another in the Art. re Lord's Sup per. important erasure was in the article respecting the 'Lord's Supper,' which had been almost entirely recast by the Archbishop, before the meeting of the Synod. One of the altered sentences, together with a long specting the paragraph into which it was engrafted, disappear in the printed Articles; and even were there no evidence surviving to illustrate the reasons of the change, we should naturally assign it to some disagreement of the prelates on the doctrine thus abstracted. But the history of the Elizabethan period can supply us with abundant elucidations of the controversy rising out of Cause of its the present article. The clause which was finally rejected by the Synod, was susceptible of a Zwinglian interpretation, appearing to deny the presence of our Lord in any way whatever; and this would doubtless be one reason for the change in the eyes of many of the prelates1. It opened also a further question, which was then occupying and inflaming the discussions of sundry continental theologians 2,-whether the humanity of our Lord can be so dissociated from His Divine nature, as to be in no sense present in many places at one and the same time. Whatever may have been the number of voices on either side of removal. opinions and iudgements as well He concludes by saying, 1 Dorman, who wrote his 'Proof' in 1564, alludes to this controversy in the 'new Church,' as he calls it, affirming that while some, like Guest (of Rochester), preached for the 'real presence,' and others, like Grin dal, denied it, Parker clung to the Lutheran tenet of consubstantiation (Strype, Annals, I. 334). It is probable that all these statements are somewhat exaggerated; but Nowel in his Confutation of Dorman,' does not deny that disunion existed on the subject, fol. 362. The article of the French Confession which the Calvinists exhibited at the Colloquy of Poissy (1561), has some points of parallelism with the English statement, as it was first introduced into the synod. Confess. Fid.Gallican. Art.xxXVI. ed. Niemeyer, 1840. 2 See Le Bas, Life of Jewel, 129, 130. these stirring questions, the result was the same as in the disputations on the descent of our Lord into Hades; for the paragraph which had been the moving cause of the controversy, was at last altogether withdrawn. Its erasure afforded a fresh example of the latitude and forbearance which had been more or less exercised by the Church in all her synodical decisions; and if some have condemned this hesitating silence as a guilty abandonment of the truth, it will be justified, in respect of a large class of questions, by an appeal to the history of the Councils, and nowhere so fully as in the records of the contemporary council of Trent. alterations. The remaining alterations of the upper house were Remaining limited to single phrases, yet nearly all of them are worthy of some passing notice. The eighth article of the elder series had read in one version of póvηua σapkos the word 'studium' only, and the omission had not been observed by archbishop Parker; but 'carnis' was now subjoined in the Synod for the sake of completing the sense'. In the title of the fifteenth article Parker had retained in Spiritum Sanctum,' but his phrase was subsequently underscored in the Manuscript, and the words after baptism' introduced. In the twenty-second of the Edwardine Articles 'verbo Dei' was substituted for 'verbis Dei:' in the margin of the twenty-ninth a passage of St Augustine, which had been there cited, was verified by a reference to the treatise2 out of which it was taken: and in the thirty-third on 'Traditions Ecclesiastical,' 'temporum' was added after 'regionum,' to make the statement of the principle still more comprehensive. 6 duced to The effect of these further modifications reduced Articles rethe number of the Articles to thirty-nine; and in the XXXIX. form which it assumed at this period3, the document 1 In the English Articles of 1552, the passage stood correctly, "The desire of the flesh.' 2 The reference was 'super Joann. Tract. 26,' which afterwards gave rise to some 'nib bling.' See Strype's Parker, 3 It may be remarked on to the lower house of convocation, seems to have reached the lower house of ConvocaTransferred tion. We have already seen that they manifested a peculiar zeal for the revival of the Articles of 1552', and had proceeded to organize a committee, under the sanction of the bishops, for considering if any changes were needed before these Articles were republished. The 20th of January was appointed for the bringing up of their report into the other house, and if this order was punctually obeyed, the criticism would be under the notice of the bishops during the whole of their own deliberations. It is now impossible to ascertain the amount of the changes which are due to the influence of this committee; but a comparison of the first edition of the Articles in 1563 with the Manuscript containing the episcopal signatures, must convince us, that with the exception of the disputed clause in the twentieth article, and the total disappearance of the twenty-ninth, entitled 'Impii non Articles: Hos Articulos fidei træ clementissimæ, anno quinto.' The subscriptions are then added, as enumerated above, p. 131. 