ation,
Yet One o'er all the earth;
Her charter of salvation,
One Lord, One Faith, One Birth."

If it is true that our Lord came to found a real Kingdom, and if the
Church described in the Book of the Acts of the Apostles is this
Kingdom, it is clear that the quality of Unity or Oneness is essential
to it. It must belong to the nature of the Church that it should be
One; because we cannot conceive in our minds, in any practical sense,
the idea of two Kingdoms of Heaven.

This truth was illustrated by our Lord under the form of a figure. "I
am the Vine; ye are the branches" (S. John xv. 5). The idea of a tree
implies oneness, and the branches have no separate existence apart
from the stem. Even so the subjects of "The Kingdom of Heaven" can
exist only through union with Christ Himself; and wherever Christians
are enrolled, in whatsoever country they may be, all must belong to
the same Kingdom, because all are branches of the One Vine.

Consequently, if the Church be "The Kingdom of Heaven," then, as it
spread through the world and different countries received the Gospel,
we shall expect to find that the various branches of the Church
founded by S. Paul and the other Apostles were not independent one of
another, in the sense of being so many separate and distinct bodies,
but were all united together, as forming the One Church or Kingdom of
Christ.

The question now arises, Was this the case?

God in His Providence has not left us in any doubt upon this point. We
can trace this oneness very clearly in the history of the Church
during its extension under the Apostles, as recorded in the Acts of
the Apostles. The following incident serves as an example. After S.
Paul's return to Antioch at the close of his first missionary journey,
a dispute arose about the necessity of teaching the Gentile converts
to observe the law of Moses. And it was determined by the Church at
Antioch that "Paul and Barnabas and certain other of them should go
up to Jerusalem, unto the Apostles and Elders, about this question."
The first recorded Church Council was then held to consider the
matter; and after full discussion, it was determined to send the
decision in a letter after this manner: "The Apostles and Elders and
Brethren send greeting unto the Brethren which are of the Gentiles in
Antioch and Syria and Cilicia." Then after stating the case, the
decision was thus given: "It seemed good to the Holy Ghost and to us,
to l