In England, excommunication is incurred by contempt of the Bishop's Court, neglect of public worship, pro fane desertion of the sacraments, heresy, adultery, simo ny, &cc. But if any spiritual judge pronounce this high est ecclesiastical censure for an offence of which he has not the legal cognizance, the injured party may prose cute him at common law, or he may be indicted for it by the public prosecutor. According to law, excom munication disqualifies a person for serving upon juries, for being a witness in any court, and even for bringing any action, either real or personal, for the recovery of a debt, or the inheritance of property. Nay, if the culprit does not, within 40 days after the sentence has been duly promulgated, submit and abide by the sentence of the spiritual court, on the bishop's certifying such contempt to the king in Chancery, a writ called excommunicato ca/ziendo, or, from the bishop's certificate, significavit, may be issued, re quiring the sheriff of the county to apprehend and im prison him, without bail or main prize, till his reconcilia tion to the church is effected and certified by the bishop. This power, however, is now seldom exercised, and in general with becoming equity and moderation.
By the constitution of the Church of Scotland, the same crimes are punishable with excommunication as in England ; but it is now seldom inflicted, except for con tumacy. When the lesser excommunication (which in volves only suspension from the sacraments) has failed of its desired effect, or, summarily, in the case of some particularly heinous offences, after the preparatory forms have been gone through, the officiating clergyman pro nounces the sentence of higher or greater excommuni cation, in the following or similar words, to the person himself if present, or concerning him if absent : " Where as thou N. hast been, by sufficient proof, convicted of —, and after due admonition and prayer, remainest obstinate, without any evidence or sign of true repentance ; there fore, in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ, and before this congregation, I pronounce and declare thee N. ex communicated, shut out from the communion of the faithful, debar thee from their privileges, and deliver thee unto Satan for the destruction of thy flesh, that thy spirit may be saved in the day of the Lord Jesus." The people are then warned to avoid all unnecessary inter course with him ; but at the same time the sentence does not dissolve the bonds of civil or natural relations. An ciently, the excommunicated were, by the law of Scot land, incapable of holding feudal rights ; but now, no ci vil penalty or disqualification is attached to this severis sinza discilzlina, et ultimum fulmen Ecclesie.
Among the ancient heathen also, excommunication was by no means infrequent ; and consisted of two kinds, the less and the greater. Under the first, may not impro perly be considered as included, such proclamations as that which Virgil mentions as having been addressed by the priest, at the celebration of the sacred rites of Pro serpine : In like manner, it was usual among the Greeks on si milar solemnities for the officiating priest to say, EXCe9 EIUX5 pE6";;Atii, or Svexse3" cm-19101 pEg'olenc. But besides
this, according to the religion both of Greece and Rome, the commission of particular crimes was punished, with the interdiction of fire and water to the culprit, and with , exclusion from civil rights, as well as religious privile ges. Adulteresses, and similar infamous persons, were prohibited from entering the public temples, or from be ing present at the performance of any sacred ceremony. But perhaps the most authentic, as it certainly is the most explicit document of the kind, is to be found in the CEdipus Tyrannus of Sophocles, where the Delphic Oracle is represented as sanctioning, if not dictating, the following excommunication of a parricide : This greater excommunication was likewise accom panied with execrations and anathemas, called by the Greeks Aeal, and by the Romans Dire, which consigned the offenders to the furies, and other daimons of hell. We learn from Caesar also, that the same spiritual wea pon was employed with terrible effect by the ancient Druids : " Si quis," says he, " privatus ant publicus eorum decreto non stetit, sacrificiis interdicunt. Haee pxna apud eos est gravissima. Quibus ita est interdic tum, ii numero impiorum et sceleratorum habentur. Ab its onmes decedunt, aditum eorum sermonemque defu giunt, ne quid ex contagione incommodi accipiant. Ne que its petentibus jus redditur, neque honos ullus corn municatur." De Bello Gal. lib. vi. c. 13.
But of all the species of excommunications which have ever existed, that of losing cast among the Hindus is the most summary, the most easily incurred, and at the same time the most irremediable. The most trifling incident occasions it; such as eating or drinking, or even speaking with a person of another cast or nation. To partake of food with a European, or to use the food pre pared for th6se of a different cast, is, in particular, the certain way of incurring this tremendous punishment.. It is attended with the dissolution of every relation and connection in life ; with disownment by every friend, and even 11 husband, or wife and children ; the lattel. of whom, when the parent has lost cast, none will marry; and sometimes the whole family arc involved in the same calamity and degradation with the head. These misera ble Pariars, or Chandalas, for so they are termed, lite rally become outcasts and aliens. To touch, or even to converse with them, is to be polluted; and to show them the least kindness, however distressing may be their cir cumstances, is inevitably to share the same dreadful fate. Nor when once lost can it ever be recovered. Instances indeed are known, in which persons have incurred it, merely by some one of their family being absolutely compelled to live under the roof of a Alussulman, and who have in vain offered a lack of rupees, or 10,000/. sterling, to have it restored.
On the subject of this article, see Selden de Synedriis 15'c. Vet. Ebrccor, and de fore Centium ; Bfihmeri Diss. furls Eccl. rintiq.; State of the Greek Church; Blackstone's Commentaries ; Purdivan's Collections ; and Baptist Periodical .1ccounts, vol. i. (d)