Religion
A religious society
A significant difference between modern British society compared to Victorian society is in the importance of religion, both in terms of actual churchgoing and in religious talk and debate. In the U.S.A. today, the situation is more like that of Victorian Britain:
- churches on most street corners
- a good percentage of the population attends church on a Sunday morning
- preachers get a wide hearing, if not in halls and public meetings, then on television and radio.
The Church of England
In Victorian England the Church of England was still the dominant church, mainly because it was the state church, although in terms of numbers, the combined membership of the chapels or nonconformist churches, (Baptist, Methodist etc.), was approaching that of the Church of England.
In the eighteenth century, the Church of England had been very formal and rather moribund in its religious practice. In the first quarter of the nineteenth century, an Evangelical Movement had begun in the Anglican church, enthused by the more recent Methodist movement. Sometimes, this is referred to as Low Church Anglicanism.
Evangelicalism
Among other things, this style of Christianity promoted
- personal piety
- missions to other countries
- the abolition of slavery
- setting up many charities.
However, it never really penetrated the universities of Oxford and Cambridge, the two main centres of learning in England, where most of the nation's political and church leaders were educated. Until well into the nineteenth century, someone could not be a student at either university if they were not an Anglican. The two universities had become real bastions of die-hard Anglicanism, Oxford even more so than Cambridge.
A different way of worshipping
In 1833, a series of tracts (leaflets arguing a point of view) entitled ‘Tracts for the Times' were circulated at Oxford, some by John Keble, an Anglican clergyman who wanted an even stricter observance of the rituals laid down in the Anglican Book of Common Prayer. The tracts, which continued to be published till 1841, wanted the Church of England to become more like the Roman Catholic church, though not to accept the authority of the Pope, who was the head of the Catholic Church.
- To opponents, this meant putting the clock back to before the time of the Reformation
- To others, however, it meant restoring a proper sense of awe to church services and enhancing them with greater beauty and drama. For such individuals it also meant a new devotion to prayer, leading to a new spiritual energy.
The Oxford Movement
An influential group of people accepted the challenge of the tracts. They became known as Tractarians, or Puseyites after their leader, Edward Pusey, and the movement was sometimes called the Oxford Movement or the High Church revival. To-day the term Anglo-Catholic is often used for Anglicans who like to align their practice to that of the Roman Catholic Church.
Typically, ‘High Church' Anglicans put a great stress on:
- ritual in worship
- observing the seasons of the church year
- saints' days
- ornate robes worn by the clergy and choir
- candles, incense and other aesthetic considerations.
John Henry Newman
One of the early Tractarians and the writer of the very first tract was John Henry Newman. In 1845, to the Tractarians' dismay, Newman decided to become a Roman Catholic. In addition to experiencing a distinct religious experience, he was intellectually convinced that the logic of becoming more closely aligned to Roman Catholic practice was to go ‘all the way'. He was not deterred by the question of the Pope's authority. A number of his friends went ‘over to Rome', as it was termed, with him.
1. Term for a worshipping community of Christians.
2. The building in which Christians traditionally meet for worship.
3. The worldwide community of Christian believers.
A person within a church appointed to give a sermon at the worship services of that church. He may be the leader of that church, or someone within that church recognised as having a special ability to preach.
The 'Established' or state church of England, the result of a break with the Catholic church under Henry VIII and further developments in the reign of Elizabeth I.
A place of Christian worship other than a parish church eg.
1. Belonging to a great house, hospital, school, prison etc.
2. An area containing an altar within a larger church or cathedral.
3. A non-conformist place of worship.
In the U.K., any Protestant group or church that does not adhere to the teachings of the State Church, the Church of England or, in Scotland, the Church of Scotland.
One of the largest Protestant churches. Stresses the importance of only baptising (usually by immersion) people who are old enough to make a personal profession of faith based on accepting the forgiveness offered by God through Jesus Christ.
A Protestant church which emerged in Britain in the eighteenth century under the leadership of John Wesley and has members worldwide.
1. Devout, involved in religious practice
2. Member of a religious order, a monk or nun.
1. Term used of all Protestant churches since the Reformation.
2. Movement in England and elsewhere from the eighteenth century onwards which stresses the importance of the Bible in understanding the truth about God and the need for individuals to e
The Anglican church is the 'Established' or state church of England, the result of a break with the Catholic church under Henry VIII and further developments in the reign of Elizabeth I.
The part of the Church of England which emphasises its Protestant roots and simplicity in worship. Term sometimes applied to Evangelicals within the Anglican Church.
The Anglican church is the 'Established' or state church of England, the result of a break with the Catholic church under Henry VIII and further developments in the reign of Elizabeth I.
The beliefs, doctrines and practices of Christians.
1. A group of people sent out to share religious faith.
2. The task of sharing faith.
Absolute ownership of one person by another. Common in biblical times and widespread until the nineteenth century.
A prescribed order of performing religious or other devotional acts.
The book of prayers and church services first put together by Thomas Cranmer, Archbishop of Canterbury in the time of King Edward VI (1547-53) for common (ie. general) use in English churches.
The 'Established' or state church of England, the result of a break with the Catholic church under Henry VIII and further developments in the reign of Elizabeth I.
Member of a worldwide Christian church which traces its origins from St. Peter, one of Jesus' original disciples. It has a continuous history from earliest Christianity.
The supreme governor of the Roman Catholic Church who has his headquarters in Rome, in Vatican City. In certain circumstances, his doctrinal utterances are deemed infallible.
Term given to the movements of church reform which in the sixteenth century resulted in new Protestant churches being created as an alternative to the Roman Catholic Church.
Communication, either aloud or in the heart, with God.
The name is taken from a series of tracts issued in Oxford in the mid-nineteenth century advocating Anglo-Catholicism.
The followers of Pusey, the leader of the Oxford Movement which sought to revive Catholic practices in the Church of England in the mid-nineteenth century.
A Christian movement in the mid-nineteenth century on the part of some Anglicans to revive Catholic practices in the Church of England. It was centred on Oxford University.
Members of the Anglican Church who emphasise continuity with Catholic tradition without accepting all the teachings of the Roman Catholic church.
Members of the Anglican Church who emphasise continuity with Catholic tradition without accepting all the teachings of the Roman Catholic church.
In the New Testament the term is used of all Christians but gradually came to describe an especially holy person.
The collective term for priests and ministers of the church (as opposed to the non-ordained laity).
Traditionally used in services of Christian worship to symbolise the presence of Jesus 'the light of the world' and the Holy Spirit.
In some church services, incense is used to symbolise worship and the presence of the holy. It is swung in a censer at certain points in the Mass.
The supreme governor of the Roman Catholic Church who has his headquarters in Rome, in Vatican City. In certain circumstances, his doctrinal utterances are deemed infallible.
