Ver. 6.-The laying on of hand., Thie i1 the first mention of the custom In oonneo- tion with the Christian community. It does not Bppear thBt our Lord set apart hll apostles to their work by any formal ceremony. A little while before his passion he " breathed on them, and eaid, Receive ye the Holy Ghost." The imposition of hands we.s an in~tance o~ carrying over and adapting a Jewish custom. " It had an analogou1 meaning m the ntual of Israel (Numb. xxvii. 23) in acts of blessing (Gen. xlviii. 13, 14) and the transmission of functions." It appears to have been used in the Jewish schools on the admission of a scribe to his office as a teacher. "Its primary symbolism would seem to be that of the concentration for the moment of all the spiritual energy of prayer upon him on whom men lay their hands; and so of the bestowal of 11,ny office for which spiritual gifts are'required." For other Scripture references, see eh. xiii. 3; 1 Tim. v. 22; Heb. vi. 2. "The origin of this rite is to be looked for in patriarchal times, when it seems to have been a form simply of solemn benediction, as in Gen. xlviii. 14. In the New Testament we find the laying on of hands used by our Lord both in blessing and in healing; and again be promises to his disciples that they too should lay bands on the sick and they should recover. At the time when the Epistle to the Hebrews we.s written, the doctrine of the 'laying on of hands• was one of the elements of Christian teaching" (' Diet. of Christian Antiquities;• see art. "Impo- sition of Hands " for the ceremonies in which the Christian Church has adapted the cnstom). This is &II illustration of the importance of preserving valued ancient practices. It cannot be said that we have any Divine commands in regard to tbe laying on of hands, but the_Cburch bas found the practice to be significant and useful. It may be regarded as- ~1. A SIGN OF SELECTION. For some reason the individual is sine:led out, For some particular office he is chosen. The selection is made by the whole Church. It is repre- sented by the act of imposition done by one person, or by several, in the Church's name. The public nature of the act aets the individual forth prominently before the whole Church as the selected one. IL A SIGN OF UNITED CONFIDENCE. This is more fully indicated in the form of impo- sition practised by what are known as the Free Churches. At their ordination services the laying on of hands is done by the assembled presbyters, each laying a single hand on the head of the selected one, and the custom is mainly valued as an expression of mutual confidence in th'3 Divine call of the selected one, and in his spiritual fitness for the office which he is about to undertake. It becomes an important part of an ordi- nation service as a comforting assurance given to the candidate for office ; and with this simple meaning of the rite some of the Free Churches are satisfied. IIL As A SIGN OF co1n.roNicATION. 11 It was connected with other acts that presup- posed the communication of a spiritual gift. Through well-nigh all changes of polity and dogma and ritual, it ha.a kept its place with Baptism and the Supper of the Lord, among the unchanging witnesses of the Church's universality and permanence." Hackett takes it as "a symbol of the impartation of the gifts and graces which they (the deacons) needed to qualify them for the office." Olshausen says, 11 The idea. embraced. in the laying on of hands was really just this, that by means of it there was effected a communication of the Spirit from the individual consecrating to the one ordained." 'l'wo questions need treatment. 1. Was the imposition an actual imparta- tion of Divine gifts or the Divine Spirit? or was it only the outward symbol or sign of a Divine impartation which was beyond man's control? 2. If there was apostolic power to communicate the gift or the Spirit, have we sufficient ground for assuming that the power is retained by the teachers of the Church whom we regard as the successors of the apostles? Decision on and treatment of these questions must depend on our ecclesiastical bias. No earnest Christian need fail to realize the spiritual value and suggestiveness of this custom. It may, no doubt, be made to serve purely ritual pur- poses; but it may also be an important and useful Church ordinance, when it ia observed on due consideration, and with suitable solemnity and prayer.-R. T.
Vere. 10, 1L-77ie weakness of persecutor,. Attention is drawn to the fact, which hllll received frequent illustration through the martyr-ages, that men only resort to persecuting tactics when they become conscious of their moral helplessness and theo- J.ogical inefficie~cy. The persecutor ii like t~e ■wearer. No IIUl,n ever Jlee<ls to OurlllP clt. TI, 1-15.) TIIE ACTS OF THE APOSTLEtj.