Church of England

===Reformation===
{{Main|English Reformation}}

In 1527, [[Henry&nbsp;VIII]] was desperate for a male heir and asked [[Pope Clement VII]] to annul his marriage to [[Catherine of Aragon]]. When the pope refused, Henry used [[Parliament of England|Parliament]] to assert royal authority over the English church. In 1533, Parliament passed the [[Statute in Restraint of Appeals|Act in Restraint of Appeals]], barring legal cases from being appealed outside England. This allowed the Archbishop of Canterbury to annul the marriage without reference to Rome. In November 1534, the [[Act of Supremacy 1534|Act of Supremacy]] formally abolished papal authority and declared Henry [[Supreme Head of the Church of England]].{{Sfn|Shagan|2017|pp=29–31}}

Henry's religious beliefs remained aligned to traditional Catholicism throughout his reign. In order to secure royal supremacy over the Church, however, Henry allied himself with Protestants, who until that time had been treated as [[heretics]].{{Sfn|Shagan|2017|p=32}} The main doctrine of the [[Protestant Reformation]] was [[sola fide|justification by faith alone]] rather than by good works.{{Sfn|Hefling|2021|p=96}} The logical outcome of this belief is that the Mass, sacraments, charitable acts, [[Prayer to saints|prayers to saints]], prayers for the dead, pilgrimage, and the [[Veneration of Relics|veneration of relics]] do not mediate divine favour. To believe they can would be [[superstition]] at best and [[idolatry]] at worst.{{Sfn|Hefling|2021|p=97}}{{Sfn|Marshall|2017a|p=126}}

Between 1536 and 1540, Henry engaged in the [[dissolution of the monasteries]], which controlled much of the richest land. He disbanded religious houses, appropriated their income, disposed of their assets, and provided pensions for the former residents. The properties were sold to pay for the wars. Historian [[George W. Bernard]] argues:
{{Blockquote|The dissolution of the monasteries in the late 1530s was one of the most revolutionary events in English history. There were nearly 900 religious houses in England, around 260 for monks, 300 for regular canons, 142 nunneries and 183 friaries; some 12,000 people in total, 4,000 monks, 3,000 canons, 3,000 friars and 2,000 nuns....one adult man in fifty was in religious orders.<ref>G. W. Bernard, "The Dissolution of the Monasteries", ''History'' (2011) 96#324 p 390</ref>}}

[[File:Thomas Cranmer by Gerlach Flicke.jpg|right|thumb|Thomas Cranmer was the first Protestant Archbishop of Canterbury and principal compiler of the ''Book of Common Prayer'']]

In the reign of [[Edward&nbsp;VI]] (1547–1553), the Church of England underwent an extensive theological reformation. Justification by faith was made a central teaching.{{Sfn| Marshall | 2017a | p = 308}} Government-sanctioned [[iconoclasm]] led to the destruction of images and relics. Stained glass, shrines, statues, and [[rood]]s were defaced or destroyed. Church walls were [[whitewash]]ed and covered with biblical texts condemning idolatry.<ref>{{cite book | last = Duffy | first = Eamon | title = The Stripping of the Altars: Traditional Religion in England, {{circa|1400|lk=no}} – {{circa|1580|lk=no}} | publisher = Yale University Press | edition = 2nd | year = 2005 | url = https://books.google.com/books?id=K48k6JIcPrUC | isbn = 978-0-300-10828-6 | pages = 450–454 and 458}}</ref> The most significant reform in Edward's reign was the adoption of an English liturgy to replace the old Latin rites.{{Sfn|Shagan|2017|pp=41}} Written by Archbishop [[Thomas Cranmer]], the [[1549 Book of Common Prayer|1549 ''Book of Common Prayer'']] implicitly taught justification by faith,<ref>{{cite book | last = Jeanes | first = Gordon | chapter =  Cranmer and Common Prayer | year = 2006 | title = [[The Oxford Guide to the Book of Common Prayer: A Worldwide Survey]] | editor-last1 = Hefling | editor-first1 = Charles | editor-last2 = Shattuck | editor-first2 = Cynthia | page = 30 | publisher = Oxford University Press | chapter-url = https://books.google.com/books?id=ezVH2h6PKUcC | isbn= 978-0-19-529756-0 }}</ref> and rejected the Catholic doctrines of transubstantiation and the sacrifice of the Mass.{{Sfn|MacCulloch |1996 | pp = 412, 414}} This was followed by a greatly revised [[1552 Book of Common Prayer|1552 ''Book of Common Prayer'']] that was even more Protestant in tone, going so far as to deny the [[real presence of Christ in the Eucharist]].<ref>{{cite book | last = Haigh | first = Christopher | author-link = Christopher Haigh | title = English Reformations: Religion, Politics, and Society Under the Tudors | publisher = Oxford University Press | year = 1993 | url = https://books.google.com/books?id=zFmS2ng9z7wC | isbn = 978-0-19-822162-3 |page=179}}</ref>{{sfn|Marshall|2017b|p=51}}

