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Theodore of Mopsuestia, Commentary on the Lord's Prayer, Baptism and the Eucharist (1933) pp.i-xxv.  


WOODBROOKE STUDIES
CHRISTIAN DOCUMENTS EDITED AND TRANSLATED WITH A CRITICAL APPARATUS
BY
A. MINGANA

VOLUME VI

COMMENTARY OF THEODORE OF MOPSUESTIA ON THE LORD'S PRAYER AND ON THE SACRAMENTS OF BAPTISM AND THE EUCHARIST

CAMBRIDGE 
W. Heffer & Sons Limited 
1933


PREFATORY NOTE.

THE following pages contain the text and the translation of the second part of the Liber ad Baptizandos by Theodore of Mopsuestia. The first part, dealing with the Commentary on the Nicene Creed, was published in the preceding volume of the Woodbrooke Studies.

This second part is divided into six homilies or discourses which treat successively of the Lord's Prayer, the sacrament of baptism and that of the Eucharist, and like the first part is characterised by the high standard of Biblical erudition and theological acumen that stamp their illustrious author as one of the most profound thinkers of the Golden Age of Christianity.

In the opinion of some East Syrian scholars this second part of the Liber ad Baptizandos constituted a separate work from the preceding part. `Abdisho` in his Catalogue 1 calls the first part "Book on the Faith," and this second part "Book on the Sacraments." 2 The same thing is done by the author of the Chronicle of Seert 3 who even makes use of the Syriac word raze. The indications of the MS. favour this opinion. On the other hand, the Acts of the Fifth Council, as will be seen from the quotation given below, rightly attach it to the first part as one continuous text.

The Manuscript which contains the text of this volume is Mingana Syriac 561 from which I gave a facsimile reproduction in the preceding volume of the Woodbrooke Studies. Although the headings of the work give it, in the MS., as a separate treatise, we are entitled to consider it as one work with the |x commentary on the Nicene Creed, since the copyist himself, the actual author of these headings, places it in an unbroken sequence side by side with that commentary.

From the fact that all the discourses dealing with the sacraments of baptism and of the Eucharist are preceded in the text by a synopsis of their contents, we may infer that they were used in the Greek Church of the Patriarchate of Antioch as a kind of text-book for the Catachumens, before they were translated into Syriac. On linguistic grounds we may also state with confidence that the first part and the second part of the work were not translated by the same man, and that the translator of the second part must have lived some years after the translator of the first part.

In the chapter that deals with the Lord's prayer, Theodore argues from the short words of the prayer which our Lord ordered us to recite that "Prayer does not consist so much in words as in good works, love and zeal for duty. Indeed, any one who is inclined to good works, all his life must needs be in prayer. . . . Prayer is by necessity connected with good works, because a thing that is not good to be looked for, is not good to be prayed for. ... If you care for prayer, know that it is not performed by words but by the choice of a virtuous life and by the love of God and diligence in one's duty. If you are zealous in these things you will be praying all your life."

So far as the words "daily bread" are concerned Theodore holds that they mean our necessary food, i.e., the food that is necessary for the sustenance of the human body.

Theodore's Commentary on baptism and the Eucharist is of outstanding importance for the right understanding of the historical and theological background of these two Christian sacraments. In the sphere of history this importance can hardly be overestimated. In examining the extant Greek liturgical Manuscripts which contain these two sacraments, one is struck by the scarcity of old Manuscripts, and by the changes that their contents have undergone at the hand of liturgiologists and copyists of later generations. In this connection it is useful to remark that the text and the sequence of events, as exhibited by Theodore, are to be considered identical in every detail with |xi the very text and sequence of events that were current in the liturgical book of the Greek Church of the fourth century. Theodore's work is a commentary on the text of the Liturgy, and this commentary having been translated into Syriac shortly after his death, there is every reason to believe that it has come down to us without any alteration, addition or subtraction.

