that as such it is expressly quoted nearly
eighty times in the writings of the New
Testament, being indirectly referred to
much more frequently. And thus, to
adopt the very beautiful and pious lan-
guage of Dr. Lightfoot, " the greatest
SEPTUM.
SERMONS.
711
authority of this transh^tion ap))car('th in
that the holy Greek of the New Testament
doth so much follow it. For as God usetli
this translation as a harbin<;er to the fetch-
ing in of the Gentiles, so when it Avas
grown into authority by tlie time of
Christ's coming, it seemed good to his
infinite wisdom to add to its authority
himself, the better to forward the building
of the Church. And admirable it is to
see with what sweetness and harmony the
New Testament doth follow this translation
sometimes beside the Old, to show that he
who gave the Old can and may best ex-
pound it in the New." — irorls, iv. 32. See
Owen 0)1 the Svptuatiint : Ilodius de Bib.
Textihus On'(/i)in/ihus.
SEPTUM". The enclosure of the holy
table, made by the altar rails.
SEPULCHRE. A niche, generally at
the north side of the altar, used in the
scenic representations of our SAVlorirs
burial and resurrection, on Good Friday
and Easter, before the Reformation, and
representing our Lord's tomb, is called
the Holy Sepulchre. It is sometimes quite
plain, sometimes gorgeously adorned ; the
general subjects, where it is much decorated,
being the Roman soldiers sleeping, on the
base, and angels censing at the top. There
is a remarkably fine series of these in the
churches of Lincolnshire, and in Lincoln
cathedral, perhaps the most beautiful in
the kingdom.
SEQUESTRATION. This is a separ-
ating the thing in controversy from the
possession of both the contending parties.
When a living becomes void by the
death of an incumbent or otherwise, the
ordinary is to send out his sequestration,
to have the cure supplied, and to preserve
the profits (after the expenses deducted)
for the use of the successor. Sometimes
a benefice is left under sequestration for
many years together, namely, when it is
of so small value that no clergyman, fit
to serve the cure, will be at the charge of
taking it by institution : in this case, the
sequestration is committed sometimes to
the curate only, sometimes to the curate
and churchwardens jointly.
Sometimes the i)rofits of a living are
sequestered for neglect of duty : but that
kind of sequestration most generally known
and understood, because applicable to
civil affairs, is upon the queen's writ to
the bishop to satisfy the debts of the
incumbent.
This is where a judgment has been
obtained in the law courts against a cler-
gyman ; and upon a Jicri /(icias directed
to the sheriff to levy the debt and
damages, he makes his return that the
defendant in a clerk beneficed, having no
lay fee. Whereupon a levari facias is
directed to the bisliop to levy tiie same of
his ecclesiastical goods, and by virtue
thereof the property of the benefice sliall
be sequestered. \\\ this case, the bisiiop
may name the sequestrators himself, or
may grant the sequestration to sudi i)er-
sons as sliall be named by the party who
obtaiiu>d the writ.
Tliere are several other circumstances
mentioned in books of ecclesiastical law,
under which sequestration may take i)lace ;
but it may be stated generally that, for
any damages to which an incund)ent may
be made liable by civil action, the pro-
])erty of the benefice may also be made
answerable by the jirocess of se(juestration.
Rut it seems that the bishop is the party
through whom this confiscation for the
])enefit of the creditor must take place.
The sequestration is his act, to which he
is bound by the queen's writ ; and it has
been held that a bill filed in ecpiity against
sequestrators only was insufficient for
want of parties. The l)ishop should be
a party, for the sequestrator is accountable
to him for what he receives.
SERAPHIM denotes an order of angels
who surround the throne of the Lord.
Derived from a Hebrew word, which sig-
nifies. /?^r?/. (See Anf/els.)
SERMONS are orations or discourses,
delivered by the clergy of the Chri^ian
Church in their religious assemblies.
In the ancient Church, immediately
after the reading of the psalms and
lessons out of the Scriptures, before the
catechumens were dismissed, followed the
sermon, which the bishop, or some other
appointed by him, made to the people.
This, being done in the presence of the
catechumens, was therefore reckoned a
part of the 3Iissa Cottc/noncnonnn or
ante-communion service. Such discourses
were cojunionly termed homilies, from the
Greek o^iXini, which signifies inditfercntly
any discourse of instruction to the i)Coj)ie.
Among the Latins tluy were frequently
called fnidafus, and the preachers frac-
t(i tores.
