Posted on 03/21/2006 12:20:42 PM PST by sionnsar
Traditional Anglican ping, continued in memory of its founder Arlin Adams. He also wrote some of the most beautiful English prose ever.
Excuse my ignorance but what happened?
Thomas Cramner, Archbishop of Canterbury, was burned at the stake during the reign of Queen Mary. He was one of the Protestant martyrs during her reign.
Only one bishop, the Bishop of Rochester, Saint John Fisher, opposed King Henry VIII's re-marriage and his declaration to be the supreme head of the Church in England ("as far as was possible). He lost his head in 1535 for his brave defense of Catholic Truth and the primacy of the Successor of Saint Peter. So did the prominent layman, the former Chancellor of the Realm, Saint Thomas More. However, Saint John Fisher was the only bishop out of about one hundred who remained faithful to the point of death. True, about thirty or so remained faithful when Elizabeth I took England out of the Faith for a second time thirty years later. John Fisher, though, was the only bishop who resisted King Henry VIII and who would not let the exigencies of personal expediency nor exaggerated nationalism get in the way of doing his Catholic duty. Cardinals Murphy-O'Connor and O'Brien have followed the easy path of Saint John Fisher's cowardly colleagues, including the infamous Thomas Cranmer.
Did Thomas Cranmer, patron saint of unhappy husbands, mind the killing of tens of thousands of Catholics so that Henry VIII could get rid of his wife and marry his mistress?
ping
Many RC's are fond of stating their belief that the Reformation (in Great Britain, at least, if not Europe) only came about so that Henry VIII could get a divorce.
Gets old after awhile. I'd say Cranmer showed at the end that his faith did mean something to him when he plunged the hand that had signed his recantation into the flames.
That was the origin of the whole mess in England.
What? You think if the pope gave into Henry VIII's ("defender of the faith") demands, Henry VIII would have still split from the Catholic Church?
There were (of course) atrocities committed by Catholics throughout the ages.
Today, we have Kennedy, Kerry, Durbin, et al.
I saw a recent documentary that suggested that Henry VII, late in life, was thinking of returning to Catholicism. His last wife was almsot executed for being too Protestant. Had Henry returned to Catholicism, do you think the rest of the Protestants in England would have done so too?
Whatever started the Reformation in England, it eventually had a life and momentum of its own. The constant assertion to say that "it only came about because of the divorce" is merely an attempt to belittle the movement, IMO.
Henry VIII had opened the door to ultra-nationalism and anti-papist sentiment. There was no going back to the ways things were.
Whatever started the Reformation in England, it eventually had a life and momentum of its own. The constant assertion to say that "it only came about because of the divorce" is merely an attempt to belittle the movement, IMO.
So you are telling me the Reformation in England did not have its origins in King Henry VIII declaring himself head of the Church of England so that he could divorce his wife?
Cranmer opposed true presence and supported the destruction of statues and holy images (both polar opposite views of Anglicans today). The person responsible for his "martyrdom" was the same person he bastardized. Cranmer gave support and legitimacy to many of Henry VIII's public actions, including some barbaric activities.
Like I said, there are some bad Catholics today, among them bishops, priest, and members of the laity. If they were killed for their disturbed beliefs and actions, I would be appalled, mourn their deaths and pray for their souls. I would not call them martyrs.
Henry VIII's dispute with the Vatican over his marriage to Catherine of Aragon provided an opportunity for the reform movement to develop and emerge out into the open. It would have come without the dispute but may not have been successful. The reign of Queen Mary was comparably short so while it was brutal toward those who adopted the reformed faith, Cranmer, Ridley and Latimmer for instance, it effectively ended with her death. On the other hand Catholic priests were drawn and quartered when caught during the 16th and 17th centuries. The political machinations of the Catholic Mary queen of Scots to take the throne of Elizabeth I didn't help. I have wondered about the House of Norfolk. The Duke of Norfolk is the leading Catholic layman in the UK. The family remained Catholic during the reformation . It is sad to this Evangelical to see the present day Anglican/Episcopel church to be at best quasi-Christian. I find that I have more in common with my Catholic brothers -in-Christ than with many other Protestants.
The answer is no to both parts of your question.
"The answer is no to both parts of your question."
_____________________________
Actually, I'm pretty sure the answer is yes. Have you ever asked WHY did Henry VIII want to end his marriage. He was King he could have had any number of affairs and nobody would have said a thing.
I'm fairly certain that Catherine was the daughter of Ferdinand and Isabella of Spain. If I'm wrong someone will correct me. I believe the only heir by this wife was Mary,
who became queen.
We have worshiping with us a former Episcopalian who left his church over the gay bishop. Btw, one of my sons is a Baptist.
I know the answer is no. Catherine was from Spain, not France.
Have you ever asked WHY did Henry VIII want to end his marriage.
It is explain when you learn about it in history classes. Henry VIII wanted male heirs. Catherine, his wife, was older than him and had only provided him a daughter (and a couple miscarriages, one of which was a boy).
When she approached menopause, Henry VIII sought a male heir by other means.
The strange part about all this was the fact that after many wives Henry VIII ended up with no grandchildren by male heirs. All of his male heirs died young and childless.
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