John Wyclif gives his Bible translation to Lollards

Lollardy or Lollardry was the political and religious movement of the Lollards from the late 14th century to early in the time of the English Reformation. Lollardy followed from the teachings of John Wyclif, a prominent theologian at the University of Oxford beginning in the 1350s. Its demands were primarily for reform of the Roman Catholic Church. It taught that piety was a requirement for a priest to be a "true" priest or to perform the sacraments, and that a pious layman had power to perform those same rites, believing that religious power and authority came through piety and not through the Church hierarchy. Similarly, Lollardy also emphasized the authority of the Scriptures over the authority of priests. It taught the concept of the "Church of the Saved", meaning that Christ's true Church was the community of the faithful, which overlapped with but was not the same as the official Church of Rome. It taught a form of predestination. It advocated apostolic poverty and taxation of Church properties. It also denied transubstantiation in favor of consubstantiation. Image File history File links Wyclif Giving The Poor Priests His Translation of the Bible by W.F. Yeames. ... This 14th-century statue from south India depicts the gods Shiva (on the left) and Uma (on the right). ... The Protestant Reformation, also referred to as the Protestant Revolution or Protestant Revolt, was a movement in the 16th century to reform the Catholic Church in Western Europe. ... Wycliffe may also refer to Wycliffe Bible Translators John Wyclif (also Wycliffe or Wycliff) (c. ... Theology (Greek θεος, theos, God, + λογος, logos, word or reason) means reasoned discourse concerning religion, spirituality and God. ... The University of Oxford, located in the city of Oxford, England, is the oldest university in the English-speaking world. ... Centuries: 13th century - 14th century - 15th century Decades: 1300s 1310s 1320s 1330s 1340s - 1350s - 1360s 1370s 1380s 1390s 1400s Years: 1350 1351 1352 1353 1354 1355 1356 1357 1358 1359 Events and Trends Categories: 1350s ... The Roman Catholic Church or Catholic Church (see Terminology, below) is the Christian Church in full communion with the Bishop of Rome, currently Pope Benedict XVI. It traces its origins to the original Christian community founded by Jesus, with its traditions first established by the Twelve Apostles and maintained through... Piety is a desire and willingness to perform spiritual, often ascetic rituals. ... Roman Catholic priests in traditional clerical clothing. ... A sacrament is a Christian rite that mediates divine grace—a holy [[Mystery The root meaning of the Latin word sacramentum is making sacred. One example of its use was as the term for the oath of dedication taken by Roman soldiers; but the ecclesiastical use of the word is... Predestination is a religious idea, under which the relationship between the beginning of things and the destiny of things is discussed. ... Transubstantiation (from Latin transsubstantiatio) is the change of the substance of bread and wine into that of the body and blood of Christ, the change that according to the belief of the Roman Catholic Church occurs in the Eucharist. ... Consubstantiation is a theory which (like the competing theory of transubstantiation, with which it is often contrasted) attempts to describe the nature of the Christian Eucharist in terms of philosophical metaphysics. ...

Etymology

Lollard, Lollardi or Loller was the popular derogatory nickname given to those without an academic background, educated if at all only in English, who were reputed to follow the teachings of John Wycliffe in particular, and were certainly considerably energised by the translation of the Bible into the English. The alternative, Wycliffite, is generally accepted to be a more neutral term covering those of similar opinions, but having an academic background.

The origin of the term is clouded with uncertainty, but four possibilities suggest themselves:

i) the Dutch word, lollaerd, meaning someone who mutters, a mumbler. This is also related to the Dutch word, lull or lollen, as in "a mother lulls her child to sleep", or "to sing or chant";

ii) the Latin lolium, tares (mingled with the Catholic wheat); Latin is an ancient [[Indo-European languages|Indo-well as the Roman CEuropean language originally spoken in Latium, the region immediately surrounding Rome. ...

iii) after the Franciscan, Lolhard, who converted to the Waldensian way, becoming eminent as a preacher in Guienne. That part of France was then under English domination, influencing lay English piety. He was burned at Cologne in the 1370s; The Order of Friars Minor and other Franciscan movements are disciples of Saint Francis of Assisi. ... The Waldensians were followers of Peter Waldo (or Valdes or Vaudes); they called themselves the Poor men of Lyon, the Poor of Lombardy, or the Poor. ... Aquitaine (or Guyenne or Guienne) now forms a région in south-western France along the Atlantic Ocean and the Pyrenees mountain range on the border with Spain. ...

iv) the Middle-English loller, "a lazy vagabond, an idler, a fraudulent beggar", likely a later usage; influenced (spuriously?) by Chaucer's use of the term in the Canterbury Tales. Chaucer: Illustration from Cassells History of England, circa 1902 Chanticleer the rooster from an outdoor production of Chanticleer and the Fox at Ashby_de_la_Zouch castle Geoffrey Chaucer (ca. ... Canterbury Tales Woodcut 1484 The Canterbury Tales is a collection of stories written by Geoffrey Chaucer in the 14th century (two of them in prose, the rest in verse). ...

