interest, and of so sacred a character as the worship of the Supreme
Being, who declares Himself to be a jealous God, ought we to suffer any
refinements of casuistry to entice us from the broad, clear light of
revelation? If it were God's good pleasure to make exceptions to his
rule--a rule so repeatedly, and so positively enacted and
enforced--surely the analogy of his gracious dealings with mankind would
have taught us to look for an announcement of the exceptions in terms
equally forcible and explicit. Instead, however, of this, we find no
single act, no single word, nothing which even by implication can be
forced to sanction any prayer or religious invocation, of whatever kind,
to any other being save to God alone.

Let us first look to the language and conduct of our blessed Lord, whose
prayers to his Father are upon record for our instruction and comfort,
and whose precepts and example form the best rule of a Christian's {48}
life. So far from repealing the ancient law, he repeats in his own
person its solemn announcement, "Hear, O Israel, the Lord our God is one
Lord." [Mark xii. 29.] While the same heavenly Teacher commands us with
authority, "When thou prayest, pray to thy Father which is in secret,
and thy Father, who seeth in secret, shall reward thee openly." [Matt.
vi. 6.] No allusion in any word of His do we find to any prayer from a
mortal on this earth to an angel or saint in heaven. And yet occasions
were multiplied on which a reference to the invocation of angels would
have been natural, and apparently called for. He again and again places
beyond all doubt the reality of their good services towards mankind, but
it is as God's servants, and at God's bidding; not in answer to any
supplication or invoking of ours. The parable of the rich man and
Lazarus has been cited [Bellarmin, p. 895.] to bear contrary evidence;
but, in the first place, that parable does not offer a case in point; in
the second place, were it in point, it might be fairly and strongly