fication, where, to say nothing of the variety of fictitious circumstances introduced into it, the Lord is represented as acting in a manner inconsistent with his condition as an infant a few weeks old.

"Now when the fortieth day was come, as prescribed by the Law, our Lady, with the Child Jesus and St. Joseph, set out from Bethlehem on her way to Jerusalem, about six miles distant, there to present her blessed Son to the Lord as it is written in the Law. Do you in thought go with them, and help the sacred Virgin to carry her Divine Infant; and fix your mind, as if present, on all which is now to be said or done, for it is a subject of the most exalted devotion.

Thus then do they bring the Lord of the temple to the temple of the Lord. At the entrance they buy a pair of turtle-doves, or two young pigeons, to offer to God for Him, as was the custom of other poor people. But as they were poorer even than most, we may rather suppose, that their offerings consisted only of two pigeons, which were of less price than the doves; and for that reason are mentioned the last in the Law. And the holy Evangelist takes no notice here of a lamb, which was the usual offering of the rich. At this time the holy Simeon, who was a man both just and devout, came with haste into the temple to see Christ the Son of God, whom the Holy Ghost had promised that he should see before his death. He no sooner beheld the Divine Babe, then he knew Him by the spirit of prophecy within him, and pressing towards Him, fell on his knees and worshipped Him in His Mother's arms. The holy Infant blessed him; and looking earnestly upon his Mother, bent forward, in token that He desired to go to him. This His Mother understanding, gave Him to Simeon, who with joy and reverence received Him in his arms; and then arose, and, blessing God, said: Lord, now lettest Thou Thy servant depart in peace, and the rest; prophesying many things concerning His Passion. And holy Anna, the prophetess, came up at that instant, and, worshipping Him, also spoke many things relating to Him. But Mary, wondering at all these things, kept them close in her heart. At length, the Child Jesus stretching forth His arms towards His Mother, was again received by her. After this, they advance towards the altar, in the manner of a procession, which is annually represented throughout the church on Candlemas-day. First went the two venerable old men, Joseph and Simeon, hand in hand, singing with transports of joy: O give thanks unto the Lord, for He is gracious, and His mercy endureth for ever. The Lord is righteous in all His ways, and holy in all His works. For this God is our God for ever and ever. We wait for Thy loving kindness, O God, in the midst of Thy temple. These were followed by the sacred Mother herself, bearing in her arms Jesus the Infant King, with Anna by her side, she pouring forth her soul in thanksgiving beyond expression, in which her companion joined her. These, then, were all who formed this procession, which, though consisting of few persons, represented great mysteries; for these were but the first-fruits of an innumerable company of every sex and every state, youth, celibacy, marriage, and widowhood. When they were come to the altar, the holy Mother knelt down, with all reverence and devotion, and offered her dearest Son to His heavenly Father, saying: Vouchsafe, O most sovereign Lord, to receive this Thy beloved Son, whom, according to the commandment of Thy Law, I here offer unto Thee as the first-born of His mother. But I beseech Thy mercy, most gracious Father, to vouchsafe to restore Him again to me.' And then rising, she laid him upon the altar. O great God, and most merciful Lord, what a precious and most acceptable Offering was this! such surely as had never before been made from the beginning of time, nor shall ever be made again.

"Consider each point attentively. The blessed Infant Jesus quietly remains upon the altar, like any other little child, and with a look of intelligence beyond his years, fixes his eyes upon his mother, and the rest who stand about him, humbly waiting with patience, to see what more is to be done. The priests enter solemnly with their attendants, and the Sovereign Lord of all things is redeemed like a slave at the low price of five pence, or five small pieces of coin called shekels, the sum given for other poor children. After Joseph had paid them to the priest, the blessed Mother joyfully received him again into her arms. Then taking from Joseph the above-mentioned pair of pigeons, she knelt down, and lifting up her eyes devoutly to heaven, offered them, saying: Vouchsafe, most merciful Father, to accept this

offering, the first little gift which Thy beloved Son, of his extreme poverty, this day presents unto Thee! Then He, stretching forth His hands towards the little birds, raised his eyes to heaven, and though He said nothing, yet signified by His gestures that He offered them together with His Mother. And so she left them upon

the altar.

