On Holy Week

The Sunday Next Before Easter commonly called Palm Sunday

ALMIGHTY and everlasting God, who, of thy tender love towards mankind, hast sent thy Son our Saviour Jesus Christ, to take upon him our flesh, and to suffer death upon the cross, that all mankind should follow the example of his great humility: Mercifully grant, that we may both follow the example of his patience, and also be made partakers of his resurrection; through the same Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.

Palm Sunday, also known as the Second Sunday in Passiontide or the Sixth Sunday in Lent, is the final Sunday before Easter Sunday and the first day of Holy Week, commemorating Christ's Passion. It is a period that takes Christians through Christ's triumphal entry into Jerusalem on Palm Sunday to the Last Supper and the washing of the disciple's feet on Maundy Thursday and his betrayal and crucifixion on Good Friday. It collects the totality of the anticipation and penitence of Lent and prepares us for the glorious triumph of Christ in the Easter Sunday resurrection. It is a complex pattern that contains several parts, each of which is described below.

The Great Fast of Lent lasts 40 days (excluding Sundays) in commemoration of Christ’s 40 days in the wilderness prior to his assumption of public ministry. It is a period today in which Christians prepare their whole lives as a holy offering unto God, and do so through prayer, repentance, fasting and almsgiving.

Lent developed out of the needs of the Church. When Emperor Constantine ended the persecution of Christians and himself converted to Christianity, thousands of people converted to Christianity, be it those who had never heard the Gospel before because of the difficulty in preaching due to persecution as well as those who sought to profess Christian faith in order to gain advantage, either by marrying into a Christian family, with Christian relatives or with political officials who now supported Christianity.

With so many adults seeking to become Christian, an intensive process of catechesis developed. Catechumens were traditionally baptised at Easter, and so in preparation for that baptism, Lent was developed as a final period of intensive training in Christian faith. At the start of Lent, the catechumens would make vows affirming their desire to be baptised. Sometimes family members would be involved in this as well. For the period of Lent through to Easter they would be instructed in the faith, and then be baptised. They would receive some additional limited training in the sacraments after Baptism.

Over time, this practice would change. Family members would play a more active role, and sometimes begin in ways to participate in the training. Eventually, the whole community would participate, and Lent became a time of preparation for the renewal of baptismal vows and a time of prayer and repentance for the failure to in all ways keep those vows.

As Christianity became more established, there began to be fewer adults in need of baptism, as more and more children were being raised in Christian families, Baptism was being performed on the infant children, who were in no position to be catechised. Yet, for parents and other older Christians, Lent remained a time for them to remember their own baptismal vows and prepare for Easter. The emphasis changed from preparation for Baptism to the commemoration of Christ’s suffering, death and resurrection.

In Anglicanism, Lent begins on Ash Wednesday with a service of imposition of ashes, recalling the Old Testament practice of sprinkling ashes on one’s head as a sign of repentance and humility. Its liturgical colour is purple, like Advent, as it is a season both of repentance and penance as well as anticipation of Easter.

Passiontide is the period covering Passion Sunday, the fifth Sunday in Lent, and ending on Holy Saturday. In this period, particular emphasis begins to be placed on Christ’s Passion (suffering, from the Greek). Palm Sunday is the second Sunday in Passiontide, and begins the recounting of the Passion of Christ, commemorating his triumphal entry into Jerusalem, where the people laid palm leaves before him. It is the high point and most joyous of the Passiontide commemorations.

On Holy Wednesday, sometimes also called Spy Wednesday, we commemorate the decision of Judas Iscariot to betray Christ to the Sanhedrin. While this was clearly essential to Christ’s passion, it is also less frequently commemorated than other days during Holy Week.

After Holy Wednesday is Maundy Thursday. Maundy refers to the ceremonial washing of feet, and is in reference to how Christ washed the feet of his disciples after the last supper. Also known as Holy Thursday, the feast recalls not simply the washing of feet after supper, but also of Christ’s institution of the Eucharist. It initiates the Easter Triduum, the final commemoration of Christ’s suffering, death and resurrection. It is a solemn service, often celebrated in the style of a Tenebrae service, Latin for darkness, in which the candles and other sources of illumination are extinguished.

