Miraculous images in England before the Reformation. Burnet's History of the Reformation, book ii. An. Dom. 1535. "For their images, some of them were brought to London, and were there at St. Paul's cross, in the sight of all the people, broken, that they might be fully convinced of the juggling impostures of the monks; and in particular the crucifix of Boxley, in Kent, commonly called "the rood of grace," to which many pilgrimages had been made, because it was observed sometimes to bow, and to lift itself up, to shake and to stir head, hands, and feet, to roll the eyes, move the lips, and bend the brows: all of which were looked upon by the abused multitude as the effects of a divine power. These were now publicly discovered to have been cheats, for the springs were shewn, by which all these motions were made. Upon which John Hisley, the bishop of Rochester, made a sermon, and broke the rood in pieces. There was also another famous imposture discovered at Hales, in Glouces tershire, where the blood of Christ was shewn in a vial of crystal, which the people sometimes saw, but sometimes they could not see it: so they were made to believe that they were not capable of so signal a favour so long as they were in mortal sin, and so they continued to make presents, till they bribed heaven to give them the sight of so blessed a relic. This was now discovered to have been the blood of a duck, which they renewed every week, and the one side of the vial was so thick, that there was no seeing through it; but the other was clear and transparent; and it was so placed near the altar, that one in a secret place behind could turn either side of it outward. So when they had drained the pilgrims that came thither of all they had brought with them, then they afforded them the favour of turning the clear side outward, who upon that went home, well satisfied with their journey, and the expense they had been at. There was brought out of Wales a huge image of wood, called 'Darrel Gutheren,' of which one Ellis Price, visitor of the diocese of St. Asaph, gave this account on the 6th of April, 1537. That the people of the country had a great superstition for it, and many pilgrimages were made to it, so that the day before he wrote, there were reckoned to be above five or six hundred pilgrims there. Some brought oxen and cattle, and some brought money; and it was gene rally believed that if any offered to that image, he had power to deliver a soul from hell. So it was ordered to be brought to London, where it served for fuel to burn friar Forrest. There was a huge image of our Lady at Worcester that was had in great reverence, which when it was stripped of some veils that covered it, was found to be the statue of a bishop." Barlow, bishop of St. David's, did also give many advertisements of the superstitions of his country, and of the clergy and monks of that diocese, who were guilty of heathenish idolatry, gross impiety, and ignorance, and of abusing people with many evident forgeries, about which he said he had good evidence when it should be called for. But that which drew most pilgrims and presents in those parts was an image of our Lady with a taper in her hand, which was believed to have burned nine years, till one forswearing himself upon it, it went out, and was there much reverenced and worshipped. He found all about the cathedral so full of superstitious conceits, that there was no hope of working on them; therefore he proposed the translating the episcopal seat from St. David's to Carmarthen, which he pressed by many arguments, and in several letters, but with no success. Many rich shrines of our Lady of Walsingham, of Ipswich, and Islington, with a great many more, were brought up to London, and burnt by Cromwell's orders. But the richest shrine was that of Thomas Becket For 300 years he was accounted one of the greatest saints in heaven, as may appear in the ledger books of the offerings made to the three greatest altars in Christ Church in Canterbury. The one was to Christ; the other to the Virgin, and the third to St. Thomas. In one year there was offered at Christ's altar £3. 2s. 6d. ; to the Virgin's altar £63. 58. 6d.; but to St. Thomas's altar £832. 13s. 2d. But the next year the odds grew greater; for there was not one penny offered at Christ's altar, and at the Virgin's only £4. 18. 8d.; but at St. Thomas's £954. 68. 3d. By such offerings it came that his shrine was of inestimable value. There was a stone offered there by Lewis VII. of France, who came over to visit it in a pilgrimage, that was believed to be the richest in Europe. It appears from the record of the sixth Jubilee after his translation in an. 1420, that there were then about 100,000 strangers came to visit his tomb. The Jubilee lasted fifteen days; by such arts they drew an incredible deal of wealth to his shrine. The riches of that, together with his disloyal practices, made the king resolve to unshrine and unsaint him at once; and then his skull, which had been much worshipped, was found an imposture; for the true skull was lying with the rest of his bones in his grave. The shrine was broken down and carried away, the gold that was about it, filling two chests, which were so heavy that they were a load to eight strong men to carry them out of the Church." That England would again be the scene of similar impostures, if Popery were to be re-established in it, is evident from the following publication, which is recommended to and circulated among English and Irish Roman Catholics. The title of the work is as follows: "Official memoirs of the judicial examination