shall have such decent covering only as the Ordinary shall approve of, but for the administration of the Lord's Supper, it shall be covered as provided by the Rubric.

“35. Of lights at the Communion Table, or elsewhere. “ There shall not be any lighted lamps or candles on the Communion Table, or in any other part of the Church, during the celebration of the Services, or the Administration of the Sacraments, or any other of the Public or Common Prayers or Rites of the Church, or during Public Preaching, except when they are necessary for the purpose of giving light.

“36. Crosses on or behind the Communion Table forbidden. “That there shall not be any Cross, ornamental or otherwise, on the Communion Table, or on the covering thereof, nor shall a Cross be erected or depicted on the wall or other structure behind the Communion Table, in any of the churches or other places of worship of the Church of Ireland.

“37. Of the Administration of the Lord's Supper. “In the administration of the Lord's Supper, the elevation of the Paten or Cup beyond what is necessary for taking the same into the hands of the officiating Minister, the use of wine mixed with water, or of wafer bread, and all acts, words, ornaments, and ceremonies, other than those that are prescribed by the Order in the Book of Common Prayer, are hereby declared to be unlawful, and are prohibited. Provided always that nothing herein contained shall be taken to prohibit the customary act of reverence when the name of our Blessed Lord is mentioned in reciting the Nicene Creed.

38. Of Incense. “No incense, or any substitution therefor, or imitation thereof, shall, at any time, be used in any church or chapel, or other place in which the Public Services of the church are celebrated.

“39. Of Processions. “It shall be unlawful to carry any cross, banner, or picture through any church or church-yard, in any religious service or ceremonial. Nor shall any Procession take place therein as a Rite or Ceremony in connection with any part of such service, unless prescribed by the Bishop, or by the Rubrics of the Book of Common Prayer. “ OF THE CHURCHES AND THEIR ORNAMENTS, AND THE DUTY OF CHURCH

WARDENS AND SELECT VESTRIES.

“40. Of the Ornaments of the Church. “No change shall be made in the structure, ornaments, or monuments of any Church (whether by introduction, alteration or removal), unless with the consent of the Incumbent and Select Vestry, and until an accurate description or design of the proposed change shall have been approved of by the Bishop or Ordinary. Provided always that any person aggrieved by such proposed change, or by the refusal of the Ordinary, Incumbent, or the Select Vestry, shall have the right to appeal to the Diocesan Court, which Court shall have full authority to hear and determine such appeal; and an appeal from said Court shall in all cases lie to the Court of the General Synod, which shall have full authority to hear and determine the same.”

In connection with the closing sentence of Canon 40, it is to be observed that the 47th Canon gives a right of appeal (to any person aggrieved by the decision of the Ordinary, or by his refusal to entertain a complaint) to the Diocesan Court, and from it to the Court of the General Synod.

We do not think that there is anything in the other Canons adopted by the Synod which calls for special observation. Several of them are but revivals or amendments of former Canons of the Church, and others have been rendered necessary by her new and peculiar position as free from State control. But we must not omit to mention that a very stirring debate arose "upon & proposed Canon, which the Judicature Committee had recommended in their Report, and which was as follows:

“If any person shall voluntarily confess his secret and hidden sin to the Minister, for the unbarthening of his conscience, and to receive spiritual consolation and ease of his mind from him, the said Minister shall not at any time reveal and make known to any person whatever any crime or offence so committed to his trust and secrecy, under pain of irregularity.”

This proposed Canon found strong support amongst an influential section of the Synod, but was as strongly opposed by a very considerable majority, some of whom considered it unnecessary, and others highly dangerous. The obligations of honour, which in most instances would bind the clergy without any Canon where secrecy was a duty, were considered sufficient by many, who seemed to view the supposed necessity for such a Canon as a kind of reflection upon their moral sense of what was decent and just; but a still stronger feeling actuated other opponents of the measure, who felt that it was tampering with a dangerous subject, and might ultimately be pleaded on behalf of some of the very practices which the Synod was determined to prevent. Some of the leading lawyers, and amongst them Sir Joseph Napier, opposed it on the ground that it was unconstitutional, and that the law of the land recognized no right in any man, clerical or lay, to hold back information which might possibly be of importance to the cause of law and order. The result was that the Canon was rejected, and the whole subject postponed to a future period, when the labours of the Revision Committee may probably have made it easier to deal with Confession and kindred topics.

We cannot enter into those parts of the proceedings which had reference to finance, so that it only remains for us to notice briefly one or two interesting features of the Synod, which indicate the spirit alike of individual members and of the whole Church. Mr. Roe, an eminent merchant, in a very modest letter to the Archbishop of Dublin, indicated his wish to restore the ancient cathedral of Christ Church, in the city of Dublin, (where God had prospered him in his business,) and also to build in connexion with it a Synod Hall, for the accommodation of future assemblies of the Church. The designs for this great work (which, it is calculated, will cost more than £50,000) have been carefully prepared by the eminent archi. tect, Mr. Street. This act of munificence, which follows in true filial relationship to that of Sir Benjamin Guinness, in restoring St. Patrick's Cathedral, will, we doubt not, beget many others of a similar kind, and prove that Irish Churchmen, whilst true to the great principles of the Reformation, are not indifferent to all that is best and noblest in the history of their ancient Church