"Consider here, Christian reader, and diligently contemplate the great dignity and majesty of those who make this offering: the blessed Virgin Mother, and her Divine Son Jesus. Could such an offering, think you, though a little one, be rejected of God? No; rather may we devoutly suppose it to have been carried up to heaven by the hands of Angels, and there presented by them, and to have been most graciously accepted, at the Eternal Throne, amidst the joyful thanksgivings of the whole company of blessed spirits.

"The offering having been duly made, the holy Virgin quitted Jerusalem, on her return home to Nazareth. On the way, she stopped at the house of St. Elizabeth, wishing to see St. John before she left the neighbourhood. Do you accompany her whithersoever she goes, and in devout meditation assist her to carry the Babe. When our blessed Lady and St. Elizabeth met, they were extremely overjoyed at the sight of each other, but more especially in beholding each their blessed sons Jesus and John, who, with no less tokens of joy, lovingly congratulated one another; and St. John, as conscious of the dignity of His sacred Guest, behaved towards Him with the utmost submission and respect. Do you also reverently receive the child John, for he is great in the sight of the Lord, and haply he may give you a blessing."

Besides its other peculiarities, this passage contains a covert contradiction of the Holy Scripture. For the turtle-doves or young pigeons were not an offering from the child, nor was the mother to lay them on the altar, but they were an atonement for the mother, and she was commanded to bring them to the door of the tabernacle, and to deliver them to the priest, who was to offer them before the Lord, the one for a burnt offering, and the other for a sin offering, and make an atonement for her. But this account of the matter would not suit with the notion of the immaculate and sinless purity of the Virgin. And so the Scripture narrative is falsified, and the turtle-doves or pigeons, which in reality were offered by the priests as a burnt-offering and a sin-offering, for an atonement and purification for the mother, are here represented as being offered as a gift by the Son, together with his mother. One would be glad to believe that Mr. Oakeley was not aware of the purpose with which the story is made to contradict the Scripture; but whether he was or not, the crime of doing violence to the Word of God remains the same.

Now, this is an exceedingly remarkable passage, when one recollects that Mr. Oakeley informs us he has made alterations in the text of his author where he conceived the matter was less likely to edify than to startle, and where Meditation was carried further than the mind of the public is yet prepared for. And what makes this passage more worthy of notice is, that Mr. Oakeley has, in the place referred to, expressly guarded against his reader supposing that the passages he has omitted seemed objectionable to him on account of the doctrine they contained. On the whole, therefore, it would seem that the only explanation to be given of his retaining this account of the Purification is this, either that he does not understand it, which is hardly credible; or, that he does not feel any objection to altering the sacred text, in order to make it square with the doc

trines he has adopted with regard to the sinless nature of the Virgin Mary. For Bonaventure maintains, that the Virgin had no need for purification, and that she submitted to it voluntarily, as to a law "made for others;" and this passage Mr. Oakeley has retained, (p. 41.) Now, this error of her immaculate perfection is confuted by the mere fact of her having a burnt-offering and a sin-offering offered for her atonement and cleansing; consequently, as the Scripture account of the transaction will not consist with the doctrines of this school, the sacrifice of the Purification is represented as a little gift laid on the altar by the Virgin, and presented by the Lord to His Heavenly Father, conjointly with His mother. Would it not be more decent -it would be folly to say, more reverent-to have composed this "Life of Christ" as a pure fiction, without any reference to the Sacred Text, than in this unblushing manner to do violence to the Word of God. It is very easy to say, "Whatever be the truth on this subject, it is one on which I find it especially sweet to meditate" (p. 28); or, "Though it is uncertain whose marriage it was that was celebrated at Cana of Galilee, let us, for meditation' sake, suppose it to have been that of St. John the Evangelist" (p. 103); though one cannot understand why any right-minded person should find any especial sweetness in meditating on anything in religion which he acknowledges may be false and contrary to fact-to say nothing of his stating that the Lord commanded St. John to put away his wife, while acknowledging that he knows not whether it was St. John's marriage of which the account was given. These, however, appear trifles compared with the present deliberate and intentional contradiction of the Sacred History.

