''The Books of Homilies'' (1547, 1562, and 1571) are two books together containing thirty-three sermons developing the authorized reformed doctrines of the

Church of England The Church of England (C of E) is the established Christian church in England and the mother church of the international Anglican Communion. It traces its history to the Christian church recorded as existing in the Roman province of Britai ...

in depth and detail, as appointed for use in the 35th Article of the

Thirty-Nine Articles The Thirty-nine Articles of Religion (commonly abbreviated as the Thirty-nine Articles or the XXXIX Articles) are the historically defining statements of doctrines and practices of the Church of England with respect to the controversies of the ...

of Religion. The longer title of the collection is ''Certain Sermons or Homilies Appointed to Be Read in Churches''. They belong to the basic formularies of the Church of England.

Revision and reform

Following the secession of the

from the jurisdiction of the Church of Rome in 1530, and the designation of the monarch,

Henry VIII of England Henry VIII (28 June 149128 January 1547) was King of England from 22 April 1509 until his death in 1547. Henry is best known for his six marriages, and for his efforts to have his first marriage (to Catherine of Aragon) annulled. His disa ...

, as the chief power in both the civil and ecclesiastical estates of the realm, it was needful for the establishment of the English Reformation that the reformed Christian doctrines, theology, piety, and practice should be explained and taught as widely as possible among all congregations throughout the realm. Although the liturgy had formerly been conducted entirely in

Latin Latin (, or , ) is a classical language belonging to the Italic branch of the Indo-European languages. Latin was originally a dialect spoken in the lower Tiber area (then known as Latium) around present-day Rome, but through the power of the ...

, and holy communion (consisting only of the consecrated bread) was administered twice a year, the progress of reformed faith had long been developing unofficially among the populace at all levels, as much through the Wycliffite tradition, as through the new learning in the universities in its wider European context.

The ''Bishops' Book'' and ''King's Book''

Attempts to reformulate the doctrine of the English Church, led by Archbishop

Thomas Cranmer Thomas Cranmer (2 July 1489 – 21 March 1556) was a leader of the English Reformation and Archbishop of Canterbury during the reigns of Henry VIII, Edward VI and, for a short time, Mary I. He helped build the case for the annulment of Henry ...

under

Thomas Cromwell Thomas Cromwell (; 1485 – 28 July 1540), briefly Earl of Essex, was an English lawyer and statesman who served as chief minister to King Henry VIII from 1534 to 1540, when he was beheaded on orders of the king, who later blamed false char ...

as Vicegerent, begun with the adoption of the (partly Lutheran) Ten Articles in 1536, was augmented in 1537 by a volume of disquisitions known as the '' Bishops' Book'', or ''The Institution of a Christen Man''. This book was divided into four sections as follows:

* The exposition of the
Apostles' Creed The Apostles' Creed (Latin: ''Symbolum Apostolorum'' or ''Symbolum Apostolicum''), sometimes titled the Apostolic Creed or the Symbol of the Apostles, is a Christian creed or "symbol of faith". The creed most likely originated in 5th-century ...

* The declaration of the Seven Sacraments
* The exposition of the
Ten Commandments The Ten Commandments (Biblical Hebrew עשרת הדברים \ עֲשֶׂרֶת הַדְּבָרִים, ''aséret ha-dvarím'', lit. The Decalogue, The Ten Words, cf. Mishnaic Hebrew עשרת הדיברות \ עֲשֶׂרֶת הַדִּבְ ...

* The exposition of the ''
Pater noster The Lord's Prayer, also called the Our Father or Pater Noster, is a central Christian prayer which Jesus taught as the way to pray. Two versions of this prayer are recorded in the gospels: a longer form within the Sermon on the Mount in the Gosp ...
'' and the ''
Ave ''Alta Velocidad Española'' (''AVE'') is a service of high-speed rail in Spain operated by Renfe, the Spanish national railway company, at speeds of up to . As of December 2021, the Spanish high-speed rail network, on part of which the AVE s ...
'', with the articles of Justification and Purgatory.

