The Reformation Movement In England

Throughout history, religion has been a major factor in many countries, whether that be Germany, Ireland, or the United Kingdom. An important event taking place in Europe during the sixteenth and seventeenth centuries was the Reformation. This movement began in Germany through Martin Luther, a monk, and eventually spread throughout the continent of Europe. The locations it reached in Europe included Ireland, Scotland and England. Though the three nations were of the same kingdom, all were affected differently by the Reformation. It is interesting to note that the Reformation movement was a success in England and Scotland, but it had failed in Ireland. This can be noted in a book written by Henry Holloway: "In England, great changes followed

"The major challenge for the Irish Reformation though, remained the lack of an Irish university." (Ford, James ussher, p. 26.) At the time Irish who were seeking a Protestant education would go to schools in England, such as Oxford and Cambridge. (Ford, James ussher. p. 25.) Having these institutions in Ireland would make it easier for more people to attend them, rather than Catholic or non-religious universities where they would not be learning Protestant doctrines. Trinity College was opened for the purpose of being a Protestant institution. Despite that, some of the early students were Catholics. According to Ford: Henry Fitzsimon "had to explain to a parent the grave dangers of sending children to Trinity." Peter Lombard called the teachers "heretic masters." (Ford, James usher, pg. 26.) This distrust and fear of attending Trinity College may explain why the Reformation was a failure in

These articles provided an outline of what their church believed and the Catholic teachings they were against. The Church of England had two documents: The Lambeth Articles, published in 1595, and the 39 Articles, published in 1553. The Scottish Confession of Faith and The Second Book of Discipline were published by those in the Church of Scotland. These were published in 1560 and 1578, respectively. The Church of Ireland had published The Irish Articles of Religion in 1615. These were published much later than the articles of England and Scotland, although the Lambeth Articles were only published 20 years prior. The Irish articles included The Lambeth articles, while neither of the Scottish documents mentioned it. The Lambeth Articles are about Predestination, a Calvinistic doctrine. "God from eternity hath predestinated certain men upon life; certain he hath reprobated." (John Whitgift, Lambeth Articles (England)). "By the same eternal counsel God hath predestinated some unto life and reprobated some unto death" (James Ussher, The irish articles of religion (Ireland)). There are similarities between that of the English and Scottish articles of faith, especially about the sacraments. The only sacraments the Church of England recognized were Baptism and the Supper of the Lord. They did not include "Confirmation, Penance, Orders, Matrimony and extreme Unction" because