It is from this last that our own Liturgy is derived. This
Ephesine Liturgy was introduced into France at a very early age
by missionaries who came to Lyons. From France missionaries went
over to England and there preached Christ and introduced the Liturgy
which they were accustomed to use, so that when St. Augustine went
from Rome to England, A.D. 596, expecting to find it a heathen
land, he found Christians already there and using a Liturgy somewhat
different from that of Rome. These differences in the English
Liturgy showed an eastern origin, thus confirming its Apostolic
origin and thus demonstrate that our Liturgy did not come from the
Church of Rome. Rome's power and influence being introduced into
England did, indeed, made its impress on the national religious
life, but the English Liturgy never lost its distinctive Eastern
characteristics which remain to this day. At the time of the
Reformation the {175} Liturgy after many revisions was first set
forth in the English language on Whitsun Day, 1549. It was again
revised in 1552, and again other changes were made in 1604 and
finally in 1662. Since which time very slight changes have been
made in it. The American Liturgy was formally set forth on September
29, 1789, being adopted from the English Prayer Book, modified
according to the agreement made with the Scottish Bishops who
consecrated our first Bishop, the Rt. Rev. Samuel Seabury, D.D.,
for the Diocese of Connecticut. (See article entitled PRAYER BOOK.)
Lord's Day.--The first day of the week is not the Sabbath, but the
_Lord's Day_, and as such has been observed since the Resurrection
of our Lord, of which it is the weekly commemoration. From the New
Testament itself we learn that the first day of the week, commonly
called Sunday, has always been the day which Christians have
consecrated to God's service. The Rt. Rev. F. W. Taylor, D.D., has
given us the following clear statement concerning the first day of
the week observed as the Lord's Day: "Our Saviour Jesus Christ, in
the exercise of this His Lordship over the day, has first of all
abolished the ordinance of the Seventh Day, and substituted, by the
Holy Spirit guiding His Church into all Truth, the ordinance of the
First Day, as that one day in seven which the Fourth Commandment
enjoins to be kept sacred to God as a moral obligation. Then our
Lord has made this day one of the highest spiritual privilege, by
uniting it to His own Person and work as the Day of His Resurrection,
the weekly recurrence of the {176} Christian Passover, a perpetual
Easter; and also as the weekly memorial of His supreme Gift of the
Holy Ghost upon the Feast of Pentecost, to abide with His Church
forever. It is preeminently a day of joy and gladness before the
Lord, and should first of all be observed to the Lord, in the
assembling of the Church together for worship and communion with God
and for spiritual instruction and profit. Hence the Prayer Book
prescribes a Collect, Epistle and Gospel for every Sunday in the
year, and its rubrics plainly teach us that according to the mind
of the Church the principal service of every Lord's Day should be
the celebration of the Holy Eucharist. Our Lord has also taught us
by His example as well as by precept, that works of mercy, both
spiritual and corporal, are lawful to be done on this day, and are
peculiarly appropriate to it."
Lord's Prayer, The.--The prayer which our Blessed Lord taught His
disciples when He said, "After this manner, therefore, pray ye," or
as given in another place, "When ye pray, say Our Father," etc. The
Church has always taken these words literally, so that in all her
services--Daily Prayer, Litany, Baptism, Confirmation, Holy
Communion, Marriage, Visitation of the Sick, etc., the Lord's Prayer
is always an integral part. In the Communion Office the Lord's
Prayer occurs twice, but it is to be noted that the rubric directs
the first to be said by the _Priest alone_, as a part of his private
preparation. With regard to the second there is the following
rubric: "Then shall the Minister say the Lord's Prayer, _the people
repeating after him every petition_." {177} These last words (in
italics) are omitted in the first rubric, thus indicating a
difference of use.
Lord's Supper, The.--(See HOLY COMMUNION.) In regard to the use of
the words "Lord's Supper" as a name for the Holy Communion, we
reproduce the following from The Annotated Prayer Book, which is
worth considering: "The term (the Lord's Supper) is borrowed from
1 Cor. 11:21, where St. Paul applies it to the Agape or love-feasts
which then accompanied the celebration of the Holy Eucharist. How
the singular and inexact use of it which is handed down in our
Prayer Book arose, it is difficult to say; and it is a transference
of a Scriptural term from one thing to another which cannot be
wholly justified. The name thus given to the Holy Sacrament has led
many to confuse the Lord's Last Supper with the institution of the
Sacrament itself, which it is expressly said took place '_after_
supper' (St. Luke 22:20) and '_when_ He had supped'" (1 Cor. 11:25).
