William Fulke facts for kids
William Fulke (born around 1538, buried August 28, 1589) was an important English religious leader. He was known as a Puritan, which was a group within the Church of England who wanted to make it simpler and more focused on the Bible.
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Who Was William Fulke?
William Fulke was born in London, England. He went to St John's College, Cambridge, a famous university, and finished his studies there in 1558.
His Early Career
After college, Fulke spent six years studying law. But he decided to go back to his old college, St John's, and became a fellow there in 1564. A "fellow" is like a senior member of the college staff.
A Time of Change: The Vestiarian Controversy
During his time at Cambridge, William Fulke became involved in a big debate called the "vestiarian controversy." This was about whether priests should wear special robes called surplices during church services. Fulke believed they should not, and he convinced his college to stop using them. Because of this, he was temporarily removed from St John's. However, he returned in 1567 as a teacher of Hebrew and a preacher.
Moving Up in the Church
In 1569, Fulke tried to become the head of his college but wasn't chosen. Later, he became a chaplain to Robert Dudley, 1st Earl of Leicester, a very powerful nobleman. This connection helped him get important church jobs in places like Warley and Dennington. In 1578, he was elected as the master of Pembroke Hall, Cambridge, which is another important role at a Cambridge college.
William Fulke's Writings
William Fulke was very active in religious debates. He wrote many books and pamphlets arguing for the Puritan viewpoint against Roman Catholics.
Defending the English Bible
One of his most famous works was published in 1583. It was called A Defense of the Sincere and True Translations of the Holy Scriptures into the English tongue. In this book, he defended the English versions of the Bible against criticisms from people like Gregory Martin, a Catholic scholar.
A Special Bible Edition
In 1589, Fulke created a unique Bible. It showed two different English translations side-by-side: the Bishops' Bible (used by the Church of England) and the Douay–Rheims Bible (a Catholic translation). He also added his own notes to explain and argue against the Catholic translation. This was a big part of the ongoing arguments about how the Bible should be translated and understood.
