Not too long ago, the bones of the English King Richard III were found and dug up under a Walmart in Leicestershire, England. That they should be found under a Walmart—an American superstore—is ironically prophetic as it ties into a historical shift that eventually brought the coming forth of a new nation called America.
It was Richard the III’s demise and defeat at Leicestershire that led to the rise of the Tudors and Henry VII taking the throne. In turn, he would father the notorious King Henry VIII, who would usher in radical changes that would alter the course of history. All this, over time, would eventually lead to the birth of America.
To understand all of this in context, it is necessary to first understand a little of the English Reformation:
The stark reality was that King Henry VIII wanted out of his marriage, as he had been betrothed at only 13 years of age to his dead brother's widow. When his older brother died, tradition had required him to take Catherine of Aragon, his older brother’s bride, as his own.
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| King Henry VIII |
However, Henry had been studying to be a priest, and he became convinced while reading the Book of Leviticus, that his marriage to Catherine was improper according to the Scriptures.
Henry demanded a divorce but was refused by the Pope. Charles the V, King of Spain and ruler of the Holy Roman Empire, was related to Catherine of Aragon, and the Pope didn’t want to upset him.
When he did not get his way, Henry chose to break away from the Catholic Church. He used the Reformation as his basis to do so, but Henry actually had no real interest himself in reform at all. While Henry's act may have brought a break from Rome to the forefront of the scene, this is hardly the whole picture of what was taking place under the radar.
There was actually an undercurrent of reform that was already moving through England.
Cambridge University, in fact, had so much Reformation discussion and thought going through it that it was being called “Little Wittenberg” as well as “little Germany.” These reform-minded ideas, which were coming across the Channel from Martin Luther, Germany, were being heavily adopted there in Cambridge as well as beginning to spread in many other places around the British Isles and throughout Europe.
While Henry may have used the idea of Reform and the Reformation for his own ends, the winds were already blowing in that direction. When he opened the door, he found out that it couldn't be so easily shut.
The Rise of the Puritan Movement
Reform was in the air and new movements like the Puritans eventually began to arise. The name Puritan was a pejorative that originally had sprung from a desire to purify the church from unbiblical ideas adopted in Medieval Catholicism. The Puritans wanted a full Reformation, so the milder Anglican reforms that were put in place over time were falling short of what they had hoped for. As time passed, the Puritans continued to increase in numbers as well as prominence, even garnering seats in Parliament.
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| Cambridge University |
Things went back and forth in England with cataclysmic swings: Edward, who was Henry’s only male heir and was raised by Protestant tutors, took things in a more Protestant direction once he became king, but had a short reign because of his ill health and early death.
Bloody Mary, Henry's daughter with Catherine of Aragon, had ascended to the throne when Edward died. Full of bitterness and rage, Mary killed somewhere in the neighborhood of 400 Protestant Christians, imprisoning and persecuting countless more during her reign as she sought to purge England of Reformation influences. This included the execution of Thomas Cramner, the Archbishop of Canterbury, who had embraced the Bible and salvation by grace, and was taking reforms in that direction until he was deposed and later killed.
Then came Elizabeth, Henry VIII’s daughter with second wife Anne Boleyn, who was raised by Protestant tutors that taught her the New Testament, causing her to embrace reform once she took the throne.
Anne Boleyn, Elizabeth’s mother was a Protestant and known to keep a contraband copy of the Tyndale Bible that she faithfully read, secretly hiding it from the King. Some have speculated that this could have been the actual reason behind her demise when she was set up by Catholic spies and was subsequently executed.
After Bloody Mary’s short chaotic reign, Queen Elizabeth’s forty-year reign brought forth in England a time of prosperity, general stability, growth, and expansion like never before.
During her reign, the Spanish Armada, which was on its way to invade England and force it back into Catholicism, was miraculously defeated at sea by a sudden and miraculous shift in the direction of the wind at one of the most crucial points in the battle. This thrusted England into the forefront as a major world power.
Elizabeth, however, never married and thus had no heir to carry on her legacy. A new king was sought and found in James VI of Scotland, who was crowned King James I of England.
Many Puritans hoped King James would embrace full reform, the kind the Puritans idealized. The fact that he was from Scotland and raised Protestant, and that Scotland had had its own Reformation with John Knox as one of its principal leaders, gave some hope to that idea.
