offenders were excluded from the monas-
teries. Every monk had two coats, two
cowls, a table book, a knife, a needle, and
a handkerchief; and the furniture of his
bed was a mat, a blanket, a rug, and a
pillow.
The time when this order came into
England is well known, for in 596 Gregory
the Great sent hither Augustine, prior of
the monastery of St. Andrew^ at liome,
with several other Benedictine monks. Au-
gustine became archbishop of Canterbury ;
and the Benedictines founded several mon-
asteries in England, as also the metro-
politan church of Canterbury. Pope John
XXII. , Mho died in 1354, after an exact
inquiry, found, that, since the first rise of
the order, there had been of it twenty-four
popes, near 200 cardinals, 7000 archbishops,
15,000 bishops, 15,000 abbots of renoAvn,
above 4000 saints, and upwards of 37,000
monasteries. There have been likewise
of this order twenty emperors and ten em-
presses, forty-seven kings, and above fifty
queens, twenty sons of emperors, and forty-
eight sons of kings, about one hundred
princesses, daughters of kings and empe-
rors, besides dukes, marquises, earls, coun-
tesses, &c., innumerable. This order has
produced a vast number of eminent authors
and other learned men. Rabanus set up
the school of Germany. Alcuinus founded
the university of Paris. Dionysius Exi-
guus perfected the ecclesiastical computa-
tion. Guido invented the scale of music,
and Sylvester the organ. They boast to
have produced Anselm, Ildephonsus, Ve-
nerable Bede, &c. There are nuns like-
BENEDICTION.
103
wise who follow the order of St. Benedict :
among whom those who call themselves
mitigated, cat flesh three times a week, on
Sundays, Tuesdays, and Thursdays ; the
others observe the rule of St. Benedict in
its rigour, and eat no flesh unless they are
sick. The Benedictines were the most ex-
tensive and poAverful order in England.
All the cathedral convents, with the ex-
ception of the Augustinian monastery of
Carlisle, were of this order, as were four
out of the five that were converted into
cathedrals by Henry VIII., viz. Gloucester,
Oxford, Peterborough, and Chester : and
all the mitred abbeys, with the exception
of AYaltham and Cirencester, which were
Augustinian. In Ireland they yielded in
importance and numbers to the Augusti-
nians. They were the great patrons of
church architecture and of learning in
England. The chief branches of the Be-
nedictine order in England were the Clu-
niacs, founded by Bernon, abbot of Gig-
niac, in 913; and the Cistercian, founded
by Kobert, abbot of Moleme, at Citeaux in
Burgundy, in 1098. (See Cluniacs and
Cistercians.)
BENEDICTION. A solemn act of
blessing performed by the bishops and
priests of the Church. In the Jewish
Church, the priests, by the command of
God, were to bless the people, by saying,
" The Lord bless thee, and keep thee.
The Lord make his face to shine upon thee,
and be gracious unto thee. The Lord
lift up his countenance upon thee, and give
thee peace." In the Church of England,
several forms of blessing are used agreeing
with the particular office of which they
form a part. The ordinary benediction at
the close of Divine service, from the end
of the Communion office, is in these words :
" The peace of God, M'hich passeth all un-
derstanding, keep your hearts and minds
in the knowledge and love of God, and of
his Son Jesus Christ our Lord: and
the blessing of God Almighty, the Father,
the Sox, and the Holy Ghost, be amongst
you, and remain with you always." The
former part of this is taken from Phihp-
pians iv. 7, and the latter may be consi-
dered as a Christian para])hrase of Num-
bers vi. 24, &:c. Other forms of blessing,
or modifications of the above, may be
found in the offices for Confirmation, Ma-
trimony, and Visitation of the Sick. The
benediction at the end of the Communion
Service must be said by the bishop, if he
be present.
In the Romish Church, on Holy Thurs-
day, the officiating priest blesses, conse-
crates, and exorcises, three sorts of oils.
The first is that used in extreme unction ;
the second that of the Chrysma ; the
third that of the Catechumens; ending
with this salutation, Ave sanctum oleum,
"Hail holy oil!" after which the new-
made holy oils are can-ied in procession
into the sacristy.— P/scrtra, Praxis Cerem.
In Spain, and some parts of France
bordering upon Spain, the custom of bless-
ing meats at Easter is still preserved.
This is supposed to be done in opposition
to the heresy of the Priscillianists, which
infected Spain and Guienne : for Priscillian
held, that the devil, and not God, was the
creator of flesh, and that thefoithful ought
to reject it as impure and wicked. This
blessing is scarce ever used, except in
those churches, and near those places,
where that heresy formerly prevailed. —
Alcefs liitiial.
