The Church of England

The Church of England

МЕЖДУНАРОДНЫЙ НЕЗАВИСИМЫЙ

ЭКОЛОГО-ПОЛИТОЛОГИЧЕСКИЙ

УНИВЕРСИТЕТ

Реферат по страноведению на тему:

«The Church of England»

Москва, 2002

The Church of England

Content:

Introduction ………………………………………………………………..…………3

I. History of the Church of England

1) Status of Church in England up to 1530 ………………………..4

2) Reformation of Church ……………………………………………4

Henry VII…………………………………………………………….4

Edward VI……………………………………………………………6

Mary I………………………………………………………………...6

Elizabeth I……………………………………………………………7

Charles II…………………………………………………….……….8

Victoria ……………………………………………………….………8

II. The Church of England today…………………………………………………..9

1) The essence of being an Anglican………………………………………..9

2) Organisation of the Church of England ………………………………….11

III. Church of England becomes an International Church……………………...12

Conclusions………………………………………………………………………….13

Bibliography.…………………………………………………………………………14

Introduction

Everything in this life has its own history, especially Religion, as it is

a great institution. With the development of history of a particular

country, there will always be development of Religion, since the Church is

an integral part of State System. Heathenism, Orthodoxy, Judaism etc.. They

have been living for centuries. And some of them were changed, penetrated

each other or reformed dramatically.

England was not exception.

The English are not a deeply religious race. Hundreds of years ago they

decided that Roman Catholicism with its teachings about original sin and

the unworthiness of the human race could not really have been meant for

them. So they designed a Church of their own – the Church of England.

The English Reformation was a result of the chain of events that eventually

altered England and Englishness forever. So much in history is a bastard

child of both long-standing, simmering emotion and the opportunistic

seizing of a moment. By its nature unexpected, it is also unpredictable,

and shaped as much by environment and chance as by its progenitors. The

Reformation was no different. It was going on through the ages and reigns.

I. History of the Church of England

1. Status of Church in England up to 1530

Until 1054 there was only one Christian Church - the Catholic Church. Its

leadership was centered in five great Patriarchates -- Jerusalem, Antioch,

Alexandria and Constantinople in the East and Rome in the West. After the

Roman Empire became Christian some bishops increasingly became involved in

political matters, and the bishops of Rome in particular began to claim

power over the whole Church. This led to a tragic division in the Church,

the "Great Schism" of 1054, when it split into the "Orthodox" East and the

"Roman Catholic" West.

Not directly involved in that split was the Church in England, which the

Bishops of Rome were determined to claim - especially after 1061, when a

rival Papacy in Lombardy claimed allegiance from the See of Canterbury. In

1066, the Duke of Normandy (William "the Conqueror"), with the support and

formal blessing of Pope Alexander II, invaded England. After seizing the

English Crown, William replaced all but one of the English bishops with

Norman bishops loyal to Rome. The CHURCH OF ENGLAND was to remain under

Papal jurisdiction for nearly 500 years, until the reign of King Henry

VIII.

2. Reformation of Church

England in the sixteenth century was a land of contrasts. Much less urban

than either Germany or the Netherlands, it nevertheless possessed a

thriving international trade centre in London and in Oxford and Cambridge,

two universities of outstanding reputation. The universities, in fact,

would play a significant role in the early campaigns against Luther. Henry

VIII turned to their finest theologians for arguments allowing him to enter

the lists against the growing threat of Lutheran heresy. This initiative

would earn him from a grateful Pope the coveted title, Defender of the

Faith.

The progress of the Reformation in England was closely bound up with

Henry's personal affairs. His increasing desperation to secure release from

his marriage to Catherine of Aragon forced him to contemplate radical steps

that went very much against the grain of his own instinctive theological

conservatism.

Henry VIII

It was the only Henry’s chance to go outside the boundaries of the

orthodoxy. Until this event, Henry had never questioned the Pope’s

authority or the validity of the Bible passage, it banned the marriage of a

brother- and sister-in-law. It was as early as the end of 1529 that Henry

first considered a complete dissociation from the Roman church.