The Dutch derivation is the most likely, due to the influence on Lollardy of the informal lay communities, originating in Deventer in Over-Ijssel around the teaching of Gerhard Groote, in the last two decades of the fourteenth century; but the Latin 'lolium' (tares) an interesting alternative, supported by Chaucer's Epilogue to the Man of Law's Tale, in his description of the Poor Parson's preaching: "And he'll go starting up some heresy And sow his tares in our clean corn, perchance." Deventer is a municipality and a city in the eastern Netherlands in the province of Overijssel on the east bank of the IJssel river. ... Geert Groote (October 1340 – 20 August 1384), otherwise Gerrit or Gerhard Groet, in Latin Gerardus Magnus, was a Dutch preacher and founder of the Brethren of the Common Life. ...

Perhaps we do not have to make a choice, for all were contemptuous marks of abuse, initially roundly detested by those to whom attached; but worn with pride by later Lollards.

Beliefs

Map of Lollardy's influence

Although Lollardy can be said to have originated in the writings of John Wyclif, it is true that the Lollards had no central doctrine. Likewise, being a decentralized movement, Lollardy neither had nor proposed any singular authority. The movement associated itself with many different ideas, but individual Lollards did not necessarily have to agree with every tenet. Image File history File links Download high resolution version (620x819, 180 KB) Originally published in: G.M. Trevelyan, England in the Age of Wycliffe (London: Longmans, Green, 1909). ... Image File history File links Download high resolution version (620x819, 180 KB) Originally published in: G.M. Trevelyan, England in the Age of Wycliffe (London: Longmans, Green, 1909). ... Wycliffe may also refer to Wycliffe Bible Translators John Wyclif (also Wycliffe or Wycliff) (c. ...

Fundamentally, Lollards were anticlerical. They believed the Roman Catholic Church to be corrupt in many ways and looked to Scripture as the basis for their religion. To provide an authority for religion outside of the Church, Lollards began the movement towards a translation of the bible into the vernacular; Wyclif himself in his works translated many passages. The Roman Catholic Church or Catholic Church (see Terminology, below) is the Christian Church in full communion with the Bishop of Rome, currently Pope Benedict XVI. It traces its origins to the original Christian community founded by Jesus, with its traditions first established by the Twelve Apostles and maintained through... Many religions and spiritual movements hold certain written texts (or series of spoken legends not traditionally written down) to be sacred. ... Look up Vernacular in Wiktionary, the free dictionary. ...

One group of Lollards petitioned parliament with The Twelve Conclusions of the Lollards. While by no means a central authority of the Lollards, the Twelve Conclusions reveal certain basic Lollard ideas. The Lollards stated that the Catholic Church had been corrupted by temporal matters and that its claim to be the true church was not justified by its heredity. Part of this corruption involved prayers for the dead and chantries. These were seen as corrupt since they distracted priests from other work and that all should be prayed for equally. Lollards also had a tendency to iconoclasm. Lavish church fixtures were seen as an excess; they believed effort should be placed on helping the needy and preaching rather than working on lavish decoration. Icons were also seen as dangerous since many seemed to worship the icon rather than God, leading to idolatry. The Twelve Conclusions of the Lollards are preserved in their original English form (other Latin summaries survive) in Roger Dymoks Against the Twelve Heresies of the Lollards, an elaborate refutation of each of the heresies, written in 1396-97 for Richard II. The original conclusions were presented to parliament... Chantry is a term for the English establishment of a shrine or chapel on private land where monks or priests would say (or chant) prayers on a fixed schedule, usually for someone who had died. ... Roman Catholic priest A priest or priestess is a holy man or woman who takes an officiating role in worship of any religion, with the distinguishing characteristic of offering sacrifices. ... Illustration of the Beeldenstorm during the Dutch reformation Iconoclasm is the destruction of religious icons and other symbols or monuments, usually for religious or political motives. ... The Savior Not Made By Hands (1410s, by Andrei Rublev) An icon (from Greek εικων, eikon, image) is an artistic visual representation or symbol of anything considered holy and divine, such as God, saints or deities. ... Idolatry is a major sin in the Abrahamic religions regarding image. ...