And yet the steps are easy by which men arrive even at such im. piety. If men begin with trifling with truth, they do not feel it so difficult as some imagine to take liberties with Holy Scripture. How easy is it to find illustrations in abundance, from the expositors of prophecy and the commentators-to say nothing of those who adopt an imaginative and poetical style in preaching. Truth is a very sacred deposit, and revealed truth is the life of the human soul; and it seems a law in our being, that, if men have not an inward love and preference for truth, for its own sake, they will lose their perception of its relative value and expediency-and so go on in the deteriorating process of mental obliquity and confusion, until they have exposed the unsoundness of their principles by overt acts of dishonesty and falsification. And no less true is it, that all this may co-exist with a certain species of devotional feeling and zeal, so that it is anything but impossible for a man even to lay down his life in defence or maintenance of certain truths, who has no love for truth itself, and is utterly ignorant of what it is and what its value. And hence the mischievous effects of such movements as the present. If the leader of such a movement as this can have so little notion of the distinction between truth and falsehood as to teach men that "it is not inore than an hyperbole to say that, in certain cases a lie is the nearest approach to truth," is it any wonder that his disciples should adopt the maxims of

the Jesuits in their dealings with mankind, and falsify the Scripture itself when it stands opposed to their errors and superstitions? For, in truth, falsehood soon comes to be mixed up with their devotions, and even their humility is at best fanaticism-a false estimate of themselves. If this seem too strong language, let any one consider the first principle of the humility they inculcate. For example, here is a passage from Dr. Pusey's preface to Surin :

"Happy, at least it is, if they who think they hold most accurately the corruption of nature, can even understand the language of the self-abhorrence of the saints. Take his, who being asked, Who were the sheep?' said, 'I know not; I only know that I am of the goats;* or his, who even prayed that his sins might not bring the vengeance of God on the towns where he preached,† or of those who wept for their sins, until sight was impaired ;t or his, who, having renounced all the riches and glories of this world, habitually accounted his only fit dwelling to be hell, or BEING SPIT UPON ALL NIGHT, COUNTED NO PLACE FITTER THAN HIS OWN FACE;S or hers, who, having followed God's leadings since she heard His Name, confessed. All my life has been nothing but darkness, but I will hide myself in the Wounds of Jesus crucified: I will bathe myself in His Blood, which will wash off all my sins; or his, who, being asked, to pray for the continuance of a life spent in winning souls, answered, I am an unprofitable servant, whom neither God nor His people needeth;' or that which has been the common maxim and first principle of all saints, that they are to account themselves 'the chief of sinners,' not professing it only with their lips, but on each occasion acting instantaneously upon it, wishing thus to believe it, bearing all reproach patiently, glad to be evil spoken of untruly, acutely pained at any hint of praise, confounded at the mention of any good in them.”—p. xx.

And yet, does it never occur to those writers that, as all persons-to say nothing of all saints-cannot all and singular of them be the chief of sinners, a vast deal of such humility as this must consist in pure self-deception; and, how deception of any kind can be a virtue and a grace, they would do well to inquire. But certainly, when selfdeception is reckoned an act of sanctity, it is no wonder if, from deceiving themselves, such saints should fall into the habit of deceiving others.

On this passage Dr. Pusey has added the following as a note :

"All these tests of deep humility may be verified to any extent in the lives of the Saints, not as the results of reflection, but as part of themselves.

"The following instances are given by Nouet, L'homme d'oraison, Conduite dans les voies de Dieu. Ent. xi. St. Francis Borgia having employed much time every day in acquiring knowledge of himself, reduced the principles of self-knowledge to these. (1.) I was formed from nothing. (2.) I shall return to nothing.