On Easter eve they perform the cere-
mony of blessing the new fire. At the
ninth hour, the old fire is put out, and at
the same time an Acolyth lights the new
fire Avithout the church. The officiating
priest, Avith his attendants, walks in pro-
cession to the place where the ceremony is
to be performed. After repeating a fomi
of prayer, he makes the sign of the cross
over the fire. In the mean time the Thu-
riferary puts some coals into the thurible,
into which the priest throws some frank-
incense, having ffi-st blessed it: then he
sprinkles the fire with holy water, saying,
Asperf/es me, Domine^ " Thou wilt sprinkle
me, O Lord." This ceremony of the holy
fire seems to be borrov/ed from pagan super-
stition ; for the ancient Romans used to
renew the fii'e of Vesta in the month of
March, as Ovid informs us ;
Adde quod arcauS fieri novus ignis in aede
Dicitur, et vires flamma refccta capit.
Add that the hallowed fire new vigour takes,
And round the sacred walls with added lustre
breaks.
The principal use of this holy fire, among
the Roman Catholics, is to light therewith
the Paschal taper ; which likewise receives
its benediction, or blessing, by the priest's
putting five grains of incense, in tlie form
of a cross, into the ta})cr. This blessed
taper must remain on the gospel-side of
the altar from Easter eve to Ascension
day. — Bitudrij, 3I(uu(al. Cerem. Fast. lib.
iii. 144. Piscara, Praxis Cerem.
The blessing of baj)tismal fonts (another
piece of Po])ish sujierstition) is performed,
among other ceremonies, by the priest's
blowing thrice on the water, and in three
difl"erent ])laces ; and afterwards plunging
a taper thrice into it, observing to sink it
104
BENEDICTUS.
BENEFICE.
deeper the second time than the first, and
the third than the second, saying at each
immersion, Dcscemhtt in hone pienitxuUncm
funtis cirtus Spiritns Sanrti', i. e. " May tlie
'influence of the Holy Spirit descend on
this water." — Piscara, ibid.
On the eve before Christmas, the holy
father blesses a sword, enriched with pre-
cious stones, wrought in the form of a
dove ; with a ducal hat fixed on the point
of it, richly adorned with jewels. {Sacra
Cereni. EccJ. Horn.) This he sends as a
present to some prince, for whom he has a
particular afiection, or some great general,
who has deserved it by fighting against
the enemies of the Church. Pope Pius
II. sent the hat and sword to Lewis XI.,
with four Latin verses engraved on the
blade, by which his Holiness exhorted him
to destroy the Ottoman empire. The popes,
according to Aymon, ground this custom on
what is said in the Second Book of the
Maccabees, c. v., that " Judas the Macca-
bee, going to fight Nicanor, general of the
army of Antiochus, saw in a dream the
high priest Onias praying to God for the
Jewish people, and the prophet Jeremiah
presenting him with a sword, and saying
these words ; * Receive, Judas, this holy
sword, which is given thee by the Lord, to
destroy the enemies of Israel.'"
But one of the most extraordinary bene-
dictions of this kind is that of hells ; in
the performance of which there is a great
deal of pomp and superstition. (See Bells.)
BENEDICTUS. The Latin for " bless-
ed," which is the first word in one of the
h^Tuns to be said or sung after the second
lesson in theMorning Service of the Church.
The Benedictus is taken from Luke i., from
the 68th to the 72nd verse, being part of
the song of Zacharias the priest, concerning
his son John the Baptist, who was to be
the forerunner of Christ, but was then
only in his infancy.
When the gospel was first published to
the world, the angels sang praise ; and all
holy men, to whom it was revealed, enter-
tained these " good tidings " with great
joy. And since it is our duty also, when-
ever we hear the gospel read, to give glory
to^ God, therefore the Church appoints
this hymn, which was composed by holy
Zacharias upon the first notice that God
had sent a Saviour to mankind, and is one
of the first evangelical hymns indited by
God's Spirit upon this occasion. Its ori-
ginal therefore is Divine, its matter unex-
ceptionable, and its fitness for this place
unquestionable.— Z>efln Comber.
This prophecy of Zacharias, called " Be-
nedictus," for the reason already mentioned,
was uttered on the birth of John the Bap-
tist ; and is a thanksgiving for the redemp-
tion of mankind, of which he was to pub-
lish the speedy approach. It copies very
nearly the style of the Jewish prophets,
who described s])iritual blessings by tem-
poral imagery. Thus meaning to praise
the " Father of mercies " (2 Cor. i. 3) for
delivering all nations from the dominion
of the wicked one, it " blesses the Lord
God of Israel for saving his people from
their enemies, and from the hand of those
that hate them." Now this kind of lan-
guage was laid aside after our Saviour's
ascension ; and therefore the prophecy
before us is not of later date, but genuine.
