ings of Christ's Church, which are summoned according to His appointed order.-that our Lord is Their numbers may be few,

more peculiarly near. but He is with them. 'Where wo or three are gathered together in My name,' He declared, in reference to His Church's solemnities, 'there am I in the midst of them.' This is the reason why peculiar places have been set apart from the first for public worship. The upper room at Jerusalem, where the Apostles assembled to break bread, was the best and most detached apartment which circumstances then permitted them to set apart for that purpose. So soon as their means permitted, they removed from the houses of individuals to those separate buildings which still last among us. These we call the Lord's house; just as we have authority from the Apostles to call the weekly anniversary of Christ's resurrection the Lord's day. Both are especially holy; and those who minister for the congregation under such favoured circumstances are as truly, though not as manifestly, in God's presence, as the high-priest when he entered to the mercy-seat within the veil."

"the

"If this be the case," said the young man, name of priest may be as fitly given now as it was to those who offered victims as a prediction of our Lord's coming. But how is it that you called the prayers of the people an offering? Is not the eucharist more especially the Christian sacrifice ?"

Pamphilus. "Yes, it is; for then we especially

record Christ's death; our prayers are offered with more peculiar acceptance, because that is our main service then it is that, in a signal manner, we present ourselves, and the oblation which is about to remind us of the sacrifice of the death of Christ upon the spiritual altar.”

"You mean the bread and wine, which are to be consecrated as shewing forth Christ's death."

Pamphilus. "These are no doubt included. When our Lord first appointed this mystic feast, He employed bread and wine, which had been presented as an offering to God in the service of your passover; and we follow exactly the example which He gave. We first present before Him ourselves, our souls and bodies, and with them this simple and unostentatious offering. Out of it is then taken what to the worthy receiver becomes the means of being engrafted in the mystic body of Christ. The consecrated elements, thus bestowed, are the medium by which each man becomes a sharer in that great sacrifice which, once for all, was offered for us upon the cross. And St. Paul expressly compares the act of those who partake in them with that participation in the ancient sacrifices which was allowed to those who had brought them to the temple. 'Behold, Israel after the flesh : are not those who eat of the sacrifices partakers of the altar? The parallel, therefore, seems to justify the comparison of our sacrifices, though not with that of Christ, yet with those of the ancient ritual."

The young men row rose to depart; Pamphilus having first invited Rutilius to visit him again on an early day,—a request with which he was most willing to comply.

CHAPTER XI.

A Christian Church. The Discipline of Secrecy.
Asceticism.

From thence far off he unto him did shew

A little path, that was both steep and long,

Which to a goodly city led his view,

Whose walls and towers were builded high and strong--
Of pearl and precious stone, that earthly tongue

Cannot describe, nor wit of man can tell

Too high a ditty for my simple song :

The city of the great King hight it well,
Wherein eternal peace and happiness doth dwell.

As he thereon stood gazing, he might see
The blessed angels to and fro descend
From highest heaven in gladsome company,
And with great joy into that city wend,
As commonly as friend does with his friend.
Whereat he wondered much, and 'gan inquire
What stately building durst so high extend
Her lofty towers unto the starry sphere,
And what unknowen nation there empeopled were.

Faery Queen.

On his first visit to Pamphilus, the presence of so many disciples had prevented Rutilius from making the inquiries which he wished respecting what had passed during the preceding night; but he hoped to be more successful next day. He spent some hours in the morning in viewing the splendid buildings with which king Herod had adorned Cæsarea: his grand port; and the noble mole, containing stones of fifty

feet in length, which gave security to the harbour. Such, thought the young Roman, are the effects of our ascendency over these indolent and unpractical Orientals. He continued his examination the longer, because he thought that any strangers who were visiting Cæsarea, would in all probability be to be found in places of such public resort. But no where could be seen the martial form of Marcellus, or the well-remembered figure of his beautiful fellow-traveller. And he was glad when the arrival of a suitable hour enabled him to renew his visit to Pamphilus.

"I have been seeing your town," he said, on his entrance" for a provincial capital, your public buildings are splendid and substantial."

"Herod built them, no doubt, to gain credit with his Roman masters," said Pamphilus, 66 as he beautified their temple to conciliate the Jews."

"But what is that large building which I saw on a hill behind the palace?" said Rutilius; "it seems but recently built."

"That building," replied the other, "is our church. Since a lengthened security has allowed us to profess our religion publicly, our people have raised many such edifices."

"Do you allow others to enter it?" asked the Roman.

"Certainly," said Pamphilus. "There are even parts of our service in which you might yourself share, though its more solemn portions are reserved merely for our own people. It is the period of the