Week's Preparation FOR THE WORTHY RECEIVING OF THE Lord's Supper, As appointed and practised by The CHURCH of ENGLAND; Part the Second: CONSISTING OF MEDITATIONS, PRAYERS, AND HYMNS, Suitable for the Sunday Evening and Sacrament Day, and for the Morning and Evening of every Day in that Week. With a Form of Daily Self-Examination. And, in the course of these MEDITATIONS, Those Doubts and Scruples which are apt to disturb and render the Minds of Devout Communicants Uneasy, are clearly stated and finally removed. LONDON: Published and sold by all the BOOKSELLERS; and by THOMAS WILSON and SON, Printers, High Ousegate, York. 1812. The Preface. For TUESDAY. Advice to those who pretend An explanation of that part of Ameditation for the evening 101 105, 106 For FRIDAY. A prayer before examination 43 Short heads of examination 44 Directions to proper collects!40 The Author to the Reader. Reasons for publishing this Book, and of the dangerous tendency of the use of the OLD WEEK'S PREPARATION. HAVING for many years experienced, in the course of my office, that in no one instance of Christian duty, there was more need of assistance than in this of the Lord's Supper; and that many devout communicants have laboured under the same doubts and scruples concerning a worthy preparation and partaking of this duty: I am of opinion, that many others would be very glad to find such doubts cleared up, and the cause of such scruples removed for the future, which too commonly disturb and perplex them with such fears and terrors, as indeed make their desire of being truly religious the burden and misery, instead of the delight of their lives. For, notwithstanding the compiler of the second part of the Old Week's Preparation* (a treatise very improper to come into the hands of many Protestant readers) has observed a quite contrary method: I do not think my time can be better employed, than when I am endeavouring to render the preparation to that holy ordinance orthodox, rational, nd satisfactory to every one. And, It is certainly a very great fault with the generality of those who have written upon this subject, that they have made it their whole business only to raise and inflame the devotion of communicants, without taking any thought about informing and settling their understandings. The *The Popish book of Devotions, from whence all the medita. tions and bymns are taken, which constitutes above one balf of the Second Part of the Old Week's Preparation, was condemned by Authority of Parliament to be publiciy burnt by the bards of the common bangman; and this circumstance I think myself in duty bound to take notice of, to prevent any farther ill consequences among the common people from the use of that hook, notwithstanding it is wow pretended to be published by a Clergyman of London. |