A discourse concerning liturgies, and their imposition

CHAP. V. (Book 5)

The practice of the Churches in the first three Centuries as to Forms of Publick Worship. No set Forms of Liturgies used by them. The Silence of the first Writers concerning them. Some Testimonies against them.

IT is not about stinted Forms of Prayer in the Worship and Service of God, by those who of their own accord do make use of that kind of Assistance, judging that course to be better then any thing they can do themselves in the discharge of the work of the Ministry, but of the Imposition of Forms on others who de∣sire to stand fast in the Liberty with which Christ hath made them Free, that we enquire. This Freedome we have manifested to have been purchased for them by the Lord Jesus, and the use of it continued by the Apostles in their own practice, and to the

Churches planted by themselves. And this will one day appear to have been a sufficient Plea for the maintenance of that Liberty to the end of the world. Now though what is purely matter of Fact among the succeeding Churches, be not so far Argumenta∣tive as to be insisted on as a Rule exactly binding us to the imita∣tion of it; yet it is deservedly worthy of great Consideration, and not hastily to be rejected, unless it be discovered to have been diverse from the Word whereunto we are bound in all things to attend. We shall therefore make some enquiry into the practice of those Churches, as to this matter of prescribing of Forms of Prayer in publick Church Administrations, so farre as any thing thereof is by good Antiquity transmitted un∣to us.

Our first Enquiry shall be into the three first Centuries, where∣in confessedly the streams of Gospel Institutions did run most clear and pure from humane mixtures, then in those following, although few of the Teachers that were of Note do escape from Animadversions from those, that have come after them. It cannot be denied but that for the most part the Churches and their Guides within the space of the time limitted, walked in the paths marked out for them by the Apostles, and made conspicuous by the Footsteps of the first Churches planted by them. It doth not then appear, for ought as I can yet discover, that there was any attempt to Invent, Frame and Compose any Liturgies or prescri∣bed Forms of administring the Ordinances of the Gospel, exclu∣sive to the discharge of that duty by vertue of spiritual Gifts re∣ceived from Jesus Christ, much less for an Imposition of any such Forms on the Consciences and Practice of all the Ministers of the Churches within the time mentioned, If any be contrary mind∣ed, it is incumbent on them to evince their Assertion by some in∣stances of unquestionable Truth. As yet, that I know of, this is not performed by any. Buronius ad An, Christi 58. num. 102, 103, 104, &c. treating expresly of the publick Prayers of the An∣cient Christians, is wholly silent as to the use of any Forms a∣mongst them; though he contends for their Worshipping to∣wards the East, which custome when it was introduced, is most uncertain: but most certain that by many it was immoderately abused, who expresly worshipped the Rising Sun; of which abo∣minable Idolatry among Christians, Leo complains Serm. 7. De Nativitate. Indeed the Cardinal ad An. 63. 12, 17. faintly con∣tends,

that some things in the Liturgy of James were composed by him, because some passages and expressions of it are used by Cy∣ril of Jerusalem in his Mistagog. 5. But whereas Cyril lived not within the time limitted unto our Enquiry, and those Treatises are justly suspected to be suppositions, nor is the Testimony of that Liturgy, once cited or mentioned by him, the weakness of this insinuation is evident. Yea, it is most probable that whoso∣ever was the Composer of that forged Liturgy, he took those Pas∣sages out of those reputed Writings of Cyril, which were known in the Church long before the name of the other was heard of. I know no ground of expectation of the performance of that, which as yet men have come short in, namely, in producing Te∣stimonies for the use of such Liturgies as we are enquiring after, considering the diligence, ability, and interest of those have been already engaged in that enquiry. Now the silence of those, who in all probability would have given an account of them, had any such been in use in their dayes, with the description they gave us of such a performance of the Worship of God in the Assemblies of Christians, as is inconsistent with, and exclusive of such prescri∣bed Forms as we treat of, is as full an evidence in this kind as our negative is capable of. In those golden Fragments of Antiquity which we have preserved by Eusebius, I mean the Epistles of the Church of Smyrna, about the Martyrdome of Polycarpus, and of the Churches of Vienna and Lyons, concerning their Persecuti∣on, we have not the least intimation of any such Forms of Ser∣vice. In the Epistle of Clemens, or the Church of Rome to the Church of Corinth, in those of Ignatius, in the Writings of Justin Martyr, Clemens, Tertullian, Origen, Cyprian, and their Con∣temporaries, there is the same silence concerning them. The Pseudopegraphical Writings that bear the Names of the men of those dayes, with any pretence of considerable Antiquity, as the Canons of the Apostles, Quaestiones ad Orthodoxos, Dionysius Hie∣rarch. Divin. Nom. will not help in the cause. For though in some of them there are Prayers mentioned, and that for and a∣bout such things as were not in Rerum Natura, in the dayes wherein those persons lived, unto whose Names they are falsly ascribed; yet they speak nothing to the point of Liturgies as sta∣ted in our enquiry. Something I confess may be found in some of the Writings, of some one or two of those of the third Century, intimating the use of some particular Prayers in some Churches;