Henry forced Wolsey to retire, as his entire foreign policy had collapsed

and he was now of no help to the King. In July of 1531, Henry sent

Catherine to Ampthill, never to see her again. He took back her royal

jewels and gave them to Anne. When Parliament reconvened in January, 1532,

Henry ordered that no further funds would be transferred to Rome, but

hinted to the Pope that the money would be restored if the annulment was

passed.

Meanwhile, most of the bishops had been persuaded that they would not lose

any power or income if the English Church were to split from Rome. In

March, the Convocation formally announced their readiness to separate: “May

it please your Highness to ordain in the present Parliament that the

obedience of your Highness and of the people be withdrawn from the See of

Rome.” On May 15, they printed a pledge to submit all its legislation to a

new committee, formed of laymen and clergymen, called the “Reformation

Parliament” and Convocation. This is where the Church of England was born.

On January 15, 1533, Henry and Anne, who was four months pregnant, were

married. However, the King still did not have his first marriage annulled.

He submitted his request for annulment to the new Convocation, led by

Thomas Cranmer. On May 23, Cranmer declared Henry and Catherine’s marriage

to be unlawful and void. Five days later, he pronounced Henry and Anne

legally wed. On May 31, 1533, Anne was coronated as Queen of England.

Although the King and new Queen rejoiced, the silence from the crowd at the

coronation spoke for much of England. Pope Clement excommunicated the King,

stating that the new marriage was null, and that any children would be

illegitimate. On September 7 Elizabeth was born.

Henry swiftly transformed the English Church by passing various Acts

through Parliament. In March of 1534, The Act of Succession declared the

marriage to Catherine invalid, and therefore Mary illegitimate. Elizabeth

was named heir to the throne unless Anne produced a son. Royal

commissioners rode through the countryside, stopping at every house,

castle, monastery, and convent to exact oaths of loyalty to the King from

every man and woman. Only a few refused; those that did were sent to the

Tower of London to be put to death.

On November 11, 1534, the Statute of Supremacy was passed by Parliament.

This Act announced that “… the king, our sovereign lord, his heirs and

successors, kings of this realm, shall be taken, accepted, and reputed the

only supreme head in earth of the Church of England, called Anglicans

Ecclesia”. And the King “…our said sovereign lord, his heirs and

successors, kings of this realm, shall have full power and authority” to do

everything “most to the pleasure of Almighty God”. It was done to “…

increase virtue in Christ's religion, and for the conservation of the

peace, unity, and tranquility of this realm” (pp. 97-98, Milton Viorst, The

Great Documents of Western Civilization, NY, Barnes and Noble, 1965)

Innovative from the first, the new Church simplified the liturgy, ensured

it was in English rather than Latin and set it out in a new Book of Common

Prayer which was designed to give the people of England a commonly held

pattern of worship, a sense of oneness of Church and people, with the

Church sanctifying every side of national life, giving society a Godward

purpose and direction. It introduced on Day of Pentecost. It is written in

English, emphasizes the people's participation in the eucharist, and

requires the Bible to be read from cover to cover. Fast days are retained

(supposedly to help fishermen), but saints' days are not.

The political nation was, for the most part, obediently compliant rather

than enthusiastic. There is no evidence of any great hostility towards the

church and its institutions before the Reformation; on the contrary, both

the English episcopate and parish clergy seem to have been, by the

standards of other European lands, both well-trained and living without

scandal. Cardinal Wolsey, who fathered an illegitimate son, was very much

the exception. On the other hand, few were prepared to defy the King to

defend the threatened institutions of the old church. Many benefited from

the windfall of church property that followed the confiscation of monastic

lands.

Edward VI

During Edward's reign (Henry’s son), the Church of England became more

explicitly Protestant - Edward himself was fiercely so. The Book of Common

Prayer was introduced in 1549, aspects of Roman Catholic practices

(including statues and stained glass) were eradicated and the marriage of

clergy allowed. The imposition of the Prayer Book (which replaced Latin

services with English) led to rebellions in Cornwall and Devon.