On Good Friday, commemorate Christ’s crucifixion with solemn and silent services of meditation. In many places, the cross is veiled, though if there is a crucifix it may be unveiled for at least part of the service. When the service has been completed, the congregation departs in silence, and a number of other activities happen, depending upon local particulars. Oftentimes the Stations of the Cross may be prayed. In other places, the end of the Good Friday service will start a prayer vigil lasting for the remainder of the Easter Triduum.

In this way, prayer takes precedence in the final hours of Christ’s death until Easter Sunday.

Taken as a whole, Lent is a great period of renewal and self-examination, and one in which we are invited, each year, to follow through the narrative of Christ’s passion. What better time to prepare yourself for renewal than prior to Easter? What better way to understand the scope of Christ’s human suffering than to walk through his passion with him?

There is power in the liturgy to help focus our thoughts on God, and perhaps nowhere is it more clear than Lent.

On the Anglican Communion

The Fifth Sunday in Lent commonly called Passion Sunday

WE beseech thee, Almighty God, mercifully to look upon thy people; that by thy great goodness they may be governed and preserved evermore, both in body and soul; through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.

Lent

ALMIGHTY and everlasting God, who hatest nothing that thou hast made, and dost forgive the sins of all them that are penitent: Create and make in us new and contrite hearts, that we worthily lamenting our sins, and acknowledging our wretchedness, may obtain of thee, the God of all mercy, perfect remission and forgiveness; through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.

For someone who was neither raised Anglican, nor raised in a Commonwealth country, the Anglican Communion may take a word of explanation. This is particularly true for someone who is not familiar with Anglicanism at all, but has some basic knowledge of the Roman Catholic Church. Due to the many outward similarities—vestments, liturgies, etc—someone might think of the Anglican Communion as being a very similar structure to the Roman Catholic Church, with its leadership vested simply in the Archbishop of Canterbury rather than the Bishop of Rome.

This, however, is not the case. The Anglican Communion is in fact an association of 38 autonomous national Anglican churches, called provinces, which are in full communion with the Church of England. While the Archbishop of Canterbury is first among equals, his position is more akin to the Patriarch of Constantinople in the early Christian East or the Bishop of Rome in the early Western Church. The Archbishop has precedence of honour, but does not directly exercise authority outside of the Church of England as the Bishop of Rome does today.

While in certain ways, this organization more closely resembles both the organization of the Early Church as well as in certain ways the continued organization of the Eastern Orthodox Church, much like Anglicanism itself, the Anglican Communion is a product of its history.

With England spreading its political power throughout the world in the form of the British Empire, religion was sure to follow. The Church of England held services in Canada in 1578 and the first permanent Anglican parish established in North America was in Jamestown, Virginia in 1607.

Following the American war for independence, the Episcopal Church was founded, borrowing its naming convention from the Scottish Episcopal Church. With the ordination of William White and Samuel Provoost in 1787, there was a direct tie to the Church of England by an autonomous national Anglican church, foreshadowing the nature of the Anglican Communion.

Shortly afterwards, Charles Inglish was consecrated as the Bishop of Nova Scotia, and given episcopal oversight over all of British territories in North America. Over the next hundred years, many more colonial bishops would be consecrated as a result of various English missionary societies. Missionaries had established Anglican churches throughout the British Empire, and it was in 1840 that Bishop Blomfeld of London published a letter asking the Archbishop of Canterbury extend the episcopate, as by this time there were millions of practicing Anglicans in the colonies, thus far only ten colonial bishops had been consecrated. As a result of his advocacy, the Colonial Bishoprics Council was created, and many new colonial sees and bishops were created.

While these first bishops were originally quite tied to England—they were de facto extra-territorial suffragan bishops in practice—they would ultimately gain greater autonomy over time, both personally and legislatively. After a series of legal decision relating to the stipends of colonial bishops in the 1850s and 1860s, colonial churches were given the ability to appoint and consecrate their own bishops.

This autonomy in the appointment of bishops led in 1867 led to the first Lambeth Conference, which was attended by 76 bishops from around the world. While in many ways modelled on the ecumenical councils of the Early Church, the Lambeth Conference was not designed to be authoritative, due in large part to the desires of colonial bishops to maintain their autonomy with respect to local circumstances, and instead the Lambeth Conferences were designed to be consultative in nature, helping bishops to from different parts of the world to connect with one another and in particular in the early days of the conferences, to help English bishops in the Church of England to understand the challenges and struggles of the colonial bishops.

