greeks and Romans, 
 were accustomed to call Jehovah by the name Heaven, (vide 
 Daniel iv. 25 ; Matt. iii. 2, xxi. 25.) Their well-known habit 
 of swearing by the heavens (Matt. v. 34) may also have 
 countenanced the opinion. 
 i Chap. xvi. 21 : — 
 
 " Omnis enim populo mercedem pendere jussa est 
 Arbor ; et ejectis mendicat sylva Camoenis." 
 
 Juvenal, Sat. iii. 15. 
 k Lev. xxvi. 2C ; Amos vi. 9. ' Chap. iv. 2. 
 
Chap. II.] Jewish Places of Prayer. 9 
 
 where Boaz taking upon himself the right 
 of kindred, calls together ten men of the 
 elders of the city. Probably, then, the Jews 
 adopted into their religious ordinances, the 
 number which had long been usual in their civil 
 customs ; (a circumstance not unlikely, con- 
 sidering the intimate connexion between their 
 civil and religious affairs ; ) or, probably, they 
 fixed upon the number because it was absolutely 
 necessary to the due performance of the syna- 
 gogal service." 1 
 
 Two things were necessary to the proper The dedi- 
 
 . cation of a 
 
 dedication of a synagogue ; — 1st. The building synagogue. 
 should have been either erected for the purpose, 
 or after its erection, should at once have been 
 set apart by proper authority. 2dly. Prayer 
 should be offered up in it, as a building designed 
 for public worship. (The person offering up 
 the prayer, might be even a chance traveller.) 
 When these two conditions were fulfilled, the 
 building was esteemed sacred, and enjoyed all 
 the privileges of a synagogue. 
 
 It was unlawful to pull down a synagogue, 
 even to make room for another; lest, in the 
 
 m Vide Jenning's Antiquities, book ii. chap. 2. There 
 should be ten present at an excommunication ; ten should 
 follow a corpse to the grave ; ten at least should be present at 
 the celebration of the Passover. (Josephtis's Jewish War, 
 book vii. chap. 17. 
 
10 Jewish Places of Prayer. [Part I. 
 
 mean time, some affliction might prevent the 
 building of the new one. Josephus informs us, 
 that the same feeling influenced the Jews, when 
 Herod proposed to rebuild the Temple. 11 
 There were There were frequently many synagogues in 
 many syna- the same city, as for instance, in Alexandria, 
 
 gogues in 
 
 one city, in Damascus. 5 The Talmudists assert that there 
 were four hundred and eighty in Jerusalem ; but 
 whether this were so or not, it is evident from 
 the Acts of the Apostles, q that they were many 
 in number ; we read, " how certain of the 
 synagogue, which is called the Synagogue of 
 the Libertines/ and Cyrenians, and Alexan- 
 drians, and of them of Cilicia, and of Asia 
 arose, disputing with Stephen." These syna- 
 gogues (or, strictly speaking, schools, as appears 
 from their disputing) were founded at Jerusalem, 
 at the expense of Jews living in distant countries, 
 who sent their sons to these schools, to be 
 instructed in the language, and traditions of the 
 Fathers. 
 syna- Sometimes part of a private house was used 
 
 fo°metimes as a synagogue, sometimes an entire house was 
 hoSeT 16 hired for the purpose ; this was generally the 
 case in strange lands, where the Jews were but 
 few in number, and not wealthy enough to 
 
 " Josephus, Antiq. book xiv. chap. 14. 
 
 ° Philo, Leg. ad Caium, p. 783. p Acts ix. 2. 
 
 '' Acts vi. 9. r Vide Appendix, Note(B.) 
 
Chap. II.] Jewish Places of Prayer. 11 
 
 build a synagogue. The primitive Christians 
 followed in this instance, the example set them 
 by the Jews. We learn from the Epistles of 
 the Apostle Paul/ that they met in houses ; and 
 though some commentators suppose, that by the 
 expression Church in a house, (which occurs in 
 many passages) is to be understood, a numerous 
 family converted to Christianity, it is certainly 
 much more in accordance with the meaning 
 usually attached to the word Church (ecclesia), 
 to suppose that congregations of Christians were 
 accustomed to assemble at these respective houses. 
 But whatever be the true meaning of these 
 passages, it is abundantly evident, that the primi- 
 tive Christians did at first assemble in private 
 houses; 1 — they broke bread in private houses; 
 they taught and preached in private houses. 
 There were from the very first, many converts, and 
 from the nature of things, many congregations ; 
 as yet, there was no public place of worship ; 
 they were therefore constrained to meet in the 
 private residences of members of the Church. 
 
 The places set apart by the Jews for private Private 
 
 n j_i . places for 
 
 prayer, were usually rooms in the upper part of p ra yer. 
 their houses, with the windows looking toward 
 the Temple. These rooms are mentioned in 
 both the New and Old Testament. Thus, the 
 
 s Rom. xvi. 3, 5 ; 1 Cor. xvi. 19 ; Col. iv. 15 ; Philemon 2. 
 1 Acts ii. 46 ; v. 42. 
 
12 Jewish Places of Prayer. [Part I. 
 
 room in which our Lord celebrated the last 
 supper, is called by St. Luke "an upper room." u 
 The Apostle Paul preached at Troas, in the 
 third story ; x the room is called, in the 8th verse, 
 " an upper room." When the Apostle Peter 
 retired to pray, it was to the house top/ (it is 
 very likely that in the house of Simon the 
 tanner, a poor man, there was not the accom- 
 modation of a private chamber.) After the 
 ascension of our Lord, the disciples met in "an 
 upper room." 2 
 
 These upper rooms are also mentioned in the 
 Old Testament. When Elijah was with the 
 woman of Zarephta, he abode in an upper 
 room. 3 When Elisha dwelt with the woman of 
 Shunem, (who was a rich woman,) she built for 
 him a little chamber on the wall, and placed 
 therein a bed, a table, a stool, and a candlestick ; 
 to this room the Prophet retired for prayer. b 
 When Darius had forbidden all prayer and sup- 
 plication to God, for the space of thirty days, 
 Daniel, notwithstanding the king's decree, "as- 
 cended into his chamber, and his windows being 
 
 " 'Avoiyeov, Luke xxii. 12. 
 
 * Acts xx. 9 ; in 8th verse, virtpuov. 
 
 y Acts x. 9. z Acts i. 13. 
 
 a Rendered by the Septuagint inrtpfor, 1 Kings xvii. 19. 
 
 * Also rendered inrtpwov, 2 Kings iv. 33. 
 ' virtputor, Dan. vi. 10. 
 
Chap. II.] Jewish Places of Prayer. 13 
 
 open toward Jerusalem, prayed to his God as 
 heretofore." 
 
 The windows of these upper rooms opened Their 
 
 windows 
 
 toward Jerusalem. The Jews considered the opened 
 prayer of Solomon, at the dedication of the Jerusalem. 
 Temple, to be an injunction to this effect : 
 " If thy people .... shall pray unto the Lord 
 toward the city which thou hast chosen, and tozvard 
 the house which I have builded for thy name ; 
 then hear Thou in Heaven their prayer and 
 their supplication, and maintain their cause." d 
 The Jews then turned, in prayer, to Jerusalem, 
 because there was the Temple, there the ark 
 of the covenant, there the mercy-seat, e where 
 Jehovah promised to meet his people. If, how- 
 ever, they were unable at any time to discover 
 the exact direction in which the Temple lay, a 
 canon enjoined to pray to the Father, who is 
 in heaven. Hence, doubtless, the first words 
 of the Lord's prayer ; Our Blessed Lord, wishing 
 that his people should look to their God as no 
 longer manifesting his glory in one particular 
 place, but as dwelling in heaven, and there, 
 through himself, ready to hear their prayers, 
 commands them to pray, saying, " Our Father, 
 which art in heaven." 
 
 d 1 Kings viii. 44, 45. 
 There are several allusions in the New Testament to the 
 mercy-seat (tXaorjjpioi') as a type of the propitiation which is 
 in Christ Jesus. Vide Rom. iii. 25 ; 1 John ii. 2 ; Rev. xi. 19. 
 
14 The Schools. [Part I. 
 
 CHAPTER III. 
 
 The Schools. 
 
 scTook of ^ HE sc h°°l s °f tne ^ ews were of tw o kinds, 
 
 two kinds, public and private ; the former connected with 
 the synagogue ; the latter, the property of some 
 doctor licensed to teach the law. 
 
 MhoS" bll ° ^ ne P UDnc schools were invariably in the 
 same building with the synagogue ; and in places 
 not very populous, the same room answered for 
 the twofold purpose of divine worship, and of 
 scholastic instruction. 
 
 council ^ n times of prosperity, the Jews had not 
 
 only their schools, but also their councils, 
 which, distinct in purpose and form, were held 
 in a different place. When the nation was 
 subjected to the Romans, the authority of the 
 councils ceased. They, however, kept up in 
 the schools, the shadow and semblance of these 
 ancient tribunals ; " not so much for the sake 
 of government as for instruction." a Hence 
 the presiding doctor of the synagogue was 
 
 a Selden de Syned. lib. ii. cap. iv. sec. 10. 
 
Chap. III.] The Schools. 15 
 
 called not only Head of the School, but also, 
 Father of the Council. b 
 
 The presiding doctor had the exclusive right Formation 
 
 of schools. 
 
 to teach, and in general exercised his right ; 
 sometimes, however, he gave to those doctors 
 who were his colleagues, as also to candidate 
 doctors, and even to students, permission to 
 teach and declare their opinions ; sometimes he 
 licensed a doctor to open a new school. The 
 great Sanhedrim at Jerusalem, was the parent of 
 all these schools ; they appointed from their 
 body presiding doctors to new schools ; and from 
 schools thus constituted, others of minor im- 
 portance derived their origin. 
 
 The following customs were observed in the Customs of 
 
 ° _ m the schools. 
 
 schools. The doctors and students sat within a 
 railing ; the presiding doctor in an elevated 
 chair, the disciples at his feet. Those who came 
 for the purpose of hearing the arguments stood 
 without the railing. We meet with several 
 allusions to this custom in the sacred narrative. 
 Our Lord is found by his parents sitting in the 
 midst of the doctors, both hearing them and 
 asking them questions/ St. Paul informs us 
 
 b When the Jews had jurisdiction in civil matters, the 
 presiding doctor of the school was also the president of the 
 council. 
 
 Maimonides, Talmud Thora, cap. iv. sec. 3. 
 
 d Luke ii. 46. 
 
1G The Schools. [Part I. 
 
 that he was brought up at the feet of Gamaliel ; e 
 Mary sat at the feet of Jesus, and heard his 
 words ; f and in the celebrated prophecy of Jacob, 
 it is predicted, that " the sceptre shall not depart 
 from Judah, nor a lawgiver from betxoeen his feet, 
 till Shiloh come." B 
 Mode of The mode of teaching in the schools is thus 
 the C sch£>is! described by Maimonides: h — " If any preceptor 
 be willing to teach his disciples without an 
 interpreter, he may do so ; but if he use an 
 interpreter, the interpreter must stand between 
 the doctor and the pupils. The doctor, in the 
 Hebrew tongue, declares his opinion to the inter- 
 preter, who explains it in the vulgar tongue to 
 all the pupils ; in such a case, all communication 
 between doctor and pupils, must be through the 
 interpreter, who can neither add to, nor take 
 away from, the words of the doctor, nor make the 
 slightest change, except he be his preceptor or 
 parent." 
 Reverence Though very great reverence was paid to the 
 schools, synagogue, it yielded in sanctity to the school ; 
 and hence, though a city abounded with syna- 
 gogues, a doctor would not pray except in 
 the school. To this day it is usual for both 
 master and pupils to celebrate in the school the 
 daily worship of the synagogue. For the same 
 
 * Acts xxii. 3. f Luke x. 39. 
 
 * Gen. xlix. 10. h Talmud Thora, cap. iv. sec. 5. 
 
Chap. III.] The Schools. 17 
 
 reason, though a room might be used as a 
 school from having been a synagogue, the con- 
 trary was not permitted ; it being a maxim with 
 the doctors, that the sanctity of a place could 
 not be diminished. 
 
 There is mention of schools as far back as the Mention of 
 times of the kings. In these times, whenever the times of 
 there arose amongst the people, a prophet, who 
 by the holiness of his life, the efficacy of his 
 doctrine, the frequency of his miracles, or the 
 truth of his prophecies, proved incontestibly his 
 divine mission ; he in general opened a school, 
 in which he instructed a number of disciples ; 
 and on certain occasions, such as new moons, 
 sabbath-days, &c, admitted any persons what- 
 ever, who wished to be instructed in the word of 
 the Lord. On the death of the prophet, some 
 one of his disciples, either specially selected by 
 the Spirit, or eminent for his great learning, 
 succeeded him in the school ; or else (as some- 
 times happened) many of his disciples opened 
 schools, and became themselves masters. 
 
 The history of Elisha, gives nearly all the in- schools 
 formation that is to be obtained, with respect to prophets 
 the schools of the prophets. They were some- s0 
 times in cities, sometimes in deserts, sometimes 
 on the tops of mountains. Thus we read that amesTtbe 
 Elisha stopped for a short time at Jericho, 1 went wlldernecs • 
 
 1 2 Kings ii. 18. 
 C 
 
 in cities, 
 sometimes 
 on moun- 
 
18 The Schools. [Part I. 
 
 from thence to Bethel, thence to Mount Carmel, 
 where he evidently resided for a time. k We 
 read how the sons of the prophets complained 
 to Elisha, that their place of residence was too 
 strait for them ; they said to him, " Let us go, 
 we pray thee, unto Jordan, and take thence 
 every man a beam, and let us make a place 
 there, where we may dwell. And he answered, 
 Go ye." 1 Here is an instance of a school in the 
 wilderness. 
 The sons The disciples in these schools were called, 
 
 of the 1 ' 
 
 prophets, "the Sons of the Prophets;"" 1 they lived with 
 the prophet, were accustomed to take their food 
 in his presence," and sat at his feet to receive 
 instruction. 
 
 The prophets sometimes appointed one of 
 their pupils as their successor, who, upon being 
 appointed, became at once the prophet's constant 
 companion and minister. Thus, when Elisha 
 was ordained by Elijah, to the prophetic office, 
 " he arose, and went after Elijah, and ministered 
 unto him ;" p in the Second Book of Kings, he is 
 said to be the person " who poured water upon 
 the hands of Elijah.'" 1 When Elisha succeeded 
 
 k 2 Kings iv. 25. l 2 Kings vi. 1. 
 
 "' 2 Kings ii. 3, 5. 
 
 n 2 Kings iv. 41, &c. and v. 22. 
 
 ° 2 Kings iv. 38 ; vi. 2 ; where to dwell is literally to sit. 
 
 p 1 Kings xix. 21. q 2 Kings iii. 11. 
 
Chap. III.] The Schools. 19 
 
 to the prophetic office, he chose Gehazi as his 
 servant. 1 ' 
 
 The prophets instructed, not only their dis- 
 ciples, but any persons who sought their counsel. 
 This appears from a passage in the Book of 
 Ezekiel, where the Lord, speaking to the prophet 
 of the conduct of Israel, says ; " They come unto 
 thee as the people cometh, and they sit before 
 thee as my people, and they hear thy words, but 
 they will not do them." s And that there were 
 stated times for consulting the prophet, appears 
 from the answer of the husband of the Shunam- 
 mitish woman. The woman in her grief is most 
 anxious to consult Elisha, and says to her 
 husband ; " Send me, I pray thee, one of the 
 young men, and one of the asses, that I may 
 run to the man of God, and come again.'" The 
 husband answers ; " Wherefore wilt thou go to 
 him to-day ; it is neither new moon nor sabbath ?" 
 
 The schools of the prophets most probably Origin of 
 had their origin in the time of Samuel ; when, the° P °o- C 
 
 phets. 
 
 r 2 Kings iv. 12. Jerome, in one of his epistles (Ad Rusti- 
 cumde Forma Vivendi), says, that the sons of the prophets are 
 the monks of the Old Testament, and that Elijah was the 
 chief of monks. He seems, however, to have overlooked the 
 fact, that though Elijah and Elisha were both of them un- 
 married, the sons of the prophets were not obliged to celibacy. 
 See 2 Kings iv. 1. 
 
 s Chap. xxx. 31. Vide also chaps, viii. 1 ; xiii. 24 ; xiv. 4. 
 
 1 2 Kings iv. 22, 23. 
 
 C 2 
 
20 The Schools. [Part I. 
 
 after a long period of irreligion and moral dark- 
 ness, " the Lord appeared again in Shiloh." We 
 read, indeed, in the Book of Judges, that the 
 children of Israel came up to Deborah the pro- 
 phetess, for judgment ; but the first mention, of 
 a company of prophets, is in the First Book of 
 Samuel. " After that; (saith the prophet to Saul) 
 thou shalt come to the hill of God, where is the 
 garrison of the Philistines ; and it shall come 
 to pass, when thou art come thither to the city, 
 that thou shalt meet a company of prophets 
 coming down from the high place." u When 
 David fled from the anger of Saul, he too met 
 with a company of prophets, at Naioth, in 
 Ramah. x 
 Prophecy We must not, however, suppose that these 
 
 not always . 
 
 a prediction prophets were, in every instance, persons who 
 future. foretold the future. The Hebrew word nablii, 
 which is translated prophet, merely signifies an 
 eloquent discusser. And, indeed, the attentive 
 reader of the Scriptures will easily perceive; that 
 prophecy cannot always mean a prediction of 
 the future ; nor a prophet, one who foretels 
 things to come. Thus Miriam, the sister of 
 Aaron, is called a prophetess; 5 because she was 
 
 u 1 Sam. x. 5- 
 
 * 1 Sam. xix. 18. This school, then, was on a mountain, (as 
 was also that mentioned in the 10th chapter) ; Ramah, as its 
 name imports, being a lofty place. 
 
 y Exod. xv. "20. 
 
Chap. III.] The Schools. 21 
 
 divinely inspired to sing praises to the Lord. 
 The company of prophets that met Saul, ft came 
 down from a high place, with a psaltery, and 
 tabret, and pipe, and harp, before them, and 
 did prophesy;" 2 i.e. influenced by the Spirit, 
 they sang praises to the Lord, accompanied by 
 the instruments of music. But further, not even 
 iS the influence of the Spirit necessary, to con- 
 stitute a prophet, as the word is sometimes used 
 in Scripture. We read that David and his 
 captains separated certain persons to prophesy ; 
 that these persons prophesied, according to the 
 order of the king ; and that their prophecy 
 consisted, in rendering to the Lord praise 
 and thanksgiving. 11 In like manner the Apostle 
 Paul calls Epimenides, the Cretan poet, a pro- 
 phet; 1 " because he composed verses in praise 
 of his gods. 
 
 The schools of the prophets were thus the 
 precursors of the later synagogal schools. Of 
 these prophets ; some were influenced by the 
 Spirit to sing Jehovah's praise, and to celebrate 
 his wonderful works ; to some was given a know- 
 ledge of the future, and to predict things to 
 come; but, generally speaking, the prophets 
 
 1 1 Sam. x. 5. a 1 Chron. xxv. 1, 2, 3. 
 
 b Titus i. 12. 
 
 c Three different words are rendered by the English word 
 prophet, viz. roch, chozeh, and nab hi ; they are all to be found 
 
22 The Schools. [Part I. 
 
 were merely the philosophers of the Jews, who 
 devoted their time, to the cultivation of heavenly 
 wisdom. 
 
 in 1 Chron. xxix. 29. Abraham is the first person called a 
 prophet (nabhi), Gen. xx. 7. 
 
Chap. IV.] The Origin of the Synagogue. 23 
 
 CHAPTER IV. 
 
 The Origin of the Synagogue. 
 The antiquity of the synagogue is a point Synagogue 
 
 very 
 
 universally admitted. " Moses of old time hath ancient. 
 in every city them that preach him, being read 
 in the synagogues every sabbath-day." a The 
 question is, when was it first founded? Some 
 date its institution from the time of Moses ; some 
 make it later ; whilst others deny its existence, 
 till after the Babylonish Captivity. 
 
 That there was public worship before the Public 
 
 t> .worship 
 
 Deluge, appears from a passage m the Book ol before the 
 
 • 1 • r Deluge. 
 
 Genesis, where the inspired writer, speaking 01 
 
 a Acts xv. 21. 
 
 b Gen. iv. 26. This passage is rendered in the margin, 
 " Then men began to call themselves by the name of the 
 Lord ;" and this rendering seems to be supported by Gen. 
 vi. 2, where the worshippers of Jehovah are called the sons of 
 God. But this makes no difference in our position. Men 
 would not call themselves by the name of the Lord, if they did 
 not call upon his name ; and the very title given to them of 
 sons of God ; is in itself a proof, that they were distinct, in their 
 worship and habits, from those that are styled the sons of men. 
 Woodward, in his Essays, supposes the sons of God to have 
 been angels. 
 
2-1 The Origin of the Synagogue. [Part I. 
 
 the times of Enos, says ; " Then began men to 
 call upon the name of the Lord." The meaning 
 of the passage is, that in the time of Enos, men 
 for the first time assembled together for public 
 worship. The phrase, " call upon the name of 
 the Lord," has evidently this force in the book 
 of the prophet Zephaniah : " Then will I turn 
 to the people a pure language, that they may 
 all call upon the name of the Lord, to serve him 
 with one consent.'" 1 
 Worship in When we come to the times of the patriarchs, 
 of the we find that Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, 6 called 
 upon the name of the Lord ; i.e. publicly acknow- 
 ledged him in worship/ The patriarch Jacob 
 even set apart a place for worship/ and gave 
 it the expressive appellation of God's house 
 (Bethel) : h but yet, as in these times, the know- 
 ledge of God was confined to one family, their 
 worship, though public, must in a great measure 
 have partaken of the domestic character ; we 
 must therefore look to later times, for the institu- 
 tion of the synagogue. 
 
 c Joel ii. 32 ; Rom. x. 13. d Chap. iii. 9. 
 
 e Vide Appendix, Note (C) 
 
 ' Gen. xii. 8 ; xiii. 4 ; xxi. 33 ; xxvi. 25. 
 
 g Gen. xxviii. 22. 
 
 h Because there Jehovah manifested his presence. The 
 patriarchs were accustomed to revisit, for the sake of sacrifice 
 and worship, those places where the Lord had appeared unto 
 them. Such places then partook of the nature of the temple 
 rather than of the synagogue. 
 
Chap. IV.] The Origin of the Synagogue. 25 
 
 Jewish writers' universally ascribe to Moses, Jewish 
 
 • • n 1 n t i l writers 
 
 the origin ot the custom, ot reading the law on derive the 
 
 i liii ti i l- synagogue 
 
 the sabbath-day. Josephus thus expresses his from the 
 opinion on the subject : " Our lawgiver per- Moses, 
 mitted the people to leave off their other employ- 
 ments, and to assemble together for the hearing 
 of the law, and learning it exactly ; and this, not 
 once, or twice, or oftener, but every week." k It 
 will be worth while to consider, how far this 
 position is supported by Scripture. 
 
 It is most likely that the opinion was founded Holy con- 
 
 , . . vocation of 
 
 upon those passages, in which there is mention the sabbath 
 
 o ii • i liii n °t * ne 
 
 ot an holy convocation on the sabbath-day. origin of the 
 The first of these occurs in Leviticus, 1 and is as sy 
 follows : " Six days shall work be done : but the 
 seventh day is a sabbath of rest, an holy convo- 
 cation ; ye shall do no work therein : it is the 
 sabbath of the Lord in all your dwellings." The 
 words in the original (mikra kodesh), are rendered 
 by the Septuagint, holy convocation ; m and from 
 
 ' They deduce the custom of reading the law on week-days 
 from Exod. xv. 22 : " They went for three days in the wilder- 
 ness, and found no water." The water (they say) signifies the 
 law. (Isaiah lv. 1.) Lest, then, the people should be three 
 days without hearing the law, services were instituted during 
 the week. The second and fifth days were selected, because 
 on the former, Moses ascended ; and on the latter, descended 
 from Mount Sinai. 
 
 k Against Apion, book ii. sec. 18. 
 
 1 Chap, xxiii. 3. '" kXtjt^ dyia. 
 
26 The Origin of the Synagogue. [Part I. 
 
 hence, several commentators have concluded ; 
 that, in obedience to this command, the Jews 
 assembled every sabbath for public worship, at 
 the door of the Tabernacle. If, however, we 
 carefully investigate the force of the Hebrew 
 word mikra ; we shall find that there is no ground 
 for concluding, from this and similar passages, 
 that the Jews were either commanded, or accus- 
 tomed, to meet together for public worship. The 
 words translated holy convocation, should rather 
 have been rendered a proclamation of holiness ;" 
 i.e. the day shall be proclaimed holy. The 
 word mikra is literally a proclamation ; its root 
 kara signifies to proclaim; and is thus rendered 
 by our translators in several passages. 1 * We 
 cannot therefore fairly argue from the above 
 phrase, that the Jews were accustomed to hold 
 a convocation on the sabbath-day : so far was 
 this from being the case ; that we meet with an 
 express command, that no man shall go out of 
 his place on the seventh day. q 
 
 n The Vulgate gives the correct rendering, vocabitur 
 sanctus. 
 
 ° Viz. by the sound of the trumpet, as was the sabbath-day. 
 
 p Exod. xxxii. 5; Lev. xxv. 10; xxiii. 21 ; Jer. xxxvi. 
 9 ; Joel ii. 15. 
 
 q Exod. xvi. 29. No doubt this command had reference 
 to the gathering of the manna ; but as the observance of the 
 sabbath was prior to the giving of the manna ; it is rather 
 c xtraordinary, (if the Jews were accustomed to meet on the 
 
Chap. IV.] The Origin of the Synagogue. 27 
 
 Some Jewish writers think that they see a Tabernacle 
 type of the synagogue, (or rather of the schools,) gregation 
 in the tabernacle built by Moses, called the Sonfor the 
 Tabernacle of the Congregation. 1 They style it, ^ ua s°s ue - 
 the Tabernacle of the house of instruction ; because 
 (as they say) the Israelites repaired thither for 
 instruction in doctrine. But it does not appear 
 that this tabernacle was set apart for prayer, 
 which is necessary to constitute its likeness to a 
 synagogue ; nor is it recorded, that the Israelites 
 assembled there for instruction, which would 
 constitute its likeness to a school. It was called 
 the Tabernacle of the Congregation ; or, more 
 literally, the Tabernacle of Meeting ( Ohel Mohedh) ; 
 for the same reason as was afterwards the taber- 
 nacle, properly so called, (which was not as yet 
 built) ; not because the children of Israel assem- 
 bled there ; but because Jehovah had declared, 
 " There will I meet you, to speak there unto 
 thee ; and there I will meet with the children of 
 Israel." s To this tabernacle, or tent, built by 
 Moses, far off from the camp ; Moses repaired by 
 himself, to meet Jehovah for instruction ; and 
 every one who sought the Lord ; (not so much in 
 prayer as to consult him in peculiar difficulties) 
 
 sabbath), that the command should be given in such general 
 language, without any reference to the holy convocation. 
 Vide Appendix, Note (D.) 
 
 r Exod. xxxiii. 7, &c. ' Exod. xxix. 42, 43. 
 
Israelites 
 should 
 
 28 The Origin of the Synagogue. [Part I. 
 
 went out alone; "unto the tabernacle of the 
 congregation, which was without the camp.'" 
 Another passage in Exodus is brought forward 
 worship t p rove • that in the time of Moses, the children 
 
 only where x 
 
 Jehovah of Israel met together, at stated times, and in 
 
 placed his 
 
 name. stated places, for prayer, and to hear God's word. 
 " In all places where I record my name, I will 
 come unto thee, and I will bless thee." u This 
 text is understood by some, to be a general ex- 
 hortation to public worship, without any refer- 
 ence to place ; and to mean, " wherever I am 
 worshipped, I will meet you and bless you." x 
 The Latin Vulgate understands it, " In every 
 place where the memory of my name shall be, 
 I will come to thee, and bless thee." If, however, 
 we compare this passage with another in the 
 Book of Deuteronomy/ it will appear quite 
 evident that, instead of there being a permission 
 given, to worship in any place ; the text quoted is, 
 on the contrary, a restriction of worship to one 
 particular place ; viz. that in which Jehovah 
 should record his name, i. e. give a visible sign of 
 his presence and glory : and further, by atten- 
 tively examining the Old Testament, we shall find, 
 that this restriction of worship to one particular 
 place, was enforced, both before and after the 
 
 * Exod. xxxiii. 7- " Exod. xx. 24. 
 
 1 Spencer de Leg. !Ieb. lib. ii. cap. 5. 
 v Chap. xii. 13, 14. 
 
Chap. IV.] The Origin of the Synagogue. 29 
 
 times of Moses. Thus, when the Lord appeared 
 to Abraham, the patriarch built an altar in the 
 place where the Lord appeared unto him ; z some- 
 time after, he pitched his tent in the same place, 
 and there called upon the name of the Lord. a 
 The Lord appeared to Jacob at Bethel ; b and 
 when Jacob rose up early in the morning, " he 
 took the stone that he had put for his pillow, and 
 set it up for a pillar, and poured oil upon the 
 top of it," and made a vow, " that the stone, which 
 he had set up, should be God's house ;" i. e. that 
 there he would sacrifice, and pray unto the Lord. 
 Some time after, the Lord reminded Jacob of his 
 vow, c and commanded him to repair to Bethel ; 
 Jacob obeyed the command, when the Lord 
 again appeared to him, and gave him the promise 
 of a numerous seed, and of the land of Canaan. 
 One instance more, and it is a remarkable one: 
 when the Lord visited Jerusalem with a pesti- 
 lence, he appeared (by his angel) to David, at the 
 threshing-floor of Araunah the Jebusite. d David 
 purchased the threshing floor, built an altar 
 there, offered sacrifice ; when the Lord answered 
 by fire ; thus giving a visible manifestation of his 
 presence, putting his name there. This very 
 threshing - floor was the site of Solomon's 
 
 z Gen. xii. 7. a Gen. xiii. 4. 
 
 b Gen. xxviii. 16. e Gen. xxxv. 1 — 7. 
 
 d 2 Sam. xxiv. 16, &c. 
 
30 The Origin of the Synagogue. [Part I. 
 
 Temple." These instances fully explain the 
 meaning of the passage in Exodus above cited. 
 Public \y e have examined the arguments adduced 
 
 worship not ° 
 
 enjoined for the existence of the synagogue in the time of 
 
 nor pro- ^ ° ° 
 
 vided for in Moses, and have seen that they fail ; and, indeed, 
 
 the books 
 
 of Moses, there are many things, that might lead us to sup- 
 pose that they would fail, — that there could be 
 nothing similar to the synagogue in this period. 
 1st. In the entire five books of Moses, there is 
 not one precept, not one injunction, in refer- 
 ence to prayer. There are instances of indi- 
 viduals offering up prayer; there are forms of 
 prayer and thanksgiving ; but there is not any 
 one express command, enjoining public prayer. 
 2d. We have, recorded, the institution of the 
 priestly office ; the separation of the Levites for 
 divine purposes ; and yet the duties of the priests 
 are altogether confined to the tabernacle : and 
 the Levites ; f (instead of being distributed amongst 
 the people, and located in the different cities and 
 villages, for the purpose of ministering in the 
 various congregations) are ordered to dwell by 
 themselves in forty-eight cities ; the cities of the 
 other tribes, being in many instances, far distant 
 from any city of the Levites. Their duties, too, 
 have all reference to the tabernacle, the priests, 
 the sacrifices ; without as much as an incidental 
 
 e 1 Chron. xxi. 26. r Vide Appendix, Note (E.) 
 
Chap. IV.] The Origin of the Synagogue. 31 
 
 mention of duties similar to those, to be fulfilled 
 in the synagogue. 3d. The children of Israel 
 are commanded to hear the law read to them, 
 once every seven years/ Now, is not this a 
 presumptive argument against the existence of 
 the synagogue, either in the time, or even in the 
 intention of Moses ? If there was the weekly 
 reading of the law ; where the necessity for 
 reading it, once in every seven years, at the feast 
 of tabernacles ? h 
 
 A passage from the Book of Judges is referred No proof of 
 
 Gxistcnc6 of* 
 
 to as proving, that in the times of the judges, the syna- 
 there was a worship distinct from that of the the times of 
 tabernacle, and in all probability corresponding 
 to that of the synagogue : it is where " the 
 children of Israel are said to have gathered 
 together, as one man, unto the Lord in Mizpeh." 1 
 It is concluded, that as the tabernacle was at 
 this time at Shiloh ; the meeting, at Mizpeh, must 
 have been for a worship quite different from that 
 of the tabernacle. But if we attentively examine 
 
 g Deut. xxxi. 11, 12. 
 
 h One custom of the synagogue evidently had its origin from 
 the above command ; viz. the custom of commencing the book 
 of the law, at the feast of tabernacles. 
 
 1 Judges xx. 1. David Kimchi assigns as the reason for 
 the Israelites meeting at Mizpeh, the fact, of Joshua having 
 erected an altar there, to commemorate his greatest victory. 
 (Joshua xi. 3.) But the Mizpeh in the Book of Joshua is 
 quite a different place, from that mentioned in the Book of 
 Judges. 
 
32 The Origin of the Synagogue. [Part I. 
 
 the various passages, 1 " in which the Israelites are 
 said to have met at Mizpeh ; we shall find that 
 this meeting was for deliberation, and not for wor- 
 ship ; and that Shiloh was the place for prayer, 
 and for offering sacrifice unto the Lord. 
 Meaning of But it may be asked ; How can the children of 
 
 the phrase, 
 
 " before Israel be said to have gathered together, unto the 
 
 the Lord." ° & 
 
 Lord; if it were not for a religious purpose ? In 
 answer to this objection, it will be sufficient to 
 remark, that sometimes in Scripture, a thing is 
 said to have been done unto the Lord, or before 
 the Lord, when it was clone openly and publicly. 
 Thus a league is made at Hebron, between David 
 and the Elders of Israel, before the Lord, 1 i. e. 
 publicly ; the children of Israel made Saul 
 king, before the Lord, in Gilgal : m or to give an 
 instance where there cannot be the slightest 
 doubt as to the meaning of the phrase; Nimrod 
 is said to have been a mighty hunter before the 
 Lord;" the inhabitants of Sodom and Gomorrah 
 were sinners before the Lord, i. e. notorious 
 public transgressors. The people of Israel 
 then assembled unto the Lord, i. e. publicly ; at 
 Mizpeh ; it was a publicly convened assembly ; 
 
 k Judges xi. 11. 1 Sam. vii. 5; x. 17, &c 
 
 1 2 Sam. v. 3. m 1 Sam. xi. 15. n Gen. x. 9. 
 
 Gen. xiii. 13. Similarly Moses is said (in the Acts of the 
 
 Apostles) to have been "fair to God,''' i. e> exceeding fair, 
 
 vii. 20. 
 
Chap. IV.] The Origin of the Synagogue. 33 
 
 and as they met for deliberation, and not for 
 worship ; we cannot fairly deduce from the pas- 
 sage under consideration, the existence of the 
 synagogue in those days. 
 
 We come now to the kings. We have strong The syna- 
 
 c i i i i g°o ue did 
 
 proofs that there were not in their tunes stated not exist in 
 places of prayer ; and probably there cannot be fthe 
 a stronger one than the silence of Scripture. We appeal 
 have the history of this period in the Books of Sa- 
 muel, of Kings, and of Chronicles ; we have also 
 the writings of David, of Solomon, and of the 
 Prophets. We have, recorded in these books, the 
 various occurrences which befel the Jewish people, 
 as also many of their religious customs ; and yet 
 there is no mention of a synagogue, no reference 
 to it ; but on the contrary, many things to lead 
 us to the supposition, that in these times it was 
 not in existence. And, 
 
 1. There is, in one of the books of these times, i. From 
 (viz. the Lamentations of Jeremiah) a melan- mentations 
 choly picture of the miserable and desolate con- m iah ; 
 dition of the Jews, in their captivity. The inspired, 
 writer laments the devastation of Judaea, the 
 overthrow of the nation, the destruction and 
 profanation of the Temple ; but there is no men- 
 tion of the uprooting of the synagogue, no 
 expression of grief, that the people were now 
 deprived of their weekly worship, and precluded 
 from hearing the law. The burden of the 
 
 D 
 
34 The Origin of the Synagogue. [Part I. 
 
 prophet's lamentation is, that " the adversary 
 hath spread out his hands upon all her pleasant 
 things ; for she hath seen that the heathen 
 entered into her sanctuary, whom thou didst 
 command that they should not enter into thy 
 congregation." 11 And again ; " He hath violently 
 taken away his tabernacle, as if it were a 
 garden ; he hath destroyed his places of as- 
 sembly (literally, the place of his assembly, i. e. 
 the temple) ; the Lord hath caused the solemn 
 feasts and sabbaths to be forgotten in Zion 
 
 The Lord hath cast off his altar, he hath 
 abhorred his sanctuary.'" 1 How account for the 
 prophet's silence respecting the synagogue, but 
 by its non-existence ? 
 2. Fromtiie 2. Public fasts were observed by the Jews 
 
 observance . . . 
 
 of fasts in before the Babylonish captivity, and observed 
 
 the Temple ; . • i -i • m ^ mi • i not 
 
 invariably m the 1 emple. 1 hus, m the nith year 
 of Jehoiakim, king of Judah, a fast was proclaimed 
 " to all the people in Jerusalem, and to all the 
 people that came from the cities of Judah unto 
 Jerusalem. Then read Baruch in the book the 
 
 words of Jeremiah, in the house of the Lord 
 
 at the entry of the new gate of the Lord's house, 
 in the ears of the people." r Jehoshaphat, too, 
 proclaimed a fast, and " Judah gathered them- 
 selves together, to ask help of the Lord : even 
 out of all the cities of Judah they came to seek 
 
 11 Lam. i. 10. '» Lam. ii. 0, 7. r Jer. xxxvi. 9, 10. 
 
Chap. IV.] The Origin of the Synagogue. 35 
 
 the Lord. And Jehoshaphat stood in the con- 
 gregation of Judah and Jerusalem, in the house of 
 the Lord" 5 When the prophet Joel exhorts the 
 people to keep a solemn fast, it is the Temple 
 that is mentioned as the place of its observance. 
 " Sanctify a fast, call a solemn assembly, gather 
 the elders and all the inhabitants of the land, 
 into the house of the Lord your God. ,n Now, a 
 fast could be observed in the synagogue as well 
 as in the Temple. The very fact, then, that the 
 Jews in every instance came up to Jerusalem to 
 keep the fasts, is a presumption against the 
 existence of synagogues in those days. 
 
 3. From the time of Rehoboam the people of 3. From 
 
 i ii j " le prevail- 
 
 Israel lived in the grossest idolatry ; they rivalled i ng idolatry 
 
 , . , of those 
 
 the idolatrous Canaamtes, in their groves and times; 
 high places. u Pious kings endeavoured to stem 
 the torrent of iniquity, but their endeavours were 
 in a great measure unavailing. Now, such a 
 state of things is quite inconsistent with a weekly 
 reading of the law, and a weekly worship in the 
 synagogue. 
 
 4. Jehoshaphat, in the third year of his reign, 4. From 
 
 ... . . . the mission 
 
 " sent to his princes to teach in the cities f Jehosha- 
 
 of Judah, and with them he sent Levites, even p a 
 Shemaiah, &c and with them Elishama 
 
 5 2 Chron. xx. 3, 4, 5. ' Joel i. 14. 
 
 u 2 Chron. xxiv. 6, 7. 1 Kings xiv. 23 ; xv. 14 ; xxii. 4 3. 
 2 Kings xxiii. 19. 
 
 d2 
 
30 The Origin of the Synagogue. [Part I. 
 
 and Jehoram, priests ; and they taught in Judah, 
 and had the book of the law of the Lord with 
 them, and went about throughout all the cities 
 of Judah, and taught the people." x It appears 
 from the circumstances of the history, that this 
 was an unusual act. The pious king saw that 
 his subjects were ignorant of the law of the 
 Lord, and took steps to instruct them : for this 
 purpose he sent priests and Levites, who brought 
 the book of the law with them. Now, if there 
 were synagogues in existence at this time, whence 
 this deplorable ignorance ? whence the neces- 
 sity for such a mission ? whence the necessity of 
 carrying about a copy of the law, if (as we must 
 suppose) there was a copy in every synagogue ? 
 This mission of Jehoshaphat, then, is an un- 
 answerable argument against the existence of 
 the synagogue in his days. 
 5. From 5. The pious and good king Josiah had 
 and fear of ordered the Temple to be repaired : while the 
 finding die work was in progress, the book of the law was 
 ia°w ; ° e found by Hilkiah, the high priest, and read by 
 Shaphan, the scribe, before the king. " And it 
 came to pass, when the king had heard the 
 words of the book of the law, that he rent his 
 clothes ; and the king commanded Hilkiah the 
 priest, &c go ye, inquire of the Lord for me, 
 
 * 2 Chron. xvii. 7, 8, 9. 
 
Chap. IV.] The Origin of the Synagogue. 37 
 
 and for the people, and for all Judah, concerning 
 the words of this book that is found." y " And 
 the king sent, and they gathered unto him all 
 the elders of Judah and of Jerusalem, and the 
 king went up into the house of the Lord, and all 
 the men of Judah and all the inhabitants of Jeru- 
 salem with him, and the priests, and the prophets, 
 and all the people, both small and great ; and 
 he read in their ears all the words of the book of 
 the covenant, which was found in the house of 
 the Lord." 2 Now, from this history it appears 
 that the law was a sealed book, not only to the 
 people, but also to the priests ; else why such 
 wonder at finding the book of the law ? Whence 
 the terror of king Josiah, when he heard it read ? 
 Why the inquiring of the Lord concerning the 
 words of the book ? Why the gathering toge- 
 ther of the people to hear it read ? These 
 things can only be accounted for, by supposing, 
 that before the finding of this book, there was an 
 utter ignorance of the law, its precepts, and its 
 sanctions ; and, that the sudden hearing of 
 Jehovah's commands and denunciations filled 
 both king and people, with alarm and fear. 
 Some commentators are of opinion, that it was 
 a copy written by Moses himself, that was found 
 by Hilkiah ; but then, we are not told that the 
 
 v 2 Kings xxii< 11, &c. ' 2 Kings xxiii. 1, 2. 
 
38 Tlie Origin of the Synagogue. [Part I. 
 
 king and the priests were struck with any fear 
 and reverence on account of the antiquity of the 
 copy : the contents of the volume caused all the 
 alarm. Other commentators suppose, that Hil- 
 kiah discovered the volume, lying opened in 
 the place where the Lord pronounces a curse 
 against his people if they forsake him. 8 But this 
 is mere supposition. How reconcile it with the 
 exclamation of Hilkiah, " I have found the book 
 of the law ?" The most natural solution is, that 
 there was great ignorance of the law, a scarcity — 
 in fact, a dearth of copies/ and thus several 
 things enjoined in the law fell into disuse ; the 
 sabbath was disregarded, the passover neglected. 
 Now, such ignorance of the law, such wonder, 
 such sudden terror at its precepts and denun- 
 ciations, such neglect, could not have been, had 
 the synagogue existed in these days. 
 
 6. We brought forward as an argument against 
 the existence of the synagogue in the time of 
 Moses, the fact, that the duties assigned by him 
 to the Levites, had all of them reference to the 
 tabernacle. The same argument holds good in 
 the present instance. We have, recorded/ the 
 duties assigned to the Levites in the reign of 
 
 a Deut. xxviii. 36. 
 This is not to be wondered at, considering the impiety of 
 the two preceding reigns. 
 
 c 2 Kings xxiii. 21, &c. d 1 Chron. xxiii. 24, 
 
Chap. IV.] The Origin of the Synagogue. 39 
 
 Solomon, and they all refer to the Temple, the 
 sacrifices, &c, without the slightest allusion to 
 the synagogue. 
 
 There is a passage in the Psalms, in which objection 
 
 r , from a 
 
 (according to the Authorized Version) express passage 
 
 V fe . . in the 
 
 mention is made of the synagogue ; it occurs m p 8a ims. 
 the 74th Psalm, and 8th verse : " They have 
 burnt up all the synagogues of God in the land." 
 Now, as this Psalm depicts the miserable state of 
 the Jewish people in their captivity, if the Autho- 
 rized Version be correct, this passage alone is an 
 answer to all our arguments. But, on looking to 
 the original, we shall find that the words rendered 
 synagogues of God, signify literally, the places 
 of meeting God, (i. e. the places where Jehovah 
 promised to meet his people,) and thus, strictly 
 speaking, are applicable only to the Temple. 
 The Hebrew noun being in the plural number 
 does not interfere with this interpretation; for 
 two plural nouns are used to designate the 
 Temple in this very Psalm, and one of them the 
 noun under consideration. 
 
 We must look, then, for the origin of the Synagogue 
 
 dtitcs its 
 
 synagogue, to the times subsequent to the Baby- origin from 
 
 . . . , . . i j the times 
 
 lonish captivity; 6 and, upon examining the records f Ezra; 
 
 c Jewish writers, anxious as they are to establish the anti- 
 quity of the synagogue, are obliged to confess as much ; for 
 they are forced to acknowledge, that most of its forms and 
 customs have been derived from Ezra. Thus they ascribe to 
 
40 The Origin of the Synagogue. [Part I. 
 
 of these times, we shall find a perfect model of 
 the synagogue, any thing like which we in vain 
 seek for, in the history of earlier periods. In the 
 Book of Nehemiah/ we meet with the following 
 statement : " And all the people gathered them- 
 selves together as one man, into the street that 
 was before the water-gate ; and they spake unto 
 Ezra the scribe, to bring the book of the law of 
 Moses, which the Lord had commanded to 
 Israel. And Ezra the priest brought the law 
 before the congregation, both of men and women, 
 and all that could hear with understanding, upon 
 the first day of the seventh month. And he 
 read therein before the street that was before 
 the water-gate, from the morning until mid-day, 
 before the men and the women, and those that 
 could understand ; and the ears of all the people 
 were attentive unto the book of the law. And 
 Ezra the scribe stood upon a pulpit of wood, 
 which they had made for the purpose ; and 
 
 beside him stood Mattithiah, &c on his 
 
 right hand ; and on his left hand, Pedaiah, &c. 
 .... And Ezra opened the book in the sight 
 of all the people, (for he was above all the 
 people,) and when he opened it, all the people 
 stood up ; and Ezra blessed the Lord the great 
 
 him the introduction of verses, points, and accents ; of forms, 
 and stated times of prayer. 
 ' Neb. viii. 1, 2, 3, &c. 
 
