ing, that thou put up thy Prayers for him, Be thy Business what it will, it will always permit the to say at least, LORD, now lettest thou thy Servant depart in Peace: Or to use the Words of St. Oswald, when he and his Soldiers were ready to be slain, Lord, have Mercy on the Soul of thy * Servant. It will not be Jong, till thou thyself shalt have Occasion for such Prayers, till thou come to die, and enter on thy Journey to the other State: If then thou hast been merciful, thou shalt obtain Mercy; if by thy Prayers thou hast assisted the Souls of thy Brethren, thou shalt either be remembered in the Prayers of good Men, or surely these thy Prayers for others will be of Service to thyself also, at that dreadful hour.

But now it may be objected, That as the

Oravit ad dominum pro animabus exercitus sui. Unde dicunt in proverbio, Deus miserere animabus, dixit Oswaldus cadens in terram, Bed. Eccl. L. 3. C. 12. It is used (says Bede) even to a Proverb, That he died praying; for when the Enemy kad surrounded him, and he saw himself about to be slain, he proyed was the LORD for the Souls of his Army. Hence it is that the Posterb comes, LORD, have Mercy upon the Soul, as St. Oswald said, when he fell to the Earth. Which Proverb, in all Probability, hath been the Original of this present national Saying

When the Bell begins to tell,
LORD, have mercy on the Soul,

Bell

Bell is seldom tolled till after the Person's Departure, it is to no Purpose to pray for the Soul; nay to pray for it, would be praying for the Dead: And since that is repugnant to the Doctrine of our Church, our Prayers at · that Time had much better be omitted.

Indeed it is too true, this Custom is not so common as it should be; but however, it is so much observed, as will be able to vindicate the putting up of constant Prayers. I know several religious Families in this Place, and I hope it is so in other Places too, who always observe it, whenever the melancholy Season offers; and therefore it will at least sometimes happen, when we put up our Prayers constantly at the tolling of the Bell, that we shall pray for a Soul departing. And tho' it be granted, that it will oftener happen otherwise, as the regular Custom is so little followed; yet that can be no harmful praying for the Dead. We believe that the Soul is but departing, and it is charitably done to offer up our Prayers: And therefore when it proves otherwise, our* Prayer shall turn into our own Bosom ; and like as that Peace, which the Disciples wished to an unworthy House, returned to the Disciples

* Psalm xxxiv. 14.

again; so, though our Prayers at that Time may be of no Service to the Soul, yet they will be of no Disservice to us. They will return to us again, but it will be no Fault to have misplaced them.

PRAYERS UPON THIS OCCASION FROM BISHOP

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TAYLOR.

I.

O Holy and most Gracious JESU, we humbly recommend the Soul of thy Servant "into thy Hands, thy most merciful Hands: "Let thy blessed Angels stand in Ministry "about thy Servant, and defend him from "the Violence and Malice of all his ghostly "Enemies: And drive far from him all the Spirits of Darkness. Amen.

II.

LORD, receive the Soul of this thy Ser"vant: Enter not into Judgment with him:

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Spare him whom thou hast redeemed with thy most precious Blood: And deliver him, "for whose sake thou didst suffer Death, from "all Evil and Mischief, from the Crafts and "Assaults of the Devil, from the Fear of Death, and from everlasting Death, Amen,

7

III.

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III.

LORD, impute not unto him the Follies of his Youth, nor any of the Errors and Miscarriages of his Life: But strengthen him in his Agony, and carry him safely through his "last Distress. Let not his Faith waver, nor

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his Hope fail, nor his Charity be disorder"ed: Let him die in Peace, and rest in Hope, "and rise in Glory. Amen.

IV.

"LORD, we know and believe assuredly, "that whatsoever is under thy Custody, can"not be taken out of thy Hands, nor by all "the Violences of Hell robbed of thy Protec"tion: Preserve the Work of thy Hands,

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rescue him from all Evil, and let his Por"tion be with the Patriarchs and Prophets, "with the Apostles and Martyrs, and all thy holy Saints, in the Arms of CHRIST, in the "Bosom of Felicity, and in the Kingdom of "God for Ever. Amen.

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V.

"O Saviour of the World, who by thy "Cross, and precious Blood hast redeemed

us, save, and help this thy departing Servant, we beseech thee, O LORD. Amen.

VI.

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VI.

"O Almighty Lord, who art a most strong "Tower to all them that put their Trust in thee; to whom all things in Heaven, in

Earth, and under the Earth, do bow and

obey; be now and evermore his Defence; " and make him to know and feel, by a pow"erful Sense of thy Goodness, that there is "no other Name under Heaven given to Man, in whom and through whom we may “receive Health and Salvation, but only the "Name of our LORD JESUS CHRIST. Amen.

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VII.

"O LORD, unto thy gracious Mercy and Protection we commit him. O GOD the Father, bless him and keep him. O GOD "the Son, make thy Face to shine upon him, and be gracious unto him. O GOD the Holy Ghost, lift up thy Countenance upon him, and give him thy Peace, both now " and evermore. Amen.

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OBSER