In England during the 1500s, especially
during the reign of Queen Mary, the Christian church came under
terrible persecution. Many Christians including clergy were excommunicated
and/or executed for refusing to denounce their beliefs and adhere
to the teachings of the state church.
One of those who suffered for his
faith was Thomas Hawkes. Hawkes was born in Essex, England and later
entered into the service of the Lord of Oxford. Upon the death of
Edward VI, rather than change his religious beliefs to that of Queen
Mary, Hawkes left his service and returned home.
After returning home Hawkes' wife
gave birth to a son. Hawkes refused to have the boy baptized according
to the Catholic tradition and was reported to the Earl of Oxford.
He was sent by the earl to Bishop Bonner of London where he answered
to the charge of contempt of the sacraments.
Hawkes and Bonner argued over several
practices of the Catholic Church. Other church officials were brought
in to persuade Hawkes to change his beliefs, but Hawkes stood firm
and would not recant. On February 9, 1555 he was condemned as a
heretic and stayed in prison until June 10.
Days before Hawkes was to be burned
at the stake he agreed with his friends that he would lift his hands
over his head if the pain was tolerable and his mind was at peace.
When he was engulfed in flames and most people thought he was dead,
Hawkes suddenly raised his burning hands above his head and clapped
three times. Those who understood the gesture broke into shouts
of praise and applause as Thomas Hawkes sank into the fire and died.
(Taken from Foxe's Christian Martyrs of the World).
In chapter four of John's gospel
John tells a story of Jesus asking a Samaritan woman for a drink
of water from a well near the Samaritan city of Sychar. Jesus broke
two Jewish traditions by engaging in this conversation. One by speaking
to a woman. It was unusual for a Jewish teacher to speak with a
woman in a public place. Also, Samaritans were hated by Jews so
Jews rarely spoke to them.
Seeing that Jesus was Jewish and
perceiving him to be a prophet the woman said, "Our fathers worshiped
on this mountain and you Jews say that in Jerusalem is the place
where on ought to worship."
Jesus' response to her statement
was probably not what the woman expected. He said, "Woman, believe
me, the hour is coming when you will neither on this mountain, nor
in Jerusalem, worship the Father. But the hour is coming, and now
is, when the true worshipers will worship the Father in spirit and
truth; for the Father is seeking such to worship him. God is spirit,
and those who worship him must worship in spirit and truth."
The
woman was concerned about the house of worship but Jesus was concerned
about the heart of the worshiper. She was concerned with the mountain
of worship, but Jesus was concerned with the motive of the worshiper.
What does it mean to be a true worshiper?
Jesus gave us three characteristics of a true worshiper in his conversation
with the Samaritan woman. 1. A true worshiper worships the Father.
2. A true worshiper worships in spirit. 2. A true worshiper worships
in truth.
In the next few weeks we will explore
these characteristics of a true worshiper in more detail. As we
do we will discover where the story of Thomas Hawkes fits in the
big picture.