Chap. IV.] The Origin of the Synagogue. 4 1 
 
 God ; and all the people answered, Amen, Amen, 
 with lifting up their hands ; and they bowed 
 their heads, and worshipped the Lord with their 
 faces to the ground. Also Jeshua .... and 
 the Levites caused the people to understand the 
 law ; and the people stood in their place. So 
 they read in the book in the law of God dis- 
 tinctly, and gave the sense, and caused them to 
 understand the reading." We have in these 
 verses a perfect model of the synagogue. 1st. 
 The pulpit of wood, elevated above the people. 
 2d. The reading of the law by Ezra and the 
 other doctors. 8 3d. The explanation of the law. 
 4th. Praise and thanksgiving. 5th. The people 
 answering, Amen. 
 
 There are many circumstances which prove, 
 that after the Babylonish captivity there was a 
 revival of religion amongst the Jews ; and there- 
 fore justify us, in looking to this period, for the 
 origin of the synagogue. And, 
 
 1. The number of copies of the Sacred As appears, 
 
 1 1. from the 
 
 Scriptures. Before the captivity there was a great number of 
 
 copies of 
 
 scarcity, — so much so, that the discovery of a the Scrip- 
 
 1 i n i_ tures m 
 
 copy was the cause ot wonder and tear; but these times; 
 after this chastisement, the word of God was 
 valued, and copies became numerous. Hence we 
 meet with frequent mention of the Scriptures in 
 the Books of the Maccabees : " The books of 
 
 s Neh. ix. 3, 4. 
 
42 
 
 The Origin of the Synagogue. 
 
 [Part 1. 
 
 2. From 
 the num- 
 ber of 
 scribes ; 
 
 the law which they found they burnt with fire ;" h 
 and again, Jonathan says, in his letter to the 
 Lacedaemonians, " We have the holy books of 
 Scripture in our hands to comfort us." 1 
 
 2. The number of scribes. The scribes 
 were men who devoted much time to the study 
 of the law. Thus Ezra is said to have been 
 " a scribe skilled in the law of Moses." k That 
 there were many such after the captivity, appears 
 from a passage in the First Book of Maccabees, 
 where we are informed, that there " assembled 
 unto Alcimus and Bacchides a company of scribes, 
 to require justice." 1 
 3. From 3. The public reading of the law. Two 
 
 the public . x # ° 
 
 reading of instances of this occur in the Book of Nehemiah ; 
 
 the law. 
 
 in the first instance, the reading was continued 
 during the whole feast of tabernacles;" 1 the 
 second instance occurs in the thirteenth chapter, 
 where we are informed, that they again " read in 
 the book of Moses, in the audience of the people." 
 Whether from the very first the law was read 
 every sabbath-day, does not appear from the 
 inspired records ; it is more probable, that at the 
 first, the law was read only during the festivals, 
 when the whole nation was assembled at 
 Jerusalem. 
 
 h 1 Mace. i. 56. ' 1 Mace. xii. 9. k Ezra vii. 6. 
 
 1 Chap. vii. 12. m Neh. viii. 18. 
 
Chap. IV. The Origin of the Synagogue. 43 
 
 These considerations lead us to date the origin First syna- 
 
 gogues 
 
 of the synagogue from the time of Ezra. Cer- were m 
 
 Gentile 
 
 tainly the first account we have ot the reading countri 
 of the law in public, is in the passage from 
 Nehemiah quoted above ; upon this occasion, the 
 law was read in the public street. Now, many 
 of the Jews did not return after the captivity, 
 but continued to live amongst the heathen ; of 
 course, then, they could not openly fulfil the 
 duties of religion, and were of necessity com- 
 pelled to hear the law, in private houses. Hence 
 it is likely, that the first synagogues were built 
 in heathen countries ; in time their number and 
 magnificence increased, so " that it was not easy 
 to find a place in the habitable globe, in which 
 there was not a synagogue." 11 
 
 n Josephus, Antiq. book xiv. chap. 12. See also his Jewish 
 War, bookvii. chap. 21. 
 
44 
 
 The Furniture of the Synagogue. [Part 1. 
 
 CHAPTER V. 
 
 The Furniture of the Synagogue. 
 
 Principal 
 articles of 
 furniture 
 four in 
 number. 
 
 The ark. 
 
 The principal articles of furniture in a syna- 
 gogue were four in number. 1. The Ark, or 
 chest, in which the book of the law was kept. 
 
 2. The Pulpit, from which the law was read. 
 
 3. The Seats, for the accommodation of the 
 congregation ; and 4. the Lamps, by which the 
 synagogue was lighted. 
 
 ] . The Ark, or chest, in which the book of 
 the law was kept. The ark was placed at the 
 end of the synagogue which looked toward 
 Jerusalem, and was, as nearly as possible, a fac- 
 simile of the sacred ark in the Temple. As in 
 the Temple, none of the inspired records were 
 admitted inside the ark, but the Ten Command- 
 ments engraved on the two tables of stone ; so 
 in the synagogue, the books of Moses alone 
 were admitted inside the ark, — the other sacred 
 volumes were altogether excluded : and as the 
 worshipper, entering the Temple, bowed in 
 reverence toward the holy of holies, and to the 
 
Chap. V.] The Furniture of the Synagogue. 45 
 
 ark therein, on which rested the cloud of glory ; 
 so the worshipper, on entering the synagogue, 
 bowed towards the ark, looking upon it as the 
 emblem of that ark, on which rested the symbol 
 of the Divine presence. 
 
 2. The Pulpit. In front of the ark, there was The pulpit. 
 a platform capable of containing many persons ; 
 
 and on this platform a pulpit or desk, from which 
 the law was read and sermons preached. The 
 book of the law was placed upon this pulpit ; 
 the reader stood behind, and on either side the 
 interpreters. a 
 
 3. The Seats. The order of sitting is thus The seats. 
 described by Maimonides : b " The elders sit with 
 
 their backs to the ark, facing the people ; the 
 people with their faces towards the ark." c The 
 seats of the elders were sometimes most costly/ 
 In the synagogue of Alexandria they were of 
 gold, covered with the richest gems ; the cost 
 of each being twenty-five myriads of golden 
 denarii. 6 The people sat according to their 
 
 a Neh. viii. 7. b Hilcoth Tephila, cap. xi. sec. 1. 
 
 c This order of sitting is not always observed in modern 
 synagogues. In a German synagogue, Vitringa remarked 
 that the seats for the people did not face the ark, but ran 
 parallel to the sides of the building. 
 
 d Our Lord alludes to these seats, when he accuses the 
 Pharisees of loving the chief seats in the synagogue. Matt, 
 xxiii. 6. 
 
 e Talmud Hieros in Gem. cap. i. 
 
46 The Furniture of the Synagogue. [Part I. 
 
 rank ; f for instance, those of the same trade sat 
 together. The women were separated from the 
 men ; they sat in a kind of gallery, screened 
 with lattice-work, so that they could hear and 
 see without being seen. 
 The lamps. 4. The Lamps. These were lighted not only 
 in the evening, but also by day; probably in 
 imitation of the lights of the Temple. It was 
 considered a most honourable thing, for an indi- 
 vidual to light up a synagogue at his own 
 expense. The greatest care was observed in the 
 lighting ; the oil and candles were to be of the 
 best description, and free from all profanation. 
 The most superstitious respect was paid to these 
 lights; it was illegal, for instance, to light a 
 private lamp or candle from a light in the 
 synagogue. 
 
 On sabbath and festival days, lights were 
 burned not only in the synagogues, but also in 
 
 f It appears from the Epistle General of St. James, that the 
 primitive Christians introduced this custom into their places of 
 worship ; and the Apostle strongly censures it : — " If there 
 come unto your assembly (literally synagogue) a man with a 
 gold ring, in goodly apparel, and there come in also a poor 
 man in vile raiment ; and ye have respect to him that weareth 
 the gay clothing, and say unto him, Sit thou here in a good 
 place ; and say to the poor man, Stand thou there, or sit 
 here under my footstool : are ye not, then, partial in your- 
 selves, and are become judges of evil thoughts ?" — Chap, 
 ii. 2—4. 
 
Chap. V.] The Furniture of the Synagogue. 47 
 
 private houses. Persius alludes to this custom 
 in his Fifth Satire : — 
 
 " But Herod's feast returns ! How changed thou art ! 
 Now superstition lords it o'er thy heart. 
 Now lamps, with violets decked, in rows depend ; 
 And from each window greasy clouds ascend. 
 Now the red dish within its circling rim 
 Beholds the tail of some poor tunny swim. 
 Now the white earthen vessel swells with wine, 
 And thou in folly stand'st prepared to join. 
 Strictly observant of the curtailed race, 
 Lo ! thee, with anguish brooding on thy face ; 
 Pale turns thy cheek with idle empty frights, 
 While thy lips move, and mutter Jewish rites." g 
 
 The Jews considered this burning of lights in 
 their private dwellings to be a most important 
 duty ; they would beg from door to door, that it 
 might not be neglected. Their women had in 
 general the management of the lamps ; and it was 
 
 s " Herodis venere dies, unctaque fenestra 
 
 Dispositse pinguem nebulam vomuere lucernse, 
 Portantes violas ; rubrumque amplexa catinum 
 Cauda natat thynni ; tumet alba fidelia vino ; 
 Labra moves tacitus, recutitaque sabbata palles." 
 
 Line 180, &c. 
 The Dies Herodis mean the festival days of the Jews in 
 general ; so called because Herod Agrippa was the best known 
 of the Jewish nation to the Romans. It appears from the 
 above passage that some Romans had been infected with this 
 Jewish superstition, and hence Seneca says deridingly, in one 
 of his epistles, " We would prevent this burning of lights 
 on the sabbath-days, since neither do the gods want light, nor 
 are men pleased with smoke." — Epistle 95. 
 
43 The Furniture of the Synagogue. [Part 1. 
 
 superstitiously supposed to be a reason for their 
 dying in childbearing, " that they had not been 
 attentive in burning the sabbath lights." 
 
 The most remarkable exhibition of this kind, 
 was at the feast of the dedication of the Temple, 
 hence called by Josephus, h <pwra (i. e. lights). 
 During this feast, they lighted lamps at the 
 doors of their houses ; in acknowledgment of 
 the mercy of that God ; who had restored to the 
 Temple its candlestick, and to his people their 
 worship. 
 Minor The minor 1 articles of furniture in the syna- 
 
 articles of 
 
 furniture, gogue were likewise four m number. 1. The 
 Sacred Volume. 2. The Trumpets. 3. The 
 Vail. 4. The Alms' chest. 
 
 The sacred 1. The Sacred Volume, containing the five 
 books of Moses. It consisted of a number of 
 skins sewed together; the first and last being 
 each fastened to a roller of wood. In writing a 
 copy of the law for the use of the synagogue, 
 the greatest care was necessary, the least omis- 
 sion or redundance causing the rejection of the 
 manuscript. Their caution, in fact, amounted to 
 superstition. There should be a certain space 
 between the lines, a certain space between the 
 letters, a certain number of letters in each line, 
 
 h Antiquities, book xii. chap. 11. 
 
 1 i. e. esteemed as such by the Jewish rabbies. It is remark- 
 able that the Sacred Volume should be in the list. 
 
Chap. V.] The Furniture of the Synagogue. 49 
 
 a certain number of lines in each column ; the 
 very parchment, upon which it should be written, 
 was most scrupulously described. Maimonides 
 mentions twenty conditions, any one of which 
 not being observed, caused the rejection of the 
 manuscript. k We may trace, however, in this 
 excessive caution, the finger of Providence : for 
 these conditions, being always fulfilled to the 
 letter, afford the strongest possible proof; that 
 the inspired volume has come down to us unim- 
 paired, though passing through the hands of a 
 people, who made it void by their traditions. 
 
 As great care was taken of the sacred volume, Great re- 
 
 . . , . T , wrence 
 
 so great honour was paid to it. It was preserved paid to it. 
 
 in a linen covering, studded with gold or silver 
 
 ornaments. The congregation was expected to 
 
 remain, till it was replaced in the ark : or if, (as 
 
 sometimes happened) the synagogue had no safe 
 
 depository for it, none could leave the synagogue 
 
 till it had been first carried out ; and then the 
 
 entire congregation should accompany it to its 
 
 place. ' And finally, when it had become worn 
 
 by frequent use ; it was placed in an earthen 
 
 vessel, and buried in the sepulchre of some 
 
 renowned doctor. 
 
 2. The Trumpets. Of these there were two The trum- 
 pets of two 
 
 kinds. 
 k Hilcoth Tepbil, chap. x. sec. 1. 
 
 1 This, however, was not strictly enforced, unless the syna- 
 gogue had but one door. 
 
 E 
 
50 
 
 The Furniture of the Synagogue. [Part I. 
 
 Cornets 
 used at ex- 
 communi- 
 cation ; 
 
 To pro- 
 claim the 
 new year. 
 
 kinds ; the Shopheroth, or Cornets, and the Chat- 
 seroth, or Trumpets properly so called. Both are 
 mentioned in the 98th Psalm, " With trumpets 
 and sound of a cornet, make a joyful noise before 
 the Lord the King."™ The Cornet was curved, 
 (originally a ram's horn); theTrumpet was straight, 
 (made of metal, generally silver)." They were 
 each used for a twofold purpose ; the Cornet, at 
 excommunication, and to proclaim the new year ; 
 the Trumpet, at the fasts, and to announce the 
 approach of the Sabbath. 
 
 1. At Excommunication. This was, strictly 
 speaking, a punishment of the synagogue ; and 
 hence excommunicated persons were called Apo- 
 sunagogoi, i. e. put out of the synagogue ; ° 
 because the punishment consisted in expulsion 
 from the synagogue, and not from the Temple. p 
 It was inflicted by order of the council; but 
 that the punishment might be the more severe 
 by being more public, the sentence of the council 
 was proclaimed with the sound of the Cornet, to 
 the congregation assembled in the synagogue. 
 
 2. To Proclaim the New Year. On the 
 first day of every year, i.e. on the first day of the 
 month Tisri,' 1 the Cornets were sounded in all 
 
 m Verse 6. n Numb. x. 2. 
 
 c dirocrvvctywyoi, John ix. 22 ; xii. 42. 
 
 p Vide Jenning's Jewish Antiquities, book ii. chap. iii. 
 
 q Viz., the seventh civil month. 
 
Chap. V.] The Furniture of the Synagogue. 51 
 
 the congregations of the children of Israel, 
 whether in the land of Canaan or not. The 
 Jews considered this Mowing of the Cornet to be 
 commanded in the Book of Numbers ; r " And 
 in the seventh month, on the first day of the 
 month, ye shall have an holy convocation ; ye 
 shall do no servile work : it is a day of blowing 
 the trumpets (cornets) unto you." 8 It was ne- 
 cessary that every individual should hear the 
 sound, but he need not be in the synagogue, 
 provided he heard with attention. The custom 
 is observed to this very day. If the first day of 
 the new year happen to be a Sabbath day ; out 
 of respect to the Sabbath, no blowing of Cornets 
 is permitted. 
 
 The Trumpets also were used for a twofold 
 purpose : — 
 
 1. At the Fasts. In the Book of Numbers Trum- 
 the children of Israel are commanded ; " If ye P e.iy so' 
 go to war in your land against the enemy that used at tie 
 oppresseth you, then ye shall blow an alarm 
 with the Trumpets ; and ye shall be remembered 
 before the Lord your God, and ye shall be saved 
 from your enemies."' Hence they concluded, 
 that whenever any affliction pressed upon their 
 
 r Chap. xxix. 1. 
 
 8 In the Temple two trumpets were joined to the Comet ; 
 but the sound of the Cornet should predominate. 
 £ Chap. x. 9. 
 
 E 2 
 
52 
 
 The Furniture of the Synagogue. [Part I. 
 
 To pro- 
 claim the 
 sabbath. 
 
 The Vail. 
 
 The Alms' 
 chests. 
 
 Tablets in 
 syna- 
 gogues. 
 
 Libraries 
 attached 
 to syna- 
 gogues. 
 
 church, they should blow the Trumpet before 
 the Lord." 
 
 2. To Announce the approach of the Sab- 
 bath. For this purpose the Trumpet sounded 
 six times, a certain preparation being to be made 
 after each sounding. 
 
 3. The Vail was a conspicuous ornament in 
 every synagogue. It hung before the recess in 
 which the ark was placed; no doubt in imitation 
 of the vail of the Temple. 
 
 4. The Alms' chests were placed, sometimes 
 within the synagogue, but generally at the door. 
 The alms received, were appropriated to two 
 different purposes ; part to the relief of the 
 poor brethren residing in the land of Judaea, 
 the rest to the relief of the poor members of the 
 congregation. 
 
 In some synagogues there were Tablets, on 
 which were inscribed the names of benefactors, 
 as also of those, who had been excommunicated 
 or denounced for any crime. 
 
 Libraries were frequently attached to syna- 
 gogues. The celebrated synagogue of Ezekiel 
 had one most copiously furnished. Married per- 
 sons anxious for children, were accustomed to 
 dedicate their books, in order that they might be 
 blessed with an offspring. 31 
 
 Vide Joel ii. 15. x Benjamin Tudelensis Itiner. 79. 
 
Chap. VI.] The Government of the Synagogue. 53 
 
 CHAPTER VI. 
 
 The Government of the Synagogue. 
 
 In early ages, the Regal and Judicial offices in early 
 seem to have been generally vested in the same andjudtcwi 
 person. This union of offices was sanctioned by un i te d. 
 Moses ; a it was adopted by the Israelites, " Make 
 us a king to judge us, like all the nations;" 1 ' it 
 was common amongst the Gentiles." In the 
 latter times of the Jewish commonwealth, this 
 union still continued ; thus the members of 
 the Jewish council are styled by Josephus/ not 
 only (archen) the magistracy or executive, but 
 also (kritas) the judges. 
 
 Every Jewish city of any repute had its Every 
 council, which sat in the chief synagogue of the of repute 
 city ; and as in the Jewish polity, church and COU ncii of 
 state were not only intimately united, but were, J^Jiii 
 in fact, identical ; this council had supreme 
 
 a Deut. xxi. 6, 19, 21 ; xxii. 15, 1G, 18 ; xxv. 7, 8. 
 
 b 1 Sam. viii. 5, 6. 
 
 c Livy, lib. i. cap. 26, raptus in jus ad regem. 
 
 d Antiq. book iv. chap. 8. 
 
54 The Government of the Synagogue. [Part I. 
 
 authority in all matters, whether ecclesiastical or 
 civil. Each council had its President or Patri- 
 arch. Its members were styled Presbyters, or 
 Elders. 
 This ap- That such was the nature of the Jewish 
 
 pears from . . 
 
 the history councils, and such the names given to their 
 sannah ; members, appears from many sources. We will 
 cite, in the first place, as the most ancient tes- 
 timony, the Apocryphal Book of Susannah. In 
 this book we read of two Elders, (presbyteri,) 
 who were wont to meet at the house of Joacim, 
 to judge the people. 6 Though the history is 
 fabulous, still it is likely, that it was composed so 
 as to be conformable to the customs of the 
 times, in which it was written. 
 From Our next testimony will be from Philo. He, 
 
 Philo ; 
 
 (in his Life of Moses,) commenting on the judg- 
 ment passed upon the sabbath breaker/ who 
 gathered sticks upon the sabbath-day, says ; 
 " They brought him before the President, with 
 whom the priests sat in council;'"* an evident 
 allusion to the customs of the synagogue in his 
 time. 
 From Josephus, in his Jewish War, 11 speaking of the 
 
 josephus; s trife at Ccesarsea between the Jews and Syrians, 
 says ; " The Elders (presbyteri) of the Jews were 
 unable to restrain their own people ;" and in the 
 
 ' Verses 5, G. f Numb. xv. 32, 33. 
 
 : Life of Moses, book iii. page 528. !l Book ii. chap. 12. 
 
Cn\i'. VI] The Government of the Synagogue. 55 
 
 account given by him of this sedition, no other 
 rulers are mentioned, but these Elders. In the 
 fourteenth chapter of the same book, when nar- 
 rating another tumult that occurred at Csesaraea, 
 he speaks of the Rulers of the Jews, and these 
 twelve in number. In another book, making men- 
 tion of one Antiochus, he says, " that he was a 
 man of repute amongst the people, because his 
 father was the Chief {archon) of the Jews at 
 Antioch." 1 And to give one instance more, (one 
 which proves the union of the ecclesiastical and 
 civil jurisdiction in the same individuals) : one 
 Jesus, the Ruler of Tiberias, is represented " as 
 ordering the multitude to depart from the 
 synagogue, and permitting the Senate alone to 
 remain ." k This last passage is conclusive as to 
 the form of synagogal government : there is in 
 it mention of a President and Senate, and also 
 strong evidence, that the President of the syna- 
 gogue was also the Chief magistrate of the city ; 
 for he is styled the Ruler {archon) of Tiberias. 
 
 Maimonides, in his treatise on fasting, sets FromMai- 
 
 r> Tjn monides ; 
 
 before us the same form of government. When- 
 ever there is a fast for rain, " the ark is brought 
 out into the street ; the assembled people cover 
 themselves with sackcloth, and scatter ashes on 
 the ark, and on the book of the law : then one 
 
 1 Book vii. chap. 21. k Lite of Josephus. 
 
56 The Government of the Synagogue. [Part I. 
 
 of the congregation takes some of the ashes, and 
 sprinkles them on the head of the President. 
 The ark is then placed in the midst ; and, all 
 sitting down, some Rabbi of the Elders stands up 
 to read, &C." 1 This quotation from Maimonides 
 exhibits the form of government above de- 
 scribed ; viz. a council, consisting of members 
 called Elders, and a President, the head of this 
 council. 
 
 But there is no where such express mention 
 of the form of government of the synagogue, as 
 in the writings of Benjamin of Toledo. Speak- 
 ing of the Jews at Damascus, he says ; " There 
 is in this place the Chief of the Senate, whose 
 name is R. Ezra, and his brother Sarschalom, 
 the father of the house of judgment, and 
 R. Joseph, holding the fifth place in the senate, 
 and R. Massach, the speaker, and R. Meir, the 
 glory of wise men, and R. Joseph, a stone to 
 be admired, the pillar of the assembly," 1 and 
 R. Heman, the pastor, and R. Tsaddick, the 
 physician." 11 This Senate with its Chief (he in- 
 forms us) managed all matters at Damascus, 
 whether civil or ecclesiastical. Again, speaking 
 of the Jews at Constantinople, he tells us, that 
 there was in that city, a Senate consisting of 
 
 1 Hilcoth Taanith, cap. iv. sec. 1 . 
 
 m " Who seemed to be pillars," Gal. ii. 9. 
 
 n Jtiner. page 50. ° Ibid. p. 28. 
 
Chap. VI.] The Government of the Synagogue. 57 
 
 five persons, and one of them R. Eliakim, the 
 Pastor. Speaking of the Jews at Marseilles, 
 he says, " After three days, I came to Mar- 
 seilles, in which city there are many illustrious 
 and learned men ; there are two churches on 
 the sea shore, one in the plain, the other on the 
 hill. The illustrious men of the city constitute 
 the great Council. R. Simeon, the son of R. 
 Antolius, R. Jacob, his brother, and R. Levan, 
 preside over the higher college ; and R. Jacob 
 Phirpienus, R. Abraham, &c, over the lower." p 
 These testimonies abundantly prove, that where- 
 ever the Jews were in any number, they ap- 
 pointed a council, under the control of which, all 
 civil and religious affairs were managed. 
 
 If the Jews in any place were but few in Synagogue 
 number, the entire management of the syna- governed 
 gogue was entrusted to one Rabbi. Thus Ben- rabbi. 6 
 jamin, speaking of a city in Egypt, says ; " There 
 is a synagogue without the city, and one Elder, 
 who is a Rabbi, acts as Pastor and Minister of the 
 synagogue." 11 Buxtorf, in his Jewish Synagogue, 
 bears testimony to the same/ " Where there 
 are about ten Jewish families, they endeavour to 
 procure some Rabbi, to instruct their children, to 
 advise them in divine things, to read prayers, 
 and to perform the other offices of religion. 
 
 '' Ibid, p, 8. * Ibid. p. 119. ' Chap. xlvi. 
 
syna- 
 gogues. 
 
 58 The Government of the Synagogue. [Part I. 
 
 This Rabbi has the power of ordaining; 8 he 
 declares the meaning of the law, administers 
 justice, celebrates marriages, grants divorces ; in 
 a word, he has vested in him the authority of an 
 entire presbytery." 
 Govern- In modern synagogues, as in general, there 
 
 modem cannot be collected a sufficient number of Rabbies 
 to form a council ; they have, besides the pre- 
 siding Rabbi, a lay senate, called Parnasim, 1 
 whose authority and office is in some respects 
 similar to that of the presbytery. They have 
 supreme power, (as far as is permitted by the 
 laws of the people amongst whom they live,) 
 in all things beyond the walls of the synagogue. 
 It is their business, to see that the synagogue 
 and its furniture is in good repair ; they im- 
 pose tribute for sacred and civil purposes ; in- 
 flict punishment on the refractory ; support 
 and redeem the captives of their nation ; and 
 plead the cause of their citizens before Gentile 
 magistrates : in a word, the Parnasim have now 
 the privileges and the powers of the ancient 
 councils ; there being however this difference, that 
 they are the most wealthy, and not, as of old, 
 the most learned members of the body; and that 
 they hold their office for but one year, being 
 
 s Vide Appendix, Note (F.) 
 
 ' Maimonides calls them Elders. They were somewhat 
 analogous to our churchwardens. 
 
Chat. VI.] The Government of the Synagogue. . r >9 
 
 annually chosen by the free voice of the 
 people. 
 
 We shall find, that as far as there is mention, New Testa- 
 in the New Testament, of the government of the Sms this 
 
 •j.n.-i , i • account of 
 
 synagogue, it confirms the account above given. t he govern- 
 We have evidence that there were many rulers in JhTsyna- 
 the one synagogue (of course forming a council) : gogue " 
 thus the Evangelist Luke, speaking of St. Paul and 
 his companions, says ; " They came to Antioch 
 in Pisidia, and went into the synagogue on the 
 sabbath- day, and sat down ; and after the reading 
 of the law and the prophets, the Riders of the 
 synagogue sent unto them," 11 &c. ; these Rulers, 
 as far as we can judge from the context, equal in 
 rank, dignity, and office ; and constituting, most 
 probably, the presbytery of the synagogue of 
 Antioch. In another chapter/ the same Evan- 
 gelist mentions by name two of the rulers of the 
 synagogue at Corinth, viz. Crispus and Sosthenes. 
 The Evangelist Mark informs us, that Jairus was 
 one of the rulers of the synagogue at Capernaum. y 
 The New Testament, then, confirms our view 
 of the government of the synagogue ; and though 
 we meet with passages in which but the one 
 Ruler is mentioned, 2 still this does not subvert 
 our position ; the government of the synagogue 
 being sometimes confided to one Rabbi. 
 
 u Acts xiii. 14, 15. * Acts xviii. 8, 17. 
 
 1 Chap. v. 2-2. z Luke xiii, 14. John iii. I. 
 
60 The Discipline of the Synagogue. [Part I. 
 
 CHAPTER VII. 
 
 The Discipline of the Synagogue. 
 
 Punish- The Punishments of the synagogue were of two 
 
 thesyna- kinds : the Anathema, or Excommunication ; and 
 fwo kinds. the Perinoea, i. e. the Censure, or Corporal in- 
 fliction/ 
 Excomnm- Excommunication was the heaviest punish- 
 
 mcation. l 
 
 ment of the synagogue, and when inflicted in its 
 most severe form, debarred the offender from all 
 intercourse with his countrymen ; they could 
 neither eat nor drink with him ; they could not 
 so much as be under the same roof with him ; a 
 hut was therefore built for the wretched being, 
 thus avoided by all, in which he dragged out his 
 existence, far from human society. 
 Manner of The manner of excommunicating was as 
 
 excommu- ° 
 
 nicating. follows: b there was first the rebuke, which con- 
 tinued for seven days ; after this the offender's 
 name, and his offence, were proclaimed publicly 
 in the synagogue for the space of thirty days, 
 
 a Justinian Novel, 146. h Jore Dea, sec. i. 
 
 c Probably on the sabbaths occurring during this period. 
 
Chap. VII.] The Discipline of tlte Synagogue. 61 
 
 during which time, the offender was looked upon 
 as excommunicated, and should keep at a distance 
 of four cubits from each of his brethren. If, at the 
 expiration of the thirty days, he asked pardon 
 of those whom he had offended, and gave signs 
 of sincere repentance, he was again admitted to 
 communion with the Church ; but if he con- 
 tinued contumacious, did not repent of his crime, 
 nor submit to those who had excommunicated 
 him, the excommunication was continued for 
 thirty days more. d If, after the expiration of 
 this period, there were no symptoms of a change 
 of mind, the excommunication was extended to 
 another thirty days ; e and then, if there was no 
 reconciliation, the anathema was pronounced, 
 the offender was completely cut off from the 
 Church, and visited with its heaviest chastise- 
 ment. f 
 
 d A longer or shorter time might be prescribed by those in 
 authority. 
 
 e Maimonides is of opinion that this latter period is not at 
 all necessary. 
 
 ' The Jews considered themselves bound by their law, to 
 admonish and reprove an offending brother. Thus in the 
 Jewish precepts of R. Levi Barzelonita, we read ; " It is com- 
 manded to reprove an Israelite who does not walk correctly, 
 
 as it is written, (Lev. xix. 17 ;) ' Thou shalt in any wise 
 
 rebuke thy neighbour, and not suffer sin upon him.' But it 
 is asked in the Siphra ; Whence do you hold, that if you chide 
 him four or five times, and he does not repent, that you are 
 bound to reprove him again ? because the Scripture says ; 
 
02 The Discipline of the Synagogue. [Fart I. 
 
 Excommu- The Excommunicated person, though per- 
 
 nicated . . 
 
 person ex- nutted to enter the 1 emple through the gate 
 from the called the gate of mourning, was rigorously 
 synagogue. exc j U( j e( j fr om the Synagogue. " When they 
 
 excommunicate any individual, they proclaim 
 it publicly ; after which, it is not lawful for any 
 Jew to speak to the excommunicated person, or 
 to come nearer to him than four cubits. He is 
 cast out of the synagogue ; he is obliged to sit 
 on the ground, with his feet naked, as if some 
 relative were dead, until absolved by one or 
 more of the Rabbies." g Hence we find, in the 
 writings of the New Testament, the phrase, " to 
 cast out of the synagogue," used to express ex- 
 communication. 11 Since the overthrow of the 
 Jewish nation, excommunication is inflicted with 
 the greatest severity. It is mentioned in a book, 
 falsely ascribed to Athanasius ;* " That a Jew, in 
 whose dwelling an image of Christ was found, 
 having been insulted and tortured in various 
 
 Rebuking thou shalt rebuke him. Whence our Master says in 
 the Gemara; Rebuking, thou shalt rebuke him, even an hundred 
 times. The first rebuke should be in private, with a soft 
 tongue and soothing words, that he may not be put to shame ; 
 but if this bring him not to a sense of his sin, they publicly 
 confound the sinner, holding up his crime to public notice, till 
 he return to the right path." Praecept. 218, p. 321. Ed. Hot- 
 tingerus. 
 
 g Leo de Modena de Consuet. Jud. lib. ii. cap. 3. 
 
 b John ix. 22; xii. 42 ; xvi. 2 ; ix. 34. 
 
 1 De Passione Imaginis Domini NostrL 
 
Chap. VII. ] The Discipline of the Synagogue. OS 
 
 ways, was cast half dead out of the syna- 
 gogue." 
 
 In the ancient synagogue, the power of ex- rower of 
 
 . 'ik- excommu- 
 
 communicatmg rested with the council ; in nicating 
 modern synagogues, the Presiding Rabbi and the the council. 
 Parnasim exercise this power. The punishment 
 was considered severe, in proportion to the dig- 
 nity of the court that passed the sentence. Thus 
 it was considered a less punishment to be ex- 
 communicated by a council of three, than by one 
 that consisted of a greater number of members : 
 excommunication by a strange synagogue was a 
 lighter punishment than that by one's own ; whilst 
 the most severe of all, was that inflicted by the 
 great Sanhedrim. " He who is excommunicated 
 by his own city, is considered to be excommu- 
 nicated by every other city ; but he who is 
 excommunicated by another, is not therefore 
 excommunicated by his own ; but he who is 
 excommunicated by the Sanhedrim, is excom- 
 municated by all Israel." 1 
 
 There is evident allusion to excommunication Allusion to 
 as a Jewish punishment in the New Testament. Ston?n 
 " If thy brother shall trespass against thee, go Testament. 
 and tell him his fault, between thee and him 
 alone; if he shall hear thee, thou hast gained 
 thy brother : but if he will not hear thee, then 
 
 k Maimonides Hilcoth. Talmud Tora, cap. 6 & 7- 
 1 Jore Dea, sec. 20, 21. 
 
64 The Discipline of the Synagogue. [Part I. 
 
 take with thee one or two more, that in the 
 mouth of two or three witnesses every word 
 may be established; and if he shall neglect to 
 hear them, tell it unto the church ; but if he 
 neglect to hear the church, let him be unto thee 
 as an heathen man and a publican."" 1 We have 
 in this passage, first, the private rebuke, and 
 then, the public proclamation to the church. 
 Excommu- In the Old Testament, there is no mention of 
 haTitsori- excommunication till we come to the days of 
 fheMp- ng Ezra : but when we come to his times, we meet 
 tlvlty- with a proclamation, that all the children of 
 the captivity should gather themselves together 
 unto Jerusalem; and " that whosoever would not 
 come within three days, according to the counsel 
 of the princes and elders, all his substance should 
 be forfeited, and himself separated from the 
 congregation of those that had been carried 
 away."" Hence it is likely, that the punishment 
 had its origin in the time of the Babylonish cap- 
 tivity ; and, in fact, the nature of the case would 
 lead us to suppose this ; for when they were in 
 captivity, obliged to yield obedience to the laws 
 of an heathen state : what other punishment 
 could they inflict, or at least carry out to its full 
 intention, but that of excommunication ? It 
 came, then, to be inflicted chiefly when they were 
 
 m Matt, xviii. 15—17. n Ezra x. 8. 
 
Chap. VII.] The Discipline of the Synagogue. C5 
 
 ill exile, and more especially when in subjection 
 to the Romans ; the Roman emperors not allow- 
 ing any of the acts or sentences of the syna- 
 gogue, to interfere with their edicts. 
 
 The other punishment inflicted in the syna- corporal 
 
 ,, -p, . . ., . punish- 
 
 gogue, was the rennaa, i.e. the pecuniary or cor- mem in the 
 poral. The former does not appear to be at all synagogue ' 
 authorized by Scripture ; of the latter there is 
 frequent mention in the writings of the New 
 Testament. " Beware of men, (saith our Lord to 
 his disciples,) for they will deliver you up to the 
 councils, and they will scourge you in their syna- 
 gogues." 1 ' " Behold, I send unto you (speaking 
 to the Jews) prophets, and wise men, and scribes, 
 and some of them ye shall kill and crucify, and 
 some of them shall ye scourge in your synagogues, 
 and persecute from city to city." - " Lord, they 
 know (saith the Apostle Paul, speaking of his 
 cruel acts towards the early Christians) that I 
 imprisoned and beat in every synagogue them 
 that believed on thee." r " Punishing them 
 through all the synagogues, I compelled them to 
 blaspheme." 8 Flagellation, then, was a punish- 
 ment often resorted to in the synagogue. 
 
 Flagellation was sometimes voluntarily suffered Flagella- 
 tion volun- 
 tarily suf- 
 ° Constitut. Arcadii et Honorii in Cod. Theod. lib. ii. tit. i. fcred - 
 leg. 10. 
 
 p Matt. x. 17. q Matt, xxiii. 34. 
 
 r Acts xxii. 19. s Acts xxvi. 11. 
 
 F 
 
seldom 
 
 excommu 
 
 nicated. 
 
 66 The Discipline of the Synagogue. [Part I. 
 
 as an expiation for sin ; " thus the German 
 Jews are wont to be flagellated in the syna- 
 gogue, on the evening of the day of expiation, 
 as a token of their repentance." 1 But, gene- 
 rally speaking, it was inflicted as a punishment, 
 and considered a lighter one than excommuni- 
 cation. 
 a rabbi The Jewish authorities were at all times un- 
 
 willing to have recourse to the severity of excom- 
 munication, especially in the case of a Rabbi or 
 Doctor. "An Elder, or the Father of the council, 
 though he may act perversely, is never publicly 
 excommunicated, unless he commit some such 
 sin as Jeroboam, the son of Nebat ; but when 
 he has committed any offence, they flagellate 
 him privately. They treat in a similar way a 
 student, unless he be a disgrace to his com- 
 panions, or the name of God be profaned by him ; 
 in which case they excommunicate him.' ,u 
 Fiageiia- Flagellation was inflicted by order, and in 
 
 Sfctedby presence, of the council. Thus the apostles 
 h" presence were brought before the council, who " beat 
 council, them, and commanded them that they should 
 not speak in the name of Jesus." x Thirty-nine 
 stripes were given, in obedience to the Law 
 which commanded that the stripes should not 
 
 1 Orach Chaium, sec. 607. 
 
 u Hilcoth Niddui Vaccher, cap. cxxxiv. sec. 42. 
 
 31 Acts v. 40. 
 
Chap. VII.] The Discipline of the Synagogue. 67 
 
 exceed forty, and that the criminal should be 
 beaten before his judge. y The scourge had three 
 lashes; the criminal was therefore struck thir- 
 teen times, and between each stroke they were 
 accustomed to recite the following words : — " If 
 thou wilt not observe to do all the words of this 
 law that are written in this book, that thou 
 mayest fear this glorious and fearful name, the 
 Lord thy God : then the Lord will make thy 
 plagues wonderful, and the plagues of thy seed, 
 even great plagues and of long continuance, and 
 sore sickness, and of long continuance." 2 
 
 Before closing this chapter, we will notice a why our 
 
 . . Lord was 
 
 question that is not untrequently proposed, viz. never ex- 
 
 communi- 
 
 why is it that we never read of our Lord having ca ted. 
 been excommunicated ? He was hated by many 
 of the Jews ; the Priests and Rabbies were bit- 
 terly opposed to him ; he had certainly sub- 
 jected himself to the punishment, for he had 
 been guilty of at least one offence, which was 
 visited with excommunication ; namely, " if any 
 one should slight even one head of doctrine, 
 which is written in the prescripts of the scribes." a 
 Now, our Lord had been often guilty of a breach 
 of this canon, even in the presence of the 
 Jewish rulers; and yet he was never excom- 
 municated. Two reasons can be assigned for 
 
 » Deut. xxv. 2, 3. z Dent, xxviii. 58, 59. 
 
 a Canon 5. 
 
 f2 
 
68 The Discipline of the Synagogue. [Part I. 
 
 this; first, the extreme unwillingness of the 
 Jewish Rulers to have recourse to this severe 
 punishment ; and secondly, the rank of our 
 Lord. He was evidently looked upon as a Rabbi, 
 and we have seen that a Rabbi was not to be 
 excommunicated, but in an extreme case; for 
 the same reason, the Apostles, though beaten 
 and persecuted in every way, are never said to 
 have been excommunicated. In fact, the only 
 instance, of the punishment, recorded in the New 
 Testament, is that of the poor blind man who 
 was restored to sight by our Lord ; and of him 
 we read, that he was cast out of the synagogue. b 
 
 b John ix. 34. 
 
Chap. VIII.] The Alms collected in the Synagogue. 69 
 
 CHAPTER VIII. 
 
 The Alms collected in the Synagogue. 
 
 The word ( Tsedhakah) used by the Jews to Hebrew 
 denote alms, is usually rendered justice, or fymg right- 
 righteousness. In the Hebrew version of Tobit, iS'S 
 (a book the design of which is to commend 
 almsgiving,) the word is invariably used > to 
 signify alms. a We find in the New Testament 
 a similar use of the corresponding Greek word. b 
 Thus when our Lord exhorts the multitude in 
 his sermon on the mount ; " Take heed that 
 ye do not your alms before men ;" c the word 
 for alms (in the most ancient manuscripts) is 
 that which signifies literally righteouness. When 
 the Apostle Paul exhorts the Corinthians to 
 be liberal to the poor, he quotes a passage 
 from the Psalms : — " He hath dispersed abroad, 
 he hath given to the poor ; his righteousness 
 [almsgiving] remaineth for ever." d And as the 
 Greek word for righteousness is used to signify 
 
 11 Chap. iv. 8 — 11 ; xii. 9. b Hiikciioovvti. 
 
 " Matt. vi. 1 . d Psalm cxii. 9. 
 
70 The Alms collected in the Synagogue. [Part I. 
 
 almsgiving ; so, vice versa, the Greek word for 
 almsgiving e is the rendering sometimes given 
 by the Septuagint translators, for the word 
 Tsedhakah, when taken in its literal sense. 
 Thus ; " He shall receive the blessing from 
 the Lord, and righteousness [Gr. alms] from the 
 God of his salvation. " f Again ; " It shall be 
 thy righteousness," s (Gr. alms,) saith Moses to 
 the people of Israel. 
 
 Various are the opinions how a word, signi- 
 fying righteousness, should come to denote alms. 
 It may be, that the Jews were accustomed to 
 look upon almsgiving, as the surest means of 
 justification before God; h and that hence arose 
 the intimate connexion between the two words ; 
 or that, looking upon their worldly goods as but 
 held in trust, they felt that justice demanded 
 that assistance should be rendered to the poor ; 
 and there are some things in confirmation of 
 this latter opinion : the language of the Jewish 
 beggar was ; " Consider me worthy ;" or, " It 
 is just that I should receive it ;" or, " Give me 
 what is commanded." And probably in allusion 
 
 e £\zr)no(Tvvr}. f Psalm xxiv. 5. 
 
 e Deut. xxiv. 13. See Psalm xxxiii. 5; Isaiah lix. 16; 
 Dan. iv. 27. 
 
 h Daniel says to king Nebuchadnezzar ; " Break off thy 
 sins by righteousness (almsgiving), and thine iniquities by 
 showing mercy to the poor." Chap. iv. 27. 
 
Chap. VIII. ] The Alms collected in the Synagogue. 71 
 
 to this feeling, our Lord calls riches uncharitably 
 retained, " the mammon of unrighteousness" 1 And, 
 Solomon, in the Book of Proverbs, exhorts; 
 " Withhold not good from them to whom it is 
 due, [in the margin, from the owners thereof,'] 
 when it is in the power of thine hand to do it." k 
 But whatever be the true reason, there seems 
 to have been in the minds of ancient writers, a 
 connexion between justice and munificence ; and 
 this not only in Sacred, but also in Classic 
 authors : thus Cicero defines justice to be, " a 
 habit of the mind, which, paying regard to the 
 public welfare, gives to every one his due, and 
 munificently and equitably preserves the bond of 
 society." ' And in one of the plays of Terence, 
 an individual is represented as praying, that 
 there may be an excuse for his folly in the 
 justice, i. e. the clemency of his friend. m 
 
 Every Jew (the tribe of Levi excepted) had his Relief 
 portion of inheritance in the land of Canaan, and poor either 
 this portion inalienable; it might, indeed, through or'Sn-^ 
 imprudence or negligence, pass from his hands al> ' 
 
 j Luke xvi. 9. k Chap. iii. 27. 
 
 1 Habitus animi, communi utilitate servata, suum cuique 
 tribuens, atque societatem conjunctionis humanse, muni/ice 
 aique ceque tuens. — De Finibus, lib. v. 
 
 111 Nunc hoc te obsecro, 
 
 Quanto tuus est animus natu gravior, ignoscentior ; 
 Ut mere stultitise, in justitia tua, sit aliquid prtesidii. 
 
 Hcaut. Act. iv. sc. l,lin. 33. 
 
72 The Alms collected in the Synagogue. [Part I. 
 
 for a time ; but it should be restored at the year 
 of jubilee. This restoration, however, did not 
 prevent the existence of poverty in the inter- 
 vening period ; and hence laws were wisely 
 enacted, for the relief of the poor and suffer- 
 ing Jews. The relief afforded was twofold; 
 compulsory or voluntary ; i. e. such as could 
 not be withheld ; and such as was given freely. 
 The former was fourfold ; viz. " the gleaning ; 
 what had been left through forgetfulness ; that 
 which grew in the corners ; and the tenths ; 
 and with respect to these, the owner receives 
 no thanks for the gift ; the poor come and take 
 it, even against the will of the owner ; though he 
 be the poorest man in Israel, they take it from 
 him.'" 1 Voluntary relief, (i. e. relief, the measure 
 of which is not determined by law, but left to 
 the benevolence of each,) is expressly enjoined in 
 the Book of Deuteronomy ; " If there be among 
 you a poor man of one of thy brethren, within 
 any of thy gates, in thy land which the Lord thy 
 God giveth thee, thou shalt not harden thy 
 heart, nor shut thine hand from thy poor brother, 
 but thou shalt open thine hand wide unto him, 
 and shalt surely lend him sufficient for his need 
 
 in that which he wanteth thou shalt 
 
 surely give him, and thine heart shall not be 
 
 " Maimonides de Donis Paup. sec. 7. 8. 
 
