Origin-of the Lord's Supper.—Perfonification, ec. 
‘To the Editor of the Monthly Magazine. 
SIR, 
OUR correfpondent C. P. fays, he 
has long had a delire of difcoyering 
the “ Origiz of this extraordinary cere- 
mony, the Lord’s Subper,”’ and has quoted 
a very pertinent pafiage from Vaurien on 
that fubject. 
‘From the early accounts of this cere- 
mony, it is unqueftionable, that it re- 
ceived its origin from tie lait paffover- 
fupper which Chrift eat with his diiciples ; 
at which time, agreeably to the cuftom 
of the Jews at their crdinary meals, and 
continued to this day, ‘* pericrmed,”’ as 
Vaurien very properly obferves, ** every 
fabbath night,” Chrift took bread, and 
blefled it, or gave thanks, and afterwards 
gave thanks forthe wine. At the paff- 
over fupper, it was ufual for the matter 
of the houfe to break the bread into mor- 
fels and to deliver it to the guefts, in 
commemoration of the deliverance of the 
Jews out of Egypt, faying, “this is the 
bread of affliction, which your fathers eat 
in Egypt.”’ In allufion to this cuftom, 
Chrift faid, “ this do im remembrance of 
me,” {peaking to perfons (Jews)’ in the 
habit of pratifing fuch ceremonies, and 
in order to preferve the diftinétion from 
the body of the paffover, (for fo the lamb 
was called), faid, ** take eat, this is my 
body.” 
- Vaurien is unqueftionably right, in af- 
cribing the origiw of tranfubftantiation, 
and, he might have added, confubftantia- 
of the prief 
did that, they confubftantiate, the bread 
and the wine into the body and blood of 
Chrifft. Hence, in the Roman church, 
proceeds the cuftom of taking the facred 
wafer in the kneeling pofure, the pofture 
of adoration: hence too, in the church of 
England, that émbraces the do@rine of 
the divinity of Chri, the confecrated 
bread is received in the (ame pofture of 
adoration, kneeling: whereas the Secini- 
ans, who believe that Chri is only a 
man, and a few other chriftians, receive 
it dtting :—which of thefé chritians’ be- 
Hef is moft accurate, I fhall not deter- 
mine. ; ‘ 
With refpeét to the origin of the Lord's 
¥S 
Supper, your correfpondent, C. P. may 
find fome obfervations. on it in ** Abauzsé 
on the Eucharifi,” © Dr. Gill on Corina 
thians,”* 1-Cor.xi. and ‘* DYER’s lequiry 
into the Nature of Subfcription to the 49 
&rticles,” p. 382, 383, 2d edition, which 
may illuftrate and confirm the opinion of 
Vaurien. Tam, yours, &c. © 

For the Monthly Magazzne. 
An Essay on the PERSONIFICATION of 
ABSTRACT IDEAS w POETRY. 
(Continued fram page 409.) 
HE. © Faery Queen” of Spenfer, that 
inexhautftible ftore-houfe of poetical 
invention, abounds with allegorical por 
raitures, fome of which are of the fimple 
and natural kind we are now confidering. 
Thus, in the “* Majfque of Cupid,’ one of 
the figures is Fear, who is frongly 
painted as a man entirely poffeffed with 
that paffion. Ta 
Next him [Danger] went Fear, all armed 
From top to toe, 
thought himfelf not fafe enough. 
thereby, 
But fear’d each fhadow moving to and fro; 
And his own arms when glittering he 
did fpy, ) | 
Or clathing heard, he faft away did fly ; 
~ As athes pale of hue, and winged-heel’d ; 
And evermore on Danger fixt his eye, 
*Gainft whom he always bent a brazen fhield, 
Which his right-hand unarmed fearfully did 
wield. FQ. iil. 52, 
It may feem extraordinary that Collins, 
in his ** Ode to Fear,” has made little. 
addition to the defcriptive- part. of Spen- 
fer’s perfonification: however, in his fine 
“¢ Ode on the Mufic of the Paffions,” he 
has denoted Fear by a ftriking circum- 
{tance of aétion, which was probably fug- 
gefted to him by the ftanza above quoted, 
Yet 
_Firf Fear his hand, its kill to try, 
Amid the chords bewilder’d laid, 
And back recoil’d, he knew not why, 
Even at the found himfeif had made. 
It is ftill in the fame natural ftyle that 
Spenfer paints Fear in the following lines z 
And trembling Fear {till to and { 0 did fly, 
And found no place where fafe he fhroud hina. 
might. eR Bry as Ho 
- Dusparr, a paffion .a-kin to Fear,.is 
drawn by Spenfer, with amazing force of 
expreflion, under the ferm of a man funk. 
in the deepeft melancholy. ~The whole 
allevory concerning this perfonage is fo 
admirable, that I fhall enter into the de- 
tail of it, as an inftance of the moft na- 
tural conception and judicious manage- 
Tent 