Believing in a lay priesthood, the Lollards challenged the Church’s ability to invest or deny the divine authority to make a man a priest. Denying any special authority to the priesthood, Lollards thought confession unnecessary since a priest did not have any special power to forgive sins. Lollards challenged the practice of clerical celibacy and believed priests should not hold political positions since temporal matters should not interfere with the priests’ spiritual mission. Believing that more attention should be given to the message in the scriptures rather than to ceremony and worship, the Lollards denounced the ritualistic aspects of the Church such as transubstantiation, exorcism, pilgrimages, and blessings. These focused too much on powers the Church supposedly did not have and led to a focus on temporal ritual over God and his message. The priesthood of all believers is a Protestant doctrine founded on the First Epistle of Peter, 2:9: But ye are a chosen generation, a royal priesthood, an holy nation, a peculiar people; that ye should shew forth the praises of him who hath called you out of darkness into... Confession of sins is an integral part of the Christian faith and practice. ... This page is about sin in the context of religion. ... Clerical celibacy is the practice of various religious traditions in which clergy, monastics and those in religious orders (female or male) adopt a celibate life, refraining from marriage and sexual relationships, including masturbation and impure thoughts (such as sexual visualisation and fantasies). ... This refers to the act performed on a special occasion. ... Worship usually refers to specific acts of religious praise, honour, or devotion, typically directed to a supernatural being such as a god or goddess. ... Transubstantiation (from Latin transsubstantiatio) is the change of the substance of bread and wine into that of the body and blood of Christ, the change that according to the belief of the Roman Catholic Church occurs in the Eucharist. ... Saint Francis exorcised demons in Arezzo, fresco of Giotto Exorcism (from Late Latin exorcismus, from Greek exorkizein - to adjure) is the practice of evicting demons or other evil spiritual entities from a person of which they have possessed (taken control of). ... A pilgrimage is a journey by a religious person to a place that is sacred according to his or her religion. ... A blessing (from to bless, Old English bleodsian or bletsian) originally meant sprinkling with blood during the pagan sacrifices, the Blóts (reference: AHD). ...

The Twelve Conclusions also denounce war and violence, even capital punishment. Abortion is also denounced. The United States detonated an atomic bomb over Nagasaki on August 9, 1945. ... Violence is any act of aggression and abuse which causes or intends to cause injury, in some cases criminal, or harm to persons, and (to a lesser extent) animals or property. ... Capital punishment, or the death penalty, is the execution of a convicted criminal by the state as punishment for crimes known as capital crimes or capital offences. ...

Outside of the Twelve Conclusions, the Lollards had many beliefs and traditions. Their scriptural focus led Lollards to refuse the taking of oaths. Lollards also had a tradition of millenarianism. Some criticized the Church for not focusing enough on Revelation. Many Lollards believed they were near the end of days, and several Lollard writings claim the Pope to be the antichrist. An oath (from Saxon eoth) is either a promise or a statement of fact calling upon something or someone that the oath maker considers sacred, usually a god, as a witness to the binding nature of the promise or the truth of the statement of fact. ... Millenarianism (sometimes spelled millenarism or millennarism) is the belief by a religious, social, or political group or movement in a coming major transformation of society after which all things will be changed in a positive (or sometimes negative or ambiguous) direction. ... For information on the last book of the New Testament see the Book of Revelation. ... End of Days is a 1999 action/horror film starring Arnold Schwarzenegger and directed by Peter Hyams. ... The current Pope is Benedict XVI (born Joseph Alois Ratzinger), who was elected at the age of 78 on 19 April 2005. ... This article deals with the religious term. ...