Yet it sufficiently explains to what sort of
" salvation " it refers, by mentioning " the
remission of sins, the giving of light to
them that sat in darkness, and the guiding
of their feet into the way of peace." And
so it may teach us both the fitness and the
method of assigning to the Old Testament
predictions an evangelical interpretation.
The people, in repeating it, should remem-
ber, that the words, " And thou, child,
shalt be called the prophet of the Highest,"
belong, not to our Saviour, but to the
Baptist. And it is easily to be apprehend-
ed, that if, in the dawning which preceded
" the Sun of righteousness," (Mai. iv. 2,)
good Zacharias off'ered up his thanks with
such transport, Ave, to whom he shines out
in full splendour, ought to recite it with
dovible gratitude. — Ahp. Seeker.
Though the hundredth psalm is almost
constantly used after the second lesson,
there seems no good reason why this hymn
should be laid aside. They are both equally
indited by the Holy Spirit, and both
admirably calculated to assist the devotion
and elevate the affections of a Christian
congregation : and the hymn, being placed
first, seems to have been intended for
more general use than the psalm.— 7Fa/f/o.
The Church hath appointed tw'o songs
of praise and thanksgiving to be used,
either of them after each lesson, but not so
indiflerently but that the former practice of
exemplary Churches and reason may guide
us in the choice. For the "Te Deum,"
"Benedictus," "Magnificat," and "Nunc
Dimittis," being the most expressive jubi-
lations and rejoicings for the redemption
of the world, may be said more often than
the rest, especially on Sundays and other
festivals of of our Lord. — Bishop Sparroir.
The Benedictus was used exclusively
after the second lesson in the First Book of
King Edward VI.
BENEFICE. In the ecclesiastical sense
of the word, means a church endowed wdth
BENEFICE.
BENEFIT OF CLERGY.
105
a revenue for the performance of Divine
service, or the revenue itself assigned to
an ecclesiastical person, by way of stipend
for the service he is to do that church.
As to the origin of the word, v,c find it
as follows, in Alcefs Ritual: "This word
was anciently appropriated to the lands,
which kings used to bestow on those who
had fought valiantly in the wars ; and was
not used in this particular signification,
but during the time that the Goths and
Lombards reigned in Italy, under whom
those fiefs were introduced, which were
peculiarly termed Benefices, and those who
enjoyed them, Beneficiarii, or vassals. For
notwithstanding that the llomans also be-
stowed lands on their captains and soldiers,
yet those lands had not the name of Bene-
fices appropriated to them, but the word
benefice was a general term, which in-
cluded all kinds of gifts or grants, accord-
ing to the ancient signification of the Latin
word. In imitation of the new sense, in
which that word was taken with regard to
fiefs, it began to be employed in the
Church, when the temporalities thereof
began to be divided, and to be given up
to particular persons, by taking them out
of those of the bishops. This the bishops
themselves first introduced, purposely to
reward merit, and assist such ecclesiastics
as might be in necessity. However, this
was soon carried to greater lengths, and at
last became unlimited, as has since been
manifest in the clericate and the monas-
teries. A benefice therefore is not merely
a right of receiving part of the tempor-
alities of the Church, for the service a per-
son docs it; a right, which is founded
upon the gospel, and has always subsisted
since the apostolic age ; but it is that of
enjoying a part of the temporalities of the
Church, assigned and determined in a
special form, so as that no other clergy-
man can lay any claim or pretension to it.
And in this age it is not barely the
right of enjoying part of the temporalities
of the Church ; but is likewise a fixed and
permanent right, in such a manner that it
devolves on another, after the death of tlie
incumbent ; which anciently was other-
wise ; for, at the rise of benefices, they
were indulged to clergymen only for a
stated time, or for life ; after which they
reverted to the Church."
It is not easy to determine when the
effects of the Church were first divided.
It is certain that, till the 4th century, all
the revenues were in the hands of the
bishops, who distributed them by their
CEco)ionii or stewards ; and they consisted
chiefly in alms and voluntary contribu-
tions. 'V\1ien the Church came to have
inheritances, part of them were assigned
for the maintenance of the clergy, of which
we find some footsteps in the oth and 6th
centuries ; but the allotment seems not
to have been a fixed thing, but to have
been absolutely discretional, till the I'ith
century.