Dedicated by the bishops to King Henry, this was first ordered to be read from the pulpits, but then suppressed with a view to revision. In 1539 the Six Articles were enacted in law, a reactionary formula with very severe penalties for violation. The revised work called the ''

King's Book The Thirty-nine Articles of Religion (commonly abbreviated as the Thirty-nine Articles or the XXXIX Articles) are the historically defining statements of doctrines and practices of the Church of England with respect to the controversies of the ...

'', or ''The Necessary Doctrine and Erudition for Any Christen Man'', was deliberated upon at the Convocation of 1540 (at the time of Cromwell's fall) and published in 1543. The ''King's Book'' contained sections as follows, as in the ''Bishops' Book'' giving lengthy

paraphrase A paraphrase () is a restatement of the meaning of a text or passage using other words. The term itself is derived via Latin ', . The act of paraphrasing is also called ''paraphrasis''. History Although paraphrases likely abounded in oral tra ...

s or expositions on each of the various articles within the sections, line by line:

* The declaration of Faith
* The articles of our belief, called the Creed
* The seven sacraments
* The ten commandments of almighty god
* Our lord's prayer called the Pater noster
* The salutation of the angel, called the Ave Maria
* An article of free will
* An article of justification
* An article of good works
* Of prayer for souls departed.

Edwardian Reform: the ''First Book of Homilies'' (1547)

It was under Thomas Cranmer, the reformist Archbishop of Canterbury through the later reign of King Henry ( Defender of the Faith) and that of

Edward VI Edward VI (12 October 1537 – 6 July 1553) was King of England and Ireland from 28 January 1547 until his death in 1553. He was crowned on 20 February 1547 at the age of nine. Edward was the son of Henry VIII and Jane Seymour and the first E ...

(ruled 1547–1553), that the doctrine presented in the first volume (1547) of the Homilies, ''Certayne Sermons, or Homelies appoynted by the kynges Maiestie'', was formulated. The Six Articles were repealed in the same year. An authorized, unified and clearly expressed statement of doctrine for public understanding was needed, to be placed in the hands of the priesthood at large to deliver it. The preface to the first edition, as under King Edward's authority advised by his Protector, Edward Seymour, Duke of Somerset, takes as its premise the need to cast off the "manifold enormities" and "ungodly doctrine" of the adherents of the " Bishoppe of Rome", which (it says) has led so many away "from doing the commandments of God, unto voluntary works and fantasies invented of men". It was the king's command that the parsons, vicars and curates should read through the homilies Sunday by Sunday (except when a sermon was to be delivered) until the whole book was read, and then to begin again. This volume therefore preceded the publication of the reformed liturgy in the Edwardian Book of Common Prayer of 1549, its revision of 1552, and the issuing of the Forty-two Articles in 1553. Volume I contains twelve sermons and was mainly written by Cranmer. They focus strongly upon the character of

God In monotheistic thought, God is usually viewed as the supreme being, creator, and principal object of faith. Swinburne, R.G. "God" in Honderich, Ted. (ed)''The Oxford Companion to Philosophy'', Oxford University Press, 1995. God is typically ...

and

Justification by Faith ''Justificatio sola fide'' (or simply ''sola fide''), meaning justification by faith alone, is a soteriological doctrine in Christian theology commonly held to distinguish the Lutheran and Reformed traditions of Protestantism, among others, fr ...

and were printed by the King's Printers,

Richard Grafton Richard Grafton (c. 1506/7 or 1511 – 1573) was King's Printer under Henry VIII and Edward VI. He was a member of the Grocers' Company and MP for Coventry elected 1562-63. Under Henry VIII With Edward Whitchurch, a member of the Haberdashe ...

and Edward Whitchurch. Thomas Cranmer by Gerlach Flicke

The homilies are:

A Fruitful exhortation to the reading of holy Scripture.
Of the misery of all mankind.
Of the salvation of all mankind.
Of the true and lively faith.
Of good works.
Of Christian love and charity.
Against swearing and perjury.
Of the declining from GOD.
An exhortation against the fear of death.
An exhortation to obedience.
Against whoredom and adultery.
Against strife and contention.

