Archbishop Of Canterbury Research Articles

Liturgy as an instrument of confessional identification: William Laud and the challenge of “foreign churches” in England

This publication presents the first translation intoRussian of a number of documents which portray the religious policy ofWilliamLaud,Archbishop ofCanterbury, supported byCharlesIStuart, towards foreignReformed churches in theProvince ofCanterbury.The documents include royal orders given in various forms, notarial instruments, petitions fromCalvinist congregations to both theKing and theArchbishop, and excerpts from correspondence between representatives of said congregations.They demonstrate the role of liturgy as an instrument of confessional identification and, consequently, of politico-religious loyalty in seventeenth-centuryReformationEngland.The authors also note the correlation ofLaud’s ideas with the transformation of the corporate foundations ofEnglish society and the formation of an “individualist” type of relationship between theCrown and its subjects, based on archaic feudal law and the precedents of the classicalMiddleAges, the essence of which consisted of personal ties of allegiance between the monarch (his “body natural”) and the subject, rather than between the subject and the “body politic” of the monarch (i.e., the “country”).

Enjoying what comes naturally: The Church of England and Sexuality in the 1930s

This article begins by outlining the changing approach in Anglican attitudes to contraception at the Lambeth Conference of 1930, where birth control was permitted for married couples and sex separated from the possibility of procreation. The logical extension of this teaching, as was noted by Bishop Charles Gore, was that other forms of sexual pleasure, including homosexuality, which was increasingly seen as a ‘natural’ condition, might eventually be sanctioned by the church. Later in the 1930s, a series of letters by Robert Reid to Cosmo Gordon Lang, archbishop of Canterbury, shows the beginnings of a campaign for a change of policy. At the outbreak of the Second World War, the Anglican writer Kenneth Ingram published Sex-Morality Tomorrow, which pressed for full homosexual equality and provoked calls to William Temple to suppress the book. 1940 proved an inopportune moment for reform of church teaching on homosexuality, which continues to elicit widespread controversy.

The Role of Parliament in the Implementation of Shariah in Western Europe (Belgium, France, and Germany)

This article aims to describe the condition of Muslims who live and integrate in Germany, Belgium, the Netherlands, and other European Regions, who should find religious foundations and interpretations that do not deviate from the boundaries imposed by a secular legal state. By calling for incorporating some Islamic law principles into British law, the Archbishop of Canterbury, Rowan Williams, has sparked interest and sharp criticism in Britain. In Germany, some journalists warned against “the Western world taking another step in the path of submission to the wishes of the minority Muslim immigrants who do not want to integrate.” Are these concerns well-founded? After conducting a literature review, we employed a qualitative approach using data from mass media, books, and journal articles to analyze the trend of a small proportion of European society, supported by scholars and clergy, who advocate for the application of Islamic law based on the principles of democracy and secularism. We studied how this phenomenon relates to freedom of opinion and the direction of community policy.
 Keywords: implementation, parliament, Shariah, Europe

COMMEMORATING CANTILUPE: THE ICONOGRAPHY OF ENGLAND’S SECOND ST THOMAS

2020 saw the celebration of significant anniversaries connected with several medieval English saints, led most notably by the triple anniversary of the birth (1120), death (1170) and translation (1220) of St Thomas Becket, archbishop of Canterbury (1162–70, canonised 1173). This offered scholars an occasion to review and revisit important aspects of the documentary sources and material culture relating to the saints’ cults in England and across Europe. The celebrations of St Thomas Becket also coincided with the 700th anniversary of the canonisation of St Thomas de Cantilupe, bishop of Hereford (1275–82, canonised 1320). Renewed scholarly interest in Cantilupe’s posthumous cult has particularly offered insights into daily life and devotion in late thirteenth- and early fourteenth-century England and Wales. Likewise, it has recently been demonstrated that, in the wake of the Cantilupe cult at Hereford Cathedral, a period of intense church building occurred throughout the diocese. This paper is the first to assemble and publish a comprehensive catalogue of all known lost and surviving iconographical images of Cantilupe from the Middle Ages. More significantly, keeping the 2020 celebrations of both the Becket and Cantilupe cults in mind, this paper is the first to bring attention to all the examples of medieval iconography that associate England’s two Thomases, demonstrating how Becket was utilised as a model of sanctity par excellence with Cantilupe presented as a ‘second Becket’.