In the domain of Liturgy, the Byzantine Church generally made use of the Liturgies attributed to St. James and to St. Mark, and later, of the Liturgies attributed to SS. Chrysostom and Basil.4 In early times the Greek speaking Church of Antioch apparently made use of some such Liturgy as that found in the eighth book of the Apostolic Constitutions 5 and, with some omission and modification, in Didascalia Apostolorum.6

Taking first the Liturgies of SS. James and Mark, we find that the oldest Greek Manuscripts are represented by two pieces of a parchment roll of the end of the tenth, or the beginning of the eleventh century, formerly belonging to the Basilian Monastery of S. Salvator in Messina, and by Vat. Gr. 1970 of the thirteenth century. All other MSS. are of the fifteenth century and later. For the Liturgy of St. James, however, we have also Cod. Vat. 2282, of the ninth century,7 and for that of St. Basil we have MS. iii, 55 of Biblioth. Barberina, of the end of the eighth century. The manuscript evidence of the oldest of the above Liturgies is, therefore, some four hundred years after the time of Theod ore. Hans Lietzmann,8 who submitted all of them to a masterly study, does not seem to have a very high opinion of their authenticity through the ages. On page 261 of his work he rightly thinks that the Nestorian Liturgy of the Apostles may be older than all of them.9 "Aus der gleichen |xii antiochenischen Wurzel ist die fär den Jerusalemer Sprengel massgebende Jakobusliturgie erwachsen, die vielfach wie eine Parallelbildung zur byzantinischen Liturgie wirkt, vermutlich auch direkte Einflässe von dort erfahren hat. Sie ist ihrerseits wieder Vorbild fär die meisten der zahlreichen national syrischen Formulare geworden, die im Gegensatz zu der Erstarrung der Byzantiner in immer neuer Schöpfung die produktive liturgische Freiheit der alten Kirche bewahrt haben. Möglich, dass die nestorianische Apostelliturgie eine ältere Form repräsentiert."

As to the section of the Liturgy found in the Apostolic Constitutions Lietzmann is of opinion that many ceremonies described in it are of Jewish origin.10

The Liturgy commented upon by Theodore has many points of resemblance with that exhibited in the aforesaid Apostolic Constitutions,11 and with the exception of the generalities that are found more or less in all Liturgies, it has much less in common with the Liturgy of St. James, and that of St. Mark. Historical reasons would strongly militate against the theory that the Liturgies that pass under the names of SS. Chrysostom and Basil had spread to such an extent in North Syria as to justify a theologian like Theodore to comment upon them. Theodore himself makes use of sentences which suggest that he was commenting on an ancient and not a modern Liturgy ascribed to one of his contemporaries of the fourth century:

"There is an ordinance found (in the Church) from the beginning, to the effect that all those who have been deemed worthy to do the work of priesthood, should begin all the functions performed in a Church assembly with the phrase 'Peace be with you'" (p. 90).

"It is in this sense that the phrase: 'And to your spirit' is addressed to the priest by the congregation, according to the regulations found in the Church from the beginning" (pp. 91-92). |xiii 

The ritual of baptism on which the author commented was also ancient:

"From what we have said, you have sufficiently understood the ceremonies which are duly performed, prior to the sacrament, and according to an early tradition, upon those who are baptised" (p. 35).

I shall not enter here into details and examine the points of resemblance and divergence that characterise the Liturgy explained by Theodore and the Greek liturgies described above. A whole volume would be required for such a comparison, and I will leave this task to professional liturgiologists, but it would be useful to state that the Liturgy commented upon by Theodore has nothing in common with the Liturgy ascribed to him, in the East Syrian Church, under the title of "Liturgy of Mar Theodore the Interpreter," nor has it any points of contact with the numerous anaphoras attributed, in the West Syrian Church, to various apostles, disciples and saints.

In the following lines I will give a short summary of the sequence of events and ceremonies of the sacraments of baptism and the Eucharist as described by Theodore.

Baptism.

The catechumen comes to church attended by his godfather,12 and his name is written down in church books by the Registrar of baptisms. The godfather answers the questions put to the catechumen by the Registrar of Baptisms and becomes his surety for his past life, his preparedness and his competence to receive the sacrament of baptism. Then the exorcists come and "ask in a loud and prolonged voice that our Enemy should be punished and by a verdict from the Judge (God) be ordered to retire and stand far." During all this time the catechumen remains silent and stands barefooted on sackcloth; his outer garments are taken off from him while his head is bent and his |xiv arms are outstretched. Then he goes to the priest before whom he genuflects and recites the Creed and the Lord's Prayer and the words of abjuration which are: "I abjure Satan and all his angels, and all his works, and all his service, and all his deception, and all his worldly glamour; and I engage myself and believe, and am baptised in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit."