In Canada in particular, the first Canadian synods were established in the 1850s, the first Canadian synods were established at the local level, and in 1861 the Church of England in Canada (a name that would be retained until the 1970s when it became the Anglican Church of Canada) became somewhat self-governing, though again largely this meant greater local autonomy rather than a colony wide organization for Anglicans in British North America. It took until 1893 for the first General Synod to be called in Canada, and one of its first acts was to promulgate the Solemn Declaration of 1893. This document laid out the relationship between the Church of England in Canada and the Church of England, as well as the limits on the autonomy of the Canadian General Synod.

Of particular importance, the Solemn Declaration declared that the Church in Canada would be in full communion with the Church of England, that it received the catholicity of the Church of England, described as:

one Faith revealed in Holy Writ, and defined in the Creeds as maintained by the undivided primitive Church in the undisputed Ecumenical Councils; receive the same Canonical Scriptures of the Old and New Testaments, as containing all things necessary to salvation; teach the same Word of God; partake of the same Divinely ordained Sacraments, through the ministry of the same Apostolic Orders…

This description incorporates the four tenets of the early Church: one canon of Holy Scripture, one faith defined by the three creeds and seven Ecumenical Councils of the early Church, the one sacramental life and the threefold order of apostolic ministry.

The solemn declaration goes on to incorporate the three Anglican formularies of the Book of Common Prayer, Ordinal and the Thirty-Nine Articles of Religion.

This model would become fairly standard for the way in which the relationship between the Church of England and her daughter churches around the world would be viewed. It should be noted that while there is an emphasis on full communion with the Church of England, doctrine comes from the formularies and the early Church, not the Church of England itself.

In modern times, the Anglican Communion has added two more “Instruments of Communion” to the decennial Lambeth Conferences, namely the standing Anglican Consultative Council and the Primate’s Meetings. All three of these instruments work together to help provide a venue for dialogue and discussion, but unlike, for instance, the Roman Catholic Church, it is not the Archbishop of Canterbury that provides doctrinal leadership for all worldwide Anglicans, but in theory the inheritance of the Book of Common Prayer, the Ordinal and Thirty-Nine Articles of Religion, along with Anglican catholicity, the Scriptures, the creeds and councils, the sacraments and the order of ministry.

Wisdom of Saints: St Cyril of Jerusalem

The Feast of Cyril, Doctor and Bishop of Jerusalem, 386

O GOD, who by thy Holy Spirit hast given unto one man a word of wisdom, and to another a word of knowledge, and to another the gift of tongues: We praise thy Name for the gifts of grace manifested in thy servant Cyril, and we pray that thy Church may never be destitute of the same; through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.

St Cyril of Jerusalem is another of the saints of whom little is known of his early life. He was born around 315 AD in or near Jerusalem, and died in 386 AD. He was trained in the Church fathers and seems to have had a secular education in the pagan philosophers as well. He was ordained as a deacon in 335 AD, a priest in 343 AD and as Bishop of Jerusalem in 350 AD.

St Cyril was a Nicene Christian and developed an animosity with the Arian bishop of Caesarea. While some scholars have argued the dispute was over issues of precedence, most seem to believe it ultimately was rooted in their opposing Christologies and the general Arian Controversy which had divided Christianity in the 4th century. Bishop Acacius ultimately caused St Cyril to be exiled briefly in 359. Restored in 360, he was then again driven out by the Emperor before finally being restored by the succession of a new Emperor in 361. In 367, his restoration was revoked, along with all other Bishops who had been restored by Emperor Julian in 361, and he lived in exile until the death of Emperor Valens in 378. He remained as Bishop of Jerusalem for the rest of his days, and attended the Second Ecumenical Council held in Constantinople in 381, which affirmed the Nicene Creed and finally put to rest the Arian controversy.

While the details of St Cyril’s life are relatively unknown, several important writings of his survive, the most prominent of which are his Catechetical Lectures, which includes 18 lessons presented to catechumens in Lent prior to Baptism, and five more lessons on the Holy Mysteries presented in Easter after they had been baptised.

The complete work survives, and gives keen insight into the minds of the Early Church, on numerous Christian topics. His lessons include discussions of the understanding of the forgiveness of sin, the nature of Christ, his resurrection and ascension, while the final five discuss issues related to Baptism, Confirmation, Holy Communion and the Sacred Liturgy.

