Part 18 (2/2)

Red Letter Days--Those Festivals of the Church for which Collect, Epistle and Gospel are provided in the Prayer-book They are so called fro been printed in the Calendar in red letters The words have passed into popular use to denote any notably auspicious or favorable day; a day to be remembered

Refreshment Sunday--The Fourth Sunday in Lent is so called fro of the five thousand by our Lord in the wilderness As the late Bishop coxe pointed out in his ”Thoughts on the Services,” ”having thus far (in the Lenten services) considered the havoc of sin, we come now to consider its repair; and because the sufficiency of Christ to refresh and satisfy our hunger and thirst after righteousness is exhibited in the Gospel for this day It has little of the austere character of the other Sundays in Lent; and its design is the {227} encouragement of catechumens and penitents” (See FOURTH SUNDAY IN LENT; also LENT, SUNDAYS IN)

Regeneration--The inward and spiritual gift in Holy Baptis born anew It is well to note that Regeneration, or the ”New Birth” is often confounded with ”Conversion,” or they are regarded as synony of Holy Scripture Regeneration is a New Birth unto God whereby we become partakers of the nature of Christ As the natural birth, so the new and spiritual Birth can take place only once, and that in Holy Baptism A baptized Christian may repeatedly fall froiveness he ain restored, (this is _Conversion_), but he cannot be said to be again _regenerate_ without a grievous e of the Bible and a _total departure froeneration_, therefore, is racious act of God whereby for Christ's sake He brings us into a new relationshi+p with Himself, adopts us as His own children, translates us into the kingdos us under the influence of the Holy Spirit Regeneration is the nainated for Baptism by our Lord Himself in His discourse with Nicodemus, as recorded in the third chapter of St John's Gospel, and it is for this reason that this passage is appointed to be read in the service for the Baptism of Adults (See BAPTISM, HOLY; also INFANT BAPTISM)

Register--(See PARISH REGISTER)

Registrar--The title of an officer of the {228} Convention, whether of the General Convention or of the Convention or Council of a Diocese His duty is to collect and preserve such papers, reports, journals and other docu to the history and property of the Church as are now or may hereafter become the property of the Convention, and to keep the saious Orders--In the Aious orders composed of men or women who have separated themselves from the world that they may devote themselves by associated effort more unreservedly to the Church's work Some are bands of Priests, like the ”Society of the Mission Priests of St John Evangelist,” or the ”Order of the Holy Cross,” this latter also including laymen; others are bands of laymen alone, such as the ”Order of the Brothers of Nazareth”; and others are Sisterhoods, composed of women who have devoted themselves for life to the work of the Church, such as the ”Sisters of St Mary,” ”Sisters of St Monica,” etc Members of the Sisterhoods do work in schools, hospitals, and aious orders have proved to be very efficient aids in the Church's work in hly commended for the sacrifice they display and for the admirable methods of their work

Reproaches, The--In the ancient observance of Good Friday there was used a service called ”The Reproaches” This consisted of certain striking passages read from Micah 3:3 and 4, as well as other Scriptures, with the respond, ”Holy God, Holy and Mighty, Holy and Immortal, have mercy upon us” {229}

They are called ”Reproaches” froe read, namely, ”O my people what have I done unto thee, and wherein have I wearied thee? Answer es The Reproaches are now frequently used in many churches on Good Friday as a separate service and are very solemn and impressive

Reredos--A carved or sculptured screen of wood or stone placed above and back of the Altar, The word is a colish _rere_, the same as ”rear,” and the French word _dos_, derived fro ”back”

Responds--In the old syste Holy Scripture in Divine Service, short selections from different books of the Bible were read successively, with short Anthe after each, which were called ”responds” This responsory syste Holy Scripture is still retained in its old form in the case of the Ten Commandments when read in the Coesforth of longer Lessons with responsory canticles sung at the end only Thus the respond to the First Morning Lesson is the Te Deum, and the respond to the Second Lesson is the Benedictus, etc

Responses--The naiven to the answers made by the people in the Church services as in the Versicles, the Litany, after the Ten Colory of the Episcopal Church is its _responsive service_, as provided by the Book of Common Prayer By means of this, the people have their part in the service Thus {230} worshi+p becoation and the people are not silent spectators, nor yet simply an audience But however reasonable and desirable this may be, there is a deeper principle involved The responsive character of the services brings out and emphasizes the ”Priesthood of the People” St Peter, in his First General Epistle, writing to the Baptized, says of theeneration, a royal Priesthood, an holy nation, a peculiar people, that ye should show forth the praise of Hiht” Thus the Baptized are called in Holy Scripture ”a royal priesthood,” and this doctrine pervades the Prayer-book The whole system of responsive worshi+p is founded upon the Priesthood of the Laity, and enables them to _show forth the praise_ of Hiht (See AMEN; FORMS; also VERSICLES)

