S. Paul tells us that "Christ loved the Church, and delivered Himself up for it that He might present it to Himself a glorious Church, not having a spot or wrinkle, or any such thing, but that it should be holy and without blemish." (Eph. v. 25.) Let us consider in what sense this mark of holiness must always belong to the Church.

The Catechism says the Church is holy, "Because she teaches a holy doctrine, offers to all the means of holiness, and is distinguished by the eminent holiness. of so many thousands of her children."

It does not mean that all her children shall be holy. This our Lord makes clear by the parable of the wheat and the tares growing up together, as well as by that in which the Church is compared to a net cast into the sea bringing up fish both bad and good. It means that the doctrine of the Church shall be holy; that she shall offer means of holiness to those who will use them; that she shall encourage her children not only to keep the commandments, but to aim at that high pattern of holiness which our Lord recommended to men: and that she shall be illustrated, from time to time, by examples of eminent holiness. With regard to the first thing I have mentioned, holiness of doc-. trine, you must observe that it is difficult to compare the moral teaching of the Church with that of Protestants, for the simple reason that theirs is, generally speaking, that which they had received from the Catholic Church before they separated from her, which they took with them, and is not founded on their own

doctrinal system. Wherever they have changed this original moral code, it has always been by yielding in some degree to the wishes of men, and the pressure brought to bear by the spirit of the age-as, for example, in the permission of divorce, which is so commonly allowed amongst many sects of Protestants. The Catholic Church has always maintained this moral teaching at its highest point, in spite of the clamours of men, without caring for consequences, and even in the most corrupt ages has constantly urged her children to live up to that high standard of holiness given by our Lord.

Again, she has not only maintained the moral law in her teaching, but she furnishes the faithful with those helps without which they could not live up to it. It is impossible to be acquainted with the system of the Church, without seeing how carefully all her ordinances are calculated for training up her children, and assisting them in the observance of this law.

Our Lord gave a moral law binding upon all men; but, besides this, He gave certain counsels of perfection to the observance of which some were specially called. We are told in S. Matthew's Gospel how a certain young man came to Christ and asked Him, "What good shall I do, that I may have life everlasting?" Our Lord answered, "If thou wilt enter into life, keep the commandments." He then said, "All this I have kept from my youth, what is yet wanting to me?" Jesus answered, "If thou wilt be perfect, go, sell what thou hast and give to the poor, and thou shalt have

treasure in heaven, and come and follow me." (S. Matt. xix. 16.)

Here we have a standard of perfection above and beyond what was asked of mankind in general, or possible for all men. It is a mark of the Church of Christ to have always kept up this principle of perfection, and reduced it to practice. In the communion of the Catholic Church in every age and country, are found orders and institutions without number, which have this one aim to attain perfection by following the evangelical counsels, Voluntary Poverty, Perpetual Chastity, and Obedience. The consequence of this is that every age has been illustrated by wonderful examples, not merely of ordinary Christian virtues, but of heroic sanctity and self-devotion.

Catholicity is also manifestly an essential mark of the Church of Christ. Our Lord sent His apostles to "teach all nations," and to preach the gospel to "every creature." It is clear, therefore, that any society which belongs to one. nation, and is never found beyond its limits, except as something foreign, cannot possibly be the Church of Christ, which must be the Church of all nations alike. This Catholicity in a marked, and indeed, miraculous degree, belongs to the Catholic Church.

It is admitted by all men in its very name. No other body ever professes to be the Church of all nations. Take any other society, and you will find that it is essentially national. For example, the Protestants here and in America teach much the same set

of opinions, with the same kind of variety, and yet no one pretends that they can be called one body. One is the Church of England, or the Protestants of England, and the other is the "Episcopal Church of America," or the "American Protestants," as the case may be, and they form just as distinct bodies as the English and American governments do.

The last mark of the Church is that of apostolicity. The Church must be apostolic. Any society claiming to teach in the name of Christ, must show that it derives authority from Him. It can only do this through the Apostles, since it was to them alone that He gave any authority to teach or speak in His name.

The Catholic Church can show precisely how it comes to be in possession of this Apostolic authority. Every priest receives authority from his bishop; each bishop has received his again from the Pope, and the Pope in turn can trace the distinct line of succession by which authority came to him from that very Apostle to whom our Lord gave it in the fullest manner. With regard to all bodies out of the Church, they either cannot attempt to show any succession at all, or they have to trace it back through the Catholic Church, and so to point out precisely when they rebelled against Apostolic authority, and broke the chain uniting them to the Apostles.

I must only repeat, in conclusion, that the doctrine of the authority of the Church is the foundation of all faith. If you thoroughly understand and firmly believe it, nothing afterwards will appear difficult to you.

INSTRUCTION III.

ON PRAYER AND THE SACRAMENTS.

Faith and Good Works required for Salvation.-Errors on the Doctrine of Good Works.-State of Man after the Fall.-Means of obtaining Grace.-Prayer, inward means.-Necessity of Prayer.-Vocal and Mental Prayer.-The Sacraments external. -For Members of the Church only.-Names and Uses of the Sacraments. How often and when they can be received.-Matter, Form, and Minister of the Sacraments.- Sacraments of the Living and of the Dead.- Last Sacraments.-Holy Eucharist.Its importance in the Faith and Worship of the Church.

I HAVE spoken in order of

1. The Unity and Trinity of God;

2. The Incarnation and Death of our Saviour;

3. The Four Last Things;

4. The Testimony and Authority of the Church.

It remains to explain the use of prayer and the sacra

ments.

What have we got to do to save our souls? and how are we to do it?

To save our souls, we must first have faith. "With