CHAPTER XI THE RISE OF PROTESTANT DISSENT CHAP and cau tion of formers THE HE Reformation of the Church of England was, in the main, effected upon conservative and constitutional principles: and especial care was taken at all times to avoid anything that would break into Prudence the continuity of its life. This principle did, in fact, deeply influence all the official movements of the Reformation. All the more solid, learned, and thoughtful reformers said to themselves—" If we break off from the Old Church of England, we cut away the ground from under our feet. We must continue the line of the episcopate, and hand it on unbroken to our descendants; we must provide a true priesthood the same in every respect as has been provided hitherto ; we must guard the ancient sacraments of the Church, and take care that no essentials shall be wanting to their due administration, recté and rité, as to principles and ritual; we must see that whatever changes may be expedient in our Liturgy and other services, nothing is taken away, nothing added, which shall cut them off from the fellowship of primitive offices: we must maintain the creeds intact; and, whatever special formularies may be needed for our special XI position, we must in all things be sure that the CHAP Catholic faith is still held by the Church of England. Let Rome treat us how she will, be it ours so still to hold our place in the one body of Christ, that we may still claim union with her, and with all living branches of the one true Vine." different But there was a large and increasing body of Others of a Englishmen in whose eyes such orderly principles class were of no value; men who knew very little of history or theology, who lived in a narrow circle of present interests, who were not scrupulous as to national or individual honour, who had strong hankerings after novelties, and who, above all, were saturated with self-confidence. These men laid the foundations of that sectarian spirit which has been known for three centuries by the names of Protestantism,1 Puritanism, Nonconformity, and Dissent; and which is, in reality, as strongly antagonistic to the fundamental principles of the Church of England as to those of the Church of Rome. and the English Protestants generally trace up their origin Wickliffe to Wickliffe and the Lollards: and those who over- Reformalook the orderly character of the Church of England tion Reformation identify the two movements and consider Wickliffe as the father of both. But, as it is remarked by Archdeacon Hardwick, "the rise, the 1 The name of "Protestant" was originally imported from Germany. In the year 1529 the Diet of Spires passed a decree forbidding unauthorized interference with the doctrines or worship of the Church, and this was protested against by some of the petty German dukes at the instigation of Luther. These and their adherents were called Protestants, and the name was gradually assumed by the extreme ΧΙ CHAP progress, and the final triumphs of the English Reformation were not sensibly affected by his principles." The influence of Wickliffe passed away, indeed, at his death, so far as it was an influence for good. His followers were unworthy to be called religious reformers, their opposition to the established order of things in the Church being only part of that opposition which they offered to established order in general. But the spirit which had arisen among Wickliffe's followers was never laid and when the bright light of a true Reformation began to dawn, it was at once obscured by the clouds of sectarianism which were already floating in its pathway. Wolsey During the time of Wolsey's rule, these rising and the "heretics" opponents of the Church were so far tolerated that none of them ever suffered severe punishment. They were required to abjure their heresies, and did abjure them readily enough, being, however, quite as ready to take them up again as they had been to lay them down; sometimes they were made to bear faggots in a public procession by way of penance, and to wear a faggot embroidered on the sleeve of the coat; 3 2 Hardwick's Hist. of the Christian Church during the Reformation, p. 180, ed. 1865. Those who recanted, or "abjured," are spoken of as suffering confessors by Foxe "the Martyrologist." A great number recanted (some of fearfully blasphemous language) in the immense diocese of Lincoln under Longland: but it is singular to observe that even Foxe could only discover seventeen such abjurers during the sixteen years, 1512-1527, in the diocese of London. He reckons about twelve as burnt for heresy throughout England during the same time, but he is uncertain about some of these, and very vague about all of them. [See Acts & Mon., book vii.] This penance was continued in the time of Edward VI. On Low Sunday 1549, a man named Champneys bore a faggot at the Paul's Cross Sermon, Coverdale being the preacher. On the following Sunday a Colchester farmer named Putto did the same, repeating the penance afterwards at Colchester. [Stow's Chronicle of the Grey Friars, London, p. 58.] ΧΙ in aggravated cases they were put in the stocks, and CHAP imprisoned. But the character of the Cardinal was too mild and gentle to impose the penalties which the law enjoined upon them, and his influence extended so widely that few, if any, authentic cases can be produced in which those penalties were inflicted with his knowledge or concurrence from the time of his advent to power to that of his fall. As has been said in the second chapter, one charge in the indictment brought against him after his fall was that he had endangered the Christian religion by his extreme leniency towards heretics, and some illustrations of that leniency will be found in the same chapter. His tolerance was not that of a good- Grounds of natured man indifferent to religion, but the patient ance spirit of a large-hearted one who could bear the revilings of foolish "doctrinaires" without retorting upon them with severity; and who, with all his strong feelings as to orthodoxy, would rather win them from their follies by wise remonstrances than give them a false glare of martyrdom by punishment. And in this he was far in advance of all other men of his age, whether they belonged to the conservative party, as did Sir Thomas More, or to the party of progress, as did Archbishop Cranmer and Bishop Latimer. his toler anti party The anti-Church party seems to have possessed Organized some degree of organization under the name of "The Church Christian Brethren," and to have made its first efforts at proselytism by circulating books in which the principles and practices of the Church of England were strongly denounced. One of its agents obtained a footing at Oxford as early as the year 1527. This was Thomas Garrett, then Curate, and ten years afterwards Rector of All-Hallows, Honey Lane (now ΧΙ Garrett's ford with antiChurch books 5 CHAP united to St. Mary-le-Bow) and formerly Fellow of Magdalen. At Easter and Christmas, in the year A. D. 1527 named, he visited Oxford; and on his second visit he remained for several weeks, gathering a number of visit to Ox- the young men around him in meetings which were supposed to be secret, and selling them books which he had brought with him. Wolsey knew of his visit, and did not at first interfere; but eventually found it necessary, in deference to a letter from Bishop Longland, in whose diocese Oxford was, to send down commissioners to search for the books, which were forbidden by the King and the Pope. It seems, however, that he contrived means for the escape of Garrett, for a warning was given to the latter by Cole, one of the Proctors of the University, who was known to Wolsey and shortly after became his cross-bearer. Garrett left Oxford accordingly on February 18, 1527-8, but was eventually taken at Bedminster, near Bristol, and carried before Wolsey, who imprisoned him for a time, and then Commis dismissed him after a ready abjuration. The comsearch for missioners at Oxford (the chief of whom were Dr. Cottesford, Master of Lincoln, Dr. London, Warden sion to his asso ciates 5 Strype names the following: distinguished divines. Strype's Ecc. Mem., i. 569, ed. 1822. 6 Ellis' Orig. Lett., III. ii. 77. 7 Either he got into trouble again, or his rector was also implicated for John Whalley writes to Cromwell in 1529, "As touching the Prior of Reading, one of the prisoners in the Tower, within three days after your Mastership departed, was removed from Fryth and his fellows into Beauchamp Tower, accompanied with the parson of Honey Lane, and Christopher Coo, to be converted." Ellis' Orig. Lett., III. ii. 163, |