History

Beginning of the Gospel of John from a pocket Wyclif translation that may have been used by a roving Lollard preacher (late 14th century)

Immediately upon going public, Lollardy was attacked as heresy. At first, Wyclif and Lollardy were protected by John of Gaunt and anti-clerical nobility, who were most likely interested in using Lollard-advocated clerical reform to create a new source of revenue from England’s monasteries. The University of Oxford also protected Wyclif and allowed him to hold his position at the university in spite of his views on the grounds of academic freedom, which also gave some protection to the academics who supported it within that institution. Lollardy first faced serious persecution after the Peasant’s Revolt in 1381. While Wyclif and other Lollards opposed the revolt, one of the peasants’ leaders, John Ball, preached Lollardy. The royalty and nobility then found Lollardy to be a threat not just to the Church, but to all the English social order. The Lollards' small measure of protection evaporated. This change in status was also affected by the removal of John of Gaunt from the scene, when he left England in pursuit of the throne of Castile, which he claimed through his second wife. Image File history File links Download high resolution version (624x1050, 147 KB) Summary The beginning of the Gospel of John in a copy of John Wycliffes translatin of the Bible. ... Image File history File links Download high resolution version (624x1050, 147 KB) Summary The beginning of the Gospel of John in a copy of John Wycliffes translatin of the Bible. ... Heresy, according to the Oxford English Dictionary, is a theological or religious opinion or doctrine maintained in opposition, or held to be contrary, to the Catholic or Orthodox doctrine of the Christian Church, or, by extension, to that of any church, creed, or religious system, considered as orthodox. ... John of Gaunt, 1st Duke of Lancaster (June 24, 1340 - February 3, 1399), the third surviving son of King Edward III of England, gained his name because he was born at Ghent in 1340. ... Buddhist monastery near Tibet A monastery is the habitation of monks. ... The University of Oxford, located in the city of Oxford, England, is the oldest university in the English-speaking world. ... Academic freedom is the freedom of teachers, students, and academic institutions to pursue knowledge wherever it may lead, without undue or unreasonable interference. ... ‹The template below has been proposed for deletion. ... Events June 12 - Peasants Revolt: In England rebels arrive at Blackheath. ... John Ball (d. ... Members of the British royal family A royal family is the extended family of a monarch. ... // Nobility is a traditional hereditary status (see hereditary titles) that exists today in many countries (mainly present or former monarchies). ... The starting point of Crown of Castile can be considered when the union of the Kingdoms of Castile and Leon in 1230 or the later fusion of their Cortes (their Parlaments). ...

Lollardy was strongly resisted by both the religious and secular authorities. Among those opposing it was Thomas Arundel, Archbishop of Canterbury. King Henry IV passed the De heretico comburendo in 1401, not specifically agaist the Lollards, but prohibiting the translating or owning of the Bible and authorising the burning of heretics at the stake. Thomas Arundel (1353-1414) was Archbishop of Canterbury in 1397 and from 1399 until his death, an outspoken opponent of the Lollards. ... Arms of the see of Canterbury The Archbishop of Canterbury is the senior clergyman of the established Church of England and symbolic head of the worldwide Anglican Communion. ... // Birth and life before accession - relationship with Richard II - exile - return and usurpation Henry IV (April 3, 1367 – March 20, 1413) was born at Bolingbroke Castle in Lincolnshire, hence the other name by which he was known, Henry of Bolingbroke. His father, John of Gaunt was the third and oldest... The De heretico comburendo was a law passed by King Henry IV of England in 1401 forbidding the owning or translating of the Bible and punishing heretics with burning at the stake. ... [edit] Events The Lollards, a religious sect taught by John Wycliffe, were persecuted for their beliefs. ... Burning of two sodomites at the stake outside Zürich, 1482 (Spiezer Schilling) Execution by burning has a long history as a method of punishment for crimes such as treason and for other unpopular acts such as heresy and the putative practice of witchcraft (burning, however, was actually less common...

