these more eminent services render to God an obedience in excess of that which is due to His perfect law. Can any human obedience exceed or indeed attain to the height of the command, "Thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart... and thy neighbour as thyself"? Can any of the Saints use other language than that which Christ has put into their mouths, 'We are unprofitable servants"? Nay, can any one of them even dare to add "We have done that which was our duty to do"? And if not, where are works of supererogation, 'over and above God's commandments?'

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CHAPTER IV.

OF SUPREMACY AND INFALLIBILITY.

CH. IV.] OF SUPREMACY & INFALLIBILITY. 45

chief Government of all Estates of this Realm, whether they be Ecclesiastical or Civil, in all causes doth appertain, and is not, nor ought to be, subject to any foreign Jurisdiction.

"Where we attribute to the Queen's Majesty the chief government, by which Titles we understand the minds of some slanderous folks to be offended; we give not to our Princes the ministering either of God's Word, or of the Sacraments, the which thing the Injunctions also lately set forth by Elizabeth our Queen do most plainly testify; but that only prerogative, which we see to have been given always to all godly Princes in holy Scriptures by God himself; that is, that they should rule all estates and degrees committed to their charge by God, whether they be Ecclesiastical or Temporal, and restrain with the civil sword the stubborn and evil-doers.

"The Bishop of Rome hath no jurisdiction in this Realm of England.—Article XXXVII.

66 con

A Church (ekkλŋσía) is in its simplest form a gregation" of two or more persons professing faith in JESUS CHRIST, and baptized into His name. (S. Matt. xviii. 17—20, xxviii. 19). Thus, in the New Testament we read of the Church in a private dwelling-house (1 Cor. xvi. 19), i. e. the Christian members of a family; thus, again, Tertullian lays down the maxim that

"where there are three, even laics, there is a Church1". "The Visible Church" is the aggregate of all such congregations of faithful men at any time living upon earth. It is ONE, because it proceeds from one origin (S. Cyprian): holds one faith (S. Jerome): partakes of the same sacraments (Eph. iv. 5, 1 Cor. x. 17): and has one head, even Christ (S. Augustine). It is HOLY, because its members are consecrated to God in Holy Baptism (1 Cor. vi. 11), called to be saints (Rom. i. 7), builded together for an habitation of God through the Spirit (Eph. ii. 22). It is CATHOLIC3, or Universal, as comprehending within itself all particular Churches: as diffused through all ages and all countries of the world (S. Cyril of Jerusalem), and as distinguished from all

1 Exhort. ad Castit. 5. Cf. de fuga, 13: "sit tibi et in tribus Ecclesia."

2 Faithful men men professing faith, the baptized who continue in Christian communion. The term cannot here bear the stricter ethical sense which belongs to it in the Catechism ["the Body and Blood of Christ are received by the faithful in the Lord's Supper"]: for the XIXth Article treats only of the Visible Church, in which the evil be ever mingled with the good. For the New Testament use of oi Tirol in this looser application, cf. Eph. i. 1; 1 Tim. iv. 12, vi. 2; Tit. i. 6.

3 On the derivation and use of the term Catholic, see Bp. Pearson On the Creed, Art. XIX. As applied to the Church it seems to have meant (1) general as opposed to particular and hence (2) orthodox as opposed to heretical. In the second sense it was applied even to particular churches-thus "the Catholic Church of Constantinople," would mean the orthodox communion of that city-to particular Bishops, every orthodox Bishop being called a Bishop of the Catholic Church, -lastly to individual Christians, belonging to any branch of the Orthodox Church. Thus according to the primitive use of the word a Catholic is simply a member of any orthodox Christian communion which possesses the notes of the Visible Church. It will be seen that for Anglicans to concede this title to members of the Roman Church as an exclusive right is to stamp themselves with the brand of heresy or schism or both. Hence the extreme pertinacity with which Romanists lay claim to the name of Catholics.

heretical and schismatical communions (S. Augustine). It is APOSTOLIC, as being connected with the Apostles by continuity of doctrine, practice and succession (Acts ii. 42, Eph. ii. 20, Rev. xxi. 14). To this Church and to every true Branch of it belong three notes or marks, viz.: (1) purity of doctrine, as to essentials of faith; (2) a due administration of the sacraments; (3) the right use of discipline1.

So far there can be little ground for difference, excepting that Roman Catholic divines have perhaps unnecessarily multiplied the notes of the Church (cf. Bellarmine, de Eccl. Milit. IV. 2, 3). But we join serious issue when the Roman Church proceeds to assert (a) the existence of a divinely appointed visible Head over the Catholic Church, and (b) the infallibility of the Church which is under his headship.

Si. Of Supremacy.

1. Supposed Supremacy of 8. Peter. "[Roman] Catholics affirm," says Bellarmine, "that the Apostle Peter was appointed by Christ to be Head and Prince of the whole Church in the room of Christ Himself"."

Now that S. Peter, whether by seniority of years (S. Jerome), or of call to the Apostleship (S. Cyprian), or by "a primacy of confession" (S. Ambrose), was primus of the Apostolic College, may well be allowed. S. Matthew distinctly calls him "the first" (c. x. 2): his name heads each of the four lists of Apostles (S. Matt. x., S. Mark iii., S. Luke vi., Acts i.), and the

1 The third of these Notes is not expressly mentioned in the XIXth Article, but it seems to be included by implication in the second. The Homily for Whitsun Day is more explicit: "The true Church...hath always these notes or marks whereby it is known: pure and sound doctrine, the Sacraments ministered according to CHRIST's holy institution, and the right use of ecclesiastical discipline."

2 De Rom. Pont. I. x.