“Images" ordered removed from all churches by the council of regents. This

also means no vestments, ashes, palms, holy water, or crucifixes. This

causes so much resentment that an order suppressing all preaching follows.

Mary I

Edward VI dies. People are tired of Protestant looting of churches. Mary

Tudor ("Bloody Mary"), a militant Roman Catholic, becomes queen, she

returned the English church to communion with Rome. She was Popular at

first, but soon marries the hated Philip II of Spain. Persecution of

Protestants begins; Mary appoints new bishops and fires all married

priests. During her reign, about 300 Protestants were burned, including 5

bishops, 100 priests, and 60 women. An attempt by Cardinal Pole (Mary's

archbishop of Canterbury) to restore monasticism fizzles when, among 1500

surviving monks, nuns, and friars, fewer than 100 are willing to return to

celibacy. All this ensures Roman Catholics will remain unpopular in

England.

Elizabeth I

Mary dies. Elizabeth I, (a Protestant), becomes queen. Despite many

problems (including frequent assassination plots from Roman Catholics), she

supports the enterprising middle class and England prospers. With her

accession an independent church was restored and steered along a middle

ground between Roman Catholicism and Calvinism.

Since 1564 the Era of Puritanism had began. The word "Puritan" appears for

the first time. It was biblically based on Calvinistic Protestantism - with

emphasis upon the "purification" of church and society of the remnants of

"corrupt" and "unscriptural" "papist" ritual and dogma. The characteristics

of their movement were the following: a disciplined, godly life, and the

energetic evangelical activities. They want:

. a skilled, educated preaching ministry, based on the Bible

. as few ceremonies in church as Biblically possible (no surplice, no

signing of the cross)

. abolition of the traditional role of bishop, and replacement of the

episcopate by a presbyterian system

. one legal government church, controlled by Puritans.

By the 1660s Puritanism was firmly established amongst the gentry and the

emerging middle classes of southern and eastern England, and during the

Civil Wars the Puritan "Roundheads" fought for the parliamentary cause and

formed the backbone of Cromwell's forces during the Commonwealth period.

After 1646, however, the Puritan emphasis upon individualism and the

individual conscience made it impossible for the movement to form a

national Presbyterian church, and by 1662, when the Anglican church was re-

established, Puritanism had become a loose confederation of various

Dissenting sects. The growing pressure for religious toleration within

Britain itself was to a considerable degree a legacy of Puritanism, and its

emphasis on self-discipline, individualism, responsibility, work, and

asceticism was also an important influence upon the values and attitudes of

the emerging middle classes.

Thirty-Nine Articles (1571) drafted as a doctrinal statement by a

convocation of the Church of England. The Thirty-nine Articles of Religion,

along with the historic Creeds, are the doctrinal standard for Anglicanism.

They are printed in the back of most editions of the Prayer Book and tell

us not only about the main postulates (e.g. Of faith in the Holy Trinity,

Of the Word, or Son of God, which was made very man; Of Original or Birth

Sin; Of Free Will etc.), but also about Sin after Baptism, Of the Church,

Of the Authority of the Church, Of the authority of General Councils, Of

speaking in the Congregation in such a tongue as the people understandeth

etc.

Charles II

With accession of Charles II in 1660 the Restoration of the monarchy began.

Everyone is tired of Puritan rule. Puritan laws and censorship are

repealed; the theaters re-open. The "Declaration of Breda" results in

tolerance for Puritan views within the Anglican fold. The conflict with

Puritanism leaves distrust for religious individualism and emotionalism

("enthusiasm") among Anglicans. This will continue through the "Great

Awakening" (1738-1784: Christian revival in England and America). This

coincides with the Enlightenment, or Age of Reason, during which many

educated people cease to consider themselves Christians.

Act of Toleration (1689), partially restores civil rights to Roman

Catholics and Dissenters. The events since the Reformation have finally

convinced most Anglicans of the virtues of tolerance and mutual

forbearance.

Victorian Era

The trend during this period will be rediscovery of liturgy and church

history - High church - and spreading Christianity – Low сhurch.

