Who+were+the+Lollards?



 Who were the Lollards ?

 by

 Vanessa D. Bing

I chose to write about the 95 theses by Martin Luther. So sit back and relax because I am going to share what I have learned about this subject. According to Lindberg, the Lollards were followers of John Wyclif who were fed up with the Catholic church (p.295).


 * __Sources;__**

Cigman, G. (1989). Luceat Luvestra: The Lollard Preacher as Truth and Light. //The Review of the English Studies// New Series, Vol. 40, No. 160 (Nov.1989), pp. 479-496 Published by: Oxford University Press stable URL:http://www.jstor.org/stable/20463130

//Speculum// Vol. 79, No. 4 (Oct. 2004), pp. 1129-113. Published by: Medieval Academy of America retrieved from http://www.jstor.org.tarver -proxy.mercer.edu/stable/20463130

The Lollards in Pre-Reformation Scotland //Church History// Vol. II, No. 4 (Dec., 1942) pp. 269-283 published by: Cambridge University Press on behalf of the American society of //Church History//, from http://www.jstor.org.tarver-proxy.mercer.edu/stable/3160372

__**Additional sources:**__

Lindberg, Carter. //The European Reformations//, Wiley-Blackwell, 2010.

Havens, J. C., Pitard, D. G., & Somerset, F. (2009), //Lollards and their Influence in Late Medieval England//, Boydell Press

Rex, Richards (2002). //The Lollards//, New York; Palgravee

__**First argument** //**:**//__ I argue that the "Lollards" played a very important during the European Reformation. According to Richard Rex, author of //"The Lollards"// (2002), "John Wyclif and the Lollards were not important as historians and literaryscholars have often claimed". I will defend my argument with the resources I have listed above. I will try to my first question is will " Who were the Lollards"?. Next, I will discuss how John Wyclif influenced the Lollards? Then I will discus how the Lollards' beliefs spread quickly. Lastly, I will discuss why I disagree with Richard Rex's, author of " //The Lollards"//, statement that "John Wyclif and his followers were not important to the European Reformation."


 * __Argument:__**

According to Richard Rex,author of //"The Lollards" (2002)// "John Wyclif and the Lollards were not important as historians and literary scholars have often claimed". Rex's statement is incorrect because several books and scholarly articles are about the Lollards. There were many unseen and unheard heroes during the medieval period of European history, but I argue that the Lollards are important to mention.


 * __My answers to the final argument:__**

There are many questions that I wanted to answered about the Lollards. " Who were the Lollards"? What caused the higher authorities of the Roman Catholic church to become angry and violent toward the Lollards? How did the teachings of Lollardy spread rapidly but smothered rapidly? Who were the Lollards? "Lollard"is defined as a shadowy community (wolf, 2010). Shadowy is defined as not being taken serious. According to the American Heritage dictionary, shadowy is defined as not having official status. Now I understand why this group of men were not taken seriously.Church History shows that the Lollards were a group of men from Oxford that followed John Wyclif's teaching against the Roman Catholic church.

John Wyclif came to Oxford to recieve an academic and clerical career. John Wyclif was worked hard to have a successeful academic and clerical career. He was appointed master of the New Canterbury College in 1365. His position was legally challenged and he was displaced in favor (Rex, 2002). I am now wondering could this add to the idea of challenging the Roman Catholic church authorities. Wyclif believed that the Roman Catholic church should preach from the bible scriptures, everyone should have access to a bible in their native language. Wyclif translated the entire Bible from Latin to English. Wyclif believed the bishop had too much power over oral confession, which often required the payment of money by the penient (Somerset, Pitard, and havens, 2003).

I was surprised that many individuals with high status were interested in Wyclif's teaching. In the beginning, the Lollards started out as college students from Oxford that followed John Wyclif's teaching. It's possible that the students spread of Wyclif's teachings to their family members. Once the family member received the information than the Wyclif's beliefs spread throughout their community. According to Somerset, Pitard, & Havens, there were some people mentioned by name. Thomas Compworth was an esquire of Trupp (in Kildrington, Oxford) belonging to the dubious distinction of being the first layman convicted of heresy in the late medieval (p. 71). The next person is Thomas Compworth junior who was born to Agnes and Thomas Compworth. When junior was older he opposed the rules of Henry IV considering the property of Langston, in Yorkshire, which had been forfeited to the crown by the treason of John Holand, Duke of Exeter (p.85). I chose the Compworth's because they made the Wyclif's beliefs a family affair.

