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words to attempt to garnish, or even to pretend to explain.

But the chief solace which the tidings of our SAVIOUR'S Resurrection procure to a Christian heart arises from the secret certainty that His Victory over Death is a pledge that we also shall pass through that shadowy valley unharmed: that His glorious Resurrection is a precious earnest of our own. This, also, is glanced at in our Easter Anthem: For since by Man came Death,' (it is said,) by Man came also the Resurrection of the Dead.

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For as in Adam all die,

even so in CHRIST shall all be made alive.'

And thus, in a few deep words, the history of our Redemption is set before us. By Nature, we are in Adam: by Grace, we are in CHRIST. He is the beginning of the New Creation. Baptized into Him, we are declared to be members of His Body, of His Flesh, and of His Bones".' And thus we are born again: not only made partakers of a new Nature, but born into a new World; invested with new powers; introduced to new hopes. Where our Head hath gone before, there it is our joy to know that we, the members, shall assuredly follow; provided we do but ' abide in Him,' and prove faithful unto Death".' n Ephes. v. 30.

o St. John xv. 4.

p Rev. ii. 10.

And this is the point at which the Collect for Easter-Day takes up the thoughts which EasterDay is calculated to inspire: grafting the fruits of Holiness on a living Faith; seeking to turn the theory of Religion into practice; faithfully reminding us that if we know these things, happy are we if we do them, likewise. This, in truth,

is eminently the office of our Book of Common Prayer, namely, to endeavour to give a practical turn to every commemoration; to engraft a living act on every saving Doctrine. Nowhere more remarkably than on Easter-Day does this appear for no sooner have we acknowledged the mercy of Almighty GoD, who through His Only-begotten Son, JESUS CHRIST, hath overcome Death, and opened to us the gate of Everlasting Life, than we humbly beseech Him that as, by His special Grace preventing us, He doth put into our minds good desires, so, by His continual help, we may bring the same to good effect; through JESUS CHRIST Our LORd.

Monday in Easter-Week.

BELIEVING WITHOUT SEEING.—(PART I.)

ST. JOHN XX. 29.

JESUS saith unto him, Thomas, because thou hast seen Me, thou hast believed: blessed are they that have not seen, and yet have believed.

THE Occasion on which these words were spoken, we all remember. On the evening of Easter Day, the Ten Apostles being gathered together, (with closed doors, however, for fear of the Jews,') our Blessed SAVIOUR,-who about eighteen hours before had risen from death, and had already appeared to Mary Magdalene, to the company of women, to Simon Peter, and to the two disciples going to Emmaus,-suddenly stood in the midst of them, and spoke words of Peace. Let us hear the account of an eye-witness, and more than an eye-witness, of all that followed. 'But Thomas, one of the Twelve, called Didymus, was not with them when JESUS came. The other disciples therefore said unto him, We have seen the LORD. But he said unto them, Except I shall see in His hands the

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print of the nails, and put my finger into the print of the nails, and thrust my hand into His side, I will not believe. And after eight days again His Disciples were within, and Thomas with them then came JESUS, the doors being shut, and stood in the midst, and said, Peace be unto you. Then saith He to Thomas, Reach hither thy finger, and behold My hands; and reach hither thy hand, and thrust it into My side and be not faithless, but believing. And Thomas answered and said unto Him, My LORD and my GOD. JESUS saith unto him, Thomas, because thou hast seen Me, thou hast believed: blessed are they that have not seen, and yet have believeda.'

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And now that all the facts of the case have been set before us, let us seek to draw a lesson from it for our personal comfort, edification, and guidance. Not that we purpose to prate about the 'unbelief' of one who spread the Faith to the remotest corners of the earth: not that we are about to sit in judgment on that great Saint and Apostle St. Thomas, whose name is written on one of the foundations of the heavenly Jerusalem. No. We have already spoken about his very striking share in the transactions of the

St. John xx. 24-29.

first Easter. It shall be our part to-day to look nearer home. The words of our SAVIOUR CHRIST which form the text, are words addressed in a very remarkable manner to ourselves. We are the persons He had in view when He pronounced those words. This is much to be noted. He was standing amid men who had seen, men who were seeing, when He said,—' Blessed are they that have not seen!' To us, therefore, who were then afar off; to us and to our children, were these words spoken; and by applying ourselves to the task of discovering what message they convey, we shall be, as it seems, acting most dutifully towards their Blessed Author.

The first thing, then, which strikes a thoughtful man on reading this history, is the lovingkindness of Almighty GoD displayed towards us, therein. It might seem to some persons that the first Christians,-those disciples of our SAVIOUR who lived in the days of the Gospel,enjoyed an undue amount of blessedness. They beheld the REDEEMER. They listened to the voice of His Words. They handled Him, and dwelt in His very presence. He went in and out among them. We,-separated by well nigh In the sermon for St. Thomas' Day.

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