A Look At John Wyclif Gives the Sixth Sunday Gospel after Easter

1 – “Wyclif questions papal control and favors an untraditional doctrinal position – that the Holy Ghost is not of God alone but of the Father and the Son.”

2 – The genre is focused more on discussing core doctrine and how it causes him to question the Catholic Church.

3 – The speaker is John Wyclif.  His character is very matter-of-fact, direct, and strong.  He clearly believes that what he is saying is correct.  This character is made obvious by the fact that he often states things such as “And thus the Latins are to blame…”

4 –We know that the original audience did not respond well to him.  I think audience today would respond very well to Wyclif.

5 – I think that Wyclif’s intentions were genuine, and that he sincerely thought that the church was wrong and needed to be corrected.  I think his intentions in this particular sermon were to denounce the falsehoods within the Catholic Church.

6 – The main ideas in this sermon are to question the Catholic Church by making a doctrinal correction about the Holy Ghost, and to persuade everyone to beware of the “fiend”, or Satan, and his ways of convincing everyone of false teachings.

7 – I would say that the arrangement of this particular sermon was a little haphazard, but that’s probably because it was hard for me to understand :P.

8 – Wyclif supports his ideas by using scripture very effectively, such as when he quotes Christ telling his disciples about the Holy Ghost and how it comes forth from the Father and also testifies of him (Christ).

9 – I think Wyclif does a great job appealing to emotion by telling the reader to beware of the “fiend”, or Satan.  This creates a feeling of fear and anxiety, not wanting to fall to the devil.

10 – Wyclif seems to use a very formal approach to this particular sermon, using some language that I think would be best understood by others in the church and scholarly/educated world.

11 – I think Wyclif uses a very plain style, getting to the point quickly.  I think his tone was very direct and strong, conveying confidence and that he meant and believed in what he said.

12 – I think that this message would have been strong and that it would have given off the desired effect had it been spoken or read, either way.