Million Book Collection - The Fishers of Men Ministries

THE THIRD AGE OF THE MARTYR CHURCH. 321of a country, founded by the word of God, callthose who are powerful in word and of a virtuouslife to the government of churches: we do notaccept the covetous to such a place, but force itagainstheir will upon those who in their moderationwould decline taking on them this generalcare of the Church of God."9"And the compulsionthus exercised is that "of the great King, whomwe are persuaded to be the Son of God, God theWord." But this other form of country which hesaw in each city is "the whole Church of God,which the divine scriptures assert to be the Bodyof Christ, animated by the Son of God, while thelimbs of this Body are particular believers; for asthe soul quickens and moves the body, whose natureit is not to have the movement of life fromitself, so the Word moving to what is fitting, andenergising in the whole Body, the Church, moveslikewise each member of it, who does nothingwithout the Word."10 And he completes this viewin another beautiful passage wherein he describesChrist as the high-priest Aaron, who has receivedupon his single body the whole chrism, from whomit flows down upon his beard, the symbol of thecomplete man, and on to the utmost skirt of hisraiment. Every one who partakes of Him, partakeslikewise of his chrism, because Christ is thehead of the Church, and the Church and ChristII.9 Cont. Cels. viii. 75.10 Ibid. vi. 48, p. 670.Y