Preaching, anciently, was one of the
chief offices of a bishop ; insomuch that,
in the African Churches, a jjrcsbyter was
never known to jireach before a bishop in
his cathedral church, till St. Austin'.^
time. In the Eastern Church, jiresbyters
Avere indeed allowi-d to preach before the
bislu)]); but this A\as not to discliarge him
of the duty, for still he preached a ser-
mon at the' same time after them. \n the
712
SERMONS.
lesser churches of the city and country,
the office of preaching \^'as devolved upon
the presbyters ; but deacons never were
allowed to perform it. There are num-
berless passages in the writings of the
Fathers, which speak of preaching as a
duty indispensably incumbent on a bisho]).
Many canons of councils either suppose
or enjoin it. And in the imperial laws
there are several edicts of the secular
power to the same purpose. Particularly
in the Theodosian code, there is one jointly
made by the three emperors Gratian,
Valentinian, and Theodosius, which bears
this title, De munere sen officio episco-
jwrum hi ^n-cedicando verho Dei, " of the
duty and office of bishops in preaching
the 'word of GoD."
It has been a question, whether laymen
were ever allowed by authority to make
sermons to the people. It is certain they
did it in a private way, as catechists, in
theh catechetic schools at Alexandria and
other places ; but this was a different thing
from public j^reaching in the church.
Sometimes the monks, who were only lay-
men, took upon them to preach ; but this
was censured and opposed, as an usurp-
ation of an office that did not belong to
them. Yet in some cases a special com-
mission was given to a layman to preach ;
as in the case of Origen, who was licensed
by Alexander, bishop of Jerusalem, to
preach and expound the Scriptures in the
church, before he was in orders. As to
women, whatever gifts they could pretend
to, they were never allowed to preach
publicly in the church; agreeably to the
apostolical rule, " Let your women keep
silence in the churches," &c. But they
might teach those of then* own sex, as
private catechists, and to prepare them for
baptism. And this was the office of the
deaconesses. The Montanists Avere a
noted sect for giving the liberty of preach-
ing to women, under pretence of inspira-
tion by the Spirit ; for they had their
prophetesses, their women-bishops, and
women -presbyters.
Next to the persons, the manner in
which the office of preaching was executed,
comes to be considered. And, first, it is
observable, that they had sometimes tAvo
or three sermons preached in the same
assembly, first by the presbyters and then
by the bishop. AVhen two or more bishops
happened to be present in the same as-
sembly, it was usual for several of them
to preach one after another, reserving the
last place for the most honourable person.
In some places they had sermons every
day, especially in Lent, and the festival
days of Easter. St. Chrysostom's homilies
Avere evidently preached in Lent, one day
after another ; and, in St. Augustine's
homilies, there are frequent references to
the sermon made heri and hesterno die.
In many places they had sermons twice
a day for the better edification of the
people. But this is chiefly to be under-
stood of cities and large churches. For
in the country parishes there Avas not such
frequent preaching.
The next thing to be observed is, their
diflerent sorts of sermons, and different
Avays of preaching. These are distin-
guished into four kinds; L Expositions
of Scripture. 2. Panegyrical discourses
upon the saints and martyrs. 3. Sermons
upon particular times, occasions, and fes-
tivals. 4. Sermons upon particular doc-
trines, or moral suljjects. There are
examples of all these kinds in St. Chry-
sostom's and St. Augustine's homilies, the
two great standards of preaching in the
Greek and Latin Churches. But though
most of these were studied and elaborate
discourses, penned and composed before-
hand, yet some Avere also extempore,
spoken without any previous composition,
and taken cloAvn in short-hand from the
mouth of the preacher. Origen was the
first that began the Avay of extempore
preaching in the church. The catechet-
ical discourses of St. Cyril are thought to
be of this kind ; for at the beginning of
every one almost it is said in the title to be
axt^f-aaOtiaa, Avhich the critics translate an
extempore discourse. Instances of this sort
Avere very frequent among the Fathers of
the ancient Church. And, in regard to
this, they are Avont frequently to mention
the assistance of the Spirit in composing
and preaching their sermons ; by Avhich
they did not mean any kind of enthusiasm,
but only the concurrence of the Sphit of
God Avith their honest endeavours, as a
blessing on their labours and studies.
Upon this account it Avas usual for the
preacher to usher in his discourse Avith a
short prayer for such Divine assistance.
In this sense Ave are to understand St.