Ancient Letters and Old Paper: How Matthew Parker (1504–1575) Understood Medieval Books

Abstract: This article examines the efforts of Matthew Parker and his scholarly circle to understand the medieval books that he collected as archbishop of Canterbury. It argues that Parker made sense of his books by connecting them to what amounted to an emerging history of the book. That is, Parker began to piece together the formal features of different medieval books into a rough but increasingly refined timeline of the history of book production in order to contextualize any given manuscript. The evidence can be found scattered throughout Parker's library, in the form of annotations, transcripts of passages, copied illustrations, and printed books that offer a wealth of information about how Parker's team understood the books they handled. This documentation reveals how they combined scribal knowledge with textual information, to powerful ends. By connecting Parker's practices to contemporary developments in other areas of knowledge production, from alchemy to conjectural emendation, this article offers a new way forward for scholarly analysis of the early modern study of older books, especially for our analysis of early modern practices and paradigms that do not fit modern definitions of paleography and codicology.

Theodore of Tarsus and the Study of Computus at the Canterbury School

ABSTRACT The Irish Computus Einsidlensis (CE) of c. 700 contains a reference to a certain Theodore. This article makes the case that this Theodore should be identified with Theodore of Tarsus, archbishop of Canterbury from 668/9 to his death, 690, on the basis of comparison not only with other contemporary Latin versions of the same argumentum, but also Byzantine computi. The passage under discussion represents the only known computistical tract that can with confidence be ascribed to the famous Canterbury school under Theodore and Hadrian. From the evidence provided, it appears that Theodore learnt this algorithm while studying in the Byzantine Empire and introduced it through his teaching to his Canterbury audience; his Irish students brought it to Ireland, from where it got popularised on the Continent through Willibrord.

Lichfield and the Lands of St Chad: Creating Community in Early Medieval Mercia, by Andrew Sargent

Andrew Sargent’s doctoral research on the ecclesiastical landscape of the early medieval Lichfield episcopate presents a stimulating set of arguments, frequently takes trenchant issue with established approaches, offers new interpretations, and is enthusiastic in thinking about further, unexplored implications. The general definition of ‘community’ he adopts is ‘groups of people who formed relationships mediated by specific forms of encounter’; his goal is to understand their workings through ‘the collective material practices through which they were created’ (p. 7). Over eight chapters, he pursues that objective by examining how bishops of Lichfield, between the ninth and eleventh centuries, used ceremony and custom to mediate their place, role and influence in communities of religious practice and among secular communities under their lordship. Much is stimulating and convincing. The argument is well made that Theodore, archbishop of Canterbury from 668 to 690, extended and unified the English episcopate and integrated religious leaders, especially the bishops, into the lay elite. His aim was the development of a commanding political influence for the church by instilling a common ‘English’ identity among the ‘chosen’ peoples (gentes) of the established kingdoms. The author’s reconstruction of a more detailed life of St Chad than was previously thought possible is a major achievement. It is based on careful, innovative use of evidence from Bede’s Historia Ecclesiastica and from the life of St Wilfrid—and by drawing on Bede to reassemble what Dr Sargent believes was one of Bede’s principal sources: a history of Lastingham Abbey’s first two abbots, drawn up there in the late seventh or early eighth century.

