procure. The sentence with which it concludes is a very weighty one"Judges may make Law: they cannot make History." Mr. Frederick Helmore's useful Directions concerning Church Choirs, (Masters,) have reached a fourth edition. They are the fruit of thirty-six years' labour in the service of the Church. Mr. Blunt has quite kept faith with his subscribers, and brought out the second volume of his Annotated Bible (Rivingtons) at the time prescribed. We have not had leisure for a very full examination of its contents, but we can certainly say that the second volume is not inferior to its predecessor. We are specially glad to observe that the Psalms are treated more copiously than we had expected, and the notes on the Apocrypha are undoubtedly what could not be found in any other Commentary. We are sorry to see that Mr. Blunt adheres to the old division of the Books now under review, into "the Poetical and the Prophetical,”—which is certainly not a logical division, seeing that both in the original are Poetry. The former class are better called the Devotional Books-being named, like the other Books, according to their subject-matter, not according to their outward structure. Among reprints we are glad to welcome a new edition of the late Bishop of Brechin's striking Sermons on Amendment of Life, and also of Dr. Neale's well-known tale, The Egyptian Wanderers,—both published by Masters and Co. Correspondence. [The Editor is not responsible for the opinions of the Correspondents.] To the Editor of the Churchman's Companion. Answers. ANCIENT LITURGIES. SIR,-Writers upon Oriental Liturgies are sometimes carried away by their enthusiasm into statements which will not bear examination, and a few independent remarks on the subject may be of service to some of your readers, who would judge for themselves of arguments supposed to show that these Liturgies are coeval with the inspired Apostles, and that whatever of doctrine or practice unAnglican, so not really Catholic, may have found its way into them, has the sanction of their authority. Not to occupy your space with animadversion upon obviously strained and inconclusive reasoning, I will confine myself to a matter or two of a more specious kind. 1. The Alexandrian Liturgy (named after S. Mark) alluding to S. John xx. 22, says, emphusesas eis ta prosopa auton, "having breathed into their faces," copying from the Egyptian or Coptic translation a word supplying an ellipsis in the original Greek. This it is alleged must have existed in earlier Greek copies of the Gospel quoted by the Liturgy, and afterwards have "dropped out" of the text, so as not to appear in a single extant MS.! (Pp. 192, 3.) What would Griesbach, what would Tischendorf have said to such an extravagant idea! S. John simply says enephusese : the verb emphusao means to breathe into or upon (something). Hederic sub voc. instances this passage, "enephusese, scil. autois," He breathed upon, to wit, them. The close Vulgate merely gives insufflavit, He breathed into; but the Syriac, an earlier version, supplies the ellipsis, n'phach b'hon, breathed into them; so the neighbouring Ethiopic, naphkha lagnlehomu, breathed towards them. What then has the Egyptian done in afnifi ekhoun khen pouho? it has only instead of "them" supplied "their face," agreeably to a Coptic idiom, as in S. Matth. xi. 26, emprosthen sou, before Thee, Coptic empekemtho, literally, before Thy face; ver. 28, pros me, to Me, Coptic haroi, lit. to My mouth; (compare Hebrew liphnei, before, mipp'nei, because of, lit. to, from, the face of.) It has done the same exactly with other verbs, S. Mark xv. 19, eneptuon autō, they spat on Him, Coptic auhithaf khen pefho, spat in His face; S. Luke xv. 20, katephilesen auton, he kissed him, Coptic aftiphi eröf, lit. his mouth. The Greek has not "dropped out" in any of these places, the Coptic has only translated in its own way the sacred text as we have it now, and the Liturgy's prosopa is but a copy of the Egyptian version's idiomatic rendering. 