Thomas Cranmer

born July 2, 1489 in Lincolnshire
died (executed by burning) March 21, 1556 in Oxford

Ordained priest 1523
Archbishop of Canterbury, 1533-1556 under Henry VIII
Compiler of First Book of Common Prayer 1549 under Edward VI

Thomas Cranmer was the first Archbishop of Canterbury to lead the Church after its separation from Rome and the inauguration of the English Reformation.

In 1544 he completed the first vernacular service for the newly independent Church of England, The Exhortation and Litany. He proceeded from that point to develop the first Book of Common Prayer, which was authorized and published in 1549.

During Henry VIII's reign, Cranmer's reforms were mild, given Henry VIII's theological conservatism and dislike of Lutheranism. During the reign of Edward VI, Cranmer made more sweeping changes, publishing the first Book of Common Prayer. Upon Edward's death in 1553, however, Cranmer was in jeopardy as the succession to the throne was unsettled and he had been excommunicated by the Roman Church. Cranmer supported the abortive ascension of Lady Jane Grey, but she was proclaimed queen for only 9 days before the Privy Council switched loyalty and backed Mary I. After Mary I, an ardent Roman Catholic, ascended to the throne in 1553, Cranmer was arrested and executed by burning. Before his execution, he was pressured into signing a recantation. He later recanted the recantation, and when he was burned at the stake, allegedly first held into the flames the hand that had signed the recantation.

Cranmer's library at Croydon Palace held numerous text that he used in formulating the first Book of Common Prayer, but it was sold off piecemeal at his death, so we will never know exactly what it contained.

For more information, see:
The BBC biographical entry of Thomas Cranmer
My Episcopal Cafe's Speaking to the Soul meditation on Cranmer, March 21, 2015

1534 Act of Supremacy

A law passed in 1534 with the support of Archbishop Thomas Cranmer and Thomas Cromwell that acknowledged the principle of Royal Supremacy, making Henry VIII the supreme head of the Church of England and granting him the authority to nominate all bishops and control all Church property within the boundaries of the Church of England. In effect, this declared the Ecclesia Anglicana, or English Church, to be a national church separate from the primacy of Rome. This Act is commonly dated as the beginning of the English Reformation.

John Wesley

Portrait by George Romney

Anglican priest, pietist, founder of Methodism

born June 17, 1703 in Lincolnshire
died March 2, 1791 in London

Educated at Oxford, he joined a group founded by his brother Charles known as the "Holy Club."

"...Wesley, though his own preaching was mild and quiet in comparison to the scenery-chewing Whitfield, believed in the need for powerful emotional experiences, particular  moments in life when God gave the grace to live perfectly-- which in Wesley's vocabulary meant without conscious, intentional sin-- and exhorted his listeners to seek them out and treasure them."-- Alan Jacobs, The Book of Common Prayer: A Biography, pp.110-111.

For more information see:
Biography from Christianity Today

Works:
Various sermons of John Wesley from UMC Missions
Thoughts on Slavery at UNC Chapel Hill

auditory churches

From www.bishopstreetchurch.org.uk

A church design popular after the Great London Fire of 1666 necessitated the rebuilding of many parishes. Most famously designed by Christopher Wren, who measured how far the voice could be heard and designed their dimensions accordingly. They were often either square or round, without a chancel. The altar was placed upon the East wall with an altar rail surrounding it. The focal point was the pulpit. A baptismal font was placed at the west end. Over 50 parishes were built by Wren according to this design.

They were "open, airy, well-lit spaces, often circular in shape, where services can easily be heard, and likewise seen in one's own prayer book. They are something like the opposite of Gothic churches, those darkened divided chambers designed to enfold the holy mysteries of the Mass. The auditory churches fit a religion almost wholly of the book: they are made not for Holy Communion but for Morning Prayer and Evensong.... They were meant for congregational participation as well: clearly audible in them are not just the minister's prayers but the people's responses."--Alan Jacobs, The Book of Common Prayer: A Biography, pp. 107-8



For more information, see:
The Church of England 1688-1832: Unity and Concord
The Oxford Guide to the Book of Common Prayer: A Worldwide Survey
A Brief History of the Episcopal Church on google books
A History of the English Parish: The Culture of Religion from Augustine to Victoria
Beauty of Holiness: Anglicanism and Architecture in Colonial South Carolina

Latitudinarian

In the 17th century, a churchman who supported the episcopal governance and worship of the Church of England, but who denied that these forms were ordained by or derived their authority from God.

Originally applied to the Cambridge Platonists, they believed that reason should be used to establish church doctrine over reliance upon tradition alone, which caused the conservative party to view them as unorthodox.

They accepted tradition, but allowed for latitude on other teachings based on reason, hence the name.

Similar to the Broad Church movement of the 19th century.