Religion in Elizabethan England

Question 1

Give three reasons why religion was so important in 1558

Answer 1

Any three from:

A lack of scientific understanding meant scientists framed their work in the language of God

Attendance to Church on Sundays was compulsory for everyone over the age of 14

Few people were literate so they learned from sermons and preachers

People structured their lives around the Church

Question 2

Who did Catholics believe was the head of the Church?

Answer 2

The Pope

Question 3

What was the name given to the Pope’s closest advisors/supporters in Rome?

Answer 3

Cardinals

Question 4

How many Archbishops and Bishops were there in England in 1558?

Answer 4

Two archbishops (Canterbury, York)

27 bishops

Question 5

What language did Catholics believe the Bible and Church services should be in?

Answer 5

Latin

Question 6

The Catholics believed in Communion: what was this?

Answer 6

A ceremony where the congregation would drink wine and eat bread that represented Christ’s sacrifice

Question 7

Catholics believed in transubstantiation: what was this?

Answer 7

The belief that the bread and wine consumed at Communion literally transformed into the body and blood of Christ

Question 8

What do Catholics believe happens to your soul when you die?

Answer 8

It goes to Purgatory (between Heaven and Hell) to await God’s judgement

Question 9

What do Catholics believe you can do to shorten your time in Purgatory?

Answer 9

Get a priest on Earth to pray for you

Question 10

What attitude did Catholics have towards the decoration of Churches and why?

Answer 10

They should be decorated lavishly, with images, statues, idols and stained glass windows, to please God

Question 11

What did Catholic priests wear and why?

Answer 11

Vestments (richly decorated robes), to show their special status as priests compared to everyone else in the Church

Question 12

Who did Protestants believe should be head of the Church?

Answer 12

The monarch

Question 13

What did Protestants believe about bishops and archbishops?

Answer 13

They should exist, but should help the monarch not the Pope

Question 14

What attitude did Protestants have towards priests?

Answer 14

They should exist, but should not have special status (e.g. they should be allowed to marry)

Question 15

How did Protestants disagree with Catholics about purgatory?

Answer 15

Protestants believed in predestination - God had already decided most people’s fate, so there was no need to pray for the souls of the dead

Question 16

What attitude did Protestants have towards Communion and transubstantiation?

Answer 16

Communion continued, but the bread and wine were symbolic - no transubstantation took place

Question 17

What did Protestants believe should be the language of the Bible and Church services?

Answer 17

The vernacular (whatever language each country spoke or read) - so English in England

Question 18

Why did Protestants in England want the Bible and church services to be in English?

Answer 18

They wanted more ordinary people to have easier access to religion, rather than going through a priest

Question 19

What attitude did Protestants have towards decoration in churches, and why?

Answer 19

They did not agree with idols, statues or stained-glass windows and wanted plain decoration - they believed that spending lots of money on churches went against God’s teachings

Question 20

What attitude did Protestants have towards vestments and why?

Answer 20

They should be simple - priests should not have a special status

Question 21

What did the Puritans believe about the leadership of the Church?

Answer 21

There should be no head of the Church at all, and each Church should be run at a local level by a committee of churchgoers

Question 22

What similarities were there between Protestants and Puritans?

Answer 22

The Bible should be in English

Same beliefs on communion, transubstantiation and purgatory

Question 23

Why did Puritans oppose decoration in churches?

Answer 23

They did not want decoration to provide distraction from worship and God

Question 24

What colour gowns did Puritans want their priests to wear?

Answer 24

Plain black

Question 25

Why did Puritans oppose entertainment like sports and theatres?

Answer 25

They believed it encouraged sinful behaviour and distracted from the worship of God