till the hour of sickness and approaching death that practice of the means of grace, which GOD still graciously enables them to observe in the season of health."*

In all that has been here said it is assumed that the sick man gives an assurance of repentance and of earnest desire to receive; but, as Bishop Mant further advises, the Sacrament should not be administered "if it be found that the sick man is altogether ignorant of its nature; or that he gives no assurance of being qualified by repentance, faith, and charity to receive it; or that he is possessed by no real desire of receiving it; moreover, that he is incapacitated for profiting by his Minister's instruction and advice."†

The three following rules of Bishop Taylor (founded upon arguments and reasons given at length in "Holy Dying," chap. v., sect. iv., 8, 9, 13) are to be carefully observed.

"The Minister is to make the repentance of the penitent as great, and his heart as contrite, as he can; to dispose him by the repetition of acts of grace in the way of prayer, and in real and exterior instances, where he can; and then to give him the Holy Communion in all the same cases, in which he ought not to have denied it to him in his health; that is, even in the beginnings. of such a repentance, which by human signs, he believes to be real and holy; and after this, the event must be left to GOD.

"The Minister of religion ought not to give the Communion to a sick person, if he retains the affection to

sin, and refuses to disavow it, or profess repentance of all sins whatsoever, if he be required to do it.

"Let not the holy Sacrament be administered to dying persons, when they have no use of reason to make that duty acceptable, and the mysteries effective to the purposes of the soul. For the Sacraments and ceremonies of the Gospel operate not without the concurrent actions and moral influences of the suscipient."

* Bishop Mant's Clergyman's Obligations, p. 400.
+ P. 401.

Signifying also how many there are to communicate with him, which shall be three, or two at the least."

In King Edward VI.'s First Prayer Book the rubric seems to make it indifferent whether there were any corecipients with the Priest and the sick, or not ;* in the succeeding editions of the Liturgy it was required that there should be "a good number to receive the Communion with the sick person;" the specification of the number was introduced into the rubric at the revision of the Prayer Book in 1661. Taking into consideration the large proportion of our population who are not communicants, the small number among those who are so, who (it can reasonably be hoped) live in constant preparation for the reception of the holy Sacrament, and the sudden calls which in a populous parish and in certain positions (as in hospitals, infirmaries, and such like) may be made on the Priest for the administration of the Communion to the sick or dying, the provision of co-recipients is not unfrequently a serious difficulty. The wording of this rubric seems to imply that the sick man should himself provide some persons to communicate with him. In the first Prayer Book of King Edward VI.indeed, it was expressly enjoined that the "sick person should always desire some either of his own house, or else of his neighbours, to receive the holy Communion with him; for that would be to him a singular great comfort, and of their part a great token of charity." Where any of the sick man's family or near friends are communicants nothing can be more fitting and proper, and consoling both to the sick and to themselves, than that they should be co-recipients with him in preference to all others; and therefore it will be well for the Priest, on arranging preliminaries for Communion, to inquire of the sick man whether there are any among his family or friends whom he would wish to receive the Communion with him; and if he names any who are unknown to the Priest, he should proceed to ascertain that they are com municants, or are fitted to become so. But it will, in

"The sick man and so many as shall communicate with him (if there be any)." And again : "shall minister the same, first, to those that are appointed to communicate with the sick (if there be any)."

practice very frequently happen that the sick man will perhaps be unable to procure any fit persons to communicate with him, or will leave the provision of co-recipients entirely to his Minister. In order to be ready against such cases, and specially in cases of urgency, some steps should be taken by the Priest to provide proper persons as co-recipients beforehand. Something has already been said on the subject of attendants in visiting the sick; to this it may be added that in most parishes the Priest will be able from among the most constant attendants at the Communion in the Church to select one or more persons, who are able and willing to undertake at all times to be ready at a short notice to accompany him, and to receive the Communion with their sick neighbours. He will, of course, before putting himself into communication with them on this subject, take care that they are such as he has reason to think, from his observation and knowledge of their habits, piety, and devotion, generally live in such habitual preparation as may fit them for the reception of the Communion without previous warning, and will esteem frequent calls to receive it a privilege, not a burthen. He will indeed find that there are some who (until something like weekly Communion can be generally restored among us) will look upon such frequent opportunities of Communion as an inestimable blessing, and will gladly avail themselves of them; and thus the course we are recommending may be a comfort to the Minister, as enabling him in some degree to meet the spiritual wants of such excellent persons, where the circumstances of his parish or people render it inexpedient at once to celebrate very frequent Communions in the Church. It will be well also to select such persons as from their avocations are free from important engagements, and have time at their disposal. Of course, it will be for the Minister, from his acquaintance with his people, to know where to look for and to find persons so disposed and qualified: in different parishes they will be found in various classes of persons. But it may be suggested that pious females will most likely be his assistants herein, for these reasons among others: that they more generally have spare time and opportunity; and that

