Acts, Chapter 15,
Verse 9
He made no
distinction between us and them, for by faith
he purified their hearts.
This verse is about the Jewish practice of circumcision.
Were the Greek Christians required to be circumcised? The apostles determined
that the leaders should not put obstacles to commitment. They should ask only
the compromises needed to enable Christian Jews to associate in table
fellowship with non-Jewish Christians.[1]
Are you circumcised or uncircumcised? Today we might
divide ourselves as the early Christians did: Are you a democrat or a
republican. At this point what does it matter; no matter the election results
we must have faith that God’s purpose
will be done. We must purify our
hearts and render unto Caesar our heartfelt determination to serve the Nation
by living our catholic beliefs within the political system with a willingness to
compromise wherever possible except in matters the breech the covenant of God.
Known
as Guy Fawkes Night or Fireworks Night, Gunpowder
Day focuses on the plot by Guy Fawkes and other conspirators to blow up
Britain’s parliament in 1605. Rebelling against the persecution of Catholics by
King James I, they planned to kill the monarch during his visit to parliament.
But the scheme was foiled, and the traitors executed. Families construct an
effigy of Guy Fawkes to be burned on a bonfire that evening. Fireworks are also
set off to add to the celebrations. Public displays are also held, and the
biggest celebration of Gunpowder Day is in Lewes in East Sussex, England. Six
bonfire societies host their own fireworks displays and gargantuan bonfires.
After sunset, a large procession of all of the societies moves through Lewes.
Many members carry flame torches and a river of fire can be seen flowing through
the town during the evening.
Hatred
of All Things Catholic[3]
The Gunpowder Plot is debated to this
day. Some see it as a widespread Catholic plot instigated and led by the Jesuit
priests living underground in England—much like it was painted in the 1606
trials of the conspirators. Others argue that there was no conspiracy at all;
it was a government-inspired fabrication created by double-agents to use in the
propaganda war against Catholics. Conspiracy theories aside, here’s what we
know of the Gunpowder Plot. It began in an atmosphere of harsh anti-Catholic
persecution. After the excommunication of Queen Elizabeth in 1570 and the
threatened invasion of the Spanish Armada in 1588, Catholics were viewed with
suspicion in England. They were an alien force that could rise up at any moment
on papal orders, overthrow the Crown and eradicate English Protestantism. Or at
least that was the excuse. While English leadership would always argue that its
concern with Catholicism was purely political and not based on religious
beliefs, in fact it harbored a deep hatred of all things Catholic. As the 17th
century began, a host of harsh legal penalties punished Catholics in England
for practicing their faith. Mass could not be legally celebrated anywhere.
Those laity caught attending a clandestine Mass could face heavy fines or jail.
Priests caught saying Mass—or simply exposed as priests—were jailed, deported,
or executed as traitors. Even rosary beads were considered contraband. Children
could not be baptized or married according to Catholic rites. Every person over
the age of 16 was required to attend the local Protestant Church every Sunday
or face heavy fines. Mass, therefore, was said in secret in private homes by
priests who were hidden by the Catholic community itself. Those Catholics
willing—and able—paid the fines for not attending Protestant services. Others
remained Catholic at heart, attending Mass when they could, but went to
Protestant services either because they could not afford the fines or because
they feared public retribution.
Hopes
Raised—and Dashed
But by the turn of the 17th century, many within the English Catholic community had some hope for relief. With childless Queen Elizabeth growing older, they pinned their hopes on a successor that would lift these onerous restrictions. While some daydreamed of a Catholic prince or princess from the Continent—a foreign invasion by an alliance of Catholic sovereigns—others fixed their hopes on King James VI of Scotland. Son of Mary Queen of Scots, whom many believed to be a martyr for the faith after her execution in 1587 for allegedly plotting to overthrow Elizabeth, James was the most likely successor. He was married to a Catholic convert, Anne of Denmark, and rumors swirled within Catholic circles (including the Holy See) that James might be open to conversion himself, or at the very least open to Catholic toleration. James did absolutely nothing to discourage such rumors and, particularly with the papacy, encouraged them. After James, while in Scotland, misled Pope Clement VIII about his potential conversion, the pope certainly looked favorably on him. So, when Elizabeth died on March 24, 1603 and James was formally declared her successor, Catholic hopes soared. Such hopes dimmed almost immediately, however, as Catholics noticed that, in honor of his succession, the new King James granted routine pardons to everyone but murderers and Catholics. When the first Parliament of his reign was called for the spring of 1604, King James made his position on Catholics very clear. In February of 1604 he demanded that all priests be thrown out of his realm, and in March he complained bitterly of alleged Catholic growth to Protestant leaders. In April a bill was introduced to class all Catholics as outlaws.
Clever like a
Fawkes
A younger generation of Catholics in
England had grown up with Elizabeth’s persecution and the hope for relief under
her successor. Sick of a world where advancement could only come through
denying the faith, a small number had become truly militant. They longed for a
new Spanish invasion after the disastrous defeat of the Spanish Armada. Among
those who travelled to Spain in the hopes of securing a promised invasion was a
young soldier named Guy Fawkes. Once James was enthroned and a Protestant
succession secured through his heirs, the desperation among these young
Catholics only grew. The Spanish, looking to end the age of conflict with
England, were making it clear through negotiations with the new monarch that
they were willing to sell out their fellow English Catholics. The pope, who had
also made his desire for peace known, disapproved any acts of violence. The
Jesuits in England made very clear that they supported the papal position. By
and large, this reflected the position of English Catholics. Though their hopes
were dashed by the apparent hostility of King James to Catholic toleration,
they knew that any violence would only make a bad situation intolerable. The
Bye Plot of 1603, a scheme to hold the king in the Tower of London until he
granted Catholic toleration, had involved disgruntled Catholics. But the Plot
was nipped primarily because underground Jesuit priests tipped off the
government. King James was so grateful that he extended some pardons to a few
Catholics jailed for their faith. In May 1604, a group of disaffected young
Catholics held a meeting. Abandoned by Spain, the plotters believed that every
peaceable means had been tried and failed. The decision was made to blow up
King James and his Parliament, a plan they believed would lead to a foreign
invasion, a Catholic uprising, or the restoration of a Catholic monarchy. After
making their pledge, they attended a Mass celebrated by a Jesuit priest who was
completely ignorant of what had taken place. Parliament was suspended out of
fear of the plague, so the handful of plotters spent their time drawing a few
more into the conspiracy. Fawkes began to stockpile gunpowder in the cellar of
a house that extended under the Parliament building. In a world overrun with
spies and double-agents, Fawkes was already known to English authorities as a
dangerous man.
