The Henson Journals

[103]

Wednesday, June 24th, 1925.

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The sixteenth century, as a century of ideas, real, grand, and numerous, is not to be compared with the thirteenth: the ideas are not so pure, not so living, nor so refined: the men are not so earnest, so single–hearted, so loveable by far. Much doubtless had been gained in strength of purpose, and much in material progress: but compare the one set of men with the other as men, and the ideas are ideas, & the advantage is wonderfully in favour of the semi–barbarous age, above that of the Renaissance and the Reformation.

Bp. Stubbs. Lectures on Eur. Hist. p. 2.

Is this a just or an intelligent judgment? Does it not rather reflect the strong preference for the earlier age which Bishop Stubbs did undoubtedly possess? The 13th century was marked by everything he cared for most in the Church & State: the 16th disclosed all that he most feared and disliked. The one was the crown of medievalism: the other was the fontal spring of modernism. Bishop Stubbs by temperament, conviction, habit, and interest was a thorough–going medievalist.

[104]

Clayton and I left the castle at 1.35 p.m., & motored to Halifax by way of Catterick, Ripon, Harrogate, & Bradford, arriving at 4.45 p.m. Bishop Frodsham & his family received us at the Vicarage, a large house of which part dates from Queen Anne. At 7.45 p.m. there was a great "Service of Thanksgiving for the ancient parish of Halifax". The old parish church is a large building in the perpendicular style, accommodating, as I was assured, 2000 people on the floor. The clergy, churchwardens, and choirs of all the dependent parishes attended The acoustics of the church are good, so I did not find it difficult to deliver the sermon, and, as I was fold, succeeded in making myself heard throughout the building I was not well–impressed by the behaviour of the choir–boys in the Vestry. Bishop Frodsham does not appear to be a good disciplinarian: he exhorts where he ought to command: and he thanks the officers of the Church for performing their functions. I turned in his offertory book to the record of Easter. The number of communicants hardly exceeded 400 out of a population of 8000. Yet Bishop Frodsham did not seem to be either concerned or disconcerted by the fact: he spoke confidently of "making Halifax what Leeds was under Hook"!

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