omission of the author seems not to have been any chance slip, or occasioned by any forgetfulness, but to have been owing rather to contrivance and design: for I observe, that he is constant and uniform in the same neglect, quite through the book. In page 230, where he is professedly treating of the object of prayer, he expressly confines it to the person of the Father, taking no notice either of Son or Holy Ghost. Again he observes, page 233, that "the supreme power and perfections of God are just and "unexceptionable reasons of praying to him;" intimating, as I conceive, that praying to any persons who are not vested with supreme power and perfections is not unexceptionable: and it is very well known that he does not ascribe supreme power or perfections to the Son or Holy Ghost. So that here again he seems to have excluded them from worship, and has manifestly dropped their claim and title to it. In like manner, page 293, speaking of the form of baptism, he interprets it of dedicating ourselves to the service and worship of the Father, but to the obedience and imitation only of Christ, and to the direction and guidance of the Holy Spirit: so that here a fourth time he has dropped the worship of two of the divine Persons, where it ought to have been mentioned. He speaks indeed of worshipping God the Father, "through the one "Mediator d," and "through the mediation of Jesus "Christe." And he repeats some texts, such as Phil. ii. JO, 11 f. and Heb. i. 68. which are express for the worship of Christ, according to the common way of construing them but he barely repeats them, not telling us whether he understands them of proper worship, or otherwise. This so remarkable reservedness and shyness of the author in so important an article, looks, at least, as if the intent were to throw off the worship both of the Son and Holy Ghost. But perhaps we may be able to judge more certainly of his sentiments from his other writings.

In Scripture Doctrine, published 1712, he observed h, as from Bishop Wakei, that "we should pray to God only, "and to him as our Father, through Jesus Christ our "Lord." But then he subjoined a provisionary salvo for the worship of God the Son, in these words: "The "meaning is not, that prayers may not at all be offered "to the Son, but that they must always ultimately be "directed to God only, as our Father, through Christ." This salvo, however, was dropped in the next edition of Scripture Doctrinek, in 1719. By which it may seem that the author had then changed his mind, as to the article of worship. And indeed in Modest Plea, published that same year, he contends for the manner of worshipping the Father through Christ, in opposition to every other mode or form of worship, or in opposition to the direct worship of any Person beside the Father only. The reader, I hope, will not think it a digression from my purpose, if I here examine all that has been urged upon that head in Modest Plea, since it may reasonably be presumed, that the Exposition, made by the same author, had the same views, and was drawn up according to much the same principles.

1. He pleads, that our Saviour's direction to his Disciples was, "When ye pray, say, Our FATHER." Which if he understands with utmost strictness, laying an emphasis upon when, as if we were never to pray otherwise, he will thereby exclude the use of all prayers but the Lord's Prayer. For undoubtedly, when ye pray, say, belongs as much to the whole prayer as to the two first words, and leaves as much room for a different direction (if otherwise proper) as for different prayers. But I humbly conceive,

h Clarke's Script. Doctr. p. 362. edit. 1.

i Archbishop Wake's words are, 66 through faith in Christ Jesus ;" referring to Gal. iii. 26. which shews that he is there speaking of a different matter, and not determining the object of prayer to the Father only. Comm, on the Catech. p. 130. edit. 3.

See Clarke's Scripture Doctrine, p. 297. edit. 2. 1 Clarke's Modest Plea, p. 177.

that our Lord's command about praying (when ye pray, say) will be abundantly answered, if the Lord's Prayer be but constantly joined with our other prayers, and never omitted in our solemn devotions.

2. He further pleads, that "the practice of the primi❝tive Church, in the three first centuries, (as appears by "the passages cited in Dr. Clarke's Scripture Doctrine m, "to which may be added that of Irenæus ",) was to di"rect their prayers uniformly to God the Father, through "his Son Jesus Christ." To which I answer,

If he means by uniformly, constantly and invariably, so as to exclude every other kind or form of worship, or prayer, the report is not true, but notoriously false. St. Thomas addressed himself directly to our Saviour, in a high rapture of devotion, calling out to him, " My Lord "and my God." The Disciples all worshipped Christ directly as he went up into heaven P. St. Stephen, full of the Holy Ghost, prayed to Christ with his dying breath, and in as solemn a prayer as our Lord's upon the cross ¶. St. Paul frequently wished and prayed for grace, peace, mercy, direction, and comfort; not from the Father by or through Christ, but from both jointly; from God the Fa ther and the Lord Jesus Christ, or from Christ singly'. Thrice he prayed solemnly to Christ, that he might be delivered from the "thorn in the fleshs: once he devoutly addressed himself to all the three Persons jointly t: some devotional acts he performed towards the Holy Ghost

m Part ii. sect. 44.

