# Ryle--What Do We Owe to the Reformation?



## Pilgrim (Oct 15, 2008)

A huge hodge-podge of ignorance and idolatry!

(J. C. Ryle, "What Do We Owe to the Reformation?")

The Reformation delivered England from an immense quantity of evils, such as gross religious ignorance and spiritual darkness.

In the days when the Roman Catholic Church ruled England, before the Reformation--the immense majority of the Catholic clergy did little more than say masses and offer up pretended sacrifices--repeat Latin prayers and chant Latin hymns, which of course the people could not understand. They heard confessions, granted absolutions, gave extreme unction, and took money to get dead people out of Purgatory. Preaching was utterly at a discount. As Latimer truly remarked, 'When the devil gets influence in a church--up go candles and down goes preaching.'

As to the laity, it is not too much to say that the bulk of them had no religion at all. There was no one to tell them of the love of God, the mediation of Christ, the glad tidings of free salvation, the precious blood of Christ's atonement, and justification by faith. They could only send for the priest, who knew nothing himself and could tell nothing to others; and then at last they received absolution and extreme unction--and took a leap in the dark!

To sum up all in a few words, the religion of our English forefathers before the Reformation, was a religion without knowledge, without saving faith, and without true hope! It was a religion without justification, regeneration, and sanctification--a religion without any clear views of Christ and the Holy Spirit. Except in rare instances, it was little better than an organized system of . . .
Mary-worship,
saint-worship,
idol-worship,
relic-worship,
indulgences,
formalism,
ceremonialism,
processions,
penances,
absolutions,
masses, and
blind obedience to the priests!
It was a huge hodge-podge of ignorance and idolatry! The only practical result, was that the priests took the people's money, and undertook to secure their salvation--and the people flattered themselves, that the more they gave to the priests--the more sure they were to go to heaven!

Such was the IGNORANCE, which was scattered to the winds by the English Reformation!

For another thing, the Reformation delivered England from the most groveling, childish and superstitious practices in religion. I allude especially to the worship of relics. Destitute of the slightest Scriptural knowledge, our forefathers were taught by the priests to seek spiritual benefit from the so-called relics of dead saints, and to worship them!

The following are examples of some of the relics which they honored and worshiped:
the spear-head which pierced our Savior's side;
the apostle James' hand;
a bone of Mary Magdalene;
pieces of our Savior's cross;
the Virgin Mary's smock;
a part of the stone upon which our Lord was born at Bethlehem;
a part of the bread used by Christ at the first Lord's Supper;
a belt of the Virgin Mary, made of red silk;
some of the Virgin Mary's breast-milk!

Facts like these are so amazingly silly, as well as painful--that one hardly knows whether to laugh or to cry over them! But it is positively necessary to bring them forward, in order that men may know what was the religion of our forefathers, in the days when the Roman Catholic Church ruled the land, before the Reformation! Let us never forget, that this was the SUPERSTITION which was shattered to pieces by the Reformation!


----------



## Pilgrim (Oct 15, 2008)

The quote Ryle attributes to Latimer is priceless: *'When the devil gets influence in a church--up go candles and down goes preaching.'*

The only references I could find to it online are to this article. Does anyone have a reference for it?


----------



## VirginiaHuguenot (Oct 15, 2008)

Pilgrim said:


> The quote Ryle attributes to Latimer is priceless: *'When the devil gets influence in a church--up go candles and down goes preaching.'*
> 
> The only references I could find to it online are to this article. Does anyone have a reference for it?



Sure thing, it is found in Latimer's Sermon of the Plough, _Sermons_ (1906 ed.), p. 64:



> And now I would ask a strange question: who is the most diligentest bishop and prelate in all England, that passeth all the rest in doing his office? I can tell, for I know him who it is; I know him well. But now I think I see you listening and hearkening that I should name him. There is one that passeth all the other, and is the most diligent prelate and preacher in all England. And will ye know who it is? I will tell you: it is the devil. He is the most diligent preacher of all other; he is never out of his diocess; he is never from his cure; ye shall never find him unoccupied; he is ever in his parish; he keepeth residence at all times; ye shall never find him out of the way, call for him when you will he is ever at home; the diligentest preacher in all the realm; he is ever at his plough: no lording nor loitering can hinder him; he is ever applying his business, ye shall never find him idle, I warrant you. And his office is to hinder religion, to maintain superstition, to set up idolatry, to teach all kind of popery. He is ready as he can be wished for to set forth his plough; to devise as many ways as can be deface and obscure God's glory. Where the devil is resident, and hath his plough going, there away with books, and up with candles; away with bibles, and up with beads; away with the light of the gospel, and up with the light of candles, yea, at noon-days. Where the devil is resident, that he may prevail, up with all superstition and idolatry; censing, painting of images, candles, palms, ashes, holy water, and new service of men's inventing; as though man could invent a better way to honour God with than God himself hath appointed. Down with Christ's cross, up with purgatory pickpurse, up with him, the popish purgatory, I mean. Away with clothing the naked, the poor and impotent; up with decking of images, and gay garnishing of stocks and stones: up with man's traditions and his laws, down with God's traditions and his most holy word. Down with the old honor due to God, and up with the new god's honour. Let all things be done in Latin: there must be nothing but Latin, not so much as _Memento, homo, quod, cinis es, et in cinerem reverteris_: "Remember, man, that thou art ashes, and into ashes thou shalt return:" which be the words that the minister speaketh unto the ignorant people, when he giveth them ashes upon Ash-Wednesday; but it must be spoken in Latin: God's word may in no wise be translated into English.


----------



## Pilgrim (Oct 15, 2008)

VirginiaHuguenot said:


> Pilgrim said:
> 
> 
> > The quote Ryle attributes to Latimer is priceless: *'When the devil gets influence in a church--up go candles and down goes preaching.'*
> ...



Thanks Andrew. I thought you might come through here! It appears that Ryle paraphrased Latimer (unless the quote comes from another sermon) but it captures the essence of what Latimer said.


----------