Muḥammad und Cædmon und die Siebenschläferlegende. Zur Verbindung zwischen Palästina und Canterbury im 7. Jahrhundert

Abstract There are strong parallels between the popular description of Muḥammad’s first revelation in the Sīra of Ibn Isḥāq and a depiction of a seventh-century Northumbrian monk Cædmon in the Historia ecclesiastica gentis Anglorum by Bede Venerabilis. There has been some debate about whether these parallels are more or less coincidental, but very good arguments for a relation between the two texts have been put forward. This article adds to this line of research by providing a concrete model of how a Middle Eastern Vorlage might have traveled to Bede Venerabilis. It is argued that the archbishop of Canterbury, Theodore of Tarsus (d. 690), played a key role in this transfer. His biography puts into focus the transposition of Greek-Palestinian and -Egyptian monk congregations including relics and texts to Italy and especially Rome during the seventh century. The relevance of the surviving texts from the school of Canterbury for the study of seventh-century Middle Eastern history is then further illustrated with a version of the so-called legend of the Seven Sleepers of Ephesos recorded in Theodore’s biblical exegesis. Theodore’s specific version of that legend overlaps significantly with the version contained in the Qurʾān in Sura 18 (al-Kahf, “The cave”). It has always been clear that Sūrat al-Kahf refers to the Christian Seven Sleepers legend. However, since all other hitherto known versions of the story differed significantly from the Qurʾān version, the connection between the versions was usually imagined within a model of “oral transmission.” The version recorded from Theodore’s seventh century teaching sessions now allow us to draw a more nuanced picture in which this specific version of the legend can be situated in seventh-century Palestine. Possibly it was linked to the veneration of Lot in that region, drawing a parallel between Lot’s wife, who had supposedly been transformed into a pillar of salt, but was apparently thought to not have died, and the unnaturally long sleep of the Seven Sleepers over centuries.

Reflections on the Lambeth Conference

ABSTRACT This article is an observer’s reflection on the Lambeth Conference of bishops of the Anglican Communion held in summer 2022. It describes the physical conditions under which the conference met, the role played by the Archbishop of Canterbury in convening and overseeing the Conference, and the evolution of the Conference’s processes. It concludes with a series of short reflections on the implications of the Conference, and particularly its handling of differences over same-sex relationships, for the polity and future of the Anglican Communion.

Franziska van Buren, An Introduction to the Metaphysical Thought of John Peckham: Text and Translations of Selected Quodlibetal Questions and the Summa de Esse et Essentia.. Medieval Philosophical Texts in Translation, 54. Milwaukee, WI: Marquette University Press, 2023, xiv, 123 pp.

Teaching medieval philosophy can no longer rely on students’ solid knowledge of Latin. Concomitantly, we just have to accept the fact that the body of relevant texts is enormous, so any help in making a useful selection can only be welcomed. Franziska van Buren turns her attention to the significant, but probably not so well-known thirteenth-century Franciscan cleric, John Peckham (ca. 1240–1290) who was a student under Bonaventure (ca. 1221–1270) and assumed such major position as provincial minister of the Franciscans (1274–1279) and Archbishop of Canterbury (1279–1292). Famous Thomas Becket (1162–1170) was one of his predecessors, and he followed him to some extent in the Church’s struggle against the English king, Edward I.

:The Register of Simon Sudbury, Archbishop of Canterbury, 1375–1381

Previous articleNext article No AccessReviewsF. Donald Logan, ed., The Register of Simon Sudbury, Archbishop of Canterbury, 1375–1381. (Canterbury & York Society.) Woodbridge, UK: Boydell, 2020. Pp. 391. $60. ISBN: 978-0-9072-3983-3.Michael BurgerMichael BurgerAuburn University, Montgomery Search for more articles by this author PDFPDF PLUSFull Text Add to favoritesDownload CitationTrack CitationsPermissionsReprints Share onFacebookTwitterLinkedInRedditEmail SectionsMoreDetailsFiguresReferencesCited by Speculum Volume 98, Number 1January 2023 The journal of the Medieval Academy of America Article DOIhttps://doi.org/10.1086/723049 Views: 11Total views on this site For permission to reuse, please contact [email protected]PDF download Crossref reports no articles citing this article.