Then the priest "clad in a robe of clean and radiant linen" signs him on the forehead with the holy Chrism and says: "So-and-so is signed in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit." Theodore calls this signing the first-fruits of the sacrament of baptism, which stamp the catechumen as a soldier of Christ, and as a lamb belonging to His fold. After the priest has finished his recital of the above formula, the catechumen's godfather, who is standing behind him, spreads an orarium of linen on the crown of his head, raises him and makes him stand erect.

The above ceremony has nothing to do with the sacrament of Confirmation which, as is seen below, is given after baptism proper.

Then the catechumen receives the holy baptism. He first takes off all his garments, and then is anointed by a deacon all over his body with the holy Chrism, while the priest pronounces over him the following words: "So-and-so is anointed in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit."

After this, the catechumen is brought to a pond full of water, which the priest consecrates. Then the latter stands up and puts his hand on the head of the catechumen and says: "So-and-so is baptised in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit." At the mention of each name of the Holy Trinity, he causes him to immerse himself in water and bend his head downwards. There are three immersions as there are three persons in the Trinity.

After his baptism, the catechumen "wears a garment that is wholly radiant." Then the priest approaches and signs him on his forehead, apparently with the holy Chrism, and says: "So-and-so is signed in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit." |xv 

It would not be out of place here to compare the summary of the above sequence of events and ceremonies connected with the sacrament of baptism, as described by Theodore, with the corresponding ceremonies outlined in the VIIth Book of the Apostolic Constitutions:13

You shall beforehand anoint the person who is to be baptised with the holy oil, and afterwards baptise him with water, and in conclusion shall seal him with ointment; that the anointing with oil may be the participation of the Holy Spirit, and the water the symbol of the death of Christ, and the ointment the seal of the Covenant. Before baptism, let him that is to be baptised fast.

And when it remains that the catechumen is to be baptised, let him learn what concerns the renunciation of the Devil and the joining himself with Christ. Let, therefore, the candidate for baptism declare thus in his renunciation: "I abjure Satan, and his works, and his pomps, and his worships, and his angels, and his inventions, and all things that are under him. And I associate myself with Christ, and believe, and am baptised, into One Unbegotten Being, the only true God Almighty, etc."

After this, he comes to the water and the priest baptises him. And after he has baptised him in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit, he anoints him with ointment and recite the following prayer which begins: "O Lord God." After this, let the catechumen stand up and recite the Lord's prayer.

Without entering into minute details, we may assert that there are points of resemblance between the ceremonies and prayers described by Theodore and those found in the Apostolic Constitutions. There are, however, so many discrepancies also between the two texts that we are compelled to state that, if our author was drawing upon the book of the Apostolic Constitutions, that book must have been in many points different from that with which we are familiar in our days. By common consent the Apostolic Constitutions are believed to have been composed |xvi in Antioch in the latter half of the fourth century.14 The text of the ritual of baptism commented upon by Theodore seems to be shorter and more archaic than that exhibited in the Apostolic Constitutions.

Eucharist.

After their baptism the catechumens were admitted to the Church and allowed to participate in the Eucharist. The author first speaks of deacons, whose function it is to bring the oblation to the altar and spread linens on it, as symbols of the linen clothes of the burial of our Lord. At the end of this preliminary act they stand on both sides of the altar and agitate the air with fans. All these things take place while everybody is silent. Then comes a vocal prayer "announced in the loud voice of the deacon." After this all become silent again, and the priest begins a service in which he offers "thanksgivings to our Lord for the great things which He has provided for the salvation and deliverance of men"; and "he offers also thanksgivings for himself for having been appointed servant of such an awe-inspiring Sacrament." At the close of this prayer the congregation says Amen." Then the priest says "Peace be to you," to which those present respond: "And to your spirit."

