partakers by protesting
their faith in the Redeemer, while taking part in the figurative
sacrifices.

The impediments to external worship consisted in certain bodily
uncleannesses; which were considered in the first place as existing
in man, and consequently in other animals also, and in man's clothes,
dwelling-place, and vessels. In man himself uncleanness was
considered as arising partly from himself and partly from contact
with unclean things. Anything proceeding from man was reputed unclean
that was already subject to corruption, or exposed thereto: and
consequently since death is a kind of corruption, the human corpse
was considered unclean. In like manner, since leprosy arises from
corruption of the humors, which break out externally and infect other
persons, therefore were lepers also considered unclean; and, again,
women suffering from a flow of blood, whether from weakness, or from
nature (either at the monthly course or at the time of conception);
and, for the same reason, men were reputed unclean if they suffered
from a flow of seed, whether due to weakness, to nocturnal pollution,
or to sexual intercourse. Because every humor issuing from man in the
aforesaid ways involves some unclean infection. Again, man contracted
uncleanness by touching any unclean thing whatever.

Now there was both a literal and a figurative reason for these
uncleannesses. The literal reason was taken from the reverence due to
those things that belong to the divine worship: both because men are
not wont, when unclean, to touch precious things: and in order that
by rarely approaching sacred things they might have greater respect
for them. For since man could seldom avoid all the aforesaid
uncleannesses, the result was that men could seldom approach to touch
things belonging to the worship of God, so that when they did
approach, they did so with greater reverence and humility. Moreover,
in some of these the literal reason was that men should not be kept
away from worshipping God through fear of coming in contact with
lepers and others similarly afflicted with loathsome and contagious
diseases. In others, again, the reason was to avoid idolatrous
worship: because in their sacrificial rites the Gentiles sometimes
employed human blood and seed. All these bodily uncleannesses were
purified either by the mere sprinkling of water, or, in the case of
those which were more grievous, by some sacrifice of expiation for
the sin which was the o