What right had they, the chosen of God (as they called themselves)
to listen to sermons from men in league with the State? What right
had they to take the Holy Bread and Wine from the tainted hands of
Utraquist priests? What right had they to confess their sins to men
with the brand of Rome upon their foreheads? If they were to have
any priests at all, those priests, like Caesar's wife, must be above
suspicion. They must be pastors after God's own heart, who should
feed the people with knowledge and understanding (Jer. iii. 15).
They must be clear of any connection with the State. They must be
descended from the twelve Apostles. They must be innocent of the
crime of simony. They must work with their hands for their living,
and be willing to spend their money on the poor. But where could
such clean vessels of the Lord be found? For a while the Brethren
were almost in despair; for a while they were even half inclined to
do without priests at all. In vain they searched the country round;
in vain they inquired about priests in foreign lands. When they
asked about the pure Nestorian Church supposed to exist in India,
they received the answer that that Church was now as corrupt as the
Romish. When they asked about the Greek Church in Russia, they
received the answer that the Russian Bishops were willing to
consecrate any man, good or bad, so long as he paid the fees. The
question was pressing. If they did without good priests much
longer, they would lose their standing in the country. "You must,"
said Brother Martin Lupac, a Utraquist priest, who had joined their
ranks, "you must establish a proper order of priests from among
yourselves. If you don't, the whole cause will be ruined. To do
without priests is no sin against God; but it is a sin against your
fellow-men." As they pondered on the fateful question, the very
light of Heaven itself seemed to flash upon their souls. It was
they who possessed the unity of the spirit; and therefore it was