Lollardy was a proto-Protestant Christian religious movement that was active in England from the mid-14th century until the 16th-century English Reformation. It was initially led by John Wycliffe,. a Catholic theologian who was later dismissed from the University of Oxford in 1381 for heresy. The Lollards' demands were primarily for reform of Western Christianity. They formulated their beliefs in the Twelve Conclusions of the Lollards.
Etymology
Lollard, Lollardi, or Loller was the popular derogatory nickname given to those without an academic background, educated (if at all) mainly in English, who were reputed to follow the teachings of John Wycliffe in particular. By the mid-15th century, "lollard" had come to mean a heretic in general. The alternative term "Wycliffite" is generally accepted to be a more neutral term covering those of similar opinions, but having an academic background.
The term is said to have been coined by the Anglo-Irish cleric Henry Crumpe, but its origin is uncertain. The earliest official use of the name in England occurs in 1387 in a mandate of the Bishop of Worcester against five "poor preachers", nomine seu ritu Lollardorum confoederatos. According to the Oxford English Dictionary, it most likely derives from Middle Dutch ("mumbler, mutterer"), from a verb lollen ("to mutter, mumble"). The word is much older than its English use; there were Lollards in the Netherlands at the beginning of the 14th century who were akin to the Fraticelli, Beghards, and other sectaries similar to the recusant Franciscans.
Originally the Dutch word was a colloquial name for a group of buriers of the dead during the Black Death, in the 14th century, known as Alexians, Alexian Brothers or Cellites. These were known colloquially as (Middle Dutch for "mumbling brothers"), or , from ("to sing softly"), from their chants for the dead.cf. English lullaby, and the modern Dutch and German lallen "to babble, to talk drunkenly": Middle English (akin to the verb loll, lull, the English cognate of Dutch lollen "to mutter, mumble") is recorded as an alternative spelling of Lollard, while its generic meaning "a lazy vagabond, an idler, a fraudulent beggar" is not recorded before 1582.
Two other possibilities for the derivation of Lollard are mentioned by the Oxford English Dictionary: Latin , a weedy vetch (tares), supposedly a reference to the biblical Parable of the Tares (Matthew 13:24–30); the surname "Lolhard" of an eminent Franciscan preacher in Guyenne, who converted to the Waldensian way. The region of Guyenne was at that time under English dominion, and his preaching influenced pious lay English. He was burned at Cologne in the 1370s. Earlier, another Waldensian teacher, also named "Lolhard", was tried for heresy in Austria in 1315.
Beliefs
According to scholar Margaret Aston, as Wycliffe's academic theology percolated to the masses, it changed measurably, some parts strengthening and others weakening. Historian John Thomson is paraphrased "Rather than a specific creed of well thought out theological doctrine, Lollard beliefs are more aptly described as a set of consistent attitudes."
Eucharist With regard to the Eucharist, Lollards such as John Wycliffe, William Thorpe and John Oldcastle taught a view of the mystical (and yet) real presence of Christ in Holy Communion known as "consubstantiation"; but they did not accept the formulation of the idea of transubstantiation, which the Roman Catholic Church required the faithful not to deny. Wycliff, at least, held that transubstantiation was impossible as it required the destruction of matter (the bread), rather than its mere imbuing with an additional being (the body of Christ). Wycliffite teachings on the Eucharist were declared heresy at the Blackfriars Council of 1382, and later by the Pope and the Council of Constance.
"The Plowman's Tale", a medieval Lollard poem, argues that theological debate about Latin doctrine is less important than the Real Presence:
William Sawtry, a priest, was reportedly burned in 1401 for his preaching that "bread remains in the same nature as before" after consecration by a priest. A suspect in 1517 summed up the Lollards' position: "Summe folys cummyn to churche thynckyng to see the good Lorde — what shulde they see there but bredde and wyne?"
In the mid 15th century a priest associated with the lollards named Richard Wyche was accused of teaching false doctrine that had corrupted the faith of Northumbrians. There remains a letter detailing his version of the inquisitional proceedings, where a succession of theologians and others attempted to convince him of the Catholic position on transubstantiation, or at least to find some compromise wording by which he would not deny it. When asked about transubstantiation during his questioning, he repeated only his belief in the Real Presence. When asked if the host was still bread even after consecration, he answered only: "I believe that the host is the real body of Christ in the form of bread". Throughout his questioning he insisted that he was "not bound to believe otherwise than Holy Scripture says" and used various arguments against the inquisitors' claims that the use of the qualifier 'in the form of bread'. Following the questioning, he claimed he had been allowed to swear an oath qualified in his heart; later his inquisitors denied this. His denial of having taken the unqualified oath was taken as a re-canting by the bishop, preventing his attempted appeal to the Pope. He was excommunicated, defrocked, and imprisoned, and he would later be executed by the state (although for a separate stubbornness).
