receiving the

he might be bet

cate the said emperor, and brought him to † He was only open penance. And they that were so justly dehorted from exempted and banished, as it were, from the sacrament, until house of the Lord, were taken (as they be by repentance indeed) for men divided and separated from ter prepared. Christ's church, and in most dangerous estate, Chrysost. yea, as St. Paul saith, even given unto Satan the devil for a time (1 Cor. v. 5); and their company was shunned and avoided of all godly men and women, until such time as they by repentance and public penance were reconciled. Such was the honour of the Lord's house in men's hearts, and outward reverence also at that time, and so horrible a thing was it to be shut out of the church and house of the Lord in those days, when religion was most pure, and nothing so corrupt as it hath been of late days. And yet we willingly, either by absenting ourselves from the house of the Lord, do, as it were, excommunicate ourselves from the church and fellowship of the saints of God, or else coming thither, by uncomely and unreverent behaviour there, by hasty, rash, yea, unclean and wicked thoughts and words before the Lord our God, horribly dishonour his holy house, the church of God, and his holy name and majesty, to the great danger of our souls, yea, and certain damnation also, if we do not speedily and earnestly repent us of this wickedness.

Thus ye have heard, dearly beloved, out of God's word, what reverence is due to the holy house of the Lord, how all godly persons ought with diligence at times appointed thither to repair, how they ought to behave themselves there, with reverence and dread before the Lord, what plagues and punishments, as well temporal as eternal, the Lord in his holy word threateneth, as well to such as neglect to come to his holy house, as also to such who, coming thither, do unreverently by gesture or talk there behave themselves. Wherefore if we desire to have seasonable weather, and thereby to enjoy the good fruits of the earth; if we will avoid drought and barrenness, thirst and hunger, which are plagues threatened unto such as make haste to go their own houses, to alehouses and taverns, and leave the house of the Lord empty and desolate; if we abhor to be scourged, not with whips made of cords, out of the material temple only, (as our Saviour Christ served the defilers of the house of God in Jerusalem) but also to

be beaten and driven out of the eternal temple and house of the Lord (which is his heavenly kingdom) with the iron rod of everlasting damnation, and cast into utter darkness, where is weeping and gnashing of teeth; if we fear, dread, and abhor this, I say, as we have most just cause to do, then let us amend this our negligence and contempt in coming to the house of the Lord, this our unreverent behaviour in the house of the Lord; and resorting thither diligently together, let us there with reverent hearing of the Lord's holy word, calling on the Lord's holy name, giving of hearty thanks unto the Lord for his manifold and inestimable benefits daily and hourly bestowed upon us, celebrating also reverently the Lord's holy sacraments, serve the Lord in his holy house, as becometh the servants of the Lord, in holiness and righteousness before him all the days of our life; and then we shall be assured after this life to rest in his holy hill, and to dwell in his tabernacle, there to praise and magnify his holy name in the congregation of his saints, in the holy house of his eternal kingdom of heaven, which he hath purchased for us by the death and shedding of the precious blood of his Son our Saviour Jesus Christ: To whom, with the Father and the Holy Ghost, one immortal Majesty of God, be all honour, glory, praise, and thanksgiving, world without end. Amen."

[A suitable Prayer after reading the foregoing Homily.

....

BLESSED be thy name, O Lord God, for that it pleaseth Thee to have thy habitation among the sons of men upon earth, and to dwell in the midst of the assembly of the saints upon earth. . Grant that in this place [the church] set apart to thy service, thy holy name may be worshipped in truth and purity to all generations, through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.

Form used at the Consecration of Churches.

THE Lord himself witnesseth that ignorance of the Scriptures is the mother of all errors. . . . . . . . For this cause, therefore, in old times also, the word of God was openly read in churches, and the help of expounders used when they might have them.. Which custom is also at this day received in our churches by the ordinance of the apostles, and so of God himself.—Nowell's Catechism, pp. 4, 5].

AN HOMILY AGAINST PERIL OF IDOLATRY, AND SUPERFLUOUS DECKING OF

CHURCHES.

THE FIRST PART.