During the reign of [[Mary I of England|Mary&nbsp;I]] (1553–1558), England was briefly reunited with the Catholic Church. Mary died childless, so it was left to the new regime of her half-sister [[Queen Elizabeth&nbsp;I]] to resolve the direction of the Church. The [[Elizabethan Religious Settlement]] returned the Church to where it stood in 1553 before Edward's death. The [[Act of Supremacy 1558|Act of Supremacy]] made the monarch the Church's [[Supreme Governor of the Church of England|supreme governor]]. The [[Act of Uniformity 1558|Act of Uniformity]] restored a slightly altered 1552 ''Book of Common Prayer''. In 1571, the [[Thirty-nine Articles]] received parliamentary approval as a doctrinal statement for the Church. The settlement ensured the Church of England was Protestant, but it was unclear what kind of Protestantism was being adopted.{{Sfn|Marshall|2017b|pp=49–51}} The prayer book's [[eucharistic theology]] was vague. The words of administration neither affirmed nor denied the real presence. Perhaps, a [[Lord's Supper in Reformed theology|spiritual presence]] was implied, since Article 28 of the Thirty-nine Articles taught that the body of Christ was eaten "only after an heavenly and spiritual manner".{{Sfn|Marshall|2017b|pp=50–51}} Nevertheless, there was enough ambiguity to allow later theologians to articulate various versions of [[Anglican eucharistic theology]].{{Sfn|Marshall|2017b|p=51}}

The Church of England was the [[established church]] (constitutionally established by the state with the head of state as its supreme governor). The exact nature of the relationship between church and state would be a source of continued friction into the next century.<ref name="Eberle">{{cite book|last=Eberle|first=Edward J.|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=oYkzkVc_sG0C&q=%22church%20of%20england%22%20official%20state%20religion&pg=PA2|title=Church and State in Western Society|publisher=[[Ashgate Publishing, Ltd.]]|year=2011|isbn=978-1-4094-0792-8|page=2|quote=The Church of England later became the official state Protestant church, with the monarch supervising church functions.|access-date=9 November 2012}}</ref><ref name="Fox">{{cite book|last=Fox|first=Jonathan|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=rE0NcgxNaKEC&q=%22church%20of%20england%22%20official%20state%20religion&pg=PA120|title=A World Survey of Religion and the State|publisher=[[Cambridge University Press]]|year=2008|isbn=978-0-521-88131-9|page=120|quote=The Church of England (Anglican) and the Church of Scotland (Presbyterian) are the official religions of the UK.|access-date=9 November 2012}}</ref><ref name="Ferrante">{{cite book|last=Ferrante|first=Joan|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=AwnIIXI6y38C&q=%22church+of+england%22+official+state+religion&pg=PA408|title=Sociology: A Global Perspective|publisher=[[Cengage Learning]]|year=2010|isbn=978-0-8400-3204-1|page=408|quote=the Church of England [Anglican], which remains the official state church|access-date=9 November 2012}}</ref>