1 A list of 'Matters to be moved by the clergy in the next parliament and synod,' which Strype has printed in his 'Annals,' 1. 317, seqq. appears to have proceeded from some of the more zealous reformers. It includes the following note, among others: Certain Articles containing the principal grounds of Christian religion are to be set forth, in which also is to be determined the truth of those things which in this age are called in question. Much like to such Articles as were set forth a little before the death of King Edward. Of which Articles the most part may be used with additions and corrections, as shall be thought convenient.' Feb. 5, subscribed. manducant,' &c. the lower house of Convocation had implicitly accepted the copy which received the approval of the bishops. At the session of the 5th of February, passed before the prolocutor1 and six of his clerical brethren were summoned into the presence of Grindal (acting in the stead of the Archbishop), and questioned respecting the 'Book of Doctrine' which had been lately forwarded from the bishops to be subscribed by the lower clergy. The prolocutor in reply exhibited a copy of the Arti- and gradually cles, remarking that they had already passed the inferior house, and were signed by some of the members, but added the request, that an order might be issued from the prelates, enjoining subscription upon all. On this account it was decreed unanimously that the names of all persons who continued in the list of the non-subscribers at the next session of the Synod should be noted by the prolocutor, and proscribed as delinquents. Many fresh names accordingly seem to have been added before the day when the Convocation reassembled (Feb. 10); and as no further mandate was issued after the 12th of this month, for the sake of ascertaining the backward subscribers, it is probable that all had now signified their assent either in person or by proxy2. When the labours of the Synod3 were thus brought Approved by 1 The only information obtainable respecting these proceedings, is derived from the extracts, published by Bp Gibson in his 'Synodus Anglicana,' 206 seqq. (above, p. 129, note); and as they belong to the journals of the upper house, the light thrown by them on the lower is casual and indirect. 2 A list of subscribers has been published in Strype, Annals, I. 327-329; but there seems no sufficient ground for supposing that it is a full and authentic copy, (cf. Dr Lamb's Hist. Acc. 20 seqq., Bennett, c. VI. passim). The number of representatives 3 Though the northern Con- the Queen, in Latin, by Wolfe. to a happy termination, at least so far as the Articles were concerned, we might have expected to follow them at once to a meeting of privy council, to witness their final approbation by the Queen. But a considerable time had elapsed', it may be a whole year, when an edition of them was published by the and printed royal printer, declaring that they had received her Majesty's approval, after she had read and examined them in person. Sir Edward Coke has stated that they were ratified at this period in the most formal manner, viz. by passing under the great seal of England; but no cause has ever been assigned for the delay which intervened before the publication of the work itself. There can be no doubt, however, in the absence of the Manuscript thus finally approved by the crown, that the most authentic representation of the Articles is to be sought in the Latin text, as it was printed under the auspices of the Queen. It alone was legally binding on the clergy, being invested with the concurrent sanction both of the ecclesiastical and the civil powers1. Contents of this copy. Now it is remarkable that this copy has altogether omitted one of the new Articles (the twenty-ninth in the Manuscript of archbishop Parker), and still of the archbishop of York and 1 See Bennett, c. XVII. Others 2 The language is very remarkable: 'Quibus omnibus Articulis serenissima princeps Elizabetha Dei gratia Angliæ Franciæ, et Hiberniæ regina, fidei Defensor, etc. per seipsam diligenter lectis et examinatis regium suum assensum præbuit.' 3 Instit. Part IV. c. 74, quoted by Bennett, 220. 4 See Dr Cardwell's remark, Synod. 1. 38, 39. 5 Bennett argues that it had passed the Convocation, but was subsequently withdrawn, (see below, p. 139, note 2), through tenderness towards the Romanising party, who had not yet seceded from the Church. In the following Convocation, (1571), this secession was taking place, and therefore the same need of forbearance no longer existed; 233, 234. |