At the end of the first volume appeared the following statement:

"Hereafter shall follow Homilies of Fasting, Prayer, Almose-deeds, of the Nativity, Passion, Resurrection, and Ascension of our Saviour Christ: of the due Receiving of his Body and Blood, under the form of Bread and Wine: against Idleness, against Gluttony and Drunkenness, against Couetousness, against Envy, Ire and Malice: with many other matters, as well fruitful and necessary to the edifying of Christian people, and the increase of godly living. GOD SAVE THE KING."

In this way the completion of the work was projected in 1547.

Elizabethan Reform: the ''Second Book of Homilies'' (1563, completed 1571)

The First Book saw a new edition in 1562, the homilies divided into parts for better understanding: in its preface, the Queen's injunction for them to be read was given. This, and the editions of 1563, 1567 and of 1571, in which the Second Book of homilies and sermons was added, belong to the time of

Matthew Parker Matthew Parker (6 August 1504 – 17 May 1575) was an English bishop. He was the Archbishop of Canterbury in the Church of England from 1559 until his death in 1575. He was also an influential theologian and arguably the co-founder (with a p ...

as archbishop, from the commencement of the reign of Queen

Elizabeth I Elizabeth I (7 September 153324 March 1603) was List of English monarchs, Queen of England and List of Irish monarchs, Ireland from 17 November 1558 until her death in 1603. Elizabeth was the last of the five House of Tudor monarchs and is ...

until his death in 1575. They followed that interruption to the Reforms occasioned by Queen

Mary I Mary I (18 February 1516 – 17 November 1558), also known as Mary Tudor, and as "Bloody Mary" by her Protestant opponents, was Queen of England and Ireland from July 1553 and Queen of Spain from January 1556 until her death in 1558. She ...

(ruled 1553–1558) and the Roman Catholic Archbishop

Reginald Pole Reginald Pole (12 March 1500 – 17 November 1558) was an English cardinal of the Catholic Church and the last Catholic archbishop of Canterbury, holding the office from 1556 to 1558, during the Counter-Reformation. Early life Pole was bor ...

(1556-1558), and the execution of Thomas Cranmer (author of much of the first volume) as a heretic in 1556. The Forty-two Articles had not been enforced during Mary's reign, during which the English Church was reunited with that of Rome, but at once regained importance in Elizabeth's religious settlement.

1563

The Second Book, mainly written by Matthew Parker himself with

Bishop A bishop is an ordained clergy member who is entrusted with a position of authority and oversight in a religious institution. In Christianity, bishops are normally responsible for the governance of dioceses. The role or office of bishop is c ...

John Jewel John Jewel (''alias'' Jewell) (24 May 1522 – 23 September 1571) of Devon, England was Bishop of Salisbury from 1559 to 1571. Life He was the youngest son of John Jewel of Bowden in the parish of Berry Narbor in Devon, by his wife Alice Bel ...

and others, was printed perhaps in two or more editions by Richarde Iugge and John Cawood, "printers to the Queenes Maiestie". According to Parker himself, the Homilies had already been printed in 1562 and only awaited the Queen's approval at Midsummer 1563 for final publication. Entitled ''Certayne Sermons appoynted by the Queenes Maiestie'', it contained twenty sermons. Reprints appeared in succeeding years. The publication followed the Convocation's approval of Thirty-Nine Articles, from which the Queen removed a further article to pacify objections from her Catholic subjects. These complete the promised scope of the Homilies as projected in the final notice of the First Book.

1571

The full second series of twenty-one homilies, entitled ''The Second Tome of Homilees'', was published in 1571. The reinstatement of the Thirty-ninth Article, and the publication of the Second Book of Homilies containing the final, twenty-first homily (''against Disobedience and wilful Rebellion''), followed the excommunication of Queen Elizabeth by the papal bull named ''

Regnans in Excelsis ''Regnans in Excelsis'' ("Reigning on High") is a papal bull that Pope Pius V issued on 25 February 1570. It excommunicated Queen Elizabeth I of England, referring to her as "the pretended Queen of England and the servant of crime", declared h ...