Henry V

Reviewed by: Henry V Justin B. Hopkins Henry V Presented by Chesapeake Shakespeare Company in Baltimore, MD. 22 April–15 May 2022. Directed by Alec Wild. Set design by Dan O’Brien. Lighting design by Minjoo Kim. Costume design by Kristina Lambdin. Music composed by Caleb Stine. With Samuel Adams (Henry), Ian Charles (Bedford/Scroop/Nym/Williams), Jonas Connors-Grey (Archbishop of Canterbury/Cambridge/Bardolph/King of France), Michael Crowley (Henry IV/Fluellen/Constable), Terrance Fleming (Westmorland/Dauphin), Oz Heiligman (Boy), DeJeanette Horne (Falstaff/Gower/Governor of Harfleur), Bess Kaye (Gloucester/Orleans), Lesley Malin (Chorus), Morgan Pavey (Bishop of Ely/Katherine), Dawn Thomas Reidy (Exeter), Sam Richie (Pistol), Teresa Spencer (Nell Quickly), and Ryan Tumulty (Montjoy/Grey/Bates/Burgundy). During a preshow talk before the closing performance of Henry V, its director, Alec Wild, remarked on the challenge of interpreting the play in light of current world events, especially those taking place in Eastern Europe. Henry V is a play about an invasion with an origin of questionable legality, as well as outright illegal and immoral actions on both sides. Wild acknowledged that during rehearsals the company had felt the need to address the Russian invasion of Ukraine. But how? Wild pointed out that Henry obviously doesn’t correspond comfortably to Russian President Vladimir Putin. However, Wild said, it would also be inappropriate to show Henry wholly as a hero—as, say, some thinly veiled version of Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky. [End Page 552] Click for larger view View full resolution Samuel Adams as King Henry V and the Company in Henry V, dir. Alec Wild. Chesapeake Shakespeare Company (CSC), 2022. Photo by Kiirstn Pagan, courtesy of CSC. Instead, the production avoided direct comparisons with any recognizable historical figure or situation, past or present. Rather, an open-ended approach to interpreting the text was chosen, which, Wild claimed, questioned the actual role of heroism in conflict. Wild asked that question explicitly in his Director’s Note for the production program: “how badly do we want a hero, and what are we willing to put up with in order to keep our hero-worship intact?” This open-endedness was also reflected, implicitly, in the simplicity of the production design. Dan O’Brien’s set was a collection of blocks on an otherwise bare thrust stage, which were rearranged into scenery as necessary. Kristina Lambdin costumed the cast in contemporary, casual clothes (T-shirts and jeans or slacks), with occasional accents (crowns, capes, baldrics, etc.). This spare world balanced between the archaic and the modern seemed to invite the audience perception of Henry to form without the association or imposition of specific place or period. Maybe more than visual design, the decision about how to edit a performance text can drastically affect a company’s approach to and an audience’s reception of a production. Wild mentioned during the preshow talk that he felt it was important not to cut any part of the play-text that [End Page 553] presents Henry either more or less sympathetically. Therefore, there would be no letting Henry off the hook for his appalling, criminal, and repeated orders to kill the French prisoners of war, or for his endorsement of Bardolph’s hanging—a legal execution, but no less upsetting. Nor did Wild soften Henry’s rhetoric at the siege of Harfleur—the King’s promises to murder and rape were fully and ferociously present, with Henry standing high on a stack of blocks, pointing at and making eye contact with audience members on each side of the thrust stage, as if to include, or to implicate us in the horrific violence he threatened. Not only was not much text cut, but Wild also added several scenes from Henry IV, as he indicated during the preshow talk, to help situate any audiences unfamiliar with the back story. As the Archbishop of Canterbury and the Bishop of Ely conversed in act one, scene one, they paused their exposition at key moments to allow for staged flashbacks. “The courses of his youth promised it not” (1.1.24) prompted a recreation of Falstaff and Prince Hal’s battle of witty insults in Cheapside Tavern, and “The breath no...

John Witheridge, In the Shadow of Death: A Life of Archibald Campbell Tait, Archbishop of Canterbury

John Witheridge, <i>In the Shadow of Death: A Life of Archibald Campbell Tait, Archbishop of Canterbury</i>

Talk and Textual Production in Medieval England

Talk and Textual Production in Medieval England

F. Donald Logan, ed. The Register of Simon Sudbury, Archbishop of Canterbury, 1375–1381. The Canterbury and York Society 110. Woodbridge: Boydell Press, 2020. Pp. 391. $60.00 (cloth).