Chap. VIII.] The Alms collected in the Synagogue. 73 
 
 grieved when thou givest unto him, because that 
 for this thing the Lord thy God shall bless thee 
 in all thy works, and in all that thou puttest 
 thine hand unto : for the poor shall never cease 
 out of the land; therefore I command thee, 
 saying, Thou shalt open thine hand wide unto 
 thy brother, to thy poor, and to thy needy in 
 thy land." There is a similar injunction in Le- 
 viticus. 11 
 
 As long as the poor Israelites could take origin of 
 advantage of the provision made for them by relief. ary 
 law, voluntary assistance was but scantily 
 afforded ; but after the captivity, when many of 
 them were scattered among the Gentiles, many 
 engaged in commerce ; they could not receive 
 the relief allowed by law ; hence there was an 
 absolute necessity for voluntary contributions. 
 These were made at first by the Jews in exile, q 
 in time they became customary in the land of 
 Canaan, and at length were enforced by law ; 
 the individual who was remiss in contributing 
 to the necessities of the poor, being liable to be 
 punished with stripes, by order of the magistrate 
 or council/ 
 
 The alms collected by the Jews in exile were Aims coi- 
 
 for a twofold purpose ; part was for the poor the syna- 
 gogue for a 
 
 twofold 
 Deut. xv. 7, 10, 11. p Chap. xxv. 35, 36. purpose. 
 
 q Esther ix. 22. 
 r Maimonides tie Donis Paup. cap. vii. sec. 10. 
 
74 The Alms collected in the Synagogue. [Part I. 
 
 brethren in the land of Canaan, part for the 
 poor members of the congregation. There were 
 two chests in every synagogue for the reception 
 of these alms. 
 Origin of The custom of transmitting alms to the land 
 oftranfmi?- of Canaan is very ancient. Jerome makes men- 
 JudLl'" 8 10 tion of it, and uses it as a precedent for sending 
 money to the poor Christian brethren in Judaea. 
 " It would be tedious, [he says] were I to cite 
 the different passages in the Epistles of the 
 Apostle Paul, in which he earnestly inculcates, 
 the duty of sending succour to the poor brethren, 
 living at Jerusalem, and in the Holy Land ; not 
 that they may abound, but that they may be 
 refreshed ; not that they may heap up riches, 
 but that they may supply the wants of nature, 
 and drive off cold and hunger. This custom 
 has continued in the land of Judaea to this 
 very day, not only amongst ourselves, but also 
 amongst the Hebrews ; viz. ' That they who 
 meditate on the law of the Lord day and night, 
 and have no portion on earth but the Lord 
 alone, should be sustained by the ministering, 
 of the congregations, and of the whole earth.' 5 
 Not that some may be eased and others burdened, 
 but by an equality, that the abundance of some 
 may supply the wants of others." 1 A feeling of 
 
 * 2 Cor. viii. 13, 14. ' Jerome, Epi^t. lib. ii. fol. 45. 
 
Chap. VIII.] The Alms collected in the Synagogue. 75 
 
 pity and reverence towards the land of Canaan 
 may have given rise to this custom ; or, these 
 voluntary contributions from other lands may 
 have been necessary, to enable the Jews living 
 in Judaea to observe the sabbatical year : Mai- 
 monides assigns this as the origin ; " Without 
 the land of Canaan, where the sabbath of the 
 soil is not observed, (in the land of Egypt, and 
 in the land of Amnion and Moab, since these 
 countries are nearest to the land of Israel) ; 
 they shall separate the tenths ; the first tenths, 
 and the tenths of the poor; that the poor of 
 Israel may be supported by these tenths, during 
 the sabbatical year." u But whatever may have 
 been the origin of the custom, the Apostle cer- 
 tainly conformed to it, when he collected from 
 the Gentile churches, for the churches in the 
 land of Judaea. x 
 
 The alms for the support of the poor members collection 
 of the congregation were put into the alms' th^syna-" 
 chest before prayers ; and on Sabbath evenings/ gogue " 
 what had been collected was apportioned to the 
 poor for the entire week. Sometimes, after the 
 usual collection in the Synagogue, there was an 
 
 u Maimonides Matternoth Aniim, cap. vi. sec. 5. 
 
 x Rom. xv. 26; 1 Cor. xvi. 1, 2, 3; 2 Cor. viii. 8, 9; 
 Acts xi. 29 ; xxiv. 17- 
 
 y Each member on that evening merely promised so much, 
 the Jews being unwilling to touch money on the Sabbath day. 
 
7G The Alms collected in the Synagogue. [Part I. 
 
 extraordinary one made by the Chazzan, for 
 some particular purpose. " Whenever it is 
 necessary to exercise any extraordinary offices 
 of charity, either towards the poor of the city, 
 or towards a stranger travelling for some object ; 
 (as for instance, to place out a marriageable 
 virgin, or to redeem a captive, or something 
 similar) ; then the Heads of the synagogue 
 order the Chazzan to go to each member of 
 the congregation, and to get their names for 
 alms, in this form ; ' May the Lord bless N., 
 who will expend so much in alms, for this or 
 that purpose.' As this was usually done on the 
 sabbath-day, (when the Jews do not handle 
 money,) each person, by word of mouth, bound 
 himself to the ministers of the synagogue for a 
 certain sum, which he paid the following week." z 
 The Jews This superstitious custom of not handling 
 handle mo- money on the sabbath, is very ancient ; thus, 
 sabbath- e Philo praises the Emperor Augustus, because, 
 in his anxiety that the Jews should be partakers 
 of his bounty, he ordered, that if the clay of 
 distribution happened to be the Jewish sabbath, 
 it should be bestowed on the following day. a 
 Some commentators illustrate, from this custom, 
 the passage in 1st Corinthians, b in which the 
 
 Leo de Modena, Rit. Jud. par. i. cap. 14. 
 Lib. de Leg. ad Caium. b 1 Cor. xvi. 1. 
 
Chap. VIII.] The Alms collected in the Synagogue. 77 
 
 Apostle advises the Christians at Corinth to set 
 apart, on the first day of the week, whatever they 
 intended for the relief of their poor brethren : 
 they suppose that the Corinthians observed the 
 Jewish sabbath, and abstained from touching 
 money on that day; and that the Apostle, by 
 ordering the money to be set apart on the first 
 day of the week, thus made a distinction between 
 the Lord's day and the sabbath. 
 
 The distribution of the alms lay with the Distribu- 
 Council ; more generally however, with the Pre- a ims.° 
 sident of the synagogue/ 
 
 c Ex quibus manifestum est, cum septimo die, thesauros 
 aut collection facere Judaeis non liceret, Paulum eodem in- 
 stitute-, vigente adhuc sabbatho, ordinasse Corinthiis, ut in 
 posterum diem, qui erat primus septimanse, collectos suos 
 differunt, quo ipso diem ilium primum, non ut festum, sed ut 
 ipydaifiov, ideoque festo oppositum, et operi collectse desti- 
 natum, consideravit. Cocceius, torn. vii. ad quaest. 83. 
 d Maimonides de Donis Paup. cap. vi. sec. 17. 
 
78 The Presbyters of the Synagogue. [Part I. 
 
 CHAPTER IX. 
 
 The Presbyters of the Synagogue. 
 
 Election of The Rules commonly observed in the election 
 ters d- e a sby " of Presidents of the synagogue, are handed down 
 
 synagogue. ^ ^ ^^ Berachoth .a R Igaac gays . « They 
 
 do not ordain a pastor over the church, without 
 first consulting the church, as it is written, see, 
 the Lord hath called by name Bezabel ; b the 
 holy and blessed God said to Moses, Moses, 
 whether does Bezabel seem to you to be fit? 
 Moses answered, O Lord of the world, if he 
 seem fit to thee, must he not much more so to 
 me ? God said, nevertheless, go to the people 
 and repeat to them the same words ; he went to 
 Israel and said, Whether does Bezabel seem to 
 you to be fit? They answered, If he appear 
 such to the holy and blessed God and to you, 
 how much more so must he appear to us." The 
 above, though altogether fiction, yet gives an 
 insight into the mode of election of the President 
 
 a Fol. 55, col. 1. b Exod. xxxv. 30. 
 
Cm a i'. IX.] The Presbyters of the Synagogue. 19 
 
 of the synagogue. The entire church was con- 
 sulted, and the question to each member of the 
 congregation was, whether the individual pro- 
 posed seemed to him to be fit. 
 
 It is very difficult to determine, when this choice of 
 
 r> i koth presi- 
 
 mode oi election first came to be adopted. As dent and 
 
 Drcsbvtcrs 
 
 Jehovah was the king of Israel, so at the first, he at first with 
 exercised his authority in choosing the gover- vemor. 
 nors and judges of his people. Through Moses 
 he appointed the first Jewish council ; c through 
 Samuel, he selected Saul to be king ; d through 
 the same prophet he appointed David. When 
 the Israelites were under kings, these kings exer- 
 cised all authority in both civil and religious 
 matters, and, of course, constituted councils 
 according to their pleasure; and not only the 
 monarchs of their own nation, but those to whom 
 they happened to be in subjection, assumed to 
 themselves this power. Thus, at the time of 
 the captivity, Artaxerxes delegated this power 
 to Ezra; 6 when Judaea was conquered by Pom- 
 pey, Gabinus, the prasfect of Syria, appointed 
 five councils throughout the land. f After the 
 destruction of Jerusalem, the Emperor Titus is 
 said to have appointed R. Jachanan, the son of 
 Zacchaeus, to be President of the council. It 
 thus appears that, originally, the appointment of 
 
 e Numb. xi. 16. ri I Sam. x. 20, 21. 
 
 e Ezra vii. 25. ' Josephus, Antiq. b. xiv. c. 10. 
 
80 The Presbyters of the Synagogue. [Part I. 
 
 the President and members of the councils, lay 
 with the ruling Civil authority, whatever that 
 might be. 
 Mode of But, on the other hand, the Talmudists assert, 
 according that the Sanhedrim had supreme power in all 
 Talmudists. religious matters ; that on them all other coun- 
 cils depended, and that their delegates appointed 
 the Presbyters of the different councils. Thus 
 Maimonides says ; " Our wise men have handed 
 down to us, that delegates from the great San- 
 hedrim were sent throughout all the land of 
 Israel to examine ; and wherever they found a 
 wise man, fearing to sin, and mild, they made him 
 a councillor of the state." g And, again ; " We 
 know that R. Gamaliel was the President, and 
 Chief of the great Sanhedrim ; and that its 
 institutes were received, throughout the whole 
 land of Israel, and in all places of exile ; no 
 king, or any other individual, interfering." 11 
 Solution of The apparent discrepancy can be easily solved. 
 pancy. c Though the civil rulers had the supreme power, 
 yet, being in most cases ignorant of every thing 
 connected with the Jewish religion, they gave to 
 the Sanhedrim the determining of all religious 
 controversies, and put under this control all other 
 councils. Thus, after the restoration of the com- 
 monwealth by the Assamonaeans, the authority 
 
 g Hilcoth Sanh. c. 11. 
 
 h Dioris Filius in the Kabbala concerning R. Gamaliel, 
 fol. viii. col. 1. 
 
Chap. IX.] The Presbyters of the Synagogue. 81 
 
 of the Sanhedrim was evidently supreme, ac- 
 knowledged by kings and governors ; it formed 
 the councils in the different cities of the land, 
 and appointed the members of these councils. 
 
 The Sanhedrim, though having such powers, The Sanhe- 
 never exercised them absolutely, they invariably svl i te d the 
 consulted the wishes of the people : even in the The people. 
 management of their own affairs, in the choice 
 of their own Presidents, they sought the concur- 
 rence of the people. This appears from a com- 
 parison of two passages of Hebrew history, which 
 treat of the election of a President ; for when 
 one history 1 gives to the council the power of 
 electing their President, without any mention of 
 the people being consulted ; — the other, k relating 
 the same event, ascribes the election altogether 
 to the people. 
 
 In modern synagogues, if there be no Patriarch, Election of 
 every thing depends upon the suffrages of the \l modem 
 people. " Even one person can prevent an elec- g o g ues. 
 tion to an office, and say, I oppose N.'s being 
 chazzan." 1 If there be a Patriarch, he has the 
 right of nominating all the officers of the syna- 
 gogue ; but this right is never exercised against 
 the wishes of the people. " The Patriarch gives 
 to those under him the liberty of selecting their 
 
 ' R. Abraham in Cabbala, fol. lix. col. 1. 
 k Beracbotb, fol. xxvii. col. 2. 
 1 Orach Chaum, cap. liii. sec. 19. 
 O 
 
82 The Presbyters of the Synagogue. [Part I. 
 
 magistrate and minister ; and they come to him 
 to receive imposition of hands and license."" 1 
 Mode of Presbyters were ordained by imposition of 
 
 ordination. h an( j s ^ a f orm derived, no doubt, from the ordi- 
 nation of Joshua by Moses. 11 The imposition of 
 hands signified two things ; a conferring of au- 
 thority, and a communication of the gift of the 
 Spirit. First, a conferring of authority. The 
 hands were always considered to be the symbol 
 of power ;° and hence the laying on of hands 
 came to signify the bestowing authority and 
 power. Secondly, a communication of the gift of 
 the Spirit. The Spirit is said to rest upon an 
 individual, to overshadow him ; hence, the lay- 
 ing on of hands, the overshadowing the head by 
 the hands, denotes a communication of the gifts 
 of the Spirit. And thus, in the case of Joshua, 
 not only was authority and power given to him, 
 (as the Lord had declared to Moses, " Thou 
 shalt put thine honour upon him, that all the 
 congregation of the children of Israel may be 
 obedient ;") p but the Spirit also was communi- 
 cated. " Joshua, the son of Nun, was full of the 
 Spirit of wisdom ; for Moses had laid his hands 
 upon him." q 
 ordination When literature flourished amongst the Jews, 
 thrSerr ordination was sometimes a mere honour — the 
 
 conferring 
 
 a degree. m g^. Tudel ^ p ^ n Numb> xxyii . 18 . 
 
 1 Pet. v. 6. p Numb, xxvii. 20. q Deut. xxxiv. 9. 
 
Chap. IX.] The Presbyters of the Synagogue. 83 
 
 conferring, as it were, a degree, rather than 
 the setting apart to an office. The number of 
 students so multiplied, that the Presidents of 
 schools laid on hands to signify that the indi- 
 vidual was fit to teach ; and hence, there were 
 ordained doctors, who neither had schools, nor 
 were members of any council. 
 
 At the ordination of the President of a syna- 
 gogue, three Presbyters, at least, should be 
 present to lay on hands. 
 
 The President of the synagogue was of the The presi- 
 
 1 1 • -r» i t i dent allc * 
 
 same order as his Presbyters. It is true that presbyters 
 
 , , • i i • i of the syna- 
 
 great honour and respect was paid to him ; that gog ue of 
 he was styled the Head of the council, — the or der! 
 Head of the scholastic order, — the Chief of the 
 synagogue ; and that the successive Presidents 
 of some synagogues have been handed down by 
 Jewish historians, just as the successive Bishops 
 of the church have been by Eusebius. Still this 
 does not prove a difference of orders; for, 1st, 
 The Presbyters were invariably called the Col- 
 leagues of the President ; r and, from the very 
 institution of councils, it was intended that they 
 should be such. " I will take of the spirit 
 which is on thee, and I will put it on them, and 
 they shall bear with thee the burden of the 
 
 r Cabbala, R. Abraham, fol. m. 58, col. 2 ; also Cabbala, 
 Dioris Filii, fol. 60, col. 1. 
 
 G 2 
 
84 The Presbyters of the Synagogue. [Part I. 
 
 people."" 2dly, The power and authority of 
 the President and of his Colleagues were nearly 
 the same ; in fact, the only power that the Pre- 
 sident had, distinct from that of the Presby- 
 ters, was that of ordaining ; and this was 
 yielded to him, not by right of office, but 
 to prevent the multiplication of Presbyters. 
 At first, every one promoted to the rank of Pres- 
 byter could himself ordain others; 1 to prevent the 
 honour being too common, a rule was made, in 
 the time of Hillel, that none should ordain but 
 the President. " The wise men have given this 
 honour to the elder Hillel ; they have appointed 
 that none be promoted, but by license of the 
 President."" In every other case, the President 
 could do nothing without his Presbyters ; and in 
 all matters of deliberation, a majority of votes 
 decided the question. 
 Number of Previous to the destruction of Jerusalem, there 
 hTa syn™ was a certain number of Presbyters to each syna- 
 gogue ; in cities, seven, according to Josephus ; 
 twenty-three, according to the Talmudists ; but 
 as three were competent to decide all disputes 
 about pecuniary matters, this was the usual 
 number in the smaller towns. Jerusalem had, 
 besides the Sanhedrim, two Presbyteries of 
 twenty - three, which sat in the halls of the 
 
 ' Numb. xi. 17- ' Vide Appendix, Note (F.) 
 
 u Maimonides, Ililcoth San, cap. iv. sec. 5. 
 
Chap. IX.] The Presbyters of the Synagogue. 85 
 
 Temple. Now that the Jews are in exile, very 
 little attention is paid to the number in a Pres- 
 bytery ; it is greater or smaller, according to the 
 circumstances of the place, or even according to 
 the will of the Presbyters themselves/ 
 
 The Presbyters were supported, partly, by Salaries 
 voluntary oblations, partly, by a stipend, paid presbyters, 
 them from the public treasury. y In modern 
 synagogues, the Parnasim impose a tribute upon 
 the different members of the congregation, from 
 which they pay the salaries of the presiding Rabbi 
 and of the Chazzan. z 
 
 The Presbyters enjoyed certain privileges, Privileges 
 which were extended not only to the members byters. 
 of councils, but to all that were ordained ; to all, 
 in fact, that had the title of Rabbi or doctor. 
 Maimonides mentions these privileges in his 
 treatise on the Study of the Law : " They were 
 not required to engage in any public work, they 
 were free from the taxes for building the walls, 
 repairing the gates, paying the watch ; they 
 were not expected to offer gifts to the monarch, 
 
 * Selden de Syned. lib. ii. cap. 4, sec. 10. 
 
 5 Haec in Judaea usque hodie perseverat consuetudo, non 
 solum apud nos, sed et apud Hebraeos ; ut qui in lege Domini 
 meditantur, die et nocte, et partem non habent in terra, nisi 
 solum Deum ; synagogarum et totius orbis foveantur ministeriis. 
 Jerome adv. Vigilant. Translated in preceding chapter. 
 
 * Maimonides, Mattenoth Aricium, cap, vii. sec. 10. 
 
86 The Presbyters of the Synagogue. [Part I. 
 
 nor to pay tribute." a All this is pithily summed 
 up in an old apothegm of R. Nechenia, the son 
 of Hakkana ; " Whosoever takes on himself the 
 yoke of the law, they take from him the yoke 
 of the kingdom, and the yoke of the way of the 
 earth ;" b i.e. they free him from tribute, which 
 is the yoke of the kingdom ; and from the neces- 
 sity of labouring for his bread, which is the yoke 
 of the way of the earth. Some Presbyters, how- 
 ever, refused support from the church, choosing 
 a life of poverty ; and, like the Apostle Paul, 
 procuring, by their own labour, such food and 
 clothing as was absolutely necessary to their 
 existence. 
 
 * Talmud Tora, cap vi. 
 
 b Pirke Avoth, cap. iii. sec. o. 
 
 c Maimonides, Hilcoth Mattenoth Aricium, cap. x. sec. 18. 
 
Chap. X.] The Chazzans of the Synagogue. 87 
 
 CHAPTER X. 
 
 The Chazzans, or Deacons, of the Synagogue. 
 Every synagogue had its Chazzan or minister; Every 
 
 1 Til* i 1 synagogue 
 
 thus our Lord, having entered a synagogue, stood had its 
 up to read, and after reading " he closed the c 
 book, and gave it to the minister," i. e. the 
 Chazzan/ 
 
 The duties of the Chazzan were ; — His duties 
 
 were : — 
 
 1. To take the book of the law from the ark, L To take 
 to hand it to the reader, and, after the reading, [Jj® \° o]i 
 
 law 
 
 to replace it in the ark. b !£^rfc tof 
 
 2. To call out such persons as were selected 2. To call 
 by the President to read the law. None but the readers. 
 Legate of the church could stand up to read, 
 without being called upon by the Chazzan ; even 
 
 the President himself should be called upon by 
 the Chazzan, if at any time he was asked to read, 
 either by the congregation in general, or by some 
 distinguished member of it. 
 
 3. To stand by the reader and observe whether 3. To stand 
 
 by the 
 readers. 
 
 * vwiipirri, Luke iv. 20. b Luke iv. 17, 20. 
 
88 The Chazzani, or Deacons, [Part I. 
 
 he read correctly, and to assist the incorrect 
 reader; even if the Chazzan himself were the 
 reader, some one should stand by him. It was an 
 important duty of the Chazzan, to see that no 
 inaccurate reader ascended the pulpit. It might 
 however happen, that the only Priest or Levite 
 present was a bad reader ; in such a case, they 
 honoured his office by permitting him to read, 
 provided he could repeat, word by word, after 
 the Chazzan, so as to be understood by the con- 
 gregation. 
 
 4. To Wow 4. To blow the trumpet. The trumpet was 
 
 the trumpet. 
 
 blown for different purposes ; (to announce the 
 approach of the sabbath, &c. ; d ) and was always 
 sounded by the Chazzan, except on the feast of 
 the new year, (called also the feast of trumpets,) 
 when the trumpets were blown by the most 
 distinguished members of the congregation. 
 
 5. To wave 5, Xo wave the Sudarion or napkin. This was 
 
 the napkin. l 
 
 necessary chiefly in the larger synagogues ; those 
 who were at a distance from the reader of the 
 prayers, (who stood in a low place before the 
 ark,) could not distinctly hear his voice ; and of 
 course were unable to know when they should 
 "answer the responses ; the Chazzan, therefore, 
 stood in the pulpit with the napkin, or linen flag, 
 in his hand, which he waved, when it was the 
 time for the congregation to respond. 
 
 ' Orach Chaum, cap. cxxxix. sec. 2. d See Chapter V. 
 
Chap. X.] of the Synagogue. 89 
 
 6. To take care of the synagogue and its fur- 6. To take 
 
 J & ° care of the 
 
 niture ; to light the lamps ; to uncover and cover synagogue. 
 the ark, &c. In the ancient synagogue, then, 
 the Chazzan's was an inferior office, something 
 analogous to our sexton's : in modern syna- 
 gogues, however, it is much more honourable ; 
 the duties of the Legate of the church being 
 assigned to the Chazzan, and the meaner duties 
 of the latter being given to an assistant, or sub- 
 chazzan. 
 
 The Legate of the church (scheliach tsibbur) The legate 
 was the person that recited the prayers in the church. 
 congregation : he was so called, because he was 
 supposed to offer up the prayers in the name of 
 all, and for all. The Hebrew word answers to 
 the words angel, apostle ; and in this sense our 
 Lord Jesus Christ is called the Apostle of our 
 profession, 6 as being the person delegated to in- 
 tercede for his church, before the Father's throne. 
 
 The President of the synagogue was, ex officio, The pre - 
 the Legate of the church ; but he seldom acted officio the 
 
 i . • i i i /» legate of 
 
 in this capacity, except on remarkable leasts or the church. 
 fasts ; on other occasions, some member of the 
 congregation was selected bv him to act as 
 Legate; in general, a pupil : " The master of the 
 synagogue appoints one of his pupils to recite 
 the prayers in the presence of the church. ,,f 
 In modern synagogues, as was mentioned in modem 
 
 synagogues 
 * Ilcb. iii. I. r Colbo, cap. xiv. 
 
90 The Chazzam, or Deacons, [Part I. 
 
 the chaz- before, and especially in the smaller ones, the 
 legate. Chazzan is the Legate of the church ; this union 
 of offices arose, in all probability, from the 
 difficulty of finding persons qualified by their 
 learning, character, and orthodoxy, to read and 
 pray in the congregation. 
 The dec- The number of Chazzans in a synagogue was 
 chazzans. in proportion to the number of members in the 
 congregation ; larger synagogues had two, some- 
 times more. They were in general elected by 
 the congregation ; but if the synagogue were 
 subject to a Patriarch, or council, they appointed 
 the Chazzan. Thus the synagogues of Canaan, 
 Egypt, and Babylon, formerly received their 
 ministers from the Patriarchs and councils of 
 these districts ; whilst the synagogues of the 
 west, viz. those of Spain, France, Poland, &c, 
 not being under any council, elected their own 
 ministers. When Patriarchs were abolished, the 
 synagogues of the east enjoyed the same privi- 
 lege; so that now the Chazzans are, universally, 
 chosen by the congregation. " It is not fit, that 
 any person who is displeasing to the church be 
 chosen to offer sacrifices to God ; and on this 
 account, M. N. Semcha has declared, that even 
 one person can oppose the appointment of a 
 Chazzan, and say, that he does not consent that 
 N. should be a Chazzan. " g The Jews are very 
 
 R Karo Orach, cap. liii. ad num. 10. 
 
Chap. X.] of the Synagogue. 91 
 
 jealous of the civil authorities interfering in the 
 appointment of their ministers ; it is recorded, 
 that a prince, having placed his own cap on the 
 head of a Chazzan just appointed, to confirm him 
 in his new dignity, was repulsed by the Chazzan 
 saying ; " My Lord, it does not become me, 
 to receive from you, the right of offering wor- 
 ship to the Creator." 
 
 The Chazzans were maintained at the public chazzans, 
 ■• ., . , how main- 
 
 expense ; the contributions toward their support tamed. 
 
 being partly compulsory, partly voluntary. As 
 it was the Chazzan that, as Legate of the church, 
 offered up the necessary prayers in behalf of the 
 whole congregation, (which prayers were the 
 substitutes for the sacrifices, the expense of 
 which should be defrayed by one half shekel 
 from each Israelite ;) so, for the performance of 
 this necessary service, each member, whether 
 rich or poor, should pay an equal portion to the 
 Chazzan ; but for other services ; such as extra- 
 ordinary prayers, the chanting of hymns ; which 
 were looked upon as an honour to the congre- 
 gation and to their service, rather than as neces- 
 sary, the Chazzan was paid by each individual, 
 according to his ability. Bequests were often 
 left to synagogues, from which the President and 
 ministers received the whole, or a portion, of 
 their salaries. 
 
92 The Chazzans of the Synagogue. [Part I. 
 
 chazzans The Jewish councils had each their Chazzan; 
 
 ciundi; he was the lictor, or apparitor, of the Jewish tri- 
 bunal ; it was he that inflicted the punishment 
 of flagellation.' 1 Our Lord alludes to the Chazzan 
 of the council in his exhortation ; " Agree with 
 thine adversary quickly, whiles thou art in the 
 way with him, lest at any time the adversary 
 deliver thee to the judge, and the judge deliver 
 
 of the thee to the officer, ! and thou be cast into prison." 
 
 The Temple had its Chazzans. It was their 
 
 duty to attend the priests, to dress, undress 
 
 of cities, them, &c. 
 
 Every city had its Chazzans ; k to them was 
 entrusted the guarding of the city by night; in 
 fact, the word Chazzan was used to denote a 
 minister of any kind. 
 
 h Codex Maccoth. cap. iii. sec. 12. 
 
 1 vTrriph)], Matt. v. 25. 
 
 k Bava Metria, fol. xciii. col. 2. 
 
Chap. XI.] Discourse* in the Synagogue. yy 
 
 CHAPTER XI. 
 
 The Discourses delivered in the Synagogue. 
 
 That it was usual to address the congregation Preaching 
 in the synagogue, every sabbath-day, appears synagogue 6 
 from the declaration of the Apostle, James; 
 " Moses of old hath in every city them that 
 preach him, being read in the synagogues every 
 sabbath-day." a Our Lord, and his Apostles, 
 frequently preached in the synagogue on the sab- 
 bath ; a circumstance quite unaccountable, if 
 preaching was not usual. b Buxtorf, in his Jewish 
 Synagogue,* shows that the custom continues to 
 the present day ; as, indeed, must be known to 
 every one who has visited a synagogue. We will 
 investigate in this chapter, — 1st. The nature of 
 the discourses delivered in the synagogue : 2dly, 
 What persons were privileged, or permitted, to 
 address the congregation. 
 
 The discourses in the ancient synagogue were Discourses 
 after this manner : there was first read a portion iagogue.of 
 
 what kind. 
 
 Acts xv. 21. b Matt. iv. 23 ; xxvi. ~>5. Acts xiii. 5. 
 
 '" Cap. xvi. page 33. 
 
94 The Discourses delivered [Part I. 
 
 of the law, which was explained by a running 
 commentary; so that the discourses in the an- 
 cient synagogue were not at all similar to the 
 sermons of the present day, (though, in after 
 times, they became so,) but were rather exegeses, 
 and paraphrases, of what was either remarkable, 
 or obscure, in the portion read. Thus, at the 
 reading of the law, recorded in the Book of 
 Nehemiah/ not only did the Levites read the 
 law in the hearing of the people, but they also 
 " gave the sense, and caused them to understand 
 the reading." The Talmudists, indeed, assert, 
 that the manner in which the Levites caused 
 the people to understand, was, by translating 
 the Hebrew into Chaldee, (the Jews, at this 
 time, not understanding the Hebrew tongue;) 
 and in this opinion they are followed by a num- 
 ber of commentators. But the words of Nehe- 
 miah will not bear this construction ; the word 
 translated, "to give the sense," cannot mean 
 a mere translation. And, again, it is an opinion, 
 more common than just, that the Jews lost all 
 knowledge of their language during the Baby- 
 lonish captivity ; for it has been clearly proved by 
 the learned Altingius/ that all the Jews spoke 
 Hebrew in the time of Nehemiah, and continued 
 to speak it, till the times of Antiochus Epiphanes, 
 when the Syriac became the language of the 
 
 d Chap. viii. 8. e Dissert. Phil, de Vers. Scrip, cap. i. 
 
Chap. XL] in the Synagogue. 95 
 
 nation ; then, and not till then, was there a 
 necessity for a verbal translation. 
 
 The Chaldee Paraphrases will give the most The chai- 
 
 dee Para- 
 COrrect idea of the nature of the discourses de- phrases 
 
 hvered m the ancient synagogue ; for, m fact, most cor- 
 
 1 i . . IT reC '' ^ ea °^ 
 
 the paraphrases owe their origin to these dis- their re- 
 courses. Now, these paraphrases are not mere 
 verbal translations ; on the contrary, they remove 
 difficulties, explain metaphorical language, ex- 
 pound parables, illustrate types. To give one 
 or two instances : the prophet Isaiah, speak- 
 ing of God's dealings with his vineyard, says; 
 " And he fenced it, and gathered out the stones 
 thereof, and planted it with the choicest vine, 
 and built a tower in the midst of it, and made a 
 wine-press therein ; and he looked that it should 
 bring forth grapes, and it brought forth wild 
 grapes." f The Chaldee paraphrase is ; " I sancti- 
 fied my people, and I honoured them ; and I 
 placed them as a plant of a choice vine ; and 
 I built my sanctuary in the midst of them ; and 
 I gave my altar, that there might be an expiation 
 for sins ; and I said that they would perform 
 good works before me ; and, lo, they were cor- 
 rupt in their actions," Again : the following 
 passage occurs in the Book of the Prophet 
 Zechariah ; " In that day there shall be a foun- 
 tain opened to the house of David, and to the 
 
 f Chap. v. 2. 
 
9(> The Discourses delivered [Part I. 
 
 inhabitants of Jerusalem, for sin and for unclean- 
 ness." g The paraphrase is ; " In that time, the 
 doctrine of the law will be opened as a fountain 
 of water, to the house of David, and the in- 
 habitants of Jerusalem, and I will remit their 
 sins." 
 The dis- r f he discourses delivered in the synagogue 
 
 courses de- •> o o 
 
 livered in we re highly allegorical. The Jewish Rabbies were 
 
 the syna- , 
 
 gogue very fond of allegorizing the different precepts, 
 allegorical, and histories in the Scriptures, supposing this 
 mode of interpretation to be more consonant to 
 the intention of the inspired writers. Thus, in 
 the Jerusalem Talmud, 11 where mention is made 
 of the joy which the ancient Jews manifested at 
 the feast of tabernacles, 1 when they drew forth 
 the waters ; R. Jehosua thus comments ; " R. 
 Josua, the son of Levi, said, Why is the place 
 called the place of drawing ? — because thence 
 they draw the Holy Spirit, as it is written, With 
 joy shall ye draw water from the wells of salva- 
 tion." 1 " The Jewish Rabbies, then, when expound- 
 ing this passage in Isaiah, understood by the 
 water the Holy Spirit ; and by the drawing of the 
 water, the outpouring of the Spirit ; an alle- 
 gorical exposition, confirmed by our Lord 
 himself. ' 
 
 % Chap. xiii. 1 . '' Tractatu Succa, cap. Hechalil. 
 
 ' Vide Appendix, Note (G.) k Isaiah xii. 3. 
 
 1 John vii. 37, 38, 39. 
 
Chap. XL] in the Synagogue. 97 
 
 111 the Epistle of St. Paul to the Galatians, Allegorical 
 
 . . . . . .. expositions 
 
 there is an allegorical exposition, very similar to in the New 
 the discourses delivered in the synagogue. The 
 Apostle having mentioned the circumstance of 
 Abraham having had two sons, proceeds to say ; 
 " Which things are thus allegorized/ 1 for these 
 are the two covenants, the one from the Mount 
 Sinai, which gendereth to bondage, which is 
 Agar ; for this Agar is Mount Sinai, in Arabia, 
 and answereth to Jerusalem which now is, and 
 is in bondage with her children ; but Jerusalem 
 which is above is free, which is the mother of us 
 all." Sarah is supposed to represent that 
 church, which lived through faith in the pro- 
 mises ; and Agar to represent that, which at 
 Mount Sinai was reduced to bondage. Amongst 
 the Jews, the freedom or bondage of the mother 
 determined that of the child ; and, therefore, the 
 Apostle (following out the allegory) pronounces 
 the members or children of the former church 
 to be free, those of the latter to be in bondage. 
 
 The allegorical expositions of the synagogue Discourses 
 had much that was fabulous, mixed up with the g "g U e e s v y ery~ 
 truth ; hence, in allusion to them, the Apostle fabu ous " 
 Paul exhorts Timothy "to avoid profane and 
 old wives' fables ;" n and the Apostle Peter, 
 speaking of the solid foundation of christian 
 truth, says ; " We have not followed a cunningly- 
 
 m dWriyopovfjera, chap. iv. 24, 25, 2G. " 1 Tim. iv. 7. 
 
 H 
 
08 The Discourses delivered [Part T. 
 
 devised fable," such as was often to be found in 
 the discourses delivered in the synagogue. In 
 fact, so puerile and absurd did they at length 
 become, that Wagenselius complains, in strong 
 terms, of the unprofitable discourses delivered 
 in his time : — " In their harangues, which they 
 commonly make in the synagogues, they do not 
 explain the articles of faith ; they do not instruct 
 the ignorant in the manners and customs of the 
 Fathers ; they do not exhort to piety and virtue, 
 but they amuse their hearers with empty, enig- 
 matical declamation ; and the more foolish and 
 absurd the sermon, the more it is approved of." p 
 
 The dis- The discourses of the synagogue were some- 
 
 courses in 
 the 8 yna- times in parables, a mode of instruction very 
 
 gogue , . 
 
 sometimes usual in eastern countries, and adopted by our 
 ' Lord himself. The following is one of their para- 
 bles, as found in the Reschith Chochma: q — "The 
 wise men of blessed memory say ; Repent, whilst 
 you have strength ; whilst the lamp burns, give 
 it oil, lest it be extinguished ; if the lamp be 
 extinguished, oil avails it nothing. Thus, it is 
 
 " 2 Pet. i. 16. 
 
 p " Proinde in concionibus suis quas vulgo in synagogis 
 declamant, non capita fidei exponunt, non rudioribus mores et 
 instituta major una declarant, non verba ad pietatem et virtu- 
 tem faciunt, sed auditores offuciis quibusdam ludunt et cenig- 
 matibus, ac quo quisque ineptiorem et absurdiorem se praestat, 
 tanto magis dicta illius probantur." — Tela Ignea Satanse, 
 pag. 245. 
 
 q Fol. iii. col. 2. 
 
Chap. XL] in tlw Synagogue. 99 
 
 declared, that what oil is to the lamp, the law 
 and its precepts are to man ; as it is said, Let 
 thy head lack no ointment/ Moreover, our 
 doctors say in the Misdrach ; The holy blessed 
 God said to Israel, My sons, whilst the gates of 
 repentance are open, repent ; I receive the gift 
 in this world ; but when I shall sit in judgment 
 in the next world, I will receive no gift : he 
 who hath laboured in this life, shall eat with me 
 in rest ; this life is the porch, the next the 
 chamber ; prepare yourself, whilst in the porch, 
 that you may enter the chamber." 
 
 But, besides the running commentary or para- sermons 
 phrase, there was frequently a discourse, (ana- in the syna- 
 logous to our sermon,) after the usual service of 
 the synagogue. " If on the sabbath there be a 
 sermon, they read in the Prophets, either three 
 verses, or five, or seven, and not the usual 
 twenty-one." s Their manner of preaching is 
 described by Buxtorf : — " When a sermon is to 
 be delivered, the whole congregation sits. The 
 preacher covers his head, and, standing by the 
 pulpit, begins by reading out some portion of 
 Scripture, as his text or argument ; to this he 
 adds some saying of the Rabbies, which they 
 call (Mimor) ; he then enlarges on his subject, 
 bringing forward, in proof of his assertions, 
 various passages of Scripture, and various autho- 
 
 r Eccles. ix. 8. s Codex Sopher, cap. xii. sec. 7- 
 
 H 2 
 
100 The Discourses delivered [Part I. 
 
 rities from the Rabbies." Sermons were first 
 preached in the synagogue, about one hundred 
 years before Christ. 
 Name The usual name, for the discourses of the 
 
 sjiven to the 
 
 discourses synagogue, was daraschoth ; the root of which 
 
 delivered in . .„ 
 
 thesyna- signifies, " to inquire into, to discuss" 1 whether 
 m a set oration or by questions. This being the 
 force of the Hebrew word, it will appear, that 
 there are several allusions to these discourses, in 
 the New Testament. Thus, in his first Epistle 
 to the Corinthians, the Apostle Paul asks; 
 " Where is the disputer of this dispensation?" 11 
 (?' e. the dispensation of the Old Testament.) 
 The same Apostle admonishes Titus ; " to avoid 
 foolish questions, x and genealogies, and conten- 
 tions;" alluding, no doubt, to the vain and foolish 
 disputations in the synagogue; and in his elo- 
 quent speech before Agrippa, he speaks of his 
 appearing with confidence before that monarch ; 
 " because he knew him to be expert in all cus- 
 toms and questions y which are among the Jews." 
 
 Persons Our next inquiry will be, What persons were 
 
 privileged . l 
 
 topreacii privileged or permitted to address the congrega- 
 
 in the syna- ... 
 
 gogue." tion in the synagogue ? 
 
 The mier And first of all, the Ruler of the synagogue 
 
 of the syna- , , , . ... _ , J ° & 
 
 gogue pri- had this privilege ; and hence, he is defined to 
 
 vileged. 
 
 ' Answering to the Greek verb, forth'. 
 
 HvCt]ri]Ti]c tov alm'OQ tovtov, chap. i. 20. 
 " Titus iii. 9. v Acts xxvi. 3. 
 
Chap. XL] in. the Synagogue. 10 1 
 
 be the person " who has authority to preach 
 and to expound the law." 2 This privilege of 
 the Ruler is nowhere so clearly exhibited, as in 
 a circumstance narrated in the Sepher Hakkab- 
 bala; a "The Rabbou Gamaliel, falling under 
 the displeasure of the elders of his college, was 
 removed, and the Rabbi Eliezer substituted in 
 his place ; the elders afterwards became recon- 
 ciled to Gamaliel, and restored him to his former 
 dignity, but did not remove Eliezer ; and thus, 
 out of every three sabbaths, Gamaliel preached 
 twice, whilst Eliezer preached but once." In the 
 Gospel of St. Luke, b we meet with an instance 
 of the Ruler of the synagogue addressing the 
 congregation : our Lord had performed a mira- 
 cle, and " the Ruler of the synagogue answered 
 with indignation, because that Jesus had healed 
 on the sabbath-day; and said unto the people; 
 There are six days in which men ought to 
 work, in them therefore come and be healed, 
 and not on the sabbath-day." But it is need- 
 less to multiply proofs, upon a point conceded 
 by all. 
 
 The Ruler of the synagogue could also give c<mid give 
 
 , permission 
 
 permission, to any educated person, to stand up to any per- 
 son quali- 
 fied, 
 
 z Glossa ad Gemaram Codicis Horaioth, cap. iii. Col. 13, 
 col. 2. 
 
 a Fol. lviii. col. 2, and fol. lix. col. 1. 
 b Chap. xiii. 14. 
 
10*2 Discourses in the Synagogue. [Part I; 
 
 and address the congregation. This is evident 
 from many passages in the Acts of the Apostles, 
 as also from Jewish writers ; thus, Maimonides, 
 speaking of the discourses delivered during the 
 fasts, says ; " If there be no elder present, they 
 appoint some doctor to preach, who is not an 
 elder : if there be no doctor present, they 
 appoint some person of known character and 
 integrity." The practice of the modern syna- 
 gogue is exactly similar ; Wagenselius informs 
 us, that though there are certain occasions on 
 which the presiding Rabbi usually preaches, (such 
 as before the Passover, the day of Expiation, 
 &c.) — yet at other times, a stranger acciden- 
 tally coming in, or any individual whatsoever, in 
 whose learning and judgment they can confide ; 
 may be called on to preach. 
 
 c Taanith, chap. iv. sec. 2. 
 
Chap. XII.] The Ritual of the Synagogue. 103 
 
 CHAPTER XII. 
 
 The Ritual of the Synagogue 
 
 I. THE FORM OF PRAYER. 
 
 The Prayers used in the synagogue were payers 
 of two kinds, private and public ; the former, synagogue 
 such as were used by individuals, previous to iJ in J° 
 the commencement of the public service ; the 
 latter, such as could be used only in the con- 
 gregation, and were read by the Legate of the 
 church. 3 
 
 a The Jews supposed a peculiar blessing to be attached to 
 public prayer ; because it is said, " God standeth in the con- 
 gregation of the mighty." Psalm lxxxii. 1. And, since the 
 letters in the word gnadaii (a congregation) make up ten, 
 they inferred, that a congregation should consist of this number 
 at least. Vide chap. II. But from Mai. iii. 10, they inferred, 
 that the Messiah could be present, if even two met together in 
 his name ; an opinion strikingly analogous to our Lord's de- 
 claration ; " When two or three are gathered together for my 
 name (sif to t/xou ovofxa, i. e. for my glory), there am I in 
 the midst." 
 
104 The Ritual of the Synagogue. [Part I. 
 
 Public The Public liturgy of the synagogue consisted 
 
 liturgy of . 
 
 thesyna- principally of two formulas, the Schemah and 
 sisted prin- the Schemon Esre. The latter form should be 
 two formu- recited, three times each day, by every Israelite, 
 whether bond or free, male or female ; the 
 former by every free male, each morning and 
 evening, in addition to the Schemon Esre. 
 The sche- The Schemah consisted of three portions se- 
 lected from the law, b viz. Deuteronomy, chapter 
 nine, verses four to nine inclusive ; the eleventh 
 of Deuteronomy, from the thirteenth to the 
 twenty-first verse inclusive ; and the fifteenth 
 of Numbers, from the thirty-seventh to the forty- 
 first verse inclusive. The reciting of these three 
 portions of Scripture was called the Keriath 
 Schemah. 
 Allusion to There is an evident allusion to the reading of 
 
 the Sche- , & 
 
 mah in the the Schemah, in the gospel of St. Luke : d a lawyer 
 
 Gospel of ° r * 
 
 st. Luke, asks our Lord, " Master, what must I do, that 
 I may inherit eternal life ?" Our Lord replies, 
 " What is written in the law ? hozo reddest 
 thou f He, answering, said unto him, Thou shalt 
 love the Lord thy God," &c. Now, the question 
 of our Lord, " How reddest thou?" evidently 
 referring to some well - known reading ; the 
 
 b The first two of the portions, together with Exod. xiii. 
 1 — 10 ; and Exod. xiii. 11 — 16, were the portions of Scripture 
 written on the Phylacteries. 
 
 ' Vide Appendix, Note (H.) '' Chap. x. 26. 
 
Chap. XII.] The Ritual of the Synagogue. 105 
 
 reciting of the Schemah being emphatically 
 called Keriath, i. e. the reading ; and the lawyer 
 answering our Lord from the first period of the 
 Schemah ; these things put together give strong 
 reason to conclude, that, when our Lord asked 
 the question, he alluded to the Schemah. 
 
 The Schemon Esre consisted of nineteen The s c he- 
 
 , t-i« i • i i mon Esre. 
 
 Prayers or Eulogies. Eighteen are said to have 
 been composed by Ezra 6 and his colleagues ; the 
 twelfth, viz. that against heretics, was added by 
 Rabbon Gamaliel. 
 
 The Eulogies were as follows : — 
 
 " 1. Blessed be thou, O Lord our God, the God The nine- 
 of our fathers, the God of Abraham, the God of g ies of the 
 Isaac, the God of Jacob, the great God, power- Esre. 
 ful and tremendous ; the high God, bountifully 
 dispensing benefits ; the Creator and possessor 
 of the universe, who rememberest the piety of 
 our fathers, and in love givest a Redeemer to 
 their children for thy name's sake, O our 
 King, our Protector, our Saviour, and Shield. 
 Blessed art thou, O Lord, who art the Shield of 
 Abraham. 
 
 e This is the opinion of Maimonides ; though the 5th, 10th, 
 11th, 14th, and 17th Eulogies, speaking of Jerusalem as in a 
 state of desolation, are against his opinion. Some of the 
 Eulogies may have been composed by him, but the other tra- 
 dition, from the Codex Berachoth, is more probable ; according 
 to it, R. Simeon Gossypiarius was the arranger of the form. 
 
106 The Ritual of the Synagogue. [Part 1. 
 
 " 2. Thou, O Lord, art powerful for everlast- 
 ing; thou dost bring to life the dead; thou art able 
 to save ; thou makest the dew to descend ; thou 
 restrainest the wind, and sendest thy showers 
 on the earth ; thou sustainest the living by thy 
 favour, and bringest to life the dead, according 
 to thy great mercy ; thou holdest up the weak ; 
 thou healest the sick ; thou loosest those that 
 are bound, and fulfillest thy faith to them that 
 sleep in the dust O God, who is a God power- 
 ful like thee ? who like unto thee, a Sovereign 
 that killest and makest alive, and dost cause 
 salvation to flourish ? Thou art faithful to raise 
 the dead. Blessed art thou, O Lord, that raisest 
 the dead. 
 