Sir John Oldcastle being burnt for insurrection and Lollard heresy

In the early 15th century, Lollardy went underground after more extreme measures were taken by the Church and State. The one of these measures was the burning at the stake of John Badby, a layman and artisan who refused to renounce his Lollard views. His was the first execution of a layman in England for the crime of heresy. A group of Lollard knights had been a powerful force in English politics, but even these powerful noblemen did not escape this crackdown. Sir John Oldcastle, a close friend of King Henry V was brought to trial in 1413 after evidence of his Lollard beliefs was uncovered. Oldcastle escaped from the Tower of London and organized an insurrection, which included an attempted kidnapping of the king. The rebellion failed, and Oldcastle was executed. Oldcastle's revolt made Lollardy seem even more threatening to the state, and the persecution of Lollards became more severe. A variety of other martyrs for the Lollard cause were executed over the following century, including Thomas Harding who died at White Hill, Chesham, in 1532, one of the last Lollards to be persecuted. Image File history File links Download high resolution version (600x670, 161 KB) Sir John Oldcastle being burnt for Lollard heresy and insurrection. ... Image File history File links Download high resolution version (600x670, 161 KB) Sir John Oldcastle being burnt for Lollard heresy and insurrection. ... Sir John Oldcastle (d. ... (14th century - 15th century - 16th century - other centuries) As a means of recording the passage of time, the 15th century was that century which lasted from 1401 to 1500. ... John Badby (d. ... Sir John Oldcastle (d. ... Henry V, (August 9 or September 16, 1387 – August 31, 1422), King of England (1413-1422), son of Henry IV by Mary de Bohun, was born at Monmouth, Wales, in August or September 1386 or 1387. ... // Events March 20 - Henry V becomes King of England Project of Annals of Joseon Dynasty began. ... The Tower of London, seen from the River Thames, with a view of the water gate called Traitors Gate. ... This is a list of British monarchs, that is, the monarchs on the thrones of some of the various kingdoms that have existed on, or incorporated, the island of Great Britain, namely: England (united with Wales from 1536) up to 1707; Scotland up to 1707; The Kingdom of Great Britain... Sir John Oldcastle (d. ... This article or section does not cite its references or sources. ... We dont have an article called Thomas Harding Start this article Search for Thomas Harding in. ... To meet Wikipedias quality standards, this article or section may require cleanup. ... Events May 16 - Sir Thomas More resigns as Lord Chancellor of England. ...

Lollards were effectively absorbed into Protestantism during the English Reformation, in which Lollardy played a role. Since Lollardy had been underground for more than a hundred years, the extent of Lollardy and its ideas at the time of the Reformation is uncertain and a point of debate. However, many critics of the Reformation, including Thomas More, associated Protestants with Lollards. Protestant leaders, including Archbishop Cranmer, referred to Lollardy as well. Whether Protestants actually drew influence from Lollardy or whether they referred to it to create a sense of tradition is debated by scholars. The extent of Lollardy in the general populace at this time is also unknown, but the prevalence of Protestant iconoclasm in England suggests Lollard ideas may still have had some popular influence if Zwingli was not the source, as Lutherans did not advocate iconoclasm. The similarity between Lollards and later English Protestant groups such as the Baptists,Puritans and Quakers also suggests some continuation of Lollard ideas through the Reformation. Protestantism is one of three main groups currently within Christianity. ... The Protestant Reformation, also referred to as the Protestant Revolution or Protestant Revolt, was a movement in the 16th century to reform the Catholic Church in Western Europe. ... Sir Thomas More (7 February 1478 — 6 July 1535) was an English lawyer, author, statesman, and a Catholic martyr. ... Thomas Cranmer (July 2, 1489 - March 21, 1556) was the Archbishop of Canterbury during the reigns of the English kings Henry VIII and Edward VI. Born in 1489 at Nottingham, Cranmer was educated at Jesus College, Cambridge and became a priest following the death of his first wife. ... Illustration of the Beeldenstorm during the Dutch reformation Iconoclasm is the destruction of religious icons and other symbols or monuments, usually for religious or political motives. ... Zwinglis Successor Zwinglis successor, Heinrich Bullinger, was elected on December 9, 1531, to be the pastor of the Great Minster at Zürich, a position which he held to the end of his life (1575). ... The Lutheran movement is a group of denominations of Protestant Christianity by the original definition. ... Baptist churches are part of a Christian movement often regarded as an Evangelical, Protestant denomination. ... The Puritans were members of a group of radical Protestants which developed in England after the Reformation. ... The Religious Society of Friends (commonly known as Quakers) began in England in the 17th century by people who were dissatisfied with the existing denominations and sects of Christianity. ...

External links

• The Lollard Society - society dedicated to providing a forum for the study of the Lollards
• The Lollards - a sympathetic view of the Lollards from an Anabaptist perspective
• Lollards in the Catholic Encyclopedia - Lollardy as a heresy, from the Roman Catholic perspective.
• Lollards - essay on Lollards on Medieval Church website, including extensive list of secondary sources.

Anabaptists (Greek ανα (again) +βαπτιζω (baptize), thus, re-baptizers [1], German: Wiedertäufer) are Christians of the Radical Reformation. ... The Roman Catholic Church, most often spoken of simply as the Catholic Church, is the largest Christian church, with over one billion members. ...

References

• Richard Rex, The Lollards (Social History in Perspective), 2002