The central Presbyterian. [volume] (Richmond, Va.) 1856-1908, 1880-12-22

bread to which our Lord referred when
He said, Drink ye all of it" that very
cup which they now in plain disobedience
to His divine command withhold from
His people. What is contained under
the wafer must be eaten; it cannot be
drank. So that they give the people of
God nothing to drink. Christ said,
Drink we ALL of it." Rome says,
Drink ye NONE of it." Half the sacra-
ment they have taken away. They give
their people only halfSacrame,t at the
most.
Third, The Apostle Paul who was ad-
dressing not priests, but Christian people,
joins eating the bread" and drinking
the cup" so as to show that they are in
separately joined in the communion "As
often as ye eat this bread and drink this
cup ye do show the Lords death till He
come" But let a man examine him
self and so let him eat of that bread and
drink of that cup" etc. These words
clearly show that communion in one kind
is as binding as in the other that both
are essential to the integrity of the com
munion; that the omission of either one
invalidates the whole service, and that
thus communion administered in only
one, is not simply half-sacrament, it is
no sacrament at ALL
Fourth, This custom is utterly at va
rance with the whole usage of the early
Church. Cardinal Bona, an eminent Ro-
manist, admits (Rer. Liturg. II, l8) that
the faithful always, and in all places.
from the first beginnings of the Church
till the twelfth century, were used to
communicate under the species both of
bread and wine" and the most volumi-
nous testimony could be brought, if ne
cessary, to confirm this declaration.
Fifth, The Council of Constance which
in l415 first by law established the usage
which now forbids the cup to all except
the officiating clergyman, confesses in the
very decree of prohibition that this ac-
tion is in the face of our Lords example,
of apostolic usage, and of the customs of
the primitive Church. Its language is,
" although Christ did after supper insti-
tute this holy sacrament and administered
it to his disciples IN both kinds, yet NOT
wITHsTANDING THIS, the laudable au-
thority of the sacred conons, etc., and
although this sacrament was received by
the faithful IN both kinds IN the primitive
Church, the Holy Council DEGREES" etc.,
the substance of the decree being that
the contrary usage is henceforth to be
law; any persons who maintain it to be
sacrilegious or unlawful are 10 be con-
demned-and if they persist, punished by
tie ZnquiSitiOn as heretacS; while any
priest who dares to follow Christs exam
pie, and obey Christ command and con-
form to apostolic and primitive usage is
to be communicated, and handed over
to the secular power to be burned. Nor
was this any idle threat, for when Huss
and Jerome of Prague, raised their voice
against this innovation they were very
summarily brought to the stake and
burned, as were many others less dis
tinguished than they.
And this decree of the Council of Con-
stance is to-day the law Of the Church,
having never been revoked, so that all
who persist in obeying the command of
Christ, Drink ye all of it" are con-
demned to accommodation and inquisi-
torial Gres.
Sirth Although this infallible Council
has so decreed, yet "infalhble" Popes
have time and again defined" just as
strongly against this half-communion
which gives only the bread to the people
and reserves the wine for the priest
Pope Leo the Great (Hom. XII says of
the half-sacrament" people Of his day
They receive Christ's body with un-
worthy mouth but utterly refuse to quaff
the blood Of our redemption, therefore we
give notice to you, holy ones, that such
men, whose sacrilegious deceit has been
discovered, are to be erpelled from the
fellowship of the SAINTS" Pope Gelasius
l. in letter to some of his bishops corp.
Jur. Can. Decret. III II: 12) says:
We have ascertained that certain per
sons, having received a portion of the
Sacred Body alone, abstain from partak-
ing of the chalice of the Sacred Blood.
Let such persons without doubt either
receive the sacrament in its entirety or
be expelled from the entire sacrament.
because the division of one and the same
mystery cannot take place aOitbom great
socT5tege" The Council of Clermont in
1906, (Pope Urban II presiding) decreed
as its 28th canon, that 10 one shall
communicate at the altar unless he re-
ceive the body and blood separately and
alike, unless by way of necessity and for
caution"
leave DR.. O'Connell to settle for us
at his leisure, which Of these conflicting