Pittsburg dispatch. [volume] (Pittsburg [Pa.]) 1880-1923, 1892-06-14
OUR MAIL POUCH.
Tho Church and Henry VIII.
,e Editor of The DIsnatch:

In0 ChurCh ana ftohry SAAAs
To the Editor of The Dispatch:
In a very Interesting article in to- days
DISPATCH relating to Henry VIII and the
Church of England the writer says: Never
theless Henry VIII did take the Pope's
place in England and since that day the
Church of England has paid no homage to
the Holy Father. Before Henry the Church
was papal: after Henry it was and has re-
manned Protestant
The above assertion was prompted by an
inquiry as to whether or not Henry VIII
founded the Church of England, and while
tho writer of the article referred to does not
definitely answer the question according TO
the most reliable authorities. he hits very
wide of the mark in making the statement
above quoted. IT.
Henry VIII did not found the Church OF
England, nor did he depose the Pope from
the headship OF the Church of England. The
Pope never had control of the Church OF
England, and he certainly could not be de-
nrived of that which he never possessed.
From the earliest times "the State had never
lost its mastership of the citadel OF supren-
acy, although so long and often ferceiy
attacked by papal forces"
Laws enacted in the reigns Of Edward I.
Edward III, Richard II and Henry ~, pre-
serving the spiritual and temporal Liberties
of the people, show that the Pope was not
the head OF the English church. The latter
was distinct from that Of Rome. True, i'm
mediately after The Conquest William
allowed the Pope to rule with unusual
power. But that was Of short duration, as
william himself soon curtailed the Pope's
authority. Even before the Norman con-
quest the Popes did not exercise over the
English Church the functions supposed to
belong to the Papal system. They did not
nominate to sees, nor exercise the power of
veto: nor depose, nor command nor forbid
CONSIDERATIONS: nor exact any foes; nor re-
quire any oath of allegiance. The Kings did
not allow appeals of any kind to be made to
the Pope.
Until the Reformation the clergy of the
Church of England consisted OF two classes
tho secular and the monast1c. The former
wero similar to the Church of England
clergy of the present day; they married ana
lived in parishes with their families. King
Edgar tried to abolish the latter. and to
some extent succeeded, but the sentiment
of tho nation was for them and they
triumphed. Surely nobody would call that
portant of all is the mct that the first article
of Magma Charta, which refers to the church.
makes no mention in any way of the Papal
power, but says: "That the church of Eng
and her liberties inviolable."
will cite another fact to show that the
writer of the article In question Is in error.
My friend George Harwood in his valuable
book. establishment" says relative to
the statute OF Premtnure, enacted in the
Parliament of Richard H.: ''The statute
enacted that whoever procured from
Rome or elsewhere any translations,
processes, accommodations, bulls, in
struments or any other things which
touched the King, against him, his
crown and realm, and also that who
ever assisted therein should be put out
of the Kings protection, his lands and goods
should be forfeited and he himself should
be attached by his body to answer to the
King and his Council"
After all this let me ask: Where WAS the
supreme power of the Pope in these times?
The Reformation did not create new ma
tional church; it purified the old one, no
doubt. but no new principle was established;
in other words, the Reformation only reas-
serted previous laws and carried them out.
Long before the time of Henry VIII. the
State had had the power to determine to
what extent the canon law should prevail
in England, and all that Henry VIII. did was
to designate the extent. The truth Is, Ed
ward VI made the spiritual reformation
after the civil reformation OF Henry VIII.
had formally eliminated q movement that
had been developing through long series
of years. j. ID.
PITTSBURG, June 13