"I think one of the Eastern Anchorites "

+"St Dominic. The like is related of St. Catherine of Sienna, that she thought all the chastisements of Divine justice, which desolated the provinces in her time, to be the miserable effects of her unfaithfulness. Nonet."

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"The largeness of the gift of tears continually recurs in the Lives of the Saints." § St. Francis Borgia. St. Alphonsus Lignori gives this as one of the preparations of any mental prayer (and so of his own): 1. My God, I believe Thee present within me, and I adore Thee from the abyss of my own nothingness. 2. O Lord, I ought now to be in hell, on account of my sins; I am sorry for having offended Thee; pardon me in thy mercy.' (Quoted by Mr. Ward, p. 350.')" Alphonsus Liguori was not always considered a safe guide by Dr. Pusey.

"St. Catherine of Sienna."

T" St. Francis de Sales."

(3.) I know not what I am. (4.) If I know any thing, my only knowledge is, that hell is my [fitting] home. (5.) Of myself I do no good work. St. Theresa being warned one day to take heed of vain-glory, answered, Vain-glory! I know not why, knowing who I am; it is much for me not to despair :' and in her life, it seems as if, even would I try to have vain-glory, I could not. For I know clearly through the grace which God giveth me, that of myself I can do nothing. On the contrary, God makes me see my miseries, and discovers to me so many unfaithfulnesses, that whatever time I could employ thereon, I should never see so many truths, as I see of them in an instant. Besides, I know not how I could attribute to myself the good which is in me, seeing that a little while ago I was entirely bare of the virtues I possess, which also are the fruits of the mercy of God, and His free gifts, wherein I am, and can do nothing, no more than a painter's canvass, in that, on my part, I can do no more than receive the grace of God, without rendering Him any service. For certainly I am the most useless person in the world; I am ashamed to see what progress every one makes, except myself who am good for nothing. What I say is not humility, it is truth. I do not believe that there is in the world a creature worse than myself, and when I consider the little profit I make of the graces I receive, I sometimes come to fear that I have been deceived.' The B. Angela de Foligna said with unspeakable ardour, ' O unknown nothingness! O unknown nothingness: I tell you in all truth, that the soul can have no richer knowledge than that of its nothingness.' And to St. Catherine our Lord said, 'Knowest thou well, who I am and who thou art. Happy wilt thou be, if thou understand it well. I am HE who IS, and thou art she who is not.' 'In this [Divine] light St. Ignatius looked upon himself AS AN ULCER CONTINUALLY DISCHARGING PUS; Alphonso Rodriguez compared himself to graves of dead, putrid carcasses, sewers and sinks of vessels where all defilements collect.' [Comp. our own Bp. Andrewes" (what would "our own Rp. Andrewes" say if he could see himself paraded in such company?) "Morning Devotions, Despise me not, an unclean worm, a dead dog, a putrid corpse.'] 'St. Ignatius used to say that he did not believe that another could be found, in whom there was so much ingratitude joined with so many graces and favours which he had received of God; whence he prayed our Lord to deprive him of his spiritual consolations, in chastisement of his unfaithfulness, to make him more careful and faithful for the future. St. Francis cried out from time to time, 'Lord, keep, if it please Thee, the treasure of the graces Thou hast deposited in my soul. For I am a thief who rob thee of Thy glory.' St. Gertrude thought it one of the greatest miracles that the earth should endure her, seeing there was no one who did not deserve the favours of God better than herself, and did not employ them better.' See also St. Vincent Ferrier and St. Catherine of Genoa, below, p. 105. St. John-of-God, when accused to the Archbishop of Grenada of harbouring dissolute people in his hospital, said, 'The Son of God came to save sinners, and we are bound to labour and pray for their conversion. I am unfaithful to my calling that I neglect this; and I confess that I know no other bad person in my hospital but myself,'' &c. Butler."

6

What others may think or say of all this, the writer does not pretend to anticipate. Such humility appears to him nothing less than fanatical self-deception; and, to speak plainly, to be far less deserving of the name of humility, than of an intolerable pride and self-importance, in which self occupies the entire field of vision. But this comes of tampering with truth.