Beliefs
Royality, Romance, and Reformation
Truth be told, I have been preparing a Thanksgiving post for the last 2-3 months, but it is mainly musical so what I would like to do today is revisit what we were taught when we were young, i.e., that the Pilgrims came to the New World in search of religious freedom. Alas, that is but one tiny piece of a much more complex story.
We could go back to the voyages of Columbus. The future king of England was born in 1491. At the age of 17, Henry VIII ascended the throne and married Catherine of Aragon, the youngest surviving daughter of King Ferdinand II of Aragon and Queen Isabella I of Castile. The story is actually quite complicated because she was betrothed at age three to Prince Arthur, elder brother of the future king. Both were only 15 when they married in 1501. Prince Arthur died five months later, Catherine insisting that the marriage was never consummated.
In marrying King Henry VIII, It could be argued that neither English royal married Catherine, rather that England married Spain though Catherine was of English royalty on her mother’s side. During the years of limbo between her marriages, she became the first woman ambassador in European history. She also served briefly as regent of England when Henry VIII was in France (1513). During this time, she quelled a rebellion and aroused patriotism among citizens.
Her great “flaw” was that she failed to produce a male heir, leaving Mary the presumptive future monarch. This set in motion a royal battle with Pope Clement VII who refused to annul the marriage, thus precipitating a schism with the Catholic Church and the onset of the English Reformation in which Henry VIII became the supreme head of the Church of England. All convents and monasteries were dissolved, assets were seized, and Henry VIII was, of course, excommunicated.
Anne Boleyn entered the picture in 1526, and the marriage to Catherine was declared invalid in 1533, leaving Henry free to marry Anne. Catherine did not recognize Henry as the head of the new Church, and she continued to consider herself the rightful wife and queen. She was very popular among the citizens of England, but was banished from the court and died in 1536 of cancer, leaving Mary the heir apparent to throne.
The complexity of this epoch in history includes the role of Martin Luther whose objection to the sale of indulgences was posted in 1517. In short, both the Protestant Reformation and the establishment of the Church of England occurred more or less in the same period of history. The difference of course is that while theological arguments were used both by Henry VIII and Martin Luther, the motivations were dissimilar. Nevertheless, introducing the vernacular into the new churches set the stage for much wider understanding of doctrines.
This was a part of the Renaissance sweeping Europe at the time so whether talking art, literature, religion, or science, the gateway to the modern world was opening. As an astrologer, I would also note that the Copernican theory supporting the concept of a heliocentric universe was published in 1543; and in 1572, Tycho Brahe observed a super nova giving rise to the idea that there are stars beyond the Moon.
Continuing our saga, John Calvin broke from the Catholic Church and eventually gave rise to what is known as Puritanism in which the primary goal was to establish a covenant with God. One cornerstone of the Puritan faith is a belief in predestination.
The Pilgrims were mainly Separatists who fled England for Holland to avoid religious persecution from Anglicans. These are the Protestants who set sail from England and founded the colony in Massachusetts in 1620.
Though celebrations involving indigenous tribes and settlers can be dated as far back as 1578 (Newfoundland), the first “official” Thanksgiving took place in 1621 with Pilgrims and members of the Wampanoag tribe. Thanksgiving became a national holiday during the American Civil War, 1863, under President Lincoln.
Ostensibly, the freedom to practice one’s faith without risk of persecution would seem like a breakthrough, but Thanksgiving was more about a feast of survival than a guarantee of the right to one’s own beliefs. Survival depended more on the generosity of the indigenous peoples’ willingness to share food with colonists than on respect for differences. Proselytizing, persecution, and prejudice were not eliminated.
As we emerge from the election season, we hear a lot of rhetoric about America being a Christian nation. It was perhaps colonized by Pilgrims of strong persuasions, but it should be accepted that the goal was and should be freedom, not domination much less intolerance. Interestingly, while Protestants constitute a relatively new branch of Christianity, indigenous people have held on to many of their traditions despite their having become a minority. Likewise, immigrations of Catholics, Buddhists, Moslems, and Hindus have diluted the dominance of Protestants in recent years.
Speaking for myself, complete separation of church and state seems imperative to spiritual and political stability. Faith is something that might be an inherent component of the soul, inborn so to speak. It is the foundation of all that is potentially noble and uplifting. It is also personal and hopefully unshakable. On the other hand, the state is responsible for security and sound domestic and international policies. It should not be involved in education, religion, or ownership of media platforms.
We accept that leaders have personal lives in which it is appropriate to practice their beliefs, but it is not appropriate to attempt to impose those beliefs on anyone else. Now, if we go back to Henry VIII, we recognize that the underlying issue was an heir — and the notion that a different wife might provide a male heir turned into a conflict involving schisms, persecutions, executions, and legalities rather than mystical understanding of the role of spirit in matter. The question then arises whether marriages are made in heaven or on earth? Do you know the answer?
Copyright by Dr. Ingrid Naiman 2024 || All Rights Reserved
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Image Credit:
Pilgrim: Glenda Powers | Dreamstime.com