CHAPTER VI. Taking away Church Goods by Edward VI. "the Pious"-Officiating without any church garment at all, and the Episcopal Pastoral— The motive for keeping vicars poor and degraded—Church comfort for the ill-treated-A horrible report about a dead body-Underhand church accusers-Disestablishing the Church is establishing the Popish Inquisition-Church and Queen. E DWARD VI., " the Pious," injured religion here even as much as his father, the FaithDefender; for he sent a man who stripped the vicar of his church garments, in the house of the Lord, and he left him to be ridiculed. The father brought his hungry wolf to the church door, and took away the vicar's food, leaving him without stipend, residence, church-lands, or tithes. He took away even the oblations and offerings of the faithful. But now the "Pious" son, finding the vicar's stomach empty, to hasten his death, made it colder by taking away the garments, which kept him warm and decent when officiating in this cold church. Edward VI., "the Pious," therefore, made himself a more Canonical Head of the Church than his father, by getting for himself these priestly vestments. It would have been a pious, an honest, and an un-Irish ceremony, to give these clothes to the naked, at Flitcham, instead of taking them to a rich king's palace. Copy of document anathematizing church goods by Edward "the Pious." 38 A list of plundered Church goods. MISCELLANEOUS BOOKS, AUGMENTATION, CHURCH GOODS, NORFOLK. Vol. 501, fo. 25. Fflybryge, citra Lynne (Norfolk). "fflytcham.-This Inventorie Indented, made, the Vth daye of September, in the Syxte yere of the reign of our most dreade Sovereign Lorde, Edward the syxte, by the grace of God, Kyng of Inglond, ffrunce, and Irelond, Defendor of the faith, and of the Churche of Inglonde, and also of Irelond, in earthe the supreme hed, betwen William ffermor, John Robsart, Xpofer Heydon, Knyghts, Osbert Moundeford, and John Callybutt, Esquyers, Comyssioners, aner ongs other assigned by vertu of the Kyngs Matie. Comyssion to them dyrected for the surveye of churche goodes in Norff, of the one ptie, and William Pottyn Clark, John Wales, Richerd Blomfield, Inhabytants ther, William Blomfeld, and Edmund Mascalle, Churchewardens ther, of the other ptie, Witnesseth that ther remaynyth in the custodie of the seid psons these pcells folowyng: ... ... XLs IIIId ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... ... XIId XVID XXd XIId VIIId ... ... ... XLVs ffyrst one chales sylver pcell gylte in weyght with the patyne XI ounce-every ownce IIIs VIIId valued at Itm. one cope of black worstede valued at... Itm. one cope of grene sylke valued at Itm. one vestment of blewe sylke valued at Itm. one vestment of grene sylke valued at Itm. a vestment of black sage valued at Itm. one belle in the steple ther weying by estymacon IIIc every hundrede XVs valued at Itm. one clapper to the same belle valued at Wherefore assigned to be occupied and used on ye admynystracon of the devyne servis ther ye forseid chales with a patyne. Itm. the foreseid belle weyend IIIc. ... The cure for the black gown dispute. 39 In Witnes wherof the forseid Comyssioners and other the seid psons to these inventories have alternately put ther handes the dail and yere above wrytten. WILLM. POTTYN. All the above things were taken away from this Church and from the parish poor, except the chalice, patin, and bell. So the Vicar had to officiate in his own clothes, without any church garment at all. I have been persecuted for trying to improve this state of affairs, or for recovering, by the alms of churchmen, all necessary things for this Church. The surplice given to this Church, in charity, by the present Rector of an adjoining parish, was worn out and in rags, when I came here, on account of the dirt of animals in the churchyard, and on account of the tall weeds and nettles in wet weather. So I officiated, in my Church, for many months, without any surplice at all. I administered the sacraments, and performed all Church services, even marrying people in my own every day Irish clothes, like a dissenting minister. This was lucky, for all I married have lived happily together. This was my peaceable cure for the fight between the advocates of the white surplice and the black gown, in the pulpit, for I wore neither. If this did harm it did good too, for it brought the dissenters to Church, and made them laugh heartily, by which they became better disposed and more cheerful, instead of being sullen and prejudiced. They were now happy and cheerful, being civilized by Church doctrine and practice. Here is the Bishop's letter, whom I informed of all this, for I had no other means of procuring a surplice. He throws all responsibility on me. 40 Motives for keeping Church affairs in disorder. (COPY.) "The Palace, Norwich, 28th April, 1877. Revd. Sir,-Judging from your letter, the surplice which you describe has been for some time unfit for use; but you do not explain why another has not been supplied, or what means you have taken to procure one. I am sorry to conclude from your letter that there is a greater cause for complaint than the worn out surplice. Your faithful servant, The Revd. B. O'Malley. JOHN T. NORWICH. For finding a proper stipend, surplice, and service books for this Church, I was attacked in the newspapers by anonymous writers. People pursued the ungodly tactics of trying to keep every thing in disorder, and the Vicars degraded, in order that they might appear big men by the contrast, and that they might have a handle for opposition and censure. These people, being unknown to me, and the attacks being many and fierce, I was kept from noticing this treatment. Indeed, the attacks defeated themselves, for they showed their own falsehood. The very devil himself at least the young one-could not be as bad as I was described. On Sunday, I prayed to God to "forgive slanderers, enemies, and persecutors, and to turn their hearts." So I won the case every week by exercising my clerical office, instead of spending my time in defending myself. Moreover, I found that Christians never believe any false report about a poor Vicar, or notice the abuse which is heaped upon him, as the poverty of his stipend is the cause of his bad treatment, and the source of all his faults. In fact, The poor and weak scandalized falsely. 4I some told me that a Vicar must be a bad man if his pay is small. Whenever any person died in my parish, it was made out by some unknown person, or persons, “ that I let the body lie rotten, and turn into maggots, until a plague was begun, and the sanitary officer called in." We all have the devil in us by nature. Even after our conversion a little of him sticks to us, and those persons, in whom the whole of the devil remains, need do no more than talk, and we fly off with them to hell fire without calling in the accused for a hearing, or looking at the step which we take. The Bible directs that every accusation, or "fault," should be told first to the accused alone, before a second person hears it (Mat. xviii. 15). Attention to this simple rule of Scripture would keep many out of trouble, and it would keep society right. I have given up making calls upon worldly people; as what we call "society," means that no two unconverted persons can be found together without saying something unfavourable of the absent, or repeating whatever false report the devil set afloat. They do this to make themselves of importance, for it implies that they are better than the person who is mentioned. Real ladies and gentlemen, and true Christians, do nothing of the sort, but these are rather scarce. Copy of letter shewing the falsehood about the dead body : Revd. Sir, "Elm Vicarage, March 19th, 1877. I was grieved and shocked to see such a scandalous report about my dear sister as I saw in the Lynn |