 " 3. Thou art Holy, and thy name is Holy, 
 and thy saints daily praise thee. Selah. Blessed 
 art thou, O Lord, the Holy God. f 
 
 f This was the Eulogy, as repeated in private : when used 
 in public, it was as follows. " We sanctify thee, and declare 
 thee to be our King ; and three times we repeat that triple 
 declaration of thy holiness, which thy prophet has mentioned 
 in these words: 'And one cried to the other, Holy! Holy! 
 Holy ! is the Lord of Hosts ; the whole earth is full of his 
 glory ' (Isaiah vi. 3); and the whole world is full of his great- 
 ness : and his ministers ask, where is the place of his glory, 
 that they may revere him ; and they praise him, and say, 
 Blessed be the glory of the Lord from his place. O Lord, 
 our King, exhibit thyself to us from thy place in splendour, 
 and reign over us, since we wait for thee. When wilt thou 
 reign in Zion, in our life, and in our days ? When wilt thou 
 
Chap. XII.] The Ritual of the Synagogue. 107 
 
 " 4. Thou of thy free mercy dost give know- 
 ledge, and teach prudence. Give to us know- 
 ledge, and wisdom, and prudence. Blessed art 
 thou, O Lord, who dost graciously give know- 
 ledge unto men. 8 
 
 inhabit Jerusalem, thy city, and be magnified and sanctified in 
 the midst of it, from generation to generation, for ever and 
 ever? Our eyes shall see the kingdom of thy strength, 
 according to the word spoken by thy holy servant David, (the 
 just one, thine anointed,) ' The Lord shall reign for ever; thy 
 God, OZion, through all generations.' Hallelujah ! In every 
 age we will proclaim thy greatness, and through all eternity 
 we will sanctify thy holiness ; and thy praise, O our God ! 
 shall not depart from our mouths, because thou, O God, art a 
 strong, great, and holy King. Blessed art thou, O Lord, the 
 holy God." This form was called the Keduscha. — Maimonides 
 in Seder Tephil. 
 
 e At the close of the Sabbath, of the Day of Expiation, and 
 of Festival days, they added to the fourth Eulogy as follows : — 
 " Thou hast freely bestowed upon man knowledge, and teachest 
 him prudence. Thou hast divided between the holy and pro- 
 fane ; between light and darkness ; between the Israelites and 
 the Gentiles ; between the seventh day and the six working 
 days of the week. As thou hast made a distinction between 
 the sacred and profane, so deliver and free us from every kind 
 of crime, and from all evils of every kind, with which men are 
 afflicted ; from all these preserve us, and grant us thy grace." 
 Whenever this addition was made to the fourth Eulogy, but 
 seven Eulogies were recited ; viz. the first and last three, 
 and the fourth. On Sabbath-days, they concluded the Eulogy 
 with the words ; " Blessed art thou, holy God, who dost 
 sanctify the Sabbath ;" — and on Festivals ; " Blessed art thou, 
 O holy God, who dost sanctify Israel at stated times." At the 
 feast of Tabernacles, the antepenultimate and the penulti- 
 mate were the only Eulogies recited. Other variations and 
 
108 The Ritual of the Synagogue. [Part. I. 
 
 " 5. O Father, bring us back to the observance 
 of -thy law, and make us cleave to thy precepts; 
 and do thou, our King, draw us near to thy 
 worship ; and convert us to thee, by perfect 
 repentance before thee. Blessed art thou, O 
 Lord, who dost accept repentance. 
 
 " 6. Be thou merciful unto us, O Father : for 
 we have sinned : pardon us, O our King, for we 
 have transgressed thy commandments. Thou 
 art a God, good, and ready to pardon. Blessed 
 art thou, O Lord, most gracious, who multipliest 
 thy mercies, in the forgiveness of sins. 
 
 " 7. Look, we pray thee, on our affliction, and 
 undertake our cause, in all our contentions and 
 strivings ; and hasten our redemption, for thou, 
 O God, art a great King, and a most powerful 
 Redeemer. Blessed art thou, O Lord, the Re- 
 deemer of Israel. 
 
 " 8. Heal us, O Lord our God, and we shall 
 be healed ; save us, and we shall be saved. For 
 thou art our praise. Grant thy all-sufficient medi- 
 cine for our infirmities ; for thou art our merci- 
 ful Physician. Blessed art thou, O Lord, who 
 healest the infirmities of thy people Israel. 
 
 " 9. Bless us, O Lord our God, in every work 
 of our hands ; and bless our years ; and grant a 
 
 additions may be seen in Maimonides, Hil. Tep. Cap. sec. 
 13 — 19, and in his work on the Order of Prayer for the 
 whole Year. 
 
Chap. XII.] The Ritual of the Synagogue. 109 
 
 copious dew and rain in all our land ; and satisfy 
 the world with thy blessings, and send down 
 moisture upon the habitable earth. Blessed art 
 thou, O Lord, who givest thy blessing to the 
 years. 
 
 " 10. Call us together to our liberty, by the 
 sound of the great trumpet ; and raise the stan- 
 dard, to call together the dispersed Israelites, 
 from the four quarters of the earth into our 
 land. Blessed art thou, O Lord, who gatherest 
 together the dispersed of thy people Israel. 
 
 "11. Bring back our judges as at the first, and 
 our counsellors as in the beginning ; and remove 
 labour and trouble far from us, and do thou 
 alone reign over us in grace, and mercy, in 
 righteousness, and judgment. Blessed art thou, 
 O Lord our King, who lovest righteousness and 
 judgment. 
 
 " 12. Let the apostates from the true religion 
 have no hope ; and let all heretics, 11 how many 
 soever they be, suddenly perish. And let the 
 kingdom of pride 1 be rooted out, and broken in 
 our days. Blessed art thou, O Lord our God, 
 who destroyest the wicked, and dost bring down 
 the proud. k 
 
 h This is the celebrated prayer added by Gamaliel against 
 Christians. 
 
 ' The Roman Empire. 
 
 k Tbe twelfth Prayer, as now used by the Tews, varies con- 
 
1 10 The Rituul of the Synagogue. [Part 1. 
 
 " 13. May thy compassion, O Lord our God, 
 be extended to the pious, and the just, and to 
 the proselytes of righteousness, 5 and to the 
 remnant of thy people Israel ; and amply reward 
 all those, who sincerely trust in thy name ; and 
 place our portion with them. May we never be 
 ashamed, since our trust is in thee. Blessed art 
 thou, O Lord, the support and confidence of the 
 righteous. 
 
 " 14. Dwell thou in the midst of Jerusalem, thy 
 city, as thou hast promised ; and build it with a 
 building to last for ever, even now in our days. 
 
 siderably from that above given. In the Prayer Book of the 
 German and Polish Jew? it stands thus : — " O let the slanderers 
 have no hope, all the wicked be annihilated speedily, and all 
 the tyrants be cut off quickly ; humble thou them quickly in our 
 days. Blessed art thou, O Lord, who destroyest enemies, and 
 humblest tyrants." In the Prayer Book of the Spanish and 
 Portuguese Jews this prayer runs thus: — " Let slanderers 
 have no hope, and all presumptuous apostates perish as in a 
 moment ; and may thine enemies, and those who hate thee, be 
 suddenly cut off, and all those who act wickedly be suddenly 
 broken, consumed, and rooted out ; and humble thou them 
 speedily in our days. Blessed art thou, O Lord, who destroyest 
 the enemies and humblest the proud." (Allen's Modern Juda- 
 ism, p. 329, as quoted in Home's Introduction, vol. iii) 
 
 1 There were two kinds of proselytes, — Proselytes of the 
 gate, and Proselytes of righteousness. The former had re- 
 nounced idolatry, and were worshippers of the true God, but, 
 without joining the Jewish Church ; the latter were converts to 
 Judaism, and as such observed the Mosaic law. Cornelius was 
 of the former class ; the Eunuch of the latter. 
 
Chap. XII.] The Ritual of the Synagogue. 1 1 1 
 
 Blessed art thou, O Lord, who dost build Je- 
 rusalem. 
 
 " 15. Grant, that the seed of David thy ser- 
 vant, may quickly nourish ; and may our horn 
 be exalted in thy salvation, for we look for 
 thy salvation every day. Blessed art thou, O 
 Lord, who makest the horn of our salvation to 
 nourish. 
 
 " 16'. Hear our voice, O Lord our God ; and 
 spare us, and pity us, and accept our prayers, 
 with thy mercy and favour; and do not, O our 
 King, send us away empty from thy presence : 
 for thou dost in mercy hear the prayers of thy 
 people Israel. Blessed art thou, O Lord, who 
 nearest the prayer. 
 
 "17. O Lord our God, have pleasure in thy 
 people Israel, and regard their prayers, and 
 restore the Levitical worship to the shrine m of 
 thy house ; and speedily receive, with love and 
 favour, the burnt sacrifices of Israel, and their 
 prayers ; and let the worship of thy people Israel 
 be well-pleasing in thy sight. Blessed art thou, O 
 Lord, who dost bring back thy Shechinah to Zion. 
 
 " 18. We give thanks unto thee with praise ; 
 for thou art the Lord our God, and the God of 
 our fathers ; thou art the rock of our life, and 
 
 m The Holy of Holies, in which was the Ark of the Cove- 
 nant ; and on the Ark (in Solomon's Temple,) rested the 
 Shechinah, the symbol of the Divine presence. 
 
112 The Ritual of the Synagogue. [Part I. 
 
 the shield of our salvation. To all generations 
 we will give thanks to thee, and declare thy 
 praise ; for our life, which is in thy power ; for 
 our souls, which are entrusted to thee ; and for 
 thy signs, which are with us every day ; and 
 for thy wonderful works and loving-kindness, 
 which we experience upon every occasion, in 
 the morning, at noon, and in the evening. O 
 thou good Being, whose mercies are not con- 
 sumed ; O thou merciful Being, whose kindnesses 
 are infinite, we have long waited for thee ; and for 
 all these mercies may thy name be blessed, and 
 exalted, for ever and ever ; and may all that live 
 give thanks unto thee. Selah. And let them in 
 truth and sincerity praise thy name, O God of 
 our salvation, and our help. Selah. Blessed art 
 thou, O Lord, whose name is good, and whom it 
 becomes us to praise. 
 
 ** 19. Give to us, and to thy people Israel, 
 peace, beneficence, and blessing; grace, be- 
 nignity, and mercy. Bless us all as one man, 
 with the light of thy countenance. Thou hast 
 given unto us, O Lord our God, the law of 
 life, and from thy mere grace hast followed us 
 with love, kindness, blessing, mercy, life, and 
 peace. And it pleases thee to bless thy people 
 Israel every time and moment. Blessed art 
 thou, O Lord, who dost bless thy people Israel 
 with peace." 
 
Chap. XII.] The Ritual of the Synagogue. 113 
 
 This celebrated prayer may be divided into Schemon 
 
 i /» i ti i • ri E sre ma y 
 
 three parts. The first three Eulogies set forth be divided 
 
 generally the praises of Jehovah ; the last three parts. 
 
 celebrate those attributes which are exercised in 
 
 bestowing mercies upon man ; the intermediate 
 
 thirteen are petitions for all things necessary to 
 
 soul and body. 
 
 There was sometimes used, instead of the in- shorter 
 
 , . , . , . . form used 
 
 termediate thirteen, a shorter torm, containing, for the 
 however, their substance ; it was as follows : — Esre. 
 " Grant us prudence, O Lord our God, that we 
 may understand thy ways, and circumcise our 
 heart. Prove thyself propitious to us, by hasten- 
 ing our redemption. Remove far away from us 
 all grief; render us fruitful ; and grant that we 
 may inhabit the delightful places of thy land. 
 Gather together the dispersed from the four 
 regions of the earth. May the erring be judged 
 by knowledge of thee ; and turn thy hand against 
 the impious ; but let the just rejoice, in the re- 
 building of thy city, in the establishing of thy 
 Sanctuary, and in this, — that thou makest the 
 horn of David thy servant to flourish, and givest 
 a light to thy Messiah, the son of Jesse. Before 
 we call, do thou answer ; before we speak, do 
 thou hear ; for thou dost answer them that call, 
 in every time of distress ; thou dost redeem and 
 deliver from every calamity. Blessed art thou, 
 O Lord, who hearest the prayer." 
 
114 The Ritual of the Synagogue. [Part I. 
 
 Prayer be- On Sabbath and Festival days, the following 
 
 schemon short prayer was used before the Schemon Esre : 
 " O Lord, open my lips, and my mouth shall 
 show forth thy praise." And after ; " Let the 
 words of my mouth, and the meditation of my 
 heart, be always acceptable in thy sight, O Lord 
 my strength and my Redeemer." 11 
 
 order of So far for the two principal formulas of the 
 Jewish ritual. We come, in the next place, to 
 the Order of Prayer; and, first, to that of 
 Private Prayer. 
 
 order of The following is the order of Private Prayer, 
 
 Private . _ _ . . . 
 
 Piayer. as given by Maimonides. 
 
 Morning 1. Benedictions, or Thanksgivings, for indi- 
 vidual mercies ; e. g. for refreshing sleep, for 
 protection during the night. These Benedictions 
 were repeated immediately after rising from bed, 
 and were twenty-three in number. 
 
 2. A prayer. In the beginning of this prayer the 
 following expressions occur: — " We lay our wants 
 before thee, not trusting to our own righteous- 
 ness, but to thy great mercy. What are we ? what 
 is our life ? what our piety ? what our righteous- 
 ness ? what our health ? what our strength ? 
 what our ability ? what shall we say in thy 
 presence, O Lord our God ?" The prayer con- 
 cludes thus : — '* Nevertheless we are thy people, 
 
 " Psalm xix. 14. 
 
Chap, XII.] The Ritual of tlie Synagogue. 115 
 
 thy covenanted people ; the offspring of Abra- 
 ham, thy friend, to whom thou hast bound 
 thyself by an oath on Mount Moriah ; the 
 seed of Isaac thy beloved, who was bound 
 upon thine altar ; the congregation of Jacob 
 thy son, thy first born," &c. We give these ex- 
 tracts as conveying a fair specimen of Jewish 
 feeling ; an apparent renunciation of their own 
 righteousness ; and yet, a boasting in privileges, 
 an exaggeration of the merits of their fathers, 
 and that reliance upon their descent from Abra- 
 ham, for which they are so justly censured by 
 the Apostle Paul. 
 
 3. The Eulogy called Baruch Scheamar. 
 
 4. A Selection from the Psalms. The se- 
 lection varied in different congregations ; Leo 
 of Modena p mentions that the Psalms generally 
 used were, from Psalm cxlv. to the end : in a 
 Liturgy in the possession of Vitringa, the portions 
 selected are : 1 Chron. xvi. 8 — 37. Psalm xcix. 
 5 — 9 ; lxxviii. 38 ; xlvi. 1 2 ; xxv. 6 ; lxviii. 35 
 to the end: there were additional portions 
 for the Sabbath. These selections were read 
 in a tone corresponding very nearly to our 
 chanting. 
 
 5. The Eulogy called Jistabbeach. On 
 Sabbath days there was a prayer before this 
 Eulogy. 
 
 ° Rom. ii. 17,28. ' Consuetud. Jud. lib. i. cap. 11. 
 
 i 2 
 
116 The Ritual of the Synagogue. [Part I. 
 
 6. The Schemah, and its benedictions ; 
 omitting the sanctification of the Divine Name 
 in the first benediction/ as it was not lawful for 
 a private person to repeat it. r 
 
 7. The Schemon Esre, called emphatically 
 the Prayer. 
 
 8. Supplications, and deprecations of the Di- 
 vine anger. These may be seen in the Jewish 
 formularies. 
 
 9. The hundred and forty-fifth Psalm. 
 
 10. A Prayer. And thus ended the morn- 
 ing devotion. 
 
 Evening The evening worship commenced with the 
 
 Prayer. ° r 
 
 hundred and forty-fifth Psalm ; then followed 
 the Schemah, with its Benedictions ; s then the 
 Schemon Esre ; and lastly, a Prayer. 
 
 Such were the prayers used in private by 
 every Israelite ; and though it was not abso- 
 lutely necessary, it was desirable, that they 
 should be recited in the Synagogue. 
 
 q Called Jotzer Oor. 
 
 r At the Morning devotion there were two benedictions 
 used before the Schemah, and one after. At Evening de- 
 votions, two before and two after. These Benedictions may be 
 seen in Vitringa, p. 1054. 
 
 After the first verse of the first period of the Schemah had 
 been recited, (viz. that which declares the unity of Jehovah,) 
 it was usual to say in an under voice ; " Blessed be the name 
 of his glorious kingdom, for ever and ever." 
 
 1 Viz. two before and two after the Schemah ; they are to 
 be seen in Vitringa, p. 1054. 
 
Chap. XI L] The Ritual of the Synagogue. 1 1 7 
 
 Other prayers, also, were used in private ; as The -J;^ 
 at meals, when dressing, &c. ; a Jew considered themselves 
 
 ° bound to 
 
 himself bound to recite, altogether, in the day, recite 100 
 
 Prayers in 
 
 at least one hundred Benedictions. The number the day. 
 was thus made up : — 
 
 The twenty-three Benedictions in the morning 23 
 The Benedictions of the Schemah, morning 
 
 and evening 7 
 
 The Benediction when putting on the Tzizith 1 1 
 
 Ditto . . . ditto . . . the Phylacteries" 1 
 
 The Schemon Esre, x three times .... 54 
 
 The Benedictions at two meals, seven at each . 14 
 
 100 
 
 We have merely to add, that the Schemah 
 should be repeated in the morning, — some time 
 during the first quarter of the day, commencing 
 at sunrise ; in the evening, it might be repeated 
 any time before day-break. 
 
 1 This was the upper garment of the Jews. They were 
 commanded to wear fringes, at the four corners of their upper 
 garments, of a blue colour, and a border of galoon on the 
 edges. (Num. xv. 38. Deut. xxii. 12. Matt. ix. 20 ; also 
 xxiii. 5.) 
 
 u Phylacteries were little rolls of parchment, in which were 
 written certain words of the law ; they were worn by the Jews 
 upon their foreheads, and upon the wrists of their left arm. 
 The custom was founded on a mistaken interpretation of Exod. 
 xiii. 9—16. 
 
 x Supposed to consist (as it did at first) of eighteen Bene- 
 dictions. 
 
118 The Ritual of the Synagogue. [Part I. 
 
 Order of The Public Service was read, or rather 
 
 Public 
 
 Prayer. chanted, every day, by the Legate of the 
 Church. The following is its order, as de- 
 scribed by Maimonides. y 
 
 Morning The Legate of the Church, upon entering 
 
 Prayer. D l & 
 
 the Synagogue, finds the congregation sitting; 
 he advances toward the ark, and, standing in 
 the low space before it, commences the service 
 with — 
 TheKad- 1. The Kaddisch. This is the most ancient 
 
 disch. 
 
 of all the Synagogal prayers. It is in the Chal- 
 daic language, is esteemed most sacred, and 
 cannot be used in private prayer. It runs thus : 
 " May his great Name be extolled and hallowed 
 in the world, which he created according to his 
 will ; may he cause his kingdom to come ; z may 
 his redemption flourish ; may his Messiah 
 speedily come, and may he deliver his people 
 in your life and in your days, and in the time 
 of the whole house of Israel, and that quickly ; 
 and say ye ' Amen, Amen.' Let his great name 
 be blessed, for ever and ever. Let his name be 
 celebrated, and his memory extolled, through 
 all generations. Let the name of the Holy 
 Blessed God be celebrated, praised, adorned, 
 exalted, extolled, and preached, far above every 
 Benediction and Hymn, Praise and Thanks- 
 
 y Hillcoth Tep. cap. ix. sec. 1. 
 
 z Evidently similar to two petitions in the Lord's prayer. 
 
Chap. XII.] The Ritual of the Synagogue. 119 
 
 giving, ascribed to things in the world ; and say 
 ye, ' Amen.' In pity, and with favour, receive 
 our prayers ; may the prayers and the desires of 
 all Israel be received before their Father, who is 
 in heaven ; and say ye, e Amen.' May the name 
 of the Lord be blessed, from this time forth 
 for evermore ; may there be great peace from 
 heaven, and life for us and for all Israel ; and 
 say ye, 'Amen.'" This formula was prefixed, 
 and subjoined, to every public act of devotion : 
 at the end of the Kaddisch, 
 
 2. The People answer ; " Amen. Let his 
 great name be blessed, for ever and ever." 
 
 3. The Legate; " Bless ye the blessed God." ;i 
 
 4. People ; " Blessed be the blessed Lord, for 
 ever and to everlasting." 
 
 5. The Schemah, with its Eulogies, is recited 
 by the Legate, in a loud voice ; the people an- 
 swering, " Amen," after each Eulogy. 
 
 6. The Schemon Esre, with the Keduscha," 
 all standing up. This prayer was repeated, first 
 in silence, by each member of the congregation ; 
 and then aloud, by the Legate of the Church ; 
 the people answering M Amen," after each Eulogy. 
 Several ceremonies were observed when repeating 
 
 a This short form was called the Barechu, and could not be 
 vised in private. 
 
 h The Keduscha is the declaration of God's holiness in 
 the third Eulogy. 
 
120 The Mitual of the Synagogue. [Part I. 
 
 this form : when repeated in silence, each person 
 bowed five times ; viz. at the beginning and end 
 of the first Benediction, at the beginning and 
 end of the eighteenth ; c and when the prayer 
 was ended, the whole congregation bowed again, 
 and receded three steps : then the Legate com- 
 menced the Prayer aloud ; when he came to the 
 Keduscha, every one returned to his former place. 
 
 7. All sit down, and inclining the head, pray 
 for a time ; then they fall on their faces ; d after- 
 wards they sit down, and raising the head, pray 
 in an under voice. 
 
 8. The Legate stands up, and recites the 
 Kaddisch ; the people answering as before. 
 
 9. The Prayer, Vehu Radium. 
 
 10. The 145th Psalm, the people repeating the 
 Psalm with him. 
 
 11. The forms, Uva Letzion, ("The Re- 
 deemer will come to Zion ;") Vaani Sooth (" This 
 is my covenant") ; and Beatta Kadasch (" Thou 
 art holy.") 
 
 12. The Keduscha ; first in Hebrew, then in 
 Chaldaic. 
 
 13. The Prayer, Vatissaim Ruach (" And 
 the Spirit sustained me;") first in Hebrew, 
 then in Chaldaic : other prayers followed. Then 
 
 c Called Modim. 
 
 d On sabbath-davs, as also on solemn festivals, and at the 
 daily evening service, there was no prostration in prayer. 
 
Chap. XII.] The Ritual of the Synagogue. 121 
 
 14. The Kaddisch ; and the congregation is 
 dismissed. 
 
 It appears, then, that, besides the declaration Threefold 
 of God's Holiness in the Kaddisch, there was a c iarationof 
 threefold solemn declaration of it, in the other ness in 
 parts of the service ; viz. in the Jotzer Oor, in service, 
 the Keduscha, and in the Uva Letzion. Our 
 Lord, in all probability, accommodated to this 
 threefold declaration, the first three petitions of 
 his prayer. 
 
 The following is the order of the Afternoon 
 service : — 
 
 1 . The 84th Psalm, from the fifth verse to Order of 
 the end ; and the 145th Psalm, the whole con- prayer, 
 gregation sitting. 
 
 2. All standing up ; the Kaddisch is recited. 
 
 3. The Schemon Esre ; first, in silence, by 
 the congregation ; then aloud, by the Legate. 
 
 4. Supplications and deprecations, as in the 
 morning, vide No. 7. 
 
 5. The Kaddisch ; and then the congregation 
 is dismissed. 
 
 The following is the order of Evening Prayer : — Order of 
 
 Evening 
 
 1. The Formula ; Venn Rachnm. Prayer. 
 
 2. The Barechu, and its response. 
 
 3. The Kaddisch. 
 
 4. The Schemah, with the Evening Eulogies. 
 
 5. The Schemon Esre, in silence only. (It 
 was not repeated aloud at the Evening service.) 
 
122 The Ritual of the Synagog ue. [Part I. 
 
 6. The Kaddisch; then the congregation is 
 dismissed. 
 
 On Sabbath and Festival days, they observed 
 the following order : — 
 Order of 1. The usual Morning prayer. 
 
 prayer on 
 
 sabbath 2. The Kaddisch. 
 
 da>s. 3. The Reading of the Law. 
 
 4. The 145th Psalm. 
 
 5. The Kaddisch. 
 
 6. Additional Prayers ; first in silence, by the 
 congregation ; then aloud, by the Legate. 
 
 7. The Kaddisch. 6 
 
 Theser- There were, then, three different meetings for 
 
 vices in the i-in i ■» /r i-ii 
 
 synagogue prayer during the day : the Morning prayer should 
 day. " be over before the fourth hour ; the Afternoon 
 prayer was offered up between the ninth hour and 
 sunset ; whilst no exact space of time was as- 
 signed for the Evening prayer. f These different 
 services were supposed to answer to the threefold 
 daily sacrifice ; and, as on Sabbath and Festival 
 days, there were in the temple additional sacri- 
 fices, so there were in the synagogue additional 
 
 e At Sabbath -morning service, they omitted the prayers 
 No. 7, as also the formula Uva Letzion, No. 11. These were 
 reserved for the Afternoon service, and came in after the 145th 
 Psalm. 
 
 f The attendance at Evening service was not considered to 
 be absolutely necessary, and was, therefore, left to the discre- 
 tion of each individual. In modern synagogues, the afternoon 
 prayers are recited just before sunset, and the evening prayers 
 follow immediately after. 
 
Chap. XII. ] The Ritual of the Synagogue. 123 
 
 prayers : on the day of Atonement, there were 
 five different times of prayer. 
 
 The Blessing was pronounced after the eight- The biess- 
 eenth Eulogy, and was as follows : — " The Lord nounoed 
 bless thee, and keep thee ; the Lord make his synagogue. 
 face shine upon thee, and be gracious unto 
 thee ; the Lord lift up his countenance upon 
 thee, and give thee peace." g When the Legate 
 came to the seventeenth Eulogy, every Priest in 
 the synagogue ascended the pulpit, and turning 
 towards the Ark, recited aloud, with the Legate 
 and the whole congregation, the eighteenth Eu- 
 logy. They then repeated by themselves the 
 words ; '■ The Lord bless thee : " after which 
 the Legate read the blessing ; the Priests repeat- 
 ing it after him, word by word, and the congre- 
 gation answering, " Amen," after each verse. 
 
 If there were no Priest present, 11 lest the con- 
 
 6 Num. vi. 24, &c. This benediction was not pronounced 
 at the Afternoon service ; they feared lest, perchance, the 
 priests might drink too freely after dinner, and thus be un- 
 fitted to perform this sacred duty, with a reverence suited 
 to that Divine Being, whose character they (as it were) sus- 
 tained. 
 
 h It may be asked, is it possible, in the general confu- 
 sion of the tribes, to determine, who are priests, i. e. lineally 
 descended from Aaron ? When we consider the strictness ob- 
 served by the priests in their marriages, a strictness to which 
 Josephus bears testimony, (against Apion, book i. cbap. 7,) 
 it is not improbable, but that some have preserved their lineal 
 succession unimpaired ; though there can be scarcely a doubt, 
 
124 The Ritual of the Synagogue. [Part I. 
 
 Form of gregation should depart without any blessing, 
 when no the Legate used the following form : — " O Lord, 
 
 priest was 
 
 present. our God, the God of our fathers, bless us with 
 that triple blessing which is in the law, written 
 by Moses thy servant, spoken by Aaron and his 
 sons the priests ; as it is written, ' The Lord 
 bless thee, &c.' " When this form of blessing 
 was used, the people did not answer, " Amen." 
 
 II. THE READING OF THE LAW AND THE PROPHETS. 
 
 Manner of Whenever the Law was to be read, after the 
 
 Law. g e Legate of the Church had closed the usual 
 
 Morning prayer, with the solemn formula, called 
 
 the Kaddisch, the Chazzan brought forth the 
 
 Sacred Volume amidst the acclamations of the 
 
 people. The reader was then called out, who, 
 
 ascending the pulpit, read his portion, using first, 
 
 however, this short form : — 
 
 Doxoiogy Reader. " Bless ye the blessed God." 
 
 ingthe People. " Praised be the blessed God, for 
 
 Law. 
 
 ever and ever. 
 
 Reader. " Blessed be thou, O Lord our God, 
 Governor of the world ; who hast chosen us 
 
 but that some who assert their descent from Aaron, and whose 
 claim is acknowledged by their brethren, have no ground for 
 their claim. That some, to this very day, are acknowledged 
 as priests, appears from their still retaining the custom 
 of redeeming the first born, at the price of five shekels. — 
 Buxtorf, Synag. Jud. cap. 6. 
 
Chap. XII.] The Ritual of the Synagogue. 125 
 
 from all people, and hast given to us thy law. 
 Blessed be thou, O Lord, who hast given to us 
 thy law." 
 
 People. " Amen." 
 
 When the Reader had finished his portion, he Doxoiogy 
 
 1 after. 
 
 repeated the following Doxoiogy : " Blessed be 
 thou, O Lord, the Ruler of the world ; who hast 
 given to us thy law, the law of truth, and hast 
 planted eternal life amongst us. Blessed be 
 thou, O Lord, who hast given to us thy law." 
 When he had repeated this form, he descended 
 from the pulpit : the second Reader was then 
 called out, who read his portion, using the same 
 forms, and so on, till the lesson for the day was 
 entirely read. 
 
 A napkin was thrown over the Sacred Volume 
 between each reading : the last Reader closed 
 the book, and stood before the Ark till it was 
 deposited therein : hence to be the last Reader 
 was considered an honour, and was frequently 
 purchased at a price. 
 
 The Law (as well as the other Scriptures) Scrupulous 
 
 . . accuracy of 
 
 was read m the Hebrew tongue, 1 trom a copy the Jews in 
 written in square Assyrian characters," without f the Law. 
 
 ' At the feast of Purim, it was considered to be the duty of 
 every Jew to hear the Megilla («'. e. the Volume of Esther) 
 read : if, however, a Jew did not understand Hebrew, he 
 might hear the Megilla in any language he did understand ; 
 but the hearing it in Hebrew sufficed, whether he understood 
 the language or not. k Vide Appendix, Note (I.) 
 
126 The BitualoJ the Synagogue. [Part I. 
 
 the vowel points. We mentioned in a preceding 
 chapter, 1 how scrupulously careful the Jews 
 were in writing out the Law for the use of the 
 Synagogue. They were equally careful in the 
 reading; " If an error in the manuscript was 
 detected, when the reading was about to com- 
 mence, another volume was brought out, the 
 reading should commence from the passage in 
 which the error was detected, and another Reader 
 should be called. If an error was detected in 
 the midst of the reading, a correct copy should 
 be brought out in which the Reader finished his 
 portion."" 1 " If there were various readings, 
 they should read according to Ken, (i. e. the 
 marginal reading), and not according to the 
 Ketif, (i. e. the reading in the text.") n " If the 
 volume of the Law was not complete, (though 
 the use of such a volume was only permitted in 
 extreme cases,) they could not pronounce the 
 solemn Benediction." The greatest accuracy 
 was required in the Reader; the wrong pro- 
 nunciation, of even a letter, was corrected ; and 
 so particular were they at the Sabbath-morning 
 service, that if, by any accident, a verse had been 
 omitted, although the reading had terminated, 
 
 I Chapter V. p. 48. 
 
 m Orach. Chaum, cap. clxiii. sec. 4. 
 
 II Cap. cxli. sec. 8. ° Cap. clxiii. sec. 2, 3. 
 
Chap. XI I.J The Ritual of the Synagogue. 1*27 
 
 and all the subsequent services had been gone 
 through, still the reading should be repeated, 
 and the error corrected. 
 
 Sometimes the lesson of the day was a selec- 
 tion, from different parts of the Sacred Volume ; 
 (this occurred chiefly on Festival days.) On 
 such occasions it was not considered decorous 
 to unrol the book, in order to find out the 
 second passage, but another volume was pro- 
 duced, from which they read the second por- 
 tion ; and similarly if there were a third portion ; 
 after the reading of each, they recited the 
 Kaddisch." 
 
 The only qualifications required in the Reader Quaiifica- 
 , , tions of 
 
 were, that he should be free, decently dressed, those who 
 
 ITT Til 1 ^^ ' U ^ le 
 
 and not blind : q so much stress did they place synagogue. 
 upon the first qualification, that " If a master 
 should order his slave to read three verses of 
 the Pentateuch in the synagogue, the slave was 
 thenceforth free, and could compel his master to 
 give him a bill of discharge." 1 Hence, the per- 
 mitting a slave to read in the synagogue became 
 the usual mode of conferring freedom. 
 
 p Cap. xliv. sec. 3. 
 
 11 Though a blind man could repeat from memory, he was 
 not permitted to stand in the pulpit. A minor, if qualified, 
 could be called on. 
 
 r Hilcoth Avadim, cap. 8. 
 
1 28 The Ritual of the Synagogue. [Pakt. I. 
 
 At the If a Priest or Levite were present, he had 
 
 reading of 
 
 the Law always the precedence, (except on Sabbath and 
 
 preference . 
 
 was given b estiva! days, when a Priest might yield his pri- 
 
 to a Priest ., „ ,. n . „ 
 
 or Levite. vilege ot reading first, to a doctor of repute, or 
 to the head of a school.) The following is to 
 be found amongst the canons, which direct the 
 manner of reading in the synagogue : — " If there 
 be no Priest in the synagogue, some Israelite 
 stands up to read ; after which, no Levite at all 
 is permitted to read. If there be a Priest pre- 
 sent, and no Levite, the Priest reads the first, 
 and also the second portion, in place of the 
 Levite ; but no other Priest is permitted to read 
 after him ; and similarly, a Levite is not per- 
 mitted to read after another Levite, lest it 
 might be said that either of them was disap- 
 proved of." s 
 
 Number At Sabbath-morning service, there were seven 
 
 of Readers. 
 
 readers ; on the Day of Expiation, six ; on festival 
 days, five, at least ; on New Moons and the eves 
 of Festivals, four. On Sabbath evenings, on the 
 evening of the Day of Expiation, and on Mondays 
 and Thursdays, 1 there were three readers. 
 
 It might so happen, that there was but one 
 present qualified to read ; in such a case the one 
 person read all the portions ; but then, between 
 each of the readings, he should descend from 
 
 1 Orach Chaum. cap. cxxxv. sec. 6, 8, 9. 
 
 ' The law was always read on Mondays and Thursdays, 
 
Chap. XII. ] The Ritual of the Synagogue. 129 
 
 the pulpit, resume his seat, and be again called, 
 
 as if he were a distinct person from the former 
 
 Reader. u 
 
 About the time of Antiochus Epiphanes, the interpreta- 
 tion of the 
 Hebrew ceased to be the language spoken by Law. 
 
 the Jews ; hence the necessity of an Interpreter. 
 The Interpreter was always a different person 
 from the Reader, and inferior in rank. One 
 Interpreter was allowed for the Law ; two for the 
 Prophets. After each verse in the Law, followed 
 the interpretation ; but three verses of the Pro- 
 phets were read before they were interpreted ; 
 and whilst they were most scrupulous, that the 
 Reader of the Law should not pronounce one word 
 from memory, but read from the manuscript ; 
 they were equally scrupulous, that the interpre- 
 tation should be altogether from memory. 
 
 There were five passages which they never in- Five pas - 
 
 S3°"CS never 
 
 terpreted ; viz. the history of Reuben ; x the latter interpreted, 
 part of the history of the golden calf; y the adultery 
 of David ; z the incest of Amnon ; a and the sacer- 
 dotal benediction. b The first four passages were 
 not interpreted, because they reflected on the 
 memory of fathers of their nation ; the sacerdotal 
 
 11 Hilcoth Tephil, cap. xii. sec. 17. x Gen. xxxv. 22. 
 
 y Exod. xxxii. 21, &c. It is remarkable that Josephus (in 
 his Antiquities) makes no mention of the golden calf; vide 
 Book vii. chap. 5. 
 
 1 2 Sam. xi. 2, &c. a 2 Sam. xiii. 1, 2, &c. 
 
 b Numb. vi. 24, 25, 26. 
 
 K 
 
130 The Ritual of the Synagogue. [Part I. 
 
 benediction, in order that it might be heard with 
 greater reverence. 
 
 The Reader and Interpreter always stood. In 
 modern synagogues, the congregation, in general, 
 sit during the reading of the Law; though it 
 appears from the Book of Nehemiah/ that in 
 the time of Ezra they stood. 
 sections in The five books of Moses were read through, 
 
 the Penta- • , 1 o 11 ji 
 
 tench for once every year, commencing on the babbatn 
 LiencTof" following the Feast of Tabernacles ; and for the 
 reading. conve nience of reading, the Pentateuch was di- 
 vided into fifty-four sections, called Paraschioth. 
 These sections are marked (in printed Bibles) by 
 a triple s or d, (the initials of the Hebrew words 
 signifying open and shut ;) in manuscript Bibles, 
 the sections are separated from each other by 
 large blank intervals. The Paraschioth were 
 subdivided into minor sections distinguished by 
 a single a or d. 
 
 At Sabbath morning service, an entire Paras- 
 cha e was read, divided amongst seven readers; at 
 Sabbath evening service, they commenced the 
 next Parascha, continued reading from it the 
 following Monday and Thursday ; and then read 
 
 c Orach Chaum, cap. cxlvi. sec. 4. d Neh. viii. 5. 
 
 e The different Paraschioth selected for the Sabbath ser- 
 vices may be seen in Maimonides, (Hilcoth Teph. cap. xiii. 
 sec. 13 ;■) as also in Home's Introduction, vol. iii. They 
 were not the same in every Synagogue. 
 
Chap. XII.] The Ritual of the Synagogue. 131 
 
 the entire of it, on the next Sabbath morning. 
 On Festival days, such as the Feasts of Passover, 
 of Pentecost, of Tabernacles, on the Day of 
 Expiation, &c, there were proper lessons ; they 
 therefore passed by the Parascha of the week, 
 and read the Parascha appointed for the festival. 
 
 The Reading of the Prophets. — The Jews in- Manner of 
 
 reading the 
 
 eluded under the head of The Prophets, not only Prophets in 
 such books as were really prophetical in their gogue. 
 matter, but every book, also, of which a prophet 
 was the author ; and thus, under this head were 
 comprehended the Books of Joshua and Judges, 
 the two Books of Samuel, and the two Books of 
 Kings. Selections from these Books were read 
 on Sabbath and Festival days. 
 
 The reading of the Prophets was always pre- The read- 
 ceded by that of the Law. The prophetic ser- p r ophet s e 
 vice, therefore, commenced after the second IhTLaw. y 
 Doxology, and it was as follows : — 
 
 Reader. " Blessed art thou, O Lord our God, 
 Governor of the world ; who hast chosen good 
 prophets, and art pleased with their predictions, 
 which they spake in truth. Blessed art thou, O 
 Lord, who didst appoint a law, and Moses thy 
 servant, and Israel thy people, and prophets just 
 and true." 
 
 Then follows the selection from the Prophets ; 
 and then — 
 
 Reader. " Blessed art thou, O Lord our God ; 
 Governor of this world ; Rock of all ages ; just 
 
 k2 
 
182 The Ritual of the Synagogue. [Part I. 
 
 throughout all generations ; the faithful God ; 
 who performest what thou sayest, and dost ratify 
 what thou dost speak; for all thy sayings are 
 truth and justice." 
 
 The whole congregation, rising, answer, — 
 " Thou art faithful, O Lord our God ; thy words 
 are faithful ; faithful, living, and stedfast is thy 
 name ; and thy remembrance is everlasting. 
 Mayest thou rule over us for ever and ever." 
 
 Reader. " Thou art the faithful one. Blessed 
 art thou, O Lord, the powerful God ; faithful in 
 all thy words." 
 
 People. " Amen." 
 
 Reader. " O Lord our God, have compassion 
 upon Zion thy city, &c. Blessed art thou, O 
 Lord, who makest Zion to rejoice by building 
 her up." 
 
 People. " Amen." 
 
 Reader. " O Lord our God, make us to rejoice 
 for thou wilt not extinguish our light for 
 
 ever. In his days Judah shall be saved, and 
 Israel shall dwell safely ; and this is the name 
 whereby he shall be called ; Jehovah our Righte- 
 ousness. Blessed art thou, O Lord, who exaltest 
 the horn of Salvation of thy people Israel." 
 
 People. " Amen." 
 
 Reader. " O Lord our God, we give thee thanks 
 for the Law and the Prophets, and for this sacred 
 day, N. (mentioning the name of the day) which 
 thou hast given us, O Lord our God; for sancti- 
 
Chap. XII. ] The Ritual of the Synagogue. 133 
 
 fication and rest, to thy honour and glory. We 
 always praise thy name, O God of our salvation. 
 Blessed art thou, O Lord, who dost sanctify 
 Israel, and this day. Amen." On the Sabbath 
 day, this Doxology ended thus: "Blessed art thou, 
 O Lord, who dost consecrate the Sabbath ; for 
 the Sabbath is more ancient than Israel ; as it is 
 written ; ' for in six days the Lord made heaven 
 and earth, and on the seventh he rested and was 
 refreshed.' Whence they say ; ' Attend, because 
 God hath given to you the Sabbath which long 
 since has been.' " 
 
 A selection from the Prophets was read at The Pro- 
 
 . - phets, when 
 
 every Sabbath morning service, and on t estival read. 
 and Fast days. On Sabbath evenings, Mondays, 
 and Thursdays, though the Law was read, there 
 was no reading from the Prophets. 
 
 The number of verses usually read was Number of 
 
 verses read. 
 
 twenty-one, unless the argument was finished in 
 a smaller number. If there was an interpreta- 
 tion, ten verses sufficed. 
 
 The portion selected for the day was called 
 the Haphtara of the day ; and the Reader, the 
 Maphti; 1 because the reading from the Pro- 
 phets finished the reading for that service. 
 
 The Reader of the Prophets was, in general, a Reader of 
 
 „ , the Pro- 
 different person from any of the Readers ot the p hets. 
 
 Law, except on the evening of the Feast of Atone- 
 
 f Each word is derived from a root that signifies to dismiss, 
 or finish. 
 
134 The Ritual of the Synagogue. [Part I. 
 
 ment, and on Fast days ; when the last Reader 
 of the Law was appointed to read from the 
 Prophets. 
 Hagiogra- The Hagiographa g were very seldom read. 
 piaje om ^^ p sa j ms we re altogether omitted, because 
 they occurred so frequently in their formularies ; 
 the other books were used only at the Feasts of 
 Tabernacles, Passover, Pentecost, and Purim, h 
 and at the solemn fast in the month of July. 
 
 When they read from the Hagiographa, the 
 second Benediction used was as follows : — 
 
 Reader. " Blessed be thou, O Lord our God, 
 
 Governor of the world, who hast sanctified us 
 
 by thy precepts, and hast commanded the reading 
 
 of the Hagiographa."' 
 
 Mention of There is frequent mention of the reading of 
 
 theWandthe Law and the Prophets in the New Testa- 
 
 phetetothe ment ; k the reading of the former, dates its origin 
 
 ment. Testa from the times of Ezra ; and Jewish writers, 
 
 almost universally, agree in dating the origin of 
 
 the reading of the Prophets from the restoration 
 
 of the Temple by the Maccabees. 
 
 g The Hagiographa, i.e. the Holy Writings, comprehended 
 the Psalms, Proverbs, Job, Song of Solomon, Ruth, Lamenta- 
 tions of Jeremiah, Ecclesiastes, Esther, Daniel, Ezra and Nehe- 
 miah (reckoned as one book), and the two books of Chronicles, 
 (likewise reckoned as one book.) These books all came under 
 the name of Psalms. 
 
 h Esther ix. 21, &c. ' Codex Sop., cap. xiv. sec. 4. 
 
 k Acts xiii. 15 ; xv. 22. Luke xvi. 29. 2 Cor. iii. 15. 
 
SYNAGOGUE AND THE CHURCH. 
 
 PART II. 
 THE CHURCH, COMPARED WITH THE SYNAGOGUE. 
 
 CHAPTER I. 
 
 Probable Source from which the Apostles derived 
 the Rites and Ceremonies of the Church. 
 
 We have no means of ascertaining, directly, No form of 
 from the sacred Scriptures, the form of worship me nt or of 
 
 n ii'ii r^\ ' i.' worship 
 
 or of government adopted in the early Christian prescribed 
 Church. Our blessed Lord has left no rules Iu ie C ioTthe 
 upon this subject ; his Apostles are equally cwh. n 
 silent ; they exhort the Christians of their day, 
 " not to forsake the assembling of themselves 
 together;"* but we cannot collect from their 
 writings, after what model, or in what form, 
 they worshipped. We must have recourse, then, 
 
 a Heb. x. 25. 
 
136 The Church, [Part II, 
 
 to indirect proofs ; and from these we shall find, 
 
 that there is strong presumptive evidence, 
 
 amounting almost to certainty, that the early 
 
 Christians, when ordering and arranging their 
 
 places and forms of worship, the discipline, the 
 
 government, &c. of their Church, had especially 
 
 in view the Jewish Synagogue. 
 
 strong pre- And, in the first place, there is a strong pre- 
 sumption , . 
 that the sumption, that, if any of the rites and customs 
 
 Apostles 
 
 would of the Old Dispensation could have been adopted 
 
 introduce 
 
 (as much as in the New, the Apostles would have adopted 
 Jewish cus- them ; for they were Jews, and a pertinacious 
 the Chris- adherence to doctrines and rites, was a peculiar 
 trait of Jewish character. Thus Josephus boasts, 
 all through his writings, that a Jew would sooner 
 give up his life, than his religious observances ; 
 and that the Apostles were, in this respect, every 
 whit Jews, is evident from their history. No 
 one conversant with Scripture is ignorant of 
 Peter's vacillating conduct ; b his desire to adhere 
 to Jewish customs. The Apostle Paul, who 
 wrote so strongly on the subject of circumcision, 
 yet circumcised Timothy, on account of the 
 Jews. d The same feeling seems to have ani- 
 mated the whole body of the Apostles; they 
 gave in to the prejudices of their countrymen, in 
 things which they must have known were to be 
 
 b Gal. ii. 12. f Acts x. 14. 
 
 d Acts xvi. 3. 
 