2. The Jerusalem Liturgy says, "the bread. . . He gave to us His disciples and apostles, saying," &c. This it is assumed must have been written by one of the eleven, (p. 194.) But if it indicates that, it obviously could only have been recited by them, and on their decease must have become a dead letter: its very occurrence here therefore disproves the assumption. As regards" us," it has no such limitation: our own prayer says, "in His holy gospel He commanded us to continue:" and as regards apostolois, the word has a general application to the ministry (Rom. x. 15, "how shall they preach except apostalosi they be sent" as apostles; Phil. ii. 25, "Epaphroditus your apostolon," Vulg. vestrum apostolum), as well as its particular restriction to those "whom He named Apostles:" and it may certainly here be taken in its general sense. But the terms might also be used at any time collectively of the Church, just as "us men and our salvation" means all mankind, past, present, and future. (Cf. Coll. S. Matthias' Day.) 3. The same Liturgy, among many other citations from the New Testament, quotes Col. ii. 14, and directly after 1 Cor. ii. 9, which is derived by S. Paul from Isaiah. With an important exception, as below, the Greek words of S. Paul and the Liturgy are the same, though they are used in the Liturgy incongruously and awkwardly enough, like a favourite quotation that one will drag in. But not agreeing exactly with Isa. lxiv. 4, Dr. Neale alleged that S. Paul had quoted the Liturgy! (P. 199.) He based this hysteron-proteron upon a notion that in S. Paul the words are only a fragment taken literally even to ungrammaticalness out of the Liturgy's complete sentence; which is erroneous in both particulars, they are neither literal nor ungrammatical. In S. Paul there is a nominative, ha hetoimasen ho theos tois agaposin auton, "which GOD hath prepared," &c. ; but in the Liturgy it is a vocative, ha hetoimasas, ho theos, tois agaposi se, "which Thou, O GOD, hast prepared for them that love Thee." Now S. Paul had no need to change a vocative to a nominative, for he has quoted vocatives in Heb. i. 8 and 10, but the Liturgy was forced to change his nominative to a vocative, the passage being inserted in a prayer; which proves that the Liturgy is the borrower. Neither is S. Paul ungrammatical, for the verse may be taken (1) as connected with what precedes, or (2) independently by itself, or (3) as connected with what follows. The passage does not begin with "which," as Neale says; ha is "the things which," for an unexpressed antecedent is contained in the relative, (unadvisedly ignored by the A.V.) (1.) It will join in apposition with the preceding. "We speak the wisdom, &c., which none of the princes knew, &c., but (we speak) as it is written, things which eye hath not seen," &c. In this way translators have taken it; the English of Geneva, 1557, "But we preach, as it is written, things which eye," &c.; Beza, sed prædicamus, sicut scriptum est, quæ oculus, &c.: and the Danish has men vi forkynde, som skrevet er, hvad intet öie, &c. Adam Clarke so, "the sense is continued from ver. 7, laloumen is understood." (2.) It can stand as an anacoluthon, non-constructively, as do the citations in S. Luke ii. 24, 1 Cor. iii. 19, Heb. i. 7, which in the Greek are without any predicate. But not even so of necessity, for it may be taken by itself constructively, the substantive verb in such cases can always be added, as in Heb. v. 6; it may be rendered, "the things which GOD hath prepared, &c., are things which eye hath not," &c.; and so in the Italian, (Diodati,) Le cose che occhio non ha vedute, &c., son quelle che Iddio ha preparate, &c. (3.) It may be joined to the following verse, "the things which eye hath not seen, nor ear heard, and which have not entered into the heart of man, &c., GOD hath indeed revealed to us." The recently improved Hebrew translation thus takes it, haddebarim asher gnain lo, &c., ak lanu gillah haelohim. It is read in this way by Dean Alford. S. Paul has quoted Isaiah, but only, as often in the New Testament, the general idea, viz., that the blessings of the Gospel were such as "the world had never seen or heard of before." Similarly our LORD in S. John vii. 38 quotes the Scripture, but not in literal words anywhere to be found beyond the common Hebrew phrase mayim chayim, living or running water.1 These Eastern Liturgies are interspersed throughout with terms of all sorts which never occur in the writings of the Apostles, nor had any existence in theology till long after the close of 1 In the "Epistle of Clement" (which makes particular mention of 1 Cor. and the subject of chap. i.) these words of S. Paul are cited as well as by the Liturgy, but in a more natural connection. Clement quotes verbatim, with no change of