me good references on Elizabethan clothing. Religion Everyone has one. We were all brought up to be Christians of one sort or another. The official established state religion is the Church of England. It is referred to as the new religion or the established church, but not yet as "C of E". (Do not give in to the modern inclination to acronyms.) Puritanism is not a separate religion, but a Calvinist attitude within the Anglican church. Puritans do not yet look like Pilgrims (see Comparative Religion). Being a Roman Catholic is not a crime, but there is a fine for not conforming to the established religion; that is, for not going to Protestant services. Paying the fine does not allow you to have a priest or practice the Catholic faith. There is no legal way for Catholics to practice their faith. It is illegal to be a Catholic priest in England. It is very illegal to be a Jesuit. A non-conforming Catholic is called a recusant (rec-YOU-zant) and is guilty of recusancy. Everyone is required to attend an Anglican service once a month. The service is referred to as the Prayer Service, or the Prayer Book Service, and sometimes as Common Prayer, Holy Eucharist, or the Lord's Supper. Mass is a Catholic service only. It is illegal to hold or attend one at any time in the reign, though punishment varies. People of high rank are less likely to get in trouble. Older people may still refer to the service as a Mass, but it is politically touchy. Reformers refer to the detestable enormities of the "Mass priests". The rosary is period in several forms, including the modern one, and used only by Catholics. The rosary cross usually does not include a corpus, or figure of Christ. The figure may still be on the crucifix in the Anglican Church but not in any Puritan, Calvinist, etc., congregation. The Protestants sometimes refer to Roman Catholics as Romanists. Catholics do not refer to themselves as Papists. The term Puritan is common in period, although so...
