The Tyndale Society Journal Issue 37

The

Tyndale Society Journal

No. 37 Autumn 2009

About the Tyndale Society Registered UK Charity Number 1020405 Founded by Professor David Daniell in 1995, five hundred and one years after Tyndale’s birth.

The Society’s aim is to spread knowledge of William Tyndale’s work and influence, and to pursue study of the man who gave us our English Bible.

Membership Benefits

• 2 issues of the Tyndale Society Journal a year • Many social events, lectures and conferences • Exclusive behind-the-scenes historical tours • Access to a worldwide community of experts • 50% discount on Reformation.

• 25% advertising discount in the Journal

For further information visit: www.tyndale.org or email tyndale.sec@btinternet.com or see inside the back cover of this edition of the Tyndale Society Journal.

Trustees

Mary Clow; Dr Paul Coones; Charlotte Dewhurst; Philip Dickson; Rochelle Givoni; David Green; Revd David Ireson; Dr Guido Latré; Revd Dr Simon Oliver; Dr Barry T. Ryan; Jennifer Sheldon. .

Patrons

His Grace the Archbishop of Canterbury; Rt. Rev. and Rt. Hon. Lord Carey of Clifton; Baroness James of Holland Park; Lord Neill of Bladen QC; Prof. Sir Christopher Zeeman, former Principal, Hertford College, Oxford; Mr David Zeidberg.

Advisory Board

Sir Anthony Kenny; Anthony Smith, Emeritus President, Magdalen College; Penelope Lively; Philip Howard; Anne O’Donnell, Catholic University of America; Professor John Day, St Olaf ’s College, Minnesota; Professor Peter Auksi, University of W. Ontario; Dr David Norton, Victoria University, Wellington; Gillian Graham, Emeritus Hon. Secretary.

Other Tyndale Society Publications Reformation

Editors: Professor John N. King & Dr Hannibal Hamlin c/o Professor John N. King, Humanities, English & Religious Studies, e Ohio State University, 164 West 17th Ave (Rm421), Columbus, OH 43210-1370, USA. Phone: 1+614 2926065 fax: 7816 email: king.2@osu.edu or hamlin.22@osu.edu Commenced Publication 1996 • 1 issue a year • ISSN: 1357 - 4175

Contents e Tyndale Society Journal ♦ No.37 Autumn 2009 Editorial

Articles

Submission Guidelines Neil Inglis

8 5

The Economist John Craig Sheila Fairbank Vic Perry Bill Cooper Bill Cooper

William Tyndale, Hero for the Information Age What Made Rowland Taylor Tick?

Inauguration of St. Mary’s Priory, Merton Tyndale’s Usages The Early Writing of the Gospel Epistle to the Alexandrians

15 23 27 32 40

Event Reports

Rowland Taylor Conference, Cambridge Bible Illustration Exhibition in New York Idaho on Pilgrammage to Oxford

43 52 54

Eunice Burton Mary Clow David Green

9

Letters to the Editor

55 56

Book Reviews

57 61 62 65

Guy Tolmarsh David Ireson

Neil Inglis Donald Smeeton Ralph Werrell Ralph Werrell

Catherine Parr The Secret Life of Words Martin Luther & William Tyndale on Epistle to the Romans Fires of Faith

What are you Reading?

68

Forthcoming Events

74 75 75 75

Mary Clow

September Events: December Events: 2010 April:

Sisters of Sinai 15th Annual Lambeth Tyndale Lecture, Lambeth Hertford Tyndale Lecture, Oxford Tyndale Society Carol Concert, City of London Tyndale Society Christmas Party, Notting Hill RSA Conference, Italy

75

3

70

Press Gleanings Society Notes Mary Clow

Obituaries Mary Clow

72 Fred Handisyde

Notices

The New Testament 1526 Moreana Lambeth Lecture 2009 Travel with William Tyndale The Children’s Tyndale

73 14 41 42 60 67 74

Dates for Your Diary Advertising Rates and Specifications Membership/Subscription Form - USA & Canada Membership/Subscription Form - UK & EU Key Contacts

31 76 78 79

Please note that neither the Tyndale Society nor the Editors of this Journal necessarily share the views expressed by contributors. Copyright of all material remains with the contributors.

