Million Book Collection - The Fishers of Men Ministries

102 THE FIRST AND THE SECOND MAN.save by this act of engrafting into a new body. AsEve from the side of Adam sleeping, so the Churchfrom the side of Christ suffering ; as Eve bearsstill to Adam the children of men, so the Churchto Christ the children of Christ. These are nottwo mysteries, V * but one. * unfathomable in both itsparts, of justice and of mercy ; but the whole historyof the human race bears witness to the first,and the whole history of the Christian people tothe second. It would be amply sufficient to provewhat we have been saying, that the first communicationof the supernaturalife is conferred by beingbaptised into one body and made to drink into onespirit. But this is not all. There is a yet dearerand more precious gift, which maintains and increasesthe life so given. Our Lord stands in themidst of His Church visibly forming from day today and from age to age that Body of His whichreaches through the ages ; He takes from Himselfand gives to us. He incorporates Himself inHis children. He grows up in us, and by visiblestreams from His heart maintains the life firstgiven. Here, above all, is the one Christ, the Headand the Body. This is but an elemental truthof Christian faith, though it is the highest joyof the Christian heart. It was in an instructionto catechumens that S. Augustine^- %A*JU-L,.LJLVysaid, KJ WJ-VA * "Wouldyou understand the Body of Christ ? Hear theApostle saying to the faithful, 'But you are theBody and the members of Christ.' If, then, you