Page:The Nestorians and their rituals, volume 2.djvu/269



Having made us meet, O, to feast on Thy holy body and blood, fit us in like manner to feast in Thy kingdom which passeth not away, and which fadeth not, with all Thy saints, now and for ever.

The Chaldeans still use the three liturgies of the Nestorians with some alterations, the principal of which are the following:

1. They use unleavened bread in the form of hosts or wafers, instead of the leavened cakes used by the Nestorians.

2. After the invocation of the to bless and change the elements, and to make the bread and the cup the body and blood of our, (which invocation is called Gahanta, or the Prayer of Bending, corresponding with the  of the Eastern Church,) and just before the priest is directed in the liturgy of Nestorius to "take the uppermost cake in the paten with both hands, and to lift up his eyes," the Chaldeans have introduced the commemoration of the Institution of the body of , which they believe, after the Western Church, to be the formula by which the bread is transubstantiated; and after signing the host, without having broken it at the words, "which is broken for you," the priest is ordered to elevate it above his head, and to say, whilst the people worship, "Praise be to Thy holy name, O  our , and praise be to Thy Majesty at all times," as in the liturgy of Nestorius.

Then the priest proceeds to break and sign the bread, and to consecrate therewith the wine which is in the cup, as is directed in the Nestorian liturgy; after which he repeats the commemoration of the Institution of the blood of, in a low voice; and lifting the chalice, whilst the people worship, he repeats the prayer from the liturgy: "These glorious, holy, life-giving, and divine sacraments, have been separated, consecrated," &c

It is worthy of observation that the words of Institution precede the Invocation of the in the liturgies of Nestorius and Theodorus, whilst in that of the Apostles they are entirely omitted.41 From which we may gather that the Nestorians believe the consecration and change of the elements to take place through the mysterious influence of the Spirit of. Rh