66 Office, it is faid," Almighty God-who-hath promifed Forgivenefs of Sins to all them that with HEARTY REPENTANCE, and TRUE FAITH, turn unto him have Mercy upon you, &c.” The fame Caution is obferved in the most precife Form of Abfolution retained in our Church, I mean that in the Office for the Vifitation of the Sick, which runs in thefe Words, " Our Lord Jefus Chrift, who hath "left Power to his Church to abfolve all Sinners WHO TRULY REPENT forgive thee thine Offences, "&c." Thele Cautions inferted (by way of Addition to the Popish Form) in the very Words in which Abfolurion is to be pronounced, with thofe frequent Declarations to the fame Effect, that occur throughout the whole Communion Service; are a fufficient Notice to all Men to place no Reliance upon the Abfolution of a Prict, without Re, entance and a new Life; and will fully justify our Church in the Indulgence granted to the Prejudices of thofe limes. For whatever Men may believe of the Neceflity of Priefly Abfolution, or of its internal Effects as to the Confcience of the Sinner; it is plain, that fo long as they hold and firmly maintain this one Principle, that without Repentance there can be no Remiffion; there is nothing at all in fuch kind of Speculations, *that can encourage a li centious What the Church of Rome teaches of the Sacrament of Penance (whereof Abfolution is the Form) is that by it the Benefit of Chrift's Death is APPLIED to the Sinner, who thereby actually obtains Reconciliation with God, SUPPOSING him duly qualified. Vid. Canon. Conc. Trid. Seff. 14. How much good Senfe there is in this, or whether it be true or falfe, are Queltions foreign to our prefent Purpofe. The Point is, Where would be the Harm, fuppofing a Man fhould have a Notion of fome fuch internal Effect of Abfolution, as the Church of Rome contends for, provided he believes, at the fame Time, that true Repentance, in the Senfe in which we now understand it, is ne ceffary to qualify him to receive the Benefit? The Sting of Ab. folution, which gives the fatal Stab to Religion, is the loofe Manner in which the Church of Rome hath explained the neceffary Qualifications. The Council of Trent it felf is very faulty in this Refpect; and fome modern Popish Cafuifts have made fuca centious Way of living; which fhould a little better have been confidered by fome Preachers † of late, who have taken a Handle from hence, to reproach the Church of England, as countenancing a Doctrine injurious to the Prerogative of God. A Power in the Clergy to abfolve Sinners independently of Faith, or their moral Qualifications, is a Power injurious to the Prerogative of God But a Power to declare Forgivenefs upon the very Terms upon which the Gospel declares it, does not deftroy the Pierogative of God, but afferts it. Such a Power the Church of England challenges, and fuch a Power there is wrapt up in the Miniteria: Office. As to the internal Effects of Abfolution, fince our Church defines nothing about them, I think every Man has Reafon to be fatisfied that he is left quietly to enjoy his own Opinion. 2. To return to my main Subject. We have feen how the Rule of Confcience lies as to fecret Sins. I am next to fhew what Sort of Repentance is neceffary to qualify us to receive the Sacrament, in Cafe of publick Scandal; and this common Reafon will tell us must be fuck a Repentance as ends in the Removal of the Scandal, that they who were justly offended by our ill Behaviour, may be fatisfied by the Reformation of our Manners. This agrees with what is faid in the fuch large Conceffions, as entirely make void Repentance and good Works. Those who would be fatisfied in this, may confult Mr. Pafcbal's Provincial Letters. It is not likely that the common People at that Time did, or could, enter into thofe Niceties which their Divines had grafted upon this Subject. The expr fs Doctrine of the Church was, that the Abfolution of a Prieft was neceffary to Remiffion. This they understood; and it is probable that most of them had been taught, that Absolution once obtained, very little elle was neceffary. Our Reformers took Care to fet them right in this laft Opinion, in which there was much Hart; and left thofe, who could not otherwife be perfuaded, in Poffeffion of the first, in which, fo far as Religion is concerned, there was certainly none. This, in my humble Opinion, was taking a prudent Courfe, and following the very Spirit which they profelfed, which was to keep the Rule of Charity. See Dr Hunt's and Mr. Burroughs's Sermons, preached at Salters-Hall, in the Year 1734. Rubrick Rubrick before the Communion Service; If any be as open notorious evil Liver, or have done any Wrong to his Neighbours, by Word or Deed, fo that the Congregation be thereby offended; the Curate having Knowledge thereof, jhall call him, and advertise him, that in any wife he prejume not to come to the Lord's Table, until he hath openly declared homself to have truly repented and amended his former naughty Life, that the Congre gation may thereby be fatisfied, which before were of fended. In private Matters we have nothing to do but to fatisfy God and our own Consciences; but when our Sins come to be publick and offenfive, there is a Satisfaction due to the Church, which is a Party in this Cafe. The Acts of the Minifter officiating publickly, are, interpretatively, the Acts of the Church; that is, of