History
St Jude's In The Mountains Anglican Church - Tehachapi CA
When Edward VI died, there was a power vacuum that rival forces behind the throne tried to fill. The Earl of Somerset, a Protestant, found himself outmaneuvered by those loyal to the Roman Catholic Church, who arranged for the Roman Catholic daughter of Henry VIII to take the throne. This was the daughter of Catherine of Aragon, who was raised in France, related to King Frederick of Spain, and had a bone to pick with those behind Henry's divorce who, in effect, declared her an illegitimate child. Mary then had two reasons to try and undo the reforms of the Church of England, to reestablish her good name and to bring England back to the faith of her family. Those with more sinister ambitions of consolidating power at all cost found through her the means to do so.
Mary took the throne in the summer of 1553 at the age of 37, shortly after Edward VI died, and after a brief attempt by reformers to install her protestant relative, Lady Jane Grey. They were unsuccessful, and Mary allowed the execution of Lady Jane through the Bishop of Winchester. This proved to be a harbinger of things to come as other reformers would soon be arrested, tried and killed. These included theologians, church officials and political rivals. Their manner of execution was by burning at the stake, the manner of death reserved for heretics of the Christian Faith. Ironically those who were killed in such a manner were guilty of fidelity to Holy Scripture, so rather than being heretics they were instead martyrs for Christ. The most notable theologians to die in the fires of Smithfield were Hugh Latimer and Nicolas Ridley. The most notable church official to die in such a manner was of course the Archbishop of Canterbury, Thomas Cranmer. Many other clergy and lay-leaders would die with them because they could not bring themselves to renounce their faith convictions and swear loyalty to Rome. Their courageous witness served to discredit Mary's reign and she quickly lost popular appeal.
Mary further undermined her popularity by seeking to wed Prince Philip of Spain, which would in effect make him King of England, thus causing England to be a client state of the Spanish Empire. This did not sit well with English citizens who valued their freedom. The stress of this tragic reign took its toll on Mary's health, which began to fail. She suffered from dropsy, causing her abdomen to swell severely, and though she thought she was expecting a child, she died from the illness on November 17, 1558, leaving no heir.
Today, in the midst of an Anglican Reformation, there are many who lose their livelihood or church buildings for the sake of the Gospel, but in the end the Word of God prevails over mere institutions of men. A church faithful to Christ and His Word prevails over all.
Mary took the throne in the summer of 1553 at the age of 37, shortly after Edward VI died, and after a brief attempt by reformers to install her protestant relative, Lady Jane Grey. They were unsuccessful, and Mary allowed the execution of Lady Jane through the Bishop of Winchester. This proved to be a harbinger of things to come as other reformers would soon be arrested, tried and killed. These included theologians, church officials and political rivals. Their manner of execution was by burning at the stake, the manner of death reserved for heretics of the Christian Faith. Ironically those who were killed in such a manner were guilty of fidelity to Holy Scripture, so rather than being heretics they were instead martyrs for Christ. The most notable theologians to die in the fires of Smithfield were Hugh Latimer and Nicolas Ridley. The most notable church official to die in such a manner was of course the Archbishop of Canterbury, Thomas Cranmer. Many other clergy and lay-leaders would die with them because they could not bring themselves to renounce their faith convictions and swear loyalty to Rome. Their courageous witness served to discredit Mary's reign and she quickly lost popular appeal.
Mary further undermined her popularity by seeking to wed Prince Philip of Spain, which would in effect make him King of England, thus causing England to be a client state of the Spanish Empire. This did not sit well with English citizens who valued their freedom. The stress of this tragic reign took its toll on Mary's health, which began to fail. She suffered from dropsy, causing her abdomen to swell severely, and though she thought she was expecting a child, she died from the illness on November 17, 1558, leaving no heir.
Today, in the midst of an Anglican Reformation, there are many who lose their livelihood or church buildings for the sake of the Gospel, but in the end the Word of God prevails over mere institutions of men. A church faithful to Christ and His Word prevails over all.
The sky was grey as the rain fell outside the windows of the palace. The queen was writhing in pain as she was dying, grieving all the more over dashed hopes for England and for her own life. She hoped to restore England to the faith of her family, to restore her own honor, and perhaps even to bring an heir to perpetuate her legacy. All this was lost in part through brutal mistakes, losing touch with the English people, and ultimately, lost health. This tragic and cruel queen was Mary Tudor, the first daughter of Henry VIII. She would discover that England was irreversibly on the path of Christian Reformation, started by her father and brought further in the time of her half-brother Edward VI.
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