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DECEMBER

29, 1170 --England. King Henry II has passed the Clarendon Constitution by which he has sought to extend his control over the church. Thomas a Becket, archbishop of Canterbury, has gone into voluntary exile. Pope Alexander is threatening to excommunicate the king.
     Henry offers hopes of settling the issue and the archbishop returns arriving at Sandwich on December 3rd and entering Canterbury on December 5th. Still Henry refuses to return the ecclesiastical property he has seized.
     The Archbishop in championing the "rights" of the Church and opposing the rule of the king has cornered Henry who in a frustrating manner exclaimed, "Will no one rid me of this pestilent  priest?"
     Today the Archbishop is struck down by sword and murdered as he ministers before the altar in Canterbury Cathedral. Whether the king really consented to his murder may never be known, but Henry will now publicly humble himself at Becket's tomb and will now wholly submit to the Pope, Alexander III.
     His relic shrine in Canterbury will be the richest and most famous in England. It will be made of pure gold and adorned with precious stones. The "Regal of France," an extremely beautiful ruby will be given by Louis VII in 1179.
     During the reign of King Henry VIII, the shrine will be torn down; the gold and precious stones becoming the property of the Royal Treasury. Thomas a Becket will be branded a traitor on account of his opposition to Henry II and his defense of the hierarchy of Rome.
     In 1538, his body will be burned, and his ashes scattered to the winds.

29, 1851 --Massachusetts. The first Young Men's Christian Association (YMCA) in the United States is organized in Boston. New York City will form their own association on June 30, 1852.

29, 1876 --Ohio. Hardly a month after the ink has dried on his manuscript of music he has composed for Horatio Spafford's words, "It is Well With My Soul," Mr. Philip Bliss is enroute taking his wife from Buffalo, New York to Chicago, for services scheduled to begin the first week of January the coming year. It is Friday, and is the day of departure. At 8:00 this evening, as the train they are riding approaches Ashtabula, Ohio, a bridge crossing a ravine will give way. Of the one hundred and sixty passengers, only fourteen will survive. Testimonies of the survivors affirm Mr. Bliss could have escaped, but that his wife, helplessly caught in the wreckage, induced him to remain to comfort her.
     For three days his friends will remain at the site, but nothing of identification will be found that belongs to him.
     He has left behind other hymns including "Dare To Be A Daniel," "Let the Lower Lights Be Burning," "Almost Persuaded," "Hold The Fort," "The Light of The World Is Jesus," "Man of Sorrows," "Wonderful Words of Life," "I Will Sing of My Redeemer," and many others.

30, 1691 --England. Robert Boyle will die today. The Royal Society of London has repeatedly invited him to be its President, but he has each time refused because of his Christian convictions against taking an oath. He has been, however, an active member of the Society for the Propagation of the Gospel. He dies in London and is buried at the Church of St. Martin-in-the-Fields.

30, 1863 --France. In Paris, Frederic Monod dies. He is the founder of the Free Church. He was at one time a student of Robert Haldane in Geneva, Switzerland.

30, 1892 --Scotland. At Glasgow, after two days of illness, Andrew Bonar dies. It is Friday. He has espoused Premillenarianism and has written a commentary on the book of Leviticus of which Mr. Charles Spurgeon has written, "Very precious. Mr. Andrew Bonar has a keen eye for a typical analogy, but he always keeps the reign upon his imagination, and is therefore safe to follow. He is a master in Israel."

31, 1384 --England. On December 28th, while hearing Mass in the parish church on Holy Innocents' Day, John Wycliffe was again stricken with apoplexy. Today he will die.

He will prove to be the "Morning Star of the Reformation" having translated the Word of God into the English language. The Lollards or the followers of Wycliffe, as they are called, will spread their influence even to Bohemia, modern Czechoslovakia, where twenty-five years from now, a young Czech named John Huss will imbibe his Scriptural teachings. Wycliffites are scornfully called "Poor Pirests," "Bible Men," "Brethren In Christ," and their belief is that the Bible is the sole source of religious truth and that a believer is justified by faith and not by works.
     Wycliffe has maintained that as God is Sovereign, "Divine lordship is the basis of any lordship of the creature." All possessions and power is held only as stewardships on condition of grace. Consequently, only righteous men held them rightfully, while others held them unworthily.
     Regarding the doctrine of the Church, he has said, "The Church is made up of those predestined to Heaven." Therefore whoever does not belong to this "body" is not to be reckoned among the converted.

31, 1843 --Wisconsin. The Synod of Wisconsin of the Calvinistic Methodist Church is formed at Waukesha.


 

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