into the authority of the miraculous events which happened at Rome in the years 1796, 97, including the decree of approbation, &c., with an account of similar prodigies which occurred about the same time at Ancona and other places in Italy. Translated from the French, compared with the original Italian of Sign. Gio. Marchette, Apostolic examinator of the clergy, and President del Gesu, by the Rev. B. Raymont. London, printed by Keating and Co., 1801." This work is constantly inserted, in the Catholic laity's Directory, in the list of Roman Catholic works. There is a printed list of subscribers to the work prefixed to it, amongst whom we find the following:The Most Rev. Dr. Bray, Archbishop of Cashel. The Right Rev. Dr. Coppinger, Bishop of Cloyne. The Right Rev. Dr. Caulfield, Bishop of Ferns. The Right Rev. Dr. Dillon, Archbishop of Tuam. The Right Rev. Dr. Delaney, Bishop of Kildare. The Right Rev. Dr. French, Bishop of Elphin. The Right Rev. W. Gibson, Bishop of Acanthos, six copies. The Right Rev. Dr. Moylan, Bishop of Cork, twelve copies. The Right Rev. Dr. Plunkett, Bishop of Meath The Right Rev. Dr. Shanock, Bishop of Telmessen. The Right Rev. Dr. Sughrue, Bishop of Ardfert. This book contains, 1. The accounts of twenty-six pictures, in which the miracles have been duly proved and attested according to the canonical forms. 2. A list of eighty-six witnesses of the first class, many of whom are priests, and others are laymen of different classes. 3. A list of eighty-eight witnesses of the second class, of whom a few belong to the Roman clergy. 4. A decree of approbation of the Cardinal Vicar in Latin and in English. 5. A list of ten other miraculous pictures and the witnesses, &c. 6. A grant of an office and mass!!! in commemoration of the miracles in Latin and English. 7. Several other pictures, &c. in different parts of Rome in which similar prodigies have been seen. up When we reflect that the Church of Rome professes to offer in the sacrifice of the mass, Jesus Christ, his body, blood, soul and divinity, the grant of an office with a mass for the clergy regular and secular of Rome, to commemorate the moving of the eyes of several of the pictures of the Virgin Mary at Rome, by Pope Pius VI., was a most profane and sacrilegious act. A copy of the grant.* Concessio officii cum missá, &c. pro utroque clero urbis. Julius Maria, tituli S. Sabina Sanctæ Romanæ ecclesiæ Pres. Card. della Somaglia SSmi. Domini nostri Papæ Vicarius generalis, &c. Cum sanctissimus Dominus noster Pius sextus humillimus preces sibi ab. Illmo. et Excmo. D. Principe Don Abundio Rezzonico, urbis Senatore, nomine etiam populi Romani, oblatas pro concessione universo clero Romano Officii et Missæ in honorem B. Virginis Mariæ sub titulo ejus patrocinii recitand. et celebrand. die nono mensis Julii cujuslibet anni in memoriam admirabilis et prodigiosi motus oculorum eo die elapsi anni 1796, in multis deiparæ imaginibus hic in urbe incoepti, et ad plures dies continuati, nostro arbitrio benignè remittere dignatus fuerit; cùmque preces similes nobis etiam fuerint porrectæ ex parte Rme. Domino Camerarii cleri Romani nomine R. R. DD. urbis parochorum; nos utendo facultatibus ab eodem sanctissimo Domino nostro Papa nobis tributis, et supradictis petitionibus annuendo, concedimus ut a clero urbis seculari, necnon a religiosis utriusque sexus quotannis in die nono Julii officium cum Missâ in honorem beatæ Mariæ Virginis ut in The following note is appended in the work. "A copy of the origina! sent from the Camera Apostolica at Rome may be seen at the office." festo ejus patrocinii sub ritu duplici majori recitari possit et valeat. Datum ex ædibus nostris hâc die 24. Junii anni 1797. J. M. Card. della Somaglia Vicarius. Philippus Canonicus Liberti secretarius. Romæ, ex typographia Rev. Cameræ Apostolicæ. The following are specimens of the contents of the book: : At Torricello in the diocese of Taranto, p. 217. On the 29th of May, 1796, a torrent of tears was observed running in a most miraculous manner from the eyes of a statue carved in wood, and representing the blessed Virgin Mary, under the title of our Lady delle Grazie. There issued from her countenance at the same time so profuse a perspiration, that not only the Virgin's veil, but cloths applied by the faithful, were completely moistened by the same. The archpriests and the magistrates of the place presented an authentic narrative of this miraculous event to the archbishop, who was then making the visit of his diocese. When the prelate had arrived at the spot, he ordered a legal process to be immediately commenced. The witnesses were heard, the statue was visited and examined, &c., and on the 15th of July, at the close of the process, the truth of the miracle was confirmed by a solemn decree, and declared to be beyond all doubt true and authentic. A long narrative of this miraculous event has appeared in public. In this the very scrupulous care and exactitude that were observed in the judicial proceedings may be seen. A copy of the decree, signed by the Archbishop of Taranto, and by Signor Pietro Gigante, his secretary, is inserted. 3. Picture, called delle Muratte, p. 35. The miraculous movement in the eyes of this picture was first observed on Saturday, the 9th of July, 1796. n onths. The circular movement of the eyes as described by the witnesses continued without any interruption many Mr. Barnard Lares, a merHe was greatly prejudiced When he observed the cl ant of Geneva, saw the same. against the reality of the miracles. motion so visibly, he could no longer resist the strength of |