Benefices are divided by the canonists
into simple and sacerdotal. The first sort
lays no obligation, but to read prayers,
sing, &c. Such kind of Beneficiaries are
canons, chaplains, chantors, 8cc. The se-
cond is charged with the cure of souls,
the guidance and direction of consciences,
^•c. Such are rectories, vicarages, &c.
The canonists likewise specify three ways
of vacating a benefice ; viz. de jure, de
facto, and hi/ the sentence of a judt/e. A
benefice is void de jure, when a person
is guilty of crimes, for which he is dis-
qualified by law to hold a benefice ; such
are heresy, simony, &c. A benefice is
void both de facto and de jure, by the na-
tural death, or resignation, of the incum-
bent. Lastly, a benefice is vacated by
sentence of the jud<ie, when the incumbent
is dispossessed of it by way of punishment
for immorality, or any crime against the
state.
The Romanists, again, distinguish bene-
fices into regular and secular. Regular
benefices are those held by a religious or
monk of any order, abbey, priory, or con-
vent. Secular benefices are those confer-
red on the secular priests ; of which sort
are most of their cures.
The Church distinguishes between dig-
nities and henojices. The former title is
only applicable to bishoprics, deaneries,
archdeaconries, and prebends : the latter
comprehends all ecclesiastical preferments
under those degrees ; as rectories and
vicarages. It is essential to these latter,
that they be bestowed freely, reserving no-
thing to the patron ; that they be given
as a provision for the clerk, who is only
an usu-fructuart/, and hath no inheritance
in them ; and that all contracts concern-
ing them between patron and incumbent
be, in their own nature, void.
BENEFICIARIES, or BEXEFICIATL
The inferior, non-capitular members of
cathedrals, &c., were so called in many
Churches abroad; as possessing a bene-
fice or endowment in the Church. They
very much corresponded to our minor
canons and vicars choral, 8:c. — Jehb.
BENEFIT OF CLERGY. The ;)ni;t-
Icf/iuni clericale, or, in common speech, the
benefit of the clergy, had its origin from
the pious regard paid by Christian princes
106
BEREANS.
BIBLE.
to the Church of Christ. The exemp-
tions which they granted to the Church
were principally of two kinds: 1. Exemp-
tion of places consecrated to religious
offices from criminal arrests, which was
the foundation of sanctuaries. (See Sa7w-
tuary, Asylum.) 2. Exemptions of the
persons of the clergy from criminal pro-
cess before the secular magistrate in a fcAv
j)articular cases, which was the true origin
and meaning of the prin'leyiitm clericale.
Originally the law was held that no man
should be admitted to the privilege of the
clergy but such as had the hahitum et ton-
stiram clericalem. But, in process of time,
a much wider and more comprehensive
criterion was established, every one that
could read being accounted a clerk or cle-
ricus, and allowed the benefit of clerkship,
whether in holy orders or not.
BEKEANS. An obscure sect of se-
ceders from the Scottish establishment,
which originated in the exclusion of one
Barclay from the parish of Fettercairn, in
Kincardineshire, in 1773. They adopted
the name of Bereans in allusion to the
text — " These (the Bereans) w'ere more
noble than those in Thessalonica, in that
they received the word with all readiness
of mind, and searched the Scriptures daily,
whether those things were so." (Acts xvii.
11.) The Bereans reject all natural re-
ligion, — they take faith to be a simple
credence of God's word, — they consider
personal assurance of the essence of faith,
and unbelief as the unpardonable sin.
They deny any spiritual interpretation to
the historical books of the Old Testament,
and reckon the Psalms so exclusively typi-
cal or prophetical of Christ, as to be
without application to the experience of
individual Christians.
BEREFELLARII. In the collegiate
church of Beverley the seven inferior
clergymen, ranking next after the preben-
daries, were so called. The origin of the
name is unknown ; though it appears from
ancient records, that it was a popular and
vulgar one ; their proper designation being
Hectares Chori ; that is, a sort of minor
canons. They were also called Persona.
(See Rector Chori, and Persona.) — See
Bur/dale's Monasticon, ed. 1830, vi. 1307.
—Jehh.
BEKENGARIANS. A denomination,
in the eleventh century, which adhered to
the opinions of Berenger, archdeacon of
Angers, the learned and able opponent of
Lanfranc, whose work has been in part
recovered, and was printed a few years
since^at Berlin. " It was never my asser-
tion," says he, " that the bread and wine
on the altar are only sacramental signs.