The Evangelical branch of the Anglican Church coincided very nearly with

the "Low Church" party. Evangelical, a term literally meaning "of or

pertaining to the Gospel," designated the school of theology adhered to by

those Protestants who believed that the essence of the Gospel lay in the

doctrine of salvation by faith in the death of Christ, which atoned for

man's sins. Evangelicalism stressed the reality of the "inner life,"

insisted on the total depravity of humanity and on the importance of the

individual's personal relationship with God and Savior. They put particular

emphasis on faith, denying that either good works or the sacraments (which

they perceived as being merely symbolic) possessed any salvational

efficacy. Evangelicals, too, denied that ordination imparted any

supernatural gifts, and upheld the sole authority of the Bible in matters

of doctrine

High church was associated with the Tractarian movement began about 1833

and ended in 1845 with John Henry Newman's conversion to Roman Catholicism.

It was also called the Oxford Movement because Newman, a fellow of Oriel

College (part of Oxford University) and vicar of St. Mary's, the University

church, and others were based there when they began the Tracts for the

Times in 1833. There were exactly 90 Tracts, the majority written by

Newman, arguing in general that the truth of the doctrines of the Church of

England rested on the modern church's position as the direct descendant of

the church established by the Apostles. Pretty obviously, such an argument

was a conservative answer to the various contemporary challenges to the

authority of religion in general, Christianity in particular, and

specifically Anglicanism Catholicism, fueled by the same need for

reassurance as was the Evangelical revival. Since the 16th century the

Church of England had prided itself on being the via media, or middle road,

between Roman Catholicism and a more radical Protestantism.

The Church of England has, in its several ways, been the Church to uphold

the dignity of the individual. It gave the lead, for example, not only in

the abolition of slavery but it played a critical role in stopping the

slave trade itself. Today, of course, it is a Church at the forefront of

the practical fight to right injustices, restore the dignity of people

everywhere and put the world on a sustainable economic footing without

ruining the planet upon which God put us.

II. The Church of England today

We are now in what many call the post-modern era and the Church of England

is experiencing a resurgence of interest in matters of faith as well as in

the Church itself. Calls to the ministry are up, giving for the Church's

work is up and the Church is confident that, with and by God's grace, it

can make an increasingly valuable contribution to the life of the nation,

its people, and do so far beyond its borders as well.

Anglicans are numerous on every continent and constitute the principal

Christian community in many areas, notably in Africa.

The Book of Common Prayer exists in 170 languages. There are about 45

million Anglicans worldwide. There are three million Episcopalians in the

US.

At least one survey indicates that, among all denominations in this

country, we have the highest percentage of members who take time for daily

prayer.

There is little doubt that, among all groups of Christians, we Anglicans

are the most diverse and the most tolerant. Anglicans are still facing

persecution in Iran and other Middle Eastern countries, Communist China,

the Soviet bloc nations, Central Africa, and Central America.

Throughout the world, over one thousand new Christian churches open their

doors each Sunday. As always, Christianity flourishes wherever it shows

people its highest ideals.

1) The essence of being an Anglican

The Scriptures and the Gospels, the Apostolic Church and the early Church

Fathers, are the foundation of Anglican faith and worship. The basic tenets

of being an Anglican are:

* They view the Old and New Testaments 'as containing all things necessary

for salvation' and as being the rule and ultimate standard of faith.

* They understand the Apostles' creed as the baptismal symbol, and the

Nicene creed as the sufficient statement of the Christian faith.

* The two sacraments ordained by Christ himself - Baptism and the Supper of

the Lord - are administered with unfailing use of Christ's words of

institution, and the elements are ordained by him.

* The historic episcopate is locally adapted in the methods of its

administration to the varying needs of the nations and peoples called of

God into the unity of his Church.

Anglicans uphold the Catholic and Apostolic faith. Following the teachings

of Jesus Christ, the Churches are committed to the proclamation of the good

news of the Gospel to the whole creation. In practice this is based on the

revelation contained in Holy Scripture and the Catholic creeds, and is

interpreted in light of Christian tradition, scholarship, reason and

experience.

