Bp. Kenn. For Preparation ment, Ráce that is fet before me, thy bountiful Grace and. Mercy may speedily help and deliver me, through the Satisfaction of thy Son our Lord, to whom, 'with thee and the Holy Ghoft, be Honour and Glory, World without End. Amen. IV. I BELIEVE, O bleffed Jefus, that from thy Throne at God's right Hand, where thou now for Judg fitteft, thou wilt come again to judge the World, attended with thy holy Angels. I believe, O thou adorable Judge, that all Mankind fhall be fummoned before thy awful Tribunal; all the Deadwhoơ fhall be waked out of their Graves, when the Angel fhall blow the last Trump: And all that are then Quick and Alive, fhall then appear before thee: That I and all the World fhall give a ftrict Account of all our Thoughts, Words, and Actions; that the Books will then be opened; that out of those dreadful Registers we fhall be judged; that Satan and our own Confciences will be our Accufers. O let the laft Trump be ever founding in my Ears, that I may be ever mindful of my great Accounts; and that I may neither speak, nor do, nor think any Thing that may wound my own Confcience,or provoke thy Anger, or make me tremble at the awful Day. I know, O Lord, that Love only shall then endure that terrible Teft, that Love only fhall be acquitted, that Love only fhall be eternally bleft: and therefore I will ever praife and love thee. Glory be to thee, O thou beloved Son of God, to whom the Father has committed all Judgment. How can they that love thee, O Jefu, ever defpond, though their Love in this Life is always imperfect, when at laft they fhall have Love for their judge, Love that hath felt and will compaffionate all their Infirmities; and therefore all Love, all Glory be to thee. Amen. CHAP. 35 СНА Р. Ш. Saint Andrew, November 30. QWHAT Festival doth the Church celebrate this A. That of the Apoftle St. Andrew. Q. Of what Parentage and Country was he? A. He was born at Bethfaida, a City of Galilee, John i. 44. ftanding upon the Banks of the Lake of Gennefareth, Son to Jonas, a Fisherman of that Town, and Brother to Simon Peter. It is not decided by the Antients, whether he was the elder or younger; the major Part think St. Andrew to have been the younger. Q. How came our Saviour to chufe his Difciples out of Galilee? Mat.ii. 23. Johnii.11. A. Because it was the chief Scene of our Saviour's Miniftry; a Circumftance noted by all the Evangelifts; and St. Peter also stamps it with this Character in his Sermon to Cornelius, the Word which began Aasx. 37. from Galilee. Our Saviour was both conceived and Luke. 6. brought up at Nazareth, a City of Galilee; he began iv. 13. 23. his folemn Publication of the Gofpel at Capernaum Mat, xvii. the Metropolis of Galilee; he preached all round the 2. Region of Galilee; he began his Miracles at Cana Mat. xvi. in Galilee; he was transfigured at Mount Tabor, a Mount of Galilee; our Saviour's ordinary Refidence was in Galilee; and he appointed his Difciples to come to fee him in Galilee, when he was rifen from the Dead. Q. Was our Saviour's couchfafing his principal Abode to the Province of Galilee any Teftimony of bis being the Meffias? 32. A. The Prophecy of Ifaiah, ix. 1, 2, 3. plainly relateth to this Matter: And to this Purpofe it is quoted by St. Matthew, when our Saviour made Mat. iv. Capernaum the Seat of his Preaching. The Land 4 XV. 29. of Galilee, or of Zebulun and Nephthali, had the Miffortune to be first in that Calamity which befel their Kings Nation by the Affyrians; by Occafion of which Calamity, then newly happened, Isaiah comforteth them with this Prophecy, that in Recompence of that Mifery they fuffered above the rest of their Brethren, they fhould have the firft and chiefeft Share of the Prefence and Converfation of the Meffiab that was to come. Joh. i. 40. Q. How was St. Andrew awakened to expect the Meffiah? A. By being a Difciple of John the Baptift; who trained up his Profelytes under the Discipline of Repentance, which prepared them to entertain the Doctrines of the Meffias; whofe Approach he told them was near at Hand, representing to them the Dignity of his Perfon, and the Importance of the Defign he was cone upon. Q. How came St. Andrew acquainted with our Saviour? A. Being with John the Baptift one Day as Jefus ver. 36,37. paffed by, and hearing him fay, that he was the Lamb of God that taketh away