Godfrey Goodman

Godfrey Goodman

Godfrey Goodman (28 February, 1582 or 1583, Ruthin, Denbighshire - 19 January 1656, Westminster) was the Anglican Bishop of Gloucester, and a member of the Protestant Church. He was the son of Godfrey Goodman (senior) and Jane Croxton, landed gentry living in Wales. His contemporaries describe him as being a hospitable, quiet man, and lavish in his charity to the poor.

Education and career

From 1593, Goodman was originally educated at Ruthin School but was later sent to Westminster School, where he remained seven years under the protection of his uncle, Gabriel Goodman, Dean of Westminster. He was an earnest student and when only seventeen won a scholarship at Trinity College, Cambridge. He graduated there in 1604 and was ordained at Bangor, Wales, shortly after.

Goodman's first appointment was to the rectory of Stapleford Abbotts, Essex, in 1606. He made rapid progress in the Church, and was made successively prebend of Westminster in 1607; Rector of West Isley, Berkshire, in 1616; Rector of Kinnerton, Gloucester; Canon of Windsor in 1617; Dean of Rochester in 1620-1621; and finally Bishop of Gloucester, 1624-1655. In addition, he held two livings in Wales, at Llandyssil and Llanarmon. Even as a bishop, he was allowed to retain most of these appointments.

Involvement with Catholicism

Goodman became one of the Court preachers and was chaplain to Queen Anne, wife of James I. His leaning towards Roman Catholicism made enemies for him at Windsor, and he was reprimanded by the King over Court sermons. A few years later, he was severely reprimanded for having erected a crucifix at Windsor and using altar-cloths with a cross design in his own cathedral at Gloucester, and further for having suspended a minister who insisted on preaching "that all who die papists go inevitably to hell".

It is likely that doubts were arising in his mind about the legitimacy of the Church's separation from Rome, and he sought the society of Catholic priests who were in hiding throughout the country. He was frequently at variance with Archbishop Laud, and in 1640 refused on conscientious grounds to sign the seventeen Articles drawn up by the Archbishop. He was thereupon arrested, but after five weeks in prison he overcame his scruples and signed the Articles. This, however, availed him little, as he was soon impeached by Parliament along with Laud and the ten other signatories of the Articles and was sent to prison for four months.

In 1643, Goodman's episcopal palace was pillaged by parliamentarian soldiers and over the course of a couple of years he was stripped of all his emoluments. He withdrew from public life to his small Welsh estate in Carnarvon, and it is likely that he converted to Catholicism at this time.

In about 1650, he came to London, and gave himself up to study and research; he was befriended by some Catholic royalists and lived in close connection with them until his death in 1656. Father Davenport, O.S.F., former chaplain to Queen Henrietta, was his confessor and attended him in his last illness. By his will, in which he made a profession of his Catholic faith, he left most of his property to Ruthin, his native town; his manuscripts and books, however, were given to Trinity College, Cambridge.

Principal works

* "The Fall of Man, or the Corruption of Nature proved by the light of his Natural Reason" (1616)
* "The two mysteries of the Christian Religion, the Trinity and the lncarnation, explicated" (1653)
* "Arguments and animadversions on Dr. George Hakewil's Apology"
* "The Creatures praying God" (1622)
* "The Court of King James the First by Sir A.W. reviewed"

References

*Catholic


Wikimedia Foundation. 2010.

Игры ⚽ Поможем написать курсовую

Look at other dictionaries:

  • Godfrey Goodman — • Anglican Bishop of Gloucester (1582 3 1656) Catholic Encyclopedia. Kevin Knight. 2006. Godfrey Goodman     Godfrey Goodman     † …   Catholic encyclopedia

  • Goodman (surname) — Goodman is a surname, formerly a polite term of address, used where Mister (Mr.) would be used today. Compare Goodwife. It may refer to:* Al Goodman, American conductor and composer * Alan Goodman, designer for MTV * Albert Goodman, British… …   Wikipedia

  • Francis Adam Goodman — (1827 1898) served the public most of his life as a politician and as a Union Army soldier. He was born 3 March 1827 in Rimbach, Hesse Darmstadt, Germany, the son of Wilhelm and Mary (Albrecht) Gutmann. He died 1 February 1898 in Burnips,… …   Wikipedia

  • Ruthin School — The main building of Ruthin School. The 1980 extension is to the left of this picture. Ruthin School is one of the oldest public schools in the United Kingdom. Located on the outskirts of Ruthin, the county town of Denbighshire in North Wales,… …   Wikipedia

  • Bischof von Hereford — Die folgenden Personen waren Bischöfe von Hereford (England): 670 676 Magonset 676 693 oder 688 Putta (auch Bischof von Uuestor Elih und Rochester) 688 oder 693 705 oder 710 Thyrtell (Tyrhtel; Tirhtullus) 710 727 oder 731 Torchtere (Torhthere;… …   Deutsch Wikipedia

  • Elizabeth I of England — Infobox British Royalty|majesty name = Elizabeth I title = Queen of England and Ireland caption = Elizabeth I , Darnley Portrait , c. 1575 reign = 17 November 1558 – 24 March 1603 coronation = 15 January 1559 predecessor = Mary I successor =… …   Wikipedia

  • Anne of Denmark — Infobox British Royalty|majesty|consort name = Anne of Denmark title = Queen consort of Scotland, England, and Ireland caption = Queen Anne in mourning for Prince Henry reign =20 August 1589 – 2 March 1619 24 March 1603 – 2 March 1619 reign type …   Wikipedia

  • George Calvert, 1st Baron Baltimore — Infobox Politician name = George Calvert, 1st Baron Baltimore width = 150px height = 300px caption = Lord Baltimore small office = Secretary of State term start = 1619 term end = 1625 predecessor = successor = constituency = majority = office2 =… …   Wikipedia

  • Miles Smith — (1554, Hereford – 1624, Gloucester) was a scholar, theologian, and bibliophile. Life He attended Corpus Christi College, Oxford, but graduated from Brasenose, in the same University, where he proved at length an incomparable theologist. In time,… …   Wikipedia

  • Dean and Canons of Windsor — St George s Chapel at Windsor Castle, left, 1848. The Dean and Canons of Windsor are the ecclesiastical body of St George s Chapel at Windsor Castle.[1] Contents …   Wikipedia

Share the article and excerpts

Direct link
Do a right-click on the link above
and select “Copy Link”