Chap. I.] compared with the Synagogue. 137 
 
 abolished : thus they frequented the Temple, 
 they observed the feasts ; e the entire Presbytery 
 at Jerusalem induced the Apostle Paul to bind 
 himself by the vow of a Nazarite, merely to soften 
 down the prejudices of some Judaizing Chris- 
 tians ; f and the same Presbytery, when assembled 
 for the purpose of determining, whether the 
 Gentiles were to be under the Law, absolve 
 them alone from the yoke, without making any 
 declaration, in their decree, respecting the Jews. g 
 These facts show us the feelings of the Apostles ; 
 that they would not willingly lay aside any Jew- 
 ish custom, which could be transferred into the 
 Christian Church. They had two models before 
 them ; the Temple, and the Synagogue. The 
 question then is ; which of these two did they 
 take as their model ? 
 
 There are great names on both sides of the 
 question. Of those who hold, that the Temple 
 was the model of the Church, none state their 
 views more clearly than Archbishop Usher, 
 whose arguments will be examined in a subse- 
 quent chapter ; on the other side are the names 
 of Lightfoot, Selden, Dodwell, Spencer, Grotius. 
 
 e Acts xviii. 21. f Acts xxi. 20, &c. 
 
 g Acts xv. 19. It is evident from the address of the Apostle 
 Peter on this occasion, that it was known at this time, that the 
 Law was to be abrogated : " Why tempt ye God; to put a yoke 
 upon the neck of the disciples, which neither our fathers nor 
 we were able to bear?" Verse 10. 
 
138 Church and Synagogue compared. [Part II. 
 
 It is our design, in this second part, to show, 
 
 that the Apostles, when modelling the Church, 
 
 took for their pattern the Synagogue, and not 
 
 the Temple. 
 
 There is a And indeed, it might fairly be presumed that 
 
 Son atfirst they wou ld do so ; for the Temple service was 
 
 th^ip 1 ?-* n °t a ^ a ^ adapted to Christian worship. The 
 
 thes* 00 ^- Temple was the House of Sacrifice, rather than 
 
 gogue for £ ne house of Prayer : h it was the Habitation of 
 
 their model, J * 
 
 and not the Q d i. e> the place where alone he put his 
 
 Temple. L L 
 
 name, and dwelt ; { rather than the place for the 
 assembling of men. True, Jehovah has even 
 now his Temple, but it is not a building of wood 
 and stone : the Church, the Congregation of 
 Believers, is now the House of God ; Jesus 
 Christ, its great and only High Priest, its foun- 
 dation, and chief corner-stone : and believers in 
 him are the living stones of this Temple ; " built 
 up a spiritual house, an holy priesthood ; to offer 
 up spiritual sacrifices, acceptable to God by Jesus 
 Christ." k 
 
 h Public prayer, the reading and explaining the Scrip- 
 tures, formed no part of the usual worship of the Temple. 
 When the victim was prepared to be offered, the priests retired 
 and prayed in silence (Tarn. iv. sec. 3) ; the people also 
 prayed without in silence (Luke i. 4.) 
 
 1 Hence the name of Nade, from vaiav, " to dwell." See 
 Hinds's " Three Temples." 
 
 k 1 Pet. ii. 5. 
 
Chap.IL] Analogy between them. 139 
 
 CHAPTER II. 
 
 Analogy betzvee/i the Church and the Synagogue 
 as places of Prayer, 
 
 The points of agreement between the Church The anaio- 
 
 . gies be- 
 
 and the Synagogue are many and striking ; tween the 
 
 Church and 
 
 indeed, sufficient to convince any unprejudiced synagogue 
 mind, as to the origin from which the Church striking. 
 derived its government, its orders, its forms and 
 ceremonies ; we will in this chapter trace the 
 analogy between the Church and the Synagogue, 
 as buildings set apart for public worship : and 
 
 1 . The Synagogues of the Jews, and the i- churches 
 
 J ° ° and Syna- 
 
 Churches of Christians, were used for purposes gogues 
 exactly similar. The Jews assembled in their similar 
 
 ... purposes. 
 
 Synagogues for prayer, to sing praises to their 
 God, and to hear his word read to them, and 
 explained. Now, in what respect was the worship 
 of the Christian different from this ? he went to 
 his Church to pray, to sing praises, to hear God's 
 word. If we except the partaking of the commu- 
 nion of the body and blood of Christ (the peculiar 
 object of Christian worship,) the Jew frequented 
 
140 Analogy between the [Part II. 
 
 the Synagogue for exactly the same purpose that 
 the Christian frequented the Church. 
 
 2. Chris- 2. The places of meeting, of both Christians 
 churches and Jews, were called by the same name, viz. 
 sy d na- ewish {Synagogues) : we have proof of this in the 
 cSkfby Epistle of St. James ; a Grotius, in his Commen- 
 n h am S e a s me tai T on tne Acts, b shows, that this was the name 
 
 generally given to Christian places of worship. 
 The usual appellations of the Synagogue were 
 likewise applied to the Churches of Christians ; 
 thus Eusebius calls them, " Venerable schools of 
 virtue," the very appellation by which Syna- 
 gogues are designated by Philo. 
 
 3. striking 3. There was a striking similarity in the 
 hi'the" 1 buildings themselves. The Jews built their 
 Sling Synagogues, with the end in which the ark 
 andSyna- was placed toward Jerusalem ; the same rule 
 gogues. wag |3 Serve ^ m building Christian places of 
 
 worship. It is a fact, authenticated by early 
 writers, that Christians prayed toward the East. 
 Now, the majority of the early Christian churches 
 being to the West of Jerusalem, undoubtedly 
 gave rise to this assertion ; for that it was not 
 universally the case, appears from the testimony of 
 
 a Chap. ii. 2. b Chap. xv. 21. 
 
 c rd oEfjivd rf]e dperrje SiScHTKaXe'ia. It is remarkable, that 
 Christian places of prayer are never called Temples in Scrip- 
 ture. The Christian is " a religion without any Temple, 
 except the collected congregation of the worshippers them- 
 selves." — Archbishop JVhateh/s Kingdom of Christ, p. 06. 
 
Chap. II.] Church and the Synagogue. 141 
 
 Socrates, who relates, in his Ecclesiastical His- 
 tory/ 1 that the church of Antioch had its altar 
 looking towards the West, i. e. toward Jerusalem. 
 Again, in the Synagogue, the chief articles of 
 furniture were, the Desk, the Pulpit, and in the 
 East end the Ark : and in the Church, there was 
 the Desk, the Pulpit for reading and explaining 
 the word of God ; e and at the East end the Altar* 
 (more properly the communion table). In the 
 Churches, as well as in the Synagogues, there 
 were seats, some more honourable than others/ 
 and also seats for the women, apart from the 
 
 4. There was a remarkable agreement between 4. simi- 
 
 /, ci larity in the 
 
 the dedication or consecration ot a synagogue, dedication 
 and that of an early Christian Church. A Syna- gogue^nd 
 
 , , , j i t a Church. 
 
 gogue was looked upon as consecrated, it prayer 
 in the most simple form had been offered 
 therein ; ! just similar was the consecration of a 
 Church. " Churches are dedicated by prayers," 
 says Selden . k Dodwell mentions, how that 
 
 d Book v. chap. 25. 
 
 e Socrates's Ecclesiastical History, book vi. chap. 5. 
 
 f The Christian is a religion, without any altar for sacrifice; 
 for its only sacrifice, is that offered up by its Founder in his 
 own person. See " Kingdom of Christ." 
 
 g James ii. 2, 3. 
 
 h Constitutiones Apostolicae, bookii. chap. 61. 
 
 1 See Part i. chap. ii. page 9. 
 
 k De Syned. lib. iii. cap. 15. 
 
142 Analogy between the [Part II. 
 
 amongst the Africans, the word rendered " to 
 dedicate" is the same as that which is rendered 
 " to begin ;" and assigns as the reason for this, 
 " that in the consecration of sacred places, the 
 first sacred offices hold the place of a dedica- 
 tion." 1 Athanasius was at one time accused of 
 dedicating a place of worship, without the per- 
 mission of the Emperor; we learn from his 
 answer, that the whole dedication consisted in 
 going through the usual service." m 
 5. Syna- 5. The Temple should be built in a certain 
 cEch nd pl ace chosen by Jehovah himself." The syna- 
 might be p- CTue was in no way restricted as to place : 
 
 built in any o o J r ' 
 
 place. one m ight be built, wherever there were ten free 
 Israelites. Just so is the Christian Church ; a 
 Christian congregation can meet any where. 
 " Where two or three are gathered together in 
 my name, there am I in the midst of them." 
 " I will, therefore," saith the Apostle, " that 
 men pray everywhere, lifting up holy hands." 
 " The hour cometh," saith our Lord, * when ye 
 shall neither in this mountain, nor yet at Jeru- 
 salem, worship the Father. But the hour cometh, 
 and now is, when the true worshipper shall wor- 
 ship the Father, in spirit and in truth : for the 
 
 1 Dissert. Cyprian x. ad Epist. 33. n Deut. xii. 5, 6. 
 
 m Athanas. Apol. ad Constan. ° Matt, xviii. 20. 
 
 p 1 Tim. ii. 8. 
 
Chap. II.] Church and the Synagogue. 143 
 
 Father seeketh such to worship him." q This 
 state of things the prophet Malachi had before 
 predicted ; " In every place incense shall be 
 offered unto the name of the Lord, and a pure 
 offering." r 
 
 The Jews in later times were most anxious, synagogue 
 
 and the 
 
 that their Synagogues should resemble the Tem- church in 
 
 •IT 11 1 O l ater timeS 
 
 pie, as nearly as possible ; and thus each byna- assimilated 
 gogue had a Porch, a Holy Place, a Sanctuary." Temple. 
 In process of time, Christians also began to 
 assimilate their places of worship to the Temple:* 
 and hence we meet in Church writers, frequent 
 mention of the Porch," 1 (where penitents and 
 catechumens worshipped, and to which Jews, 
 and even pagans were sometimes admitted, to 
 witness the magnificence of Christian worship ;) 
 the holy place or nave, (where believers of all 
 ranks worshipped ;) whilst within the sanctuary, 
 (separated from the nave by a railing, and some- 
 what elevated,) was the altar and the throne for 
 the Bishops and Priests. We need not, then, 
 
 q John iv. 21, 23. r Chap. i. 11. 
 
 s Viz. a recess in which the Ark was placed. 
 
 1 Not only did they call their places of worship — Temples, 
 but also, their presbyters — Priests (Hiereis) ; their commu- 
 nion-tables — Altars ; the gifts offered — Sacrifices. Now, to 
 any one acquainted with the worship and customs of the Tem- 
 ple, it must be evident, that there was no foundation for such 
 an application of terms. 
 
 u IT|od)'noc. 
 
144 Analogy between Church and Synagogue. [Chap. II. 
 
 be surprised, that, with such feelings, they began 
 to imitate, in the consecration and daily worship 
 of their Churches, the pompous ceremonies of 
 the Jewish Temple. 
 Minor Other points of agreement may be observed, 
 
 agreement, not perhaps so striking, but still all strengthen- 
 ing the presumption, that in the arrangement 
 and ordering of their Churches, the early Chris- 
 tians had a special view to the Jewish Synagogue. 
 Thus, if there was a law, " That no one should 
 eat or sleep in a Synagogue;" the eighteenth 
 Canon of the Council of Laodicea proclaims it 
 to be unlawful, " to celebrate the Agapae in 
 Churches, or to eat or sleep in the house of 
 God." If lamps were lighted in the Synagogue, 
 not merely for use, but as an act of piety, the 
 same custom prevailed in the Christian Church. 
 Sozomen mentions, that when the Arian faction 
 came to drive Melam from his bishopric, they 
 found him preparing the lamps of the Church as 
 its lowest servant. In a word, if we attentively 
 consider the laws made in the early ages, re- 
 specting the Church and its furniture, the reve- 
 rence and respect due to it ; there is scarcely a 
 law to be found, that is not derived from the 
 Canons of the Synagogue. 
 
Chap. III.] Government of the Early Church. 14. 
 
 CHAPTER III. 
 
 The Government of the Early Church compared 
 xvith that of the Synagogue. 
 
 The Synagogue, in its early state, was go- church as 
 verned by a Council ; so was the early Church, synagogue 
 There is a striking correspondence between the fcouncn^ 
 Councils of the Church, and those of the Syna- 
 gogue. And 
 
 1. In the names given to the members of These 
 these Councils. Thus, the Rulers of the Syna- simikr:— 
 gogue are called by St. Luke Presbyters;' 1 the names^ 
 very same name is given, by the same Evange- the™ mem- 
 list, to the ministers of the Christian Church. b bers ' 
 May we not, from this identity of name, con- 
 clude, that the Rulers of the Christian Church 
 held, amongst their people, a rank and office 
 similar to that of the Presbyters of the Jewish 
 Church ; and that the name and office was de- 
 rived to the Christian Church from it. Again, 
 
 * TlpeafyvTipoi, Acts iv. 8; xxiv. 1. 
 b Acts xiv. 23 ; xv. 22 ; xx. 17- 
 L 
 
14G Government of the Early Church [Part II. 
 
 the name, Parnas (Pastor), was frequently given 
 to the members of the Jewish Councils ; (the lay 
 Council of the Modern Synagogue is called Par- 
 nasim. c ) The Rulers of the Early Church were 
 also called Pastors ; d thus, the Apostle Paul, in 
 his Epistle to the Ephesians, says ; " He gave 
 some Apostles, and some Prophets, and some 
 Evangelists, and some Pastors and Teachers ;" e 
 and that these Pastors were the Bishops and 
 Presbyters of the Church, is evident from these 
 passages, in which it is said to be the Bishops' 
 and Presbyters' office, to feed f the flock of Christ. 
 Again, the Rulers of the Synagogue were called 
 Overseers or Bishops. Thus Benjamin of Tudela, 
 speaking of the city of Ispahan, where there 
 
 c See Part I. Chap. VI. page 58. 
 
 d Uoifxevee. The name, Pastor, or Shepherd, was given to 
 those persons, whose office it was to guide or direct. Hence, 
 we find it given by the heathen poets to kings. We read in 
 Homer of Agamemnon, the Shepherd of the people : — 
 
 Ayafxe/.ivopa iroi^iiva Xawv. 
 
 (The names of several Eastern princes are compounded of the 
 Hebrew word Pharnas (Pastor) ; for instance, Pharnabazus, 
 Holophernes, Tissaphernes, &c.) It is a name given to the 
 Son of God; " I am the Good Shepherd," John x. 11 ; Heb. 
 xiii. 20 ; 1 Pet. ii. 25. It is a name given to Jehovah himself; 
 " The Lord is my Shepherd," saith David, " therefore I shall 
 not want," Psalm xxiii. 1. See Ezek. xxxiv. 23; Jeremiah 
 iii. 15. 
 
 e Chap. iv. 11. 
 
 ' Tvoifialrety, Acts xx. 28 ; 1 Pet. v. 1,2. 
 
Chap. III.] compared with that of the Synagogue. 147 
 
 were fifteen thousand Jews, says, " that excel- 
 lent Doctor Sarschalon, who is the Bishop, lives 
 there." g Speaking of another city, he says, " In 
 it are fifty thousand Jews, and Rabbi Obadiah is 
 their Bishop." h The same name is given to the 
 Pastors of the Modern Synagogue; 1 and every one 
 will assent, that it was a title given to the Rulers 
 of the Primitive Church. 
 
 2. As the same names were given to the 2. in the 
 
 1 /» 1 qualifica- 
 
 Rulers of the Synagogue and to those 01 the tions re- 
 Church, so similar qualifications were required these mem- 
 in each. If it were necessary, that the Ruler of 
 the Synagogue should be a Doctor, and one who 
 had ministered unto an Elder Doctor, (just as 
 Joshua ministered unto Moses, and Elisha unto 
 Elijah, before they succeeded to their respective 
 offices ;) so the Ruler or Bishop of the Christian 
 Church should be a Doctor, {one Jit to teach.*) 
 Like the Jewish Doctors, the Christian Bishops 
 had their Deacons, who ministered unto them, 
 (as Timotheus and Erastus did to the Apostle 
 Paul, 1 ) and who, by constant attendance, and 
 constantly giving heed to their instructions, were 
 in time fitted to be the Heads and Directors of 
 
 e Itin. page 1)6. h Itin. page 97. 
 
 j Buxtorf. Synag. Jud. cap. xliv. Orach, cap. cxxxvi. 
 fol. 56. 
 
 k SiSaKTiKos, 1 Tim, iii. 2. ' Acts xix. 22 ; xiii. 5. 
 
 L 2 
 
148 Government of the Early Church [Part II. 
 
 Churches. Again, the Ruler of the Synagogue, 
 (especially he that offered up prayer in the Con- 
 gregation,) should be a Married man. " It is 
 the custom that no one shall offer up prayer in 
 public, unless he be Married, after the example 
 of the High Priest, concerning whom our Rab- 
 bies of blessed memory say, he has a wife to 
 preserve him from sin." m The Codex Taanith 
 enjoins ; " That at the public fasts, he that offers 
 up the prayers shall have children at home, that 
 thus he may pray with more fervour." Similarly 
 the Apostle enjoins ; " That a Bishop be the 
 husband of one wife, having faithful children, 
 not accused of riot, or unruly."" " One that 
 ruleth well his own house, having his children in 
 subjection, with all gravity." The other qualifi- 
 cations of a Christian Bishop may be seen in the 
 Chapters from Timothy and Titus above quoted ; 
 by comparing them with those required in the 
 Ruler of the Synagogue, we shall find a marked 
 resemblance. 1 ' 
 
 There is a remarkable agreement between the 
 Church and the Synagogue, in the non-require- 
 ment of a qualification indispensable in the Tem- 
 ple ; viz. the qualification of age. A Levite 
 should be twenty years of age, before he could 
 
 m In Colbo, cap. 65. 
 
 " Titus i. 6. Vide Appendix Note (K.) 
 
 D 1 Tim. iii. 4. p Vide Vitringa, 938. 
 
Chap. III.] compared with that of the Synagogue. 149 
 
 enter upon his duties : q a Priest should be thirty. 
 In neither the Church nor the Synagogue, was 
 there any such qualification ; a minor could per- 
 form some of the sacred offices in the Synagogue ; 
 Timothy/ though a youth, had the superintend- 
 ence of a Church. 
 
 3. There is an analogy not only between the 3 - In tlieir 
 
 # cv _ J constitu- 
 
 members of the respective Councils, but also be- tion. 
 tween the bodies themselves. Thus, the Jewish 
 Council is styled The Presbytery ; 8 the same 
 name is given to the Council of the Christian 
 Church; 1 and what makes this agreement the 
 more remarkable, is the fact, that the word 
 Presbytery is a word altogether unknown in 
 profane authors, and used only by the writers 
 of the New Testament, and by Ecclesiastical 
 writers. Again, the Jewish Council was com- 
 posed of the Elders of the Church and a pre- 
 siding Rabbi ; the Christian was composed of 
 Apostles and Elders, and a President." Again, 
 sitting was the posture of the Doctors in the 
 Jewish Councils ; x the Apostle Paul, when 
 describing the Church of Corinth assembled in 
 council for the discussion of divine things, leads 
 us to suppose that a similar posture was observed 
 
 q 1 Chron. xxiii. 24. r 1 Tim. iv. 12. 
 
 5 TTpEafivrepioi', Luke xxii. 66 ; Acts xxii. 5. 
 
 1 I Tim. iv. 14. " Acts xv. 16. 
 
 x See Part I. Chap. III. page 15. 
 
150 Government of the Early Church [Part II. 
 
 in the Christian Church : that the Doctors sat, 
 the people stood ; " If any thing," he says, " be 
 revealed to a person sitting;"* i.e. to an Elder or 
 Member of the Council. The form of admission 
 to membership, was in both Churches the same ; 
 viz. by imposition of hands. 2 In fine, the assem- 
 blies of the Early Christians are described both 
 by Justin Martyr, a and Tertullian; b and the 
 descriptions, by these writers, bear so close a 
 resemblance to the Councils of the Synagogue, 
 as to leave not a shadow of doubt, as to the 
 latter being their model. 
 4. simiia- 4. The Followers of Jewish Doctors were 
 
 rity in the 
 
 names called Disciples ; the Followers of the Lord 
 
 given to 
 
 Members of Jesus are called by the same name, and this 
 
 theCongre- . . 
 
 gation. too by his own command ; his parting exhorta- 
 tion to the Apostles being, " Go ye therefore and 
 make Disci pies* in all nations. 
 
 Aiichurch- As long as Jerusalem was the metropolis of 
 
 es at first . ... 
 
 under the Judaea, the chief seat of the Christian religion ; 
 
 control of 
 
 the church so long, the Presbytery at Jerusalem was looked 
 
 at Jerusa- n -\ 
 
 km. upon as the bond of union, and the root of the 
 
 whole Christian Church. If any controversy 
 arose, it was submitted to their judgment ; if any 
 
 ■ v Kadrj /J-iru, 1 Cor. xiv. 30. See Appendix, Note (F.) 
 
 1 1 Tim. iv. 14 ; 2 Tim. i 6 ; Vide Part I. Chap. IX. 
 
 a Apol. ii. p. 97, 98. 
 
 b Apol. adversus Gentes, lib. ii. cap. 39. 
 
 c John vi. 66 \ ix. 28. d jicSijrtvijaTe, Matt, xxviii, 19. 
 
Chap. III.] compared with that of the Synagogue. 15 1 
 
 new teacher was desirous of introduction to a 
 Church, he should have his authority from Jeru- 
 salem. Thus, when the question arose, whether 
 the believing Gentiles were to bear the yoke of the 
 Law, the Church of Antioch sent Paul and Bar- 
 nabas to the Presbytery at Jerusalem, and they 
 passed sentence in the matter. 6 The Apostle 
 Paul, though immediately called and instructed 
 by the Lord Jesus, yet explained his doctrines 
 to the Church at Jerusalem ; and being com- 
 mended by them preached the Gospel to the 
 Gentiles/ 
 
 But when the Apostles and apostolic men in after 
 were either dead, or dispersed abroad, when churches 
 Jerusalem was destroyed, and the Church trans- dent! 
 ferred to Pella : the authority of the Church at 
 Jerusalem altogether ceased. Some Christians, 
 indeed, resought the devastated city, and settled 
 there under a head of the house of David : g but 
 no church acknowledged to this afflicted body, 
 any peculiar prerogative ; all Presbyteries were 
 looked upon as equal in right, authority, and 
 dignity ; each Presbytery, and its President or 
 Bishop, being independent of all others. 
 
 Of the truth of this latter position, there is a s appears 
 
 from the 
 
 abundant evidence in the ancient Fathers ; we testimony 
 
 .of Cyprian, 
 
 will cite, in the first place, the opinion delivered Jerome.and 
 
 Ignatius. 
 r Acts xv. 2, &c ' Gal. ii. 2, 9 ; vide 2 Cor. iii. 1. 
 
 * Euseb. lib. iii. cap. 11. 
 
152 Government of the Early Church [Part II. 
 
 by Cyprian, at the council of Carthage, with 
 respect to the baptizing Heretics. " It remains 
 for us, each to declare our sentiments on this 
 subject ; neither judging any one, nor depriving 
 any individual of the right of communion, be- 
 cause he may be of a different opinion ; since 
 not any of us has made himself a Bis/iop of 
 Bishops, or by a tyrannical error has forced his 
 colleagues to the necessity of obedience ; for 
 every Bishop, according to the liberty and power 
 granted unto him, is left to the exercise of his 
 own judgment, and therefore can neither be 
 judged by, nor can he judge, another Bishop. 
 But let us all wait for the judgment of our Lord 
 Jesus Christ, who, Himself alone, has the power 
 of committing to us the government of his 
 Church, and of judging us for our deeds." h And 
 again, in his Epistle to Antonianus, he says ; 
 " Each Bishop arranges and manages his own 
 
 h Superest, ut de hue ipsa re, quid singuli sentiamus, profe- 
 ramus; neminemjudicantes, autde jure communionis, aliquem, 
 quod diversum senserit, amoventes ; neque enim quisquam 
 nostrum, Episcopum se esse Episcoporvm constituit ; aut tjran- 
 nico errore, ad obsequendi necessitatem, Collegas suas adegit ; 
 quando habeat omnis Episcopus, pro licentia libertatis et 
 potestatis sua?, arbitrium proprium ; iamque judicari ab alio 
 non possit cum nee ipse possit alterum judicare. Sed expecte- 
 mus universi, judicium Domini nostri Jesu Christi, qui, unus 
 et solus, habet potestatem, et prseponendi nos, in Ecclesise suae 
 gubernatione, et de actu nostro judicandi. Tractat. de Simplic. 
 Praelat. p. 339. 
 
Chap. III.] com/pared with that of the Synagogue. 153 
 
 business, having to give an account to the Lord." 1 
 Jerome too, in his Epistle to Evagrius, (and this 
 at a time when the rights of Metropolitans had 
 been established ;) distinctly asserts the equality 
 of all Bishops : " Wheresoever there may be a 
 Bishop ; whether at Rome, or Eugubium, or 
 Constantinople, or Rhegium, or Alexandria ; he 
 has the same honour and the same Priesthood. 
 The abundance of riches, or the depth of po- 
 verty, does not make a Bishop either superior or 
 inferior ; but all are Successors of the Apostles." k 
 
 1 Actum suum disponit et dirigit unusquisque Episcoprs, 
 rationem propositi sui Domino redditurus. — Lib. iv. Epist. 2, 
 p. 116. 
 
 k Ubicunque fuerit Episcopus, sive Roma?, sive Eugubii, 
 sive Constantinopoli, sive Rhegii, sive Alexandria?, &c, 
 ejusdem meriti ejusdem et sacerdotii. Potentia divitiarum et 
 panpertatis humilitas, vel sublimiorem vel inferiorem Epi- 
 scopum non facit. Caeterum omnes Apostolorum successo- 
 res sunt. — Par. ii. fol. 117, col. iii. " A member of the 
 Anglican Church, ought to feel a full conviction, that the 
 Church to which he belongs, does possess, in its regulations 
 and its offices, ' Apostolical Succession,' in the sense in which 
 it is essential that a Christian Community should possess it ; 
 viz. — in being a regularly-constituted Christian Society, framed 
 in accordance with the fundamental principles taught us by the 
 Apostles and their Great Master." " Successors, in the apo- 
 stolic office, the Apostles have none. As Witnesses of the 
 Resurrection,— as Dispensers of miraculous gifts, — as inspired 
 Oracles of divine Revelation, — they have no successors. But 
 as Members, — as Ministers, — as Governors — of Christian 
 Communities, their successors are the regularly - admitted 
 
154 Government of the Early Church [Part II. 
 
 The opinion of Ignatius is exactly similar ; in his 
 Epistle to the Magnesians he puts " The Bishop 
 presiding, in the place of God ; the Presbyters, 
 in the place of the Apostolic Council:" and in 
 his Epistle to the Church at Smyrna, he says ; 
 " Let us all follow the Bishop, as Jesus Christ 
 did the Father ; and the Presbytery as the 
 Apostles." We have also, in these last two 
 passages, a confirmation of the view of early 
 Church government given above; viz. a Presi- 
 dent, or Bishop, and a Presbytery, or Council of 
 Elders. 
 
 But although the Bishops of the Early Church 
 were all of the same dignity and authority, and 
 independent the one of the other ; yet as guar- 
 dians of the same faith, members of the same 
 mystical body, they held communion with the 
 Bishops of other Churches, by letters, legates, 
 conferences; that thus, the body of the Lord 
 might be truly one, and the unity of the Church 
 be preserved. 
 Though in- Several circumstances combined to keep up 
 SerTS the union between the different Churches. 1. 
 SS be- The Ordination of Bishops.— When the dignity 
 of a Bishop came to exceed, by far, that of a 
 
 tween dif- 
 ferent 
 Churches 
 
 Members, — the lawfully-ordained Ministers, — the regular and 
 recognised Governors, — of a regularly-subsisting Christian 
 Church."— Kingdom of Christ, p. 229. 
 
Chap. III.] compared with that of the Synagogue. 155 
 
 Presbyter ; it seemed fit, that a Bishop should 
 be ordained by the Bishops of the neighbouring 
 Churches ; and (just as in the Synagogue) the 
 presence of three Bishops was necessary at the 
 consecration. 1 2. The Heresies that crept into 
 the Church. — Though each Bishop, with his 
 Presbyters, had the power of determining all 
 religious questions ; yet in general, when any 
 serious controversy arose, the Bishops were 
 anxious for the advice and assistance of their 
 brethren in other Churches ; and hence, the 
 origin of Councils. 3. The Deposition of Bishops. 
 — If any, by his doctrines or morals, had ren- 
 dered himself unworthy of his bishopric ; the 
 Bishops of the neighbouring Churches assembled 
 in council, and deposed him, as was done in the 
 case of Paul of Samosata. m 
 
 From such acts of communion, there were New Titles 
 
 -..-,. . , ,-,.... sprung up 
 
 derived, in course ot time, titles and dignities in the 
 
 Christian 
 Church. 
 
 1 Part I. Chap. IX. p. 83. The Bishop of Alexandria was 
 an exception, who is said to have been consecrated by his own 
 Presbyters. Hieron. Epist. ad Evag. 
 
 m Eusebius, lib. vii. cap. 30. A Presbyter could be judged 
 by his Bishop and the Presbytery ; there was, however, an 
 appeal to the Bishops of the neighbouring Churches : hence 
 more prudent Bishops referred such cases to their Brethren ; 
 and in the African Churches there was a law, that a Pres- 
 byter should be tried by seven Bishops. Cyprian, lib. i. 
 epist. 3, p. 10. Can. xii. Concil. Carthag. apud Beverid. 
 p. 525. 
 
156 Government of the Early Church [Part II. 
 
 altogether unknown in the early ages of the 
 Church— for instance, it was necessary that some 
 Bishop should summon the Council, that some 
 Bishop should preside ; and, as the Presidents of 
 the Presbyteries had before this assumed to 
 themselves authority, had taken exclusively the 
 title of Bishop," and thus came to be looked 
 on as a distinct order from their Presbyteries ; 
 — just so, the Presidents of these Councils 
 arrogated much to themselves, assumed a 
 higher rank and office ; and hence, the titles 
 of Archbishop, Metropolitan, Primate, Patri- 
 arch, &c. 
 origin of At first the Bishops assembled in Council, 
 
 the names • ■■-»■ i c 1 ■ 
 
 Archbishop, either chose their President on account ot his 
 tanj&c? 1 " age, or else, they conceded the honour to the 
 Bishop of the principal Church in the Province. 
 In later times this honour was universally 
 given to the Bishop of the Metropolis ; hence 
 we find the names, Archbishop, Metropolitan, 
 used at first at the end of the second century, 
 becoming more common in the third. p When 
 the Roman Empire became Christian, the titles 
 of Patriarch, Primate, were introduced into the 
 
 n Vide infra, Chapter VI. 
 
 ° This appears from the account given by Eusebius, of the 
 Synods held to settle the controversy about Easter. 
 
 p See Canon vi. of Council of Nice ; ix. of Antioch ; and 
 the xxxiv th . Apostolic Canon. 
 
Chap. III.] compared with that of the Synagogue. 157 
 
 Church. The Patriarch presided over many 
 Provinces and many Metropolitans ; the Metro- 
 politan over one Province, but many Bishops. 
 The dignity of Metropolitan was first con- 
 firmed at the Council of Nice ; that of Patri- 
 arch, at the Councils of Constantinople and 
 Chalcedon. 
 
 It appears, then, that the Church, as well as church and 
 
 I' 7 Synagogue 
 
 the ' Synagogue, passed through three states, each passed 
 (with respect to the mutual connexion of one three diffe- 
 
 ^ L t rent states 
 
 Church or Synagogue with another.) While the as to govern 
 
 p a ment " 
 
 Jewish state flourished, the authority of the San- 
 hedrim was supreme in all Synagogues : just so, 
 at the first, the Presbytery at Jerusalem con- 
 trolled all Christian Churches. When the San- 
 hedrim was dissolved,* 1 all synagogues became 
 perfectly independent of each other ; r similarly, 
 on the death of the Apostles, all Christian 
 Churches were independent. And, lastly, (just 
 as was the case with the Synagogue,) many 
 Churches were placed under the control of one 
 person, called a Patriarch. " This is chiefly to 
 be observed, that this name, Patriarch, was 
 
 q The Sanhedrim was not dissolved at the destruction of 
 Jerusalem; it continued (though with its authority greatly 
 diminished) till about the fifth century. 
 
 1 This appears from the controversy in the French 
 Synagogues about the More Nevochim of Maimonides. See 
 Vitringa, 868. 
 
158 Government of the Early Church. [Part II. 
 
 transferred from the Jewish Synagogue into the 
 Christian Church ; for the Jews being dispersed 
 through all lands, after the destruction of Jerusa- 
 lem, appointed to themselves at Alexandria, and 
 at other Eastern cities, governors, whom they 
 named Patriarchs." s 
 
 8 Beveridge, Annot. in Can. vi. Concil. Nicaen. p. 52. 
 
Chap. IV.] The Discipline of the Early Church. 159 
 
 CHAPTER IV. 
 
 The Discipline of the Early Church compared xvith 
 that of the Synagogue. 
 
 We have seen in a preceding Chapter/ that 
 the punishments of the Synagogue were twofold : 
 the Anathema, or Excommunication ; and the 
 Perincea, i. e. pecuniary or corporal infliction. 
 We will inquire, in this Chapter, how far these 
 punishments were adopted in the early Christian 
 Church. 
 
 It is evident that Excommunication was Excommu- 
 
 . / -^, 1 • • nication a 
 
 sanctioned as a punishment of the Christian punishment 
 
 -ii'A j.1 of the Chris- 
 
 Church, both by our Lord and his Apostles. tianChurch, 
 
 " If thy brother," saith our Lord, " shall trespass 
 
 against thee, go and tell him his fault between 
 
 thee and him alone : if he shall hear thee, thou 
 
 hast gained thy brother ; but if he will not hear 
 
 thee, then take with thee one or two more, that 
 
 in the mouth of two or three witnesses every 
 
 word may be established ; and if he shall neglect 
 
 to hear them, tell it unto the Church ; but if he 
 
 tt Part I. Chap. VII. 
 
1G0 The Discipline of the Early Church [Part II. 
 
 neglect to hear the Church, let him he unto thee 
 as an heathen man and a publican." b Now, in 
 this passage, there is not only a reference to 
 excommunication as inflicted in the Synagogue, 
 but also the adoption of it as a punishment of 
 the Christian Church. It may be objected, that 
 our Lord merely gives a rule as to the behaviour 
 of one individual towards another, for he says, 
 Let him be to thee, &c. ; but will it be said, that 
 when our Lord permitted an individual to act in 
 this manner, he would deny the same liberty to 
 his Church ? However, the conduct and the in- 
 junctions of the Apostles remove all doubt as to 
 what was the power granted to the Church. 
 enjoined by The Apostle Paul, in his Second Epistle to the 
 Paui; P0S e Thessalonians, says, " If any man obey not our 
 word by this Epistle, note that man, and have 
 no company with him, that he may be ashamed." 
 Here is an admonition to the whole Church of 
 Thessalonica to avoid all intercourse with an 
 obstinate offender, which certainly comes very 
 near to Excommunication. In his Epistle to 
 the Romans he says ; d " I beseech you, brethren, 
 mark them," which cause divisions and offences 
 contrary to the doctrine which ye have learned, 
 and avoid them ;" and again, in his Epistle to 
 Titus, 6 " A man that is an heretic, after the first 
 
 b Matt, xviii. 15 — 17. r Chap. iii. 14. 
 
 d Chap. xvi. 17. * Chap. iii. 10. 
 
Chap. IV.] compared with that of the Synagogue. 161 
 
 and second admonition, reject." The word 
 translated reject f is very strong ; it is the word 
 used by Greek writers when speaking of the 
 repudiating of a wife, which consisted in ex- 
 clusion from her home, and all former inter- 
 course. It may be said that, in this latter case, 
 the Apostle is merely advising Titus as to his 
 own conduct ; but it should be remembered 
 that, according to the Jewish constitutions, an 
 individual excommunicated by the President was 
 looked upon as excommunicated by the whole 
 Church ; and Titus was the Bishop or President 
 of the Church at Crete. 
 
 But the Apostle Paul has reduced his principles enforced by 
 
 the same 
 
 to practice, in the case of an unworthy member Apostle ; 
 of the Church at Corinth. A member of this 
 Church had been guilty of a grievous crime, the 
 marrying his father's wife ; the Corinthians took 
 no notice, but allowed the offender to continue 
 in the full enjoyment of the privileges of the 
 Church. The Apostle, burning with indignation, 
 severely rebukes the Corinthians, because " they 
 had not mourned, and removed him from amongst 
 them, who had done this deed ;" g and commands 
 them, " Put away from among yourselves 11 that 
 wicked person." The severity of the intended ex- 
 communication may be learned from the eleventh 
 
 Uapcu-ov. i 1 Cor. v. 2. '' Verse 13. 
 
 M 
 
162 The Discipline of the Early Church [Part II. 
 
 verse; " I have written unto you not to keep 
 company ; if any man, that is called a brother, 
 be a fornicator, or covetous, or an idolater, or a 
 railer, or a drunkard, or an extortioner; with 
 such an one, no, not to eat." The Corinthians 
 obeyed the Apostle's command, and excommuni- 
 cated the offending brother. We learn in the 
 Second Epistle how they acted towards him : ' 
 they publicly reproved him, separated him from 
 their society, and brought him to a state of the 
 most intense grief and anguish. Here, then, is 
 an instance of excommunication in the Early 
 Church ; a total separation from all communion 
 with the Brethren. 
 mentioned We learn from the Epistles of St. John, that 
 ' excommunication was sanctioned by him. " If," 
 he says, " there come any unto you and bring 
 not this doctrine, receive him not into your 
 house, neither bid him God speed ; for he that 
 biddeth him God speed, is partaker of his evil 
 deeds ;" k and that it was a punishment in- 
 flicted in his days, appears from his Third 
 Epistle, in which the ambition and malevo- 
 lence of Diotrephes is rebuked ; — " He doth 
 not receive the brethren, and forbiddeth them 
 that would, and casteth them out of the 
 Church."' 
 
 ' 2 Cor. ii. 5 — 10. k Second Epistle, verse 10, 11. 
 
 1 Verse 10. 
 
Chap. IV.] compared with that of the Synagogue. 1G3 
 
 And as this punishment was hoth sanctioned continued 
 
 to be in- 
 
 and inflicted in the Apostles times, so it meted as a 
 was afterwards continued : and hence, we fre- in after- 
 quently meet (in the Fathers) with the phrases ag 
 Arceri, or ejici ab Ecclesid, or a paternitatis 
 communione relegari, submoveri a limine et omni 
 tecto Ecclesice, sacrament o benedictionis exaucto- 
 rari. m 
 
 At first, Excommunication consisted in an en- 
 tire separation from the Church, and, of course, 
 in an exclusion from the place of worship. In 
 process of time, the Church (just as the Syna- 
 gogue) had its heavier and its lighter excommu- 
 nication ; in cases of lesser crimes, permitting 
 the guilty person to have access to the place of 
 worship, but denying him a participation of the 
 Lord's Supper. 
 
 It will be easy to trace many points of agree- Analogy 
 
 .„.-,. between 
 
 merit between Excommunication, as inflicted, in Excommu- 
 
 tit nicition as 
 
 the Church and in the Synagogue. In both, inflicted in 
 
 11#1 "lii tne Church 
 
 there was the heavier and the lighter ; in both, and in the 
 the punishment was inflicted for similar crimes ; ' 
 not so much for offences against morals, as for 
 
 m " Ibidem exhortationes, castigationes, et censura divina ; 
 nam et judicatur magno cum pondere, ut apud certos de 
 Dei conspectu ; summumque futuri judicii prsejudicimn est, 
 si quis ita deliquerit, ut a communicationc oralionis et con- 
 ventus et omnia sancti commercii relegetur. u — Terlullian, Apul. 
 cap. 39. 
 
 M 2 
 
164 The Discipline of the Early Church [Part II. 
 
 those against the dignity, the authority, and the 
 doctrines of the Church. The horrible impre- 
 cations of the Jewish anathema bear a striking 
 resemblance to those of the Christian, (espe- 
 cially to those used by the Church of Rome ;) 
 the forms of absolution were very similar : — 
 and, lastly, as in the Synagogue, the power 
 of excommunicating lay with the Council, and 
 sometimes with the President ; so in the 
 Church, this power was (from the earliest times) 
 vested in the Council of Bishops and Presby- 
 ters, though sometimes it was exercised by the 
 Bishops. 
 No analogy With respect to the other punishments of the 
 
 between the . _ 
 
 church and Synagogue ; viz. Flagellation and the Pecuniary 
 gogue as to Fine, there is nothing at all analogous in the 
 P unish- r Christian Church. It is recorded, indeed, that 
 the'iauer. our Lord made a scourge of small cords, and 
 drove the buyers and sellers out of the Temple, 
 and this on two different occasions ; n but this 
 was rather an evidence of his zeal and a symboli- 
 cal action, than an example to be imitated. On 
 the contrary, Corporal punishment was strictly 
 forbidden in the Christian Church, especially 
 
 " John ii. 15; Matt. xxi. 12. 
 
 ° See a Sermon preached by Bishop Hurd at Lincoln's Inn, 
 in which he shows, that the driving the buyers and sellers 
 out of the Temple, was an act symbolical of the calling of the 
 Gentiles. 
 
Chap. IV.] compared with that of the Synagogue. 165 
 
 in those cases, in which it was most usually in- 
 flicted in the Synagogue ; viz. the case of an 
 offending Doctor or Student. p 
 
 p " Neminem quisquam peccantem clericum caede attingat, 
 non Presbyter, non Diaconus, non Episcopus, clericum vel 
 servitorem ad caedem perducat; sed si ita causa exigit clerici, 
 triduo privetur honore, ut penitus redeat ad Matrem Eccle- 
 siam."— Decret. Par. I. Dist. 45, Can. 17. 
 
166 Analog if between flu, Alms [Pakt II. 
 
 CHAPTER V. 
 
 Analogy between the Church and the Synagogue, 
 as to the Collection and Distribution of Alms. 
 
 Much In the primitive Christian Church, as love 
 in the^Earfy abounded, so great attention was paid to the 
 Churc ' wants of the poor brethren. At first, all things 
 were common, " and distribution was made 
 unto every man according as he had need." a 
 And though this community of goods did not 
 long continue, yet Christian charity was not 
 extinguished ; hence, we have in the writ- 
 ings of the Apostles, not only many exhorta- 
 tions to be liberal to the poor, especially to 
 those that are of the household of faith ; but 
 also accounts of collections that were made 
 and sent to the distressed brethren. In later 
 times, this love to the brethren, and to all, for 
 Christ's sake, still continued to be the distin- 
 guishing trait of Christ's disciples, so much so 
 
 a Acts iv. 34, 35. 
 
Chap. V.] of the Church and Synagogue. 167 
 
 as to force the apostate Julian to declare, in 
 a letter to Arsacius the priest of Galatia ; " It 
 is a disgrace to us that the Jews do not beg ; 
 that the impious Galilaeans not only support 
 their own poor, but assist ours ; and that our 
 poor are neglected by those who should sup- 
 port them." b 
 
 We may trace the following points of agree- Analogy 
 ment between the Church and the Synagogue, Aims of the 
 
 Church and 
 
 as to the collection and distribution of Alms, the s yna - 
 
 gogue. 
 
 In the Synagogue, Alms were collected for a 
 twofold purpose ; for the poor Members of the 
 Congregation, and for the poor brethren in 
 Judaea. c The same custom prevailed in the 
 early Christian Church/ In the Synagogue, 
 the Alms, though set apart on the Sabbath, were 
 not paid in till the first day of the week ; e 
 in the Church also, the Collection was made 
 on the first day of the week. f In the Syna- 
 gogue, the distribution of Alms lay with the 
 President; in the Church it lay with the 
 Bishop ; " The rich, and every one that wishes, 
 contributes just what seems fit ; and what is 
 
 b Sozomen. Eccles. Hist. Book v. Chap. 16. 
 c Part I. Chap. VIII. page 73. 
 
 d 2 Cor. chap. viii. and ix. ; vide also testimony of Jerome, 
 quoted page 74. 
 
 K Parti. Chap. VIII. page 75. 
 f 1 Cor. xvi. 2, 3. 
 
1GS Alms of the Church and Synagogue. [Part II. 
 
 thus collected is deposited with the President 
 or Bishop, who relieves orphans, and widows, 
 and those who are in need, through disease, 
 or any other cause ; those who are in bonds, and 
 strangers : in a word, he has the relieving of all 
 the indigent." 8 
 
 Justin Martyr, Apol. 2, p. 33. 
 
Chap. VI.] Presbyters of the Church and Synagogue. 109 
 
 CHAPTER VI. 
 
 The Presbyters of the Church, compared with those 
 of the Synagogue. 
 