After this benediction the priest says: "Lift up your minds," and the people answer "To You, O Lord"; and the priest says: "Let us thank the Lord," and the people answer: "It is fit and right." Then the priest recites the prayer which contains the words: "The greatness of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit," and asserts that praises and glorifications are offered at all time to the Trinity. At the end of this the priest recites the preliminary prayer to the Canticle of the Seraphim, and then all the congregation sings in a loud voice the Sanctus. Then the people resort to silence, and the priest proceeds with the service and recites the prayer which begins with the words: "Holy is the Father, holy also is the Son, and holy |xvii also is the Holy Spirit." Then the deacon shouts: "Let us all stand up in great fear," at the end of which the priest begins the Epiclesis in which he prays that the Holy Spirit may come down and change the bread and wine which are on the altar into the body and blood of Christ. He prays also that the grace of the Holy Spirit may come down on all those present and on all those "of whom, by regulation, mention is to be made always in the Church." He recites these prayers quietly, and after that he takes the holy bread with his hand and looks towards heaven, offers a prayer of thanksgiving and breaks the bread. While breaking it he prays for the people and says: "May the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ be with all of you," to which the people respond, "And with your spirit." He then makes the sign of the Cross with the bread over the blood, and with the blood over the bread, and breaks the bread and joins it with the blood.

Then the church crier shouts and mentions by name those for whom every one ought to pray, and before any other thing, he says: "We ought to pray for those who presented this holy oblation."

Then the priest offers a prayer, at the end of which he says: "Peace be to you!" and the people answer: "And to your spirit," while duly bowing their heads.

A little while after, the church crier, who is always the deacon, shouts: "Let us be attentive," and the priest says loudly, "The holy thing to the holies," and the people answer: "One Holy Father, one Holy Son and one Holy Spirit," and add "Glory be to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit, for ever and ever. Amen." After this all hasten to receive the Communion from the Communion table. The priest receives the Communion from the altar, and after him the congregation, from a distance.

"To receive the sacrament, a person stretches out his right hand, and under it he places the left hand." The communicant eats then the consecrated bread placed by the priest in his right hand. In giving the consecrated bread the priest says: "The body of Christ," and in giving the consecrated wine he says: "The cup of Christ," and the communicant answers "Amen." After some prayers of thanksgivings, recited by all the congregation, |xviii the Communion service and the liturgical prayers connected with it come to an end.

Of all the ancient Liturgies which I have consulted, the one which exhibits the nearest text to that given by Theodore seems to be the Liturgy found in the VIIIth Book of the Apostolic Constitutions, and, for the reader's convenience, I will give here a summary of it, similar to that given above in the case of Theodore, and will exclude from it the part which deals with the catechumens:15

Let the deacons bring the gifts to the bishop at the altar, and let the priests stand on his right hand and on his left, as disciples stand before their Master. And let two deacons, each side of the altar, hold a fan made up of thin membranes or of the feathers of the peacock, or of fine cloth, and let them silently drive away the small animals that fly about, that they may not come near to the cups. Let the high priest, together with the priests, pray, and let him put on his radiant garment and stand at the altar and make the sign of the Cross upon his forehead with his hand, and say: "The grace of Almighty God, and the love of our Lord Jesus Christ, and the fellowship of the Holy Ghost be with you all"; and let all with one voice say: "And with your spirit." And the high priest says: "Lift up your mind," and the people say: "We lift it to the Lord"; and the high priest says: "Let us give thanks to the Lord," and the people say: "It is fit and right."

After this, the high priest recites a long prayer which ends with the Sanctus recited by all the congregation. Afterwards, the high priest recites a prayer which begins: "For You are truly holy," in which are found the words of the Institution. At the end of it the people say "Amen"; and the bishop says: "The peace of God be with you all"; and the people answer: "And with your spirit."

After this the deacon recites a long prayer at the end of which the congregation says "Amen." Then the deacon says: "Let us be attentive," after which the bishop says: "Holy things for holy persons," at the end of which the people answer, "There is |xix One that is holy, there is one Lord, one Jesus Christ blessed for ever, to the glory of God the Father. Amen. Glory to God in the highest and on earth peace, good will among men. Hosanna to the Son of David. Blessed be He that cometh in the name of the Lord, being the Lord God who appeared to us. Hosanna in the highest."

