laudable Practice

Continuing the series of weekly posts from the responses to Tract XC by Old High bishops in the visitation charges of the early 1840s, today we have a penultimate extract from the 1842 visitation charge of Richard Mant, Bishop of Down and Connor,  The Laws of the Church: The Churchman's Guard Against Romanism and Puritanism .  As with the charges of Bagot of Oxford and Phillpotts of Exeter, the point of these extracts is not to focus on the rejection of Tract XC but, rather, on how these charges provide a rich seam of Old High teaching. In this extract Mant addresses the unauthorised changes to the Prayer Book liturgy made by "modern puritanical ministers", the Church's "less merciful sons". His rebuke of this practice, addressing examples from the Baptism and Burial rites, demonstrates the continued significance of conformity and uniformity for the Old High tradition, even as the disputes occasioned by Tractarians and early Ritualists commenced.  Mindful of...

They all preached in their black gowns, as their fathers had done before them. It is one of the lines I particularly enjoy from Trollope's description of the clergy of Barchester , high church but not Puseyite. Bishop Mant, however, would not approve. In his 1842 visitation charge  The Laws of the Church: The Churchman's Guard Against Romanism and Puritanism , Mant explained why clergy should preach wearing the surplice (a highly controversial practice in the 1840s, often opposed on the grounds that it was 'Puseyite'): The case is the difficulty experienced in resuming the service after the sermon, by reason of the requisite change of the dresses, appropriated in practice respectively to the pulpit and the communion table. My solution of the difficulty is comprised in the following suggestions:- First, what is the obligation on a clergyman to use a dress in the pulpit different from that which he wears during his other ministrations? Secondly, does not the order for his...

Continuing the series of weekly posts from the responses to Tract XC by Old High bishops in the visitation charges of the early 1840s, today we again turn to the 1842 visitation charge of Richard Mant, Bishop of Down and Connor: The Laws of the Church: The Churchman's Guard Against Romanism and Puritanism .  As with the charges of Bagot of Oxford and Phillpotts of Exeter, the point of these extracts is not to focus on the rejection of Tract XC but, rather, on how these charges provide a rich seam of Old High teaching. In this extract, Mant contrasts the tendency in the later Tracts to admire the Roman Breviary with an Old High reverence for the Book of Common Prayer. The Prayer Book is primitive and Reformed, wisely reducing the seven daily offices, admired by some of the Tractarians, to two. This, Mant notes, provided for a "more agreeable to a reasonable service", terms which reveal something of the pleasing nature of Old High piety. While elements of Tractarianism - a...

Resuming the series of weekly posts from the responses to Tract XC by Old High bishops in the visitation charges of the early 1840s, today we turn to the 1842 visitation charge of Richard Mant, Bishop of Down and Connor:   The Laws of the Church: The Churchman's Guard Against Romanism and Puritanism .  As with the charges of Bagot of Oxford and Phillpotts of Exeter , the point of these extracts is not to focus on the rejection of Tract XC but, rather, on how these charges provide a rich seam of Old High teaching. This first extract from Mant's charge demonstrates how the Old High tradition robustly reaffirmed Article VI and the sufficiency of Scripture, significantly distinguishing Old High thought from the increased willingness in Tractarian circles to reject Article VI's affirmation and exalt the authority of 'tradition'. Also noteworthy is the quotation from Burnet's commentary on the Articles, another indicator of how the latitudinarian Burnet was regarded ...

As part of the series of weekly posts from the responses to Tract XC by Old High bishops in the visitation charges of the early 1840s, today we continue consideration of the charge given in 1842 by Henry Phillpotts (Bishop of Exeter 1831-69). These charges are a rich seam of Old High teaching.  In today's extract Phillpotts addresses a matter which would become a significant point of controversy between Tractarians and Old High: private absolution. Contrary to what would become the Anglo-catholic imitation of the Roman discipline, Phillpotts maintains the caution and reserve of historic Prayer Book practice: rejecting any notion of a necessity for private absolution; no requirement to catalogue any or all sins; and the efficacy of absolution dependent on being received in faith and penitence.  Mindful of the divisive controversies which ensued upon the Tractarian and Anglo-catholic promotion of the Roman discipline, Phillpotts' Old High exposition was deeply Hookerian and of...

As part of  the series of weekly posts from  the responses to Tract XC by Old High bishops in the visitation charges of the early 1840s, today we continue  consideration of  the  charge given in 1842 by Henry Phillpotts  (Bishop of Exeter 1831-69). These charges are  a rich seam of Old High teaching.  The focus of these posts is not so much on the well-known critique of Tract XC articulated in the charges but, rather, on what these visitation charges reveal about the teaching, piety, concerns, and vitality of the Old High tradition nearly a decade after the emergence of the Oxford Movement. In today's extract, Phillpotts refutes those evangelicals who, in response to Tractarianism, adopted a low view of the sacraments (contrary, it must be said, to 18th century evangelicals such as Charles Simeon).  Phillpotts contrast such "ultra-Protestant" views - which he compares, in a footnote, to the sacramental teaching of Socinus (a point also made b...

