THIRD SUNDAY IN ADVENT.

FROM the fixth century at latest to the fourteenth, the Gofpel appointed by the Church of England was often uniformly, and always generally read on this day. In its room the Roman and moft of the Western Churches had fubftituted the testimony that the Baptift bore to Jefus, recorded in the first chapter of St. John's Gofpel. Our Reformers however thought it proper to retain the paffage that is found in the ancient Sacra mentaries.

Our Epiftle likewife is the fame that was an ciently appointed for this day, or in the language of the old Lectionaries and Sacramentaries, for the fecond Sunday before Christmas. In lieu of it, the Roman and Gallican Churches have for several centuries read a portion from St. Paul's Epistle to the Philippians*.

The Collect was drawn up at the last Revifal (1661), and has a reference to both the Epiftle and Gospel. Before that period the Collect was, "Lord, we beseech thee, give ear to our prayers, "and by thy gracious vifitation lighten the dark"nefs of our hearts, by our Lord Jefus Christ,” which is tranflated from that found in GREGORY, and the Miffals.

FOURTH SUNDAY IN ADVENT.

THE Collect, Epiftle, and Gospel for this day, have been always used in Advent, though not always on the fourth Sunday. It was long cuftomary to repeat the offices appropriated to the third Sunday, on the fourth, that having been confidered as a vacant Sunday. In the modern Roman and Gallican Churches, this Epiftle and Gospel are appointed for the third Sunday; and for the fourth their Epiftle, or rather Lection in lieu of the Epiftle, is taken from Isaiah *, and their Gospel from Luket. With neither of these portions of Scripture does the Collect feem to have much affinity; and the observation may, I think, be extended to the relation that exifts between the Epiftle and Gofpel that we read, and our Collect, which it is evident was compiled from one or both of the Collects already quoted in p. 31.

ON THE

NATIVITY, OR BIRTH-DAY OF OUR LORD,

COMMONLY CALLED

CHRISTMAS-DAY.

The feast of the Nativity is, by many writers, fuppofed to have originated in the apoftolic age.

Chap. vii. verfe 10 to verfe 16.

+ Chap. i. verse 26 to verse 39, omitting the last sentence in verfe 38. Here I fpeak of the Gallican Missal only.

The first veftige that the learned author of primitive Christianity finds of it, is in the fecond century; though he doubts not but it might have been celebrated before*. In the time of BASIL, as he and his contemporaries teftify, the feaft of the Nativity was observed with a veneration fuperior to that of the Lord's day. In this age, fermons, that are ftill extant, were preached on Christmasday, and the Communion always adminiftered. CHRYSOSTOM in particular affirms, that the celebration of this feftival was, when he wrote, of great antiquity: That from the very beginning of the Chriftian Church it was renowned far and wide, even from Thrace to Cadiz. He ftyles it, "of all "festivals the most venerable, the mother and me"tropolis of the rest. From this," he fays, "the Theophany," that is the Epiphany, "the holy ""Pafchal feast," or Eafter, "the Affumption," that is the Afcenfion, "and Pentecoft took their "rife.” On this day, in the time of LEO, the Sacrament of the Lord's Supper was administered at three different times.

The Nativity of our Saviour was not always in all churches celebrated on the twenty-fifth of December. By fome it was obferved in April, or May, and by others on the fame day with our feast of the Epiphany in January. This laft was, for feveral centuries, kept as our Lord's Birth-day by the Churches of Alexandria and Egypt, of Jerufa

* Part I. page 194.
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lem

lem and Palestine, of Antioch, and by others of the Eaft. But afterwards upon making enquiry and receiving better information, the Oriental Churches altered the day and conformed to the practice of the Western World, which uniformly celebrated Chrift's Nativity on the twenty-fifth day of December.

The two Leffons at Morning Prayer are taken from Ifaiah and Luke*. The firft contains an explicit prophecy of the coming of Chrift in the flesh, and of the establishment of his kingdom: the fe→ cond relates the hiftory of his Nativity, and recounts fome of the ftriking circumftances that attended it.

The evening Leffons are taken from Isaiah and Paul's Epiftle to Titust; the firft foretells the miraculous conception of the Virgin, and the birth of Chrift. The fecond proposes the advantages of regeneration and fanctification, by the grace of God, through Jesus Christ, and urges the neceffity of good works in order to obtain falvation.

The Collect prays that we may be partakers of the benefits of Chrift's birth, and made children of God by adoption and grace. The Epiftle proves the Divinity of Chrift, and the excellence of the Religion which he taught. The Gofpel has the fame tendency, leading us to infer the excellence of the Chriftian Difpenfation from that of its Author,

* Ifa. ix to verfe 8. Luke xi. to verse 15. + Ifa. vii. verse 10 to 17. Tit. iii. verse 4

The accurate examination of those parts of the Offices, that are peculiar to this day, must impress us with an high idea of the good taste, as well as piety of the compilers. The Leffons, the Epiftle and the Gospel, like the Angel, bring us "glad

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tidings of great joy," and declare "that unto us is born a Saviour, who is Chrift the Lord." The appropriate Pfalms, and the proper preface before the Trifagium in the Communion, teach us how to praise God for all the things we this day hear and fee, and to fing with the heavenly hoft, Glory to God in the higheft, and on earth peace, "good-will towards men."

ST. STEPHEN'S DAY.

STEPHEN was an early convert to Christianity, and the first that fell a Martyr to the Chriftian Faith. In the Acts he is reprefented as a perfon of fingular holiness, ability and zeal, being "full of

faith, and of power, and of the Holy Ghoft *." Of the feven that were elected by the Apoftles to the office of Deacon, STEPHEN is the first named, and he is afterwards recorded to have done " great "wonders and miracles among the people t." His adverfares, members of five feparate Synagogues at Jerufalem," unable to refift the wifdom and fpirit by which he spoke, fuborned falfe wit"neffes, who depofed that they had heard him fpeak blafphemous words against Mofes and

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* Chap. vi. 5.

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+ Ibid. ver. 8.

"against