The first paper of the second day was given by Robert Oliver of Bradford on Avon. He spoke on Calvin and Elizabeth I. This is not an obvious topic but there was certainly material enough.
Dr Oliver began with Elizabeth. He sketched the background from Henry VIII through Edward VI and Cranmer's correspondence with Bullinger, when Bucer and A Lasco came to England and went on to Mary's efforts to return to Rome, so that the whole cause seemed lost. The sudden and early death of Mary from cancer (and of Cardinal Reginald Pole 12 hours later from influenza) changed everything with the coming of Elizabeth I to the throne. There were general expectations of change but no-one knew exactly what she believed. As the daughter of Ann Boleyn and as illegitimate in the eyes of Rome she was rather likely to be Protestant. She was politically astute and very well educated by the best renaissance scholars. She spoke Latin, read the NT in Greek and spoke many modern languages (including Welsh!). Before her coronation she walked out on a mass led by Oglethorpe. Her coronation was largely Protestant but she deliberately avoided the elevation of the host again. She sanctioned the use of English but put a moratorium on preaching.
We then turned to Calvin. It was only in 1553 that Calvin had become a major figure although he had corresponded on the subject of England's Reformation. English exiles in Geneva imbibed the Reformation principles of Calvin. They observed the church order there and the emphasis on preaching the Word ad fontes. His simple clear expository method was noted and appreciated. The serious way he went about his pastoral duties also had its impact. He had written to Protector Somerset saying "preaching ought not to be lifeless but lively, to teach, to exhort, to reprove, as Saint Paul says in speaking thereof to Timothy". In 1556 the exiles wrote a liturgy based on Calvin. They also produced other materials and eventually a Bible translation.
Calvin was re-issuing his commentary on Isaiah, dedicated to Edward VI, when Elizabeth came to the throne. He wanted to dedicate it now to her but that didn't happen. The problem was Knox's First blast of the Trumpet - published in Geneva. Writing to Cecil Calvin sought to disassociate himself from the book. Elizabeth continued to loath all that came from Geneva. Calvin opposed Nicodemites but Elizabeth and the new Archbishop Parker had been just that in Mary's reign. When Elizabeth appointed new bishops she was suspicious of those who came back from exile and excluded most of them, although 17 of 35 became bishops eventually.
What Elizabeth felt was right for the country was not necessarily what she personally preferred. She herself loved ceremonial and silver crosses and elaborate music. Like all of the Tudors she insisted on law and order. Her suspicion of preaching may have arisen from the fact that it was the only unpredictable part of a service.
She brought in a fixed settlement that was not tinkered with thereafter. The exiles anticipated the removal of Roman elements but such hopes were not realised. The government was keen to keep things broad.
With this background Dr Oliver then went on to speak of the real impact of Calvin on England. How did England become a bastion of Protestantism? It was not by legislation but a new love for the message of Scripture. The great changes did not come through legislation but in other ways. It is not until the following century that the full flowering comes but the seeds were sown in the Elizabethan period. William Perkins and many, many others preached in such a way that the country was transformed. Formal attempts at reformation would get nowhere and so the Puritans ploughed themselves into preaching. By the middle of Elizabeth's reign a second generation of preachers, men like Henry Smith, arose. Smith is a good example but there was no time to quote him. Later Puritan used a more formal style but by the 17th Century there had been a long history of expository preaching.
The other obvious thing apart from preaching was the Geneva Bible (1560). It was in Roman type in quarto form. It was a study Bible and was the English Bible for a century. It brought Calvinism to the masses. This was the version that made England the land of the book. Extraordinary Bible. Reputation unfairly blackened but a great renaissance achievement. It undoubtedly stimulated reading too. There certainly was a great increase in literacy in England. This was the seed bed for Puritanism. There was much opposition to the Geneva Bible and that partly led to the AV in James's reign. The Geneva Bible informed the AV and continued to be widely used after 1611.
It is true that Lancelot Andrews and others opposed Calvinism leading to the Lambeth Articles in opposition. to their proto-Arminianism, which came in the next century. However, the Elizabethan age was not just one of great literature but also of great spiritual books. A prodigious amount of this came from the Puritans. These were preachers of the Word who moulded people by the Word of God and left a great legacy that is ours.
