Page:The Church of England, its catholicity and continuity.djvu/65

 It is now my duty to relate a very dark story in the history of the Church of England. I must relate events which roused strong men to attempt to cut short the evils which attended them. I am sorry to have to tell you how at last the Pope, for a short while, became the master of England. You perhaps know that we are speaking of the time of the weak and vacillating John. The reigning Pope at the time of King John was Innocent III., and no man before his reign had carried the papal pretentions [sic] so high as he carried them. Innocent considered himself to be "The Vicegerent of God, that he stood between God and man, less than God, more than man." This Pope, we must remember, was quite as strong in character as John was weak.

Troubles now arose over the election of the Archbishop of Canterbury. The monks of Canterbury and the Church did not agree in their election of a man, and each party considered it had equal right to deeide the question. As usual the Pope was requested to tender his help. Through him, ultimately, Stephen Langton, a Yorkshireman, was nominated. John protested against the Pope's choice, and he vowed that Langton should not be elected. The Pope made reply that if the king were faithful to his word his kingdom should be put under an interdict. "If anyone dared to put his kingdom under an interdict," burst forth John, "he would send them packing to Rome and confiscate their goods. If they were the subjects of the Pope he would pluck out their eyes, slit their noses, and so return them to the Pope." But in the face of this brave reply, in the year 1208, the interdict came, and it stayed in England for five