the Body Chriftian; held together, firft, by the Subordination of the whole to Chrift the Head; and then, by the Subordination of the feveral Members one to another, in the Manner which Chrift hath appointed: And when the Church by her publick Officer adminifters the Sacrament; fhe, by that Act, gives publick Teftimony that fhe ac cepts and acknowledges the Perfon as a Member of Chrift, according to the Terms of the Gospel: Which the Church cannot confiftently do, when there is any vifible Difqualification on the Part of the Receiver. If a private Perfon knows his Neighbour to be a grievous Sinner, and the Church, nevertheless, receives him as a Communicant; the Innocent may lawfully communicate with the Guilty: Because the Authority to reject not refting in private Hands, the Act of a private Man, in fuch a Cafe, is not, by Interpretation or Conftruction, his Teftimony. But the Church having fuch Authority, her Act hath the Virtue of a Teftimony; and fhould fhe adminifter the Sacrament to notorious Sinners, he would be found a falfe WitDefs in the Sight of God. It is upon this Principle that the Difcipline of the antient Church was founded, of which I made mention juft now; which is agreeable alfo to Scripture Rule. For For St. Paul fays, I have written unto you not to keep Company; if any Man who is called a Brother (or who profeffes himself a Chriftian) be a Fornicator, or coveteous, or an Idolater, or a Railer, or a Drunkard, or an Extortioner, with fuch a one no not to eat, 1 Cor. V. II. Such was the Religion of thofe Times, that he who was a Scandal to his Profeffion, was alfo a Shame to his Company; and it will not confift with common Senfe to fuppofe that a Man fhould be qualified to partake with us in the Body and Blood of Chrift, who is not fit to fit down with us at a common Meal. The Church ought not, by fo folemn and facred an Act, to give her Teftimony that a Perfon is qualified by the Terms of the Gofpel, without a reafonable Prefumption that he is fo; and fuch a Prefumption there cannot be, where a Man's Character is justly fufpicious. And therefore here, if ever, we hould take Care to abfiain from all Appearance of Evil, and to cut off fuch Occafions, if unwarily they fhould be administered. We owe thus much to the Honour of God, to the Chriftian Society, and to ourselves. If private Persons will not pay a Regard to Confcience in fuch Cafes, it may be difficult for the Church, in many Instances, to act properly. But every Man fhould confider for himfelf; that if he will prefumptuoufly offer himself to receive the Communion, when he knows his Behaviour to be justly offensive, he is guilty of Profanation, and of the Scandal too. You have now feen what thofe Qualifications are, which are neceffary to make us worthy Partakers of the Lord's Table; and you learn, at the fame Time, what it is to be prepared; for to be prepared is nothing elfe than to be duly qualified. Whoever holds the Faith in a pure Confcience is prepared for the Sacrameat; and may come upon the fhorteft Warning that can be given. Not that I would difcourage thole, previous, religious Exercifes, which commonly pafs under the Name of Preparation; but rather encourage them, when Men have Time and Opportunity for them, We cannot come to the Sacrament with too G much much Devotion, but it is a very eafy Thing to come with too little; and therefore, if by retiring from our worldly Bufinefs for fome Time before we intend to receive the Communion, and giving ourselves to Meditation and Prayer, we can quicken our Sense of Spiritual Things, fuch Opportunities fhould by no Means be neglected. But fuch previous Exercifes as thefe are to be confidered but as Helps, contributing to the greater Perfection of the State of Preparation, not as effential to it; nor indeed any farther useful, than as our Virtues, in their whole Extent and Compafs, receive Growth and Improvement from them. It may be poffibie for Men, by fuch artificial Helps, to fcrew themselves up into a Fit of Devotion, whilst at the fame Time their Lufts remain unmortified. This is not to be prepared for the Lord's Table. The great Matter to be attended to, is the general Tenor of our Lives; in which if there be an Evennefs and Regularity in well doing, arifing from an habitual Senfe of our Duty to God, and his Mercies to us in Jefus Chrift, a Man may be (as Bishop Fleetwood fays) about his Bufinefs on Saturday, and a good Communicant on Sunday Morning. But let us take Heed not to come reeking from a Debauch to the Lord's Table; which is fo fhocking an Offence to common Decency, that whoever is capable of it, has a much stronger Evidence within himself, that he is not qualified, than any Formalities of Preparation can be of the contrary. When Men are prepared as they ought for the Lord's Table, there can be no Reason why they should. not communicate confiantly, i. e. fo often as the Opportunities of doing it are min ftred to them. These Opportunities are more or lefs frequent in different Places; but I hope there are not many Parishes where the Sacrament is not adminiftred three or four Times a Year; and fo often at least no Chriftian, I think, fhould difpenfe with himself not to communicate, without great and weighty Reafons. If we communicate oftener, it will be fo much the better; for good Impreffions are apt to wear off, if the Occafions of them |