Chap. V. The Collect, Epiftle, and Gofpel for the fixth Sunday were all added at the last review; till when, if there happened to be fix Sundays after the Epiphany, the Collect, Epiftle, and Gofpel for the fifth Sunday were repeated: though in the Salisbury Miffal the fervice of the third Sunday is ordered to be used upon fuch an occafion, called. SECT. IX. Of Septuagefima, Sexagefima, and Quinquagefima Sundays. Why fo AMONG the feveral reasons given for the names of thefe Sundays, the moft probable feems to be this: the first Sunday in Lent, being forty days before Eafter, was for that reafon called Quadragefima-Sunday, which in Latin fignifies forty; and fifty being the next round number above forty, as fixty is to fifty, and feventy to fixty; therefore the Sunday immediately preceding Quadragefima-Sunday, being farther from Eafter than that was, was called Quinquagefima (or fifty) Sunday, which is alfo fifty days inclufive before Eafter: and the two foregoing Sundays, being ftill farther diftant, were for the fame reafon called Sexagefima and Septuagefima (fixty and feventy) Sundays. The defign §. 2. The obfervation of these days and the weeks folof them. lowing appear to be as ancient as the times of Gregory the Great, The defign of them is to call us back from our Christmas feafting and joy, in order to prepare ourfelves for fafting and humiliation, in the approaching time of Lent; from thinking of the manner of Chrift's coming into the world, to reflect upon the cause of it, viz. our own fins and miferies; that fo being convinced of the reafonableness of punishing and mortifying ourselves for our fins, we may the more ftrictly and religiously apply ourfelves to thofe duties when the proper time for them comes. Some of the more devout Chriftians obferved the whole time, from the first of these Sundays to Eafter, as a feafon of humiliation and fafting; though the generality of the people did not begin their fafts till Ash-Wednefday. The Col lects, Epiftles, and Gospels. §. 3. The Collects, Epiftles, and Gofpels for thefe days are all the fame as in the ancient Liturgies, excepting only the Collect for Quinquagefima-Sunday, which was made new, A. D. 1549. They are all of them plainly fuitable to the times. The Epiftles are all three, taken out of St. Paul's Epiftles to the Corinthians: the two firft perfuade us to acts of mortification and penance, by pro pofing to us St. Paul's example: but because all bodily Sect. IX. exercises without charity profit us nothing; therefore the church, in the Epiftle for Quinquagefima-Sunday, recom→ mends charity to us, as a neceffary foundation for all our other acts of religion. The defign of the Gofpels is much the fame with that of the Epiftles: that for Septuagefima-Sunday tells us, by way of parable, that all that expect to be rewarded hereafter, muft perform these religious duties now; and to all those who have been fo idle as to neglect their duties all their life-time hitherto, it affords comfort, by affuring them, they may ftill intitle themselves to a reward, if they will now fet about them with diligence and fincerity. The Gofpel for Sexagefima-Sunday, in another parable, admonishes us to be careful and circumfpect in the performance of our duty, fince there is fcarce one in four who profefs religion, that brings forth fruit to perfection. And, laftly, the Gofpel for Quinquagefima-Sunday fhews us how we are to perform thefe duties; advifing us by the example of the blind beggar to add faith to our charity, and to continue inceffant in our prayers, and not to defpair of the acceptance of them, because we are not immediately heard, but to cry fo much the more, Jefus, thou Son of David, have mercy on us. why fo §. 4. The Tuefday after Quinquagefima-Sunday is ge- Shrovenerally called Shrove-Tuefday; a name given it from the Tuesday, old Saxon words Shrive, Shrift, or Shrove, which in that called. language fignifies to confefs; it being a conftant custom amongst the Roman Catholics to confefs their fins on that day, in order to receive the bleffed Sacrament, and thereby qualify themfelves for a more religious obfervation of the holy time of Lent immediately enfuing. But this in procefs of time was turned into a cuftom of invitations, and their taking their leave of flesh and other dainties; and afterwards, by degrees, into fports and merriments, which ftill in that church make up the whole bufinefs of the Carnival. SECT. X. Of the Forty Days in Lent. ..I THOUGH it ought to be the conftant endeavour of a The necefChristian to obferve his duty at all times, and to fity of fome have always a great regard to what God requires of him; fet time for yet confidering the great corruption of the world, and the tion. frailty of our nature, and how often we tranfgrefs the bounds of our duty, and how backward we are to crofs our fleshly humilia Chap. V. flefhly appetites, it is very expedient we fhould have fome folemn feafon appointed for the examining our lives, and the exercise of repentance. The antiquity of it. 1 §. 2. And accordingly we find that, from the very first ages of Christianity, it was cuftomary for the Christians to fet apart fome time for mortification and felf-denial, to prepare themselves for the feast of Easter. Irenæus, who lived but ninety years from the death of St. John, and converfed familiarly with St. Polycarp, as Polycarp had with St. John, has happened to let us know, though incidentally, that as it was obferved in his time, so it was in that of his predeceffors 36. Its original. §. 3. As to its original, the prefent Lord Bishop of Bath and Wells, in his learned Difcourfe concerning Lent, has thewed, by very probable argunients, that the Christian Lent took its rife from the Jewish preparation to their yearly expiation. He likewife proves out of their own writers, that the Jews began their folemn humiliation forty days before the expiation. Wherefore the primitive Chriftians, following their example, fet up this faft at the beginning of Chriftianity, as a proper preparative for the commemoration of the great expiation of the fins of the whole world. Variously firft. §. 