Early Years: Not much is known about the early years of John Wycliffe. It is believed that Wycliffe was born sometime before 1330 in Yorkshire about 200 miles from London. It is believed that he entered Oxford University in 1346, and by the time he earned his doctorate in 1372, he was considered Oxford's leading philosopher and theologian.
Life and Works:
John Wycliffe was a scholar, a theologian, a translator, an educator, a politician and an advocate of church reform. Wycliffe lived almost 200 years before the Reformation began, yet his teachings in large part presage Luther, Calvin and other reformers. Possibly, if born in a later age, he would have been just another somewhat radical college professor doomed to obscurity. But in the 14th century, an argument can be made that Wycliffe was one of the pre-eminent people, if not the pre-eminent person of his times. When he spoke, friends and enemies alike listened attentively. To appreciate his importance and the role he played, you must understand it was a time of evolution in matters of faith and politics. The power of the Roman Catholic Church was waning and the power of nations was on the upswing. Both church and state vied for tax monies. Often two individuals claimed to be Pope at the same time. Treaties between nations often relied on theologians as much as diplomats at the negotiating table. The official headquarters of the church and residence of the Pope was in France not Italy. The great powers, the French (House of Valois) and the British (the House of Plantagenet) were in the midst of the on-again-off-again Hundred Years War. The British were trying to raise funds for an army to defend against a possible French attack. Pope Urban V was under the influence of the French crown because the official headquarters and residence of the Pope was in Avignon, France. The Pope demanded financial support from England. Wycliffe advised the influential John of Gaunt, to tell Parliament not to comply. His theological arguments, to bolster the obvious political ones, was that that the church was already too wealthy and that Christ called his disciples to poverty, not affluence. The Pope backed down but the die was cast for a future confrontation between the church and Wycliffe.
Shortly after the death of Pope Urban V, his successor, Pope Gregory IX, called for an Anglo-French conference to halt the fighting. France was represented in the negotiations by Philip II, Duke of Burgundy and England by John of Gaunt. Wycliffe was party to the proceedings, functioning as theologian and scriptural scholar. The British and French signed the Treaty of Bruges in 1375 and this in turn led to the Truce of Bruge, which initially was for one year but it was extended until 1377.
When the negotiations were finalized, Wycliffe returned home. He preached that it was the duty of the state to conserve and manage the secular properties of the church if the church mismanaged them. Furthermore, he felt that the church should renounce its secular holdings, and its clergy should live in poverty as they did in the time of the apostles. To get this message out, he commissioned a group of itinerant preachers to go, two-by-two, to spread his message. These lay ministers became known as Lollards. This organization got Wycliffe in trouble with the church hierarchy. Wycliffe was summoned before William Courtenay, Bishop of London, on 19 February 1377 to answer charges of heresy. Both his friends and enemies were in attendance. When the hearing began, accusations were made on both sides and arguments and threats were exchanged, effectively ending the examination of Wycliffe.
Three months later, the Pope Gregory issued five bulls or church edicts, against Wycliffe within which he was describe as a “master of errors.” Again nothing became of it other than Wycliffe was instructed to no longer preach. This did not stop his pen. In addition to translating the Bible, Wycliffe’s writings took aim at the Roman Catholic Church and its monastic orders in general and at the office of Pope in particular.
Final Years:
On 17 November 1382, Wycliffe was summoned before a synod at Oxford. Nothing came of it. He was neither excommunicated nor deprived of his post and living. He returned to Lutterworth where he wrote tracts against Pope Urban VI, the successor to Pope Gregory. Initially Wycliffe had supported Urban but the Pope had turned out not to be the reforming Pope for which Wycliffe had hoped. On 28 December 1384, while hearing Mass, he suffered a stroke and died three days later. His final manuscript, the Opus Evangelicum, remained unfinished.
Forty-four years after he died, Pope Martin V instructed John Wycliffe’s bones to be exhumed, burned and the ashes thrown into the river Swift.
The Wycliffe Bible:
Wycliffe believed it was necessary for the British peoples to have a translation of the Bible in English. He translated the Latin Vulgate into English, completing it in 1382. In the past it has been assumed that he did all the translation work himself. However, recent scholarship indicates that likely all but the four gospels are the efforts of others. One thing is for sure: for centuries other Bible translators have studiously relied on the Wycliffe Bible as the basis of their own. As an example, I have listed below a few translations of John 3:16 from other Bible translations in the Wycliffe family of Bibles.
“For God louede so the world, that he yaf his `oon bigetun sone, that ech man that bileueth in him perische not, but haue euerlastynge lijf.” (John 3:16 – Wycliffe Bible – 1385 )
“For God so loveth the worlde yt he hath geven his only sonne that none that beleve in him shuld perisshe: but shuld have everlastinge lyfe.” (John 3:16 – Tyndale Bible – 1534)
“For God so loued the worlde, that he gaue his onely sonne, that who so euer beleueth in hi, shulde not perishe, but haue euerlastinge life.” (John 3:16 – Coverdale Bible – 1535)
“For God so loued the worlde, that he gaue his only begotten sonne, that whosoeuer beleueth in hym, shoulde not perishe, but haue euerlastyng lyfe.” (John 3:16 – Bishops Bible – 1568)
“For God so loued ye world, that he gaue his only begotten Sonne: that whosoeuer beleeueth in him, should not perish, but haue euerlasting life.” (John 3:16 – 1611 King James Version – 1611)
“For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life.” (John 3:16 – King James Version – 1769)
“For God so loved the world, that he gave his only born Son, that every one believing in him perish not, but have eternal life.” (John 3:16 – Julia Smith Bible – 1855)
“For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth on him should not perish, but have eternal life.” (John 3:16 – American Standard Version – 1901)
“For God so loved the world that he gave his only Son, that whoever believes in him should not perish but have eternal life.” (John 3:16 – Revised Standard Version – 1946)
“For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life.” (John 3:16 – New King James Version – 1979)
"For God so loved the world, that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him shall not perish, but have eternal life.” (John 3:16 – New American Standard Bible – 1963)
In a pre-Gutenburg era, where publication still meant copying by hand, Wycliffe’s Bible was quite popular with both clergy and laity alike. Part of the reason for its popularity was that it was an orthodox translation. It was also popular because Wycliffe was popular with pretty much everyone but the Roman Catholic Church upper hierarchy. The ordinary member of the clergy liked him because his teachings were understandable and grounded in the Bible. The commoner liked him because he helped keep the taxes low. The government liked him because he helped keep much of the tax monies from being exported. His primary benefactor/defender was John of Gaunt, who was the de facto government for much of his lifetime. All of these folks wanted access to the Wycliffe Bible. Notwithstanding the zealous attempts to suppress and destroy it, over six centuries later, there are still around 250 manuscripts (whole or part) in existence.
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