Little Arthur's history of England

by Lady Maria Callcott

One of these was a gentleman of Rotterdam, in Holland, who came to England on purpose to learn Greek. His name was Erasmus, and he was famous for writing better Latin than anybody had done since the time of the old Romans.

Another was Sir Thomas More, who was Lord Chancellor of England during part of Henry the Eighth’s reign; he was very learned and wise, and besides that, very good-humoured and cheerful.

Erasmus and Sir Thomas More were very great friends, especially when Sir Thomas was young; and they used to write pleasant letters and books, to show how wrong those persons were who believed in the foolish stories told by the friars, and how wicked many of the clergymen were, who lived idle lives, and passed their time in eating and drinking, and in doing many bad things, instead of teaching the people, as it was their duty to do.

Besides these two great friends, there were several others, especially Tonstall and Latimer, who both were taught by Linacre, and are remembered to our time for being learned and good.

By degrees, the English heard all that Martin Luther said in Germany about the Pope and his messengers, and the bad part of the clergymen; and many disputes arose among the people. Some said that we had no business to obey the Pope at all in anything, and that many of the things the clergymen of Rome taught were wicked and false, and that God would punish those who believed them, now that they could read the Bible, and learn for themselves what was right.

Others said that those things were not false, and that we ought to believe them; and as to the Pope, we ought to obey him in everything about our churches and our prayers, and the way of worshipping God.

But the thing that made the people, who took the opposite side in the dispute most angry, was the quantity of land and money that the clergymen had persuaded different people to give them. Those who were against the Pope said that the clergymen had deceived the people and had pretended that they could prevail upon God to forgive their worst sins, if they would only give their lands and money to the churches and convents, that the monks and friars might live in idleness.

The others, who were for the Pope, pretended that clergymen were better and wiser than others, and therefore they ought to live in comfort, and grandeur, and leisure, and to have more power and money than other men.

Now I believe the truth is, that in those days the clergymen were a great deal too rich and powerful, and that they oppressed the people in every country, and that they tried to keep them from learning to read, that they might not find out the truth from the Bible and other good books.

However, in England there were a great many good men on both sides.