Let no one suppose that I affimi that the
bread was not become the body of Christ
from being sim])le bread by consecration
on the altar. It plainly becomes the body
of Christ, but not the bread which in its
matter and essence is corruptible, but in
as far as it is capable of becoming what it
was not, it becomes the body of Christ,
but not according to the manner of the
production of his very body, for that body,
once generated on earth so many years
ago, can never be produced again. The
bread, however, becomes what it never
was before consecration, and from being
the common substance of bread, is to us
the blessed body of Christ." His fol-
lowers, however, did not hold to his doc-
trines, which, in themselves, Avere a Catho-
lic protest against Romish errors. — Cave^
Hist. Literar. Sccc. Hildehrand.
BIBLE. (See Scrijdure and Canoti of
Scripture.) The name applied by Chris-
tians by way of eminence to the sacred
volume, in which are contained the reve-
lations of God. The names and numbers
of the canonical books will be found un-
der the word Scripture.
The division of the Scriptures into chap-
ters, as they are at present, took place in
the middle ages. Some attribute it to Ste-
phen Langton, archbishop of Canterbury,
in the reigns of John and Henry III. But
the real author of this invention was Hugo
de Sancto Caro, commonly called Hugo
Cardinalis, from his being the first Do-
minican raised to the degree of cardinal.
This Hugo flourished about the year 1240.
He wrote a Comment on the Scriptures,
and projected the first Concordance, which
is that of the Latin Vulgate Bible. As
the intention of this work was to render
the finding of any word or passage in the
Scriptures more easy, it became necessary
to divide the book into sections, and the
sections into subdivisions. These sections
are the chapters into which the Bible has
been divided since that time. But the
subdivision of the chapters was not then
in verses as at present. Hugo subdivided
them by the letters A, B, c, D, E, F, G,
which were placed in the margin at an
equal distance from each other, according
to the length of the chapters. About the
year 1445, Mordecai Nathan, a famous
JcAvish Rabbi, improved Hugo's invention,
and subdivided the chapters into verses, in
the manner they are at present.
The first English Bible we read of was
that translated by Wicklifi", about the year
1360. A translation of the New Testa-
ment by Wicliff was printed by Lewis,
BIBLE.
107
about 1731, and the whole of Wicliff's
translation has lately been ijublished at
Oxford. J. de Trevisa, Avho died about
1398, is also said to have translated the
whole Bible ; but whether any copies of
his translation are remaininp^, does not ap-
pear. The first printed Bible in our lan-
guage was that translated by W. Tindal,
assisted by Miles Coverdale, printed abroad
in 1526 ; but most of the copies were
bought up and burnt by Bishop Tunstal
and Sir Thomas More. Of this edition but
Uvo copies are known to exist, one of which
was discovered by Archdeacon Cotton, in
St. Paul's Library. It only contained the
New Testament, and was revised and re-
published by the same person in 1530.
The prologues and prefaces added to it
reflect on the bishops and clergy ; but this
edition was also suppressed, and the copies
burnt. In 1532, Tindal and his associates
finished the whole Bible, except the Apo-
crypha, and printed it abroad ; but while
he was afterAvards preparing a second edi-
tion, he was taken up and burnt for heresy
in Flanders. On Tindal's death, his work
was carried on by Coverdale, and John
Rogers, superintendent of an English
Church in Germany, and the first martp-
in the reign of Queen Mary, who trans-
lated the Apocrypha, and revised Tindal's
translation, comparing it with the Hebrew,
Greek, Latin, and German, and adding
prefaces and notes from Luther's Bible.
The earhest edition was printed in 1535, it
is supposed at Zurich ; though the book
has no place nor name. He dedicated
the whole to Henry VIII. in 1 537, under
the borrowed name of Thomas Matthews ;
whence this has been usually called Mat-
thews' Bible. It is supposed to have been
printed at Hamburgh, and licence obtained
for publishing it in England, by the favour
of Archbishop Cranmer, and the Bishops
Latimer and Shaxton. The first Bible
printed by authority in England, and pub-
licly set up in churches, was this same
Tindal's version, revised and compared
with the Hebrew, and in many places
amended, by Miles Coverdale, afterwards
bishop of Exeter ; and examined after him
by Archbishop Cranmer, who added a pre-
face to it ; whence this was called Cran-
mer's, or the great Bible. It was printed
in 1539 by Grafton and Whitchurch, and
in 1540 by Whitchurch, (some copies have
" liichard Grafton,") and published in 1540 ;
and, by a royal proclamation, every parish
was obliged to set one of the copies in
their church, under the penalty of forty
shillings a month : yet, two years after, the
Popish bishops obtained its suppression by
the king. It was restored under Edward
VI, , suppressed again under Queen Mary's