After this, "Let the bishop partake, then the presbyters and deacons and sub-deacons and the readers and the singers and the ascetics; and then of the women, the deaconesses and the virgins and the widows; then the children; and then all the people in order, with reverence and godly fear, without tumult. And let the bishop give the oblation saying: 'The body of Christ'; and let him that receiveth say, 'Amen.' And let the deacon take the cup; and when he gives it, say: the blood of Christ, the cup of Life'; and let him that drinketh say, 'Amen.' And let the 33rd Psalm be said, while all the rest are partaking, and when all, both men and women, have partaken, let the deacons carry what remains into the vestry.

"And then let the deacon recite the prayer which begins: 'Now we have received the precious body and the precious blood of Christ, let us give thanks to Him who has thought us worthy to partake of these His holy mysteries.' "

After this the bishop gives thanks in a long prayer which begins: "O Lord God Almighty," at the end of which the deacon says: "Depart in peace."

As I stated above, I do not intend to make a thorough comparison with the points of resemblance and divergence found in the Liturgy commented upon by Theodore and the text of the Apostolic Constitutions. It appears to me, however, that, in the Eucharist as in baptism, the text commented upon by Theodore represents a more ancient layer in the development of the Liturgy.

The next liturgical text with which it would be useful to compare the present work of Theodore is that of the early Clementine literature, better known under the name of Testamentum Domini:16

Then the bishop, in offering thanksgivings, says the |xx awe-inspiring words: "Our Lord be with you," and the people answer: "And with your spirit," and the bishop says: "Lift up your hearts," and the people answer: "They are with the Lord"; and the bishop says: "Let us thank the Lord," and the people answer: "It is fit and right"; and the bishop shouts: "The holy things with the holy people," and the people answer: "In heaven and earth without ceasing."

Then the bishop offers thanksgivings for the oblation and recites a prayer which begins: "We thank You, O God," followed by another prayer recited also by the people, which begins: "In remembering Thy death and resurrection." Then the bishop recites the prayer which begins: "We offer You these thanksgivings," at the end of which the people say: "Amen."

After this, the deacon exhorts to prayer and the bishop recites a short invocation to which the people respond "Amen," while reciting it with the bishop.

At the end of all this comes the prayer of dismissal, which is: "May the name of the Lord be blessed for ever."

The congregation proceeds then to receive the holy communion in the following order: bishops, priests, deacons, widows, readers, sub-deacons, those endowed with gifts, those who have been newly baptised, and last of all, the children. The order of the communion for the laity is as follows: old men, ascetics, and the rest; and for the women: first the deaconesses, and then the rest.

Before receiving the communion, the communicant says "Amen," and after the communion, he says: "Holy, holy, holy, the ineffable Trinity. Grant me to receive this Eucharistic bread to salvation and not to damnation," etc. In partaking of the cup, let the communicant say twice: "Amen." After this the service comes to an end.

It is easily seen that the text of the Testamentum Domini has fewer points of contact with the text of the Apostolic Constitutions than the Liturgy commented upon by Theodore.

There is no need here to dilate on the additions to all the aforesaid liturgical texts made by A. Baumstark,17 A. Rucker,18 |xxi and Rahmani,19 nor to the papyrus of Dair-Balizah, edited by Schermann,20 nor to the much advertised Euchologium of Serapion,21 as none of them could possibly have had any influence on the Church of North Syria in the time of Theodore.

As in the preceding part I shall not attempt to give a synopsis of Theodore's views concerning the sacraments of baptism and the Eucharist and other Christian doctrines of the Golden Age of Christianity which are discussed in this part of his work. Let Theodore speak for himself in his own words, which can easily be understood by any intelligent reader familiar with the phraseology of the Fathers of the fourth century. I will, however, quote here the following beautiful passage concerning the sacrament of penitence:—

"It is right for us to draw near to the priests with great confidence and to reveal our sins to them, and they, with all diligence, pain and love, and according to the rules laid down above, will give healing to sinners. And they will not disclose the things that are not to be disclosed, but they will keep to themselves the things that have happened, as fits true and loving fathers, bound to safeguard the shame of their children, while striving to heal their bodies" (p. 123).