Guest Editor for Tyndale Society Journal No.38:

Neil Inglis We invite your contributions for the next Journal by 15th December 2009 please (see p. 8) –––––––––––––––––––– ♦ ––––––––––––––––––––

Thank you from the Tyndale Society to Eunice Burton and Brian Buxton, our exceptional Guest Editors for TSJ Nos 35 & 36. ey generously gave time and thought to writing their own contributions while eliciting and selecting those of other Members, and put the Journal ‘to bed’ with a consistency of spelling and punctuation that would have amazed William Tyndale.

Journal Commenced publication 1995 • 2 issues a year • ISSN: 1357-4167 Cover illustrations by Paul Jackson • Cover design by Paul Barron Graphics

4

Editorial Neil Inglis

Guest Editor - TSJ Nos. 37 and 38

I am embarking upon my guest editorship with a deep sense of humility and gratitude to all members of our Society, past and present, whose contributions have made our work and our publications possible. I especially want to thank our founder, whose own achievements and words have been summarized and paraphrased thus: no Daniell, no Tyndale. Mary Clow, Society President, has been a fount of wisdom and good sense.

I have relied extensively on the advice of my predecessors, Valerie Offord and Brian Buxton. Last but not least, this publication would not be possible without the sterling assistance and expertise provided by Karen Wortley.

I came upon William Tyndale quite by chance. One day in 1990 or 1991, I discovered my favorite Washington restaurant had lowered its standards: its signature dish of oregano chicken, once Neil Inglis piping hot and fresh, was now served glutinous and reheated. I was so upset I took refuge in the adjoining secondhand bookstore, where to comfort myself from this indignity, I bought Richard Marius’s biography of Thomas More. Unusually for the period, this biography devoted a full chapter to Tyndale and to More’s attitudes on heresy. More I knew about, of course, but Tyndale’s name was new to me. So this cold chicken incident, as a friend described it, set me on my path toward Tyndale and Reformation studies, which I have never left. (Keep reading for further details on the how-Tyndale-and-I-first-met reader competition).

In the years since 1996 I have attended half a dozen Tyndale events in Oxford, San Diego, and Geneva, and made lasting friends in the process. My eyes have been opened to the lives of Michael Servetus and other underappreciated heroes of the Reformation, and I have acquired a life-long commitment to honouring those denied credit for their work. It was at the 1998 San Diego Event at Point Loma that Valerie Offord asked me to write regularly for the TSJ, and my book reviews date from that time. Books are important for

5

Norfolk Gallery Quire Entertain Society Members at the Rowland Taylor formal dinner in Cambridge

Tyndalians in countless ways, and for obvious reasons: Tyndale’s achievements as the first published English translator of the Bible have earned him a cherished place in the pantheon, and in the hearts of lovers of the English language everywhere.

Now, the book reviewer’s craft deserves an article or lecture in its own right.

In a world in which everyone is very busy, we welcome the screening process that critics perform; it helps us to decide whether a new Reformation book is worth our time. Because Tyndale has historically been referred to in passing, a systematic book review exercise makes it possible to build up a mosaic picture of Tyndale’s world, chip by chip, tile by tile; the spokes of the wheel spreading out from Tyndale as the hub. Articles on Reformation history—even if they make no explicit mention of the martyred translator—all help to shed light and colour on Tyndale’s world.

In pondering a range of new editions and classic texts, few publications that cross my desk are irredeemably worthless. By the same token, even the most distinguished author will have at least one howler per title. As the writer of books, you can be as thorough as you please, you can have a population of editors and proofreaders camping out on your doorstep, and it won’t matter

6

because a gremlin will creep in amongst your pages just before the book goes to press, and presto!—there will be something for the reviewer to spot and mock.

It is quite simply impossible to avoid. It might be as simple as a mis-spelled name – Edward transmuting into Edmond or vice-versa. Yet how fair is it to pounce gleefully on honest mistakes? Years in the reviewer’s chair have taught me to think about more constructive uses of the reviewer’s time. As a result I try to work out and elaborate on themes that the author has hinted at or failed to develop fully. And this philosophy guides my endeavors as a Reformation enthusiast and as your guest editor today.

