Victorian Reformation: the Fight over Idolatry in the Church of England, 1840-1860. Religion, Culture and History Series

In early Victorian England, the cross was widely thought to be a deadly idol that led worshippers to the devil. Victorian Reformation is a study of the intense anxieties surrounding 'idolatry' which was, in a narrow sense, the worship of idols, but also devotion to anything that intervened between the believer and God. In early Victorian England there was intense interest in understanding the early Church as an inspiration for contemporary sanctity. One aspect of this was a surge in...
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In early Victorian England, the cross was widely thought to be a deadly idol that led worshippers to the devil. Victorian Reformation is a study of the intense anxieties surrounding 'idolatry' which was, in a narrow sense, the worship of idols, but also devotion to anything that intervened between the believer and God. In early Victorian England there was intense interest in understanding the early Church as an inspiration for contemporary sanctity. One aspect of this was a surge in archaeological inquiry and the construction of new churches using medieval models. A number of Anglicans began to use a much more complex form of ritual involving vestments, candles, and incense. They were opposed by evangelicals and dissenters on the grounds that this represented the vanguard of popery. The disputed buildings, objects, and art works were regarded by one side as impure additions to holy worship, and by the other as sacred and beautiful expressions of devotion. Dominic Janes grapples with these accusations of idolatry and the fierce passions that were thereby unleashed. He works through the main disputed practices of Anglo- and Roman Catholics-adoration of the cross, confession, and communion-and probes the disputed boundaries of the physical and spiritual. Radical disagreement was emerging over the way to deal with the abject world of inferior things such as the sinful body. The Catholic response was to recognise that everyone was fallen and that repeated sacramental purification by the Church was required. Many Protestants believed that cleansing was only to be obtained by the faith of the individual sinner. Both of these views were confronted by emerging medical and other secular discourses of purification, all of which revealed a deep concern with the pollution caused by improper sexuality and the alleged fetishisation of the material world. Victorian Reformation is a fascinating study of the anxiety and excitement generated by this dispute.