F. Donald Logan, ed. The Register of Simon Sudbury, Archbishop of Canterbury, 1375–1381. The Canterbury and York Society 110. Woodbridge: Boydell Press, 2020. Pp. 391. $60.00 (cloth). - Volume 61 Issue 3

A Palaeographical Reconsideration of the ‘Hand D’ Corpus

This article explores those manuscripts with glosses and additions attributed to 'Hand D', a key figure in the history of English Caroline minuscule and often ascribed to St. Dunstan, Archbishop of Canterbury. It provides a thorough examination of those additions, corrections, and glosses attributed to Hand D to establish a revised corpus of manuscripts containing Hand D's writing, before providing a comprehensive assessment of the development of this scribe's activity. The evidence presented suggests that the 'Hand D' corpus comprises a single scribe previously trained in the Insular scribal tradition who incorporates Caroline minuscule letterforms over a period of time. This palaeographical assessment yields significant implications for the development of English Caroline minuscule in mid-tenth century England, which raises intriguing questions about the true identity of this intriguing scribe.

The Register of Simon Sudbury, Archbishop of Canterbury, 1375–1381. Edited by F. DonaldLogan. Boydell &amp; Brewer, 2020. xxi + 369 pp. £35.00.

The Register of Simon Sudbury, Archbishop of Canterbury, 1375–1381. Edited by F. DonaldLogan. Boydell &amp; Brewer, 2020. xxi + 369 pp. £35.00.

Art and the religious imagination: A conversation with Rowan Williams

Dr Deborah Lewer introduces this conversation between herself and Dr Rowan Williams by reflecting on how word and image point to the risk and the promise involved in words about wordless works of art. As a theologian, poet, and former Archbishop of Canterbury, Williams highlights the ongoing, responsive, and dynamic relationship that human beings can develop with particular pieces of visual art. Such an interaction can be extended when a painting is responded to by another medium – for instance, that of a poem. It is in the transcendence and indeterminacy of a piece of art that Williams locates imagination’s link to faith.

Leonie James, ed. The Household Accounts of William Laud, Archbishop of Canterbury, 1635–1642. Church of England Record Society 24. Woodbridge: Boydell Press, 2019. Pp. 325. $120.00 (cloth).

Leonie James, ed. The Household Accounts of William Laud, Archbishop of Canterbury, 1635–1642. Church of England Record Society 24. Woodbridge: Boydell Press, 2019. Pp. 325. $120.00 (cloth). - Volume 61 Issue 2

A Note Clarifying the Date of the Last Will and Testament of Richard FitzAlan, earl of Arundel (d. 1397)

In the Oxford Dictionary of National Biography entry for the Appellant lord, Richard FitzAlan (1346–1397), fourth earl of Arundel and ninth earl of Surrey, the biographer asserts that the earl’s will, later proved at the court of his brother, Thomas Arundel, archbishop of Canterbury, was dated 4 March 1393 (emphasis mine).1 There is, however, some contention around this date due to what is likely a scribal error in the still-unedited and -unpublished register of Archbishop Arundel: early in the will, the scribe has either misidentified the regnal year or has miscopied the calendar date. The text opens: En noun de piere du fitz et de seint espririt Amen. Jeo Richard counte darundell et de Surrey le quart jour de Mars, lan del incarnation nostre seignour ihu crist mill ccc quatre vintz et douze, et lan du regne le Roy Richard seconde seszime en moun chastel philipp en bone et seine memorie face mon testament (In the name of [the] Father, [the] Son, and [the] Holy Spirit, Amen. I, Richard, earl of Arundel and of Surrey, [on] the fourth day of March, the year of the incarnation of our Saviour Jesus Christ [one] thousand three hundred ninety-two, and the sixteenth year of the reign of the king Richard II, at my castle Philipp, in good and healthy mind, make my testament).2