In his lectures are a number of important points about Christianity. This quote from his lesson IV On the Ten Points of Doctrine, in which St Cyril examines a number of doctrines from the Nicene Creed as well as other Christian doctrines more generally:

Have thou ever in thy mind this seal [the Nicene Creed], which for the present has been lightly touched in my discourse, by way of summary, but shall be stated, should the Lord permit, to the best of my power with the proof from the Scriptures.  For concerning the divine and holy mysteries of the Faith, not even a casual statement must be delivered without the Holy Scriptures; nor must we be drawn aside by mere plausibility and artifices of speech.  Even to me, who tell thee these things, give not absolute credence, unless thou receive the proof of the things which I announce from the Divine Scriptures.  For this salvation which we believe depends not on ingenious reasoning, but on demonstration of the Holy Scriptures.

Here, St Cyril lays out that these catechumens must test all he teaches them against Holy Scripture, for the Christian is to believe nothing which cannot be proved by Holy Scripture. Later in that same chapter he discusses at length the canon of Scripture, and exhorts the catachumens not be taken in by false teachings:

Then of the New Testament there are the four Gospels only, for the rest have false titles and are mischievous. The Manichæans also wrote a Gospel according to Thomas, which being tinctured with the fragrance of the evangelic title corrupts the souls of the simple sort.  Receive also the Acts of the Twelve Apostles; and in addition to these the seven Catholic Epistles of James, Peter, John, and Jude; and as a seal upon them all, and the last work of the disciples, the fourteen Epistles of Paul.

Here, St Cyril identifies all the canonical books of the New Testament, aside from the Apocalypse of John which was one of the final books to be recognized in the Canon, and which would not be fixed among Christians for another ten years after St Cyril’s death. An important point here, is his denunciation of the apocryphal gospels which were then being promoted and which have, in modern times, become popular to write about again, particularly by secular authors. The Da Vinci Code and similar works use the gnostic gospels as bases for speaking of secret knowledge that Christians should know, but these so-called gospels have been known of, and have been known to be false since the time of the Early Church. Unlike the canonincal gospels which were written in the Apostolic Age, the apocryphal gospels were forged in the early 4th century, so it is not shocking that St Cyril would mention them as they were new, the canon was not fully fixed, and many Christians would not have known they were false teachings.

St Cyril’s lecture on the Holy Spirit was able to address a number of pressing issues, both in exploring the description of the Holy Spirit in the Creed as well as in addressing a number of heresies surrounding the Holy Spirit and related aspects of Christian faith:

Spiritual in truth is the grace we need, in order to discourse concerning the Holy Spirit; not that we may speak what is worthy of Him, for this is impossible, but that by speaking the words of the divine Scriptures, we may run our course without danger.  For a truly fearful thing is written in the Gospels, where Christ has plainly said, Whosoever shall speak a word against the Holy Ghost, it shall not be forgiven him, neither in this world, nor in that which is to come. And there is often fear, lest a man should receive this condemnation, through speaking what he ought not concerning Him, either from ignorance, or from supposed reverence.  The Judge of quick and dead, Jesus Christ, declared that he hath no forgiveness; if therefore any man offend, what hope has he?
It must therefore belong to Jesus Christ’s grace itself to grant both to us to speak without deficiency, and to you to hear with discretion; for discretion is needful not to them only who speak, but also to them that hear, lest they hear one thing, and misconceive another in their mind.  Let us then speak concerning the Holy Ghost nothing but what is written; and whatsoever is not written, let us not busy ourselves about it. The Holy Ghost Himself spoke the Scriptures; He has also spoken concerning Himself as much as He pleased, or as much as we could receive.  Let us therefore speak those things which He has said; for whatsoever He has not said, we dare not say.

Here, St Cyril discusses how we are commanded to speak truthfully about the Spirit, lest our ill-speech not be forgiven. He goes on to describe how the only way thus to speak truthfully, and to have discerning ears, is to speak and listen through the Scriptures. While he again examines a number of heresies concerning the Holy Spirit, once he finishes, he concludes saying, “Let then thus much suffice concerning those outcasts; and now let us return to the divine Scriptures,” and does just that, spending the remainder of the lecture examining what the Scriptures have to say about the Holy Spirit.