By baptism in the name of the Father, Son and Holy Spirit, a person is made

one with Christ and received into the fellowship of the Church. This

sacrament of initiation is open to children as well as to adults.

Central to worship for Anglicans is the celebration of the Holy Eucharist,

also called the Holy Communion, the Lord's Supper or the Mass. In this

offering of prayer and praise, the life, death and resurrection of Jesus

Christ are recalled through the proclamation of the word and the

celebration of the sacrament. Other important rites, commonly called

sacraments, include confirmation, holy orders, reconciliation, marriage and

anointing of the sick.

Worship is at the very heart of Anglicanism. Its styles vary from simple to

elaborate, or even a combination. The great uniting text is The Book of

Common Prayer, in its various revisions throughout the Communion. The Book

of Common Prayer, alongside additional liturgies gives expression to the

comprehensiveness found within the Church whose principles reflect that of

the via media in relation to its own and other Christian Churches. The

Lambeth Conferences of the 1950s and 1960s called for more up-to-date

national liturgies and this is going on today. No matter how distinctive

each is, they are all clearly of the lineage of The Book of Common Prayer.

Another distinguishing feature of the corporate nature of Anglicanism is

that it is an interdependent Church, where parishes, dioceses and provinces

help each other to achieve by mutual support in terms of financial

assistance and the sharing of other resources.

To be an Anglican is to be on a journey of faith to God supported by a

fellowship of co-believers who are dedicated to finding Him by prayer and

service.

2) Today’s Organisation of the Church of England

The Church of England is organised into two provinces; each led by an

archbishop (Canterbury for the Southern Province and York for the

Northern). These two provinces cover every inch of English soil, the Isle

of Man, the Channel Islands, the Isles of Scilly and even a small part of

Wales.

Each province is built from dioceses. There are 43 in England and the

Diocese in Europe has clergy and congregations in the rest of Europe,

Morocco, Turkey and the Asian countries of the former Soviet Union.

Each diocese (except Europe) is divided into parishes. The parish is the

heart of the Church of England. Each parish is overseen by a parish priest

(usually called a vicar or rector). From ancient times through to today,

they, and their bishop, are responsible for the 'cure of souls' in their

parish. That includes everyone. And this explains why parish priests are so

involved with the key issues and problems affecting the whole community.

Her Majesty the Queen is the Supreme Governor of the Church of England, and

she also has a unique and special relationship with the Church of Scotland,

which is a Free Church. In the Church of England she appoints archbishops,

bishops and deans of cathedrals on the advice of the Prime Minister. The

two archbishops and 24 senior bishops sit in the House of Lords, making a

major contribution to Parliament's work.

The Church of England is episcopally led (there are 108 bishops) and

synodically governed. The General Synod is elected from the laity and

clergy of each diocese and meets in London or York at least twice annually

to consider legislation for the good of the Church.

The Archbishops' Council was established in 1999 to co-ordinate, promote,

aid and further the mission of the Church of England. It is composed of 19

members and 7 directors whose task is to give a clear sense of direction to

the Church nationally and support the Church locally.

The Church of England issues its own newspaper: The Church Times, founded

in 1863. It has become the world's leading Anglican weekly newspaper. It

has always been independent of the Church of England hierarchy. It was a

family concern until 1989, when ownership passed to Hymns Ancient & Modern,

a Christian charitable trust. The Church Times was started to campaign for

Anglo-Catholic principles, which it did with vigour and rudeness. But in

the 1940s and '50s the paper began the move to broaden its outlook and

coverage. It now attempts to provide balanced and fair reporting of events

and opinions across the whole range of Anglican affairs. The rudeness we

now leave to our readers. For a longer history of the paper

III. Church of England becomes an International Church

Anglicans trace their Christian roots back to the early Church, and their

specifically Anglican identity to the post-Reformation expansion of the

Church of England and other Episcopal or Anglican Churches. Following the

discovery of the "New World", Anglicanism spread to the Americas, Asia,

Africa and Oceania (the central and south Pacific). Some 37 national and

regional Anglican Churches were established in various parts of the world,

which together became known as the Anglican Communion.

