tion, accompanied with another fhort prayer, and then falutes the congregation. Thele ablutions allegorically reprefent the washing and embalming the body of Jefus Chrift, &c.

XXXI. The priest fings the poft communion, or prayer for a good effect of the facrament then received, expreffed by the glorious refurrection of the regenerate Chriftians, and is to be looked upon as the reprefentation of our Lord's refurrection.

XXXII. The priest turning to the people, fays, Daminus vobifcum, falutes the congregation, as the ambaffador of Chrifl, with the meffage of peace.

XXXIII. The priest reads the beginning of St. John's gofpel, and particularly of Jefus's appearing to his mother and difciples, and ufes fome fhort prayers.

XXXIV. The priest difmiffes the people with thefe words, Ite, miffa eft, depart, the mafs is concluded to which they answer, God be thanked. This, they fay, points to the afcenfion of Jefus Chrift, where he receives the eternal reward of that facrifice, both as priest and victim.

XXXV. The people receive the benediction of the prieft or bishop, if he is prefent, to reprefent the bleffings promifed, and poured down upon the apoffles by the Holy Ghoft.

This benediction must be given after kiffing, with eyes erected to heaven, and their arms ftretched out, and then gently brought back to the ftomach, that the hands may join in an affectionate manner for the congregation of the faithful. The extenfion of the arms, and joining of the arms, are both myfterious, and thew the charity with which the priest calls his fpiritual brethren to God. When he pronounces the benediction, he muft lean in an engaging pofture towards the altar, as prefcribed by the Italian fymbolical authors, viz. Pifcara, Baudry, and others.

* Picart's Religious Ceremonies, vol. I.

Of

Of the ADORATION of the HOST.

The hoft, or confecrated wafer, among the Roman Catholics, they worship with the profoundeft reverence; of which Dr. Middleton relates as follows.

This celebrated act of Popish idolatry, the adoration of the hoft, I muft confefs that I cannot find the leaft refemblance of it in any part of the Pagan worship; and as oft as I have been ftanding by at mafs, and feen the whole congregation proftrate on the ground in the humbleft pofture of adoring at the elevation of this confecrated piece of bread, I could not help reflecting on that paffage of Tully, when fpeaking of the abfurdity of the Heathens in the choice of their Gods. But, fays he, was any man ever fo mad as to take that which he feeds upon for a God? This was an extravagance referved for Popery alone, and is now become the principal part of worship, and the diftinguishing article of faith in the creed of modern Rome

The general divifion of maffes is into high and low. High mass, called allo grand mass, is that fung by the chorifters, and celebrated with the affiftance of a deacon and a fubdeacon. Low mass is that wherein the prayers are barely rehearfed, without any finging, and performed without much ceremony, or the affiftance of a deacon and fubdeacon. As to ordinary maffes, there are fome which ar faid for the Chriftian's foul, for releafing it from purgatory, or mitigating its punishment there. A fufficient fum must be left to the priest for this purpofe. The dying man fometimes bequeathes 20 or 30,000 maffes to his foul, charging the paftor, on whom he principally relies, to remit this stock to him in the other world. There are likewife private males for the recovery of ftolen goods, for health, and for travellers, or for returning God thanks for particular mercies; thefe are called votive maffes. The Middleton's Letters, p. 179. P4

mafs

mass used at sea, where the cup is omitted, left the wine fhould be fpilt by the fhip's motion, is called the dry mass. you?re

There are feveral forts of folemn maffes; fuch are the collegiate, the pontifical, thofe celebrated before the Pope, cardinals, or bishops, at Christmas, Paffion week, &c.

100

f

His lordship sprinkles th

When HIGH MASS is performed epifcopally, ar by a bishop, it is attended with more ceremony and magnificence. As foon as the bishop is obferved to come in fight, the bells are rung; on his fetting his foot within the church-doors, the organs begin to play. The mafter of the ceremonies gives the fprinklerot othe head canon, who prefents it, after he has kiffed both that and his facred hand. himfelf, I and then the canons, with it, in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghoftgoand then goes and fays a prayer before the altar, on which ftands the holy facrament, at a defk prepared for that particular purpofe, and does the fame at the high altared from whence he withdraws into the veftry, and there puts on his peculiar ornaments, in the following ordena