In this issue we are privileged to publish a glorious diversity of papers by distinguished authors from every corner of the Tyndalian universe. In no particular order, Don Smeeton has reviewed The Secret Life of Words, by Henry Hitchings (good Tyndalian-sounding name, that!). John Craig takes a fascinating look at the life of the unsung Rowland Taylor - (his paper at our April conference, is fully reported by Eunice Burton), and I cover the Catherine Parr era. We are also honoured to run papers by Sheila Fairbank (on Merton Priory); and Vic Perry (Tyndale’s Usages).

Veteran TSJ contributor Ralph Werrell does us proud with two articles on the Luther/Tyndale connection, and Eamon Duffy’s attempt to portray the softer side of the Mary Tudor era (Duffy’s work continues to divide Tyndalians into admirers and skeptics, which is why we continue to review his books).

In fact, we at the TSJ do not censor revisionist approaches to history, and give a respectful hearing to those who challenge the scholarly consensus.

Following in the spirit of Carsten Peter Thiede, we carry two delightful articles

by Bill Cooper (on The Epistle to the Alexandrians, and The Early Writing of the Gospel).

Also setting Tyndalian hearts a-flutter is the Economist’s (anonymous) profile of Tyndale, (William Tyndale—A Hero for the Information Age) which presents a fresh and imaginative view of the Reformation translator. This column has been the subject of much discussion in the blogosphere and Tyndalian circles, and we are delighted to reprint it here, with the magazine’s permission.

I would like to invite TSJ readers and friends of our society to contribute their recollections of how William Tyndale first entered their lives. There’s nothing wrong with saying you went to the Let There Be Light exhibit, either in London in 1994 (as I did), or elsewhere on its world tour. But if you have any rather more unusual or personal stories to tell, please pass them along to me at lordstarlink@googlemail.com. We shall print the most entertaining examples.

7

In closing this editorial, I would urge my readers to remember this good advice. Reformation studies are not stuffy and dry, but full of passion and drama.

The intensity of the Reformation story makes it a natural topic for on-line video websites. As proof, look no further than this modern-day riff on the 95 Theses; yes folks, here is an honest-to-goodness Reformation Rap. http://www.95thesesrap.com/ If the above internet movie fills you with the urge to retire to the serenity of a cloister, well, I also have just the website for you. If your soul is soothed by the thought of a robot monk producing scriptural calligraphy in a scriptorium, then you owe it to yourself to visit this site. http://www.robotlab.de/bios/bible engl.htm See Press Gleanings on page 70 for images and further infomation.

Happy reading!

Submission Guidelines

Tyndale Society Journal No. 38 Guest Editor: Neil Inglis

Please send all article submissions (via email where possible) to Neil at: tyndale.sec@btinternet.com

Articles may be supplied either via Word Document, or as plain text in the message body of your email. Alternatively, we can accept typewritten copy (for scanning in) or clear, hand-written copy submissions.

Artwork and photographs may be supplied electronically either via email or on CD-R (minimum resolution for all digital images: 300dpi).

Alternatively, these can be supplied in hard copy form, for scanning.

All type-written/hand-written copy, digital artwork on CD-R/hard copy artwork for scanning should be sent to: K Wortley, Tyndale Society Journal No.38 Barnyard, Purdy Street, Salthouse, Norfolk, NR25 7XA Deadline for submission of articles to the next issue: 15th December 2009

8

Obituary of Fred Handisyde 1912-2009

by Mary Clow

With great sadness we report the death on February 6th, 2009 of long-time Society member Fred Handisyde, aged 96.

Fred joined the Society in 1996, and regularly attended many events, especially the annual lecture at Lambeth Palace in London.

In the words of his daughter Mrs Janet Wilkes, he ‘read with interest, and kept every Tyndale Society Journal.’

Although born in London, Fred spent his early childhood as an evacuee in his mother’s native Cornwall during the First World War. Later his life was in London, where he worked for 31 years as an analytical chemist, until his retirement to Eastbourne in 1973. He was inspired by the work of the Bible Society, whose aim is to provide Bibles in every language, and for many years he, and his wife Margaret, were secretaries of the Eastbourne Group.