Lord's Table, The.--A Prayer Book name for the ALTAR (which see).
In Scriptural usage the words "Altar" and "Table" are synonymous,
that is, they are different names for the same thing in different
aspects or as respects different uses of it. The word "Altar" is
also used in the Prayer Book, in the Office of Institution for the
inducting of a Priest to the charge of a Parish, in which he is
described as "one who serves at the Altar"; is directed to be
"received within the rails of the Altar," and again, to "kneel at
the Altar to present his supplication for himself."
Low Celebration.--This is a term commonly used to describe a
celebration of the Holy Eucharist on {178} ordinary week-days and in
the early morning on Sundays and Feasts. At these the celebrant is
unassisted except by a server and there is no choir. All parts of
the Office are consequently said, not sung.
Low Sunday.--The first Sunday after Easter is the Octave of the
Queen of Festivals and is commonly called "Low Sunday." It is so
called from its contrast with the High Festival of Easter Day. The
same note of holy joy is struck, but lower down on the scale.
Luke, Festival of Saint.--A Holy Day of the Church observed on
October 18. Of the life of St. Luke the Evangelist very little is
known, but uniting tradition and the references made to him in Holy
Scripture we learn the following particulars: St. Luke was not one
of the Apostles and was probably not converted until after the
Ascension of our Lord, although one tradition has it that he was
one of the two disciples with whom our Lord conversed on the road
to Emmaus. St. Luke himself testifies that he was not from the
beginning an eye-witness and minister of the Word. He appears to
have studied medicine at Antioch, and St. Paul, in one of his
Epistles, refers to him as "Luke, the beloved Physician." A late
tradition represents him to have been a painter as well as a
physician, and he is said to have painted a picture of the Blessed
Virgin. He was undoubtedly a scholarly and accomplished man. To him
we are indebted for two of the canonical books--the Gospel which
bears his name and the Acts of the Apostles. St. Luke's Gospel gives
more incidents in our Lord's Life than any of the others, and the
beauty and {179} exceeding sweetness of his story of the Great Life
are enriched with those Gospel hymns which have characterized the
Church's worship ever since, viz.: Gloria in Excelsis, Benedictus,
Magnificat and Nunc Dimittis. Our Lord appears in this Gospel as
the Great High Priest, winning by His Sacrifice on the Cross, mercy
and pardon for sinners. It is for this reason that in ecclesiastical
art, St. Luke is represented by the winged Ox as setting forth
Christ's Atonement through sacrifice.
Lych Gate.--The word "lych," derived from the Anglo-Saxon _lie_, or
the German _leiche_, means a body, especially a dead body, a corpse.
The term _lych gate_ is the old name given to a churchyard gate
with a porch or covering, under which a bier may be rested while
the introductory portion of the Burial Service is being read. Such
gates are quite frequently found in England, and occasionally in
this country.
M
Magna Charta.--The great document exacted by Barons from King John
of England at Runnymede, June 15th, 1215, by which was declared
English liberty and English freedom in Church and State, and the
ancient rights and privileges of the people were clearly defined
and guaranteed. In this document is set forth the independence of
England's Church, and from it we learn how untrue is the popular
belief that the Church of England was founded by Henry VIII, {180}
for among its opening words are these (in Latin): "The _Church of
England_ shall be free and her liberties unimpaired." We here see
The CHURCH OF ENGLAND referred to as a body already existing, in a
_State document_ nearly two hundred years before Henry VIII was born,
which is truly a suggestive fact to all thoughtful people.
Magnificat.--The Latin title, meaning "doth magnify," of the hymn
sung after the First Lesson at Daily Evening Prayer. It is found in
the Gospel of St. Luke I:46-56, and is the song of praise which the
Blessed Virgin Mary gave utterance to "at the very season when the
Divine overshadowing brought about the Incarnation of the Word."