Chrysostom, Avhen he says, Ave must first
pray, and then preach. Sometimes, before
they began to preach, they used the com-
mon salutation. Pax vohis, Peace he with
you ; to Avhich the people ansAvered, Ajid
ivith thy spirit. And sometimes they pre-
faced the sermon Avith a short form of
benediction, especially in times of calamity
and distress, or of happy deliverances out
of them. Sometimes they preached with-
out any text, and sometimes upon more
texts than one. Nor did they entertain
SERMONS.
SEVEN SACRAMENTS.
713
their auditory witli light and ludicrous mat-
ters, or fabulous and romantic stories, such
as those with which ju'eacliiuii; so much
abounded in the aoc before the lleform-
ation. Their subjects, as Gregory Nazi-
anzen describes the choice of them, were
commonly such as these : of the world's
creation, and the soul of man ; of angels ;
of providence ; of the formation of man,
and his restoration; of ClllllST's first and
second coming, his passion, Sec. ; of the re-
surrection and judgment, &:c.
And as they were careful in the choice
of their subject, so were they in the man-
ner of dressing it up, and delivering it,
that they might answer the true ends of
preaching. St. Augustine has laid down
excellent rules for the practice of Chris-
tian eloquence ; and if we will take his
character of the ancient preachers, it was
in short this : and their discourses were
always upon weighty and heavenly mat-
ters, and their style answerable to the
subject, being plain, elegant, majestic, and
nervous ; fitly adapted to instruct and de-
light, to convince and charm their hearers.
It was no part of the ancient oratory to
raise the affections of the auditory, either
by gesticulations, or the use of external
shows and representations of things in
their sermons, as is now very common in
the Romish Church. As to the length of
their sermons, scarce any of them would
last an hour, and many not half the time.
And among those of St. Augustine there
are many which a man may pronounce
distinctly, and deliver decently, in eight
minutes. They always concluded their
sermons with a doxology to the Holy
Trinity. And it is further observable,
that the preacher usually delivered his
sermon sitting, and the people heard it
standing ; though there was no certain rule
about this, but the custom varied in dif-
ferent Churches.
It was a peculiar custom in the African
Church, when the preacher chanced to
cite some remarkable text in the middle of
his sermon, for the people to join with
him in repeating the close of it. St. Au-
gustine takes notice of this in one of his
sermons, where having begun those words
of St. Paul, The end of the coynmandnient
is , the people all cried out, chariti/
out of a pure heart. But it was a mucli
more general custom for the people to tes-
tify their esteem for the i)reac]ior, and
approbation of his sermon, by pul)lic ap-
plauses and acclamations in the cliurcli.
Thus we are told the people applauded
St. Chrysostom's sermons, some by tossing
their gannents and waving their hancl-
kcrchiefs. Many auditors practised the
art of notaries, and took down the sermons
word for word as they were delivered.
Hence we j)ossess copies of sermons de-
livered extempore. — Bintputnt.
The sermon in the Church of England is
enjoined after the Nicene Creed, according
to ancient custom : but nowhere else ;
although it is mentioned as discretionary
in the marriage service, for which an ex-
hortation, there given, may l)e sul)stituted.
lUit evening sermons liavebeen customary
time out of mind in some duirches, as at
St. Paul's, e. g. and some other great
churches. The sermon in Queen Eliza-
beth's time was preached at the chapel
royal in the afternoon, in order tliat it
might not interfere with St. Paul's Cross
sermon. — St type, Annals, Pn-f. Book i.
ch. xxiii.. Anno 1561.
SERVICE. "The common prayers of
tlie Cliurch, commonly called Divine ser-
vice."' — I've fare to the Hook of Common
Prayer. All Divine offices celebrated in
the church constitute i)art of the Divine
service : that is, the outward worsliip which
all God's servants render him. The term
however is now used in a technical sense
peculiar to the English Church, to signify
those stated parts of the Eiturgy wliich are
set to music, as distinguished from those
anthems, the words of wliich are not a
matter of settled regulation. Tlie term is
now generally restricted to the Te Deum,
and other canticles in Morning and I'Lven-
ing Prayer ; and all the parts of the Com-
munion Service oppointed to be sung,
including also the responses to the Com-
mandments. The early Church musicians,
however, set the whole service to music ;
(and hence the term ;) that is, the j)ieces,
(or versicles before the Psalms,) the Venite,
one or more chants for the Psalms, the
Te Deum and canticles, the versicles and
responses after the Creed, the Aniens, the
Litany, and the Communion Office. The
most perfect service, in the enlarged and
proper sense, which exists in the Church
of England, is Tallis's, published in Dr.
