HISTORY FROM THE; BENCH.

Dominion, Volume 4, Issue 950, 18 October 1910, Page 4

HISTORY FROM THE; BENCH.

ORIGIN ;OF ANGLIOA;N :CHIJBCH.

. The. 'question:.;;!.whether ;the.., Anglican; Church originated at. the .time of/: the-Be-formation,: or.lorig before,!lias/beerAVa; frequent .subject for ''controversy, bufptha opiuidn of Mr. Justice Cooper, as' expressed incidentally ih a! judgment- which ■is":summarised--elsewhere, is, that '."> the :"Church of-England,: as a national* Church; has a history \vhioh :goes./niuoh further; back than the Act of Supremacy and kin-, tired statutes of Henry VIII. It was 'recognised (he stated): asVthe nationalEnglish Church, long prior'; even : to-the ; ■date/ of; Magna >Charta,/thevfirst article of which -declared: that;'!the-Churoh: of England shall be-free, ahd:shall have/all her- whole rights and liberties , inviolable." .'-' The Statute, of Provisoi's (Edward III) -recited' that "the'.Church/of England is founded in the-estate .of : pre-' 'lacy within' the.Realm bf-'Bngland," and otner statutes of Edward Rioliar'd'; .il indirectly ; affirmed. the existence-of. the 'Church of England as -the' National "Church.! Sir Robert'Phillinibre, /iii.an elaborate judgment';"'had the":"his-; '. tory of the Church' of England fief ore and since! the liei'brmation, and arrived/at, the conclusion that "in the history/of- no kingdom is .the independence! of ;• the National ,Church;writt'en "with.a'firmer character than in. that, of England, -in'■'■■the statutes. of the: realm, in. the decisions 'of judicial, tribunals, and 'the..debates'■;■. of .Parliament.", •-,. Hut it -did not appear ■Viiat -'there was.any direct; legislative' affirmance of the'supremacy of the Sove;reign /as head of" the Church,.■ or:. any, direct denial of,the spiritual authority !of the Pope,.'-before the statutes-of ,'Henry : vlll. .The effect of statutes! 31, Hen. 8,; Chapters ,18 ■■■and- H, was; ..the direct affirmance by Parliament of the Nntional Church -as the State - ; Church 'with:'the King, to use the language of the statutes, "by God's law, its supreme head : iinmedi-" under Him of the whole Church and congregation of England." . .-;-•- His Honour mentioned: that, -he ;mado this short reference .to : the history .of the Church of England -partly, because a remark, he made" during.the argument'may, have been misunderstood and.interpreted: as a statement by him that tho Church of England owed its origin to the statutes., of Henry VIII.:.:!!>, .-■■:' ■• .; ..!;-!?: : -