The church in the catacombs : a description of the primitive church of Rome : illustrated by its sepulchral remains . E ANCIENT CHURCH. 219 Dirge, and Mandatum into Maundy he is less successful in proving the high anti-quity of the word Missa, which he endeavours totrace back to the year 166: the letters of Popesbelonging to that early age being far from unsus-pected in point of genuineness.* The custom of preserving a portion of the Sacra-mental bread, somewhat in the way of a talisman,is too well authenticated to allow of our doubtingit. It is particularly alluded to by Cyprian,
The church in the catacombs : a description of the primitive church of Rome : illustrated by its sepulchral remains . E ANCIENT CHURCH. 219 Dirge, and Mandatum into Maundy he is less successful in proving the high anti-quity of the word Missa, which he endeavours totrace back to the year 166: the letters of Popesbelonging to that early age being far from unsus-pected in point of genuineness.* The custom of preserving a portion of the Sacra-mental bread, somewhat in the way of a talisman,is too well authenticated to allow of our doubtingit. It is particularly alluded to by Cyprian, inrelating the case of a woman who had, in the heatof persecution, sacrificed to a heathen deity. Onher attempting, with sacrilegious hands, to openthe box in which she kept the holy supper (orbody) of our Lord, she was deterred from proceed-ing any further in her bold attempt, by fire flashingout of it. f Aringhi has given figures of two boxes found inthe Vatican catacomb : they are supposed to havebeen used for containing the Eucharist, but theirantiquity is probably not very great. One of themis here * Rocks Hierurgia. f De Lapsis. 220 THE OFFICES AND CUSTOMS We have a distinct statement of Cyprians opin-ions regarding the Eucharist, in his 63d Epistle,written to Caecilius, on a remarkable occasion. Ithad been advanced, by the Aquarian heretics, thatwine, from its intoxicating quality, was unfit forthe celebration of the Lords Supper; and waterwas by them substituted for it. It must be bornein mind that the wine employed by the ancients attheir meals was generally mixed with water whenplaced upon the table: it is therefore to this day amatter of doubt whether our Lord used pure wine,or wine and water, in the institution of the is impossible to imagine any such opinion as thatof the Aquarians arising in a church that held thedoctrines of modern Rome: Cyprians answer isalso remarkable, and quite unintelligible, on thesupposition that he believed in transubs
Size: 1469px × 1702px
Photo credit: © The Reading Room / Alamy / Afripics
License: Licensed
Model Released: No
Keywords: ., bookcentury1800, bookdecade, booksubjectchristianartandsymbolism
