ohn Shakespeare, William's father, held a high positionin Stratford. At one point in his life, in order to receive a promotion, John had to take anoath that was anti-Catholic in nature and affirmed Queen Elizabeth I as the head of theChurch of England (Milward 18-19). Later in his life, when John's fortunes had slippedsome, his attendance in Protestant meetings stopped (Milward 19). Other evidence ofJohn's adherence to Catholicism comes from an archaeological find. A spiritual testamentof John Shakespeare was found after his death. Spiritual testaments were popular amongEnglish Catholics of that time. They were professions of adherence to the Catholic faith(Milward 21). Shakespeare's mother, Mary, came from a devout Catholic family that heldpositions throughout the Catholic church before its demise in England (Milward 21).Shakespeare's family appears, at most, nominally Protestant, merely for the purpose ofremaining a functioning part of Stratford. Once John's fortunes ran out, he no longeridentified with the church of the state. Shakespeare's knowledge of the Bible, as well as his understanding of Catholicism, wasgleaned from both his parents and his schoolmasters. Shakespeare attended for many ofhis formative years. Prior to the Reformation, the school was a Catholic oriented school.Up to this time, the teacher's there practiced Catholicism. Evidently two out of the threetutors definitively remained Catholic after the Reformation (Milward 39). Again, statemandate could not change belief, especially for the deeply religious. At the very least,Shakespeare grew up with a Catholic understanding of Christianity from his parents andschool. This upbringing blended with the changing religious scene around him and hisown study of Scripture to mold his own worldview. This worldview later appearedprofusely throughout his plays. III. THE IMPACT OF RELIGION UPON SHAKESPEARE'S WORK This section of the page is meant to be an introduction in the imp...
