Here is one for you Richard. But you will continue to deny the obvious. You cannot have the fulness of the faith unless you are taught by the Catholic Church. It was God who told the apostles not to give what is holy to the dogs. The deepest mysteries of the church were never explained plainly in scripture. They are the most sacred things in the universe. One of the charges the Aryans placed against Athanasius was a false charge that he purposely destroyed a chalice used for the sacrament in the Mass. Obviously transubstantiation was not a creation during the time of Constantine. Apologia Contra Arianos (Athanasius) 11. And as for the cup belonging to the mysteries, what was it, or where was it broken by Macarius? For this is the report which they spread up and down. But as for Athanasius, even his accusers would not have ventured to blame him, had they not been suborned by them. However, they attribute the origin of the offense to him; although it ought not to be imputed even to Macarius who is clear of it. And they are not ashamed to parade the sacred mysteries before Catechumens, and worse than that, even before heathens : whereas, they ought to attend to what is written, It is good to keep close the secret of a king Tobit 12:7; and as the Lord has charged us, Give not that which is holy unto the dogs, neither cast your pearls before swine Matthew 7:6. We ought not then to parade the holy mysteries before the uninitiated, lest the heathen in their ignorance deride them, and the Catechumens being over-curious be offended. However, what was the cup, and where and before whom was it broken? It is the Meletians who make the accusation, who are not worthy of the least credit, for they have been schismatics and enemies of the Church, not of a recent date, but from the times of the blessed Peter, Bishop and Martyr. They formed a conspiracy against Peter himself; they calumniated his successor Achillas; they accused Alexander even before the Emperor; and being thus well versed in these arts, they have now transferred their enmity to Athanasius, acting altogether in accordance with their former wickedness. For as they slandered those that have been before him, so now they have slandered him. But their calumnies and false accusations have never prevailed against him until now, that they have got Eusebius and his fellows for their assistants and patrons, on account of the impiety which these have adopted from the Arian madmen, which has led them to conspire against many Bishops, and among the rest Athanasius. Now the place where they say the cup was broken, was not a Church; there was no Presbyter in occupation of the place; and the day on which they say that Macarius did the deed, was not the Lords day. Since then there was no church there; since there was no one to perform the sacred office; and since the day did not require the use of it ; what was this cup belonging to the mysteries, and when, or where was it broken? There are many cups, it is plain, both in private houses, and in the public market; and if a person breaks one of them, he is not guilty of impiety. But the cup which belongs to the mysteries, and which if it be broken intentionally, makes the perpetrator of the deed an impious person, is found only among those who lawfully preside. This is the only description that can be given of this kind of cup; there is none other; this you legally give to the people to drink; this you have received according to the canon of the Church ; this belongs only to those who preside over the Catholic Church, for to you only it appertains to administer the Blood of Christ, and to none besides. But as he who breaks the cup belonging to the mysteries is an impious person, much more impious is he who treats the Blood of Christ with contumely: and he does so who does this 1 Corinthians 11:25 contrary to the rule of the Church. (We say this, not as if a cup even of the schismatics was broken by Macarius, for there was no cup there at all; how should there be? Where there was neither Lords house nor any the belonging to the Church, nay, it was not the time of the celebration of the mysteries). Now such a person is the notorious Ischyras, who was never appointed to his office by the Church, and when Alexander admitted the Presbyters that had been ordained by Meletius, he was not even numbered among them; and therefore did not receive ordination even from that quarter.
Posted on: Sun, 09 Nov 2014 23:52:34 +0000
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