After Margaret’s death in 1992, he amazed old friends by his ability to live alone after 52 years of marriage. He had strong religious faith and gave loyalty and support to the things that he believed in. He was open and attentive to the needs of others and lived in Christian fellowship. He wil be sadly missed by many who found his company so pleasant and agreeable.

73

Dates for Your Diary 2009 Wednesday 23rd September, 6-8pm 15th Annual Lambeth Tyndale Lecture - Lambeth Palace, London HG Bishop Angaelos, General Bishop of the Coptic Orthodox Church in the UK: ‘The Place of the Scriptures in the Coptic Church’ .

The Coptic church was founded in the 1st century by St Mark in Egypt.

It is the largest Christian denomination in the Middle East and a living, growing church world-wide. Coptic belief is closely based on the Bible - which of course is the connection with the Tyndale Society.

Reception and Lecture to be held in the Palace, followed by Dinner at The City Inn, Westminster (30 John Islip Street, London, SW1 4DD) Tickets: Lecture and Reception: £12 Dinner (optional): £25 ♦

NB For security reasons everyone attending this event must be pre-registered and ticketed. (See leaflet enclosed for ticket application form and registration details. All welcome).

74

Lambeth Palace, London

♦

ursday 3rd December, 5-7pm 15th Tyndale Hertford Lecture Examination Schools & Hertford College, Oxford Christopher Wilkins Author of The Last Knight Errant ...biography of Edward Woodville, great-uncle to Tyndale’s patroness, Lady Anne Walsh, hero of the tumult Tyndale calls ‘the year of the three kings’, from chronicles, maybe those read as a boy in the library of Berkeley Castle? This first new biography for over a century illuminates the world of Tyndale’s background.

Presentation and Book Launch at the Examination Schools, High Street, Oxford followed by Reception at Hertford College as guests of the Principal.

(No tickets required. All welcome). ♦

Friday 18th December, 12:30-1:30pm Tyndale Society Carol Service St. Mary’s Abchurch, Abchurch Lane, City of London (nearest tubes Bank/Mansion House). All welcome.

December, 6:30pm Tyndale Society Christmas Party - Buffet supper with Mystery Guest. Venue to be confirmed. All welcome. ♦ Friday 18

th

–––––––––––––––––––– ♦ ––––––––––––––––––––

Dates for Your Diary 2010 ♦ ursday 8

th

to Saturday 10th April Conference of the Renaissance Society of America Venice, Italy ‘omas More and his Circle in the Cities of Europe’ 56th Annual meeting of the RSA, to be based at the Centro Culturale Don Orione Artigianelli and also at The Fondazione Giorgio Cini on Isola San Giorgio Maggiore.

(For information see website: http://www.rsa.org).

75

The Ty nda l e So c i et y ( US /Can )

_

New US Membership Applications 2009-10 Please complete & return to: The Tyndale Society (USA), PO Box 643, Unionville, PA19375, USA

Member Name: ______________________________________________

Member Address: ____________________________________________ ____________________________________________

Town: _____________________________________________________ State:

_____________________________________________________ ____________________________________________________

Zip Code:

_________________________________________________

Telephone Number: __________________________________________

Email Address: ______________________________________________ Please select your chosen membership category:

驶BASIC始 MEMBERSHIP

with bi-annual Tyndale Society Journal (US Dollars) $45 PER YEAR

OR

驶SCHOLARLY始 MEMBERSHIP

(plus annual Reformation) (US Dollars) $90.00 PER YEAR (please circle one of the above options, as appropriate)

I enclose my check payment in the sum of: (US Dollars) $_____________

SIGNED: ___________________________________

76

DATE: __/__/__

Joining the Tyndale Society Frequently Asked Questions: What is the Tyndale Society?

The Tyndale Society is a registered charity which exists to tell people about William Tyndale’s great work and influence, and to stimulate study of the man who gave us our English Bible.

Who can be a Member?

Membership of the Tyndale Society is open to all who share an interest in the life and work of William Tyndale.

Where are Members based?

Our membership is worldwide, with a large proportion of members based in the UK and the USA and some as far afield as Japan and Australia.

What are the categories of Membership?

Individual Membership (£22.50/$45 per year) Reformation Membership (£45.00/$90 per year) What will I receive if I join?