 1. In the times of the Apostles, the power of L Election 
 selecting and ordaining Presbyters rested with ° e rs. res y 
 the Apostles themselves, or their deputies ; 
 " Paul and Barnabas ordained Elders {Presby- 
 ters) in every Church." a Timothy and Titus 
 were the deputies 1 " of the Apostle Paul, and as 
 such the Apostle enjoins the former to "lay 
 hands suddenly on no man;" c and reminds the 
 latter how that he left him in Crete " to ordain 
 Elders in every city." d 
 
 In fact, the Apostles being the ambassadors e The a P o- 
 of Jesus Christ, commissioned by him with full absolute' 
 authority to found his Church, having the gift of sXctioiVof 
 
 Ministers. 
 
 a Acts xiv. 23. 
 
 b i. e. Deputed by the Apostle to hold a certain authority in 
 certain Churches ; the Apostle, however, did not give up his 
 right (as an Apostle) to the absolute control of these Churches. 
 Vide Appendix, note (L.) 
 
 c 1 Tim. v. 22. tl Titus i. 5. 
 
 e The Apostles, are strictly speaking, the only ambassadors 
 of Christ. That the Saviour's declaration, " As my Father 
 
170 The Presbyters of the Clmrch [Part II. 
 
 the Holy Ghost and the power to communicate 
 it, neither would nor could resign their com- 
 mission to another ; much less would they suffer 
 their voice or that of their deputies (who had 
 received the Holy Ghost from them,) to be 
 overruled by popular opinion in the selection 
 of Ministers. In the Apostolic times, then, the 
 Pastors of the Church were ordained independ- 
 ently of the people. We may be sure, however, 
 that the Apostles exercised this authority with 
 the greatest mildness, and with every wish to 
 yield, as far as possible, to the wishes of the 
 Church : hence we find, that they entrusted 
 altogether to the Church the selection of the 
 temporary officers mentioned in the sixth chapter 
 of the Acts of the Apostles, reserving to them- 
 selves the approval of the selection/ 
 
 In the times succeeding the Apostolic, the 
 people were always consulted in the selection 
 
 hath sent me, even so send I you," John xx. 21, is applicable 
 to the Apostles alone, is evident from a comparison of this 
 passage with chap. xvii. 18, and 20. 
 
 f Tertullian makes this appointment of Pastors independ- 
 ently of the people a peculiar trait of Apostolic times. " Pri- 
 maevae Ecclesiae Episcopos, ipsos Apostolos auctores habuisse ; 
 hoc enim modo, Ecclesiae Apostolicae census suos deferunt, 
 sicut Smyrnseorum Ecclesia Polycarpum ab Johanne colloca- 
 tum refert ; sicut Romanorum, Clementem a Petro ordinatum ; 
 id et proinde utique et ceterae exhibuit quos ab Apostolis in 
 Episcopatum constitutos Apostolici seminis traduces habeant." 
 — Adv. Hoer. cap. 32. 
 
Chap. VI.] compared with those of the Synagogue. 171 
 
 of Ministers. First, with respect to Bishops ; in the times 
 
 L succeeding 
 
 Cyprian, in his letter to Antonianus, writes thus the a P o- 
 
 J 1 sties, opini- 
 
 in reference to the Election of Cornelius, Bishop on of the 
 
 people con- 
 
 of Rome. " For that which commends our most suited in the 
 
 • j election of 
 
 beloved Cornelius to God, and to Christ, and to Bishops; 
 his Church, and to all his brethren in the Priest- 
 hood is ; that he did not come to his Bishopric 
 suddenly, but he passed through all the different 
 
 orders of the Church, and he was made 
 
 Bishop by very many of our colleagues who were 
 then at Rome, who sent to us, in reference to 
 his Ordination, the highest testimonials in his 
 praise. He was made, then, Bishop, by the will 
 of God and of his Christ, by the testimony of 
 almost all the Clergy, by the suffrages of the People, 
 who were then present." g We learn from this 
 passage, that Cornelius was elected to his Bishop- 
 ric by the Bishops, but that his Election was 
 confirmed by the suffrages of the People. In 
 another Epistle he says ; " The Ordination of 
 Priests ought not to take place, but with the 
 approval of the People : that, by their presence, 
 either the crimes of bad men may be detected, 
 or the merits of good men be proclaimed ; and 
 let that be a just and legitimate Ordination, which 
 shall have been determined on by the suffrages 
 and judgment of all" h Eusebius gives similar 
 
 = Epist. lib. iv. sec. 2, h Lib. i. Epist. 4. 
 
172 The Presbyters of the Church [Part II. 
 
 testimony ; speaking of the Election of Fabian, 
 Bishop of Rome ; he says, " That all the People, 
 who had assembled at the Election, cried out, that 
 he was worthy." 1 In a letter from a council held 
 at Nice, to the Church of Alexandria, it is en- 
 joined ; " That no one be chosen into the room 
 of any Bishop deceased, unless he appear worthy, 
 and the People elect him ; the Bishop of the city 
 of Alexandria giving his approval, and confirming 
 the judgment of the People."" 
 
 as also in With respect to the appointment of Presby- 
 tia appoint- L x l ' 
 
 ment of ters, &c, though the consent of the people was 
 
 Presbyters. L L 
 
 not absolutely necessary, yet no Bishop of good 
 repute would appoint one, contrary to the ex- 
 pressed wish of the People. " In ordaining 
 Clergymen, beloved brethren, we are accustomed 
 first to consult you, and to consider with you 
 the merits and deserts of each." 1 
 Agreement \y e can trace, in the Ordination and Election 
 
 between the 
 
 church and f the Ministers of the Christian Church, an 
 
 the Syna- 
 gogue in agreement with the Synagogue. In both cases, 
 
 the election & , ... 
 
 and ordina- the Ordination was by imposition of hands. 1 " If 
 
 tionof Mi- J r . 
 
 nisters. in the Synagogue, the Election of the President 
 depended upon the suffrages of the people, it 
 was just similar in the Election of a Bishop : the 
 
 1 Eccles. Hist. lib. vi. cap. 29. 
 
 k Theoclor. Hist. Eccles. lib. i. cap. 6. 
 
 1 Cyprian, Epist. v. lib. 2. 
 
 " 1 Tim. v. 22. 2 Tim. i. G. 
 
Chap. VI.] compared with those of the Synagogue. 1 73 
 
 President of the Synagogue was of the same 
 order as his Presbyters ; the Bishop (as we will 
 endeavour to show) was of the same order as his 
 Presbyters : at the Ordination of the President of 
 a Synagogue, there were always three Presbyters 
 present to lay on hands ; the Canons of the Early 
 Church required three Bishops to be present at 
 the Consecration of a Bishop. 
 
 Lastly, as in the Synagogue, Ordination was 
 sometimes conferred as an honour, and was 
 not the setting apart to an office ; so also, in 
 after times, in the Christian Church, the names 
 Doctor, Presbyter, were mere titles of dignity 
 or honour, conferring as it were a faculty to 
 teach and administer the Sacraments, rather 
 than signifying the actual performance of these 
 offices. 
 
 2. Neither in the writings of the New Testa- Number of 
 
 Presbyters. 
 
 ment, nor in the Canons of the Ancient Church, 
 is there any mention of a fixed number of Pres- 
 byters ; indeed, it is most likely that at first the 
 number was determined by the necessities of the 
 Church, and that they were ordained according 
 as there was a demand. In course of time, Ordi- 
 nation was conferred as a mark of favour, and 
 hence in some Churches the number of Presby- 
 ters was very great; Jerome, speaking of this 
 says ; " The smallness of their number makes the 
 
174 The Presbyters of the Church [Part II. 
 
 Deacons honourable, the crowd of Presbyters 
 makes them contemptible."" Eusebius informs 
 us, that about the middle of the third century, 
 there were in the Church of Rome forty-six Pres- 
 byters, and but seven Deacons. And so far did 
 the abuse proceed that the Emperor Justinian 
 found it necessary to limit the number of Pres- 
 byters, permitting no more than sixty to be 
 ordained for the Church of Constantinople. 13 
 stipend of 3 The principle, that " they who preach 
 
 Presbyters ; r r J r 
 
 the Gospel should live by the Gospel," q is one 
 acknowledged by our Lord, and acted on by 
 both himself and his disciples. Thus, when first 
 he sent forth his Apostles to preach the glad 
 tidings of the kingdom, he bade them freely to 
 enter every house, and if received, to abide there, 
 and eat such things as were set before them ; " for 
 the labourer is worthy of his hire." 1 Acting on 
 this principle, the Early Christians supported by 
 free gifts the Apostles and teachers of the truth, 
 and St. Paul gave directions to the Churches to 
 which he addressed his Epistles, to maintain 
 those who laboured amongst them; and when 
 in the case of this Apostle, the principle seemed 
 
 n Epist. ad Evag. torn. ii. p. 117- 
 
 Hist. Eccles. lib. vi. cap. 13. 
 
 p Nov. iii. Vide Tigl. ad Diac. cap. 5. 
 
 11 1 Cor. ix. 14. ' Matt x. 10, 11. 
 
Chap. VI.] compared with those of the Synagogue. 1 75 
 
 to be called in question, he strongly asserted his 
 right to be supported and sustained by those 
 amongst whom he laboured. 8 
 
 The stipend paid to the clergy of the Early At first 
 Church was at first from voluntary contributions, contribu- 
 which were collected at the celebration of the 
 Lord's Supper. This sacrament was in general 
 preceded by a feast/ at which every believer, 
 according to his ability, offered a gift ; and when 
 the expense of the table had been defrayed, the 
 President or Bishop laid aside a portion of the 
 offerings for himself, the Presbyters, and Deacons ; 
 and with the residue relieved widows, and or- 
 phans, and confessors, and the poor not only 
 of his own Church, but also of the Jews and 
 Gentiles. 11 The stipend was apportioned to the 
 Bishops, Presbyters, and Deacons, according to 
 the dignity and merits of each. x In process of 
 
 s 1 Cor.ix. 5, &c. Gal. iv. 6. Phil. iv. 16, 17, 18. Acts 
 xviii. 3 ; xx. 33, 34. 
 
 ' 1 Cor. xi. 20,21. 
 
 " " Modicam unusquisquestipem, menstrua die, vel cum velit, 
 et si modo velit et si mode- possit, apponit, nam nemo com- 
 pellitur, sed sua sponte confert. Hsec quasi deposita pietatis 
 sunt; nam inde non epulis, non potaculis, nee ingratis vora- 
 trinis dispensatur ; sed egenis alendis humandisque, et pueris 
 ac puellis re et parentibus destitutis, itemque domesticis, 
 senibus, naufragis, et si qui in metallis, vel insulis, vel cus- 
 todiis, Christians confessionis sint alumni." — Tertull. Apol. 
 cap. 39. 
 
 x Cyprian, lib. iv. epist. 6. 
 
176 Presbyters of the Church and Synagogue. [Part II. 
 
 time, (just as in the Synagogue,) the first-fruits, 
 and then the tenths, were given by the laity, as 
 appears from the Apostolic Canons and Consti- 
 tutions. In the second and third centuries, large 
 sums of money were left to the Church ; it thus 
 became possessed of property, which was secured 
 to it as a body by an edict of Constantine ; 
 " And since these same Christians are known to 
 have in their possession, not only those places 
 in which they are accustomed to assemble, but 
 others also, not the property of individuals, but 
 belonging to the Church as a body ; we vest all 
 such by Law, without any ambiguity or contro- 
 versy, in the said Christians as a body." 
 
Chap. VII.] Orders of Ministers in the Early Church. 177 
 
 CHAPTER VII. 
 
 Orders of Ministers in the Ear?// Church. 
 
 We mentioned in a preceding Chapter/ that presidents 
 the Presbyters of each Church constituted a byteries^f" 
 certain body or College, which managed the^m™ 
 affairs of the Church ; that each College (called £i*?£. 
 a Presbytery) had its President, who summoned ^tSof 
 and dismissed the assembly, put questions to the Blsho P s - 
 vote, summed up the opinions, and pronounced 
 the decision of the body. In the course of 
 time, these Presidents, acquiring much authority, 
 assumed to themselves exclusively the title of 
 Bishops ; so that at length they seemed to differ 
 from the other Presbyters, not only in rank, but 
 also in order and office. 
 
 This view of the case is absolutely necessary, This sup- 
 in order to reconcile Ecclesiastical history with only way of 
 Scripture. If it be said, that there were, in eSTiS 
 the Early Church, Bishops with Apostolic ordi- w a itn s c °SJ. 
 nation, differing in order from Presbyters, how 
 
 a Part II. Chap. III. 
 
 N 
 
178 Orders of Ministers [Pakt II. 
 
 can it be accounted for, that Bishops and Pres- 
 byters never appear in the writings of the New 
 Testament, as distinct orders, but the govern- 
 ment of the Church is always assigned to Bishops, 
 Presbyters, Pastors, terms used indifferently for 
 each other, without any mark of distinction ? b 
 But if, on the other hand, it be said, that the 
 Presbyters of the Apostolic age were all of equal 
 rank and dignity; it will be impossible to account, 
 how it came to pass, that in so short a time after 
 the death of the Apostles, there was so great a 
 difference between a Bishop and a Presbyter ; so 
 much so, that the Episcopal succession in some 
 Churches (from their very origin) has been handed 
 down as matter of history. Our position, which 
 is the middle between extremes, and is supported 
 by the analogy of the Synagogue, removes the 
 difficulties urged with so much speciousness on 
 both sides ; d for, as the Presidents of the Chris- 
 
 b Acts xx. 28 ; 1 Pet. v. 2 ; Titus i. 5, 6, 7, where the 
 Bishop, in the 7th verse, is evidently the same as the Elder in 
 the 5th. 
 
 c "Age jam, qui voles curiositatem melius exercere in negotio 
 salutis tuae, percurre Ecclesias Apostolicas, apud quas ipsae 
 adhuc Cathedrae Apostolorum suis locis prassidentur, apud 
 quas authenticae eorum literae reeitantur, sonantes vocem, 
 repraesentantes faciem." — Tertullian. adv. Hceret. p. 126. 
 
 d " Episcopal government is acknowledged to have been uni- 
 versally received in the Church, presently after the Apostles' 
 times. Between the Apostles' times and this presently after, 
 there was not time enough for, nor possibility of, so great an 
 
umem 
 of those 
 
 con- 
 tend for a 
 
 Chap. VII.] in the Early Church. 179 
 
 tian Churches held the same rank and office as 
 the Presbyters, there was no necessity (in the 
 Apostles' times) to distinguish the Bishop from 
 the Presbyter; and, again, as these Presidents 
 were chosen (probably) on account of their great 
 age, or superior acquirements, and hence their 
 opinions and authority had much weight, we need 
 not wonder that, in a short time, their dignity 
 surpassed that of the other Presbyters, and that 
 Bishop became their distinguishing title. 
 
 They who contend for a threefold order in the Ar g 
 times of the Apostles, allow, that in the New who 
 Testament the Clergy are divided into Presby- threefold 
 ters and Deacons ; but they deny that it follows timSS 1 the 
 from this, that there were but two orders. The A i 10Stles - 
 Jewish High Priest (they say) was of the order 
 of Priests, and yet had an order peculiar to him- 
 self; so the Bishop of a Christian Church may 
 be of the order of Presbyters, and yet have an 
 order peculiar to himself. 
 
 But the analogy here contended for (though Analogy 
 sanctioned by ancient writers) is untenable for for un ten- 
 two reasons. First. The difference between the a 
 High Priest and the other Priests, is not at all 
 analogous to the difference between a Bishop 
 
 alteration : — and, therefore, there was no such alteration as is 
 pretended. And, therefore episcopacy, being confessed to be 
 so ancient and catholic, must be granted also to be apostolic : 
 Quod erat demonstrandum." — Chilling worth. 
 
 e Dodwell, Dissertationes Cypr. de Ordin. Episcop. sec. 5, G. 
 N 2 
 
180 Orders of Ministers [Part II. 
 
 and a Presbyter. There was truly a notable 
 difference between the High Priest and the 
 common Priests ; he was consecrated to his 
 office by peculiar ceremonies, appeared in a pe- 
 culiar dress, had peculiar duties assigned to him, 
 and could determine about the sacred things of 
 the Temple, without consulting the other Priests, 
 (who were all subject to him.) Now, what is 
 there, in the peculiar duties and peculiar powers 
 of the High Priest, at all analogous to the pecu- 
 liar duties and powers of a Bishop, even at the 
 time when Episcopal dignity had reached its 
 summit ? Jerome says, in his Epistle to Eva- 
 grius, that the power of ordaining constituted 
 the sole difference between a Bishop and a Pres- 
 byter. f A Bishop of olden times would not 
 transact any business of importance, without the 
 advice of his Presbyters. Thus Cyprian, in one 
 of his letters ; " As to the subject respecting 
 which, our Brother - Presbyters, Donatus and 
 Novatus and Cordius have written to me ; / of 
 myself could give no answer, since from the very 
 beginning of my Episcopacy, I have resolved to 
 do nothing without your advice and the consent 
 of my people." 8 How different from the powers, 
 the independence of the High Priest. 
 
 f "Excepta ordinatione, quid facit Episcopus,quod Presbyter 
 non facit?" 
 
 e Lib. iii. Epist. 10. 
 
Chap. VII.] in the Early Church. 181 
 
 But, Secondly. The Analogy is untenable, The a P o- 
 because the Apostles had not the Temple in not the 
 view, when arranging and ordering the Church. vi g™ when 
 Christian places of worship are nowhere by °^ d ermg 
 them called Temples ; they do not style the SecSSSb. 
 Presbyters, Priests (hiereis), 11 nor the Dea- 
 cons, Levites, nor the Lord's table, an Altar, nor 
 the Bread and Wine, a Sacrifice. No; taught 
 by the Holy Spirit, that the ceremonies of the 
 Law had been abolished through Christ, they 
 seem anxiously to have taken care, lest there 
 should be even a similarity of names, in the 
 rites and offices of the Christian Church. The 
 Analogy, between Priests and Presbyters, &c., 
 was an invention of after-times, when the Rulers 
 of the Church assumed to themselves extra- 
 vagant powers ; and it is a remarkable fact, that 
 
 h " It is well known, that certain ministers of religion were 
 ordained by Christ and his Apostles, and have continued in 
 an unbroken succession down to the present day : and it is not 
 to be wondered at, that the name " Priest" should be applied 
 in common to these and to the Ministers of every other reli- 
 gion, true or false : but the point to be observed is, that their 
 office is essentially and fundamentally different. When the 
 title is applied, for instance, to a Jewish Priest, and to a 
 Christian, it is applied equivocally; not to denote two different 
 kinds of priests, but in two different senses ; the essential cir- 
 cumstances which constitute the priestly office in the one, being 
 wanting in the other. Accordingly, there are in Greek, as is 
 well known, two words, totally unconnected in etymology, 
 which are used to denote the two offices respectively ; — the 
 
182 Orders of Ministers [Part II. 
 
 the title of Chief Priest was renounced by 
 the Bishops of the principal Church in Africa, 
 after that experience had taught them, that 
 some Bishops used it to suit their own ambi- 
 tious views ; the twenty-ninth Canon of the 
 third Council of Carthage decreed; " That the 
 Bishop of the principal Church should not be 
 called Chief Priest, nor High Priest, nor by any 
 name of the kind, but only Bishop of the prin- 
 cipal Church." 
 orders in But the ^ ac ^» that the Early Christian Church 
 churchde was m °delled after the Synagogue, will help us 
 jromthe mucn ^° determine the question, and upon ex- 
 Anaiogy of animation, we shall find that the analogy is in 
 
 the Syna- ' bJ 
 
 gogue. this case most complete. Thus, the Synagogue 
 had its Presbytery ; so had the Church, and the 
 
 Jewish priest, and also that of the Pagan religions, being inva- 
 riably called Hiereus ; the Christian priest, Episcopos, or 
 oftener, Presbyteros, from which last our English word 
 ' Priest' is manifestly formed. It is remarkable, however, 
 that it is never rendered ' Priest' in our version of the Bible, 
 but always according to its etymology, ' Elder;' and that 
 wherever the word Priest occurs, it is always used to corre- 
 spond to Hiereus. This last title is applied frequently to Jesus 
 Christ himself, but never to any other character under the 
 Gospel-dispensation. This circumstance alone would render 
 it highly probable, that Christ and his Apostles did not intend 
 to institute in tbe Christian Church any office corresponding 
 to that of Priest in the Jewish : otherwise they would, doubt- 
 less, have designated it by a name so familiarly known." — 
 Archbishop Whately 's Essays ; vide Appendix, On the Ab- 
 ■rc of a Priesthood. 
 
Cuap. VII.] in the Early Church. 183 
 
 names given to the members of these different 
 Presbyteries were identically the same : the 
 Jewish Presbyteries had each their President, 
 who was the only person that could ordain ; the 
 Christian Presbyteries had also their President, 
 (called, in after-times, peculiarly the Bishop,) 
 upon whom alone was conferred the power of 
 ordaining. The Presidents of the Synagogue, 
 though differing in rank and power from the 
 members of the Presbytery, were still of the 
 same order ; it is not probable that it was dissi- 
 milar in the Christian Church ; if the power of 
 ordaining, vested in the President of the Syna- 
 gogue, did not create in him a distinct order; 
 why should the same power, when conferred 
 upon the Bishop of a Christian Church, make 
 his order different from that of his colleagues ? 
 In each case, the President, when ordaining, 
 acted as the representative, and in the name of 
 the whole Presbytery. 1 
 
 After all, there is not so much difference be- The con- 
 troversy a 
 tween the contending parties in this controversy mere verbal 
 
 as at first sight appears : thus Dodwell, in his 
 
 Dissertations, says ; " Blondell concedes to us 
 
 that the Bishop had the power of summoning 
 
 and dismissing the Councils, which alone is suf- 
 
 i At the ordination of Priests in the Anglican Church, it is 
 necessary that the Priests present lay on hands, as well as the 
 Bishop.— Fide Ordination Service. 
 
184 Orders of Ministers [Part II. 
 
 ficient for our purpose," (i.e. to prove a diffe- 
 rence of orders ;) and in another place, he 
 acknowledges, that the Bishops of the Apostolic 
 age were the Presidents of the Presbyteries* If 
 this be so, is not the whole controversy a verbal 
 one (about the meaning of the word order?') and 
 is it worth the discussion and labour that has 
 been bestowed, to determine whether the dignity 
 of perpetual Presidentship confers a distinct 
 order ? l 
 
 k We have a remnant of these Presbyteries in the Chapters of 
 our Cathedrals, which were at first courts (as it were) attendant 
 on the Bishop, residing near his person, and counselling him 
 in all matters pertaining to the administration of his diocese ; 
 the members are called Prebendaries, from prcebeo, because it 
 was their business to afford or give their advice. — Gibson, 
 172. 
 
 1 " To this kind of Government (viz. the Episcopal), I am 
 not, by any particular interest, so devoted, as to think it ought 
 to be maintained, either in opposition to Apostolic institution, 
 or to the much desired reformation of men's lives, and resto- 
 ration of primitive discipline, or to any law or precept of our 
 Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ, for that were to maintain a 
 means contrary to the end ; for obedience to our Saviour is the 
 end for which Church-government is appointed. But if it 
 may be demonstrated, (or made much more probable than the 
 contrary,) as I verily think it may : — 1. That it is not repug- 
 nant to the government settled in and for the Church by the 
 Apostles : — 2. That it is as compliable with the reformation 
 of any evil, which we desire to reform, either in Church or 
 State, or the introduction of any good, which we desire to 
 introduce, as any kind of government : — and 3. That there is 
 no law, no record of our Saviour against it : then, I hope, it 
 
Chap. VII.] in the Early Church. 185 
 
 will not be thought an unreasonable motion, if we humbly 
 desire those that are in authority, especially the high court of 
 parliament, that it may not be sacrificed to clamour, or over- 
 borne by violence : and though (which God forbid) the greater 
 part of the multitude should cry, Crucify, Crucify, yet our 
 governors would be so full of justice and courage, as not to 
 give it up, until they perfectly understand concerning Episco- 
 pacy itself, 'What evil hath it done.'" — Chillingworth. — Vide 
 Appendix, Note (L.) 
 
186 
 
 The Deacons of the Church [Pakt II. 
 
 CHAPTER VIII. 
 
 The Deacons of the Church compared with those 
 of the Synagogue. 
 
 Analogy When instituting a comparison between the 
 
 cleans' 6 Church and the Synagogue, we shall probably 
 DeacoL. find, in no instance, a more striking agreement, 
 than between the Deacons of the former, and 
 the Chazzans of the latter. This agreement 
 appears in the names and offices of each. First, 
 in the names ; the Hebrew word Chazzan, 
 answers to the Greek word vV^perrjc, and the 
 Chazzans of the Synagogue are thus designated 
 in the New Testament : a the word Deacon b 
 answers to the very same word/ and the Deacons 
 
 As to 
 names. 
 
 a Matt. v. 25 ; xxvi. 58 ; John vii. 32. 
 
 b The word liaKovelr, generally signifies to wait at table, 
 John ii. 5 ; Luke xvii. 7 ; and as the most important business 
 of the Deacon was to assist at the celebration of the Lord's 
 Supper, this may have been the reason why he was usually 
 styled cuiKoroQ rather than vir^pirriQ. 
 
 c 1 Tim. iv. 6 ; 1 Cor. iv. 1 ; Col. i. 23 ; Luke i. 2 ; 
 Philemon 13. 
 
Chap. VI II.] compared with those of the Synagogue. 1 87 
 
 of the primitive Church are thus styled in the 
 25th Canon of the Council of Laodicea, and in 
 the Canons of the Council of Nice. 
 
 Again, there is an agreement (as far as we can As to 
 fairly expect an agreement) in their offices. It was 
 the. duty of the Deacons to read the Scriptures 
 in the Church, to see that the Congregation was 
 attentive/ 1 to instruct the Catechumens in the 
 truths of the Christian religion, 6 to give the 
 signal when the different parts of the service 
 commenced. 1 As the Chazzans covered and un- 
 covered the Ark, so the Deacons settled the 
 Communion-table, and put on its covering ; in a 
 word, as Isidore describes their office ; " It per- 
 tains to the Deacon to assist the Priests, and to 
 minister at all the Sacraments of Christ, at Bap- 
 tism, the Chrism, the giving of the Bread and 
 Wine ; to receive oblations, and to place them 
 upon the altar ; to settle the Lord's table and to 
 cover it ; to carry the cross ; to preach the Gos- 
 pel and the Apostles to him also 
 
 pertains the reciting the prayers, the calling out 
 the names ; he exhorts the congregation to be 
 attentive." These points of agreement are so 
 
 <l The Deacon stands and says with a loud^voice, Attend ! — 
 Chrysostom, 19 th Homily on the Acts. 
 
 c The Deacons purify by instruction and doctrine. — Theo- 
 phylact on the xixth of Luke. 
 
 f Balsaman ad Can. 22. Cone. Laod. 
 
188 The Deacons of the Church [Part II. 
 
 numerous and so striking, as to leave but little 
 
 doubt, that the Deacon of the Church is the 
 
 successor of the Chazzan of the Synagogue/ 
 
 Objection. But it may be objected, is there not express 
 
 mention of the institution of the order, in the 
 
 Acts of the Apostles ? h and in the account there 
 
 given, there is no reference to the Synagogue. 
 
 Again, is not the voice of the Church against 
 
 our position ? the Fathers universally looking 
 
 upon those seven, mentioned in the sixth of Acts, 
 
 as the first Deacons of the Christian Church. 
 
 But, 
 
 The seven 1 • The seven officers, whose appointment is 
 
 mentioned recorded in the sixth chapter of the Acts, were 
 
 S Acts^not quite distinct from the Deacons of the Church : 
 
 eacons. fa e y were appointed upon a particular occasion, 
 
 for a particular purpose ; viz. to distribute alms. 
 
 Now the care of the poor, and the distribution 
 
 of alms, did not lie with the Deacons of the 
 
 primitive Church, but with the Bishops and 
 
 8 " Horum (says Grotius, speaking of the Chazzans) munus 
 inter cetera erat, Legis librum custodire, atque etiam si opus 
 esset, ex eo legere, quod in Ecclesia Christiana faciebant 
 dvayvwoTcii, quse erat species Ziatzovuv, nam olim cum exigua 
 esset multitudo, iidem Diaconi omnia ea obibant, quae Presby- 
 teris obire non vacabat. Postea distributi sunt labores, et 
 facti sunt alii hiaicovoi, alii dp^iciaKotoi, alii vTrodutKovoi, alii 
 Janitores, alii Acoluthi Episcoporum, alii dvayvuxjTui, alii ^a\- 
 yuwBot ; etiam Hieronymus lectitare in Ecclesia ait Diaconorum." 
 — Annot. in Luc, iv. 20. h Chap. vi. 
 
Chap. VIII.] compared with those of the Synagogue. 1 89 
 
 Presbyters ; thus Poly carp, in his Epistle to 
 the Philippians, exhorts the Presbyters : " Let 
 the Presbyters be ready to commiserate, merci- 
 ful to all, bringing back those who have erred, 
 visiting all the infirm, not neglecting the widow, 
 the orphan or the poor; but always providing 
 what is good in the sight of God and man." 1 
 From the New Testament too, it is evident, that 
 the distribution of alms was not the peculiar 
 office of the Deacon. The Apostle Paul, in his 
 Epistle to Timothy, speaks of the qualifications of 
 a Deacon ; there is not one word about the distri- 
 bution of alms, not a qualification mentioned 
 that has the least reference to it ; how account 
 for this silence, if the distribution of alms was 
 the Deacon's first, his most important duty ? 
 Again, we read in the Epistles, k that collections 
 were made in different Churches for the poor 
 saints at Jerusalem : but there is no mention of 
 the collection having been made by the Deacons, 
 (though doubtless there were Deacons in those 
 Churches ;) on the contrary, the Apostle advises 
 each Christian, himself to set apart, on every 
 Lord's day, a sum of money, which was to be 
 handed over to the Apostle or to some one de- 
 puted by him. If the Deacons were the collec- 
 
 ' Edit. CI. Monach. p. 7. 
 
 k Rom. xv. 25. 1 Cor. xvi. 1, 2. 2 Cor. viii. 4; ix. 1. 
 
190 The Deacons of the Church [Part II. 
 
 tors and distributors of alms, why was not the 
 duty assigned to them ? But further, the seven 
 officers appointed in the Church of Jerusalem 
 are nowhere called Deacons j 1 Stephen is no- 
 where called a Deacon ; the name of Philip fre- 
 quently occurs in the Acts of the Apostles — he is 
 never called a Deacon ; and in one place where 
 there is a reference to his appointment, he is 
 styled, not one of the seven Deacons, but one of 
 the seven™ These seven officers were appointed 
 for a special purpose ; a dispute having arisen 
 between the Hellenists and Hebrews, about 
 their widows, seven men were appointed from 
 the former, (it appears from their names that 
 they were all Greeks,) to look after their own 
 widows:" the office continued but for a time, 
 
 1 It may be said that the name is implied, as they were 
 appointed " to serve (Siaxoveiv) tables," but it should be 
 remembered that the opposition is not in the word SiciKovelv, 
 but between the ministering the word and the ministering to 
 tables. m Acts xxi. 8. 
 
 n Even granting these seven to have been Deacons, the 
 institution of the order could not have been in consequence 
 of this murmuring of the Hellenists ; for evidently, before this, 
 " some dispensers there must have been, and if so, either the 
 Apostles must have officiated as Deacons, or special Deacons 
 there must have been, by whatever name they went. That 
 the Apostles did not officiate, is plain from the tenor of the 
 narrative, which indicates that the appeal was made to them, 
 and that they excused themselves from presiding personally 
 at the " ministration," (as was probably desired by the dis- 
 
Chap. VIII.] compared rcifh those of the Synagogue. 191 
 
 and hence we read of Philip leaving Jerusalem, 
 preaching the Gospel in Samaria, and after- 
 wards dwelling at Cesaraea. 
 
 2. The voice of the ancient Church is not 
 opposed to this opinion ; Cyprian indeed says, 
 " Deacons ought to remember, that the Lord 
 chose the Apostles, i. e. the Bishops and Presi- 
 dents of his Church ; but after the ascension of 
 our Lord into heaven, the Apostles appointed 
 Deacons, to be Ministers of the Bishops and of 
 the Church." 1 ' It is true that a Synod at Neo- 
 cesarasa decreed, in its fifteenth Canon, that no 
 matter how large the city, there should be but 
 seven Deacons in the Church ; as that was the 
 number appointed by the Apostles to the Church 
 of Jerusalem. But then, on the other hand, a 
 
 contented party,) alleging that it was incompatible with their 
 proper duties. " It is not reason that we should leave the 
 word of God, and serve tables." This very assertion, then, is 
 proof certain that they did not officiate. Again, on reading 
 over the names of the seven deacons, we find them all of the 
 Grecian or Hellenistic party. Stephen, Philip, Procorus, 
 Nicanor, Timon, Parmenas, and Nicolas, the last of whom is 
 expressly described as a proselyte of Antioch. Now this 
 surely would have produced a murmuring of the Hebrews 
 against the Grecians, unless they had already some in office 
 interested in looking after their rights. With these presump- 
 tions in favour of a previous appointment of deacons, it would 
 seem then, that these seven were added to the former number 
 because of the complaint." — Hinds's Rise and Early Progress 
 of Christianity, vol. i. p. 217. 
 
 Acts viii. 5 ; xxi. 8. p Epist. lib. iii. Epist. 9. 
 
192 The Deacons of the Church [Part II. 
 
 Synod at Constantinople, building upon the 
 authority of Chrysostom/ 1 decreed that the seven 
 appointed in the Apostles' times, were not of the 
 same order as the Deacons of the Church. In 
 fact, the difference between the two classes of 
 officers is so marked, that some writers, still 
 anxious to deduce from the Acts of the Apostles, 
 the origin of the office of Deacon, are yet forced 
 to acknowledge, that, in time, the duties of the 
 Deacons became quite different from those for 
 which they were originally appointed. 
 
 Delcons^ ^ * s not eas y to determine what was the num- 
 ber of Deacons in the Early Churches ; but that a 
 Church might have more than one appears from 
 St. Paul's Epistle to the Philippians, which is 
 addressed to the " Saints in Christ Jesus, who 
 are at Philippi, with the Bishops and Deacons." 1 
 It is probable, that at first the number was 
 determined by the wants of each Church ; until 
 some Churches, supposing that the institution of 
 the office was to be found in the sixth of Acts, 
 limited the number to seven ; hence the Canon 
 of the Synod of Neocesarsea, quoted above. The 
 Church of Rome most religiously observed this 
 number, whilst, other Churches appointed Dea- 
 
 q Synod. CEcumen. Quinti Sext. Canon 16, apud Beverig. 
 torn. i. p. 174. 
 
 r Chap. 1 . There was then more than one Bishop, i. e. 
 Presbyter, in the church at Philippi. 
 
Chap. VIII.] compared with those of the Synagogue. 193 
 
 cons according to their necessities. " Amongst 
 the Romans there are not to this day more than 
 seven Deacons, after the example of those who 
 were at first ordained by the Apostles, amongst 
 whom was Stephen the first Martyr ; but in other 
 Churches the number of Deacons is not thus 
 limited." 8 
 
 With respect to the appointment of Deacons, Appoint- 
 
 i i vi i.1 nient of 
 
 the Church was circumstanced very much like the Deacons. 
 Synagogue. As long as the Apostles presided 
 over the Church at Jerusalem, they had the 
 power of ordaining whom they would, as Pres- 
 byters and Deacons ; but after their death, and 
 the consequent abolition of the supremacy of the 
 Church at Jerusalem, the Deacons were chosen 
 by the voice of the people ; and although some 
 Bishops asserted to themselves the right of 
 selecting the Presbyters and Deacons, religious 
 Bishops never departed from the old custom of 
 consulting the people.* 
 
 It has been mentioned in a former Chapter," The Bishop 
 
 the An^cl 
 
 that the Chazzan sometimes fulfilled the office of or Legate of 
 Legate of the Church, though the President oftianChJU. 
 the Synagogue was ex officio the Legate. In 
 the Christian Church, the chief minister was 
 always the Legate ; it was he that invariably 
 
 s Sozomen, Eccles. Hist., book vii. chap. 19. 
 1 Cyprian, Epist., book ii. epist. 5. 
 u Part I. Chap. X. p. 89. 
 O 
 
194 The Deacons of the Church. [Part II. 
 
 addressed Jehovah in prayer in behalf of the 
 people : hence the Apostle John, writing to the 
 seven Churches in Asia, styles their Bishop, or 
 President, the Angel, i.e. the Legate of the 
 Church : this word designating the Bishop's 
 most solemn, most important duty, viz. to offer 
 up prayers in the congregation. 
 
Chap. IX.] Discourses of the Early Church. 19i 
 
 CHAPTER IX. 
 
 The Discourses delivered in the Early Christian 
 Church compared with those delivered in the 
 Synagogue. 
 
 On comparing the discourses delivered in the Anaiogy 
 
 between the 
 
 Early Church with those delivered in the byna- Discourses 
 
 , n 11 of the Syna- 
 
 gogue, we shall find an analogy in the tollowing gog ue and 
 
 those of the 
 respects. Church. 
 
 1. The name given to the discourses delivered in names. 
 in the Synagogue was Daraschoth ; the corre- 
 sponding Greek word is applied, all through the 
 
 Acts of the Apostles/ to the discourses of the 
 Christian Church. 
 
 2. In the Synagogue, a portion of the Law i« manner. 
 or of the Prophets was read before the exhorta- 
 tion ; it was similar in the Early Church ; "On 
 
 the day which is called Sunday, all who live 
 either in the towns or in the country, meet 
 together, and the writings of the Apostles or 
 
 a Acts xvii. 2, 18 ; xviii. 4, 19 ; xix. 8, 9 ; xx. 7. 
 
 o 2 
 
196 Discourses of the Early Church [Part II. 
 
 those of the Prophets are read for a certain 
 time ; then, the reader having finished, the Pre- 
 sident 1 " delivers a discourse, in which he instructs 
 the people, and exhorts them to virtue ; after 
 this we all stand up and pray ; and prayer being 
 ended, there is offered bread and wine and 
 water ; the President likewise, according to his 
 ability, offers up prayer and thanksgiving, and 
 the people solemnly assent by saying, Amen." c 
 
 in style. 3. The discourses delivered in the Synagogue 
 
 were highly allegorical ; so likewise were those in 
 the Early Church. Those of our Lord were evi- 
 dently so ; the Epistles of the Apostle Paul 
 prove, that this mode of explaining divine truth 
 was not laid aside by his Apostles ; whilst 
 the Epistle of Barnabas, abounding as it does 
 with allegories, gives a fair specimen of the 
 writing, and of course the preaching, usual in 
 these times ; and though, in all probability, Bar- 
 nabas was not the author of the Epistle, still it 
 is a venerable monument of Christian antiquity ; 
 and we may fairly consider it as a model of 
 ancient writing, and (if men preached as they 
 wrote) of ancient preaching. 
 
 As to place. 4. In the Synagogue, the sermons were 
 preached from a pulpit ; it was the same in the 
 
 b Trpoeartjc, a name derived, without doubt, from the Syna- 
 gogue. 
 
 c Justin Martyr, Apol. ii. pp. 97, 98. 
 
Chap. IX.] com/pared with those of the Synagogue. 197 
 
 Church ; there is frequent mention of the pulpit 
 in the Greek and Latin Fathers. 
 
 5. Sermons were usually preached in the As to time. 
 Synagogue on the Sabbath-day ; Justin Martyr, 
 
 in the passage above quoted, shows that in the 
 Church sermons were usually delivered on the 
 Lord's day. And, as in the Synagogue, there was 
 sometimes great neglect of this duty of exhorting 
 the people ; so there was also in the Church, — 
 so much so, that Sozomen complains, that in the 
 Church of Rome, in his time, there were no 
 sermons at all; "neither the Bishop, nor any one 
 else, teaches in the Church." d 
 
 6. With respect to the persons permitted to As to the 
 preach, there is a remarkable analogy between permitted 
 the Church and the Synagogue. The Ruler of P e 
 the Synagogue had the exclusive right of preach- 
 ing, but he could call upon any Doctor or Rabbi, 
 
 nay, even upon a layman of known talent and 
 piety. A similar liberty was granted in the 
 Christian Church. It was the undoubted right 
 and duty of the Bishops and Presbyters to 
 preach ; e but. sometimes Deacons, and even 
 laymen, were permitted to address the people. 
 With respect to Deacons, the fact appears from 
 sermons that have been handed down to us, of 
 Chrysostom, while he was as yet a Deacon, and 
 
 d Sozomen, Eccl. Hist., Book vii. cap. 39. 
 c 1 Tim. iii. 2 ; iv> 6. 2 Tim. iv. 2. 
 
198 Discourses of the Early Church [Part II. 
 
 of Ephraim Syrus, the Deacon. With respect 
 to laymen, we have the testimony of Eusebius ; f 
 he mentions, how that Origen was asked by the 
 Bishops of Palestine, to preach publicly in the 
 Church, and to expound the Sacred Scriptures ; 
 this was objected to, as contrary to custom, 
 and to the order which ought to be observed in 
 Church matters ; upon which, Alexander Bishop 
 of Jerusalem, and Theodistus Bishop of Cesarsea, 
 in a letter to Demetrius, defended themselves as 
 follows : " As to what you have urged in your 
 letter, that it was never before known, nor ever 
 yet has happened, that, in the presence of 
 Bishops, a layman should preach ; in that you 
 are much mistaken ; for if, at any time, there 
 are present those who can profit their brethren, 
 the Bishops, of their own accord, exhort such 
 to speak to the people: thus Evelpis Larandis 
 was asked by Neon, Paulinus of Iconium by 
 Celsus, Theodoras by Atticus." We learn from 
 this passage, that any person, of known intelli- 
 gence, could (by permission of the Bishop) speak 
 in the Church : the Bishop's power, in this 
 respect, being similar to that of the Ruler of the 
 Synagogue. 
 Women for 7. Women were forbidden to speak in the 
 
 bidden to tit 
 
 preach. Synagogue, " Women are relieved, not only 
 f Ecclcs. Hist, book vi. chap. 19. 
 
Chap. IX. J compared with those of the Synagogue. 199 
 
 from teaching, but also from learning. 8 The 
 Apostle Paul, addressing the Corinthians, says ; 
 " Let your women keep silence in the Churches, 
 tor it is not permitted unto them to speak :" h and 
 in the next verse ; " It is a shame for a woman 
 to speak in the Church." 
 
 8. Doctors of great name amongst the Doctors sat 
 
 fe ° when 
 
 Jews sat whilst preaching, though some stood, preaching. 
 The Christian Church reserved this liberty also 
 for itself; but that preachers usually sat, Grotius 
 fully proves in his annotations on Matt, xxiii. 2. 
 
 s Maimonides Hilcoth. Talmud Tora. Cap. 1, sect. 1. 
 " 1 Cor. xiv. 34. 
 
200 Public Worship of the Early Church [Part II. 
 
 CHAPTER X. 
 
 The Public Worship of the Early Church com- 
 pared with that of the Synagogue. 
 
 No Liturgy When comparing the worship of the Early 
 church' 1 y Church with that of the Synagogue, we labour 
 do^Ttous under this disadvantage, that, if the primitive 
 Church had any liturgy, it has not been handed 
 down to us ; still, as far as we can ascertain any- 
 thing of its modes of worship, we find many 
 traces of similitude between it and that of the 
 Synagogue ; and 
 Prayers of 1. In the nature of the Prayers. The 
 church prayers of the Synagogue were called Eulogies, 
 
 similar to , •■ , . . , , ,. 
 
 those of the because to each prayer was subjoined a benedic- 
 gogue. tion or thanksgiving ; the prayers of the Chris- 
 tian Church, also, were called blessings and 
 giving of thanks. a In the Synagogue, an Eulogy 
 or form of benediction was in general subjoined 
 to each prayer ; we have every reason to con- 
 
 1 1 Cur. xiv. 15, 16, 17. 
 
Chap. X.] compared with that of the Synagogue. 201 
 
 elude, that similar was the ease in the Church ; 
 thus, the Apostle Paul exhorts the Colossians, b 
 " to continue in prayer, watching in the same 
 with thanksgiving ;" i.e. to join thanksgiving with 
 prayer ; he exhorts the Thessalonians, c " to pray 
 without ceasing, in every thing giving thanks" 
 Again, the subject-matter of their prayers was 
 similar, as far as could be expected j we have in 
 the Schemon Esre, a sample of a Jewish prayer : 
 and we learn from Justin Martyr and Tertullian, 
 the nature of the Christian's ; it was prayer 
 (just like the Jew's) " joined with praise ; for 
 man's creation, for all things necessary for soul 
 and body, for the welfare of the Church and 
 kingdom.'" 1 
 
 2. The Synagogue had its Kacldiscli and similar 
 
 . formulae in 
 
 Keduscha ; 1. e. its formulas of sanctifying the both. 
 Divine Name, and of prayer for the coming of 
 God's kingdom ; these formulae (the Kaddisch 
 especially) were used frequently, both before and 
 after other prayers. The Church had its Lord's 
 prayer similar (in some of its petitions) to the 
 Kaddisch, and, like it, used frequently. 6 
 
 b Chap. iv. 2. 
 
 c 1 Thess. v. 17, 18. 
 
 ll " Oramus etiam pro imperatoribus, pro ministris eorum ac 
 potestatibus, pro statu seculi, pro rerum quiete, pro mora 
 finis." — Tertullian. Apol. cap. 39. — Vide Just. Apol. ad Anton. 
 page GO. 
 
 ' " Quoniam taraen Dominus prospector humanarum necessi- 
 
202 Public Worship of the Early Church [Part II. 
 
 Customs of 3. Several customs observed by the Jews 
 goguein- at prayer, were followed by the Early Chris- 
 
 troduced . „,- 
 
 into the nans. Ine Jews were accustomed to wash 
 before prayer/ so were the Early Christians ; 
 the Apostle Paul evidently alludes to this cus- 
 tom when he exhorts men to pray, lifting up 
 holy 8 hands: Chysostom expressly mentions it in 
 his seventy-second Homily upon St. John; "Then 
 entering into the Church, we wash our hands." 
 The Postures and Gestures of the Synagogue 
 were imitated by the Early Church. The Jews 
 when praying looked towards the Temple, so 
 did the Primitive Christians ; and hence the ac- 
 cusation, that they worshipped the sun : h the 
 Jews were accustomed to kneel in their suppli- 
 cations, to stand at their ordinary prayers; so 
 were the Early Christians ; ! on the Lord's-day, 
 
 tatum, seorsim post traditam orandi disciplinary petite 
 (inquit) et accipietis, et sunt quae petantur pro circumstantial 
 cujusque, prcemissd legitima et ordinarid oratione quasi fun- 
 damento, jus est superstruendi extrinsecus petitiones." — 
 Tertul. lib. de Oratione. 
 
 f Exod. xix. 10 ; 2 Sam. xii. 20 ; Psalm xxvi. 6 ; Isaiah 
 i. 16—18. 
 
 s baiovQ. 1 Tim. ii. 8. vide Heb. x. 22. 
 
 h The majority of the Churches, whose records have reached 
 us, were to the west of Jerusalem ; they therefore turned to 
 the east in prayer, and hence (according to Tertullian) the 
 suspicion that they worshipped the sun. — Apol. cap. 16. 
 
