MILLENNIUM. Latin, _a thousand years_. Certain people look for a return of Christ to the earth before the end of the world, and hold that there will be a first or particular resurrection limited to the good, and a reign of Christ with all the saints upon the earth for a thousand years, or _millennium_. This doctrine is chiefly based upon a most literal interpretation of part of the book of Revelation (chap, xx.), which is confessedly the most figurative and mystical book in the Bible. MINOR CANONS. Priests in Collegiate Churches next in rank to the Canons and Prebendaries, but not of the Chapter. They are responsible for the performance of daily service, and should be well skilled in Church music. MINISTER. _One who serves_. A term applied generally to the clergy about the time of the Great Rebellion. It is equivalent to the Greek word rendered _Deacon_. An effort was unsuccessfully made in 1689 to substitute _minister_ for _priest_ throughout the Prayer Book wherever the latter word occurred. MIRACLE. Latin, _A Wonder_. The general notion of miracles, viz., that they are necessary proofs or credentials of our Saviour's commission from God, can scarcely be maintained on Scriptural grounds. (Matt. vii. 28.) A better definition of miracles is given by Archbishop Thomson: "The miracles of the Gospel are works done by Christ in the course of His divine mission of mercy, which could not have proceeded from ordinary causes then in operation, and therefore proved the presence of a superhuman power, and which, by their nature and drift, showed that this power was being exerted in the direction of love and compassion for the salvation of mankind."