Eight Sermons on the Priesthood, Altar, and Sacrifice

In Short

This volume consists of eight sermons delivered in 1866, intended to clarify the theological standing of the Anglican clergy. It addresses a mid-Victorian crisis of identity, where critics within and without the church questioned the necessity of priests, altars, and ritual sacrifices. By grounding his argument in scripture, the witness of the early Church, and the Anglican prayer book, the author seeks to prove that the "Catholic" character of his church remains intact. It endures as a primary-source window into the theological anxieties and intellectual rigor of the nineteenth-century Anglo-Catholic movement.

The Story

The argument begins with a direct challenge to the spirit of the age. In a time of religious uncertainty, where old doctrines were being freely discarded in favor of "new" ideas, the author insists that in Christianity, any truth worth holding must be ancient. He sets out to defend three pillars: the Priesthood, the Altar, and the Sacrifice. He acknowledges that many people reject these concepts because they see no "outward show" of holiness in the modern ministry—the clergy look like common men, and their actions seem mundane. He counters this by asserting that God’s grace is often hidden in "earthen vessels." Just as the grace of Baptism is not always visible to the eye, the reality of the priesthood exists whether or not it is marked by elaborate insignia or clerical status.

From this foundation, he moves to the concept of sacrifice itself, tracing its history from the dawn of humanity. He examines the story of Cain and Abel, concluding that Abel’s sacrifice was accepted because it was offered with faith, while Cain’s was not. This leads to the broader claim that sacrifice is a universal human instinct, pre-dating the Law of Moses. He argues that the entire world, from the earliest patriarchs to the present, has universally recognized the need for an altar, an order of priests, and a blood-offering to reconcile humanity with the Divine.

The argument then shifts to the Christian era. The author asks whether these institutions were abolished by Christ’s death on the cross or whether they were transformed. He interprets St. Paul’s letters—particularly the reference to the "communion of the Body of Christ"—as clear evidence that the early Church continued to practice a sacrifice. He rejects the idea that these rituals are Roman Catholic inventions, insisting instead that they are the inheritance of the universal, primitive Church. He provides evidence from ancient liturgies and early writers to show that for fifteen hundred years, this was the undisputed understanding of the faith.

In the final stages, he turns to the Anglican prayer book itself, testing its language against these ancient standards. He points to the ordination service and the office for the Visitation of the Sick as proof that the Church of England assumes its ministers possess the power to absolve sins and act as stewards of divine mysteries. He warns that failing to believe in these powers—treating the Eucharist as merely a symbol—is a profound error that misrepresents the very office of the ministry. He concludes by looking toward the mystery of the Incarnation, emphasizing that the entire priesthood is dependent upon Christ’s presence in human form. The sermons end with a call to hold fast to this "good deposit," trusting that the Church will be preserved through its trials and enabled to hand its sacred duties to the next generation.

How It Unfolds

The defense of the office The author addresses the skepticism of his contemporaries, arguing that the lack of outward, worldly status in the priesthood does not negate its spiritual essence. He uses the analogy of the Apostles, who also labored without worldly pomp, to suggest that true spiritual authority is often quiet and misunderstood.

The history of sacrifice He traces the necessity of sacrifice back to the fall of man and the example of Abel. By defining sacrifice as a universal human response to God, he positions the Christian altar as a continuation of this ancient, divinely ordained impulse.

The scriptural foundation Moving into the New Testament, he dissects the writings of St. Paul to show that the early Church viewed the Eucharist as a sacrificial act. He argues that this interpretation is not an innovation, but the only way to reconcile the Apostle’s words with the practice of the early believers.

The Anglican identity The author examines the Book of Common Prayer to prove that the Church of England’s own documents support the concept of a sacrificial priesthood. He concludes that the reformers did not intend to destroy the Catholic nature of the ministry, but to strip away later corruptions.

The final synthesis He links the priesthood to the Incarnation, arguing that the ministry is a reflection of Christ’s own continuous work as High Priest. The volume closes on a note of hopeful endurance, urging the reader to trust that the faith will be sustained despite the "thick darkness" of modern questioning.

The People

The primary figure is the author himself, a man of intense conviction who views his ministry not as a profession but as a sacred stewardship. He is both a learner—frequently citing earlier theologians like Dr. Hickes and Archbishop Bramhall—and a firm guide, acting as a bulwark against what he perceives as the "licentious" and "irreverent" questioning of his time. He wants his readers to feel the weight of historical continuity.

Opposing him are the "deniers," a vague but formidable group of skeptics who represent the modern, progressive mindset of the mid-nineteenth century. They are characterized by their desire to strip the church of its mystery and its ancient, "Catholic" structures. They view the priesthood as a human institution and the altar as a piece of furniture, rather than a place of real spiritual encounter.

The author also invokes the "early Fathers" and the "primitive Church" as silent, authoritative figures. They stand as the standard-bearers of truth, representing a time when belief was unified and the "deposit" of faith was pure. By bringing them into the conversation, he contrasts their unwavering, ancient faith with the fragmented, uncertain landscape of his own Victorian era.

In Its Own Voice

“If the grace of Baptism be not thus self-evident, and ever recognised by sight, why must the grace of Orders be so either?”

The author uses this rhetorical question to argue that the invisibility of spiritual grace is a consistent feature of Christian life, not a proof against the validity of the priesthood.

“If, further, it should lead any, in the spirit of candour and of prayer, to give more consideration to this doctrine than perhaps hitherto they have done, and especially to consult larger and more learned works upon the subject, I shall have great additional reason to be thankful.”

This quote reveals the author’s primary motivation: to humble himself as a gateway to deeper, more intensive theological study for his congregation.

What It's Really About

The book is an inquiry into the nature of religious authority and the meaning of continuity. At its heart is a defensive question: can a modern church maintain an ancient, sacramental identity in an age of rationalism and skepticism? The author wrestles with the tension between the "earthen vessel" of the human minister and the "treasure" of the office they hold. He is deeply concerned with the danger of "obliquity of thought"—the idea that if a priest does not believe in the reality of the sacrifice they perform, they have fundamentally failed in their duty. Ultimately, the work is about the legitimacy of Anglicanism and its claim to be a branch of the wider, historic Church.

Why Read It Today

Readers interested in the history of ideas, specifically the Anglo-Catholic revival, will find this a fascinating document. It captures a specific moment in the nineteenth century when the Church of England was forced to define itself against the encroaching tide of secularism and theological liberalism. The prose is earnest, warm, and highly structured, reflecting the methodical nature of Victorian intellectual discourse.

However, a modern reader should be prepared for the dense, polemical style of 1860s theological writing. The author’s language is rooted in a specific era of church politics, and he assumes a level of familiarity with biblical commentary and liturgical history that may be challenging for a general audience. The tone is not one of detached academic observation, but of urgent, personal conviction. There is a palpable sense of struggle in these pages, as the author tries to reconcile his love for the "ancient faith" with a culture that seems increasingly impatient with it.

If you are looking for a dispassionate history, you will not find it here; instead, you will find the vibrant, often anxious heartbeat of a man convinced that the soul of his church depends on its fidelity to the past. It stays with you as a testament to how tradition is defended when it is under threat.