Apology of the Church of England
John Jewel's Apology of the Church of England stands as the first systematic defense of the Elizabethan religious settlement and the emerging Anglican church. Written in Latin in 1562, just four years after Elizabeth I's accession, the work emerged from the urgent need to justify the English church's break from Rome to both Continental Protestant allies and Catholic critics. Jewel, Bishop of Salisbury and a former Marian exile who had witnessed Reformed theology firsthand in Zurich and Strasbourg, crafted this treatise as England's official response to Catholic accusations of heresy and schism.
The Apology operates through a careful two-pronged argument that seeks to establish both the legitimacy and the necessity of the English Reformation. Jewel first demonstrates that the Church of England represents not innovation but restoration, arguing that Anglican practices align with the primitive church of the apostles and church fathers rather than with medieval Roman corruptions. He systematically addresses Catholic charges by showing how practices like clerical marriage, communion in both kinds, and vernacular liturgy reflect ancient Christian tradition. The work then shifts to a sustained critique of papal authority, challenging both the theological basis for papal supremacy and the moral authority of contemporary Rome. Jewel argues that the pope has exceeded his proper bounds, pointing to examples of papal corruption and the church's departure from scriptural teaching on salvation, sacraments, and church governance.
Enduring Influence
The Apology's influence extended far beyond its immediate apologetic purpose, shaping Anglican identity for centuries. Thomas Harding's Catholic response prompted Jewel to produce his massive Defence of the Apology, creating a defining theological exchange that clarified Anglican positions on scripture, tradition, and authority. The work's via media approach—claiming continuity with Catholic tradition while embracing Protestant reforms—established a theological method that became characteristic of Anglicanism. Its emphasis on patristic sources and primitive church practices provided intellectual foundations for later Anglican theologians like Richard Hooker and the Caroline Divines.
Who should read this: Scholars of Reformation history and Anglican theology will find in Jewel's Apology an essential primary source for understanding how the Church of England articulated its identity in its formative period. Those interested in apologetic literature and the development of confessional boundaries during the religious upheavals of the sixteenth century will appreciate Jewel's sophisticated argumentation, though readers seeking devotional or spiritual formation material should look elsewhere.