 I s " Quando autem stamus ad orationem, Fratres dilectissimi, 
 vigilare et incumber e ad preces toto corpore debemus." — 
 Cyprian. Serm. VI. de Oral. Dom. 
 
Chap. X.] compared with that of the Synagogue. 203 
 
 however, and on certain feasts, kneeling was not l 
 permitted ; " Whereas there are some, who on 
 the Lord's- day, and on the Pentecostal days, I 
 kneel in prayer; in order that all things may be 
 alike in every parish, it has seemed fit, to the 
 Holy Council, that all shall stand in prayer."* 
 Clement of Alexandria, thus describes the ges- 
 tures used by Christians in prayer ; " We extend 
 the head and hands to heaven, and we stir the 
 
 feet, in the latter part of the prayer ; 
 
 endeavouring to lift the body from the earth, we 
 as it were force the mind, elevated through a 
 desire of what is better, to progress in sacred 
 things, with a lofty soul, despising the chain of 
 the flesh." 1 How similar to the gestures of the 
 Jews as described by Buxtorf : m " In the portion 
 of this prayer (viz. the Schemon Esre), which 
 they call the Keduscha ; when they come to the 
 words — ' Holy ! Holy ! Holy ! is the Lord of 
 Hosts, the whole earth is full of his glory !' they 
 raise their eyes to heaven, in order to excite 
 greater devotion ; they move the whole body, 
 trembling, as it were, on account of the tremen- 
 
 k Can. Concil. Nicsen. " Die Dominico, jejunicum nefas ) / 
 ducimus, vel de genicidis adorare : eaclem immunitate a die / L 
 Paschoe in Pentecostem usque gaudemus." — Tertul.de Coron. J / 
 Mil. cap. iii. x> vJ j 
 
 1 Strom, lib. vii. p. 519. 
 m Synag. cap. x. p. 208. 
 
204 Public Worship of the Early Church [Part IT. 
 
 clous holiness of God, and at the same time they 
 leap up (as if about to equal themselves to the 
 angels who first produced this hymn, or as if 
 about to ascend to God) ; immediately, however, 
 leaping back, because it is impossible either to 
 approach to God, or to attain to his nature and 
 essence in this mortal life." 
 Responses 4. Responses and Ejaculations were used in 
 btionsof U " the worship of the Synagogue ; similar were in- 
 simikr to° ' troduced into the Christian Church : for instance, 
 thTsyna- t- ne response, Amen, which was a response of the 
 gogue. Synagogue, and also one of the Early Church." 
 In the ritual of the Synagogue, there were hor- 
 tatory ejaculations to which the people replied ; 
 some of which were introduced into the worship 
 of the Church. " Therefore the Priest, before 
 the prayer, in a short preface, prepares the minds 
 of his brethren by saying ; ' Lift up your hearts ;' 
 that when the People answer ; ' We lift them up 
 unto the Lord ;' they may be thus admonished, 
 that they ought to think of nothing but the 
 Lord." In the Liturgies, which, though falsely 
 ascribed to St. James and St. Chrysostom, are 
 yet of great antiquity, we find other ejaculations 
 and responses, corresponding exactly to those of 
 the Synagogue. 1 ' 
 
 n 1 Cor. xiv. 16 ; Rev. v. 11 — 14. Justin Mart. Apol. xi. 
 page 98. 
 
 Cyprian. Sermon VI. do Orat. Domini, p. 242. 
 r See pages 70 and 71. 
 
Chap. X.] compared with that of the Synagogue. 20f> 
 
 5. There was public worship in the Syria- Worship in 
 
 . the Church 
 
 gogue three tunes a day ; the same custom was and s y na- 
 
 l • i • ,1 -n • • • /-n i gogue three 
 
 retained m the Primitive Church, as appears times a day. 
 from an allusion of Clement of Alexandria ; 
 " Although some appoint certain and denned 
 hours of prayer, as, for instance, the third, the 
 sixth, and the ninth ; yet he who is endued with 
 knowledge prays throughout his whole life." q 
 
 All through the East, and in some of the 
 Western Churches, both Sabbath and Lord's 
 days were observed; thus Eusebius lauds the 
 piety of Constantine who kept both days holy ; r 
 and there is the following exhortation in the 
 Clementine Constitutions ; " Keep holy the Sab- 
 bath and the Lord's day, since on the one, we 
 commemorate the creation, on the other, the 
 resurrection." 3 
 
 With respect to the mode of reading the The Read- 
 
 n ,i /-n t -i . ing °f the 
 
 Scriptures in the Church, there was in many scriptures 
 points a similarity to the mode of reading in the church. 
 Synagogue. The Scriptures themselves were 
 divided into Lessons,* analogous to the Pa- 
 raschioth of the Synagogue ; there were the 
 larger divisions or " Chapters," u and the smaller, 
 called " Verses." x The Scriptures were read 
 from a desk or pulpit placed in the middle of the 
 
 q Strom, lib. vii. page 519. ' 'Avayvwoyictra. 
 
 r Lib. iv. De Vita Const, cap. 18. u KecfxiXaia. 
 
 s Lib. vii. cap. 24. x TlepiKOTral. 
 
200 Public Worship of the Early Church [Part II. 
 
 Church, after the manner of the pulpit in the 
 Synagogue ; Sozomen calls it, the pulpit of the 
 readers. 7 As in the Synagogue, even youths were 
 permitted to read; 2 whilst in both Synagogue 
 and Church, women were strictly forbidden to 
 speak ; " Let your women be silent in the 
 Churches," saith the Apostle Paul. a During 
 the reading of the Scriptures, the Congregation 
 stood, after the manner of the Early Synagogue ; b 
 and hence, Sozomen strongly censures the con- 
 duct of the Bishop of Alexandria ; " Whilst the 
 Gospels are reading, the Bishop does not stand 
 up : such conduct I have neither seen nor heard 
 of in any other place." After the reading of 
 the Scriptures there was a sermon.' 1 
 
 There was, however, a remarkable difference ; 
 in the Synagogue, the reader was confined to a 
 
 y Biifia twu dvayvuHTrCiv. — Hist. Eccles. lib. ix. cap. 2. 
 
 z " Aliquid de pcenitentia dicere divinitus jubemur, neque 
 olim nos istum Psalmum cantandum lectori imperavimus, sed 
 quod Deus censuit nobis utile ad audiendum, hoc cordi etiam 
 puerili iraperavit." — August. Homil. XXVII. lib. 50. There is 
 in this a marked difference between the Temple, and the 
 Church and Synagogue ; in the Temple, every ceremony, 
 every part of the service, had its peculiar officer set apart for 
 its performance ; not so either the Synagogue or the Church ; 
 in both, there was much in which the congregation were ex- 
 pected to join. 
 
 a 1 Cor. xiv. 34. b Nehemiah viii. 6. 
 
 c Eccles. Hist, lib, vii. cap. 19. 
 
 d Ferrarius de Sac. Cone. lib. i. cap. 15. 
 
Chap. X.] compared with that of the Synagogue. 207 
 
 certain portion of Scripture, namely, the portion 
 appointed for the day : not so in the Church, 
 the preacher could order a portion of Scripture 
 to be read, corresponding to the subject of his 
 sermon ; sometimes the Readers opened the 
 book as it were at random, and read in the place 
 where they had opened. 
 
 e Ferrarius de Sac. Cone. lib. i. cap. 17, 18. 
 
208 Rites and Ceremonies of the Church. [Part II. 
 
 CHAPTER XI. 
 
 Refutation of the Arguments of those who derive 
 the Rites and Ceremonies of the Church from 
 the Temple. 
 
 Archbishop Of those who hold the opinion, that the Govern- 
 opinion as ment and Ceremonies of the Church were derived 
 gin of from the Temple, there is none more deserving 
 Govern- of notice than the celebrated Archbishop Usher, 
 
 ment. 
 
 who thus states his views upon the subject : — 
 " Episcopacy is founded, partly, upon an exem- 
 plar prescribed by Jehovah himself in the Old 
 Testament ; partly, upon an imitation of the 
 same introduced by the Apostles in the New, 
 and confirmed by Christ himself. Under the 
 old dispensation, the Government of the Church 
 was committed to Priests and Levites, whom 
 the Ministers of the Christian Church succeeded, 
 just as the Lord's day did the Sabbath ; that it 
 might be fulfilled which was spoken by the 
 prophet respecting the calling of the Gentiles ; 
 
Chap. XI.] not derived from the Temple. 209 
 
 " And I will also take of them, for Priests and 
 for Levites, saith the Lord." a No one doubts 
 that the Priests were superior in order to the 
 Levites, and that the Priests were not all equal 
 in rank, nor even the Levites. b The Levites 
 were divided into three families, the Gershonites, 
 the Kohathites, and the Merarites ; over each of 
 these the Lord placed a Leader/ The Priests 
 were divided by David into twenty-four courses, 
 each course having its Chief. d These Chiefs of 
 the courses are called, in the New Testament, 
 the Chief Priests ; evidently distinct from him 
 who was the type of the great High Priest, that 
 entered into the heavens, even Jesus the Son of 
 God. Nay more, we read in the book of Nehe- 
 miah of two Bishops who lived at Jerusalem ; 
 the one, Bishop of the Priests ; the other, of the 
 Levites : of these one is styled Enscoros by the 
 Seventy ; e the other is called by the same name, 
 and in the Latin Vulgate is styled Eriscopus; f 
 and this rendering is supported by Scriptural 
 authority, a Hebrew word of the same origin 
 being rendered by the word 'Eiria-KOTrriv in the 
 " New Testament." K At the end of his disser- 
 
 a Isaiah lxvi. 21. 
 
 b I Chron. xxiv. 6, 31 ; Ezra viii. 29. 
 c Numb. iii. 24, 30, 35. d 1 Chron. xxiv. 
 
 e Neh. xi. 14. f Neh. xi. 22. 
 
 s Psalm cix. 8 ; Acts i. 20. Usher in Opusculo de Episco- 
 porum et Metropolitarum Origine, p. 1, 2. 
 
 P 
 
210 Bites and Ceremonies of the Church [Part IT. 
 
 tation, the Archbishop observes; that Eleazar, the 
 son of Aaron, was appointed the Chief over the 
 Chief of the Levites ; h and as he is styled in the 
 Septuagint Version an Episcoros, 1 that the title 
 Archbishop may be applied to him ; nor does he 
 omit the testimony of St. Paul in his Epistle to 
 the Corinthians/ where the Apostle compares 
 the preachers of the Gospel with those who 
 formerly served the altar. Archbishop Usher's 
 opinion, then, may be summed up in these few 
 words ; " There were Priests and Levites to 
 perform the Temple service ; these, the Priests 
 and Deacons of the Christian Church succeeded ; 
 the Priests had their Bishops, answering to the 
 Bishops of the Christian Church ; the Levites 
 had their Bishops, corresponding to our Arch- 
 deacons." 
 Hisopi- That this opinion is supported by the au- 
 
 pOTtedby thority of the Fathers, cannot be denied; as 
 early as the second century, the Presbyters of 
 the Church were called " Priests" (Hiereis), 
 the Deacons " Levites, " the Communion-tables 
 " Altars," and the gifts placed thereon " Obla- 
 tions." 1 In the fourth century, these appella- 
 
 h Numb. iii. 32. s Numb. iv. 16. 
 
 k 1 Cor. ix. 13, 14. 
 
 1 Apostolic Canons, Can. 3, 4. Cyprian, lib. i. Epist. 2, 
 3, 4. Tertullian, de Baptis. cap. 17. Irenseus, adv. Hoercs. 
 lib. iv. cap. 34. Justin Martyr, Apol. 2, ad Anton. 
 
 the autho 
 rity of the 
 Fathers. 
 
Chap. XI.] not derived from the Temple. 21 i 
 
 tions had become quite familiar ; but, perhaps, 
 none of the Fathers declares his opinion more 
 distinctly than Jerome, who thus concludes his 
 celebrated letter to Evagrius : " What Aaron 
 and his sons and the Levites were in the Tem- 
 ple, the same, Bishops, Priests, and Deacons are 
 in the Church." m 
 
 The reasons which induced the Fathers to Reasons 
 
 i i /-Ni • !_• that proba- 
 
 lnstitute a comparison between the Christian % induced 
 Ministry and the Jewish Priesthood, were most to institute 8 
 probably the following: — 1. The Bishops and sonX 1 -""" 
 Deacons in the New Testament were the Go- cTurchand 
 vernors of the Church, the Administrators ofjjjg em " 
 sacred things, just as were the Priests and 
 Levites under the Old Dispensation ; and there 
 is evidently an analogy between Bishops and 
 Deacons, and between Priests and Levites, in 
 reference to the relationship they bear to each 
 other ; the Deacons being the Ministers of the 
 Bishop, just as the Levites were the appointed 
 Ministers of the Priest. 2. The whole wor- 
 ship of the Christian Church is sometimes deli- 
 neated in Scripture, by language derived from 
 the worship of the Temple ; and the Ministers 
 of the Church, though never directly styled 
 
 m " Et ut sciamus traditiones Apostolicas sumptas de vetere 
 Testamento : quod Aaron et filii ejus atque Levitse in Templo 
 fuerunt, hoc sibi Episcopi et Presbyteri et Diaconi vindicent 
 in Eeclesia." 
 
 p 9 
 
212 Rites, and Ceremonies of the Church [Part IT. 
 
 Priests and Levites, are yet distinguished by 
 titles evidently borrowed from the Temple. 
 3. The primitive mode of administering the 
 Lord's Supper added much weight to the ana- 
 logy ; each communicant offered at the holy 
 table, bread, wine, oil, money, &c. : n of these, 
 part was for the communion ; the remainder was 
 applied to the relief of the poor brethren, and 
 (as the Church had at that time no stated in- 
 come) to the support of the Bishops, Presbyters, 
 and Deacons. " The faithful, in these primitive 
 times, seldom approached the altar (on Lord's 
 days and festivals) without gifts and offerings, 
 unless their means were so limited that they 
 could not do it without inconvenience ; these 
 gifts were called oblations, which the Priest, 
 having received from the hands of the faithful, 
 offered on the altar to God, and blessed with 
 certain prayers." 1 ' Now, these offerings were, 
 in some respect, similar to the offerings of the 
 Temple ; in both cases they were the support of 
 God's Ministers; and as the Bread and Wine 
 at the Lord's Supper represented the Saviour's 
 body and blood, hence the offering of these 
 elements, by each individual, came (by an easy 
 figure) to be called the offering of a sacrifice, 
 
 " Tertull. Apol. cap. 39. 
 Gabriel Abalspinaeus. Observat. Eccle.s. cap. 5. 
 
Chap. XI. J not derived from the Temple. 213 
 
 and at length to be really thought one ; and 
 then the Communion-table was looked upon as 
 an Altar, the officiating Minister as a Priest 
 (Hiereus), the Deacons as Levites ; and the 
 whole scheme of the Jewish Temple was en- 
 grafted upon the simple worship of the Chris- 
 tian Church. 4. The hatred, which the Early 
 Christians bore towards the Jews, is another 
 reason why they would studiously avoid, in their 
 worship, all conformity to the Synagogue, and 
 imitate rather the worship of the Temple (now 
 no longer in existence) ; we have on record 
 several instances of this ill will ; thus Casaubon, 
 when mentioning how Christians used the word 
 Sijnaxis instead of Sijnagoga, tells us that they 
 did it, that their assemblies might be different 
 even in name from the Jewish Synagogue." 1 ' 
 There are many Canons, prohibiting Christians 
 from any intercourse with Jews, especially in 
 religious matters: 01 and Chrysostom, in his 
 orations against the Jews, vehemently ex- 
 horts Christians neither to admire their sacred 
 rites, nor to visit their Synagogues. And 
 5. If the early Christians discarded the Syn- 
 agogue through hatred to the Jews, they 
 adopted the Temple to please the Gentile con- 
 
 p Exercilat. xvi. ad Annal. Baron. 
 
 1 Vide 70th and 71>f Apost. Can. and Can. xi. Concil. Con- 
 stantinop. in Tnillo. 
 
211 Rites and Ceremonies of the Church [Part II. 
 
 verts, who were familiar with denominations 
 derived from the Temple : their anxiety to con- 
 ciliate the Gentiles is too evident from the many 
 names transferred from Paganism to Christianity. 1 
 The above, in a greater or less degree, were the 
 reasons why the primitive Christians preferred 
 their worship being compared with that of the 
 Temple, rather than with that of the Synagogue; 
 and when their houses of Prayer, instead of 
 being humble buildings, became stately palaces ; 
 when they were adorned with altars, on which 
 was exhibited a daily sacrifice for the remission 
 of sins; when one Priest was raised in rank far 
 above all others, and had his College of Car- 
 dinals corresponding to the great Sanhedrim ; 
 when in its orders, its ceremonies, its vestments, 
 its rites and doctrines, the Church had departed 
 furthest from the simplicity which is in Christ 
 Jesus ; then, its analogy with the Temple became 
 complete, and we need not wonder that, from 
 this date, writers of Ecclesiastical history refer 
 the forms and rites of the Church to the Temple 
 rather than to the Synagogue. 
 Analogy We will now consider the force of the arguments 
 PrSTand brought forward by those who derive the orders, 
 ™Tbe-' ceremonies, and customs of the Church from 
 tween those of the Temple. In the first place, they 
 
 r e . (j. Sacraments, Mvsteries, &c. 
 
Chap. XL.] not derived from the Temple. 215 
 
 say, that there is a striking analogy between Bishops 
 
 and Dea- 
 
 Priests and Levites, and between Bishops and cons no 
 
 . foundation 
 
 Deacons, in the mutual relationship of eacli ; for deriving 
 
 _ the Church 
 
 that, as the Levites were consecrated to serve from the 
 the Priests, so were the Deacons set apart to 
 serve the Presbyters. We admit the analogy, 
 but deny that it proves any thing ; there can be 
 no congregation, no assembly, whether for civil 
 or religious purposes, in which we shall not 
 find this relationship, viz. of persons ministered 
 unto, and persons ministering : even amongst 
 the Heathens, there were the Superior and In- 
 ferior Priests and their Ministers : but further, 
 when we admit the analogy between the Church 
 and the Temple in this respect, we assert that 
 there is a much stronger one between the Church 
 and the Synagogue ; for in the latter case, there 
 is not only the analogy in the relationship, but 
 the orders themselves are called by the same 
 names, and the offices to which they are set 
 apart have the same designations ; something 
 more, then, than the analogy above mentioned is 
 necessary to prove the derivation of the Church 
 from the Temple. 
 
 In the second place, they say, that there is Analogy 
 
 bstween the 
 
 an analogy between the duties fulfilled by the duties of the 
 
 ■n, • i it* • i rr\ t ij_i Priests and 
 
 Priests and Levites m the 1 emple, and those Levites.and 
 fulfilled by the Presbyters and Deacons in the Bishopsand 
 Church. Thus it was the dutv of the Priests to noTsuffici- 
 
'2 10 Rites and Ceremonies of the Church [Part II. 
 
 ent to prove teach the people, the same duty was assigned to 
 
 thederiva- l L . 
 
 tionofthe the Presbyters of the Church; it was the duty 
 
 Church . 
 
 from the of the Priests to offer up prayers, the same was 
 done by the Presbyters ; it was the Priests' office 
 to bless the people, the same was done by the 
 Bishops and Presbyters of the Christian Church : 
 and again, it was the duty of the Levites to 
 minister unto the Priests, to take care of the 
 gates of the Temple, to sing praises during the 
 sacrifice, and to instruct the more ignorant ; all 
 which duties were transferred to the Deacons of 
 the Church. Let us consider the force of this 
 argument. No doubt the Priests were the ap- 
 pointed interpreters of the law, but then not at 
 all in a sense analogous to that, in which the 
 Presbyters were the preachers and expounders 
 of the Gospel. 8 With respect to the second 
 point of the analogy, we deny that the Priests 
 offered up stated prayers for the people in the 
 sanctuary ; no such duty was ever assigned to 
 them ; whereas it was always considered the 
 duty of the Presbyter to recite the prayers in 
 the congregation : £ that the Priests blessed the 
 people is agreed, and certainly the Bishops of 
 the Church did not omit this important duty." 
 It appears then that, in this latter point, and in 
 
 s Fide Appendix, Note E. 
 
 I Justin Martyr, Apol. ii. ad Anton, pp. 97. 98. 
 
 II See Liturgies of Basil and Chrysostom. 
 
Chap. XL] not derived from the Temple. 217 
 
 this alone, the analogy holds good ; whereas, in 
 the Synagogue, there was the blessing of the 
 people, the constant reading of the Law and the 
 Prophets, and the offering up of prayers with 
 the congregation, in all which it agreed with 
 the Church. The latter part of the analogy, 
 viz. that between the Levites and Deacons, we 
 admit (at least as far as the Early Church is 
 concerned) ; but still insisting that the analogy 
 is more close, the connexion more intimate, 
 between the Chazzans of the Synagogue, and 
 the Deacons of the Church. 
 
 It is urged in the third place, that in the The desig- 
 
 o i o i i • n y-n • • nation of 
 
 sacred scriptures the worship ot the Christian christian 
 Church is sometimes expressed by phrases bor- phrases' 15 
 rowed from the worship of the Temple ; thus it fromThe 
 is predicted of the Eunuchs and the Sons of the foundation! 
 Stranger : '■' Them will I bring to my holy 
 mountain, and make them joyful in my house 
 of prayer ; their burnt offerings and their sacri- 
 fices shall be accepted upon mine altar."* The 
 prophet is speaking in this passage of the times 
 of the New Dispensation, and predicts, that an 
 event shall take place, which was utterly im- 
 possible under the Mosaic Dispensation ; viz. 
 that Eunuchs and strangers shall be chosen as 
 Priests by the Lord. Again, speaking of the 
 future conversion of the Egyptians, the prophet 
 
 x Isaiah lvi. 7. 
 
218 Rites and Ceremonies of the Church [Part 11. 
 
 declares ; " The Lord shall be known to Egypt, 
 and the Egyptians shall know the Lord in that 
 day, and shall do sacrifice and oblation ; yea, 
 they shall vow a vow unto the Lord, and per- 
 form it." y We meet with similar expressions 
 not only in Isaiah, but in Zechariah, in Malachi, 
 in the Psalms, and also in the New Testament ; 
 thus ; " Ye also, as lively stones, are built up a 
 spiritual house, an holy priesthood, to offer up 
 spiritual sacrifices acceptable to God by Jesus 
 Christ :" z and the Apostle Paul exhorts Chris- 
 tians, " To do good and to communicate forget 
 not, for with such sacrifices God is well pleased." a 
 It is evident then, that the worship of the Chris- 
 tian Church is compared in Scripture with the 
 sacrifices of the Law ; but certainly it does not 
 follow from such comparison, that the worship 
 of the Church was in any way to be similar to 
 that of the Temple. 
 Meaning or When the writers of the Old Testament de- 
 phrases, signate the worship of the New Dispensation by 
 expressions borrowed from the worship of their 
 times, it is not that they would have us conclude 
 that the Christian Church was to be in these 
 points similar to the Jewish ; no, they used these 
 expressions, in order that they might be under- 
 stood by the people amongst whom they lived ; 
 
 > Chap. xix. 21. z 1 Pet. ii. 5. 
 
 a Heb. xiii. 16. 
 
Chap. XI. J not derived from the Temple. 219 
 
 for instance, when Israel was in bondage to the 
 elements of the world, that mode of worship 
 which consisted in the offering of sacrifices was 
 the one chiefly known and received ; when, then, 
 the prophets were about to predict that God 
 should be worshipped and adored throughout the 
 whole world, they could not declare such an 
 event to the people of their day, more clearly, 
 than by some such description as the following ; 
 that sacrifices should be offered by all people ; 
 that all nations should go up to Jerusalem to 
 worship the Lord ; that Sabbaths, New Moons, 
 and Festal days, should be observed with all 
 diligence, &c. This way of speaking is simple 
 and natural, and of course merely means, that 
 God should be worshipped throughout all the 
 earth with a suitable worship, without any refer- 
 ence to its form. This appears from an evident 
 example ; Isaiah and David, when predicting 
 that Christian Magistrates would give honour to 
 the Messiah, are accustomed to describe this 
 event by saying, that Kings and Queens would 
 be in subjection to his kingdom. Now, if any 
 one would infer from this, that the civil polity 
 under the New Dispensation was to be conform- 
 able to the form of Government of the Jews, 
 he would be far indeed from the mind of the 
 prophets ; they merely wished to convey to us, 
 that the Magistrates and Princes of the Gentiles 
 
220 Rites and Ceremonies of the Church [Part II. 
 
 would be converted to the religion of Jesus, 
 without any reference to a form of Government ; 
 and they designated all by the name of Kings, 
 because this was the usual form of government 
 amongst Eastern Nations. And, similarly, when 
 the Prophets predict, mat " Sabbaths," b " New 
 Moons," c " the Feast of Tabernacles,'" 1 shall be 
 observed in the Kingdom of Christ ; when the 
 Apostle Paul tells us, that " the Feast of the 
 Passover " e is to be kept by Christians ; they do 
 not mean that the Church of the New Dispen- 
 sation is to be tied down to the observance of 
 Feasts, and New Moons, and Sabbaths ; the 
 Apostle tells us quite the contrary/ Such ex- 
 pressions mean, that the Church of the New 
 Dispensation should worship God, with a wor- 
 ship similar in kind, but not in form, to that 
 which was offered to him, on Sabbaths, New 
 Moons, &c. Thus the Sabbath was intended 
 for rest ; the New Moons and Festivals were 
 consecrated to joy and gladness, the former, in 
 thanksgiving to Jehovah as the true Author of 
 light ; the latter, in remembrance of various 
 mercies conferred upon the Jewish nation. But 
 now that the Church is to keep a constant rest 
 from sin and evil deeds ; now that she praises 
 
 b Isaiah lvi. 4. c Isaiah lxvi. 23. 
 
 '' Zach. xiv. 16. r 1 Cor. v. 8. 
 
 1 Heb. iv. 0; xi. 16. Col. ii. 16. 
 
Chat. XI.] not derived from the Temple. 221 
 
 God, and rejoices in him, as the Author of spiri- 
 tual light, and the Bestower of all spiritual 
 mercies ; she, in this sense, keeps the Sabbath, 
 and keeps the Feast, but then without reference 
 to any form of worship under the Mosaic law. 
 
 This latter consideration leads us to a new The forms 
 
 . 1 of the 
 
 answer to the argument. We mentioned that Temple the 
 the Prophets, when describing the worship of the the Reality 
 Christian Church, borrowed their figures from church, 
 the Temple, in order that they might be the 
 more easily understood by those amongst whom 
 they lived : but they also intended to convey by 
 such expressions, that, in the sacred rites of 
 the Christian Church, there should exist the 
 truth of all those things, of which the ancient 
 Church contained the shadow. Thus, the wor- 
 ship of the Old Dispensation consisted in sacri- 
 fices ; these were of different kinds, and offered 
 in different ways : the purposes for which these 
 sacrifices were offered were likewise various ; 
 some as a testimony of reverence towards God ; 
 some as a thanksgiving for mercies received ; 
 some to obtain pardon for sin ; some to deprecate 
 an impending evil, or to accelerate an expected 
 good : certain times were prescribed for these 
 sacrifices, and a certain number of victims ; each 
 of which varied according to circumstances. 
 Now, if the ministry and form of worship of the 
 Temple is to be introduced into the Church; as 
 
222 Rites and Ceremonies of the Church [Pakt II. 
 
 the Christian's prayer answers to the Jewish 
 sacrifice, so we should have a certain number of 
 prayers, of a certain kind, at stated periods, and 
 at stated hours, which is absurd and inconsistent 
 with the liberty which Christ has obtained for 
 us by his blood ; there is not any commandment 
 binding Christians to pray more on one day than 
 on another, to recite one kind of prayer rather 
 than another, to give up one hour to prayer 
 rather than another. It does not follow 
 then, because the ceremonial worship of the 
 Temple was typical, that therefore its whole 
 form is to be expressed in the Christian Church : 
 nothing follows from its typical character but 
 this ; that the Church is to have the Reality, 
 whereas the Temple had but the Shadow. 
 Under the Old Dispensation whole burnt sacri- 
 fices were offered ; under the New, they are 
 such who present themselves to God as a living 
 sacrifice, a sacrifice of a sweet-smelling savour : 
 under the Old Dispensation, there was the sacri- 
 fice on the day of Atonement, for the sins of the 
 whole people ; under the New, Christ is the 
 sacrifice, by which we draw near the throne of 
 grace, and obtain pardon for sin : under the 
 Old, sacrifices were offered even by individuals, 
 to deprecate evil, to solicit blessings, to give 
 thanks for mercies received ; under the New, 
 through the sacrifice of Christ, we can offer 
 
Chap. XI.] not derived from tlie Temple. 223 
 
 acceptably the sacrifice of prayer, for things 
 needful, to deprecate evil, to give thanks with 
 reverence. Now, when all this is to be found 
 in the Church of the New Dispensation, there 
 is in that Church the reality of those things of 
 which the ceremonies of the Law were the 
 types ; but if we go farther than this, and seek 
 in our Churches, not only the reality, but also 
 the same forms, and the same ministry, we shall 
 involve ourselves in difficulties and inconsisten- 
 cies not easily to be overcome. 
 
 A fourth argument brought forward is ; " that The Mini- 
 
 i . . p i -vt ttx- • • i sters of the 
 
 ine ministers ot the New Dispensation are either NewDis- 
 called Priests, or else are described in such Ian- being '° 
 guage, as can only have reference to the Priest- priits, no 
 hood." Thus, in the book of the Prophet Isaiah, forderivSTg 
 the Lord declares, that "he will take of the °hf church 
 Gentiles for Priests and for Levites.' !g The Pro-^^ 
 phet Malachi predicts of the Messiah ; " He shall 
 sit as a refiner and purifier of silver, and he shall 
 purify the sons of Levi, and purge them as gold 
 and silver, that they may offer unto the Lord an 
 offering in righteousness.'" 1 The Psalmist too, 
 speaking of ministers of the Gospel says ; " Let 
 thy Priests be clothed with righteousness, and 
 let thy saints shout for joy r 1 and again ; " I will 
 clothe her Priests with salvation, and her saints 
 
 e Chap. Ixvi. 21. h Chap. iii. 4. 
 
 ' Psalm exxxii. 9. 
 
224 Rites and Ceremonies of the CJvurch [Part II. 
 
 shall shout aloud for joy ;" k the word rendered 
 saints being a title peculiar to the Levites. 1 And 
 though, in the New Testament, the ministers of 
 the Gospel are never directly called Priests, yet 
 a passage occurs in the Epistle to the Romans, 
 in which the Apostle compares himself to a 
 Priest, evidently alluding to the passage from 
 Isaiah quoted above : " Nevertheless, brethren, I 
 have written the more boldly unto you in some 
 sort, as putting you in mind, because of the 
 grace that is given to me of God ; that I should 
 be the minister™ of Jesus Christ to the Gentiles, 
 7n'mistering (i.e. as a Priest") the Gospel of God, 
 that the offering up of the Gentiles might be 
 acceptable, being sanctified by the Holy Ghost." 
 Varied ap- Now, when we acknowledge that the ministers 
 fheword° of the Gospel are sometimes compared with the 
 theChJk- Priests of the Mosaic Dispensation, we at the 
 church, same time assert, that this comparison fails in 
 proving the derivation of the Church from 
 the Temple ; and probably, nothing shows 
 more clearly the views of the Sacred writers 
 on this point, than the varied application of 
 the term " Priest" (hiereus) in the Christian 
 Church. Thus the Church of Christ, which he 
 
 k Psalm exxxii. 16. 
 
 1 Spencer, de Ur. et Thum. cap. viii. sec. 1 . 
 ™ XtiTovpyov. n hpovpyovi'Tct. 
 
 " Rom. xv. 15, 16. 
 
Chap. XI.] not derived from, the Temple. 225 
 
 redeemed with his blood is called, in the New 
 Testament, the Temple of God, our Blessed 
 Lord is the High Priest, p and all Christians 
 without distinction, whether ministers or people, 
 are Priests ; q "ye are an holy Priesthood, to 
 offer up spiritual sacrifices." r Again, when it is 
 the design of the Spirit to teach us, that Christ 
 alone has the right of access to the Deity, 
 through the victim prepared by himself; He is 
 proposed to us as the Antitype of all Priests, 
 and Christians are represented by the Israelites, 
 
 p Heb. iv. 14; viii. 1 ; ix. 11. 
 
 q Whenever the title of Priest is applied to any of Christ's 
 followers, it is applied (which is a circumstance well worthy 
 of remark) not to any particular order of Christians, but to all 
 Christians. They are all without exception called, figuratively, 
 Kings and Priests ; but they are (as Christians) Kings without 
 subjects, and Priests without a people ; in reference merely 
 to the exalted state of glory to which they are called, and to 
 their oblation of themselves — their souls and bodies, — to the 
 service of God. We are called on to present ourselves as a 
 lively (i. e. living) sacrifice, in contradistinction to the victims 
 slain at the altar ; and as " a reasonable (i. e. rational J service" 
 or sacrifice, as contrasted with the brute beasts offered under 
 the Old Dispensation. This language of the Apostle is copied 
 in that of one of our prayers after the Communion : " Here 
 we offer unto Thee ourselves, our souls, and bodies, to be a 
 reasonable, holy, and lively sacrifice." But the true and 
 proper Priest, under the Gospel dispensation, is the " one 
 Mediator between God and man, the man Christ Jesus," who 
 is the propitiation for our sins. — Archbishop Whatelys Ser- 
 mons, preached in the Diocese of Dublin, page 99. 
 
 r 1 Pet. ii. 5. 
 
226 Rites and Ceremonies of the Chwrch [Part IT. 
 
 who could not approach to God except through 
 a Priest : this analogy is by no means unusual in 
 the writings of the Apostle Paul ; " He is able 
 to save them, to the uttermost, that come unto 
 God by him, seeing he ever liveth to make inter- 
 cession for them ;" s to come unto God by him is 
 a phrase borrowed from the Israelites, who could 
 not bring their gifts to God but through the 
 Priest ; now in this analogy, Christ is the only 
 Priest, and all Christians, whether pastors, or 
 people, are the Israelites. Again, in another 
 point of view, all Christians are compared to 
 the High Priest, when through the sacrifice of 
 Christ, they are said to have the right and power 
 of entering the Holiest ; " Having, therefore, 
 brethren (saith the Apostle/) boldness to enter 
 into the holiest by the blood of Jesus." Again, 
 Christians are compared to Priests, their souls 
 and bodies, offered through faith, to the sacrifice, 
 and the blood of the Apostle, about to be poured 
 forth for the confirmation of the truth of the 
 Gospel, is compared to the wine which, under 
 the Levitical law, was poured forth on the daily 
 sacrifice ; " yea, and if I be offered up (literally 
 1 be poured out as a libation') upon the sacrifice 
 and service of your faith, I joy and rejoice with 
 you all." u Now, this varying of the analogy is 
 
 s Heb.vii. 25. l Heb. x. 19. 
 
 u Phil. ii. 17- There is a similar analogy in 2 Tim. iv. G. 
 
Chap. XI.] not derived from the Temple. 227 
 
 ill itself an evident proof, that the external form 
 of the Church was never intended to be moulded 
 from that of the Temple ; the Temple, its offi- 
 cers, and ceremonies, were indeed types ; but 
 then in different ways, according to the different 
 persons and rites with which we make the com- 
 parison ; it being the Lord's will, that the one 
 type should be truly fulfilled, in different ways 
 and manners. 
 
 The passages above quoted from Isaiah and 
 Romans/ when attentively considered, will be 
 found not to favour the cause for which they are 
 adduced. The ministers of the Gospel are, in- 
 deed, compared with the Aaronic Priests ; but in 
 order that the analogy be complete, the Chris- 
 tian congregation should be compared with the 
 Israelites ; whereas from a mere glance at the 
 passages, it will be seen that they are compared 
 with the Mosaic Sacrifices. The Priests and 
 Levites brought their gifts to the Lord in pure 
 vessels ; in like manner the ministers of the 
 New Testament (through the preaching of the 
 Gospel) bring the nations to God, and present 
 them as a Sacrifice offered to his glory. The 
 people, then, in these passages, are to be looked 
 on, not as the Antitype of Israel, but as the Anti- 
 type of the Sacrifices ; and in this sense, not 
 
 1 Isaiah lxvi. 21; Rom. xv. 16. 
 Q 2 
 
22S Rites and Ceremonies of the Church [Part II 
 
 only every minister of the New Dispensation — 
 appointed to preach the Gospel, and by this 
 means to bring men to communion with God — 
 is a Priest; but every Christian also, however 
 humble, who by his doctrine or by the example 
 of his life brings another to Jesus. 
 
 With respect to the texts quoted from Malachi 
 and the Psalms, it cannot be denied that the 
 ministers of the Gospel are styled in them Priests 
 and Levites; but it does not therefore follow, 
 that there were to be similar orders in the 
 Christian Church. The ministers of the Gospel 
 are called Priests and Levites in the writings of 
 the Prophets, in order that there might be con- 
 veyed to the minds of the people of their times, 
 the fact, that as there were ministers of sacred 
 things in the Jewish dispensation, even Priests 
 and Levites, so also in the Church of the New 
 Testament, there should be ministers. This is all 
 that can be fairly concluded ; and it is remark- 
 able, that not only is the analogy a very slight 
 one, but it is very rarely to be met with in 
 Scripture; the Priesthood, in general, typifying 
 either Him, through whom alone we have access 
 to the Father, or the Church, the holy Priest- 
 hood, ordained to offer up spiritual sacrifices 
 acceptable to God through Christ. 
 Analogy There is then but a very slight analogy be- 
 
 mSstTrs tween the ministers of the Christian Church, 
 
Chai\ XL] not derived from the Temple. 229 
 
 and the Jewish Priests as distinct from the of the 
 
 Christian 
 
 Israelites ; the Fathers, indeed, in many in- church and 
 
 the Jewish 
 
 stances, draw it out to the utmost extent, Priests 
 
 j vel 7 slight. 
 
 but they have no warrant from benpture ; and 
 we oppose the analogy, sanctioned though it 
 be by tradition, on account of the immense 
 mischief that it has produced. Believers of 
 primitive times (as was before mentioned,) 
 each according to his ability, brought bread 
 and wine to the holy table, that after the bene- 
 diction of the minister they might be distri- 
 buted in the Congregation, or else left for the 
 support of the Presbyters and Deacons, and 
 for the relief of the poor : this bringing of 
 gifts to the Lord's table, in course of time, was 
 called an oblation, the table itself an altar, 
 the Bishops and Presbyters who pronounced 
 the blessing were called Priests (Hiereis), the 
 Deacons who received the gifts were named 
 Levites. Now, although there was not the 
 slightest foundation for all this, from the writings 
 of the Apostles, yet for a while no mischief 
 followed ; but in course of time the sacred 
 symbols, hitherto merely called oblations, were 
 looked upon as sacrifices offered up by the 
 Ministers of the Church, as Priests (Hiereis), 
 for the forgiveness of sins. Nothing now re- 
 mained, but that these symbols should be said 
 
230 Mites avid Ceremonies of the Church [Part U 
 
 to be changed into the body and blood of Christ/ 
 and thus was consummated the whole mystery of 
 the Romish Mass. In opposing then this absur- 
 dity, we oppose also the foundation upon which 
 it is built ; namely, that there are Priests in the 
 Christian Church, in the same respect differing 
 from the People, as the Jewish Priests from the 
 Jewish People. We have seen that there is no 
 ground for such a doctrine from Scripture, that 
 it is contrary to the whole tenor of the New 
 Testament : there we are told that Christ, by his 
 death, has given to all believers an equal right 
 and power of approaching to him, and to the 
 Father through him as their only Priest (Hie- 
 reus) ; this is the prerogative, this the blessing 
 
 5 An order of Priests, in the ancient sense, offering pre- 
 tended sacrifices, on a pretended altar, on behalf of the people, 
 was introduced into the Christian scheme ; in such utter con- 
 tradiction both to the spirit and the very letter of it, that they 
 were driven to declare the bread and wine of the Eucharist 
 miraculously changed into literal flesh and blood, offered up, 
 day by day, repeatedly : although the founders of our religion 
 had not only proclaimed the perfection of the one oblation of 
 our Lord by himself, but had even proved the imperfection of 
 the Levitical Sacrifices, from the very circumstance of their 
 being repeated " year by year continually;" inasmuch as 
 " they would have ceased " (says the Apostle) " to be offered ;" 
 if, like the Sacrifice of Christ, " once for all," they could have 
 " made the comers thereunto perfect." — Archbishop Whately's 
 Sermons, p. 101 . 
 
Chap. XL] not, derived from the Temple. 231 
 
 conferred upon every Christian. 2 The Minister 
 of the Church, who offers up the prayers in the 
 Congregation, is not at all (as a Priest) the 
 Person by whom Believers approach to God ; 
 he has no greater right to address Jehovah in 
 prayer, than any member of his congregation, — 
 in one sense he, as well as they, are not Priests, 
 but must approach the Father through Christ, 
 their only Priest, — in another sense, he and they 
 are equally Priests, offering the sacrifice of prayer 
 and praise through Jesus Christ. 
 
 The argument that is adduced, from a passage Argument 
 in the first Epistle to the Corinthians, admits of sage in 1st 
 a very easy answer ; the Apostle says ; " Do ye a ns refuted. 
 not know that they which minister about holy 
 things live of the things of the Temple ? and 
 they which wait at the altar, are partakers with 
 the altar ? even so hath the Lord ordained that 
 they which preach the Gospel should live of the 
 Gospel." 3 It is concluded from this assertion 
 of the Apostle, that the Jewish ministry was 
 intended as a pattern of the Christian ; but 
 surely such conclusion is untenable. The only 
 legitimate inference from the passage is this, 
 that as the Jewish Ministers were supported 
 from the Temple, so should the Ministers of the 
 Gospel live by the preaching of the Gospel — 
 
 ' Ephes. ii. 18 ; iii. 12. John xiv. 6. 
 a I Cor. ix. 13, 14. 
 
232 Rites and Ceremonies of the Church [Paht II 
 
 this is the only legitimate conclusion from the 
 Apostle's declaration. 
 Conclusion. All things then duly considered, it appears, 
 that although the moral worship of the New 
 Testament can, in many instances, be referred 
 to the typical worship of the Temple ; yet that 
 the Apostles in ordering a form of Government 
 and sacred rites for the Church, did not intend 
 that they should be conformable to the Temple ; 
 but rather derived both names, and offices, and 
 rites, from the Synagogue, which had a worship 
 more suitable to the state of the Christian 
 Church. We do not deny, but that after the 
 times of Constantine, the Churches of Christians 
 assumed a form approximating more to the 
 Temple, than to the Synagogue ; but this fact 
 rather favours our position ; we have reason 
 indeed to grieve that the Primitive Church so 
 soon departed from Christian simplicity, and 
 may justly use, in this case, the words of our 
 Blessed Lord ; " From the beginning it was not 
 so." So far from the pomps and ceremonies of 
 later times being an argument, that the sacred 
 forms of the Church were derived from the 
 Temple ; that, on the contrary, this conformity 
 between the Temple and the Church is a most 
 sure mark of a corrupt Church. It is for this 
 reason that we so strongly oppose an opinion 
 that to many may appear of very little conse- 
 
Chap. XI.] not derived from the Temple. 233 
 
 quence : for if once the Doctors of the Church 
 of Rome can get an acknowledgment, that the 
 disposition of sacred things, in the New Church, 
 in no respect differs from that in the Old ; they 
 can then defend, with all speciousness, their 
 entire Ecclesiastical Polity, which agrees in every 
 thing, in names, and offices, and ceremonies, 
 with the Jewish. 
 
APPENDIX. 
 
APPENDIX. 
 
 Note (A.) — Page 4. 
 Whether the Proseucha was distinct from the Synagogue. 
 
 It has been disputed whether there was any difference 
 between the Proseucha and the Synagogue ; they who contend 
 for a difference, consider the former to have been the place for 
 private, the latter the place for public prayer. 
 
 The distinction however is groundless ; the testimony of 
 Philo and Josephus leaving but little doubt, that the Proseucha 
 as well as the Synagogue, was the house of public prayer. 
 Philo speaks of a Proseucha as being a suitable place for the 
 erection of a statue to the Emperor ; a Josephus makes mention 
 of one which was a very large building ; b the Proseucha in 
 each case being evidently the place of public prayer : Juvenal, 
 too, uses the word in the same sense ; " Tell me where you 
 stay, in what begging place (Proseucha) shall I seek you ?" c 
 
 * Embassy to Caius, p. 784. 
 
 b Life of Josephus, sec. 54. 
 
 c "Ede ubi cotisistas, in qua te quaero Proseucha." 
 
 Sat. iii. lin. 287. 
 
238 Appendix. 
 
 The Jews at Rome were notorious mendicants ; d hence, by an 
 easy figure, their place of public meeting, their house of prayer, 
 came to denote the public assembly of mendicants, the place 
 in which the beggar was sure to be found. 
 
 Two passages in the New Testament have been supposed, 
 by some commentators, to present to us the Proseucha as 
 distinct from the Synagogue ; one, where our Saviour is said 
 to have passed the whole night, kv rfj irpoaevxil tov Qeov ; c it 
 is contended that in this passage, the Evangelist informs us of 
 the place in which our Lord passed the night, viz. in a Pro- 
 seucha ; a corresponding passage/ however, makes it appear, 
 that it was the design of the Sacred Writer to set before us 
 the manner, rather than the place, in which our Lord spent 
 the night. 
 
