The Annals of WillenhallHackwood, Frederick William
History
The Annals of Willenhall
Hackwood, Frederick William
Willenhall (Walsall, England)
A few words in explanation of the above terms may, perhaps, be necessary
for the general reader. The chalice and the paten were the vessels used
at the Sacrament, the former being the wine cup, which was of silver, and
the latter the bread dish, partly gilt. The priestly vestments were
those forbidden by the reformed church, and were of different textures
for different parts of the Roman ceremonial; the fustian was a coarse
piled fabric, or kind of cotton velvet, imported from the East; chamlett,
or camlett, was a cloth so called because originally woven from camel
hair; and the sarsnett was a thin kind of silk. The altar cloths had to
be discarded when the “Mass” was reformed into the “Holy Communion.” The
cruets were pairs of metal jars for containing the wine and the water
previous to their admixture in the sacrament of the Mass. The bucket was
for use at the font. The candle-sticks were for the lighted tapers upon
the altar and in this case were made of maslin, an alloy like brass, but
with a harder grain; latten, of which the altar lamp was made, was a
similar alloy resembling brass. The pax was a tablet (sometimes of wood,
sometimes of bread, though this Willenhall example was of durable brass),
on which was a figure of the crucifixion; it was presented in the
ceremony of the Mass for the faithful to kiss. The Corporas was the
cloth placed beneath the consecrated elements in the service of the Mass.
The towels were napkins used in the celebration of the sacred office; it
must be borne in mind that all textile fabrics, as well as metals, were
far more costly in those days, and the chest was to keep all these
valuables in safety.
It is difficult to decide the nature of the “two small bells”; because,
if they were the sanctus bells used at the most solemn parts in the
performance of the Mass, one a hand-bell rung inside, and the other as a
signal outside, they would have been abolished. So, as they were left by
the Reformers, they were probably small bells in the steeple or turret.
So much for the changes materialistic brought about at this great
religious upheaval of the sixteenth century. Now let us inquire into the
more serious and essential changes which occurred in the religious life
of the nation at that time.
From a little known Return made in 1586 we are enabled to gather the
conditions of the Church of England, as it was found to exist, only 28
years after it had been by law established.
At the Reformation, after the annulling of all “Popish ordinations,” the
state of the English clergy became very deplorable. Some of the basest
of the people were permitted to become parish priests, a circumstance
that gave point to the arguments and contentions of the Puritans.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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