4. It is true indeed, as to the length of it, the Chrifobferved at tian Lent was obferved with great variety at firft: fome fafting only one day, fome two, fome more, and fome for forty days together; i. e. if Eufebius be rightly underftood by the learned Dr. Grabe: if not, we must reduce the forty days to an entire abstinence of forty hours only, according to Valefius 37; from which number of hours fome think it is moft probable this faft was first called Tεσσарaxosn, or Quadragefima; as beginning about twelve on Friday, (the time of our Saviour's falling under the power of death,) and continuing till Sunday morning, the time of his rifing again from the dead. But afterwards it was enlarged to a longer time, drawn out into more days, and then weeks, till it was at laft fixed to forty days; which number feems very anciently to have been appropriated to repentance and humiliation. For not to reckon up the forty days in which God drowned the world 38, or the forty years in which the children of Ifrael did penance in the wilderness 39, or the forty ftripes by which malefac 36 Eufeb. Hift. Eccl. 1. 5. c. 24. P. 192. D. 37 V. Eufeb. ut fup. et Valef. et Be vereg. in loc. p. 247. Edit. Reading. tors tors were to be corrected; whoever confiders that Mofes Sect. X. did, not once only, faft this number of days, that Elias alfo fafted in the wilderness the same space of time, that the Ninevites had precisely as many days allowed for their repentance 43, and that our bleffed Saviour himself, when he was pleafed to faft, obferved the fame length of time**: whoever, I fay, confiders these things, cannot but think that this number of days is very fuitable to extraordinary humiliation. 44 §. 5. It receives its name from the time of the year Why called wherein it is obferved; Lent, in the old Saxon language, Lent. fignifying Spring, being now used to fignify this Spring faft, which always begins fo that it may end at Eafter; to Why to end remind us of our Saviour's fufferings, which ended at his at Eafter. Refurrection. §. 6. During this whole season, they were used to give How obthe most public teftimonies of forrow and repentance, and ferved by the primito fhew the greatest signs of humiliation that can be ima- tive Chrifgined: no marriages were allowed of, nor any thing that tians. might give the leaft occafion to mirth or cheerfulness 45; infomuch that they would not celebrate the memories of the Apostles or Martyrs, that happened within this time, upon the ordinary week-days, but transferred the commemoration of them to the Saturdays or Sundays 46. For the Eastern Chriftians, as I have already obferved 47, celebrated Saturday as well as Sunday as a day of feftival devotions. But except on those two days, even the holy Eucharift was not confecrated during the whole time of Lent, that being an act, as thofe fathers thought, more fuitable and proper for a feftival than a faft 48. On thofe days indeed they confecrated enough to fupply the Communions of each day, till either Saturday or Sunday returned again. For though the Sacrament was not confecrated on the ordinary week-days, yet it was customary to receive it every day; and therefore to thofe that came to communicate upon any of those days, they administered out of what the Greeks call the ponyiaσueva, the Latins Prefanctificata, both which words fignify the fame thing, viz. the Bread and Wine that were ready confecrated. Nor was the demeanour of the primitive Chriftians at home less strict and auftere than their difcipline at church; 40 Deut. xxv. 3. 41 Deut. ix. 9, 18, 25. 42 1 Kings xix. 8. 43 Jonah iii. 4. 44 Matt. iv. 2. 45 Concil. Laod. Can. 52. tom. i. col. 1505. C. 46 Ibid. Can. 51. 47 Page 185. 48 Ibid. Can. 49. they Chap. V. they lay in fackcloth and ashes, and took no care of their garb or drefs; they ufed no other food but what was ne-> ceffary to preferve life 49; fome abstaining from flesh and wine; others, especially the Greeks, forbearing all fith likewife as well as flefh: fome contented themselves with eggs and fruits; others forbore both, and lived upon bread, herbs, and roots: but all agreed in this, viz. that whereas at other seasons their fafts continued but till three in the afternoon, they would not on any day in Lent eat till the evening 50, and then fuch food as was leaft delicate s begins on this day. SECT. XI. Of Afh-Wednesday, or the first day of Lent. Why Lent THE first day of Lent had formerly two names, one of which was Caput Jejunii, the Head of the Faft; the other Dies Cinerum, Afh-Wednesday. The first compellation was given because Lent began on that day; for, fince it was never the custom of the church to fast on Sundays, (whereon we commemorate fo great a bleffing as our Saviour's Refurrection,) therefore we begin Lent on this day, to fupply the room of those Sundays. For if you deduet out of the fix weeks of Lent the fix Sundays, there will remain but thirty-fix fafting-days, to which these four of this week being added, make up the exact number of forty.. Why called §. 2. The name of Afh-Wednesday proceeded from a Afh-Wed- cuftom in the ancient difcipline, which began very early nefday. to be exercised on this day; an account whereof we have in Gratian 52 as follows: On the first day of Lent the penitents were to prefent themselves before the Bishop clothed with fackcloth, with naked feet, and eyes turned to the ground: and this was to be done in the prefence of the principal of the clergy of the diocefe, who were to judge of the fincerity of their repentance. Thefe introduced them into the church, where the Bishop, all in tears, and the reft of the Clergy, repeated the feven penitential pfalms. Then rifing from prayers, they threw ashes upon them, and covered their heads with fackcloth; and then with mournful fighs declared to them, that as Adam was thrown out of Paradise, so they must be thrown out of the church. Then the Bishop conmanded the officers to turn them out of the church-doors; 49 Tertul. de Poenit. paffim. 50 Bafil. Hom. 1. de Jejun. et Prudent. Hymn. ante Cibum. 51 Epiphan. Expof. Fid. Cathol. c. 22. tom. i.p. 1105. B. C. 52 1 Part. Decr. Dift. 50. c. 64. tom. I. p. 331. and |