S. Paul's nominative, (though omitting theos,) but with Isaiah's concluding verb: "For he says, Ophthalmos ouk eiden, eye hath not seen, &c., tois upomenousin auton, for them that wait for Him." In another (spurious) Clementine Epistle the verse is partly quoted, as also in the Epistle by the Church of Smyrna about Polycarp's martyrdom, with trifling variations. the New Testament. Much that they contain cannot possibly be, and whether anything at all may be, of Apostolic date, is matter of the merest conjecture: to "restore" them, as Trollope and others have attempted, is impossible. They are valuable and interesting as ecclesiastical documents, but they are no more real evidence of what is "Church Doctrine and Bible Truth" than are the mediæval inventions still persisted in by Rome, but happily discarded by the Church of England. (See Article xix.) -Yours, &c., PHILALETHES. [The Author of "Primitive Liturgies" will reply fully to the above letter next month.-ED. C. C.] S. VALENTINE'S DAY. SIR,-The custom of writing love letters on S. Valentine's Day is of great antiquity. The accounts given of its origin are various. By many it is traced to the ancient Lupercalia, the Feast of Pan, and Juno Februata, at which it was the custom to put the names of a number of young women into an urn, which were then drawn by lot by the young men, each of whom devoted himself to the person whose name he had drawn while the feast lasted. Alban Butler in his "Lives of the Saints," says that, to abolish the heathenish, lewd, superstitious custom of boys drawing the names of girls in honour of their goddess, Februata Juno, on the 14th of February, several zealous pastors substituted the names of saints in billets given on that day. S. Francis de Sales, he says, severely forbade the custom of Valentines, or giving boys in writing the names of girls to be admired and attended on by them, and to abolish it, he changed it into giving billets with the names of certain saints to honour and imitate in a particular manner. Another reason for the observance of this day is one given by the poets, that as at this season of the year birds choose their mates, so young persons should do the same. Shakespeare in his "Midsummer Night's Dream" alludes to this where he says "Saint Valentine is past, Begin these wood birds but to couple now?" And Herrick in his "Hesperides" has the following: To his Valentine on S. Valentine's Day. "Oft have I heard both youths and virgins say, Birds choose their mates and couple too But by their flight I never can divine But, says the author of "Justorum Semita," perhaps the most probable reason, and certainly the most interesting is that it was customary in the Middle Ages during the time of the Carnival, which usually happened about S. Valentine's Day, for a great number of knights and ladies to assemble at the various Courts of Europe, and feasts and tournaments were held for their amusement, and at these times each lady made choice of a knight, who devoted himself to her service for a whole year. One duty which he frequently bad to perform was to address verses to her full of tenderness, which he wrote as a matter of course, without necessarily feeling all that he expressed. The earliest poetical Valentines known to exist are those written by Charles, Duke of Orleans, father of King Louis XII. of France. Brand in his Antiquities has also some interesting facts about this old custom.-Yours, &c., WILLIE BLAKE. [ERNEST B. TEESDALE gives the same information, and adds the following as to the saint himself: "Valentine, Priest and Martyr, cir. A.D. 270, Feb. 14. Having befriended the martyrs in the persecution under Claudius II., he was himself seized and sent before the Prefect of Rome, who caused him to be beaten with clubs and then beheaded."] CHURCH MISSIONS TO THE ZENANAS. SIR,-In reply to SANTA CRUZ, the Ladies' Association in connection with the Society for the Propagation of the Gospel, sends female mission teachers to the Zenanas in India, and works on the same principles as the parent society, namely, entirely on Church principles. The latest Report will be sent on application to the Hon. Secretary of the Ladies' Association, S. P. G. Office, 19, Delahay Street, Westminster, or, if desired, by Yours, &c., FRANCES E. LONGLEY, Hon. Secretary of Candidates SubCommittee. MUSIC PRACTISING SOCIETY. Miss ENGLAND encloses the Rules of her Music Practising Society to INA as requested. Rules. 