The Christian Year – Still Needed? John Keble on the ‘Co-Extensiveness’ of Church and State

Abstract After the English Reformation, the Anglo/British constitutional settlement was characterised, both legally and theologically, by the co-extensiveness of Church and body politic. Under this ‘Protestant constitution’, representation and moralisation coincided; and Parliament reflected the English, decisively Anglican, and conformist body politic. The enactment of the Sacramental Test Act 1828 , the Catholic Relief Act 1829 , and the Great Reform Act 1832 put an end to this organic union; Dissenters and Catholics alike could now elect and be elected to Parliament. Reactions were heart-breaking. That of John Keble – the father of the Oxford Movement – was particularly poignant. When the Irish Temporalities Bill was tabled before Parliament, Keble decided to intervene. He addressed the question in a sermon preached at St. Mary’s, Oxford, on July 14th, 1833, under the heading of ‘National Apostasy’. Besides hinting at a possible disestablishment of the Church of England, his sermon was (and still is) a masterpiece in constitutional theory.