Kilroy Phil. Protestant Dissent and Controversy in Ireland, 1660-1714

Cork University Press, 1994. — 320 p.The advent of the Reformation in Ireland marked a break with the religious past, opening up new paths in religious thought and practice that still affect us today. This process began in May 1534 when Henry VIII ordered the Dublin government to ignore papal provisions and jurisdiction in Ireland; bishops then in office continued to be recognized by the crown, but all new appointments were made by the king. Legislators presumed that the existing Roman church could be absorbed into the reformed church. This was an impossible project, for the personnel, structures, and internal organization of the older church were caught in a web of lay rights and family control which were all in need of reform long before 1534. Besides, the Reformation in Ireland originated with the colonial power, and the reformed church executed its role within that perspective. Indeed, the church progressively perceived its role as serving the colonial community in the measure that the country became planted by English and Scottish settlers.