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petuance." (!) Again, "1803. The Reverend Edanus Murphy, a parish priest, in the county of Wexford, bequeathed all his books, and household furniture, and what stock he might have at the time of his decease, to his nephew, the Reverend William Stafford, to be laid out in suffraces for his soul *." "1805. The Reverend W. Lonergan, parish priest of Carrickbeg, county of Wexford, left, in this year, 107. to the chapel of Carrickbeg, and 57. to Ballindesart chapel, and 1007. to his burial, month's mind, and masses: the masses at one shilling and seven-pence per mass *" Read Gal. i. 7, 8, 9; and then ask yourself what must be the state of such people?

XX. I do likewise believe that the Saints reigning together with Christ are to be honoured and invocated: and that they do offer prayers unto God for us: and that their relics are to be had in veneration.

We are considering the claim of this Romish heresy to catholicity or apostolicity, which are in effect terms synonymous. The apostles then, we find, could have known nothing of this affair, this honouring and invoking of saints, for (St.) Chrysostom, bishop of Constantinople, and afterwards patriarch; (St.) Athanasius, bishop of Alexandria; (St.) Augustin, bishop of Hippo; and Epiphanius, bishop of Salamis, in Cyprus, in the fourth century-all strenuously opposed

* Extracts from the records of a public office in Dublin, for the registering of charitable bequests.

this error, and which is also indisputably confirmed by this extract from the thirty-fifth canon of the council of Laodicea, held A. D. 364." Christians ought not to forsake the church of GOD, and depart aside and invocate angels, and form assemblies (for this purpose): which are things forbidden." If any man, “therefore, be found to give himself to this secret idolatry, let him be accursed, because he hath forsaken our Lord Jesus Christ, the Son of GOD, and hath betaken himself to idolatry." Theodoret, a learned writer of the fifth century, and bishop of Cyrus, in Syria, testifies that "this vice continued in Phrygia and Pisidia for a long time, for which reason the council at Laodicea, the chief city of Phrygia, forbad them by a law to pray unto angels: and even to this day among them, and their borderers, there may be seen oratories to St. Michael." Theodoret in Col. ii. What would the good bishop say now, could he express himself in earthly tones, at the abominations with which the churches in France, Italy, and all other Romish countries abound: having perhaps ten shrines in them to saints, to one that they hold sacred to the most high GOD? He even instances the remains of shrines which might have been seen by the incredulous of those days, to prove, as it were, that he had told them no untruth.

Public prayers to saints were not fully established until the year of our LORD 787, when the second council of Nice appointed them. This council was condemned by another held at Frankfort 794; and the invocation of saints was likewise condemned by a former council held at Constantinople 754, where no less than three hundred and thirty-eight bishops were present.

But supposing all these councils had not registered their decisions against this practice, so dishonouring to God, what can be the use of addressing prayers to saints who cannot know what we want or ask for?

Has not Solomon said (1 Kings, viii. 39), addressing the mighty God in prayer, " For Thou, even Thou ONLY, knowest the hearts of all the children of men." 2 Chron. vi. 30. Why, then, do we beg of saints and angels to pray for us to GOD? Has not Solomon declared that GOD alone knows what passes in our hearts ?

Supposing again that their prayers were obtainable and available for our cases, their good word must, if we have faith, be quite useless, for, are we not told by St. Paul," That Christ is able to save all who come to GOD by Him, seeing that He ever liveth to make intercession for them?" Heb. vii. 25. And is not this enough for us? This intercession is our own, if we only demand it through faith; and without faith in Christ, if we could secure the intercession of the whole host of heaven and earth, it could not possibly avail us, for we know who has said, "I am the way, the truth, and the life: no man cometh to the Father but by me." John, xiv. 6. And ye will not go to Him that ye may have life: Ver. 40. If ye do not believe these things, your faith is even "infidelity," because you are unbelievers If you do believe them, you will never more disgrace your Saviour's amazing, incomprehensible condescension, by underrating what hehas so munificently offered to us. And take heed also to what St. Paul says (Col. ii. 18), "Let no man beguile you of your reward by a voluntary humility (on your

part), worshipping of angels-(and pay attention to this expression)," intruding into those things which he hath not seen, vainly puffed up by his fleshly mind! As if he should have said, How do you know that the man whom you choose to imagine a saint, has been beatified at all? exemplified in the case of your own two particular friends, the seraphic St. Francis, and St. Dominic, the inquisition-man. And to these two spirits do you now pray, every night, by order of the "Primate of ALL Ireland!"-See Appendix, No. IV.

It may have so happened, that the particular saint upon whom you have fixed your regards, might have only been pretending sanctity of life, to answer some end, to get into the pope's chair, we'll say, and he may have been cut off, before his ambitious desires were fulfilled. Supposing for example, that your " sovereign pontiff," pope John XI. who reigned in 931, had died before he attained the papal chair; and for his seeming meekness and piety had been canonized, and you and sundry other devotees in different ages, had all this time been praying to him to assist you with his prayers and intercessions. He would have been never the less a villain in heart, than he was when he attained the object of his ambition: and you would have been soliciting the interposition of an infernal spirit, instead of resting your hopes upon Christ; for Baronius, the great flatterer of the "sovereign pontiffs," says of this man, "The Roman church suffered herself to be villanously oppressed by such a monster.” In such case, you must be aware that your prayers go for nothing. But perhaps you will tell me,

will

that God will have a regard for your good intention. Oh! your intention! Listen, my friends. Suppose that some fanatical protestant, conceiving that you Romanists were degrading, by your stupid and offensive ceremonies, the worship of the Most High God-and that he, moved with what he might conceive a holy and laudable zeal, stepped up to the altar of a Romish chapel, just as the priest is pretending to handle and break the body of Christ, and for this offence to GoD and man, were to poniard him on the spot; do you think that this man's "intention" of serving GOD, would screen him from God's wrath, for having murdered any one of His creatures, however impious? "Oh no," you will perhaps reply, "that is not a case in point, because there he goes against GOD's express command, and commits murder." But I say it is a case in point! And as much as that man would have to answer for the crime of murder, before the Great Dread Judge, because it would not bear the test of Scripture, so will you all have to answer for even your good intentions, as you may be pleased to call them, when these good intentions are ONE LINE out of the road, in which it has pleased the Most High to order His creatures to travel. Isa. xxviii. 10.

No, my friends, your intentions are NOTHING, and if you will take a simple man's advice, you will speedily so rectify your intentions, as to make them accord with the principles laid down in that unerring Guide, which when duly studied, never yet deceived man. All you have to do, is to pour out your supplications to Him, for the assistance of His Holy Spirit to guide you to

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