''. The Thirty-fifth Article (still so mandated today) states:

"The second Book of Homilies, the several Titles whereof we have joined under this Article, doth contain a godly and wholsom Doctrine, and necessary for these Times, as doth the former Book of Homilies, which were set forth in the time of ''Edward'' the Sixth; and therefore we judge them to be read in Churches by the Ministers, diligently and distinctly, that they may be understanded of the People."

This volume includes:

Of the right use of the Church.
Against peril of Idolatry.
For repairing and keeping clean the Church.
Of good works. And first of Fasting.
Against gluttony and drunkenness.
Against excess of apparel.
An homily of Prayer.
Of the place and time of Prayer.
Of Common Prayer and Sacraments
An information of them which take offence at certain places of holy Scripture.
Of alms deeds.
Of the Nativity.
Of the Passion for good Friday.
Of the Resurrection for Easter day.
Of the worthy receiving of the Sacrament.
An Homily concerning the coming down of the holy Ghost, for Whitsunday.
An Homily for Rogation week.
Of the state of Matrimony.
Against Idleness.
Of Repentance and true Reconciliation unto God.
An Homily against disobedience and willful rebellion.

Character of the Homilies

Many of the sermons are straightforward exhortations to read scripture daily and lead a life of prayer and faith in

Jesus Jesus, likely from he, יֵשׁוּעַ, translit=Yēšūaʿ, label= Hebrew/ Aramaic ( AD 30 or 33), also referred to as Jesus Christ or Jesus of Nazareth (among other names and titles), was a first-century Jewish preacher and religiou ...

Christ Jesus, likely from he, יֵשׁוּעַ, translit=Yēšūaʿ, label=Hebrew/Aramaic ( AD 30 or 33), also referred to as Jesus Christ or Jesus of Nazareth (among other names and titles), was a first-century Jewish preacher and religious ...

; the other works are lengthy scholarly treatises intended to inform church leaders in theology, church history, the

fall of the Byzantine Empire The Fall of Constantinople, also known as the Conquest of Constantinople, was the capture of the capital of the Byzantine Empire by the Ottoman Empire. The city fell on 29 May 1453 as part of the culmination of a 53-day siege which had begun o ...

and those aspects of the

Roman Catholic Church The Catholic Church, also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the largest Christian church, with 1.3 billion baptized Catholics worldwide . It is among the world's oldest and largest international institutions, and has played a ...

and doctrine from which the Reformed Anglican faith had turned away. Each homily is heavily annotated with references to holy scripture, the Church Fathers and other primary sources. The longest homily is the second of the second book, "Against Peril of Idolatry", which runs to about 136 printed pages (pp. 25–161 in the 1571 edition) and is divided into three parts. The first part elaborates the Mosaic law against the worship of images, and down to St Paul's condemnations: the second part follows the patristic writings on the same point, and traces from the

Iconoclastic Controversy The Byzantine Iconoclasm ( gr, Εικονομαχία, Eikonomachía, lit=image struggle', 'war on icons) were two periods in the history of the Byzantine Empire when the use of religious images or icons was opposed by religious and imperial au ...

(which underlay the schism between Western and

Eastern Eastern may refer to: Transportation *China Eastern Airlines, a current Chinese airline based in Shanghai *Eastern Air, former name of Zambia Skyways *Eastern Air Lines, a defunct American airline that operated from 1926 to 1991 *Eastern Air Li ...

churches, and aroused Rome's hostility towards the parts of Christendom not under papal authority). The third part presents, from the perspective of the Reformed Church, a history of such Roman Catholic religious teachings and practices as were deemed to have led to idolatrous observances, as, for instance:

"And where one saint hath images in divers places, the same saint hath divers names thereof, moste lyke to the Gentiles. When you heare of our Lady of Walsingham, our Lady of Ipswich, our Lady of Wilsdon, and suche other: what is it but an imitation of the Gentiles idolaters? ''Diana Agrotera, Diana Coriphea, Diana Ephesia'', etc., ''Venus Cipria, Venus Paphia, Venus Gnidia''. Whereby is evidently meant, that the saint for the image sake, shoulde in those places, yea in the images them selves, have a dwellyng, whiche is the grounde of theyr idolatrie. For where no images be, they have no such meanes" (at p. 99).

