THE ALTAR
"We have an altar."
Heb. xiii. 10.
"Whene'er I seek the holy altar's rail,
And kneel to take the grace there offer'd me,
It is no time to task my reason frail,
To try Christ's words, and search how they may be.
Enough, I eat His flesh, and drink His blood;
More is not told—to ask it is not good.
"I will not say with these, that bread and wine
Have vanish'd at the consecration prayer;
Far less, with those, deny that aught Divine,
And of immortal seed, is hidden there.
Hence, disputants! The din which ye admire
Keeps but ill measure with the church's choir."
Lyra Apostolica.
THE ALTAR
It was late in the evening before the other guests had left the Hall, and our four friends sat down together in the library, without fear of interruption, to continue the conversation of the afternoon.
"I should like you to tell me, Mr. Ambrose," said Sir John, "whether you consider that the word altar is properly applied to a table made of wood."