So Origen. Homil. 11. in Hierimea. Ubi frequenter in or at ione di∣cimus, da omnipotens, da nobis partem cum Prophetis, da cum Apo∣stolis Christi tui, tribue ut inveniamur ad vestigia unigeniti tui. But whether he speaks of a Form, or of the matter onely of Prayer, I know not. But such Passages belong not unto our purpose. Those who deal expresly about the Order, State, and Condition of the Churches, and the Worship of God in them, their Prayers and Supplications knew nothing of prescribed Liturgies; yea, they affirm plainly that which is inconsistent with the use of them. The account given of the Worship of the Christians in those dayes by Justin Martyr, and Tertullian, is known as having been often pleaded. I shall onely mention it in our Passage, and begin with the latter. Illue, saith he, (that is towards Heaven) suspicientes Christiani (not like the Idolaters who looked on their Idols and Images) manibus expausis (not embracing Altars or Images as did the Heathen) quia innocuis capite nudo, quia non crubescimus deni∣que sine monitore, quia de pectore oramus, not as they who repeat their Prayers after their Priests or Sacrificers, but powring out our Prayers conceived in our breasts, Apol. cap. 30. And again cap. 39. Corpus s••mus de cons••ientia, Religionis & Discipl naeunit te, & spei foedere coimus in caetum & congregationem, ut ad Deum qua∣si vi facta precatiombus ambiamus orantes. Haecavis Deo grata est. Oramus etiam, &c. Whether this description of the publick Worship of the Christians in those days be consistent with the prescribed Forms contended about, impartial men may easily discern.

The former treateth of the same matter in his Apology in se∣veral places of it. 〈 in non-Latin alphabet 〉〈 in non-Latin alphabet 〉 Atheists sai••h he, we are not, seeing we wor∣ship the Maker of the world, affirming indeed as we are taught that he stands in no need of bloud drink-offerings or incense, in all our Obla∣tions we praise him according to our abil••ties, with (or in the way of) Prayer and Thanksgivings. This was it seems the Liturgie of the Church in the days of Justin Martyr, they called upon God with Prayer and Thanksgivings according to the abilities they had re∣ceived. The like account he gives of the Prayers of persons con∣verted to prepare themselves for Baptism, as also of the Prayers of the Administratiours of that Ordinance. Afterward also treating

of the joyning the Baptized person unto the Church; and the Administration of the Lords Supper in the Assembly he adds. 〈 in non-Latin alphabet 〉〈 in non-Latin alphabet 〉, &c. After the Believer who to joyn∣ed unto us is thus washed, we bring him to those who are called Bre∣thren (that is the Body of the Church) th••ther where they are ga∣thered together for to make their Prayers and Supplications for them∣selves and him who is (newly) illuminated, &c. These Prayers he declares afterwards, were made by him who did preside among the Brethren in the Assembly, that is the Bishop or Pastor, who when he had finished his Prayer, the whole people cried Amen; which leaves small room for the practice of any Liturgy that is this day extant, or that hath left any memory of its self in the world. These Prayers and Supplications he addeth that the Presi∣dent of the Assembly 〈 in non-Latin alphabet 〉〈 in non-Latin alphabet 〉, powreth out ac∣cording to his ability; and 〈 in non-Latin alphabet 〉〈 in non-Latin alphabet 〉: he doth this work at large, or continues long in his work of (praises unto God in the Name of Jesus Christ.) I know some have excepted against the usual interpretation of those words 〈 in non-Latin alphabet 〉〈 in non-Latin alphabet 〉; although they have not been able to assign any other tolerable sense unto them, besides that which they would willingly oppose. But as the rendring of them according to his ability, or as he is able may not onely be justified but evinced to be the onely sense the words are capable of, so the Argument in hand doth not as to its effica∣cy depend on the precise signification of those two words, but on the whole contexture of the holy Martyrs discourse; so relating to the Worship of the Churches in those dayes, as to manifest that the use of prescribed Forms of Liturgies to be read in them was then utterly unknown.

I suppose it will be granted that the time we have been enqui∣ring into, namely, the first 300 years after Christ, was the time of the Churches greatest purity, though out of her greatest Prosperi∣ty; that the Union of the several Churches was preserved, beyond what afterward was ever in a Gospel way attained, and the Uni∣formity in Worship which Christ requires observed amongst them; but all this while the use of these Liturgies was utterly un∣known; which makes the case most deplorable, that it should now be made the Hinge whereon the whole exercise of the Mi∣nistry must 〈◊〉〈◊〉, it being a thing not onely destitute of any war∣rant

from Christ and his Apostles, but utterly unknown to 〈◊〉〈◊〉 Churches whose Antiquity gives them deservedly reverence withall; and so cannot claim its spring and original anteced•••••• to such miscarryings and mistakes in the Churches, as all acknow∣ledge to deserve a narrow and serious weighing and consideration; we may then, I suppose, without giving occasion to the just impu∣tation of any mistake, Affirm, That the Composing and Impositi∣on of Liturgies to be necessarily used or read in the Administrati∣on of the Ordinances of the Gospel, is destitute of any Plea or Pretence, from Scripture, or Antiquity.