Today we continue consideration of  the  charge given in 1842 by Henry Phillpotts ,  Bishop of Exeter 1831-69. This is part of  the series of weekly posts from a rich seam of Old High teaching, the responses to Tract XC by Old High bishops in the visitation charges of the early 1840s.  The focus of these posts is not so much on the well-known critique of Tract XC articulated in these charges but, rather, on what these visitation charges reveal about the teaching, piety, concerns, and vitality of the Old High tradition nearly a decade after the emergence of the Oxford Movement.  Phillpotts provides a robust Old High view of the the visible Church: "the true Christian life is not an individual, but a corporate life". What is significant, however, is that he sees no need to couch this in terms beyond the Formularies (a stark contrast with the Tractarians). He invokes Article 19 and provides a Reformed Catholic account of the visible Church which would be as eq...

Today laudable Practice resumes the series of weekly posts from a rich seam of Old High teaching, the responses to Tract XC by Old High bishops in the visitation charges of the early 1840s.  The focus of these posts is not so much on the well-known critique of Tract XC articulated in these charges but, rather, on what these visitation charges reveal about the teaching, piety, concerns, and vitality of the Old High tradition nearly a decade after the emergence of the Oxford Movement. Having considered the 1842 charge of Newman's diocesan, Bagot of Oxford , we turn now to the charge given in the same year by Henry Phillpotts , Bishop of Exeter 1831-69. In this extract from the charge, Phillpotts expounds an enduring Old High conviction - that the Prayer Book offers a much richer proclamation of the Gospel than a reliance on preaching alone. Central to this was the recognition of Prayer Book as deeply rooted in evangelical, catholic faith, against sectarian alternatives. Here Phillp...

Continuing the series of weekly posts on visitation charges of Old High bishops in the immediate aftermath of the Tract XC controversy, we turn for the final time to the  1842 Visitation Charge  of Richard Bagot, Bishop of Oxford. In the closing words of his Charge, Bagot set out the Laudian vision of ecclesial peace, against both evangelical and Tractarian agitation which refused to recognise that "good men will differ" within the charity provided by the Prayer Book and Articles: And, seeing the grievous want of charity which has prevailed among us, I have felt it my duty to condemn those who have set themselves forward as gratuitous agitators, and unbidden accusers of their brethren. I am no lover of error, and will shew it no favour; but, while the world stands, there must be points on which good men will differ, and so long as those points of difference do not contravene the Prayer-Book and formularies of the Church, it seems to me, that one set of opinions has the same r...

Continuing the new series of weekly posts on visitation charges of Old High bishops in the immediate aftermath of the Tract XC controversy, we again turn to the  1842 Visitation Charge  of Richard Bagot, Bishop of Oxford. Here Bagot warns against the early indications of ritualism, "the revival of obsolete practices", as harmful to the Church's peace and undermining its episcopal constitution. It was, unfortunately, a warning which would not be heeded: I am happy to say that, so far as the Parochial Clergy are concerned, the caution which I felt it my duty to give at my last Visitation with respect to the revival of obsolete practices, which were calculated to give offence, without any adequate advantage resulting, has been, so far as I have been able to ascertain, attended to. Of course questions about vestments and matters of a similar description, cannot be raised without much higher principles being involved. It was not a contest whether the red rose or the white were...

Continuing the new series of weekly posts on visitation charges of Old High bishops in the immediate aftermath of the Tract XC controversy, we again turn to the  1842 Visitation Charge  of Richard Bagot, Bishop of Oxford. Here Bagot offers an example of the warm sacramental piety of the Old High tradition, grounded in the Articles of Religion and Catechism.  A warm, sacramental piety, therefore, did not require a reliance on the doctrines and practices of other communions. Also significant, of course, is the fact that this summary of sacramental teaching was quite unremarkable and uncontroversial in terms in the pre-1833 Anglican eucharistic consensus . Remind them of the awful warning of our Lord himself, "Except ye eat the flesh of the Son of Man, and drink his blood, ye have no life in you". And join to that warning, as He in mercy joined, his wondrous promise, "Whoso eateth my flesh, and drinketh my blood, hath eternal life, and I will raise him up at the last day...

Today begins a series of weekly posts on laudable Practice from a rich seam of Old High teaching, the responses to Tract XC by Old High bishops in the visitation charges of the early 1840s.  The focus of the posts will be not so much on the well-known critique of Tract XC articulated in these charges but, rather, on what these visitation charges reveal about the teaching, piety, concerns, and vitality of the Old High tradition nearly a decade after the emergence of the Oxford Movement.  I begin with the 1842 Visitation Charge of Richard Bagot, Bishop of Oxford (1829-45, and Newman's diocesan).   Here Bagot warns against undermining the "definite and tangible" catholic nature of the Prayer Book with devotional material from the Roman Breviary, in pursuit of an "indefinite and elusive ... shadowy Catholicism". This contrast - "definite and tangible" against "indefinite and elusive" - captures the differences between an Old High piety rooted i...