At the outset of the Synod's proceedings a copy of the Bible and Prayer Book, in the Irish tongue, were directed to lie on the table, beside those in the English language, and a special Canon was afterwards enacted providing for the use of the Service in the native tongue wherever the Ordinary should deem it necessary. In connection with this subject, we may mention that a Committee had been appointed by the late Convention to confer with the Committee of the Irish Society, with a view to considering in what way the work of that Society could be accommodated to the altered circumstances of the Church. The report, which was brought up by the Bishop of Tuam, and was most interesting, stated that, of a million who still speak the Irish language, there are 163,000 who do not speak English ; that during the last fifty years at least 150,000 Irish-speaking people have been taught to read the Holy Scriptures in their own tongue; that 500 Scripture readers, and 50 ordained missionaries, have, during that period, been employed in the Irishspeaking districts; that 20 churches and several school-houses have been built for new congregations; and that at present 200 Irish teachers are employed, who have 4500 persons under instruction out of the Irish Bible, whilst the work is followed up by 78 missionary agents. The report suggested measures for the consolidation and furtherance of this work, and the different Diocesan Synods are to see them carried into effect.

All this was a pledge that missionary work at home was not to be neglected ; but the following resolution, with reference to missionary work, which was passed by acclamation, testifies—

“That the Church of Ireland in General Synod desires to place upon record that it recogoizes the necessity laid upon it by its divine Head, to go into all the world and preach the gospel to every creature, and would therefore urge upon every member of the Church not to relax his efforts to enable the Church to fulfil its mission."

It is worthy of note, that during the year 1870, amid all the distractions and demands of its new position, the remittance of the Irish Church to the funds of the Church Missionary Society exceeded by more than £500 that made in the previous year. We trust that not money only, but men of the true stamp (like those who already represent her in the missionary field) may be forthcoming from the sister land to aid the cause of Christ's Gospel throughout the world. With this best wish for her spi. ritual prosperity, we take leave for the present of the Church of Ireland, assuring her of our warmest sympathies and best wishes, and commending her to the great Head of the Church, in earnest prayer that she and all her members may be kept in “the unity of the faith, in the bond of peace, and in righteousness of life.” We confess ourselves hopeful with regard to her prospects, and augur favourably for her future usefulness and energy, from the firm but temperate use which she is making of her new powers of self-government. It is especially gratifying to find that her bishops, clergy, and people are moving forward together as one compact and united body, along the difficult but honourable path which lies before them, resolved to hold fast together their glorious heritage of truth, and to be God's witnesses amidst the surrounding darkness and superstition of their country.

BOULTBEE'S INTRODUCTION TO THE THEOLOGY OF THE

CHURCH OF ENGLAND. An Introduction to the Theology of the Church of England, in

an Exposition of the Thirty-nine Articles. By T. P. Boultbee, M.A., Principal of the London College of Divinity, St. John's Hall, Highbury ; late Fellow of St. John's College, Cambridge. Longmans, 1871.

The origin of this valuable contribution to our hand-books for theological students is briefly announced in the Preface. Having been engaged for some years in teaching theology, Mr. Boultbee had in vain sought for a manual containing the definitions and terms of that science, and distinctly enunciating the received doctrines of the Church of England. The design of the present work is to supply this desideratum. Free use has been made by the writer of the works of Hooker, Pearson, Vol. 70.–No. 403.

4 A

and Paley, and the theology of Rome has been exhibited chiefly by reference to the decrees of the Council of Trent.

As regards the English text, Mr. Boultbee has followed that of the late Archdeacon Hardwick, in his valuable History of the Thirty-nine Articles, which differs but little from that adopted in our present Prayer-Books. As regards the orthography, however, Mr. Boultbee has adopted that in common use, and not that which is found in the Archdeacon's work. The Latin text of the Articles has been reprinted from Sparrow's Collection.

With reference to the paucity of patristic quotations which are found in Mr. Boultbee's book, we entirely endorse the judgment which he expresses of their small value to the ordinary student, and especially to the tyro in theology. Mr. Boultbee appeals, on this point, to the high authority of the Bishop of Ossory in his “ Sermons upon the Nature and Effects of Faith.” That eminent Prelate, whilst entertaining no doubt in his own mind to which side, in the great questions which separate the Reformed and un-Reformed Churches, the authority of the ancient Fathers rightly belongs, has observed, with reference to the subject of which he treats in those Sermons, that the Fathers wrote, and more particularly before the Pelagian controversy, somewhat loosely upon it, and hence that Romish controversialists are able to produce counter authorities from the same sources. The same remark applies, with greater or less force, to almost all of the points of controversy between the Church of Rome and the Reformed Churches. Such being the case, we entirely agree with Mr. Boultbee that it is better to direct the mind of the youthful student first to the inspired Scriptures, and then to the great divines of our own Church, rather than to incur the risk of entangling them in a net from which it may require a larger amount than they possess of learning and discrimination to extricate them.

It will suffice to add with regard to the plan of Mr. Boultbee's work, that whilst the chief writers on the same subject have been consulted, as well those of more recent as of more ancient date, he has deemed it the wiser course to abstain from all direct citations from, or even direct allusions to, the works of living authors.

In addition to his short Preface, explanatory of the nature and design of his work, Mr. Boultbee bas presented his readers with a brief historical account of the introduction of the Thirtynine Articles, referring them for fuller information to the work of Archdeacon Hardwick, to which we have already alluded.

After a few words upon the arrangement of the Thirtynine Articles which, Mr. Boultbee considers, may be classed under six principal divisions, he proceeds, with some few excep.