2

The fubdeacon goes to a little clofet contiguous to the altar, and takes from thence the epifcopal fandals and stockings, which he elevates and prefents to the bishop. Then the deacon kneels down, and pulls off his lordship's fhoes and stockings, who is in the midst of feven or eight acolites, or readers, all upon their knees, as well as the deacon, in their respective habits, who fpreads the prelate's robes. Two acolites, after they have washed their hands, take the facred habiliments, holds them up, and gives them to the two deacon affiftants, to put upon the bifhop as foon as he has wathed his hands. The deacon falutes the bishop, takes off his upper garment, and puts on his amint, the crofs whereof he kiffes; then they give him the albe, the girdle, the crofs for his breaft, the stole, and pluvial. He kiffes the crafs upon receiving each of them, thereby

to

to teftify his veneration of the crofs; the deacons and affistants likewife kifs thefe facred vestments. As foon as the bishop is feated, they put his mitre on, and a priest presents him with the paftoral ring. The deacon giveschim his right glove, and the fub-deacon his left, which each of them kifs, as alfo the hand they have the honour to ferve in all thefe circumftances. There are fome pretty ceremonies to be observed, which those who are fond of myfteries may endeavour to account for.colt is more material to acquaint our readers, that ejaculatory prayers have been adapted to each individual piece of the epifcopal robes, and toat the devotion of this ceremony is fupported and confirmed by the finging the office of tierce.**

ཝཱ

The bishop being thus dreft in all his habiliments fi his clergy range themfelves round about him. Two deacons,o who are canons, place themselves on each fide dofchim, both in their dalmaticas; and after them a deacon and fubdeacon. Then the incenfe bearers with the cenfer, and a prieft with the navet, out of which the sbishop takes incenfe, puts it into the confer, and gives it his benediction. After this he 85 nut sal

* Prayers intended to return God thanks for the fanctification of his church by the Holy Ghoft.

t Each of thefe have a myfterious fignificance; the file reprefents the yoke of the gofpel; the fhoes being taken off, alludes to Mofes putting off his fhoes; the Dalmatica is to reprefent to the deacon that he must be crucified to the world: the albe denotes the purity of the priest's foul; the paftoral ring implies the priest's fpiritual marriage with the church; his gloves are to denote that he is infenfible of his good works; the girdle, that he will be girded with justice and virtue; the fandals, that is to walk in the paths of the Lord; the horns of the mitre, the Old and New Teftament; the shepherd's crook, his correction and paternal authority; the pluvial, which was formerly ufed by travellers, to reprefent the miferies of this life, and thus the bishop is to become a living image of the true Christian. This account is given by Cafalius: but to fhew us the propriety and reality of thefe pretended characters. requires fome farther explication and proof. Picart's Ceremonies, vol. I. P. 335.

kiffes

kiffes the crofs, which is upon the veftry, altar, and then goes in proceffion to the other altar, where he is to celebrate the mafs. The incenfe-bearer walks at the head of the proceffion; two wax-candle bearers, with lighted tapers in their hands, march next on each fide of him who bears the cross; all the clergy follow them; the fubdeacon who is to fing the epiftle, carries before his breaft the New Teftament fhut, with the bishop's maniple in it; a deacon and priest march juft before the bishop; the bishop carrying his fhepherd's crook in his left hand, to dispense his bleffings to thofe good Christians he paffes in the way. The bishop being advanced to the altar, bows himself once to the clergy, and when he enters on the firft ftep of the altar, delivers his crook to the fubdeacon, and the deacon takes off the mitre; then the prelate and clergy bow to the altar, or rather to the crofs on the altar, after which the clergy withdraw, except two priests affiftants, one on his right, and the other on his left hand, with the incenfe-bearer, the fubdeacon, and two deacons affiftants, and then the ceremony of the mass fervice begins with the Confiteor, &c. and the choir fings the in troite.

The SOLEMN MASS, celebrated by the POPE,š

Tas much of magnificence and ceremony: we fhall relate a fimple part. A pontifical folemn mafs principally differs in two refpects, always oblerved, when his holiness himfelf officiates. The first is this, the two gofpels are fung, one in Greek, and the other in Latin} the fecond, that the communion is different in the pa pal mass, and performed after the following manner: after the Agnus Dei is fung, his holiness goes to his throne; the cardinal deacon of the gospel ftands in fuch a manner on the epiftle fide, with his hands clo See Picart's Religious Cer. vol. I. p. 336.

5 Offices, Veftments, and other Distinctions, fee the Dict.a Apion's Account, in his Tableau de la Cour de Rome,

Picart's Cer. vol. I. p. 339.

and

fed