The central Presbyterian. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1856-1908, 1880-09-08

have an altar. lie explained that the
crucifx on the altar shows that the sacri-
flee offered on that altar is the showing
forth of the death of the Lord, &C."
Now, the first question l would like to
ask is, Did Bishop K really mean to
teach that when Paul said "we have an
altar" he referred to material altar
such as the Roman Catholics now have
in their churches? His language will
not, it seems to me, bear any other con-
struction. 1t was so understood by all
his hearers with whom have conversed.
l have no doubt that he meant it to be so
understood His advice about Protest
ant churches could have no significance
if he did not. Well, then, taking it for
granted that this is his Interpretation,
that Paul referred to a material altar on
which the sacrifice of the Mass was of
fered, would like to ask him where he
thinks this altar was, for the apostle only
mentions one. You will notice that he
uses the singular number; he does not
say "we have altars," but 1--WE have an
altar. The a0e evidently refers to the
whole Christian Church, and as st. Paul
speaks of the whole Church as having a
single altar, would like to know where
Bishop K. thinks that altar was. Did it
remain at Jerusalem where, according to
the Roman Catholics, "Mass" was first
celebrated? Or did Peter carry it with
him to Rome? Or did Paul carry it with
him on his missionary tour? Did he have
it with him when he "thrice suffered
shipwreck?" Did he still hold on to it
when he was "a night and day in the
Il
other apostles do for an altar whilst Paul
was travelling around with that one?
Did they have to wait until the one con-
secrated altar came home before they
could say Mass? And must not the poor
souls in Purgatory have had hard time
when there was only one altar on which
their friends could "offer the honoraries
of one or more dollars for the intentions
of the Masses of priest in their behalf"
and Paul had that one away off in Asia
Minor, or Spain, or some other remote
province of the Roman Empire.
Now | hope the Bishop, or his spokes-
man, will not seek to free himself from
this embarrassing question in the same
illogical way that Archbishop Gibbons
does In that very remarkable book of his,
The Faith of our Fathers" where after
quoting the words of Paul, 1--WE have an
altar, he naively adds, (page 314), "The
! Apostle here plainly declares that the
Christian Church has its affairs as well as
the Jewish synagogue which is as com
were to quote the apostles words little
above, We have such an High Priest,
and then add, 1.-The apostle here plainly
declares that the Christian Church has
I" its high priests as well as the Jewish
synagogue. The Jewish synagogue had
no altars, as it had no high priests. The
tabernacle to which Paul refers (and not
to the synagogue) had one sacrifcial
altar and one high priest, and only one.
So the temple had but one altar of pro-
pitiating sacrifice and one high priest.
And the apostle means to teach here
that as the Jewish Church had but one
altar propitiatory sacrifice, so the Chris
tian Church has but one. But if Bishop
Keanes Interpretation of this passage is
correct, then the Roman Catholic Church
must explain how it has come to multiply
affairs so as to have one or more in every
church edifce. On, altar suficed under
the old economy, and the most rigid pro.
hANAOiOho WOiO ldlO pun Iu6 eT6CGlOQ OF
use OF more than that one (see Deut. xii
5-28). st. Paul says we have one under
the new dispensation-one for the whole
Church. And the whole Church con-
tinued to have but one altar of propitia-
tory sacrifice for several centuries after
Christ, until the rise of the Church of
Rome. One of the first marks of its de-
fection was the multiplication of affairs of
propitiatory sacrifice, Just as under the
old economy, one Of the first marks of
apostacy was the multiplication of altars
Of burnt offering, in the land. This null
tiplication has gone forward until to-day.
instead of one altar, as in the DAYS of
Paul, we behold ten thousand affairs on
which ten thousand priests are imagined
to be Offering each propitatory sacrifice
every time the Mass is celebrated; for
the Council Of Trent says (Canon 8 of the
Mass): If any one saith that the sacri-
fee of the Mass is only a sacrifice of praise
and Thanksgiving, or that it is bare
commemoration Of the sacrifice consum-
mated on the cross, but not propitiatory
sacrifice, or that it profits only him who
receives it, and that it ought not to be
offered for the living and the dead, for
sins, pains, satisfactions, and other neces-
sites, let him be anathemap
If Paul had been q Roman Catholic bo