About the reception of the holy communion I will quote the following passage: "It is right for us, therefore, neither wholly to abstain from communion nor to go to it unworthily, but we must strive with all our power after the things that are right, and after having thus striven we must hasten to receive communion, well aware that if we devote our life to unworthiness, and sin fearlessly, and do anything we take fancy to, and are careless of our duty, we shall eat and drink this food and this beverage which words cannot describe, to our damnation; but if we are careful of our salvation, and hasten towards good works and meditate upon them continually in our mind, the sins that come to us involuntarily from (human) weakness will not injure us; on the contrary, we will acquire great help from our communion. Indeed, the body and the blood of our Lord, and the grace |xxii of the Holy Spirit that is promised to us therefrom, will strengthen us in doing good works, and invigorate our minds, while driving away from us all ungodly thoughts and surely quenching (the fire) of sins, as long as we have committed them involuntarily, and they have come to us against our will, from the weakness of our nature, and we have fallen into them against our desire, and because of them we have sorrowed intensely and prayed God in great repentance for our trespasses. The communion of the holy Sacrament will, without doubt, grant us the remission of trespasses of this kind, since our Lord plainly said: 'This is my body which is broken for you for the remission of sins, and this is my blood which is shed for you for the remission of sins,' and: 'I am not come to call the righteous but sinners to repentance.'

If therefore we sin carelessly, it is hard for us to draw near to the holy Sacrament, but if we do good works with diligence and turn away from evil works and truly repent of the sins that come to us, we will undoubtedly obtain the gift of the remission of sins in our reception of the holy Sacrament, according to the words of Christ our Lord, because while we were sinners we have been chosen to a penitence, a deliverance and a salvation that embrace all, solely by the grace of the One who has called us" (p. 117).

For the time following the reception of the Sacrament, the following passage is also worth quoting: "As to you, after you have received the body, you offer adoration as a confession of the power placed in your hands, while remembering the words uttered by our Lord to His disciples after He rose from the dead: 'All power is given to me in heaven and in earth.' You press it with great and true love to your eyes and kiss it, and you offer (to it) your prayers as if to Christ our Lord, who is at present so near to you, and in whom you believed before that you had confidence, which you will receive now that you have drawn near to Him and held Him. You pray, while confessing your weakness, the great number of your sins, and your great unworthiness for such a gift. You glorify also in a fitting manner the One who granted these things to a person such as you, and rendered you worthy to receive help from Him to the extent |xxiii that you became worthy to receive the communion, free from all evil things and doing all the things that please Him" (p. 113).

A general note that rings through all Theodore's doctrine about the sacraments of baptism and the Eucharist is that what happens in them is a figure of the reality that will take place in the Kingdom of Heaven, which God established in the next world. All the benefits which we derive from baptism and the Eucharist are symbols of the real gifts of God which will be bestowed upon us in our future life "in Jerusalem which is above, free, and mother of us all" (Gal. iv. 26). The author quotes also, in this connection, the sentence in the Epistle to the Hebrews: "You are come into Mount Zion and into the city of the living God, the heavenly Jerusalem, and to an innumerable company of angels, and to the church of the firstborn, which are written in heaven" (Heb. xii. 22-23).

In Theodore's opinion we shall go to the Kingdom of Heaven because, in Christ's words: "We shall be the children of God, being the children of the Resurrection" (Luke xx. 36).

It may be useful also to remark that what the author means by discipleship (Syr. talmidhutha) 22 throughout his work, may possibly refer to the act of anointing or signing which the catechumens received before their baptism. This ceremony, which was performed in the early Church, seems to imply that a believer was "stamped" as a lamb belonging to the fold of Christ.

In the first part of the book 23 I gave six quotations from Theodore's work found in the Acts of the fifth Council. The following quotation from the Acts of this Council is found in the present volume:—

Mansi, Sacrorum Conciliorum nova et amplissima Collectio (Vol. IX, p. 217).

