ANGLICAN CHUBCHES. 



mended several specific amendments to the 

 bill, and professed that, even with these modi- 

 fications, they were unable to recommend leg- 

 islation in the manner proposed by the bill. 

 They further expressed the opinion that if the 

 " Church Discipline Act " were repealed, and 

 the existing consistory courts were reformed, 

 there would be little difficulty in dealing expe- 

 ditiously with such cases as were contemplated 

 by the bill. The House resolved to transmit 

 this report to the Upper House, with^ the re- 

 quest that their lordships would consider the 

 objections it presented, and the amendments it 

 proposed. The Upper House replied, through 

 the archbishop : " We have given such con- 

 sideration as we well can to the report which 

 has been placed in our hands. There are in 

 it certain proposed amendments of the present 

 system of clergy discipline recommended by 

 the committee, and some worthy of serious 

 consideration, and they will receive very seri- 

 ous consideration, probably both here and 

 elsewhere. There are other recommendations, 

 too, worthy, no doubt, of no less serious con- 

 sideration than the others, but which do not 

 approve themselves to the majority of this 

 House ; but perhaps, on further consideration, 

 these objections may disappear. Partly there 

 are things in the report which do, and partly 

 there are things which do not, commend them- 

 selves to our minds, and this difference of 

 opinion was naturally to be expected." The 

 Public Worship Bill was also discussed incident- 

 ally at the meeting of the Convocation in July. 

 A gravamen was presented against it in the 

 Lower House ; and in the Upper House the arch- 

 bishop made an explanation respecting it, and 

 the Bishop of Lincoln made some criticisms of it. 



The Convocation proceeded, at its session in 

 July, to discuss the fourth or final report of the 

 commission on ritual. A committee was ap- 

 pointed to consider and report on the previous 

 action of the Lower House on the subject of 

 ritual, with instructions to report as early as 

 convenient upon the " Ornaments Kubric " and 

 the position of the celebrant. The recom- 

 mendations of the commissioners with regard 

 to a daily service were adopted, as follows : 



The directions concerning tbe daily use of the 

 Church services are retained, not as an indispensa- 

 ble rule, but as a witness to the value put by the 

 Church on daily prayers and intercessions, and on 

 the daily reading of the Holy Scriptures. 



The Committee of the Whole on the Orna- 

 ments Eubric, which had been in session in 

 the interval since the last meeting (in May), 

 reported in the Upper House the following 

 resolution, which was adopted : 



Resolved, That the Ornaments Eubric is of doubt- 

 ful and difficult interpretation, and that it is most 

 desirable that it should be replaced by a rubric which 

 shall clearly define what dresses and ornaments of 

 the ministers shall be permissible in the Church of 

 England. 



The Bishop of Lichfield offered the follow- 

 ing resolution, which was seconded by the 

 Bishop of Peterborough : 



Whereas, In the 34th Article it is affirmed that 

 every national Church has authority to retain, 

 change, and abolish, ceremonies or rites of the 

 Church ordained only by man's authority: And 

 whereas, In the Preface to the Book of Common 

 Prayer it is affirmed that rites and ceremonies, being 

 in their nature " things indifferent," may be changed 

 upon weighty and important considerations, accord- 

 ing to the various exigencies of times and occa- 

 sions: AiuL whereas. A large number of the clergy 

 and of the faithful laity of the Church of England 

 are of opinion that the use of distinctive dress in 

 ministering the Holy Communion of the Body and 

 Blood of Christ would tend to reverence and edifi- 

 cation : And whereas, It would tend to peace that the 

 desire of the clergy and laity should be granted : 

 Besolved, That it is desirable that the use of a dis- 

 tinctive dress be permitted in ministering the Holy 

 Communion, but only at such places and upon such 

 conditions as shall be hereafter approved by lawful 

 authority. 



The Bishop of Lincoln proposed as an addi- 

 tional clause : 



Provided it be distinctly understood nothing is 

 'symbolized by such Eucharistic vestments as is in 

 any way at variance with the doctrines of the Church 

 of England, as contained in the order of the Holy 

 Communion in the Book of Common Prayer. 



The resolution and amendment were referred 

 to the committee of the whole House. 



The report of the Committee on Intercom- 

 munion with the Eastern Churches was pre- 

 sented in the Lower House of the Convocation 

 on the 8th of May. A resolution was passed 

 expressing gratitude for the directions issued 

 by the Patriarch of Constantinople to his 

 metropolitans, instructing their clergy to per- 

 form the rites of Christian burial for deceased 

 members of the English Church. A resolution 

 calling on the Archbishop of Canterbury to use 

 his endeavors to secure intercommunion be- 

 tween the two Churches, and especially to en- 

 able members of the English Church residing 

 within the jurisdiction of the Eastern Church to 

 avail themselves of the rites and sacraments of 

 that Church, was, after discussion, withdrawn. 



Measures were taken during the earlier ses- 

 sions of the Convocation for the preparation 

 of a Manual of Private Prayers for members 

 of the Church of England, to be submitted for 

 consideration ; for the preparation of a Form 

 of Prayer to Almighty God, in behalf of the 

 ministers of the Church, to be used on suita- 

 ble occasions, w-ith the sanction of the arch- 

 bishop and bishops ; and for an inquiry into 

 the expediency of the appointment of a day of 

 public intercession on behalf of the missions of 

 the Church once in each year, or at such inter- 

 vals as may be deemed expedient. 



The Convocation of York met for organiza- 

 tion March 6th. An address to her Majesty 

 was unanimously adopted, praying that Parlia- 

 ment would maintain and improve the laws 

 upon the subject of intemperance. At a sub- 

 sequent meeting, May 22d, the following reso- 

 lution was adopted in reference to the bill 

 introduced in the House of Lords by the Arch- 

 bishop of Canterbury for the regulation of 

 public worship: "That while some legislation 

 is expedient for the better administration of 