Even though Richard Rex said that the Lollards were not an important part of the Reformation of European history, I have a lot of important information to share about Lollards. The Lollard knights were also mentioned, by Richard Rex. The Lollards knights were Sir Thomas Latimer, Sir Richard Sturry, Sir John Cheyne, Sir Lewis Clifford, Sir William Neville, and Sir John Montaque (later Earl of Salisbury). These men are named in the chronicles by Thomas Walsingham and Henry Knighton throughouts history (p.61). The Lollard knights had very important roles as promoting Lollard preachers and teaching. One of the most important patrons of Lollardy was Sir John Oldcastle. Lord Cobham, whose original power base was in the Welsh marches. It was suggested that Oldcastle was probably already a Lollard before he became a MP for Herefordshire in 1401 and sheriff in 1406-07 (p.620). I learned from Rex that Lollards were under pressure in the wake of Lancastrian usurpation as Henry IV gave the royal assent to a stature, //De haeretico comburendo// (' On the burning of herectics) which regulate the customary medieval penalty by the canon law of death by burning for relapsed pr unrepentant heretics (p. 83).

I have learned a lot from reading Richard Rex, //" The Lollards"// but he contradicted himself about the relationship between Lollardy and Protestantism. It has been noted that the relationship between Lollardy and Protestantism has been the subject of intense debate (p.115). the information that Rex shared about the similarities of Lollardy and Protestantism is true. As a matter of fact, there are some undeniable facts that the two religious movements share some common doctrines. The similarities are denials of Roman Catholics doctrines: denial of transubstantiation and even of the real presence on the eucharist; the veneration of relics and image of saints; the intercession of the saints; pilgrimage; auricular confession; an order of the priesthood; indulgences; and of the papal authority (p.116). I will also to include another contradiction that Rex made about the similarities extended to two of the main principles of the Reformation: the equation of the papal with antichrist and the assertion of the sole and supreme authority of scripture in doctrinal matters (p.116).

Since Rex has given more information than I expected, from his book, //"The Lollards",// there are several more topics I will share information about.I will research more information about Lollardy and Calvinism (p.139). The Lollardy and Calvinism did not have any thing in common, but they they did exist around the same time. I have to agree with Rex that they did not mix (p.139). Calvinism was preached outside Germany. Calvinism struck roots easily enough in regions abroad which lacked the Lollard tradition of some parts of England, anything like them (p.139). In England, Calvinism was more popular in Cambridge, with no Lollard background, than Oxford, the birthplace of Lollards.


 * __Conclusion:__**

By now you should have learned a lot about the Lollards, although Richard Rex argued that the Lollards were not as important as historians and literary scholars have often claimed. I have learned from this class, that history is defined as his or her story of the past. As a historian, you have to step outside your box of thoughts and carefully listen, and observe the facts, before you think you know what you are talking about. As I stated earlier in this wiki page, I have learned a lot John Wyclif and the Lollards. I have to say that Rex contradicted himself a lot in the book, but that is how some authors are. Next, I will answer my first question. Who were the Lollards? The Lollards were a group of men who were followers of John Wyclif. Wyclif had several problems with the Roman Catholic Church. He challenged the Roman Catholic Church authorities on transubstantiation, and even on the real presence on the eucharist, pilgrimage, and the papal authorities. Once the Roman Catholic Church learned of his religious movement against their religious practices. Wylclif's punishment was burning at the stake. I still believe that John Wyclif and the Lollards played a very important of the Reformation of European history. Now, I wonder did the Lollardy movement open the door to Protestantism.

W. Stanford Reid //Church History, vol. 11 No.4 ( Dec., 1942) pp. 269-283// __Cambridge University Press__ **on behalf of the __American Society of Church History__** Retrieved, on 08/10/2010, from http://www.jstor.org/stable/316037
 * Article Analysis #1 - The Lollards in Pre-Reformation Scotland**
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