I have always loved Melvyn Bragg....and last night on BBC 2 there were two treats offered. The first was him , aged well, looking rugged and sounding a good deal less nasal.
The second was his subject. William Tyndale has always been one of my heroes. To have the vision and the scholarship needed to translate the New Testament into English was a quite remarkable feat!
Sent at just the right moment when Henry needed to be free of Rome and when printing presses made books possible for the wealthy if not for all , Tyndales achievement was extra ordinary!
He spent most of his life out of this country on order to achieve what he saw was needed, the word of God accessible to everyone, not filtered through the church.
I wish the description of his death had not been quite so gruesome. Until last night I had always been consoled by the fact that out of mercy they strangled him before putting him on the bonfire...but it seems that was bungled....the poor man had to feel the flames engulf him.
What was really remarkable about last nights programme was Bragg himself. There was real passion as he described the wonderful English used by Tyndale...
I like a bit of passion in a man...or woman and last night we had it by the bushel load!
Posted with Blogsy
1 comment:
I watched it too Jean.
Like you, I am a Melvyn Bragg fan and Tyndale is a fascinating subject.
It was interesting to hear a different side of the St Thomas Moor story. Obviously his opposition to Henry is well documented, but his zeal in hunting down those he saw as heretics is usually glossed over.
Poor poor Tyndale, what an end for such a great man.
Post a Comment