Notes, Critical and Explanatory, on the Holy Scriptures

Tit. i. 7. A man who had been only once married. See infra c. v. 10. All Christians could have but one wife : but no man was to be made bishop or priest, who had been twice married. This restriction was placed by the apostle, that men might not be selected whose repeated marriages gave reason to suppose them to be subject to strong sensual inclinations. . In the state of society at that period, it was difficult to find a sufficient number of competent candidates for the ministry among persons who had never been married. Winer (Grammar, | 17) shows, that if the apostle meant to require that the bishop should be married, he should have simply said so, or said that he should have a wife. By saying " the husband of one wife," he evidently designed to put a restriction to which others are not subject. St. Chrysostom thinks that in the actual state of the world, at that time, the apostle used wise condescension in allowing mari-ied men to be pro- moted to the sacred ministry. " Pie does not say this, as if enacting a law, so that it should be unlawful to be without a wife, but to prevent excess, for among the Jews it was permitted to marry twice, and to have two wives at once." He further observes : " some say that he indicates one free from a wife : but if such be not the case, he who has a wife may be as one who has not ; and he rightly permitted it at that time conformably to the actual state of things."

The Church is so called because it supports and maintains the truth, God always dwelling in her, and enlightening her.

The mystery which is proposed to our veneration : to t«,- suo-s/^sfac /uva-Tvpiov.