All members receive: Two issues of the Tyndale Society Journal per year Regular invitations to conferences, lectures and social events Invitations to tour historical sites not generally open to the public 25% Discount on advertising in the Tyndale Society Journal In addition, Reformation (US ‘Scholarly’) Members receive: One issue of Reformation per year (representing a 50% discount) What Payment Methods are Accepted?

Standing order, Cheque payment in £ (GBP) or $ (US Dollars) Cash (if you join the Society at a membership event) So how do I apply to become a Member?

Fill in the form opposite or overleaf (depending on country) and send it to: UK/EUR/ROW: Karen Wortley, Membership Secretary, The Tyndale Society, Barnyard, Purdy Street, Salthouse, NR25 7XA. US/CAN ONLY: The Tyndale Society (USA), PO Box 643, Unionville, PA 19375, USA email: tyndale.sec@btinternet.com

77

_

T h e T y n da le S o c ie t y ( U K / E U)

New UK Membership Applications 2009-10

Please complete & return to: K Wortley, Membership Secretary, The Tyndale Society, Barnyard, Purdy St., Salthouse, NR25 7XA

Member Name: _______________________________________________ Member Address: _____________________________________________ Town: ______________________________________________________ County: _____________________________________________________ Post Code: __________________________________________________ Telephone Number: ___________________________________________ Email Address: _______________________________________________ Standing Order Mandate To: The Branch Manager Bank/Building Society Name: ____________________________ Branch Address: ____________________________________________ __________________________________________________________ __________________________________________________________ Post Code: ________________________________________________ Name of Account Holder: _____________________________________ Account No: _______________________ Sort Code: _ _ / _ _ / _ _ Please pay: The Tyndale Society, National Westminster Bank, Branch Sort Code: 60-70-03 Account No: 86110683

EITHER £22.50 PER YEAR (For Single Membership) OR £45.00 PER YEAR (Membership including Reformation) OR £60.00 PER YEAR (For Friend Membership) (please delete two of the above, as appropriate)

Amount in words: ____________________________________ Commencing on: ________________________(Date/Month/Year) And Continuing every year on the same date until Further Notice (cancelling any previous instructions regarding this payee)

I am a UK taxpayer intending tax to be reclaimed under the Gift Aid scheme for Charity No. 1020405 (delete if necessary)

MEMBER SIGNATURE: ________________________ DATE: __/__/__ Alternatively, I attach my cheque payment in the sum of: _______________

Tyndale Society OďŹƒcers: Chairman Emeritus Chairman Vice-Chair USA Treasurer Secretary to the Trustees Membership Secretary

Professor David Daniell

Mary Clow, maryclow@aol.com

Dr Barry T. Ryan, drbarrytryan@aol.com

Philip Dickson, philip.dickson@hertford.ox.ac.uk Rochelle Givoni, Rochelle.Givoni@ctl.com

Karen Wortley, tyndale.sec@btinternet.com

Key Contacts for Members and Friends: Membership/Subscription Worldwide Tyndale Society, Hertford College, Catte Street, Oxford OX1 3BW, UK email: tyndale.sec@btinternet.com Phone: +44 (0)207 221 0303 USA Tyndale Society, PO BOX 643, Unionville, PA19375 email: (subject: Tyndale Society): SatTeacher@aol.com Phone: +1 610 869 9087 European Representative Mrs Valerie Offord email: valerie.offord@bluewin.ch

UK Contact Mrs Priscilla Frost, 27 Ditchley Road, Charlbury, Oxon. OX7 3QS, UK. email: info@oxconf.co.uk Phone: +44 (0) 1608 811818. Fax: +44 (0) 1608 819010,

Administration Mrs Gillian Guest, email: PMG7515@aol.com

Publications Committee Brian Johnson, email: brian_rosalind@yahoo.co.uk

Ploughboy Group Revd. David Ireson, 50 Camperdown Terrace, Exmouth, Devon, EX8 1EQ email: decuman@hotmail.co.uk Phone: +44 (0) 1395 263307 Webmaster Dr Deborah Pollard, email: d.e.pollard@qmul.ac.uk, www.tyndale.org

ISSN: 1357-4167