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to Englishmen in this world, that soldier will be best able to face danger and death bravely who places himself under the almighty care and protection of the Lord of Hosts; who acknowledges Him as his hope and his fortress, his castle and deliverer, his defender in whom he trusts.

Prayer, soldiers, will nerve your arm in the battle, will inspire confidence in the midst of difficulty, will soothe the hour of pain and anguish, and will teach you Christian humility in the tumultuous moments of triumph and victory.

But whilst I am on this subject, I would wish to address a few words to you on the subject of public prayer. You, as members of the Church of England, possess the privilege of worshipping Almighty God in common in a Liturgy, the language of which, by God's assistance vouchsafed to its compilers, is inferior only to that of inspiration, and the greater portion of which is expressed in the very words of Holy Scripture. There is not a wish or desire of the human heart fit to be expressed to our heavenly Father, which will not find its expression in the prayers of the Church. There is no state in which a human being can be, whether of joy and thankfulness, or sorrow and depression, which will not there find appropriate words to convey its feelings and emotions.

How blameable then are you, how unworthy of this privilege, if these prayers are read in your presence Sunday after Sunday without

your attending to them, or regarding them; nay, even if you hear them with your ears and repeat them with your lips, whilst your hearts are far away! God, who knows our infirmities, will, we trust, pardon much weariness, and wandering, and inattention; but He expects that at least we should try to attend, and to take the best means for keeping up our attention. I fervently hope that the time may come, when not, as now, some only, but every soldier will carry his Prayer Book to church, in order that he may take part in the service; for there must be very few amongst you whose acquaintance with your Prayer Book is so perfect as to enable you to do without its assistance; and even if you know the Prayer Book ever so well, the Prayer Book will help to fix your thoughts.

Again, I hope we shall hear the voice of every soldier audibly joining in the responses, the Amen, and those parts of the service which are intended for the congregation at large. I hope we shall hear those who can sing lifting up their voices in praise, in the chant or in the psalm, and all uniting in those parts, for not joining in which they can have no excuse to offer. Depend upon it, you will not do these things long without understanding and feeling the spirit of the words which you utter; you will pray with the heart and with the understanding also. Every one must feel the great difference of the Church Service when merely read over by the minister in the hearing of the congregation, and when used in behalf of, and

with, the congregation. All have a common interest in the prayers and praises; all should show that they feel that interest, by joining heart and voice in them. Do not think these things slight and of no importance. Pray habitually, and you will soon learn to find comfort in prayer. Join together heartily in public worship; and thus let your service be really what it professes to be, common prayer; and you will soon feel the truth of our blessed Lord's promise, “Where two or three are gathered together in my name, there am I in the midst of them "."

Matt. xviii. 20.

THE END.

GILBERT AND RIVINGTON, PRINTERS, ST. JOHN'S SQUARE, LONDON.

AN ADDRESS TO SOLDIERS.

BY THE

REV. R. W. BROWNE, M.A.

PREBENDARY OF ST. PAUL'S,

AND CHAPLAIN TO HER MAJESTY'S FORCES IN LONDON.

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SOLD AT THE DEPOSITORY,

GREAT QUEEN STREET, LINCOLN'S INN FIELDS,

4, ROYAL EXCHANGE, AND 16, HANOVER STREET, HANOVER SQUARE; AND BY ALL BOOKSELLERS.

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ON CONFIRMATION.

As many amongst you, Christian Soldiers, have of late years shown yourselves ready and desirous to be admitted to the ordinance of Confirmation, or, as it is called in your Prayer Books, "The laying on of hands upon those that are baptized, and come to years of discretion," a few words will be acceptable to you in explanation of its nature and meaning.

If you look into your Bibles, you will find that the laying the hand on the head of any one, and at the same time praying to God for a blessing upon him, was customary in very ancient times. Jacob, for example, a short time before his death, laid his hands on the heads of Joseph's sons, and blessed them 1. This custom was well known to the Jews. We read in the New Testament that they brought young children to Christ that He should touch them; and, at their request, our Lord took them up in his arms, put his hands upon them, and blessed them. After our Lord's ascension into heaven, the Apostles, as we learn from the 8th chapter of the Acts of the Apostles, the 17th verse, and also the 19th chapter, the 6th verse, continued the practice, and laid hands on all those who had been baptized in the name of the Lord Jesus. In the case of the Apostles who had the power of working miracles, the extraordinary gifts of the Holy Ghost accompanied the laying on of their hands with prayer,-the gift of tongues, of prophecy, of miracles, and the like; and this, because they were then necessary for the propagation of Christ's Gospel amongst the heathen.

These miraculous gifts have now long ceased; doubtless because the wisdom of Almighty God

1 Gen. xlviii. 14.

2 Mark x. 13-16.

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