Retable--A shelf at the back of the Altar, usually fastened to the reredos, on which are placed the Altar cross, the vases for flowers, and the candlesticks The necessity for the retable arises froe of the Church, which requires that nothing shall be placed on the Altar but the Eucharistic vessels, the book rest and the book

Retreat--This is a ternate a ti the Spiritual life of the Clergy, for whose benefit it is held It involves a temporary submission to the monastic rule of silence, meditation, confession and conference

In Holy Scripture we read of our Lord and His disciples {231} constantly going into retreat in some shape or other Christ on the hilltop, St Paul in the desert near Damascus, St Peter on the roof of his house, retired for prayer and ives each one the opportunity to reat principles of Religion which can only be seen by such effort and by such special spiritual exercises

In some Dioceses an annual Pre-Lenten Retreat is held for both Bishop and clergy in preparation for the solen of spiritual revival whichand withdrawing for a season from the world, for prayer, for interco--The custo was probably adopted by the early Church froe customs of the Jews and also of the heathen, as its use has been al nor ending, it is regarded as an erity It is placed on the fourth finger of the wo so was to place it first on the thumb at the Naer, at the Name of the Son; on the third at the Naer, and leaving it there at the word ”Aiven at the consecration of a Bishop, to symbolize his espousal with the Church in his Diocese Thus bestowed, it is the sy_ {232}

Rites and Ceremonies--The Rites and Ceremonies of the Church are based on the Apostolic injunction, ”Let all things be done decently and in order” By _rites_ are meant certain prescribed ordinances, and by _cereuished from Sacraments These when prescribed by lawful authority are instru uniforularity and edification We learn froion that the power to decree Rites and Ceremonies rests with the Church, and, as set forth in the Twenty-fourth Article, ”every particular and national Church hath authority to ordain, change and abolish ceremonies, ordained only by man's authority” The Rites and Ceremonies of the American Church, are set forth and implied in the Book of Common Prayer, marked out in the rubrics and the Tables prefixed to it

Ritual Ritualision; the name is also applied to the book in which the Rites and Ceremonies are set forth By _ritualisious worshi+p Therefore, these wordswhat they do are to be lifted up out of all party spirit and are to be regarded as expressive of the Church's real system of worshi+p Loyalty to the Prayer-book demands obedience to the rubrics on the part of both minister and people Then it is well to remember that when the Prayer-book was first set forth in 1549, the principal change was that the services should be said in English; the ritual rein of many practices which now prevail in the Church as {233} aat the Name of Jesus, the use of vestments, etc These are simply what had been in use in the early Church, and the use of the Prayer-book presupposes them all It is well, also, to observe that Ritualism properly considered, emphasizes the continuity of the Church before and after the Reforainst the false idea that the Episcopal Church was founded by Henry the Eighth, or that it is a mere schism from the Church of Rome (See ORNAMENTS; also UNDIVIDED CHURCH, THE)

Rochet--A Bishop's vest narrow surplice or alb which he wears under the CHIMERE (which see)

Rogation Days--The Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday before Ascension Day They are days of abstinence preparatory to the great Feast of the Ascension They are so called fro as they do in the early part of the year, it was custo on the fruits of the earth So that the Rogation Days bear the sa Day bears to the harvest

Two special prayers for this purpose, entitled ”For Fruitful Seasons,--To be used on Rogation Sunday and the Rogation Days,”

were introduced into the Aation Days were originated about the middle of the Fifth Century by Mareat calamity that threatened his Diocese; whence arose the custo the Litany and certain Psal peraation Days still prevails in ation Sunday--The Fifth Sunday after Easter, being the Sunday next before the Rogation Days and Ascension Day is so called, and no doubt froins, ”Verily, verily, I say unto you, Whatsoever ye shall _ask_ the Father in My Naive it you” (See ROGATION DAYS)

Rood Screen--The word ”rood” is the old Saxon word for _cross_ or crucifix; and the teriven to the screen or open partition to be seen in many churches, placed between the chancel and the nave, and which is always surmounted by the rood, _ie_, the cross