IN what points the true ornaments of the church or temple of God do consist and stand, hath been declared in the two last homilies, entreating of the right use of the temple or house of God, and of the due reverence that all true Christian people are bound to give unto the same. The sum whereof is, that the church or house of God is a place appointed by the Holy Scriptures, where the lively word of God ought to be read, taught, and heard, the Lord's holy name called upon by public prayer, hearty thanks given to his majesty for his infinite and unspeakable benefits bestowed upon us, his holy sacraments duly and reverently ministered; and that therefore all that be godly indeed ought both with diligence at times appointed, to repair together to the said church, and there with all reverence to use and behave themselves before the Lord. And that the said church thus godly used by the servants of the Lord, in the Lord's true service, for the effectual presence of God's grace, wherewith he doth by his holy word and promises endue his people there present and assembled, to the attainment, as well of commodities worldly, necessary for us, as also of all heavenly gifts, and life everlasting, is called by the word of God (as it is indeed) the temple of the Lord, and the house of God, and that therefore the due reverence thereof is stirred up in the hearts of the godly, by the consideration of these true ornaments of the said house of God, and not by any outward ceremonies or costly and glorious decking of the said house or temple of the Lord; contrary to the which most manifest doctrine of the Scriptures, and contrary to the usage of the primitive church, which was most pure and uncorrupt, and contrary to the sentences and judgments of the most ancient, learned, and godly doctors of the church, (as hereafter shall appear) the corruption of these latter days hath brought into the church infinite multitudes of images, and the same, with other parts of the temple also, have decked with gold and silver, painted with colours,

set them with stone and pearl, clothed them with silks and precious vestures, fancying untruly that to be the chief decking and adorning of the temple or house of God, and that all people should be the more moved to the due reverence of the same, if all corners thereof were glorious, and glistering with gold and precious stones. Whereas indeed they by the said images, and such glorious decking of the temple, have nothing at all profited such as were wise and of understanding; but have thereby greatly hurt the simple and unwise, occasioning them thereby to commit most horrible idolatry. And the covetous persons, by the same occasion, seeming to worship, and peradventure worshipping indeed, not only the images, but also the matter of them, gold and silver, as that vice is of all others in the Scriptures peculiarly called idolatry, or worshipping of images (Ephes. v. 5; Colos. iii. 5). Against the which foul abuses and great enormities shall be alleged unto you; first, the authority of God's holy word, as well out of the Old Testament, as of the New. And secondly, the testimonies of the holy and ancient learned fathers and doctors, out of their own works and ancient histories ecclesiastical, both that you may at once know their judgments, and withal understand what manner of ornaments were in the temples in the primitive church, in those times which were most pure and sincere. Thirdly, the reasons and arguments made for the defence of images or idols, and the outrageous decking of temples and churches with gold, silver, pearl, and precious stone, shall be confuted, and so this whole matter concluded.

But lest any should take occasion by the way, of doubting by words or names, it is thought good here to note first of all, that although in common speech we use to call the likeness or similitudes of men or other things, images, and not idols; yet the Scriptures use the said two words, 'Idols' and 'Images,' indifferently for one thing alway. They be words of divers tongues and sounds, but one in sense and signification in the Scriptures. The one is taken of the Greek word eidwλov, an idol: and the other of the Latin word imago, an image, and so both used as English terms in the translating of Scriptures indifferently, according as the Septuaginta have in their translation in Greek eidwλa, and St. Jerome in his translation of the same places in Latin hath simulachra, in English,

images. And in the New Testament, that which St. John calleth eidwλov, (1 John v. 21) St. Jerome likewise translateth simulachrum, as in all other like places of Scripture usually he doth so translate. And Tertullian, a most ancient doctor, and well learned in both the tongues, Greek and Latin, interpreting this place of St. John, Beware of idols, that is to say, saith Tertullian, of the images themselves; the Latin words which he useth, be effigies and imago, to say, an image. (Lib. de corona militis [cap. x.]) And therefore it skilleth not, whether in this process we use the one term or the other, or both together, seeing they both (though not in common English speech, yet in Scripture) signify one thing. And though some, to blind men's eyes, have heretofore craftily gone about to make them to be taken for words of divers signification in matters of religion, and have therefore usually named the likeness or similitude of a thing set up amongst the heathen in their temples, or other places, to be worshipped, 'an idol' but the like similitude with us, set up in the church, the place of worshipping, they call 'an image', as though these two words, idol and image, in Scripture, did differ in property and sense, which (as is aforesaid) differ only in sound and language, and in meaning be indeed all one, specially in the Scriptures and matters of religion. And our images also have been and be, and, if they be publicly suffered in churches and temples, ever will be also worshipped, and so idolatry committed to them, as in the last part of this homily shall at large be declared and proved. Wherefore our images in temples and churches be indeed none other but idols, as unto the which idolatry hath been, is, and ever will be committed.

And first of all, the Scriptures of the Old Testament, condemning and abhorring as well all idolatry or worshipping of images, as also the very idols or images themselves, specially in temples, are so many and plentiful, that it were almost an infinite work, and to be contained in no small volume, to record all the places concerning the same. For when God had chosen to himself a peculiar and special people, from amongst all other nations that knew not God, but worshipped idols and false gods, he gave unto them certain ordinances and laws to be kept and observed of his said people. But concerning none other matter did he give either more or more earnest and express laws to