which was once delivered to the saints
I believe, O Lord;
help Thou mine unbelief,
and vouchsafe to me

to love the Father for His fatherly love, to reverence the Almighty for His power, as a faithful Creator, to commit my soul to Him in well-doing;

vouchsafe to me to partake

from Jesus of salvation,

from Christ of anointing,
from the Only-begotten of adoption;
to worship the Lord

for His conception in faith,
for His birth in humility,

for His sufferings in patience and hatred of sin ; for His cross to crucify beginnings,

for His death to mortify the flesh,

for His burial to bury evil thoughts in good works, for His descent to meditate upon hell,

for His resurrection upon newness of life, for His ascension, to mind things above, for His sitting on high, to mind the good things on His right,

for His return, to fear His second appearance, for judgment, to judge myself ere I be judged. From the Spirit

vouchsafe me the breath of salutary grace

in the Holy Catholic Church

to have my own calling, and holiness, and portion,

and a fellowship

of her sacred rites, and prayers,
fasting and groans,

vigils, tears, and sufferings,

for assurance of remission of sins, for hope of resurrection and translation

to eternal life.

BP. ANDREWES' DEVOTIONS.

JOHN HENRY PARKER, OXFORD AND LONDON.

Tracts for the Christian Seasons.

TRINITY SUNDAY.

The Mystery of Godliness.

PROPER LESSONS: Morning, 1st. Gen. i.; 2nd. St. Matt. iii.;
Evening, 1st. Gen. xviii; 2nd. 1 John v.

EPISTLE, Rev. iv. 1. GOSPEL, St. John iii. 1.

WE read in Holy Scripture that when our Blessed Lord was transfigured before His three chosen disciples, "a bright cloud overshadowed them." Now we can best understand the revelations of divine truth in the Gospel if we liken it to a "bright cloud;" there is light, and there is shade; brightness, and obscurity. We see a great light, and yet there is something like a mist or veil to break the force of the light, that our minds should not be quite dazzled by an intolerable glory. Some things are clear to us, some things are mysterious. St. Paul expresses the same thing when he says, "we know in part;" there is some knowledge; we know somewhat; but it is imperfect knowledge; like children's knowledge, like a child's talk, when it thinks as a child, speaks as a child, understands as a child, before it puts away childish things. And again,

he says, we see through a glass, darkly;" we do see; but not clearly, not as in the open air, but as though there were no more than the reflection of divine things; we are not stone blind, not altogether in the dark; neither is it a thick wall between us and God, but something like glass, dark, thick glass; we touch only the hem of Christ's garment; we stand a great way off; it is, so to speak, the hour before sunrise; we see somewhat of the shape and vast outlines of heavenly things, but all is hazy and indistinct.

By and by all will be clear; all will be known; all will be seen in the perfect light of the perfect day. We shall know, even as we are known; there will be nothing between us and God; the veil will be rent in twain; the glass shivered, and we shall be face to face; the cloud will melt and be dissolved; the film will be taken from our eyes; we shall see plain; our faith will become sight; our hope possession; our love will be deepened and enlarged ten times ten thousand fold; the vapours of our earthly state will all clear away and reveal to us in all their glory the things of the kingdom of heaven, if only we will walk meekly and humbly with our Lord through the shadowy places of this present

world, content with that which is revealed, not impatiently prying into the things of God above

our measure.

But as it is, we are travelling as it were with a " bright cloud" around us. We shall find in Holy Scripture two classes of texts which convey these two ideas, first, that the Gospel is a light; and next, that it is a cloud, which cannot be seen through. Thus we read that God "hath shined in our hearts, to give the light of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Jesus Christ." Again, it is called "the light of the glorious Gospel of Christ," and God the Son is called, the true Light which lighteth every man that cometh into the world." We come next to the other class of texts, in which the Gospel is termed the mystery of godliness, and a great mystery," the mystery of Christ;" the Christian truths are called, "the mysteries of the kingdom;" and St. Paul says, "we speak the wisdom of God in a mystery." When we blend these texts together, we shall see how well revealed truth may be likened to a "bright cloud."

Take for instance that doctrine which we are especially bound to dwell upon to-day, the doctrine of the Trinity, that there is but one