Nicholas fHereford (died in 1420) was an English Bible translator, Lollard, reformer on the side of John Wycliffe, Fellow of The Queen's College, Oxford and

Chancellor Chancellor ( la, cancellarius) is a title of various official positions in the governments of many nations. The original chancellors were the of Roman courts of justice—ushers, who sat at the or lattice work screens of a basilica or law cou ...

of the University of Oxford in 1382. He was a

Doctor of Theology Doctor of Theology ( la, Doctor Theologiae, abbreviated DTh, ThD, DTheol, or Dr. theol.) is a terminal degree in the academic discipline of theology. The ThD, like the ecclesiastical Doctor of Sacred Theology, is an advanced research degree equiva ...

, which he achieved at Oxford University in 1382.

Biography

His name probably came from the southwestern English city of

Hereford Hereford () is a cathedral city, civil parish and the county town of Herefordshire, England. It lies on the River Wye, approximately east of the border with Wales, south-west of Worcester and north-west of Gloucester. With a population ...

. Nicholas studied at the University of Oxford, and was ordained a priest in 1370 and earned in 1382 the degree of Doctor of Theology. Nicholas criticized the luxury of the Church and reaffirmed the right of every Christian to attain his own faith by reading the Bible. Nicholas collaborated in producing the English-language version of the Bible known as

Wycliffe's Bible Wycliffe's Bible is the name now given to a group of Bible translations into Middle English that were made under the direction of English theologian John Wycliffe. They appeared over a period from approximately 1382 to 1395. These Bible translati ...

. He is believed to have been entrusted with the translation of the

Old Testament The Old Testament (often abbreviated OT) is the first division of the Christian biblical canon, which is based primarily upon the 24 books of the Hebrew Bible or Tanakh, a collection of ancient religious Hebrew writings by the Israelites. The ...

, the major part of which was completed by 1382. He was condemned with Wycliffe and other Lollards for their views and had to appear in 1382 at the court of the

Archbishop of Canterbury The archbishop of Canterbury is the senior bishop and a principal leader of the Church of England, the ceremonial head of the worldwide Anglican Communion and the diocesan bishop of the Diocese of Canterbury. The current archbishop is Justi ...

to revoke. When they refused to revoke their views, they were excommunicated. He immediately traveled to Rome to appeal his excommunication before Pope Urban VI, but was imprisoned."Nicholas Hereford", ''The Cambridge History of English and American Literature'', Volume II. The End of the Middle Ages
/ref> During a popular uprising against the Pope in June 1385, he escaped and traveled back to England. Upon his return, however, he was re-imprisoned by William Courtenay, the Archbishop of Canterbury, and his writings were confiscated and destroyed by order of King

Richard II of England Richard II (6 January 1367 – ), also known as Richard of Bordeaux, was King of England from 1377 until he was deposed in 1399. He was the son of Edward the Black Prince, Prince of Wales, and Joan, Countess of Kent. Richard's father die ...

. In 1391 he finally revoked his church-critical views being reconciled with the Roman Catholic Church and was appointed in the same year the chancellor of

Hereford Cathedral Hereford Cathedral is the cathedral church of the Anglican Diocese of Hereford in Hereford, England. A place of worship has existed on the site of the present building since the 8th century or earlier. The present building was begun in 1079. S ...

and in 1395 to the

St Paul's Cathedral St Paul's Cathedral is an Anglican cathedral in London and is the seat of the Bishop of London. The cathedral serves as the mother church of the Diocese of London. It is on Ludgate Hill at the highest point of the City of London and is a Grad ...

in London. From 1397 to 1417 he was treasurer in Hereford. A few years before his death he resigned as treasurer and entered the

Carthusian Order The Carthusians, also known as the Order of Carthusians ( la, Ordo Cartusiensis), are a Latin enclosed religious order of the Catholic Church. The order was founded by Bruno of Cologne in 1084 and includes both monks and nuns. The order h ...

. Nicholas died in 1420 in the Charterhouse of Coventry. His only surviving work on which he has collaborated is the Wyclif Bible.

References

Year of birth unknown 1420 deaths English Roman Catholic theologians People temporarily excommunicated by the Catholic Church 14th-century English Roman Catholic priests Fellows of The Queen's College, Oxford Chancellors of the University of Oxford 15th-century English Roman Catholic priests

Nicholas Nicholas is a male given name and a surname. The Eastern Orthodox Church, the Roman Catholic Church, and the Anglicanism, Anglican Churches celebrate Saint Nicholas every year on December 6, which is the name day for "Nicholas". In Greece, the n ...

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Biography

See also

References