St Cyril, and his Catechetical Lectures are a treasure of the early Church, which give us insight into the doctrines, teachings and practices of early Christians. It is a work well-worth reading today as the truths St Cyril teaches are timeless.

On Evangelical Sacramentalism

The Fourth Sunday in Lent

GRANT, we beseech thee, Almighty God, that we, who for our evil deeds do worthily deserve to be punished, by the comfort of thy grace may mercifully be relieved; through our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ. Amen.

Lent

ALMIGHTY and everlasting God, who hatest nothing that thou hast made, and dost forgive the sins of all them that are penitent: Create and make in us new and contrite hearts, that we worthily lamenting our sins, and acknowledging our wretchedness, may obtain of thee, the God of all mercy, perfect remission and forgiveness; through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.

The seven sacraments recognized in Anglicanism are those which are commonly recognized, but throughout history there have been others, and other perspectives on sacramentalism. In Eastern Orthodoxy, for instance, all of life is viewed sacramentally. Life can be viewed sacramentally in that humans are vessels for God’s grace. Our physical bodies are an outward and visible sign of an inward and spiritual grace. If pressed to name the number of sacraments, though, they would still recognize the seven historic sacraments, the same as orthodox Anglicans.

That said, among Anglicans, particularly those of an evangelical Low Churchmanship, the importance of the seven sacraments is diminished. While the real presence of Christ in the Eucharist is accepted, evangelical Anglicans would tend to not place as much importance on the Eucharist as a method of transmission of God’s grace and power. While they would still tend to emphasize Holy Baptism, for many that would be something that occurs at a young age. Confirmation would not be viewed as necessary, Holy Orders are not taken by those who are not called to the Priesthood, Unction is unnecessary and simply gathering to pray for one another is sufficient, Reconciliation is unnecessary because confession can be made directly to God at any time and Holy Matrimony is perhaps the only other sacrament which is viewed as truly significant and common place in the Christian’s life, though even then the emphasis would be on Holy Matrimony as a covenant between husband and wife, more so than as a means again of transmission of grace and God’s indwelling of that relationship.

That does not mean, however, that evangelical Anglicans lack a true sacramental nature, though they would likely not describe it in such terms, nor would they be apt to necessarily accept such a definition. Not is it only those who place less importance on the recognized sacraments of the Church who can have a sacramental view of other aspects of Christian life.

Article VI of the Thirty-Nine Articles of Religion, describes the sufficiency of Holy Scripture for salvation, saying that all that is necessary for salvation is recorded in Scripture, and nothing may be required of someone as necessary that cannot be proved by Scripture. In St Mark’s Gospel, Christ says that to be saved, one must believe and be baptised (Mk 16. 16). Nothing can be added to that requirement. Article VI informs the doctrine of Prima Scriptura, which itself is summarised by St Paul in his Epistle to the Romans when he describes the Gospel as, “for it is the power of God for salvation to everyone who believes, to the Jew first and also to the Greek,” (Rm 1. 16).

It is this concept of Holy Scripture as the power of God that comes to the fore in evangelical thinking. The Bible is God’s word. It is the means by which we learn first and foremost of God’s creation of the universe, his covenants with the Jews and the laws he put down. We learn of the fulfilment of the law in Christ; his life, death, resurrection and ascension. We learn of God’s nature, his love for us and his desire to be in communion with us.

For evangelicals, though, there is more to God’s word than that; God’s word is the power through which we are released from sin, the power through which we overcome temptation and the power of salvation. In St Mark’s Gospel, just prior to saying that belief and baptism will lead to salvation, Christ had given the great commission, calling on all believers to, “Go into all the world and proclaim the gospel to the whole creation,” (Mk 16.15). Proclaiming the Gospel was considered an integral component of salvation, in that it is the means by which we believe, and the knowledge of what we are to believe.

Without the Scriptures, we would not know God. The Bible is God’s word, and the means through which he conveys his presence, his power, his nature and grace. Evangelicals, though they would not necessarily think it, view the Holy Scripture sacramentally.

To again look to the practices of the East, while Anglicanism defines a sacrament in the Book of Common Prayer as, “an outward and visible sign of an inward and spiritual grace,” the Eastern Orthodox Church views sacraments, also called Holy Mysteries because what we see is not the same as their spiritual effects, are defined generally the same way, though they can be more broadly viewed as vessels by which grace is transmitted to participate in our physical life. Also interestingly, in the Eastern Orthodox tradition, there is an emphasis on the personal nature of the sacraments, which is clearly mirrored in the evangelical sacramental view of Holy Scripture.