Discussion followed on why we are not making the impact they did today and some useful contributions were made.
Dr Oliver began with Elizabeth. He sketched the background from Henry VIII through Edward VI and Cranmer's correspondence with Bullinger, when Bucer and A Lasco came to England and went on to Mary's efforts to return to Rome, so that the whole cause seemed lost. The sudden and early death of Mary from cancer (and of Cardinal Reginald Pole 12 hours later from influenza) changed everything with the coming of Elizabeth I to the throne. There were general expectations of change but no-one knew exactly what she believed. As the daughter of Ann Boleyn and as illegitimate in the eyes of Rome she was rather likely to be Protestant. She was politically astute and very well educated by the best renaissance scholars. She spoke Latin, read the NT in Greek and spoke many modern languages (including Welsh!). Before her coronation she walked out on a mass led by Oglethorpe. Her coronation was largely Protestant but she deliberately avoided the elevation of the host again. She sanctioned the use of English but put a moratorium on preaching.
We then turned to Calvin. It was only in 1553 that Calvin had become a major figure although he had corresponded on the subject of England's Reformation. English exiles in Geneva imbibed the Reformation principles of Calvin. They observed the church order there and the emphasis on preaching the Word ad fontes. His simple clear expository method was noted and appreciated. The serious way he went about his pastoral duties also had its impact. He had written to Protector Somerset saying "preaching ought not to be lifeless but lively, to teach, to exhort, to reprove, as Saint Paul says in speaking thereof to Timothy". In 1556 the exiles wrote a liturgy based on Calvin. They also produced other materials and eventually a Bible translation.
Calvin was re-issuing his commentary on Isaiah, dedicated to Edward VI, when Elizabeth came to the throne. He wanted to dedicate it now to her but that didn't happen. The problem was Knox's First blast of the Trumpet - published in Geneva. Writing to Cecil Calvin sought to disassociate himself from the book. Elizabeth continued to loath all that came from Geneva. Calvin opposed Nicodemites but Elizabeth and the new Archbishop Parker had been just that in Mary's reign. When Elizabeth appointed new bishops she was suspicious of those who came back from exile and excluded most of them, although 17 of 35 became bishops eventually.
What Elizabeth felt was right for the country was not necessarily what she personally preferred. She herself loved ceremonial and silver crosses and elaborate music. Like all of the Tudors she insisted on law and order. Her suspicion of preaching may have arisen from the fact that it was the only unpredictable part of a service.
She brought in a fixed settlement that was not tinkered with thereafter. The exiles anticipated the removal of Roman elements but such hopes were not realised. The government was keen to keep things broad.
With this background Dr Oliver then went on to speak of the real impact of Calvin on England. How did England become a bastion of Protestantism? It was not by legislation but a new love for the message of Scripture. The great changes did not come through legislation but in other ways. It is not until the following century that the full flowering comes but the seeds were sown in the Elizabethan period. William Perkins and many, many others preached in such a way that the country was transformed. Formal attempts at reformation would get nowhere and so the Puritans ploughed themselves into preaching. By the middle of Elizabeth's reign a second generation of preachers, men like Henry Smith, arose. Smith is a good example but there was no time to quote him. Later Puritan used a more formal style but by the 17th Century there had been a long history of expository preaching.
The other obvious thing apart from preaching was the Geneva Bible (1560). It was in Roman type in quarto form. It was a study Bible and was the English Bible for a century. It brought Calvinism to the masses. This was the version that made England the land of the book. Extraordinary Bible. Reputation unfairly blackened but a great renaissance achievement. It undoubtedly stimulated reading too. There certainly was a great increase in literacy in England. This was the seed bed for Puritanism. There was much opposition to the Geneva Bible and that partly led to the AV in James's reign. The Geneva Bible informed the AV and continued to be widely used after 1611.
It is true that Lancelot Andrews and others opposed Calvinism leading to the Lambeth Articles in opposition. to their proto-Arminianism, which came in the next century. However, the Elizabethan age was not just one of great literature but also of great spiritual books. A prodigious amount of this came from the Puritans. These were preachers of the Word who moulded people by the Word of God and left a great legacy that is ours.
Discussion followed on why we are not making the impact they did today and some useful contributions were made.
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