***Did I mention Catholicism anywhere in the above passage?
But it was the Roman Catholic Church that did instigate the persecution against Tyndale. ***
Why would Henry, an enemy of the Church, carry out its bidding on Tyndale?
Why would Henry, an enemy of the Church, carry out its bidding on Tyndale?
Persecutions Begin in England A letter to King Henry VIII dated December 2, 1525, from the man who later became Archbishop of York, shows the attitude typical of Roman Catholic authorities of that day toward vernacular Bibles: "All our forefathers, governors of the Church of England, hath with all diligence forbade and eschewed publication of English Bibles, as appeareth in Constitutions Provincial of the Church of England" (Hoare, Our English Bible, 1901, p. 144). It must be recalled that the Church of England was a part of the Catholic church until the break in 1534, and Henry himself was never Protestant in doctrine. "Henry continued to defend the principal teachings of the Roman Catholic Church, required all people in England and Wales to adhere to the Roman creed, and was quite willing to put to death men and women who opposed his will by embracing Protestant doctrine" (Houghton, Sketches from Church History, p. 113).
http://www.wayoflife.org/articles/williamtyndale.htm