Holy Scripture is a vessel through which God’s grace and power are transmitted, and to the evangelical, while Holy Scripture is for all, it is also very personal. As a tool for release from sin and overcoming temptation, Holy Scripture can be extremely personal. A particular verse may aid one Christian in overcoming a particular temptation, while being of no use to another. I have always viewed the nature of Holy Scripture as being a mirror of Christ’s dual nature. He was both fully God and fully man, and in the same way, Holy Scripture is wholly universal and wholly personal.

This sacramental view of Scripture, is something that should be encouraged in Anglicanism. While the importance of Holy Scripture for the determination of doctrine and teaching is important, under this sacramental view of the Scriptures, their importance as a means for the transmission of God’s grace is reinforced. Reading Scripture is not merely a Christian obligation, it is a Christian joy. Not only do we learn of God’s love and grace, but it is a means by which it is transmitted to us; it is the power to be more Christlike in our own lives.

Recognizing sacramentalism in our Christian walk is not simply something restricted to evangelicals, nor should it be. Taking this Eastern Christian view of the sacramentality of life is something all Anglicans should consider. It is perhaps a distinct characteristic of someone who considers themselves to be an evangelical Catholic Anglican, and yet it is fully in keeping with the traditional Anglican doctrines and practices, and is truly just a different way of looking at our faith, and perhaps importantly, one which encourages certain evangelical practices and respect towards the Holy Scriptures among some Anglicans who hold themselves to some kind of Anglo-Catholic definition in which they limit the importance of Holy Scripture to simply something which is read in Church from the lectionary.

On the Sacrament of Extreme Unction

The Third Sunday in Lent

WE beseech thee, Almighty God, look upon the hearty desires of thy humble servants, and stretch forth the right hand of thy Majesty, to be our defence against all our enemies; through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.

Lent

ALMIGHTY and everlasting God, who hatest nothing that thou hast made, and dost forgive the sins of all them that are penitent: Create and make in us new and contrite hearts, that we worthily lamenting our sins, and acknowledging our wretchedness, may obtain of thee, the God of all mercy, perfect remission and forgiveness; through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.

The Sacrament of Unction, or Extreme Unction, is one which might initially sound confusing, but which most Christians, whether they are Catholic, sacramental or not, would recognize from Holy Scripture. "You prepare a table before me in the presence of my enemies; you anoint my head with oil; my cup overflows." The famous verse from Psalm 23 is one of the most well-known in the Bible, but the line, "you anoint my head with oil," often passes without much thought. Unction is from a Latin root which means to anoint. Extreme Unction is a sacrament which relates to the anointing with oil for the purpose of healing.

Anointing with oil was a common practice among the Jews of the old testament. Much like the distinction between St John's baptism of repentance and Christ's introduction of Baptism in the Spirit, the use of anointing with oil differed between Jews and early Christians.

Scripturally, the first place to look is the Gospel of St Mark. In chapter six, Christ sends out the Apostles, two by two. “So they went out and proclaimed that people should repent. And they cast out many demons and anointed with oil many who were sick and healed them,” (Mk 6. 12-13). In the Epistle of St James, this practice is again continued and presented to all Christians to practice, where it says, “Is anyone among you sick? Let him call for the elders of the church, and let them pray over him, anointing him with oil in the name of the Lord,” (Jm 5. 14).

While there are differences in practice, particularly East to West, the use of holy oil for the purposes of healing is common to all Christianity. In the Western tradition, to which Anglicanism belongs, holy oil consecrated by a bishop is used. In the Eastern tradition, priests consecrate the oil, though generally it would be applied by a group of three or more priests rather than by a single priest as in the Western practice.

In all practices, it is a response to the Scriptural tradition of requesting God’s intercession for the miraculous healing of afflictions. In the Old Testament, most miracles were displays of God’s power over nature. For instance, the parting of the Red Sea. In the New Testament, however, God’s miracles were manifested through Christ’s miraculous healing, and healing done by the Apostles. It was this emphasis on Christ’s healing that earned him the name of the Great Physician in the Gospel of Mark.

