Church, state and society; the attitudes of John Keble, Richard Hurrell Froude and John Henry Newman. 1827-1845

Abstract

Keble, Froude and Newman's understanding of the Church in relationship to State and society is considered against an- eighteenth century background which, thanks partly to the Tractarians, has been painted in colours which portray Godlessness, belief in progress and the perfection of man with a tepid Church and a torpid religion willing onlookers. The Enlightenment was far more complicated than this caricature. Yet it is not always the accuracy of the picture but the supposed image which matters. In that sense, Keble, Froude and Newman shared the reaction of the Romantic Movement to what was seen as the prevailing Rationalist and Utilitarian spirit witnessed inside the Church by her powerful alliance with governments and political economists and outside by the united attacks from Roman Catholics, Radicals, Nonconformists and philosophers. Chapter 1 studies the political and social implications of The Christian Year, Keble's abhorrence of the 1832 Reform Bill and his sermon "National Apostasy". His views about Poor Law reform and the importance of Tradition are also considered. Froude's articles on "State Interference in Matters Spiritual", his influence upon the political and social outlook of Keble and Newman and the political significance of the posthumously published Remains are the themes of Chapter 2. In Chapter 3, Newman's opposition to Peel and Roman Catholic Emancipation in 1829, his attitude to the 1832 Reform Bill, his views on history in The Arians and the relationship of the Church to society are studied. His criticism of Peel in 1841, his views on change, development and progress between 1841 and 1845 and his final view as an Anglican of the Church as an imperial power are also considered. For Keble, Froude and Newman, the Church's mission to society was always spiritual with no thought of accommodation to the needs of the age. Saints are more important than reformers. The three figures studied upheld Tory paternalism in their concepts of the interrelationship between rich and poor and their detestation of democracy. Their understanding of the Church's relationship with the State, however, was different in that Keble was a critical orthodox thinker, Froude a radical catalyst and Newman a theoretician of profound development. They completely rejected the progressive spirit of Peelite Conservatism and brought to Toryism a powerful moral and spiritual temper, seen in Keble's perseverance in adversity, Froude's search for an alternative in Feudal times and Newman's advocacy of a transcendental, eternal and triumphant Orthodoxy and Orthopraxis.