they, from the nature of their occupations being more disengaged from the turmoil and business of the world, will be enabled to be worthy recipients with short preparation. Such persons will be found in almost every village; and in populous parishes no difficulty in obtaining such co-recipients will be experienced.

In such parishes and wherever it is possible, it is advisable to make arrangements with more than one person to be at all times prepared to accompany the Priest as corecipients in Communion of the sick; as well to prevent the possibility of disappointment in the event of the illness or absence of one, as that some may be called upon at one opportunity, some at another; and that while such calls are never made burdensome to any by their frequency, more than one may have such opportunities of Communion. But it is evident that the intention of the Church is satisfied if there be one co-recipient besides the Priest and the sick the rubric stating as the minimum, "to communicate with him" (the sick man) two, at the least," i.e., the Priest and one other.

66

It is to be observed too that if the Church in this requirement, had in view the formation of such a congregation as might secure the fulfilment of our LORD'S promise," Where two or three are gathered together in My Name, there am I in the midst of them," this full number is attained by the presence of one co-recipient with the Priest and the sick man ; and indeed it may be remarked, that even in the extreme case of the Minister communicating alone with the sick (in infectious diseases) the "two" named in our Blessed LORD's words do join in the united act of worship. While then it is to be recommended, (as the Church seems to advise) that, where it is possible, there should be more than one co-recipient with the administrator and the sick, no Clergyman would be justified in refusing or postponing the Communion, where one person can be provided to communicate with the sick.*

There seems little reason to doubt that the compilers of the second Prayer Book of King Edward VI. made the presence of corecipients generally requisite in order to prevent the celebration of private Masses; and to afford an answer to the objections of Romanists who might adduce (though untruly) such Communions

The Clergyman having made arrangements with one or more devout persons to be prepared whenever he requires them to receive the Communion with the sick, he will do well to give them such advices and directionsthereon as he may think requisite, including of course explanation as to their conduct and demeanour: e.g., when to kneel, when to stand; to make the responses audibly in the Sursum Corda, and elsewhere; and to repeat the Confession, the LORD's Prayer, the Sanctus, and the Gloria in Excelsis, with the Minister; and all other instructions which may conduce to the solemn and reverent celebration of the holy Communion.

"And having a convenient place in the sick man's house, with all things necessary so prepared, that the Curate may reverently minister."

We are here to consider: First, the things necessary in the Minister for the reverent ministration; and, secondly, the things necessary to be prepared in a convenient place in the sick man's house.

And with regard to the first, it is advisable that the Priest should wear, in administering the holy Communion to the sick, the usual vestments in which he celebrates that Sacrament in the Church. There seems no reason to doubt that the words of this rubric imply as well the use of the proper habits by the Priest, as the decent covering of the temporary altar, or the use of fitting vessels, as "things necessary, that the Curate may reverently minister." The fifty-eighth Canon, too, both by its title and its injunctions seems to favour the same view. For it is entitled Ministers reading Divine Service, and administering the Sacraments, to wear surplices, and graduates therewithal hoods. And it directs, that "Every Minister saying the public prayers, or ministering the Sacraments, or other rites of the Church, shall wear a decent and comely surplice with sleeves." This, it is as a parallel in our Church to that great corruption of theirs from primitive Communion. It is evident then that in this respect the intention of the Church is satisfied, as the letter of her direction is observed, by the presence of one witness who partakes of the Communion.