Let the above strange language be contrasted with the inspired utterances of the apostle Peter himself (see 1 Peter v, 1-4) : " The elders which are among you I exhort, who am also an elder, and a witness of the sufferings of Christ, and also a partaker of the glory that shall be revealed: feed the flock of God which is among j-ou, taking the oversight thereof, not by con- straint, but willingly ; not for filthy lucre, but of a ready mind; neither as being lords over God's heritage, but being ensamples to the flock. And when the chief Shepherd shall appear, ye shall receive a crown of glory that fadeth not away."
Concerning Ordinations. — "Wherefore we, the twelve apostles of the Lord, who are now together, give yon in charge these our divine constitutions concerning every ecclesiastical form ; there being present with us Paul the chosen vessel, our fellow-apostle, and James the bishop, and the rest of the presbyters, and the seven deacons.
"In the first place, therefore, I Peter say that a bishop to be ordained is to be, as we have already all of ns ap- pointed, unblamable in all things, a select person, chosen by the whole people. And when he is named and ap- proved, let the people assemble, with the presbytery and bishops that are present, on the Lord's day, and let them give their consent. And let him who is preferred among the rest ask the presbytery and the people whether this is the person whom they desire for their ruler. And if they give their consent, let him ask further whether he hath a good testimony from all men, etc. And if all the assembly together do, according to truth and not accord- ing to prejudice, testify that he is such a one, let them the third time ask again whether he is truly worthy of this ministry; and if they agree the third time that he is worthy, let them all he demanded their vote; and when they all give it willingly, let them be heard. And, silence being made, let one of the principal bishops, together with two others, stand near the altar, the rest of the bish- ops and presbyters praying silently, and the deacons hold- ing the holy Gospels open upon "the head of him that is to be ordained ; and say to God — "
The form of prayer prescribed is a long one, but con- tains the following passages :
" 'Grant to him (the bishop), O Lord Almighty, through thy Christ, the communion of the Holy Spirit, that so he may have power to remit sins according to thy command ; to distribute clerical offices according to thine ordinance; to loose every bond according to the power which thou gavest to the apostles; that he may please thee, in meek- ness and a pure heart, steadfastly, nnblamably, irreproach- ably, while he offereth to thee a pure and unbloody sac- rifice, which by thy Christ thou hast appointed as the mys- tery of the new covenant . . . .' And when he hath prayed for these things, let the rest of the priests add Amen, and, together with them, all the people. And, after the prayer, let one of the bishops elevate the sacrifice upon the hands of him that is ordained; and early in the morning let him be enthroned, in a place set apart for liim, amo]ig the rest of the bishops, they all giving him the kiss in the Lord" (bk. viii, § 4, 5).
I. "Let a bishop be ordained by two or three bishop?.
II. " Let a presbyter be ordained by one bishop, as also a deacon and the rest of the clergy" (bk. viii, § 47).
The above are merely specimen extracts from the Apostolical Constitutions, nevertheless sufficient to show that in the ancient Church not only were bishops and priests ordained to offer " the unbloody sacrifice" of the mass and to remit sin, but also that the number of officers in the Church admitted to ordination was be- ginning to be increased. (For the forms of ordination for subdeacons, deaconesses, and readers, see bk. viii, § 19, 20, 21, 22.) Other parts of the same Constitutions prescribe the preparation bj- ordained bishops of the
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mystical oil, the mystical water, and the mystical oint- ment to be used in baptism, and also prayers to be of- fered for the dead. On the enthronement of bisliops, the practice of singing hosannas to them, and many customs in reference to ordination, consult Bingham's Antiquities of the Christian Church, bk. ii and iv. His explanation, that every bishop having liberty to frame his own liturgy tended to the multiplication and varia- tion of the ceremonies employed, tinds many confirma- tions in fact, and accounts for some differences of a mi- nor character between the Greek and Roman churches. Although he finds the signing of the cross and the kiss of peace added to the ancient ceremonial, he affirms that the use of anointing oil, the presentation of the sa- cred utensils in clerical ordination, and the exclusive practice of the rite during Ember weeks (q.v.) are mod- ern inventions, i. e. inventions of the mediasval period.
Another practice, however, that oi forcible ordination, is thus described by Bingham :
"'Anciently, while popular elections were indulged, there was nothing moie common than for people to take men by force, and have them ordained airaiust their wills. For though many men were too ambitions in courting the preferments of the Church, yet there were some who ran as eagerly from them as others ran to them ; and nothing but force could bring such men to submit to an ordination. Ecclesiastical history furnishes many in- stances of this, including some who were plainly ordain- ed against their wills. It was a common practice in those times for persons that fled to avoid ordination by their own bishop, to be seized by any other bishop to be or- dained by them, and then returned to the bishop from ■whom they were fled.' 'Nor was it any kind of remon- strance or solicitation whatsoever which the party could make that would prevent his ordiuation in such cases, except he chanced to protest solemnly upon oath against such ordination.' To hinder this jjrotest, cunning and violence were employed. At the ordination of Macedo- nius by Flavian, bishop of Anrioch, 'they durst not let him know what they were about till the ceremony was over; and when he came to understand that he was or- dained presbyter, he broke forth into a rage.' Panli- iiiauus, Jerome's brother, fled from ordination, hut Epi- phanius caused his deacons to seize him, and to hold his mouth, that he might not adjure them in the name of Christ to set him free. 'Such ordination stood good, and was accounted as valid as any other.' Even when in the following age the sentimeut of the Church was so far moditied as to permit deacons and presbyters i>rdained against their wills to ' be set at liberty as if they had never been ordained,' bishops were excluded from this reason- able provision. 'Though the imperial law gave liberty to all inferiors, so ordained, to relinquish their office that was forced upon them, if they pleased, and betake them- selves to a secular life again, yet it peremptorily denied the privilege to bishops, decreeing that their ordination should stand good, and that no action brought against their ordainers should be of force to evacuate or dis^annul their consecration' " (Antiq. blj. iv, ch. vii).