 The other passage occurs in the Acts ; e " On the Sabbath- 
 day we went out of the city by a river side, where prayer was 
 wont to be made," ov iyo/jii^eTO Trpoaevxn dvcu. It is contended 
 that Trpoaevxn is here the place of prayer ; and that the ex- 
 pression in the 16th verse, " as we went into the Proseucha," 
 TrpooEvx'V', strongly favours this interpretation. This render- 
 ing, however, cannot be adopted, without doing great violence 
 to the word eVop'fcro ; it is certainly to speak without mean- 
 ing to say, " where there was usually a Proseucha ;" it may 
 be said that the verb refers to the river, near which these 
 Proseuchae were usually built ; but this is not strictly correct, 
 for though the Jews frequently built their houses of prayer 
 near the water-side, they built them very often in cities, far 
 from any river : for these reasons, we prefer the usual render- 
 ing of the word, and translate the passage according to the 
 Authorized Version, " Where prayer was wont to be made." 
 
 d " Hie ubi nocturnae, Numa constituebat amicae. 
 Nunc sacri fontis nemus et delubra locantur 
 Judaeis ; quorum cophinus fcermmque supellex. 
 Omnis enim populo mercedem pendere jussa est 
 Arbor ; et ejectis mendicat Silva Camcenis." 
 
 Sat. iii. 
 
 e Luke vi. 12. f Matt. xiv. 23. « Chap. xvi. 13. 
 
Appendix. 239 
 
 Note (B.)— Page 10. 
 
 The Libertines. — Acts vi. 9. 
 
 There are various opinions as to who were the Libertines 
 mentioned in this passage ; it is most probable, that they were 
 either Jews who had been brought as slaves to Italy and 
 afterwards had obtained their freedom, or freedmen of the 
 Roman nation who had embraced Judaism. Several things are 
 in favour of this opinion ; 1st. The word Libertinos used by 
 St. Luke is a Latin word, it cannot therefore be a general 
 name, including (as some suppose) the Alexandrians, Cyre- 
 nians, &c. ; had it been the Sacred Writer's intention to class 
 these latter under the head of freedmen, he would have used 
 the word direXe vdepoQ, or some kindred word. 2dly. The Alex- 
 andrians, Cyrenians, &c, mentioned in the text, though all of 
 them Jews, yet were not natives of Judaea ; may we not fairly 
 conclude the same of the Libertines ? 3dly. Philo, Josephus, 
 and Tacitus, testify that Jewish Libertini resided in Italy, and 
 especially at Rome, in considerable numbers ; Tacitus, in the 
 second book of his Annals, 11 informs us, that in the reign of 
 Tiberius (a little time before our Lord commenced his ministry) 
 there were in Italy at least four thousand Libertini infected 
 with the Jewish superstition. Philo, in his " Embassy to 
 Caius,"' mentions, that the Jews were in such numbers at 
 Rome, that the Emperor Augustus assigned them a place of 
 residence beyond the Tiber ; and he adds, that most of them 
 were Libertini. If then there were so many of this class in 
 Italy, in the reigns of Augustus and Tiberius ; it is not only 
 probable, but almost certain, that they had a Synagogue at 
 Jerusalem, just in the same way as the Danes, the Swedes, 
 the French, build places of worship in London for the use of 
 their countrymen. 
 
 Jennings, in his " Jewish Antiquities,'" 4 mentions another 
 opinion, viz. that the Libertines were so called from a city or 
 country called Libertus, or Libertina, in Africa, near Carthage. 
 
 " Chap, lxxxv. ' Page 785. k Book ii. chap. 2. 
 
240 Appendix. 
 
 In support of this opinion it is urged, that Suidas, in his 
 Lexicon, says of the word Xtfitpr'ivoQ, " it was the name of a 
 nation" and that the glossa interlinearis, of which " Nicolas de 
 Lyra made great use in his Notes, hath over the word ' Li- 
 bertini,' ' e regione,' denoting that they were so styled from a 
 country. It is further urged, that in the Acts of the famous 
 conference with the Donatists, at Carthage, anno 411, there 
 is mentioned one Victor, Bishop of the Church of Libertina : 
 and in the Acts of the Lateran Council, which was held in the 
 year 649, there is mention of Januarius, by the grace of God 
 Bishop of the Holy Church of Libertina; and therefore Fabri- 
 cius, in his Geographical Index of Christian Bishoprics, has 
 placed Libertina in what was called Africa Propria, or the 
 proconsular province of Africa. Now, as all the other people 
 of the several Synagogues, mentioned in this passage of the 
 Acts, are denominated from the places from whence they 
 came ; it is probable, that the Libertines were so too ; and as 
 the Cyrenians and Alexandrians, who came from Africa, are 
 placed next to the Libertines in that catalogue, it is probable 
 that they also belonged to the same country." 
 
 Note (C.)— Page 24. 
 
 The Jews' Love of Antiquity. 
 
 The Jews, ever fond of having antiquity on their side, 
 derive some of the customs of the Synagogue from the times 
 of the Patriarchs: thus, Maimonides puts down Abraham as 
 the author of the Morning prayer ; because it is said of him, 
 that he " got up early in the morning, to the place where 
 he stood before the Lord;" 1 he makes Isaac the author of 
 Afternoon prayer ; because " he went out to meditate in the 
 
 1 Gen. xix. 27. 
 
Appendix: 241 
 
 field at eventide ;"" and Jacob of the Evening prayer, for "he 
 came out of the field in the evening,"" i.e. from prayer, as 
 Maimonides supposes. 
 
 Another instance of the absurdity into which they some- 
 times fell, through the desire of having antiquity in favour of 
 every rite and custom, appears in the reason that they assign 
 for the solemn recitation of the Schema morning and evening. 
 " When the Patriarch Jacob, on the approach of death, assem- 
 bled his sons in the land of Egypt, he spake to them earnestly 
 about the unity of Jehovah, and of the path in which Abra- 
 ham and his father Isaac had walked ; and he then said to 
 them ; ' My sons, there may, perhaps, be among you a pro- 
 fane mind, which does not, in well grounded faith, receive this 
 Article concerning the unity of God.' They all answered and 
 said, ' Hear, O Israel, Jehovah our God is one Jehovah ;' and 
 when the Patriarch heard this, he opened his mouth and said, 
 1 Blessed be the name of his glorious kingdom for ever and 
 ever.' Hence, all Israelites are accustomed to use this solemn 
 thanksgiving, after the solemn profession of the unity of the 
 Deity." The whole tradition is evidently fabulous, but it is 
 an instance of the folly of those, who wish to have the sanction 
 of antiquity for every ceremony and form. 
 
 Note (D.)— Page 27. 
 
 The Sabbath. 
 
 We have mentioned, that there is no provision in the 
 Mosaic law, for regular public worship ; but it may be urged 
 in reply, Is not the fourth commandment an injunction to this 
 effect? Do not the words, " Remember the Sabbath-day to 
 keep it holy," at least imply, that on the Sabbath-day, men 
 
 m Gen. xxiv. 63. "Gen. xxx. 16. 
 
 Maimon. Hilc. Keriath Schemah, cap. 1, sec. 4. 
 
242 Appendix. 
 
 were to abstain from all work, in order that they might have 
 the more leisure to devote themselves to the service of God ? 
 Granting this, still it fails to prove the institution of public 
 worship on the Sabbath-day. An Israelite, either alone, or 
 in his family, could fulfil the spirit of the commandment, by 
 passing the day in prayer, in meditation, or in other religious 
 exercises. But further, the letter, the primary intention of 
 the Commandment, has no reference whatever to religious 
 worship. This is abundantly evident from various passages of 
 the Old Testament, and first from the Commandment itself: 
 The sacred Lawgiver says; " Remember the Sabbath-day to 
 keep it holy ;" then follows the way in which it is to be kept 
 holy ; " In it thou shalt do no manner of work," &c. ; and, 
 finally, the reason for the command is assigned, God rested 
 from his work which he had made. So that the Command- 
 ment in fact amounts to this ; Man is to cease from his work 
 on the Sabbath-day, because on that day, God rested from his ; 
 and by this cessation from work, the day is hallowed. In 
 accordance with this we find, that whenever the hallowing of 
 the Sabbath-day p is commanded in Scripture, cessation from 
 work is invariably mentioned as the observance of the com- 
 mandment ; " Ye shall keep the Sabbath, therefore, for it is 
 holy unto you : every one that defileth it shall surely be put 
 to death ; for whosoever doeth any work therein, that soul 
 shall be cut off from among his people." q And again, to take 
 a passage from one of the Prophets ; " Neither carry forth a 
 burden, out of your houses, on the Sabbath-day ; neither do 
 ye any work : but hallow ye the Sabbath-day, as I commanded 
 your Fathers."' And that the hallowing of the day should 
 consist in cessation from work, will not appear strange to any 
 one who considers the manner in which the Sabbatical year 
 was hallowed ; it was not a separation of the year from other 
 
 p And not only the hallowing of the Sabbath, but the hallowing of any 
 other day: thus wben it is said (Exod. xii. 17), " the first day shall he 
 proclaimed holy;" there is added, the way in which it is to be kept holy; 
 " Ye shall do no servile work therein." 
 
 i Exod. xxxi. 14. r Jer. xvii. 22-24. 
 
Appendix. 243 
 
 years for religious purposes, for in the context, s there is no 
 mention of any religious observances ; but a rest of the land 
 from tillage ; if then a year could be hallowed by a cessation 
 from tillage, why might not a day be hallowed by a cessation 
 from work ? 
 
 The Israelite, then, who abstained from all manner of work, 
 kept the commandment in its letter; we are far, however, 
 from saying, that he would be justified in abusing the rest 
 enjoined by sins and vicious indulgences ; (the Jews were too 
 prone to this, and are severely reproved for it by the Prophet. 1 ) 
 No, he who was a Jew inwardly, and was circumcised in the 
 spirit, would devote this day of rest to the service of his God. 
 Various circumstances invited the Jew to spend the day in 
 prayer and meditation : the sacrifices were increased, a tacit 
 admonition, that greater devotion, increased worship was ex- 
 pected : the day itself was a memorial of the creation, it 
 reminded him of the deliverance from Egypt, it typified the 
 great work of redemption. All these circumstances connected 
 with the Sabbath, would naturally lead the pious Jew to enjoy 
 the rest commanded, in prayer, and meditation upon the love 
 and mercy of his God ; and to feel, that this observance, 
 though not enjoined by the letter, was comprehended in its 
 spirit. But still, as the Jew, who brought to the Priest the 
 accustomed sacrifice, and presented the accustomed offering, 
 fulfilled the law in its letter ; though, perhaps, the sacrifice 
 being offered without faith, was not pleasing in the sight of 
 God ; so also with respect to the Sabbath, he fulfilled the 
 commandment who rested from all manner of work ; but he 
 fulfilled it in its spirit, " who did not his own pleasure, on 
 this holy day, but called the Sabbath a delight, the holy of the 
 Lord, and honourable." 
 
 The Sabbath was not only commemorative, it was also 
 typical ; " I gave them my Sabbath, to be a sign between me 
 and them, that I the Lord do sanctify them."" As the Sabbath, 
 then, was a memorial of the material creation, so was it a sign 
 
 3 Lev. xxv. 1, 2, &c. ' Isaiah lviii. 13, 14. 
 
 Ezek. xx. 12-20. 
 
 R 2 
 
244 Appendix. 
 
 of the new creation ; it typified that great work of grace, which, 
 planned before the foundations of the world, revealed at the 
 Fall, progressing during the Old Dispensation, at length was 
 perfected, when God sanctified his people by the outpouring 
 of the Holy Spirit. Hence, that rest, that cessation from 
 work, (which Jehovah accepted from the Jew, because it pre- 
 figured the completion of Jehovah's greatest work, even the 
 New Creation, the redemption and sanctification of sinners 
 through Christ) no longer is, nor can be, a part of divine 
 worship ; and therefore the Sabbath, which was a Shadow of 
 things to come," and, no doubt, typified great events, must 
 now be abolished, for these events have come to pass ; the 
 substance is present, even Jesus Christ. 
 
 The observance of the Sabbath, then, is no longer obliga- 
 tory ; not so, the observance of the Lord's day ; every Chris- 
 tian is bound to keep it holy, but not by rest, which, under the 
 New Dispensation, has ceased to be a part of the worship of 
 God. The Christian will, no doubt, rest from his usual occu- 
 pations ; but it will only be as the means to an end ; he will 
 rest, that he may be more actively engaged in the service of 
 God and of his Christ. — Vide Archbishop Whately on the 
 Sabbath. 
 
 Note (E.)— Page 30. 
 
 In what Sense the Levites were the Teachers of Israel. 
 
 Moses, when blessing the twelve tribes, says of the Levites, 
 " they shall teach Jacob thy judgments and Israel thy law ;" y 
 it was their duty then to teach Israel, and in order to this, to 
 apply themselves to the study of the law ; for this purpose, 
 they were separated from the other tribes ; and lest their 
 
 * Col. ii. 16, 17. > Deut. xxxiii. 10. 
 
Appendix. 215 
 
 minds should be distracted with worldly cares, no portion of 
 the land of Canaan was allotted to them. 
 
 The instruction given to the children of Israel, by the 
 Levites, consisted in explaining the Law in doubtful cases, 
 solving difficulties which might occur in the dealings between 
 man and man, and judging in controversies. Whenever, then, 
 an Israelite had any doubt in his mind respecting the Law, 
 or any controversy with his neighbour, it was his duty to seek 
 the Levite. Again, the Israelites were commanded by Moses 
 to appoint judges, and officers in all their gates, who were to 
 judge the people with just judgment: 2 from what tribe these 
 judges were at first selected is not recorded ; but in the reign 
 of David, we read of six thousand Levites being set apart 
 as officers and judges. 3 Jehoshaphat too, in his reign, " set 
 Levites and Priests, and the Chiefs of the Fathers of Israel, 
 for the judgment of the Lord and for controversies." 6 It 
 appears then, that the instructions, given by the Levites, were 
 rather judicial decisions ; some of the Levites remained in the 
 cities assigned to them, and expounded the law, and decided 
 controversies for all who sought them ; others resided in Jeru- 
 salem and the larger cities, in which they were (generally 
 speaking) the constituted judges, and the deciders of contro- 
 versies amongst the people ; and acting in this capacity, they 
 fulfilled the prediction of Moses ; to pronounce judgment, in 
 doubtful cases, being according to Scripture language " to 
 teach." c 
 
 Levites sometimes took up their residence in the houses of 
 the rich, and acted both as Priests and as instructors of the 
 children : thus we read in the book of Judges, d of a Levite of 
 Bethlehem-Judah seeking a residence, and finally dwelling 
 with one Micah, and becoming his Priest. The reason of this 
 can be easily conceived ; the Levites' portion was tithes, which 
 the Israelites were bound by the law to give : in disturbed 
 times, when all respect for religion had vanished, and when, 
 
 z Deut. xvi. 18. a 1 Chron. xxiii. 4 ; xxvi. 9. b 2 Chron. xix. 8. 
 
 c Deut. xvii. 11. d Chap. xvii. 9. 
 
246 Appendix. 
 
 perhaps, the devastation of the country rendered obedience to 
 the law impracticable ; the Levites, being reduced to extreme 
 poverty, were driven from their cities to seek the means of 
 living ; and that not only Levites experienced such distress, 
 but Priests also, appears from the testimony of Josephus, who 
 informs us, that in the time of Ananias the High Priest, many 
 of the Priests being defrauded of their tithes, perished for want 
 of sustenance. 6 
 
 Note (F.)— Pages 58, 84, 150. 
 
 On the Titles Rab, Rabbi, fyc., given to Jewish Doctors. 
 
 From the time of Hillel (the grandfather of Gamaliel the 
 preceptor of the Apostle Paul), the study of tradition was 
 cultivated amongst the Jews with singular care ; and as the 
 pursuit of any science grows languid, if not encouraged by 
 rewards, titles of honour were bestowed upon those who had 
 gone through a certain course of study. The title most usual 
 in our Lord's time was that of Rabbi, an honour sought after 
 by Jewish students with the most eager ambition ; f it was 
 conferred by imposition of hands, (though sometimes by the 
 mere pronouncing of a form) and had its different degrees ; 
 some were advanced to the dignity of Doctors of Theology in 
 general, and had the power of teaching, of binding and loosing, 
 {i.e. of defining cases of conscience) ; whilst others were merely 
 Doctors of some particular branch of Theology ; some were 
 Doctors of both Law and Theology, and thus had the power of 
 determining any cause, whilst particular cases were assigned 
 to others ; with some the dignity continued for life, whilst 
 upon others it was conferred but for a time. In fact, the 
 dignity could be restricted by any conditions according to the 
 circumstances of the case. 
 
 e Antiq. Book xx. chap. 8. Matt, xxiii. 7. 
 
Appendix. 217 
 
 These Rabbies were sometimes not merely Doctors, (i. e. 
 persons qualified to answer questions proposed to them con- 
 cerning cases of conscience,) but also bona fide Teachers, (i. e. 
 they opened schools, and interpreted the Law :) in such case 
 the leave of the Rabbi that ordained was necessary. " It is 
 forbidden, for a Rabbi to fix himself in any place to teach, 
 (although he and his master live in parts most distant,) with- 
 out leave being obtained from his master." 6 
 
 In Hebrew writers we meet with several names given to 
 Jewish Doctors, viz. " Rabban " or " Rabbon," " Rabbi," 
 " Rab," " Cacham," and " Cabar." The highest title was 
 Rabban (in the Syriac Rabbon), which, according to Jewish 
 tradition, was conferred on but seven persons ; it was given 
 to our Lord by the blind man, 11 and by Mary Magdalene when 
 she saw him after his resurrection. 1 
 
 The titles Rab and Rabbi differed in this ; Rab was the 
 title of such as had been educated, and had taken their 
 degree, in some foreign school ; Rabbi was the title of those 
 who had graduated in the land of Judaea, and as such, was 
 considered more honourable. These titles were evidently 
 borrowed from the Chaldees, and hence, we never find them 
 used before the Captivity but to designate the officers of the 
 king of Babylon. k 
 
 The Jewish councils were composed of these Rabbies ; each 
 of the members was styled Cacham (a ivise man) ; ' it is likely 
 that it is to this appellation that the Apostle alludes, when he 
 says to the Corinthians ; " Is it so that there is not a wise man 
 among you ? no not one, that shall be able to judge between 
 his brethren?"" 1 
 
 Epiphanius gives another name to the members of the 
 Jewish councils, he calls them Apostles™ and says of them, 
 
 e Maimonides Hilcoth Talmud Tora, cap. v. sec. 3. 
 h Mark x. 51. l John xx. 16. 
 
 k 2 Kings xxv. 8. Esther i. 8. Jer. xli. 1. Dan. i. 3 ; ii. 48 ; v. 11. 
 There is one exception to this, viz. Job xxxii. 9. 
 1 cr6<pos. "' 1 Cor. vi. 5. 
 
 n Haeres. lib. i. cap. 2, Ilseres 30. 
 
248 Appendix, 
 
 " They sit with the Patriarch, and remain with him night and 
 day, for the purpose of deliberating, and suggesting those 
 things which should be done according to law." This name 
 was given to them, because, in the flourishing times of the 
 Jewish commonwealth, members of the Sanhedrim were sent 
 to the different Synagogues to inspect their condition, &c. 
 Heinsius observes that St. Paul was, before his conversion, an 
 Apostle of this kind. 
 
 Cabar, i, e, " Fellow or Colleague," was the name given to 
 those who, though raised to the dignity of Rabbi, had not, as 
 yet, authority to pronounce judgment in controverted cases ; 
 thus Scaliger says, " After the imposition of hands, the indi- 
 vidual is not immediately called Rabbi, though raised to the 
 rank of Rabbi ; but only Cabar, which is the same in signi- 
 fication as the Greek word y\u>pip.oc, and the Latin word 
 familiar is," 
 
 In the time of our Lord there was a multitude of Rabbies, 
 so much so, that it was found necessary to enact laws restricting 
 the promotion of persons to this rank. 
 
 Our blessed Lord was evidently a Rabbi ; he was thus styled 
 by his disciples ; p he was addressed as one by the Jewish 
 multitude ; q and it is well known that the Jews gave this title 
 to none but such as were promoted by imposition of hands ; 
 indeed we cannot easily conceive how, upon every occasion, he 
 was permitted to speak in the Synagogue, if he had not been 
 a Rabbi : r the very posture he assumed in the Synagogue is 
 a proof that he was one ; " I sat daily with you, teaching 
 in the Temple;" 5 after he had read (in the Synagogue of 
 
 Observations on Luke vi. 13. p Mark ix. 5. 
 
 q John vi. 25. 
 
 r " Et tamen, quomodo in Synagogam potuit admitti, tam repentinus, 
 tam ignotus, cujus nemo adhuc certus, de tribu, de populo, de domo, de 
 censu denique Augusti quern testem fidelissimum Dominicae nativitatis 
 Romana archiva custodhmt ? sed etsi passim Synagoga adiretur non 
 tamen ad docendum nisi ab optime cognito, explorato, et probato, jam- 
 pridem in hoc ipsum vel aliunde commendato cum hoc munere." — Ter- 
 tullian adv. Mare." 
 
 5 Matt. xxvi. 55. 
 
Appendix. 249 
 
 Nazareth) a portion of the prophet Esaias, " he sat down," 
 and in that posture taught the people. 1 
 
 But it is probable that not only our Lord, but that also 
 some of his Apostles and Disciples occupied the Doctors' 
 chair ; and this is not at all surprising, when we consider how 
 common the honour was at this time ; the Apostle Paul was 
 certainly a Doctor, the commission given to him by the San- 
 hedrim proves him to have been such ; u and thus we find that 
 when he and Barnabas entered the Synagogue of Antioch in 
 Pisidia, they sat down, and " after the reading of the law and 
 the 'prophets, the rulers of the Synagogue sent unto them, 
 saying, Ye men and brethren, if ye have any word of exhorta- 
 tion to the people, say on." x Now, it may be asked, why 
 should the rulers of the Synagogue have invited men (wholly 
 unknown to them, whose doctrines were consequently unknown 
 to them) to address the people, if the Apostles had not given 
 some indication that they had a title to speak ? and what other 
 indication is mentioned by the inspired writer, but that they 
 sat down V 
 
 The above observations throw some light upon a passage 
 that occurs in the first Epistle to the Corinthians ; z " Let the 
 prophets speak two or three, and let the other judge ; if any- 
 thing be revealed to another that sitteth by (literally sitting 
 down), let the first hold his peace." From this it is likely, 
 that in the Early Church,' as in the Synagogue, there were 
 persons privileged to speak in the congregation, (probably 
 at the first set apart by the Spirit,) and that such persons occu- 
 pied the Doctors' seats. 
 
 1 Luke iv. 20. » Acts ix. 2. * Acts xiii. 14. 
 
 y " Atque in hac usurpatione sedcndi, pro Doctoribus agniti sunt ab 
 Archisynagogis, qui facta legis et prophetarum lectione, admiserunt, ut si 
 meditati accesserint verba in ccetu facerent ; neque enim rite hinc con- 
 cluseris, cuivis peregrino hoc indultum fuisse, ut publice diceret ; sedcum 
 peregrini isti se Magistros profiterentur sedendi priv'rfegio, pra>fecti Syna- 
 gogse qui nonnumquam istiusmodi, Hierosolyma acoedentes audiverant 
 ipsis id honoris detulerunt." — Altingius in Schllo, lib. iii. cap. 6. 
 
 z Cap. xiv. 30. 
 
250 Appendix. 
 
 Note (G.)— Page 90. 
 
 On the Feast of Tabernacles. 
 
 The Feast of Tabernacles commemorated two events ; the 
 dwelling of the Shechinah in the Tabernacle in the Wilder- 
 ness, (where it went from place to place, exposed to mortal 
 eye,) and the dwelling of the Israelites in tents ; this feast 
 then, commemorated the condition (so to speak) of the God- 
 head as then manifested to his people, and the condition of 
 that people. It also typified two events ; the dwelling of the 
 Godhead in the flesh, (who tabernacled' 1 amongst us, going 
 about doing good,) and the condition of the Christian Church. b 
 As at this feast, the Israelites left their own habitations, dwelt 
 in tents, and with joy and gladness drew water from the pool 
 of Siloam, which they poured out upon the sacrifice ; so in the 
 latter times, the Church was to leave the house and family of 
 her Father, to desert the Temple her fixed residence, to deny 
 all external relationship, and to worship God in spirit and in 
 truth, not bound to a particular place, but having the earth as 
 her inheritance. And as at this feast, water was drawn from the 
 pool of Si'oam and poured upon the sacrifice ; so now, Christ 
 pours out, upon those who offer themselves — soul and body — 
 as a sacrifice, his Spirit without measure ; and hence our 
 Lord himself, on the last and great day of this feast, stood 
 and cried saying ; " If any man thirst, let him come unto me 
 and drink ; he that believeth on me, as the Scripture hath 
 said, out of his belly shall flow rivers of living water ; but 
 this spake he of the Spirit which they that believe on him 
 should receive." 
 
 8 cffKrjvwffe, Jolin i. 14. b Zech. xiv. 16. 
 
 c John vii. 37, 3S. 
 
Appendix. 25 1 
 
 Note (H.)— Page 104. 
 
 The Recitation of the Schcmah. 
 
 The Jews commenced their public service by reciting the 
 Schemah ; the reason, assigned by their Doctors for this, is, 
 that the Schemah contains a summary of all religion, whether 
 Theoretical or Practical ; the Theoretical in the words " Jeho- 
 vah our God is one Jehovah ;" the Practical in the words 
 " Thou shalt love Jehovah thy God," &c. ; they supposed 
 then, that when they recited the Schemah they made a pro- 
 fession of the entire doctrine of their religion. But besides, 
 the Jewish Doctors believed that there was something mys- 
 terious in the words, " Jehovah our God is one Jehovah ;" 
 they supposed that they contained, not only a declaration of 
 the unity of the Deity, but also a prediction of the univer- 
 sality of his kingdom. Thus Jarchius, in his Commentary, 
 says, " It is here predicted, that Jehovah, who is now our God, 
 and not the God of the Gentiles, shall be, in time to come, One 
 Jehovah ; as it is written, ' For then will I turn to the Gentiles 
 a pure language, that they may all call upon the name of 
 Jehovah ;' d and again, ' In that day Jehovah shall be one, and 
 his name one.' " e That this is a very ancient exposition is 
 evident from the writings of the Apostle Paul, who demon- 
 strates the necessity of a justification by faith, from the very 
 fact of Jehovah's being one ; " Seeing," he says, " God is one,* 
 which shall justify the circumcision by faith, and the uncircum- 
 cision through faith :" as if the Apostle would say ; Since God 
 has declared that he is one, i. e. the same to all men, and no 
 respecter of men's persons ; it is necessary that he bring all 
 to life and immortality, in the same manner, and by the same 
 means ; this cannot be by the law of Moses, a law given to 
 distinguish the Jew from the Gentile, a law whose ceremonies 
 could not be observed by all nations ; it must then be by faith. 
 
 d Zeph. iii. 9. e Zecli. xiv. 9. 
 
 f (Ts 6 @(6s, Roin. iii. 30. 
 
252 Appendix. 
 
 Thus again in his Epistle to the Galatians : s " A Mediator is 
 not of one, but God is one." Moses, the Mediator of the Old 
 Covenant, gave to the Israelites a law by which they were 
 separated from the Gentiles; but since Jehovah, notwith- 
 standing this covenant, hath declared himself to be one ; it 
 follows that he will reunite both Jew and Gentile into one 
 people, treat both in the same manner, and lead both to glory 
 in the same path of righteousness. There is a similar refer- 
 ence in the Epistle to the Ephesians.' 1 They who recited the 
 Schemah were said to receive the yoke of the kingdom of 
 heaven, because they confessed their belief in the future king- 
 dom of God and of his Christ ; whilst they who recited the 
 text, Deut. xi. 13, were said to take upon themselves the yoke 
 of the commandment, because it was a profession of their obli- 
 gation to observe all the precepts of the Mosaic law. It is 
 likely that it was in reference to this, our Lord called his 
 Gospel the kingdom of heaven, and invited his hearers to take 
 his yoke upon them. 
 
 Note (I.)— Page 125. 
 
 Whether the Septuagint was read in the Synagogue. 
 
 Some writers, amongst whom are Joseph Scaliger and 
 Walton, contend, that the Septuagint Version was used in 
 the Synagogues of the Hellenists ; ' and they build upon the 
 fact, that the Evangelist Luke quotes from the Septuagint 
 the passage read by our Lord in the Synagogue. k Now, it is 
 
 * Chap. iii. 20. >> Chap. iv. 3, 4, 5. 
 
 ' ""EAArives sunt Pagani, 'EAAiJvhttui Judaei Graecis Bibliis in Synagogis 
 utentes, quae profecto est differentia Hebraoorum et Hellenistarum, quos, 
 ut dixi, certissimum est, olim et per totam Egyptum et Europam sola 
 Biblia Graeca in Synagogis legere solitas." — Scaliger Proleg. de Versione 
 Grac. sec. 14. Vide Siineonis Hist. Crit. V. T. lib. i. cap. 17. 
 
 1 Chap. iv. 18, 19. 
 
Appendix. 253 
 
 not at all probable, that, — the Jewish commonwealth being still 
 in existence, the study of the Hebrew language common, a 
 knowledge of the Greek (as Josephus testifies) confined to a 
 few, — the Septuagint Version would be used in a Synagogue of 
 Galilee. St. Luke's quoting from this version can easily be 
 accounted for ; he was writing for Greeks, and in Greek, and 
 would therefore naturally accommodate himself to his readers. 
 But further, the Codex Sopherim expressly says ; " In what- 
 ever language the sacred books may be written, no volume is 
 used in the Synagogue, but one written in the Assyrian cha- 
 racters." An occurrence in the reign of Justinian is however 
 conclusive on this point : about the middle of the sixth cen- 
 tury, some Jews wished to introduce the Greek Version into 
 the Synagogue ; not agreeing among themselves, they appealed 
 to Justinian, who decided " that it was better that the Scrip- 
 tures should be read in the Greek, or in any other tongue 
 which was most suitable to the audience." ' Now, had it been 
 the custom to use the Greek Version, its introduction in this 
 instance could not have given rise to such contention : we are 
 therefore of opinion, that though the Septuagint might have 
 been used in private, it was not used in the Synagogue till the 
 time of Justinian. 
 
 ; Note (K.)— Page 148. 
 Meaning of the Phrase — " Husband of one Wife," 1 Tim. iii. 2. 
 
 There are two opinions as to the meaning of this phrase ; 
 Chrysostom, Theophylact, Jerome, Calvin, Beza, &c, hold, 
 that the Apostle had in view the polygamy common amongst 
 the Jews, and that it was his intention to prohibit Christian 
 Ministers from having more than one wife at a time ; the 
 other opinion is, that the Apostle prohibited second marriages. 
 
 1 Novel. 14G. 
 
254 Appendix. 
 
 That the latter opinion is the true one appears, first, from 
 an analogous phrase in this very Epistle ; the Apostle, when 
 giving directions about the Deaconesses, says ; " Let not a 
 widow be taken into the number, under threescore years old, 
 having been the wife of one man." m Now, the phrase, " wife of 
 one man," must mean, the being married to but one husband 
 during her lifetime ; therefore, the corresponding expression, 
 " husband of one wife," must mean, " the not having con- 
 tracted a second marriage." 
 
 But, secondly, we must bear in mind, that this Epistle was 
 written to the Bishop, not of a Jewish, but of a Gentile Church ; 
 and that, however common polygamy may have been amongst 
 the Jews, it was not tolerated by the Greeks and Romans; 
 Gellius fully proves that it was repugnant to the laws of 
 Athens ; n and Servius, in his notes on Virgil, that it was con- 
 trary to the customs of Rome ;° it was unnecessary then for 
 the Apostle to give the injunction as interpreted by Chrysos- 
 tom and others, polygamy neither being usual amongst, nor 
 sanctioned by, the Greeks and Romans. 
 
 Thirdly. A second marriage (at least on the woman's side) 
 was considered disreputable by the ancients, and a single one 
 honourable ; hence, the Latin word, Univira, exactly corre- 
 sponding to the Apostle's expression, " Wife of one husband ;" 
 hence, the boast of the female in Livy, that she was but 
 once married ; p hence, the expression of Dido respecting her 
 wished-for marriage with iEneas : — 
 
 " I perhaps could yield to this one fault.'" 1 
 
 And that the same feeling existed amongst the Jews, appears 
 from the character, given by the Evangelist, of the prophetess 
 
 m 1 Tim. v. 9. n Noctes Atticse, lib. xv. cap. 20. 
 
 The following is his Commentary on the line — 
 
 " Vidi Hecubam centumque nurus." — JEneid, lib. ii. p. 501. 
 
 " Barbarorum fuisse plures habere uxores, aut finitus est numerus pro 
 infinito, aut certe ideo centum, quia Barbarorum fuerat non singulas 
 habere conjuges sed plures." 
 
 p " Se uni nuptam ad quem virgo deducta sit." — Lib. x. cap. 23. 
 
 q " Huic uni forsan potui succumbere ellipse." — JEneid, lib. iv. 19. 
 
Appendix. 255 
 
 Anna ; " She was of a great age, and had lived with an hus- 
 band seven years from her virginity, and she was a widow of 
 about fourscore and four years." r 
 
 Fourthly. Second marriages were considered indecorous 
 by the Early Church : thus, the first Canon of the Council of 
 Laodicosa ordains ; " To those who have been joined legiti- 
 mately in second marriages, and have not secretly married ; 
 after a short time has elapsed, after fasting and prayer, we 
 again give communion." Is not the fact, of the communion 
 being refused to those who had contracted a second marriage, 
 a proof of the estimation in which such marriages were held 
 by the Early Christians? Again, it is expressly stated in the 
 Apostolic Canons (a work, which though fictitious, is decisive 
 as to prevailing notions) " That no person is to be admitted 
 into holy orders, who after his baptism has contracted a 
 second marriage." Tertullian wished to impose Monogamy 
 upon all Christians. 3 These considerations are conclusive, and 
 prove that when the Apostle enjoined Timothy, to select as 
 Bishops and Deacons, men who were each the husband of one 
 wife ; it was his wish, that he should reject every one who had 
 contracted a second marriage ; it is, however, to be observed, 
 that the very circumstances (which in all probability) caused 
 the injunction, prove it not to be universally obligatory. 
 
 Note (L.) — Page 185. 
 
 On Church Government. 
 
 Various objections have been urged, from time to time, 
 against our Church-government, against the three orders of the 
 Church, and the functions which they respectively exercise. 
 To answer these merely by an attempt to prove their existence 
 
 r Luke ii. 3G. 
 
 s See his Treatise on Monogamy, near the end. 
 
2 56 Appendix. 
 
 in the apostolical age and their Scriptural sanction, is to allow 
 the objector an unfair advantage, and to submit our own minds 
 to an unfair view of the question. The proof of the contrary 
 rests with those who object. We find these matters so esta- 
 blished, and tracing them further and further back, we still 
 find evidence of them, without any coincident marks of human 
 innovation. Tried by the touchstone of Scripture, they are 
 found to be at least not inconsistent with its records ; and, 
 therefore, it would be a wanton and dangerous exercise of the 
 Church's discretionary power to annul them. This was the 
 spirit of the Reformation in England ; and on this principle it 
 has taught us, Thus far shalt thou go, and no further. 
 
 There are two questions, which in a discussion of this point 
 require distinct consideration. The first is, What were the 
 orders of the primitive Church ? The second, Were they 
 intended altogether, or partly, or not at all, as models for the 
 formations of ecclesiastical establishments of after-times ? 
 
 As to the first question it may admit of a different answer 
 from different periods of the apostolical history ; inasmuch as 
 the Church economy was certainly not framed at once, but 
 rose progressively with the exigences of the Church. At the 
 very period on which we are now dwelling, it is obvious, that 
 the term Bishop and Presbyter were not only applied to the 
 same order, but that no order of ministers (setting aside the 
 Apostles) was generally established superior to the presbytery. 
 At a later period in the apostolical history, the same assertion 
 would be altogether untenable. 
 
 The assembly, or fVkXqo-fa, must, from its nature, have been 
 the only order, besides that of the Apostles, on the first 
 attempt of the Christians to act as a Society. All Christians 
 composed this body, and the term, in short, signified the 
 Church. But whether this general assembly at any period 
 exercised any elective, legislative, or other powers, may per- 
 haps be questioned. No doubt the Church or Assembly is 
 mentioned as taking part with the Presbyters in the elections 
 and enactments ; but when we consider the immense concourse 
 which a general meeting would suppose in the very earliest 
 
Appendix. 257 
 
 times, is it likely that any one private room would be found 
 capable of containing all '! On the other hand, is it likely that 
 in Jerusalem especially, so large a multitude would be per- 
 mitted to meet in public, openly discuss their affairs, and take 
 measures for the support and propagation of obnoxious doc- 
 trines, when even individuals were exposed to continual risk 
 in their preaching and other ministry 1 The meetings of 
 Christians for purposes of prayer, and other devotional exer- 
 cises, must, for the same reason, have taken place in different 
 houses assigned for the purpose. And this (as has been before 
 observed) may illustrate the expression used by the historian 
 in his account of Paul's search after the disciples, " in every 
 one of the houses/' (Kara rove oIkovi; ;)* which, no doubt, 
 implies, that he obtained information concerning their several 
 places of meeting, and by going from one to another at the 
 time of prayer was sure of apprehending some. The same 
 allusion may be perceived in St. Paul's expression of " the 
 Church in the house of Aquila and Priscilla," &c. u Such a 
 division of the Christian body into separate congregations 
 would require the appointment of some one, at least, to pre- 
 side over and officiate in each ; and also of some one or more 
 subordinate ministers or deacons, such as have been before 
 noticed. When, therefore, we read that a decree was made, 
 &c, by the Apostles, Presbyters, and the whole Church, one 
 of two things must be supposed to have taken place : either 
 the Presbyters took each the sense of his own congregation ; 
 or the Presbyters and other official persons, it may be, met as 
 the representatives, each of his own congregation, and all of 
 the Church collectively. 
 
 The former supposition is certainly encumbered with more 
 and greater difficulties than the latter. The subject proposed 
 at these Christian meetings seems, from the tenor of the 
 narrative throughout, to have been then first presented to the 
 Church in any shape ; and the decisions took place before the 
 meeting was dissolved. There are no marks of any previous 
 notice of the matter to be discussed, so as to enable the 
 
 1 Acts viii. 3. " 1 Cor. xvi. 1!». 
 
2T)S Appendix. 
 
 several Presbyters to consult the opinions and wishes of their 
 constituents ; and the decision took place without any interval 
 to allow of an after consultation. 
 
 Against the remaining supposition, namely, that the Pres- 
 byters and other official persons, perhaps, met as the pleni- 
 potentiaries each of his own body, the strongest obstacle lies 
 in the phrase, " It seemed good to the Presbyters with the 
 whole Church."" Now this expression, after all, may imply 
 no more than that it seemed good to the Presbyters, and 
 whatever other members of the Council, in conjunction with 
 them, may be called the whole Church, because appointed to 
 represent it. In like manner, when the Council of Jerusalem 
 declared respecting their famous decree, that, " It seemed 
 good to them and to the Holy Ghost," y our knowledge of the 
 relation in which these stood to one another, prevents all 
 doubt ; but the expression itself, without any such clue, would 
 make it questionable, whether the Council and the Holy Spirit 
 were not recorded as two separate sources of the ecclesiastical 
 authority from which the decree had emanated. Now the 
 sentences on which we ground our conjectures respecting the 
 authority of the whole Christian body, are precisely so 
 circumstanced. 
 
 The appointment of Deacons has been elsewhere discussed, 
 and the origin of the Presbytery has been now suggested. 
 The order of Bishops, therefore, only remains to be accounted 
 for. At the period of St. Paul's summons to the Church of 
 Ephesus, no such order could have existed there ; and, if not 
 in so large and important a Church, probably nowhere. The 
 title cannot imply it, for it is one used for all the Presbyters 
 of Ephesus ; and their number proves that he was not ad- 
 dressing Bishops, for they came from one Church. Again, 
 although the word occurs elsewhere in St. Paul's Epistles, it 
 cannot intend one chief governor of any Church ; because his 
 Epistles are addressed to the Churches, as to assemblies in 
 whom all the authority was vested. The term Bishop became 
 afterwards appropriated to an order, of which we cannot infer 
 
 x Acts xv. 22. y Acts xv. 28. 
 
Appendix. 259 
 
 the existence, certainly from any expression of St. Luke. 
 How such an order should have arisen, it is not difficult to 
 discover. St. Paul's Epistles to Timothy and Titus present 
 us with at least its embryo form. Not only are both com- 
 missioned to ordain ministers, to determine matters left unde- 
 termined, and to inflict ecclesiastical punishments, even to 
 excommunication ; z but their respective dioceses are distinctly 
 marked out. Ephesus was assigned to Timothy, Crete to 
 Titus. 11 At the same time it would certainly seem that, in 
 Timothy's case especially, the appointment was rather that of 
 locum tenens for the Apostle, and so far a temporary office. 
 But this, far from being an objection to the apostolic authority 
 of episcopacy, really supplies us with the clue to trace its 
 origin and object. What was needed for a time at Ephesus or 
 Crete, in the temporary absence of the presiding apostle, would 
 be permanently requisite, when death for ever deprived these 
 Churches of apostolical superintendence. The same cause, 
 in short, which produced the appointment of Presbyters, 
 continued, as the number of congregations in each Church 
 increased, to render the rise of a new order equally necessary. 
 A small presbytery, occasionally visited by an apostle, might 
 not require a head ; but a large one, especially as the Apostles 
 were removed by death or accident, would soon feel this want. 
 That such an order was required before the close of the 
 apostolic era, the then state of Christianity would render of itself 
 nearly certain. Although at the time of the appointments of 
 Titus and Timothy they may not have been general, yet when 
 St. John wrote his Revelations, each of the seven Churches of 
 Asia had its own bishop. And if this were so in that district, 
 which then alone enjoyed the guidance of an Apostle, much 
 more was it likely to have been the case elsewhere. St. John, 
 we know, addressed them as angels ; but whether by a figure 
 of speech, or because such was at that time their only desig- 
 nation, no candid mind can doubt that an episcopal order is 
 intended ; and that to them, as such, commands and revela- 
 tions were given by God through his last Apostle. Thus, 
 
 '• 1 Tim. v. 22 Titus i. 5 ; iii. 10. a 1 Tim. i. 3. Titus i. 5. 
 
260 Appendix. 
 
 episcopacy would seem to be the finishing of the sacred edifice, 
 which the Apostles were commissioned to build. Until this 
 was completed and firm, they presented themselves as props to 
 whatever part required such support. One by one they were 
 withdrawn ; and at length the whole building having " grown 
 together into an holy temple," b the Lord's promise was ful- 
 filled to the one surviving Apostle. He only tarried until 
 God's last temple was complete, and the Lord's second 
 " coming" unto it c had thus been announced by an especial 
 vision. 
 
 There is still another point to be settled. Was this form 
 of Church government intended to be perpetual, and universal — 
 is it enjoined on all Christian societies in every age ? 
 
 On the one hand it may be urged, that as the constitution 
 of the Church was only what was then most convenient for the 
 support and propagation of religion, whenever that end may 
 be better attained by any alteration or deviation, the inno- 
 vators are acting up to the spirit of the original institu- 
 tion, and thereby are more truly followers of the Apostles, 
 than those who sacrificed the object to the observance of the 
 means, which are only valuable as regards that object. Those 
 who maintain the other side of the question may assert, that 
 these being the means originally appointed by the Holy Spirit, 
 through which His office as Governor of the Church was to be 
 exercised, we have no right to alter them, any more than we 
 are authorized to alter the means of grace, unless some posi- 
 tive permission can be shown ; and that it is, moreover, a 
 wicked presumption to suppose, that any other means, (how- 
 ever humanly probable,) would more truly obtain the object of 
 Church government. As a reason why this form of Church 
 government was not positively enjoined, it may be suggested, 
 that it was not like an abstract doctrine or precept, the only 
 safe mode of recording which is " the written word," but a 
 matter which is its own record. Like the Mysteries of the 
 heathen, it was a practical document ; the daily and continual 
 
 b Ephes. ii. 21. c See Mai. iii. 1. 
 
Appendix. 261 
 
 practice of the Church, perpetuated from one age to another, 
 superseded all need of other record. 
 
 Much of this latter statement is doubtless unanswerable. 
 At the same time, it would be uncharitable and unchristian, to 
 pronounce those to be no members of Christ's Church, who 
 regulate their community without bishops. The particular 
 arrangement of ministerial orders is of course the means, and 
 the preservation of the Gospel, the end. Whether those, who 
 have in any instance deviated from the pure apostolic prac- 
 tice, had cause to justify such a departure, (and such a case 
 doubtless is supposable,) it is a matter between God and 
 the Church itself. The case of those, too, who find them- 
 selves by birth members of such a society, is to be distinctly 
 separated from the case of those, with whom the innovation 
 originated. 
 
 Some departure in the form of government, from the pattern 
 of the primitive Church, has necessarily taken place in every 
 community, nor does this departure of itself imply presump- 
 tion. A very large community, for instance, has everywhere 
 required a new order above bishops themselves ; and this need 
 being manifest, the appointment of the archiepiscopal office is 
 as purely consonant to the apostolical views, as that of subordin- 
 ate bishops. It has arisen in the same way, and in compliance 
 with a similar need to that which gave rise to the episcopal 
 order, in the apostolical Church ; namely, the increased extent 
 and more complicated government of each Church. Thus, 
 too, the appointment of catechists, once a branch of every 
 Church establishment, was properly discontinued as soon as 
 they ceased to be required ; and as properly has been revived 
 in our colonies, where their services are once more applicable. 
 The choro-episcopi served, in like manner, to meet another 
 occasional emergency. 
 
 No Church has ever more anxiously and conscientiously 
 shaped its course by the spirit, and by the very letter of the 
 apostolic precedents, than has the Church of England. And 
 yet even that Church has found circumstances powerful enough 
 to justify a deviation scarcely less momentous, in the transfer 
 
262 Appendix. 
 
 of supreme ecclesiastical authority to the civil magistrate. It 
 is not merely a variation from the original architecture of 
 Christ's holy building that constitutes disproportion and de- 
 formity. We must look also to the changing features of the 
 scene around, and see whether these have not demanded cor- 
 responding alterations, and let these be the measure of our 
 judgment. — Hinds's Rise and Early Progress of Christianity, 
 vol. i. page 345. 
 
 THE END. 
 
 R. CLAY, PRINTER, BREAD STREET HILL. 
 

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