Boyer's Cathedral Music, and since repub-
lished and corrected by a second Edition.
Services are as old as tlie Reformation,
and have ever constituted an integral part
of the choral system as oliserved in cathe-
dral churches and coHeges. — Jthb.
SICVEN SACUAMi:XTS. (Sec Sa-
cramenf.) Tlie Paj-ists extend and enforce
the word sacrament to five ordinances
which are not sacraments in the strict
sense. Against these our 2oth Article is
directed, which is as follows :
" Sacrament.s ordained bv CllUIsxbc not
714
SEVEN SACRAMENTS.
only badges or tokens of Christian men's
professions, but rather they be certain sure
witnesses and effectual signs of grace and
God's good will towards us, by the which
he doth work invisibly in us, and doth not
only quicken, but also strengthen and con-
finn, our faith in him.
" There are two sacraments ordained of
Christ our Lord in the gospel ; that is to
say, baptism and the supper of the Lord.
" Those five, commonly called sacra-
ments, that is to say, confirmation, penance,
orders, matrimony, and extreme unction,
are not to be counted for sacraments of the
gospel, being such as have grown, partly
of the corrupt following of the apostles,
partly are states of life allowed in the
Scriptures ; but yet have not the like nature
of sacraments M'ith baptism and the Lord's
supper, for that they have not any visible
sign or ceremony ordained of God.
" The sacraments were not ordained of
Christ to be gazed upon, or to be carried
about, but that we should duly use them.
And in such only as worthily receive the
same they have a wholesome effect or
operation : but they that receive them un-
worthily purchase to themselves damna-
tion, as the apostle St. Paul saith."
Peter Lombard saying, that baptism,
confii'mation, the blessing of bread, pen-
ance, extreme unction, orders, and ma-
trimony, are sacraments of the New Testa-
ment, the Papists have thence gathered,
and ever since held, that there are seven
sacraments instituted by Christ, truly and
properly so called ; insomuch that, in the
Council of Trent, they determined that
whosoever said there are more or less, should
be accursed. Now our Church, not much
fearing their curse, hath here declared,
that only two of them, to wit, baptism and
the eucharist, are properly sacraments of
the New Testament, and that the other
five are not to be accounted so ; not but
that, as the word sacrainent was anciently
used for any sacred sign or ceremony, it
may, in some sense, be applied to these
also ; but, as it is here expressed, those
five have not the like nature of sacraments
with baptism and the Lord's supper.
They may call them sacraments if they
please ; but they are not such sacraments
as baptism and the Lord's supper are,
and therefore not sacraments properly so
called. For that these two are sacraments
properly so called, is acknowledged on
both sides ; and therefore, Mhatsoever is a
sacrament properly so called, must have
the like nature with them, so as to agree
with them in all those things wherein their
sacramental nature consisteth, that is, in
such things wherein they two most nearly
agree with one another : for tliat wherein
the species do most nearly agree with one
another, must needs be their general
nature. Now, there are several things
wherein these two do so agree ; for they
are both instituted by Christ. They have
both external signs and symbols deter-
mined in the gospel, which represent in-
ward and spiritual grace unto us ; yea,
and they have both promises annexed to
them : whereas the other five agree with
these in none of these things, or, howso-
ever, none of them agree in all of them,
and, by consequence, cannot be sacraments
properly so called.
I. First, They do not agree with them
in their institution from Christ. That
baptism and the Lord's supper were in-
stituted by Christ, they cannot deny ; but
that the other were, we do.
L As, first, for confinnation, which we
confess was a custom anciently used in the
Church of Christ, and still ought to be
retained, even for children after baptism
to be oftered to the bishop, that they might
receive the Holy Ghost by prayers, and
the laying on of hands. But some of the
Papists themselves acknowledge, that this
was never instituted and ordained by
Christ as the other sacraments were ;
neither did the Fathers use this as any
distinct sacrament of itself, but as the
perfection and consummation of the sacra-
ment of baptism ; and the chrism or oint-
ment which they used was only a ceremony
annexed to baptism also, as the cross and
other ceremonies were.
2. And as for iienunce^ which they define
to be a sacrament of the remission of sins
which are committed after baptism, I
would willingly know where or when
Christ ever instituted such a sacrament ?