the Sins of the World, he follows our Saviour upon this Teftimony, to the Place of his Abode; hearing his Inftructions, and improving his Faith by conferring with him; upon which Account by feveral of the Ancients he is ftyled the first called Difciple, though in a ftrict Senfe he was not fo; for though he wasthe firft of the Disciples that came to Chrift, yet he was not called till afterwards. Q. What was the first Effect of his Faith in the Meffias? A. He went to his Brother Simon, and imparted to him the joyful News, that he had found the DeJoh. i. 41. fire of the World, and their long-expected Happiness, the Chrift who was promifed by the Prophets; and carried him immediately to Jefus; where after a fhort Stay they returned again to their own Houses, and exercised their Calling. Q. When Q. When did St. Andrew become our Saviour's Difciple and conftant Attendant? A. About a Year afterwards, when being fully convinced of the Greatnefs and Divinity of our Saviour's Perfon, by the miraculous Draught of Fishes, our Saviour commanded him, with his Mat.iv.18. Brother Peter, to follow him, defigning to make them Fishers of Men; who accordingly left all, and conftantly attended our Saviour's Perfon, and was afterwards called by him to the Office and Honour of the Apoftolate. Q. What became of St. Andrew after our Saviour's Afcenfion? lib. i. c.19. A. It is generally affirmed by the Ancients, that Socrat. the Apoftles agreed among themselves by Lot, fay Hist. Eccl. fome, probably not without the fpecial Guidance and Direction of the Holy Ghoft, what Parts of the World they should feverally take. And that in this Divifion St. Andrew had Scythia, and the neighbour- Eufeb.lib. ing Countries, allotted him this Province. Q. How and where did St. Andrew fuffer Martyrdom? A. After this bleffed Apoftle had planted the Gospel in feveral Places, and by his indefatigable Labours had converted many to the Faith; he came at laft Patre in Achaia, where by laying down his Life he confirmed the Truths he had taught. For by endeavouring to convert Egeas the Proconful of Achaia, and to preserve his new Converts from Apoftacy, whom the Governor ftrove to reduce by all Arts to their old Idolatry, he enraged the Proconful against him; who commanded him to be fcourged, and then to be crucified; and that his Death might be more lingering, he was faftened to the Cross, not with Nails, but with Cords. Q. What Account is there of the Manner of his Crucifixion? A. That as he was led to Execution, he fhewed a 3. c. i. Hieron. adv. Vigi lan. Tom. 2 p. 41. cheerful and compofed Mind, and that being come within Sight of the Crofs, he faluted it with this kind Address, That he had long expected and defired that happy Hour; that the Crofs had been confecrated by bearing the Body of Chrift; that he came joyful and triumphing to it, that it might receive him as a Difciple and Follower of him who once hung upon it, and be the Means to carry him fafe unto his Master, having been the Inftrument upon which his Mafter did redeem him. Having prayed and exhorted the People to Conftancy and Perfeverance in their Religion, he was fastened to the Crofs, whereon he hung two Days, teaching and inftructing the People all that Time; and when great Importunities were ufed with the Proconful to fpare his Life, he carneftly begged of our Lord, that he might at that Time depart, and feal the Truth of Religion with his Blood, which accordingly happened. Q. What was the Form of St. Andrew's Cross? A. The Inftrument of his Martyrdom is commonly faid to have been fomething peculiar, in the Form of the Letter X. being a Crofs decuffate, two Pieces of Timber croffing each other in the Middle: And hencaknown by the Name of St. Andrew's Cross, Q. What became of his Body? A. Being taken down from the Cross, it was embalmed, and decently and honourably interred by Maximilla, a Lady of Great Quality and Estate. Afterwards it was removed to Conftantinople by Conftantine the Great, and buried in the great Church, which he had built to the Honour of the Apostles. Q. What may we learn from the Obfervation of this Feftival? A. To labour what we can in our Stations to make all our Relations, Friends, and Dependants, true Followers and Servants of the bleed Jesus. To fhew our Diflike of any Evil that reigneth among them, and courageoufly to approve what we know |