Uh, where did you say you came from?

From drinkers to divorcees

So, as I mentioned in my earlier post, most people only know one thing about the English Reformation - Henry VIII wanted a divorce. In that earlier post I made a case for a more complex view of history than that and introduced some of the Reformers who worked hard around Cambridge and Oxford to persuade the academics and clergy of their day to embrace the changes of the Reformation. But, truth be told Henry did have a significant role in making the actual break with Rome that allowed Anglicanism to emerge as a Protestant Church.

Henry didn’t start out as a bad guy. Neither did he ever imagine himself a reformer. In fact Henry remained a devout Catholic in his theology and personal piety to his dying day. So earnest was Henry’s defense of the Catholic faith that he wrote a tract against the proposed reforms of Martin Luther. This pamphlet earned Henry the accolades of the Pope who declared him the Defensor Fidei, Defender of the Faith.

Henry started out not only as a devoted Catholic but also a devoted king. He took his role as the defender not only of the Catholic faith but also defender of the English people very seriously. Unfortunately though, in his zeal for protecting the political clout of the English monarchy he made an error in judgment. Henry married Catherine of Aragon, his brother Arthur’s wife. This he did for political reasons, as a marriage arrangement with the Spanish royal line was expedient to protect the interests of England. But when they could not, thereafter conceive a male heir he had an even bigger political problem on his hands – no one to pass the kingdom to.

Now, as a God fearing devout Catholic, Henry believed that his problem stemmed from the fact that God cursed his marriage as it was unlawfully entered into it in the first place. That was Henry’s grounds for seeking an annulment – the marriage was unlawful and in his mind clearly displeasing to God therefore it should be annulled. Even this was not quite as terrible as historians often paint it. (Though it must be confessed that Henry did not do himself any favors – after his move for divorce worked once he employed it a few too many times to be considered legitimate or necessary). Of course, legitimacy of Henry's claim aside, the Pope denied it mostly based on his own political reasons.

So, in 1534 Henry decides, why does the Pope get to tell me what to do in my own country anyway? The Pope himself declared Henry Defensor Fidei. There was still a strong medieval emphasis on the divine appointing of Kings. Therefore, Henry reasoned, we don’t need the imprimatur of the Pope for decisions regarding the church in England. So it was that Henry moved through Parliament, managing to get them to pronounce the Act of Supremacy. This Parliamentary act declared Henry not only as Defensor Fide but now also the “only supreme head on earth of the Church of England.” This decision was supported by Archbishop Cranmer (the highest ranking English clergyman of the time) and thus Henry’s move to power was complete.

Henry got his divorce. He also sanctioned the distribution of the English translation of the Scriptures (based on Tyndayle’s Bible) and the further translation of the liturgies of the Church into English. Thus the Book of Common Prayer was born at the hand of Archbishop Cranmer. But, as noted earlier, Henry was in most ways, theologically and in terms of his personal piety, a devout Catholic. He still stood by his criticisms of Luther. So he essentially told Cranmer to Reform the Church but only enough to make it distinctly English. Henry wasn’t interested in the Reformed doctrines per se. Nevertheless, the leaders in the Church seized on the opportunity and reformed as much as they could.

The English Reformation took about 3 more generations of leadership before it emerged as we know it today. In future posts we will explore each of these steps. But for now, there you have the straight story on the profligate king who listened to his carousing clergy enough to break the English church's ties with Rome.