You take, I doubt not the form, in which the bread and wine in the sacrament are administered in a precatory sense.—“The body of our Lord Jesus Christ which was given for thee, preserve thy body,” &c.—but in the absence of any auxiliary verb, you must imply the precatory sense—you might mentally substitute shall or will, for may, for anything that there is in the form itself to prevent you.
But you object also to the words as being an innovation, and contend that the use of them was unknown in the purer ages of Christianity. This, however, you must permit me to say, you have signally failed in your attempt to prove. The authorities you adduce, are those of Morinus and Bishop Burnet. On these authorities “you hope to make it appear beyond all doubt that no such form of ordination was ever thought of, nor any resembling it for eleven centuries after the publication of Christianity.” [59c] “Prayer and the Imposition of Hands, were the only rites we find practised by the Apostles,” says the Bishop. But they were two distinct rites: “when they had prayed, they laid their hands on them.” [60a] But they have left us no form of prayer used by them upon the occasion—how then do we know what form they used? And are we to suppose that the Imposition of Hands was given in silence, unaccompanied by any words to indicate its signification to the person ordained, or to the faithful who were present? But nothing is left on record. How then can you undertake to say that they used not, as they most probably would, the very form of the primitive commission? Christ was designated for his ministry by the visible descent of the Holy Ghost, and by an efflux of the Spirit: He, having received the gift without measure, in like manner designated his Apostles for theirs—“As my Father hath sent me, even so send I you”—Receive ye the Holy Ghost. And there can be no doubt, that the Apostles in ordaining others, would declare both by word and deed: “As Christ hath sent us, so send we you.” “Stir up the gift of God that is in you by the putting on of my hands.” [60b]
But Morinus is to set this question at rest. “His authority must, you suppose, be considered conclusive on this point.” [60c] But to what does it amount? His collected MS. forms of Ordination take you back to about the middle of the eighth century; and these you adduce as conclusive evidence of the practice of the primitive Church. Now admitting, as in candour we must, that his earliest authority is a proof of still earlier usage,—still, as to any evidence of the practice of the primitive Church, he leaves you with a yawning and somewhat unmanageable hiatus upon your hands.
Could no written summary of the Christian faith, or any traces of such summary be discovered, anterior to the date of that of Nice; you would hardly argue that for the three preceding centuries the Church had always used the Nicene Creed:—the inference would be that no human explication of the “word of faith,” had been found necessary:—and in like manner, the absence of any proof to the contrary, affords a strong presumption, that the primitive Church had adhered to the use of the words of the primitive commission. At all events, before you undertake to inform us what form was not used in the ordinations of the primitive Church; it is incumbent on you to show what form it did use.—“But,” says Bingham, whom you quote thus far,—“the solemnity in giving superior orders, was always performed by the Imposition of Hands and prayer.” This has never been disputed, but he also observes—“It is not to be imagined that one and the same form was used in all Churches, for every Bishop having liberty to frame his own Liturgy, as there were different Liturgies in different Churches, so it is reasonable to suppose the Primates or Metropolitans had different forms of consecration, though there are now no remains of them in being, to give us any further information.” [61a]
Throwing you in two centuries and a half beyond your earliest authority, I dare not attempt with Bishop Burnet and yourself to jump the remaining hiatus, with any hope of reaching your conclusion,—“that if we ask of the antient time what is best, and of the latter time what is fittest, some alteration of the form of ordination is both proper and expedient.” [61b]
Our compilers thought it both “best and fittest” to adhere to the words of the primitive commission, nor attempt to define the mystery, or enquire “how can these things be:”—and they would probably have replied to the modern cavils in the spirit of Hooker’s observation—“Seeing therefore that the same power is now given, why should the same form of words expressing it, be thought foolish?” [62a]
To this form of words the Clergy do literally and ex animo subscribe, and notwithstanding your objections, I trust without impeachment either of their truth or honesty.
In a note to your Sermon published in 1838, speaking of “controversial publications by Clergymen in defence of our Church,” you observe, “the occupation is in most cases neither happy nor improving.”
Ought not such a consideration to have withheld you from challenging your brother to take so questionable a course as you consider its defence, by publishing such opinions of the Subscription required and made by the Clergy, as must, if correct, involve them in the suspicion of being either ignorant of its meaning, indifferent to its obligations, or insincere in their acceptance of them?—warning them at one time against the unhappy occupation of self-defence, and leading your readers at another, to draw an inference to their prejudice, from their silence; for you say with reference to “your objections, no attempt at a refutation of them has appeared, so far as you know, from any quarter,” [62b] and further, that our Diocesan’s pamphlet, in “defence” of his speech on Subscription, so strongly corroborative of your own objections “remains unanswered.” [62c]
I must, therefore, request of you to share any blame that may attach to us, in consequence of the courses, offensive and defensive, which we have respectively taken in this matter.