The Middle Way
Elizabeth
tried to bring peace in matters of religion. She
tried to find a compromise which moderates on both the
Catholic and Protestant sides could accept. The
key points were:
-
she
called herself the 'Supreme Governor', not the 'Head' of
the Church of England;
-
the
English Prayer Book was brought back, and Elizabeth
insisted on protestant beliefs BUT she allowed many of the
trappings of the Catholic services - bishops, ordained
priests, church decorations, music and priests' vestments;
-
She
produced a
prayer
book in English, but allowed a
Latin
edition to be printed;
-
the
new prayer book said that Christ was 'really present' in
the bread and the wine in the Communion service.
However,
there was no question that people could believe what they
wanted. Elizabeth demanded Uniformity (everybody
had to believe and do the same thing) and she punished extreme
Protestants and extreme Catholics who opposed her.
Some Catholics tried to organise rebellions against Elizabeth,
and these people were tortured and executed.
During
Elizabeth's reign, England became a moderate Protestant
country.
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