Catholics
Reveal the Plot
In late June of 1605, Fr. Henry Garnet heard the confession of
another Jesuit priest, who revealed to him the outline of a plot that had been
confessed to him earlier. Horrified, Fr. Garnet—who could not reveal what he
knew because of the seal of the confessional—wrote to Rome asking the new pope,
Paul V, for a blanket papal condemnation of violence. When it was announced
that Parliament would be delayed again, Fr. Garnet believed that the danger had
passed. He was mistaken. The plotters proceeded, even when an anonymous letter
was sent to a Catholic lord, warning him to stay away when Parliament opened in
the fall. The lord passed the letter on to Robert Cecil, Earl of Salisbury,
secretary of state to Elizabeth and King James, and a persecutor of all things
Catholic. On November 1, 1605, Cecil informed the king of the mysterious
letter. The cellar under Westminster was searched, cords of firewood to ignite
the blast were discovered, and Fawkes, found skulking about, was arrested. The
rest of the conspirators fled. The Gunpowder Plot was foiled. The core
conspirators were tracked down and a number were killed in an ambush. The
survivors were arrested. It was at this point that Cecil began his campaign to
recast the Gunpowder Plot as a Jesuit conspiracy, though the Jesuits in England
had been outspoken against violence. Taking advantage of the paranoia after the
plot was revealed, Cecil made certain that the Gunpowder Plot was not viewed as
a conspiracy by a handful of fanatical Catholics. Instead, it became a vast
Catholic intrigue against the throne and English Protestantism caused by
"the perfidious and cursed doctrine of Rome." The Venetian ambassador
described the anti-Catholic talk that was everywhere in London: "Here they
attend to nothing else but great preparation for the annihilation of the
Catholic religion."
Annihilate the Catholics
After the original plotters were
executed, a virtual program against Catholics began, focusing on the Jesuits.
Fr. Garnet was eventually arrested, tortured, and executed on trumped-up
charges of complicity. He refused to renounce the faith and was venerated as a
martyr for generations. Though never formally canonized, to this day many
believe him to be a saint. The impact of the Gunpowder Plot on English thinking
was so great that not until 1828 would Catholics be finally
"emancipated" in England and allowed a full range of common English
rights, including the right to vote. As a point of comparison, in America that
number of years would have denied Catholics the ballot from 1776 to the
incumbent candidacy of the second George Bush.
Fact Check
A
few quick points to remember about the Gunpowder Plot:
·
Prior to his accession, King James I deceived Catholics about
what toleration he would allow, even misleading the pope about a possible
conversion. His duplicity had its own role in generating the Gunpowder Plot.
·
The Gunpowder Plot, although real, was not a widespread Catholic
conspiracy. Most Catholics were horrified when it was discovered, knowing that
it would lead to heightened persecution. That it most assuredly did—over two
centuries’ worth.
·
The actual conspirators were a small handful of young Catholics.
While it cannot be said for certain what involvement double-agents might have
had in an era where men such as Robert Cecil were creating the world’s first
police state in England (aimed specifically at Catholics), there were young
Catholic men willing to engage in the plot, even if they were duped.
·
The Jesuits in England did not devise, guide, or lead the
Gunpowder Plot. In fact, they tried to deter any violence based on the limited
knowledge they had of the plot. The Jesuit superior in England thought he had
successfully put the plot to rest.
·
Cecil’s attack on the Jesuits was a calculated plot against all
things Catholic. His propaganda campaign was meant to show that the enemy was
not limited to the conspirators in the Gunpowder Plot but comprised the
Catholic Church itself.
·
The Gunpowder Plot established the climate for the infusion of
anti-Catholicism into every aspect of English life.
·
The number of Catholic urban legends created as a result of the
Gunpowder Plot is legion. Standard stereotypes and canards include the
conniving Jesuit, priests seducing innocent women, the sacrament of penance as
a tool to "forgive" sin before the sin has been committed, Catholic
plots to overthrow states, Catholics owing a secular allegiance to the papacy,
Catholics as unreliable aliens—the list goes on and on.
Shortly
after the Gunpowder Plot was discovered, Parliament declared that November 5
would be celebrated annually as a day of thanksgiving. It became known as
"Guy Fawkes Day" and the common practice was to have bonfires and to
burn the pope in effigy—a practice that continues in parts of England to this
day.
"Read
these counsels slowly. Pause to meditate on these thoughts. They are things
that I whisper in your ear-confiding them-as a friend, as a brother, as a father.
And they are being heard by God. I won't tell you anything new. I will only
stir your memory, so that some thought will arise and strike you; and so you
will better your life and set out along ways of prayer and of Love. And in the
end you will be a more worthy soul."
111. Remove, Jesus, that filthy crust of sensual corruption which
covers my heart, so that I can feel and readily follow the touches of the
Paraclete on my soul.
Daily Devotions
·
Spiritual Warfare
Day SIXTEEN
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