Reforming Saint Peter: Protestant Constructions of Saint Peter the Apostle in Early Modern England

This article examines Protestant understandings of St. Peter the Apostle in late-sixteenth- and early-seventeenth-century England. I argue that the rhetoric concerning St. Peter changed significantly over the course of Elizabeth's reign. The 1560s found reformers lessening Peter's authorit...

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Bibliographic Details
Main Author: Bruhn, Karen (Author)
Format: Electronic Article
Language:English
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Published: Sixteenth Century Journal Publishers, Inc. 2002
In: The sixteenth century journal
Year: 2002, Volume: 33, Issue: 1, Pages: 33-49
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Parallel Edition:Non-electronic
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Summary:This article examines Protestant understandings of St. Peter the Apostle in late-sixteenth- and early-seventeenth-century England. I argue that the rhetoric concerning St. Peter changed significantly over the course of Elizabeth's reign. The 1560s found reformers lessening Peter's authority whenever possible in an attempt to denigrate Rome and the papacy. By the turn of the century, however, Reformed texts most often presented Peter as an exemplar of Protestant piety, modeling the introspective penitential process advocated by English Calvinists. The final section of this article highlights these changes by comparing two narrative poems-one Roman Catholic in its perspective, the other Protestant-that dramatize the aftermath of Peter's denial of Christ.
ISSN:2326-0726
Contains:Enthalten in: The sixteenth century journal
Persistent identifiers:DOI: 10.2307/4144241