King James, however, was quite the unusual fellow: he sputtered and slobbered when he spoke, had his own theological ideas, and didn't have much tolerance for Puritans. He was a bit paranoid of his kingship being threatened and viewed the Puritans with suspicion, fearful of their increasing numbers and power.
Some time after taking the throne, the Puritans presented King James with a “Millenary Petition,” meaning one thousand Puritan leaders had signed it, requesting more reforms.
All the requests presented by the Puritans were flatly denied by the king, and instead many suffered persecution. But there was one request King James would “authorize,” and one only: an official translation of the Bible.
William Tyndale had made a translation of the entire New Testament as well as a substantial portion of the Old Testament, when he was hunted down and killed for his effort. His Bibles had been smuggled into England for some time and were embraced and read by many throughout the land. Coverdale had made a few revisions later resulting in what was called the Geneva Bible. These illegal Bibles were hugely popular but remained as contraband.
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| Tower of London |
The Puritans now wanted an Authorized Version of the Bible that would be fully legal. The scholars assembled by King James used Tyndale’s version as their basis and thus, according to David Daniell, scholar from Oxford, nine-tenths of the New Testament and much of the Old Testament in the King James Bible was actually Tyndale’s work. In reality, according to David Daniell, “It was Tyndale who gave us our English Bible.”
With the exception of a new Authorized Version of the Bible, things were not getting better for the Puritans in jolly ole England. Eventually, some chose to leave as the persecution and difficulties continued for Puritans in England. After an unsuccessful attempt to settle in Holland, a group of Puritans, including Puritans of a more radical bent called Separatists, made a go for the New World. They would venture to cross the raging sea seeking a free place to worship as they saw fit.
They were taking a huge risk as they sailed across the Atlantic upon the Mayflower and founded Plymouth, the first colony to endure and sustain in North America. Other colonies, like Jamestown, had been attempted before them but had failed as most everyone had died of starvation or exposure to the freezing weather.
The pilgrims made a Compact upon the Mayflower before coming ashore that their endeavor should be: “For the glory of God and the Advancement of the Christian faith...” The centrality of spreading the Gospel was rooted in the very foundation of the nation as it all began.
Furthermore, contrary to popular revisionism and according to numerous sources, including the History Museum in Plymouth, Massachusetts, the first settlers had good relations with the Native Peoples for several decades. In fact, it was the Native Peoples who actually helped them survive that first grueling winter.
More English Puritans would continue to come across the ocean in their wake as well, and with them came their trusted copies of the King James Bible. The Puritan preachers in England were inspiring their followers to come across the sea in obedience to the Great Commission and plant the Gospel in the New World. They thus laid a foundation of faith and promise in the New World.
In fact, historian Sydney Ahlstrom points out that it is quite the anomaly that the early North American colonies should be made up of so many English Puritans, when the New World had been first discovered by the Spanish. Furthermore, the French, the Dutch, and many others were here before, but it was the English Puritans inspired by the Great Commission, who comprised the majority of the early North American colonies, giving them a specific foundation of Reformation-influenced faith.
Furthermore, by the time independence came around, seventy-five percent of the signers of the Declaration of Independence were of Puritan stock. In fact, Benjamin Franklin himself was baptized in a Puritan church in the city of Boston.
The strong foundation of faith was absolutely part of the beginnings of this country's origins, as God shed His grace upon the land. As the old hymn declares: “His Grace has led us safe thus far and Grace will lead us on.”
Luther first experienced that grace via the Word of God and the revelation of the Holy Spirit. Let the Holy Spirit fill you today and fill your heart with Thanksgiving to God for the awesome blessing of giving us grace through His Son Jesus Christ!
Postscript:
We encourage you to “like” and “share” this blog and the following videos with others, helping spread the important history of our roots, especially in the light of recent statements like this by a Christian Education group: “Misinformation about our America’s founding is spreading across our country like wildfire. Unfortunately, that is true in the public education system as well. But America is an exceptional nation and every citizen should know about its unique history…which is steeped in, and influenced by, the Christian Faith…”
Videos:
· Thanksgiving and Its Ties to The Reformation and Revival
· Plymouths Pilgrims and Their Christian faith
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