Historically, there were two main stages in the development and spread of

the Communion. Beginning with the seventeenth century, Anglicanism was

established alongside colonisation in the United States, Australia, Canada,

New Zealand and South Africa. The second state began in the eighteenth

century when missionaries worked to establish Anglican churches in Asia,

Africa and Latin America.

As a worldwide family of churches, the Anglican Communion has more than 70

million adherents in 38 Provinces spreading across 161 countries. Located

on every continent, Anglicans speak many languages and come from different

races and cultures. Although the churches are autonomous, they are also

uniquely unified through their history, their theology, their worship and

their relationship to the ancient See of Canterbury.

The Anglican Communion has no constitution, governing body, central

authority or common liturgy. It is merely a loose association of autonomous

Churches with similar origins. Since 1970 it has been disintegrating, as

some member churches have brazenly tampered with essential elements of the

Faith and con no longer claim to have the same Scriptures, Creeds,

Sacraments and Ministry as the rest of the Catholic church. Since 1987

those Churches have included the CHURCH OF ENGLAND herself.

Conclusions

There have been Christians in Britain since AD200 and probably earlier.

Through war, peace, famine and prosperity, the Church was critical in the

development of society, law, buildings and the quiet piety of the people.

English civil power and the Church developed in an increasingly uneasy

parallel. Two points of contention were the Church's wealth and its ties

with Rome. These differences came to a head in the 1530s, when King Henry

VIII wished to obtain a divorce from Queen Catherine of Aragon. And Act of

Supremacy was issued. This Act reaffirmed the King’s sovereignty over the

English Church and State and gave Henry power over all moral,

organizational, heretical, and ecclesiastical reform which until this point

had been left to the Church. The new church was christened Ecclesia

Anglicana.

But in 1550's, however, under Edward VI, the English Church became

Protestant in doctrine and ritual, and even then it remained traditional in

organization. Under the Roman Catholic Mary I a politico-religious reaction

resulted in the burning at the stake of some prominent Protestants and the

exile of many others, which led in turn to a popular association of

Catholicism with persecution and Spanish domination. When Elizabeth I

succeeded to the throne in 1558, however, she restored a moderate

Protestantism, codifying the Anglican faith in the Act of Uniformity, the

Act of Supremacy, and the Thirty-Nine Articles.

Under reign of Charles II. Puritan laws and censorship are repealed; the

theaters re-open. The conflict with Puritanism leaves distrust for

religious individualism and emotionalism ("enthusiasm") among Anglicans.

This will continue through the "Great Awakening". During "Great Awakening"

Christian revival took place in England and America.

The trend during Victorian Era rediscovered of liturgy and church history

and spreading Christianity. In the mid-nineteenth century, then, the Church

of England was disorganized. Though its adherents were largely

conservative, a considerable portion of its leadership was, ideologically

speaking, perilously close to Catholicism, and the religious census of 1851

showed that it was reaching only about fourteen percent of the population

of England.

When the British Empire expanded in the 17th, 18th and 19th centuries, so

too did the Church. And today the Anglican Communion has more than 70

million adherents in 38 Provinces spreading across 161 countries. Te

Churches are committed to the proclamation of the good news of the Gospel

to the whole creation. In practice this is based on the revelation

contained in Holy Scripture and the Catholic creeds, and is interpreted in

light of Christian tradition, scholarship, reason and experience. The

Anglican Church is open for people who are united in their creed and their

love of Christ Jesus, the Son of God and what He means for them and for the

world around them.

Bibliography

1. The Anglican Catholic Church, second edition, 1998, published by The

Anglican Catholic Church

2. Dickens, A.G. The English Reformation. Second Ed. University Park, PA:

The Pennsylvania State University Press, 1989

3. Rupp, Gordon. Religion in England 1688-1791. Oxford: Clarendon Press,

1986

4. Morgan, Kenneth O., ed. The Oxford Illustrated History of Britain. New

York: Oxford University Press, 1986.