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labours." Their work is done, their good deeds follow them, to prove the sincerity of their faith; their warfare is accomplished, and now they enjoy crowns of victory singularly well calculated is this idea to allay grief on account of all holy persons deceased, who are here declared to be in a blessed condition-" here is the patience of the saints," here are the triumphs of those who have kept the commandments of God, and the truth of Jesus, and often amidst formidable efforts to corrupt it. Write this for the instruction of mankind in the most distant ages, "blessed are the dead which die in the Lord : so numerous, and so various are the calamities which persecuting powers may bring upon those who earnestly contend for the faith once delivered to the saints, that there is abundant reason to congratulate those

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who are taken out of this vexatious, oppressive, and afflictive world. They are removed, "they rest from their labours" and sorrows; and their works of piety and goodness, though often illrequited here, shall not be forgotten, but shall follow them into the presence of God, shall be acknowledged there in the most condescending manner, and through the riches of divine mercy, recompensed with eternal glory; therefore let this remembrance of their faith and patience, in connection with their transcendant reward, encourage and animate their surviving brethren to imitate their examples.

RUBRIC:

Then the Priest shall say:

Lord, have mercy upon us.
Christ, have mercy upon us.
Lord, have mercy upon us.

"Our Father, which art in heaven, hallowed be

thy name. Thy kingdom come. done in earth, as it is in heaven.

Thy will be

Give us this

day our daily bread. And forgive us our trespasses, as we forgive them that trespass against us. And lead us not into temptation: but deliver us from evil. Amen."

We here address our requests to Almighty God in our own behalf, who alone are capable of receiving benefit by these prayers, praying for mercy, to the Father, that he may deliver us from the miseries of this life; to the Son, that he may pardon us the guilt of our sins; to the Holy Ghost, that he may sanctify us, and cleanse us from our corruptions; and because we know not what to ask for as we ought, we add the Lord's prayer, the petitions of which comprehend every blessing we can desire. In it we acknowledge that though we have lost a friend on earth, we have a greater,-namely, "our Father

which is in heaven;" at this dispensation we do not murmur, but "hallow his name," and pray that "his kingdom" of glory may come, when we, and all our friends shall meet again, and that whether he ordain life or death "his will," and not ours "be done." The rest of the prayer points to our condition in this life. We require We require "daily bread" to sustain us, mercy to "forgive us and grace to deliver us from the evil one, and all other evil, both temporal and eternal.

RUBRIC:

Priest.

"Almighty God, with whom do live the spirits of them that depart hence in the Lord, and with whom the souls of the faithful, after they are delivered from the burden of the flesh, are in joy and felicity; we give thee hearty thanks, for that it hath pleased thee to deliver this our brother (or sister) out of the miseries of this

sinful world; beseeching thee that it may please thee, of thy gracious goodness, shortly to accomplish the number of thine elect, and to hasten thy kingdom; that we, with all those that are departed in the true faith of thy holy name, may have our perfect consummation and bliss, both in body and soul, in thy eternal and everlasting glory; through Jesus Christ our Lord." Amen.

This prayer consists of three parts: we first profess our belief of the happy state of the spirits of good men departed; we then give thanks to God for having delivered our deceased friend out of the miseries of this sinful world; and in the last place, we pray for the speedy advent of Christ's kingdom, that we, with all those that are departed in the true faith and fear of his holy name, may have perfection of bliss in his eternal and everlasting kingdom.

The church thus endeavours to pacify that inordinate grief which is pernicious

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