John Purvey facts for kids

John Purvey (born around 1354 – died around 1414) was an English thinker, church reformer, and a close follower of John Wycliffe. He was born in Lathbury, a village near Newport Pagnell in England. He was a very smart scholar and was allowed to become a priest in 1377 or 1378. Experts believe Purvey learned about Wycliffe's ideas when he was studying at Oxford University. Around 1382, Purvey lived with Wycliffe in Lutterworth, along with other followers like Nicholas of Hereford and John Aston.

Who Were the Lollards?

Wycliffe's followers were known as Lollards. This name might have come from an old Dutch word meaning "to mutter." This name probably described how the Dutch people felt about reading the Bible during worship. An important group of Lollards were knights who worked for the king. Sir William Neville, Sir John Montague, and Sir William Beachamp were part of this group. They even had support from important figures like the Black Prince and his younger brother John of Gaunt. This showed that some nobles didn't always agree with the church leaders.

Helping to Translate the Bible

While living in Lutterworth, Purvey helped Wycliffe revise the English translation of the Bible from 1382. Wycliffe and Nicholas of Hereford had done the first translation. The main goal of Purvey's revision was to make the Bible easier for everyone to read and understand. The 1382 version was a word-for-word translation from the Vulgate (the Latin Bible). It didn't really consider the differences between Latin and English, which made it confusing. Purvey described working with Wycliffe, saying they each worked on their own copies of the Bible at opposite ends of a table, sharing one inkwell. Purvey worked on his own, even though Wycliffe had a shaking arm.

After Wycliffe's Death

Wycliffe died in 1384 while they were still working on the Bible. After Wycliffe's death, Purvey moved to Bristol. This city was known for supporting Wycliffe and his followers. In 1387, Purvey, Hereford, Aston, Parker, and Swynderby were told they could no longer preach by Henry Wakefield, the bishop of Worcester. They were also dismissed from a college that was not officially recognized. Purvey finished his revised Bible translation in 1388.

Spreading Wycliffe's Ideas

Purvey ignored the ban and later admitted that he continued preaching all over the country. In the well-known introduction to his Bible version, which many believe he wrote, he talked about his hard work. He said that someone who works with the Bible needs to "live a clean life" and put in "great effort" to truly understand the holy writings. People said that Purvey's translation was fair and so popular that even church leaders and bishops owned copies. Purvey was one of the "poor preachers" Wycliffe had organized. He kept spreading Wycliffe's ideas. In 1388, a special group was sent to all bishops to look for writings that went against church teachings by Purvey and Wycliffe's other followers.

Facing Trouble and Changing His Mind

Eventually, Purvey was accused of preaching ideas that went against the church's official teachings. Archbishop Arundel looked into Purvey's lessons. He found several things that were considered heresy. These included saying that wrongful excommunication (being kicked out of the church) wasn't valid, and that the Pope's laws weren't always effective. Purvey was put in prison in 1390. Even in prison, he kept writing books, sermons, and essays. He criticized what he saw as problems within the Catholic Church.

By 1401, he was brought before a church meeting called a convocation. He didn't want to die by burning, like William Sawtrey had. So, he publicly changed his mind at St Paul's Cross in London and agreed to follow the church's official teachings again. He confessed on March 6, 1401, and took back his earlier ideas.

Later Life and Legacy

After this, Purvey was left alone. By the end of 1401, he was given a church position as a vicar in West Hythe in Kent. But like other followers of Wycliffe who had changed their minds, he felt uneasy about his decision. In 1403, he left his church job. For the next eighteen years, he preached wherever he could. In 1407, Purvey was mentioned as being involved in the Oldcastle rebellion in Derbyshire and Warwickshire. He was arrested by January 12 and held at Newgate Prison in London. He passed away from natural causes on May 16, 1414.

See also

• Ecclesiae Regimen
• General Prologue, found in some Wycliffite Bibles

Sources

• Ward & Trent, et al. The Cambridge History of English and American Literature. New York: G.P. Putnam’s Sons, 1907–21; New York: Bartleby.com, 2000. Web. 21 October 2012.