science and judgment of Mary rose repugnant to every article the king required her to acknowledge; but by the advice of the guides of her conscience, who could easily absolve her from the guilt of perfidy, when such an act became necessary to promote the interest of the church of Rome, she, with her own hand, wrote a paper to her father, in which she owned him for her sovereign and the supreme head of the church of England, renounced all the authority of the pope of Rome, and acknowledged the marriage of the king with her mother to be incestuous and unlawful.

When the pope was informed of the part which his agents had acted, he expressed his unqualified approbation of their conduct, and entered into a treaty with Cassali, to promote an accommodation. He desired him to inform his majesty that he had always favoured his cause during the pontificate of his predecessor; and, though he had so yielded to the necessity of his affairs as to pronounce sentence against him, he never intended to put it into execution. But Henry was not only pleased with his new title of supreme head of the church, but he had found the fruits of Peter-pence so sweet to his taste that he would listen to no terms of accommodation. No sooner had the pope given up the last lingering hope of reconciling Henry than he endeavoured to unite and engage all the princes of Christendom in a war against him, as a heretic and deserter from the true church.

Complaint being made at court of the diversity of doctrines delivered in the pulpits, the king sent a circular letter to the bishops, forbidding all preaching till Michaelmas, by which time certain articles of religion, most catholic, should be proposed. These articles were composed by a committee of bishops and other learned men, under the immediate direction of the king. After many meetings and much debate, the commissioners finished their work, each party relinquishing some of their peculiar opinions in order to preserve others. This ritual consisted of two parts: the first contained the doctrines necessary to be believed; and the second, the ceremonies proper to be observed to promote devotion. In the first, the people were required to believe every thing contained in the Scriptures, in the Apostles' Creed, the Nicene and Athanasian creeds; the three sacraments of baptism, of penance, and of the altar, are explained, and declared necessary to salvation. In the explanation of baptism, the necessity of baptizing infants is asserted, and re-baptism is pronounced a damnable heresy. In the explanation of penance, auricular confession to a priest is made necessary to salvation; and the people are taught to give no less credence to the words of absolution pronounced by the priest than to the very words and voice of God himself, if he should speak unto them out of heaven. In explaining the sacrament of the altar, the doctrine of transubstantiation is stated in the strongest terms that could be em

ployed. The first part concludes with an explanation of the doctrine of justification, nearly the same as that which is now held by all protestant churches. In the second part, which treats of ceremonies, images were to be retained in churches, and the people were permitted to present offerings to them,-to kneel, and to burn incense before them; but they were to be taught that this should not be done to the images themselves, which is due to God only; "for else there might fortune of idolatry ensue, which God forbid." But was it a probable means of preventing idolatry, to teach the people to present offerings, kneel, and burn incense before images to the honour of God? Saints were to be honoured, but not with that confidence and honour that are due to God; it was only deemed proper to implore them to intercede for us with Almighty God. The people were instructed " to pray for souls departed, and to commit them in our prayers to God's mercy, and also to cause others to pray for them in masses, by giving alms for their prayers offered for the dead, whereby they may be relieved of their pains." The policy of this clause is very apparent; by giving alms to pray for the dead, the emoluments of the clergy were secured. These ceremonies were all to be observed by the people, but they were to be informed, at the same time, "that none of these ceremonies have power to remit sin, but only to stir and lift up our minds unto God, by whom alone our sins may be forgiven." These articles were published by the king's au

thority, and were to be implicitly observed by all his subjects.

From the preceding statement it appears that, though several of the anti-scriptural doctrines and ceremonies of the church of Rome were retained, some important points were gained by the friends of the Reformation. The Scriptures and the three ancient creeds were made the standards of doctrine, without any mention of tradition. Four of the seven sacraments were omitted; purgatory was left doubtful; pilgrimages were not enjoined; and several other things were explained and qualified. But neither party was satisfied with these articles. The papists complained that too much of the former system was relinquished, and the Reformers were equally dissatisfied that so much of it was retained; but notwithstanding their mutual dissatisfaction they were subscribed by both houses of convocation.

The clergy in England, who lived in the most criminal indolence, were greatly mortified at the injunctions proposed by archbishop Cranmer, and published by Thomas Lord Cromwell, the king's vicar-general. In these injunctions, all rectors, vicars, and curates, are commanded to preach in each quarter of the year, at least one sermon; in which they were to declare "purely and sincerely the very Gospel of Christ; and in the same exhort their hearers to works of charity, mercy, and faith, specially prescribed and commanded in Scripture; and not to repose their trust and affiance in any

other works devised by men's fantasies, beside Scripture; such as, wandering on pilgrimages, offering of money, candles, or tapers, to images or relics, or kissing or licking the same. If ye have heretofore declared to your parishioners any thing to the extolling or setting forth pilgrimages, feigned relics, or images,-or any such superstition, ye shall now openly before the same recant and reprove the same; showing them, as the truth is, that ye did the same upon no ground of Scripture, but as one led and seduced by a common error and abuse crept into the church, through the sufferance and avarice of such as felt profit by the same." No injunctions could be more disagreeable than these were to the majority of the clergy, who still retained a cordial affection for all the gainful tenets of the church of Rome. Some of the clergy read them over in such an improper manner that they were not understood; and, when an explanation was asked in private, they generally advised their people to do as their fathers had done, for the old way was by far the best.

The ecclesiastical authorities at Rome were not indifferent observers of Henry's proceedings. The pope tried to make an impression by threatening the king, and exciting the clergy to rebellion; but, when he found that these measures failed in their effects, he summoned the king to appear at a general council to meet at Mantua. The king having objected to attend, or submit his cause to * See Wilkin, p. 816, 817. Strype's Cranmer, p. 70.

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