The homilies contain many historical spellings, based on the

Vulgate The Vulgate (; also called (Bible in common tongue), ) is a late-4th-century Latin translation of the Bible. The Vulgate is largely the work of Jerome who, in 382, had been commissioned by Pope Damasus I to revise the Gospels u ...

and

Septuagint The Greek Old Testament, or Septuagint (, ; from the la, septuaginta, lit=seventy; often abbreviated ''70''; in Roman numerals, LXX), is the earliest extant Greek translation of books from the Hebrew Bible. It includes several books beyond ...

, of Biblical names such as Noe for Noah and Esay for Isaiah. The colourful expression " mummishe massyng" appears in the fifteenth sermon of the second book (''Of the worthy receaving of the Sacrament''), not to characterize the Mass itself, but (on the contrary) to describe those who come to the Lord's Supper "unreverentlye, not discerning the Lordes bodye" (like the Corinthians blamed by St Paul, ''I Corinthians'', xi, 27–29), with "rude and unreverent ignoraunce", as if it were a mime-show.

Editions

The following recensions were issued down to 1623, some under public authority: * Richard Jugge, Queen's Printer (died 1577): Volumes I and II (1574); Volumes I and II (1576-1577), in quarto * Christopher Barker, Queen's Printer and Henry Middleton: Volumes I and II (1582), in quarto * John Charlewood and

Thomas East Thomas East, (also spelled Easte, Est, or Este) (''c.''1540 – January 1609), was an English printer who specialised in music. He has been described as a publisher, but that claim is debatable (the specialties of printer and bookseller/publish ...

: Volumes I and II (1587), in quarto * Edward Allde: Volumes I and II (1595), in quarto * John Bill, King's Printer: Both parts (with numerous revisions) united (1623), in folio Some later recensions include: * John Norton, for Joyce Norton and Richard Whitaker (London, 1633/1635) * Ralph Hodkinson and John Norton for Richard Whitaker (London 1640 650 * Thomas Roycroft, for Andrew Crooke, Samuel Mearne and Robert Powlet (London 1673) * Thomas Roycroft, for Samuel Mearne and Robert Powlet (London 1676) * Ann Mearn and Blanch Pawlet (London 1683) * For

Moses Pitt Moses Pitt (c. 1639–1697) was a bookseller and printer known for the production of his ''Atlas'' of the world, a project supported by the Royal Society, and in particular by Christopher Wren. He is also known as the author of ''The Cry of t ...

, Peter Parkins and

Thomas Guy Thomas Guy (1644 – 27 December 1724) was a British bookseller, investor in the South Sea Company, member of Parliament, and the founder of Guy's Hospital, London. Early life Thomas Guy was born in Horselydown in Southwark, in south London, ...

(The Theatre, Oxford 1683) * George Wells, Abel Swall and George Pawlett (London 1687), "for use of private families" The edition of the Homilies most widely available today is that edited in 1859 by John Griffiths and originally published by Oxford University Press. An earlier edition published by Oxford in 1822 has been criticised for its heavy editing. A critical edition of the Homilies appeared in 2015, edited by

Gerald Bray Gerald Lewis Bray (born 16 November 1948) is a British theologian, ecclesiastical historian and priest in the Church of England. Teaching Born in Montreal, Quebec, on 16 November 1948, Bray holds a BA from McGill University and a MLitt and DLitt ...

. An edition of the First Book of Homilies in modern English was published in 2021 for the

Church Society Church Society is a conservative, evangelical Anglican organisation and registered charity formed in 1950 by the merger of the Anglican Church Association (founded 1865) and National Church League (founded 1906 by amalgamation of two earlier bodi ...

, edited by Lee Gatiss.

Reception in the United States

The Episcopal Church's version of the Articles endorses the ''content'' of the Homilies, but states that it suspends the order for reading them until they can be updated.

References

External links

''The Homilies''

''The Two Books of Homilies Appointed to be Read in Churches''
{{DEFAULTSORT:Books of Homilies 1547 books 1562 books 1571 books 16th-century Christian texts Anglican theology and doctrine Books about Christianity Calvinist texts English Reformation Anglican liturgical books