The Washington herald., 1907-03-10

undenominational commission. in the
broadcast spirit. not merely for the bene-
1T Of the church. 10 which at least 20
per cent Of the ration belongs. bUt also
in measure TO the advantage Of the
commonwealth as a whole. for over
Sl5,900,000 Of rs annual revenues 20 to
the education Of the poor. while about
$i0,O00.600 more are distributed IN vaTl-
Gus charities. II Is quite inconceivabIe
that the large proportion Of 20 per cent
Of the English peOple-$hat IS TO sey
an overwhelming majority thereof
would be willing TO sanction any legis-
lation calculated to disestablish and dis
endow their church; and the vote. there
fore. of the House Of Commons a fort
night ago, which the government care
fully refused to cOUntenance. need not
be regarded as representing the wishes
of the nation or as constituting any
real danger to the establishment.
The established Church Of England is
Protestant Episcopal and its fundamen-
tai doctrines and tenets arc embodied
in the thirty-nine articles agreed upon
in convocation in 1862. shortly after
the accession OF Elizabeth, revised nine
years later. in 1871. and reissued and
confirmed by King James 1. It may be
said to date from the reign Of King Ed
ward VI. For although Henry VIII was
the fist 70 quarrel with the Papacy, by
compelling the clergy TO recognize the
supremacy Of the crown. and by sup
pressing and confscating the mouas-
teries. yet be did not identify himself
with any reformation Of the doctrines
Of the Roman Catholic Church, TO which
indeed he remained an adherent until
his death. Far from being a champion
OF the reformation. he was an obstacle
thereto. and il was not until after his
death, and the accession to the crown
Of his son, King Edward VI. that Eng
land went over from Catholicism to
Professionalism, based upon the confess
sion Of Augsburg. Under Bloody Mary
England was once more brought under
the supremacy Of Rome; but with the
advent % the throne Of Queen Elizabeth
the Protestant doctrines once more OBJ
tanned the upper hand. and the Church
OF England as il now remains came into
existance Not only were the thirty-uine
Articles then adopted ia their present
form, but the Book of Common Prayer.
which is To all intents and purposes the
Litsny Of the church. was compiled IL
J
VII. according TO recent letters from
England. is now engaged ia revising ia
his capacity as supreme head OF the
Church Of England, with the assistance
and advice Of the Archbishop OF Canter-
bury. with the object OF adapting il To
the requirements and needs Of the TWEEN
tieth century The book has been sub
jected 10 several revisiOns notably by
the sO-called Hampton Court Confer
ence in 1904. In the reign OF King
James / But il remains 10 ali intents
and purposes very much the
was in the days Of Queen /
It would take too long to
an abbreviated history Of t.
England. or to attempt TO e.
respect its doctrines differ
other Christian denominauo
fee to state that the sovel
the supreme chief of the
land. possessing the right
By a statute bearing I'll -.s..,.,,..v 90
Henry VII. and 10 nominate TO the va
cant archbishoprics and bishoprlcs the
form being 10 send 10 the dean and chap
ter Of the vacant See the royal license or
congo d'elire TO proceed TO the election,
the person to be elected. In spite Of the
word congo" the Kings letter is manda-
tory. and the dean and chapter have no
alternative but to elect the candidate
whom ne dominates Afterward the ROYAL
assent and confirmation Of the election IS
signified under the great seal This form
only applies TO the sees of old foundation.
The bishoprics Of Manchester. St Adams,
Liverpool, Truro. Newcastle. and South
well are conferred direct, by letters pat
ent from the Crown. The King also ap-
points to such deaueTies. prebeHdaries.
and CanOnries as are in the gift OF ths
Crown He is absolutely free 10 appoint
whom he likes and the church and gov
ernmCat are pOWerless to influence or con
troll the appointment Of bishops and arch
bishops. In 1877 objections were made on
theological grounds 10 the appointment
Of Or. Hampden TO the See Of Hereford
But il was found that there were no legal
means Of having these objections brought
forward. The church is 10 such an ex-
tent subject 20 the Crown that the HER
archy and clergy are powerless TO alter
the liturgy or the character of the ser
vices without the consent Of the sovereign
He exercises this authority independently
Of Parliament. and when he has deter
{
viii decree them. probably by means 81
an order Of the privy council, which rep
resents his viii in the matter The mon
arch IS also the ultimate resort in Ques-
lions touching the orthodoxy Of the clergy.
their conduct, their ministTations. and
their morals. They are subject, IN the
first place. 70 the jurisdiction OF their
bishops. The ordinary ecclesiastical tri-
bunal Of first instance is the consistory
court Of each diocese. Of which the bishop
is the judge. though he is usually repre-
scented by his chancellor. From the de
cision of this court the offending divine
may appeal TO the higher courts. and,
lastly. to the sovereign in council. All
/ questions Of civil rights Of the clergy are
within the jurisdiction Of the secular
courts.
/ In conclusion. II may be mentioned that
the Church of England IS one Of the es-
| tates Of the realm. and as such has an
integral part in all legislation. being re-
/ presented by two archbishops and by
1 twenty -four bishops i'm the upper house
/ of the national legislature. where they
rank, not as peers Of the realm, but as
/ lords Of Parliament In fact. it is a ques-
/ ton whether any legislation enacted by
! the House Of Lords would be valid If un
dertaken in the absence Of the bishops
and archbishops.
! It must be understood that the organiza-
/ ton of the Church Of England was an
terror to that OF the state, and that when
the country was still divided into separ-
ate kingdoms. the church had become one
/ throughout the land, and was looked upon
as a common center. Church and state
/ have thus grown together for centuries,
and are to such an extent identified with