Ejusdem Theodori ex eodem libro:

[Latin, Syriac omitted] |xxiv 

In reading the first part of Theodore's work ad Baptizandos, which was published in the fifth volume of the Woodbrooke Studies, I came across a few inaccuracies to which I wish to draw attention.

P. 19, 11.25 and 28. The word translated by "incident" literally means "distinction." |xxv 

P. 21, 1. 4. For "the first man" read "our forerunner" and change the Note to "Cf. Heb. vi. 20." P. 21, 1. 11. Attach note 3 to "faith." P. 84,1.16. Read "his" not with a capital "H." P. 87, 1. 8. Read (made) for (done).

P. 90 1. 22. Instead of "differentiated" it would be better to read "affected." Although "differentiated" corresponds more literally with the text, "affected" will be better understood by an English reader.

P. 92, 1. 1. Delete "of."

P. 98, 1. 16. For "prominently" read "pre-eminently." 

P. 101, 1. 29. Add "the" before "Holy Spirit." 

P. 114, 1. 1. For "I will believe and be baptised" read "I believe and am baptised." 

It is a pleasing duty to offer here my sincerest thanks to Mr. Edward Cadbury for his generosity and unfailing interest in the Woodbrooke Studies, which are making no small contribution towards the solution of many problems dealing with the history and doctrine of early Church; and to the Aberdeen University Press for the satisfactory way in which they have performed their difficult task.

Selly Oak Colleges Library, Birmingham, 
16th December, 1932.


[Footnotes renumbered and moved to the end]

1. 1 See Woodbrooke Studies, Vol. V, p. 7.

2. 2 Assemani, Bib. Orient. iii, 33. 

3. 3 Pat. Orient. V, 290.

4. 1 Brightman, Liturgies Eastern and Western, Vol. I (Oxford 1896).

5. 2 Or possibly with one of the Liturgies spoken of below.

6. 3 There is no liturgy of the Eucharist in the Syriac Didascalia as edited by Mrs. Gibson in Horae Semiticae No. I.

7. 4 Baumstark and Schermann in Oriens Christianus, iii, 214 sqq.

8. 5 Messe und Herrenmahl, eine Studie zur Geschichte der Liturgie (Bonn, 1926).

9. 6 Lietzmann's conclusion as to the priority of the Nestorian Liturgy is reached also after careful consideration by the late Archbishop Joseph David in his Arabic work entitled Kusara, p. 55.

10. 1 Messe und Herrenmahl, pp. 127-131.

11. 2 I am including in this section the recension of the Clementine literature, edited and translated by Rahmani under the title of Testamentum Domini (Mainz, 1899). See below.

12. 1 There is no question in Theodore of the children's baptism; all the persons admitted to baptism were adults who had received a thorough education and instruction in the theological points explained by him in his present work, ad Baptizandos.

13. 1 Ante-Nicene Christian Library, Vol. XVII, Part II, pp. 185-204.

14. 1 Brightman, ibid., p. xxix of the Introduction. Lietzmann (op. cit., p. 261) writes also as follows: "Auf ihr (i.e., the Liturgy of Hippolytus) baut sich die antiochenische Liturgie des iv Jh. auf, von der uns eine massgebende Textform im viii (und ii) Buch der Constitutiones Apostolorum vorliegt."

15. 1 Brightman, ibid., pp. 14-27, and Ante-Nicene Christian Library, Vol. XVII, pp. 224-237.

16. 1 My references will be here to a MS. of my Collection, Mingana Syr. 12, ff. 11a-17b, and not to the printed text edited by Rahmani in 1899 of which I spoke above.

17. 1 In his well-known Kleine Texte No. 35 (1909).

18. 2 Liturgie-geschicht. Quell. Heft. 4 (1923).

19. 1 Vetusta documenta liturgica (1908), pp. 25-82.

20. 2 Texte und Untersuchungen, Bd. 36 (1910).

21. 3 Edited by Wobbermin in Texte und Untersuchungen 17, Heft. 3 (1898).

22. 1 I have translated this word sometimes by "initiation," and some other times by "discipleship," and very rarely by "catechumenate."

23. 2 Woodbrooke Studies, Vol. V, pp. 8-11.


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Early Church Fathers - Additional Texts