Miraculous healing has been practiced continually since beginning of Christianity, and continues to this day. In the early church, it was noted as being an important tool of conversion in that it manifested God’s power as a gifts of the Holy Spirit, which St Paul had addressed in his letters of the Corinthians. St Gregory of Nyssa wrote in the third century that, “healing is the main door through which people come to the knowledge of the truth.”

Over time, healing ministry waned. While it continued to be practiced in the East in a similar fashion, in the West, healing was prohibited. Clergy were barred from providing more than spiritual counsel to the dying, and unction became known as Last Rites in the West. In Anglicanism, the full weight of the original ministry of healing was not restored until the 20th century. While the English Reformation and Book of Common Prayer 1662 had contained within it provisions for prayer and ministry yo the sick, the sacramental role of ministry to the sick remained somewhat limited. It was viewed as possibly leading to superstition. Extreme Unction comes from the Latin in extremis which refers to those close to death. The sacramental role of ministry to the sick thus remained generally tied to that period of near death. In the Christian East, this was also the case, though not to the same degree as in the West. By the 1920s, however, efforts at the Lambeth Conference sought to restore the full degree of ministry to the sick that was practiced in the Early Church.

With the restoration of the healing ministry in more recent times, there is an obvious question of what its role ought to be. In the days of Christ, human understanding of biology, disease and medicine were far more limited than today. Modern medical science has eliminated many diseases and afflictions, while countless others are treatable. John Macquarrie, the Anglican theologian, then asks the obvious question: is there still a role for the sacrament of unction in modern society?

Unction, writes Macquarrie, “is not an alternative, and should never be thought of as a rival to scientific medicine.” There are some sects of Christianity which decry modern medicine, viewing it as the resort of the faithless. Most Christians would recognize, however, that medicine is the fruit of God’s gift of reason to mankind and our continual effort to understand the physical world in which we have been created.

A fictional monk once noted that faith and reason are shoes on our feet. We can go further with both than just one. So it is with medical science and holy healing. In this sense, we should also be reminded that miraculous healing is not simply the final resort, to be pursued only once all medical avenues have been exhausted. In his Epistle, St James does not say, if there are sick among you, take them to the doctor; if that fails then lay hands upon them and anoint them with oil.

In the Book of Common Prayer, the rites provided for the ministry of the sick, and lays out provisions for how it is to be approached. Speaking to the sacramental nature of unction, Richard Foster wrote, “the laying on of hands in itself does not heal the sick – it is Christ who heals the sick. The laying on of hands is a simple act of obedience that quickens our faith.” As with the anointing with oil, the rite specifies that the priest say, “as with this holy oil thou art outwardly anointed, so may our heavenly Father grant that thou mayest be inwardly anointed with the Holy Spirit.” This rite makes clear the proper sacramental view and avoids the superstitious views that plague the topic of miraculous healing. During the rite, both passages from St Mark’s gospel and St James’ epistle are read to reinforce the scriptural basis of healing.

With such clear scriptural teaching, a long tradition in the church dating back to the time of Christ and proceeding largely uninterrupted, and evidence today of continued miraculous healing for those who have received prayer, the laying on of hands and anointing with oil, it is clear why Unction remains one of the seven sacraments of the Church.

On the Sacrament of Holy Matrimony

The Second Sunday in Lent

ALMIGHTY God, who seest that we have no power of ourselves to help ourselves: Keep us both outwardly in our bodies, and inwardly in our souls; that we may be defended from all adversities which may happen to the body, and from all evil thoughts which may assault and hurt the soul; through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.

Lent

ALMIGHTY and everlasting God, who hatest nothing that thou hast made, and dost forgive the sins of all them that are penitent: Create and make in us new and contrite hearts, that we worthily lamenting our sins, and acknowledging our wretchedness, may obtain of thee, the God of all mercy, perfect remission and forgiveness; through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.

Unlike the Sacraments discussed so far, Matrimony is not a necessary sacrament for everyone. Some people are called to celibate lives of singleness. For those whom God calls into relationship, however, the Sacrament of Holy Matrimony is the means by which God’s grace and love are joined into the relationship, sanctifying it and strengthening it in holiness.