1. Each Member must undertake to practise steadily one hour daily. This hour may be taken consecutively, or in two half hours at different times. 2. Each Member to note down in a book the hours in which they practise, and the times they miss. 3. Any Member failing to complete the stipulated time, to pay a fine of 6d. 4. Each Member to subscribe 1s. quarterly. 5. Prizes 1st, 2nd, and 3rd will be given at the end of the quarter to those who do not miss, those who miss once and those who miss twice. 6. No one can join this Society for less than three months. 7. In case of illness, or any urgent necessity, when a Member finds it impossible to practise, she must apply to the Secretary, who will decide whether the fines may be remitted for the time. 8. Subscriptions to be sent to the Secretary and Treasurer before the commencement of the quarter, Nov. 1st, Feb. 1st, May 1st, and August 1st. 9. Note books and fines to be forwarded to the Secretary on Feb. 1st, May 1st, August 1st, Nov. 1st, also Subscription for the following quarter. Secretary and Treasurer, Miss H. ENGLAND, Phillimore Lodge, Carlton Road, Putney Hill. Rules 1d., or to be returned by non-Members. PRACTISING CLUB. SIR,-In reply to your correspondent INA I beg to state a few more members are wanted to join the "Depwade Practising Club." Practising for an hour a day enforced, and prizes given at the end of the year. I shall be happy to forward the Rules on receipt of a stamped and addressed envelope.Yours, &c., Miss COOPER, Forncett S. Mary Rectory, Long Stratton, Norfolk. "DO THE WORK THAT'S NEAREST." SIR,-In reply to A. L. W., I beg to say that the quotation, "Do the work that's nearest," is from a holiday letter of the late Canon Kingsley, published in his Life.-Yours, &c., THE WRITER OF "OCCASIONAL PAPERS." [J. B. JOHNSON gives the same answer.-ED. C. C.] Queries. OUR LORD ON THE CROSS. SIR,-Can any of your readers tell me (and if so why ?) whether it has at all times been a rule to picture the mark of the spear on the right side of our LORD'S Body? One would have thought that the intention of the soldier was to reach the heart; whereas, so far as my observation goes, the Wound is always found on the opposite side. The placing the Wound at a distance from the heart however seems valuable as contradicting a vulgar error, which supposes the water that flowed from our LORD'S Side to have been the watery liquid that resides in the pericardium, which is far too small in quantity to have been visible to the eye, even if it had not mingled with the Blood. The true notion is that the whole phenomenon was miraculous (as even the Blood would not have flowed out when the heart had ceased to beat in death) and was designed for the purpose of indicating the two Great Sacraments of the Gospel.-Yours, &c., ANATOMIST. HELP BY NEEDLEWORK FOR COTHER STONE. Will kind readers of the Churchman's Companion help with needlework in erecting a Church at Cotherstone, Yorkshire, where there is a population of 400? There is to be a sale of work in August.-Mrs. T. WALTON, Romaldkirk, Yorkshire. ACTS XVIII. 18. SIR,-Will you or any of your correspondents inform me who took the vow spoken of in Acts xviii. 18, was it S. Paul or Aquila ?—Yours, &c., META. PRIMITIVE LITURGIES. SIR,-Will Mr. D. BURNARD JONES inform me where I can get the "Occasional Papers of the E. C. A. ?" also what these initials represent? He refers to above in Introduction to his valuable papers on the Primitive Liturgies, which I hope he will publish in book form on their completion.-Yours, &c., EUGENE TEESDALE. HARMONY SOCIETY. Amateur Society for learning Harmony by correspondence; send stamp for particulars to M. L. B., 182, Holland Road, South Kensington, London. ACKNOWLEDGMENTS. Miss HICK begs to acknowledge with many thanks packets of Christmas cards and scraps from the following: Ada K., R. P., three packets from M. A. S., N. E., London, E. F. H., Weston-superMare, H. Northcote, Guernsey, one with Richmond postmark, and one from "Friends who read the Churchman's Companion," postmark Bridgewater. SIR, I beg to acknowledge with many thanks 2s. 6d. and two books from Miss Mary Boys, (for Library for Sick and Aged,) still asking the readers of your Magazine for a share of their charity. I have now about sixty books (many already out,) hoping soon to make up one hundred.-Yours, &c., F. EAST MAN. |