What though he commanded all men to
repent, is every command of Christ the
institution of a sacrament ? Or is it out-
ward penance that is here commanded ?
Or, rather, is it not inward and true
repentance? And what though Christ
said, *' Those sins that you forgive, they
are forgiven ; " what matter what form,
what signs of sacrament, were appointed
and instituted in these words ?
3. And so for orders, or the ordination of
ministers, we know it is a thing instituted
of Christ : must it needs be, therefore, a
sacrament, or instituted as a sacrament?
Because Christ ordained that bishops,
priests, and deacons should be ordained,
doth it therefore follow that he intended
and instituted their ordination as a sacra-
ment ?
SEVEN SACRAMENTS.
710
4. And as for matrimomj, wc know their
corrupt translation has it, " And this is a
great sacrament, (Eph. v, 32,) instead of
'* this is a great mystery," or secret, as the
Syriac and Arabic read it ; and shall their
false translation of tlie Scripture be a
sufficient ground for Christ's institution
of a sacrament ?
5. And, lastly, for extreme unction,
â– which Bellarmine tells us " is truly and
properly a sacrament, wherein tlie organs
of the senses, the eyes, nostrils, lips, liands,
feet, and reins, in those that are about to
die, are anointed with exorcised oil,''
What institution have we for tliis sacra-
ment in the gospel? Yes, say they, the
apostles anointed with oil many tliat were
sick, and healed them. (Mark vi. 13.) It
is very good ; the apostles' practice and
example were the institution of a sacra-
ment. By this rule, whatsoever the
apostles did must be a sacrament ; and so
plucking off the ears of corn must be a
sacrament too at length. But certainly,
if example must be the ground of institu-
tion, anointing the eyes of the blind with
clay and spittle must be much more a
sacrament than the anointing of the sick
with oil ; for it was the apostles only that
did this, but it was our Saviour himself
that did that. (John ix. 6.) But the
apostle saith, " Is any one sick amongst
you
? let him call for the elders of the
Church, and let them pray over him,
anointing him with oil, in the name of the
LoKD." (James v. 14.) It is true : but what
analogy is there betwixt this anointing of
the apostles and the extreme unction of the
Papists? This was to be applied to any
that were sick, " Is any one sick amongst
you?" but theirs only to such as are past
all hopes of recovery : the apostles' was to
be done by several elders ; tlie Papists'
only by one priest : the apostles' was to be
performed with simple oil ; the Papists'
with consecrated and exorcised oil. So
that the Papists' extreme unction cannot
possibly lay claim to any institution from
that place, as Cajetan himself acknow-
ledged.
II. And as for external signs and symbols,
analogically representing inward sj)iritual
grace, which constitute the very iorm of
the sacraments of bajjtism and the Lord's
supper, it is in vain to look for the like in
the other sacraments, falsely so called, as
is observed in the Article itself. For ex-
ample : what is the sign in penance ? Or,
if there be a sign, what is the grace that is
analogically represented by it? I know
they cannot agree amongst themselves,
what is the form or sign in this sacrament ?
Some say the words of abs(,hition, others
absolution itself, others imposition of
hands ; but whichsoever of these we take,
they cannot be such signs or symbols a.s
are in ba])tism an<l tlie I.oui/s supper.
For there is water, and i)rea(l, and wine,
all substances ; whereas these are all
actions, and so accidents. The like may
be said also of confirmation and onlem,
which have no such visible sign, howsoever
not ajipointed by Christ. And bo for
matrimony too, there is no visible sign of
any invisible grace can j)ossibly be fastened
ui)on it. To say that the priest's wordu,
or the parties' mutual consent, is the fonn
or sign, is a mere evasion : for the parties'
consent is an invisible thing, and therefore
cannot be a visible sign : the words of the
priest arc mere words, which may be heard
indeed, but cannot be seen, and so cannot
be any visible sign. Neither are words
significative elements, as bread and wine
are, and therefore cannot be tlie signs of
such sacraments as tliev be. And for
extreme unction, there is, I confess, an
external sign in it, even unction ; but what
analogy hath this external sign to any
internal grace ? Two things, they sav, are
represented by it. bodily health and for-
giveness of sins ; but is bodily health an
mward grace ? Or, sujjpose it was, what
similitude is there betwixt that and oil,
or unction ? Forgiveness of sins, I know,
is a spiritual grace ; but none of them
durst ever yet undertake to show the
analogy betwixt the outward sign and this
invisible grace. And seeing there is no