The Republican. [volume] (Oakland, Md.) 1877-current, 1936-07-16
THE MARYLAND BIBLE
SOCIETY CORNER
The Geneva Bible

xuC UcAkGVd DIU1C
The printing and distribution of the
Scriptures met with serious check
when Mary Tudor, daughter of Henry
VIII, assembled the throne of England.
She had lived in such retirement that,
as the historian Greene remarks, she
was as ignorant of the actual temper
of England and England was of her
own. At the time of her coronation she
was thin in figure, with face drawn
and colorless telling of constant ILL
health, so that there was little in her
outward appearance to recall her
father; but her hard, bright eyes, her
manlike voice, her fearlessness and
self-will, told of her Tudor blood, as
did likewise her skill in music, her
knowledge of languages, her love of
learning.
Mary was the avowed enemy of the
reformed movement, and set about at
once to crush it. Gardiner, Henry's
minister, was called from the Tower
to take the place of Chancellor at the
Queens Council Board. Bonner and
the deposed Bishops were restored to
their sees. Ridley with the others who
had displaced them, were expelled.
Latimer, as representative Of the ex-
treme Protestants, was sent to the
Tower, and the foreign refugees, as
Observation-Disclosures, were ordered to
leave England.
Then followed prosecutions which
involved the death of more than 400
leaders of the Protestant cause, among
them Ridley, the deposed Bishop of
London, and Latimer. When both were
about to be burned at the stake, the
latter cried: "Play the man, Master
Ridley!" and as the flames shot up
around him, he continued: eve shall
this day light up such candle by
Gods grace in England as 1 trust shall
never be put out"
If the Protestants had not known
how to govern, indeed they knew
how to die; and the cause which pros
perity had ruined revived in the dark
hour of persecution.
DR.. Taylor, John Rogers, Bible
translator and accredited author OF
the Matthew's Bible, with scores OF
other valiant souls, went bravely to
the stake rather than deny their faith
Every death at the stake won hun
dreds to the cause for which they
died.
Rather than remain in England and
throw away their lives, many Of the
most learned Englishmen who had
devoted their lives and talents to the
task of translation, now sought ref
uge in Switzerland, where the largest
measure of religious liberty was to be
found. Here these devoted men were
not idle, but as early as 1851 produced
a new translation of the New Tesla
ment at Geneva. Three years later an
edition of the whole Bible in English
was published at Geneva, probably be-
ing the joint work of Coverdale, Gilby
Goodman and Nottingham. This
translation is notable as being the
first in which the New Testament was
divided into verses. One hundred and
thirty-one editions were published
The translation was so far superior
to that of the Great Bible that it took
the place of the older version, and re.
tanned it's popularity with the English
people for nearly 200 years.
However, due to the influence Of
John Calvin, who held that both doc
trine and government were laid down
in the words of the Bible, and that al
questions arising out of those words
came under the decision of the eccle'
siastlcal body of ministers, the Geneva
Bible appeared with so many note'
peculiarly Calvanistic in their teach
ing that the book was not acceptable t.
a large body of the English Protestant
clergy. This led to an effort on tn
part of Matthew Parker, Archbishop
of Canterbury, to provide Bible which
would not only remove all objections
by eliminating the undesirable notes
but would, it was hoped, be a NOR
faithful translation of the Bible. HI
distributed the Bible in parts to varl
GUS Bishops for them to translate, ant
revised the entire work himself. Thi