The Little Gleaner, Vol. X.: A Monthly Magazine for the YoungVarious
Religion
The Little Gleaner, Vol. X.: A Monthly Magazine for the Young
Various
Christian literature for children -- Periodicals
And then the false Church presented another Christ to view--a god made
with hands, not of wood or stone, but of wheaten flour. The priest's
servant girl or attendant takes the dough, bakes it between two heated
irons, on which are graven the letters, I. H. S., and the figure of a
cross. These wafers, about four or five inches large, when well baked,
are cut with a pair of scissors into smaller ones, about one inch in
size, and then the priest, taking them to the altar, and pronouncing
Latin words for "This is My body," is supposed to turn each of these
into the Christ who lived and loved and suffered here, a gentle, tender,
loving Saviour; and the poor deluded creatures who tremble before Christ
in heaven, bow down and adore, when they do not eat, the paltry wafer
which the priest has blessed.
Chiniquy himself passed whole hours, in biting wintry weather, in a
church never warmed by a fire, worshipping this wafer god. He was
yearning for divine sympathy and love, and hoped he had it then.
And yet, though he tried to "believe a lie" so earnestly, his faith was
often shaken by what he saw and heard.
In a company of priests, a strange story was told of a drunken curate
and his deacon, who, called to go a long journey in snowy weather, to
carry the sacred wafer to a sick person, had a dispute with a traveller
as to which should lead his horses into the deep snow, the cleared path
being too narrow for the vehicles to pass each other. A terrible fight
took place. The priest's horses took fright and returned home, breaking
the sleigh all to pieces, and the little silk bag containing their "god"
was lost in the snow. It was carefully sought in vain, and not till the
month of June was it found, and then the wafer inside the little silver
box had melted away! And the priests laughed boisterously when they
heard it. Did they believe what they taught the people?
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
Reviews
Reviews
No reviews yet
Be the first to share your thoughts on this work.
Elsewhere in the archive
Join the Discussion
Join the discussion
Sign in to leave a comment or review.
Sign InorCreate an account