Lollard teachings on the Eucharist are attested to in numerous primary source documents. It is the fourth of the Twelve Conclusions and the first of the Sixteen Points on which the Bishops accuse Lollards. It is discussed in The Testimony of William Thorpe, the Apology for Lollard Doctrines, Jack Upland, and Opus Arduum.
Denial of sacraments and sacramentals
Believing in a universal priesthood, the Lollards challenged the Church's authority to invest or to deny the divine authority to make a man a priest. Lollards also did not view oral confession to a priest (auricular confession) as strictly necessary for the remission of sins. However, they strongly maintained that contrition of the heart and confession to God were essential for salvation. While they believed it is beneficial to confess to a good priest, it is perilous to confess to a bad one. Lollards challenged the practice of clerical celibacy and believed priests should not hold government positions as such temporal matters would likely interfere with their spiritual mission.
Lollard views on baptism were diverse, and while some radicals were accused of denying the need for infant baptism, the movement generally focused on the distinction between the "baptism of water" and the "baptism of the Spirit." John Wycliffe’s own theology, which underpins Lollardy, was rooted in a revival of Augustinianism. This tradition emphasizes the necessity of grace and the "baptism of the Spirit" for salvation, even if it downplays the absolute necessity of the physical ritual if a priest is unavailable or corrupt. Lollard rejection of "baptism of water" was often a critique of the ceremony's necessity rather than the sacrament's underlying spiritual reality.
Lollards also considered praying to saints and honouring of their images to be a form of idolatry. Oaths, fasting and prayers for the dead were thought to have no scriptural basis. They had a poor opinion of the trappings of the Catholic Church, including holy water, bells, organs, and church buildings. They rejected the value of papal pardons.
The Twelve Conclusions One group of Lollards petitioned Parliament with the Twelve Conclusions of the Lollards by posting them on the doors of Westminster Hall in February 1395. While by no means a central statement of belief of the Lollards, the Twelve Conclusions reveal certain basic Lollard ideas.
The first Conclusion rejects the acquisition of temporal wealth by Church leaders, as accumulating wealth leads them away from religious concerns and towards greed. The fourth Conclusion deals with the Lollard view that the Sacrament of the Eucharist is a debatable doctrine that is not clearly defined in the Bible. Whether the bread remains bread or becomes the literal body of Christ is not specified uniformly in the gospels. The sixth Conclusion states that officials of the Church should not concern themselves with secular matters when they hold a position of power within the Church, since this constitutes a conflict of interest between matters of the spirit and matters of the State. The eighth Conclusion points out the ludicrousness, in the minds of Lollards, of the reverence that is directed toward images of Christ's suffering. "If the cross of Christ, the nails, spear, and crown of thorns are to be honoured, then why not honour Judas's lips, if only they could be found?" The eleventh Conclusion was that female religious vows were unsafe, given that unmarried females could not contain their lust and would fall pregnant and commit abortion. Expensive church artwork was seen as an excess. They believed effort should be placed on helping the needy and preaching rather than working on expensive decorations. Icons were also seen as dangerous since many seemed to be worshipping the icons more fervently than they worshipped God.
Later, an expanded version the "Thirty Seven Conclusions" or "Remonstrances" was submitted in the late 1390s; the author is not known.
Vernacular scripture Lollardy was a religion of vernacular scripture. Lollards opposed many practices of the Catholic church. Anne Hudson has written that a form of sola scriptura underpinned Wycliffe's beliefs, but distinguished it from the more radical ideology that anything not permitted by scripture is forbidden. Instead, Hudson notes that Wycliffe's sola scriptura held the Bible to be "the only valid source of doctrine and the only pertinent measure of legitimacy."
Later Lollards believed that people deserved access to a copy of their own Bible. Many attempted to distribute English copies. Due to the lack of a printing press and low literacy levels, it was difficult to accomplish this goal.
However, a notable feature of some Lollard inquisitions was the common claim of illiteracy, or vision impairment, as a defence against the suspicion of Lollardy raised by possession of suspect vernacular texts.
Despite popular beliefs to the contrary:
Catholic practices Lollards did not observe fasting and abstinence in the Catholic Church. In heresy proceedings against Margery Baxter it was presented as evidence that a servant girl found bacon in a pot of oatmeal on the first Saturday of Lent. Non-observance of dietary restrictions was used as evidence of heresy in another Norfolk case against Thomas Mone, where it was alleged that a piglet was eaten for Easter dinner when eating meat was forbidden.
Special vows were considered to be in conflict with the divine order established by Christ and were regarded as anathema.
Lollards had a tendency toward iconoclasm.
Some Lollards believed work was permissible on Sundays.
Foxe Sixteenth-century martyrologist John Foxe reduced the main beliefs of Lollardy to four (none of which correspond exactly to the five solae alleged of Protestantism), marginalizing the Wycliffite doctrine of dominium, claiming they were:
opposition to pilgrimages opposition to saint worship denial of the doctrine of transubstantiation (e.g. in favour of consubstantiation) a demand for English translation of the Scriptures
History