In Holy Scripture, God’s blessing of the unions between men and women play an important role throughout. In the Old Testament, the union between Adam and Eve is described in Genesis, and God’s blessing of other unions is mentioned with numerous other Biblical figures. In the New Testament, the Gospel of St John records Christ’s first miracle during the wedding at Cana. Today, the Sacrament of Holy Matrimony is one in which Anglicans, particularly in Canada and the United States, have recently devoted much debate and indeed controversy, namely over the amendment of canons concerning the Sacrament to allow for the marriage of same-sex couples. This piece will explore the sacramental and scriptural basis for Holy Matrimony, which finds no basis for conferring God's blessing on such partnerships, but will not seek to discuss the relationship of civil marriage to the Sacrament of Holy Matrimony, and what distinctions might be made with respect to civil marriage of same-sex couples.

Before delving into the question of the sacrament itself, a definition in terms might be useful. While the terms are often used interchangeably, in this article, the sacrament will be referred to as Matrimony or Holy Matrimony, while the civil institution, recognized by the state, will be referred to as marriage. While the two are entirely distinct, the failure to draw the distinction between one as a sacrament ordained by God to guard, hallow and protect the sacred gift of love he grants the couple, while the other is a civil institution granted by governments in order to provide a framework of legal benefits and rights intended to support families. One can be married, recognized by the civil government as such, and yet not receive God’s blessing. The criteria on which marriage is based are not in any way connected to God’s basis for estate of Holy Matrimony, and in discussing the subject, care should be taken not to confuse the two.

Matrimony, while not directly ordained by Christ, is mentioned several times in Holy Scripture, including by Christ himself. St Mark’s gospel has Christ responding to the Pharisees questioning him over marriage when he says:

But from the beginning of creation, ‘God made them male and female.’ ‘Therefore a man shall leave his father and mother and hold fast to his wife, and the two shall become one flesh.’ So they are no longer two but one flesh. What therefore God has joined together, let not man separate.” (Mk 10. 6-9)

In this passage, Christ quotes from Genesis and confirms the nature of the Holy Matrimony as being ordained by God from the start of creation. In the historic sense, the Sacrament of Holy Matrimony has been one practiced since the early days of the Church. First century Rome was not well known for its chastity, and the morals of the Christians were viewed as a unique curiosity. It is clear then the importance that the hallowing of a union would have in the early Church.

In Anglicanism, the Thirty-Nine Articles also mention much the same definition of Holy Matrimony in Article XXXV which lists the homilies in the Book of Homilies, one of which is On the Estate of Holy Matrimony. This homily lays out nearly the same reasons for the Sacrament of Holy Matrimony as does the Book of Common Prayer, 1662:

[Holy Matrimony] is an honourable estate, instituted of God in the time of man's innocency, signifying unto us the mystical union that is betwixt Christ and his Church; which holy estate Christ adorned and beautified with his presence, and first miracle that he wrought, in Cana of Galilee; and is commended of Saint Paul to be honourable among all men...

The Canadian Book of Common Prayer similarly outlines three reasons for Holy Matrimony:

Matrimony was ordained for the hallowing of the union betwixt man and woman; for the procreation of children to be brought up in the fear and nurture of the Lord; and for the mutual society, help, and comfort, that the one ought to have of the other, in both prosperity and adversity.

Both are generally in accord, though the 1662 Book of Common Prayer had one additional reason for Holy Matrimony, “and to avoide Fornication,” as the Book of Homilies puts it. While the Canadian BCP does not list this particular point, it remains implicit simply through the scriptural reason for this argument, which is laid out by St Paul in his epistle to the Corinthians.

The three primary reasons for Matrimony are laid out in the Book of Common Prayer as follows. The first is the hallowing of the union between man and woman. This first reason therefore is to set apart the union between a man and woman as sacred. The emphasis here is on God blessing the union. It contrasts with the third reason--which has to do with the mutual support of the man and woman--which could just as easily be argued to be present in secular relationships. This makes it the key distinction between Matrimony and marriage or other forms of relationships. The second reason for Matrimony is procreation and the raising of children in faith. Procreation has often been listed among reasons for marriage, but it is the key component of raising children in faith and knowledge of God that is specified in the Sacrament of Holy Matrimony.

These reasons, the traditional and scriptural basis for Matrimony, illustrate the ways in which God’s grace is extended to a relationship to promote a blessed union between man and woman, and further illustrate how Christian Matrimony is set apart from secular and civil marriage.