This beautiful hymn is used at the evening service as the daily
commemoration of the Incarnation. This use of the Magnificat can
be traced as far back as the Fifth Century and it has been used in
the English Church at Vespers for over 800 years. For some reason
the Magnificat was omitted from the first American Prayer Book set
forth in 1789, but at the last revision in 1892 it was restored.
Maniple.--A scarf, like a short stole, worn on the left arm over
the alb by the celebrating Priest at the Holy Communion. (See
VESTMENTS.)
Manual Acts.--The acts prescribed by the rubrics to be used by the
Priest in consecrating the elements in the Holy Communion. The
rubric reads, "(_a_) Here the Priest is to take the Paten into his
hands, (_b_) And here to break the Bread, (_c_) And here to lay his
hand upon all the Bread, (_d_) Here he is to take the Cup into his
hands, (_e_) And here he is to lay his {181} hand upon every vessel
in which there is any Wine to be consecrated." This is the most
solemn part of the whole ministration of the Liturgy. "There cannot
be too great exactness and reverent formality on the part of the
celebrant in consecrating the elements by means of which, when
consecrated, an acceptable sacrifice is to be carried up to the
Father, and the Body and Blood of our Lord Jesus Christ received
by the communicants."
Mark, Feast of Saint.--Observed April 25. St. Mark is called the
Evangelist because he is the writer of the Gospel which bears his
name. He was the companion of St. Peter and accompanied him in his
missionary travels. It is supposed that he wrote his Gospel at the
dictation of St. Peter. St. Mark is said to have founded the Church
in Alexandria, and one of the ancient Liturgies is called by his
name. He suffered martyrdom on Easter Day, April 25th, A.D. 64,
being cruelly bound with cords and dragged through the streets of
the city until he was dead. It is said that his body was removed,
A.D. 465, to Venice, where the famous Church of St. Mark was
erected over his grave. This Festival has been observed since
A.D. 750. In ecclesiastical art, St. Mark is represented with a
lion at his side, with reference to the royal character of the Son
of David, which is emphasized in this Gospel.
Marriage.--The sad prevalence of divorce in the United States might
not have come to pass if people had clear ideas of what Marriage
really is. Marriage is a great deal more than simply a civil
contract. It is a divine institution, "an honorable estate,
instituted {182} by God in the time of man's innocency." It is a
religious ceremony and is sacramental in character. It ought,
therefore, to be clearly understood that marriage simply by a
"squire" or other legal officer, detracts from the sacredness and
dignity of "this holy estate," and belittles the binding character
of the "marriage tie." Even a secular paper could declare, "We do
not believe there should be any civil marriages of any kind. Every
ceremony should be solemnized by the Church and lifted above the
level of a real estate transaction." In this custom of civil or
legal marriages may be found at least one cause, perhaps the
principal cause of divorce, for it encourages such a low view of
the sacredness of the Marriage Rite.
Taught by our Lord and His Apostles, the Church emphasizes the
religious and sacramental character of Holy Matrimony and has
always enjoined its solemnization with ecclesiastical ceremonies
and by ecclesiastical persons. This is clearly set forth by the
earliest Christian writers. Thus St. Ignatius in one of his Epistles
says: "It is fitting for those who purpose matrimony to accomplish
their union with the sanction of the Bishop, that their marriage
may be in the Lord." Tertullian speaks of marriages being "ratified
before God," and adds, "How can we find words to describe the
happiness of that Marriage in which the Church joins together,
which the Oblation confirms, the Benediction seals, the Angels
proclaim when sealed, and the Father ratifies." St. Ambrose calls
Marriage a Sacrament, and says, "Marriage must be sanctified by the
Priest's sanction and blessing." {183}
These utterances unfold the mind of the Church in the times nearest
the days of our Lord and His Apostles, and in all ages ever since
the Church has never abandoned this position in her practice and
formularies. A careful study of the Marriage Service in the Prayer
Book will show it to be a very clear setting forth of the nature of
Marriage. It will also be seen how fully this Service has retained
the belief concerning Marriage which the Church has always held
since the time of our Lord and His Apostles. (See BETROTHAL, also
ESPOUSAL.)