• John xx. 28.

n Lib. iv. c. 33.

P Luke xxiv. 51, 52.

Acts vii. 59, 60. "Lord Jesus receive my spirit. Lord, lay not this sin "to their charge." Compare Luke xxiii. 46. "Father, into thy hands I "commend my spirit." Luke xxiii. 34. "Father, forgive them, for they "know not what they do."

1 Thess. i. 1. iii. 11. v. 28. 2 Thess. i. 2. ii. 16, 17. iii. 16, 18. 1 Cor. i. 3. xvi. 23. 2 Cor. i. 2. Gal. i. 3. vi. 18. Rom. i. 7. xvi. 20, 24. Ephes. i. 2, vi. 23. Philipp. i. 2. ii. 19, 24. iv. 23. Coloss. i. 2. Philem. iii. 25. 1 Tim. i. 2, 12. Tit. i. 4. 2 Tim. i. 2. iv. 17, 18, 22.

⚫ 2 Cor. xii. 7, 8, 9.

t2 Cor. xiii. 14.

u

singly ; and a noted doxology to Christ, as "over all "God blessed for ever." St. Peter also put up his doxologies to Christy. St. John also prayed for grace, mercy, and peace, from God the Father, and from the Lord Jesus Christ, not merely through Christ. And he begged the like from all the three Persons jointly a. The Psalmist, of old time, worshipped Christ as God, and as the "Lord "that laid the foundation of the earth," the Jehovah b. The holy angels of God worship him. The whole creation join in the same common doxology to the Father and the Sond; not to the Father through the Son. So stood the practice according to Scripture accounts. As to primitive practice, in the ages next succeeding the Apostles, there are many instances of the martyrs and others praying directly to Christ, and abundant proofs of the worship of Father, Son, and Holy Ghost. The testimonies have been collected by several hands, and may be seen in English, with proper remarks upon theme. To which may be added, one general argument from what passed in the Praxean, Noëtian, and Sabellian controversies; in which the Catholics were charged with worshipping three Gods, and never denied the fact, as to their worshipping Father, Son, and Holy Ghost, but disowned the charge of worshipping three Gods, asserting the unity of the Godhead in three Persons.

Now as to what the Modest Plea pretends from Justin Martyr, Irenæus, and Origen, it is indeed plain enough, and no one denies, that the primitive Christians often, or generally, offered up prayers to the Father through Christ, (and through the Holy Ghost too) but it does not appear that they were uniform in the practice, or that all prayers

e

■ Rev. i. 4, 5.

c Heb. i. 6.

Bingham's Antiquities, book xiii. c. 2, 3. Berriman's Review, and Sesond Review. Sermons, p. 155, &c. Mangey's Defence of Doxologies. Abrah. Taylor's True Scripture Doctrine, p. 79, &c. 374, &c.

ran in that form: the contrary is evident. If any thing can be justly pleaded as to Origen's opinion, from one book supposed to be his, about prayer, it was his opinion only, and not his constant opinion, against the judgment and practice of the whole Church, and corrected afterwards by his own better thoughts in his books against Celsus, as has been often proved f.

66

3. Modest Plea goes on: "Even in the former part of "the fourth century, it does not appear (notwithstanding "the growing disputes about speculative matters) that "there was yet any thing more put into their public Liturgies than the general doctrines of Christianity, in "which all agreed." To which it is sufficient to answer, that it does not appear that there ever was any public Liturgy of the Christian Church that directed all prayers to the Father only, or that did not offer up worship to Father, Son, and Holy Ghost: so that if nothing was inserted more than the general doctrines of Christianity, we shall then have a fair and good proof from the early Liturgies, so far as we have any accounts of them, that the faith in, and the worship of three divine Persons, were the general doctrines of Christianity in the purest and best ages.

4. Modest Plea farther urges, that "in the third Coun"cil of Carthage, to prevent innovations then arising, it “was decreed, that when the priest stands at the altar, " he should direct his prayer always to the Father."

Yes, "when the priest stands at the altar;" and there were particular reasons for it. But that very restriction shows, that in other parts of their service they were not confined to any such rule: besides that even there the glorification in the close was in common to Father, Son, and Holy Ghost. That Council was held under Aurelius,

f See Bingham's Antiq. book xiii. c. 2. My Second Defence, vol. iii. p. 69, 106, 366, &c. See also the late learned editor of Origen. wegì sửx. p. 78, 81, 82.

* Sce Petavius de Trin. lib. iii. c. 7. sect. 15. Bingham's Antiq. book xiii. c. 2.