Page:Aelfric's Lives of Saints Vol 1.djvu/247

 an espoused  wife,  for  the  certain  succession,

that is,  that  the  son  should  always  succeed  to  the  priesthood,

after his  father's  death,  and  no  other  might  do  so.

It might  well  be  so  then,  because  they  never  celebrated  mass,

but they  offered  beasts  in  their  sacrifices  to  God,

neither was  the  house  consecrated  before  Jesus  came,

and instituted  the  New  Covenant  with  the  Christian  people,

and chose  the  pure  for  His  pure  service,

not unto  the  offering  of  beasts,  but  unto  His  own  body;

and bishops  are  not  now  chosen  according  to  lineage,

but the  holy  church  loveth  the  chaste,

and Christ  will  have  those  that  serve  Him  in  chastity

at the  living  sacrifice  of  His  body  and  blood.

We have  to  speak  about  the  wise  Petronilla,.

the blessed  Peter's  daughter,  but  this  occurred  to  our  mind.)

The aforesaid  Marcellus  said  that  she  lay

in a  palsy  even  as  Peter  himself  willed  it.

Then Titus  enquired  of  the  blessed  Apostle,

why he  suffered  her  so  to  lie  on  a  sick  bed,

when he  healed  all  other  cripples,  and  she  alone  lay  so?

Then said  the  holy  father,  that  it  was  for  her  profit,

'But, lest  any  one  should  think  that  our  word  cannot

give her  healing,  I  command  her  now  to  arise

and serve  us  all;'    and  she  immediately  arose,

served her  father,  and  his  companions,  being  made  whole.

After this  attendance  the  holy  Peter  commanded

her to  go  to  bed,  and  be  again  diseased.

Thus she  was  perfected  in  the  fear  of  God,  and  God  healed  her  again,

so that  she  might  herself  heal  many  others,