Editing Thirty-nine Articles (section)

===Six Articles (1539)===
[[File:The Act of Six Articles 1539.jpg|thumb|right|One of the final drafts of the Six articles (1539), amended in King Henry VIII's own hand]]
Fearful of diplomatic isolation and a Catholic alliance, Henry VIII continued his outreach to the Lutheran [[Schmalkaldic League]]. 
In May 1538, three Lutheran theologians from Germany – Franz Burchard, vice-chancellor of Saxony; Georg von Boineburg, doctor of law; and [[Friedrich Myconius]], [[Superintendent (ecclesiastical)|superintendent]] of the church in [[Gotha]] – arrived in London and held conferences with English bishops and clergy at the archbishop's [[Lambeth Palace]] through September.<ref>{{Harvnb|MacCulloch|1996|pp=215–216}}: The English delegation included Cranmer, as chairman, and Nicholas Heath for the Protestant side. The conservatives included Bishops Sampson and Stokesley along with [[George Day (bishop)|George Day]] and [[Nicholas Wilson (parson)|Nicholas Wilson]]. Bishop Tunstall was involved in negotiations as well.</ref>

The Germans presented, as a basis of agreement, a number of articles based on the Lutheran Confession of Augsburg. Bishops [[Cuthbert Tunstall|Tunstall]], [[John Stokesley|Stokesley]] and others were not won over by these Protestant arguments and did everything they could to avoid agreement. They were willing to separate from Rome, but their plan was to unite with the [[Greek Orthodox Church|Greek Church]] and not with the Protestants on the continent.{{sfn|d'Aubigné|1972|p=}} The bishops also refused to eliminate what the Germans considered abuses (e.g. private masses for the dead, compulsory [[clerical celibacy]], and withholding [[communion wine]] from the [[laity]]) allowed by the English Church.{{sfn|MacCulloch|1996|p=219}} Stokesley considered these customs to be essential because the Greek Church practised them.{{sfn|d'Aubigné|1972|p=}} As the King was unwilling to break with these practices, the Germans had all left England by 1 October.{{sfn|MacCulloch|1996|p=221}}

Meanwhile, England was in religious turmoil. Impatient Protestants took it upon themselves to further reform – some priests said mass in English rather than Latin and married without authorisation (Archbishop Cranmer was himself secretly married). Protestants themselves were divided between establishment reformers who held Lutheran beliefs upholding the real presence of Christ in the Eucharist and radicals who held [[Anabaptist]] and [[Sacramentarian]] views denying real presence.{{Sfn| Marshall | 2017 | pp = 269–270}} In May 1539, a new Parliament met, and [[Lord Chancellor]] [[Thomas Audley, 1st Baron Audley of Walden|Audley]] told the [[House of Lords]] that the King desired religious uniformity. A committee of four conservative and four reformist bishops was appointed to examine and determine doctrine.<ref>{{Harvnb| Marshall | 2017 | p = 273}}: The committee was headed by Cromwell, the vicegerent, and the bishops included Cranmer and his Protestant allies – Latimer, Goodrich, Salcot – and their traditionalist counterparts Lee, Tunstall, Clerk and Robert Aldrich of Carlisle.</ref> On 16 May, the [[Thomas Howard, 3rd Duke of Norfolk|Duke of Norfolk]] noted that the committee had not agreed on anything and proposed that the Lords examine six controversial doctrinal questions that became the basis of the Six Articles:

#whether the Eucharist could be the true body of Christ without transubstantiation,
#whether it needed to be given to the laity [[Communion under both kinds|under both kinds]],
#whether [[Religious vows|vows]] of [[chastity]] needed to be observed as part of divine law,
#whether clerical celibacy should be compulsory,
#whether [[Votive Mass|private (votive) masses]] were required (legitimate) by divine law,
#whether auricular [[Confession (religion)|confession]] (that is, confession to a priest) was necessary as part of divine law.{{Sfn| Marshall | 2017 | p = 275}}{{sfn|Ridley|2013|p=180}}

{{Infobox UK legislation
| short_title           = Statute of the Six Articles
| type                  = Act
| parliament            = Parliament of England
| long_title            = An Act for abolishing of Diversity of Opinions of certain Articles concerning Christian Religion.
| year                  = 1539
| citation              = [[31 Hen. 8]]. c. 14
| territorial_extent    = [[England and Wales]]
| royal_assent          = 28 June 1539
| commencement          = 28 April 1539{{efn|Start of session.}}
| repeal_date           = 4 November 1547
| amends                = 
| replaces              = [[Suppression of Heresy Act 1414]]
| amendments            = 
| repealing_legislation = [[Treason Act 1547]]
| related_legislation   = 
| status                = Repealed
| original_text         = https://babel.hathitrust.org/cgi/pt?id=pst.000017915533&view=1up&seq=510
}}
Over the next month, these questions were argued in Parliament and Convocation with the active participation of the King. The final product was an affirmation of traditional teachings on all but the sixth question. Communion in one kind, compulsory clerical celibacy, vows of chastity and votive masses were a legitimate form.{{Sfn| Haigh | 1993 | p = 153}} Protestants achieved a minor victory on auricular confession, which was declared "expedient and necessary to be retained" but not required by divine law. In addition, although the real presence was affirmed in traditional terminology, the word ''transubstantiation'' itself did not appear in the final version.{{Sfn| Marshall | 2017 | p = 275}}<ref>{{cite web | url = http://www.tudorplace.com.ar/Documents/act_six_articles.htm | title = The Act of the Six Articles | date = 1539 | website = tudorplace.com.ar | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20180912225855/http://www.tudorplace.com.ar/Documents/act_six_articles.htm | archive-date = 2018-09-12 | url-status = live | access-date = 1 December 2018}}. The article on the Eucharist defines the real presence in these terms: "First, that in the most blessed Sacrament of the Altar, by the strength and efficacy of Christ's mighty word, it being spoken by the priest, is present really, under the form of bread and wine, the natural body and blood of Our Saviour Jesu Christ, conceived of the Virgin Mary, and that after the consecration there remaineth no substance of bread and wine, nor any other substance but the substance of Christ, God and man".</ref>

The Act of Six Articles became law in June 1539, which, unlike the Ten Articles, gave the Six Articles statutory authority. Harsh penalties were attached to violations of the Articles. Denial of transubstantiation was punished by burning without an opportunity to [[recant]]. Denial of any of the other articles was punished by hanging or life imprisonment.{{Sfn| Haigh | 1993 | p = 153}} Married priests had until 12 July to put away their wives, which was likely a concession granted to give Archbishop Cranmer time to move his wife and children outside of England.{{sfn|MacCulloch|1996|p=249}} After the act's passage, bishops Latimer and Shaxton, outspoken opponents of the measure, were forced to resign their dioceses.{{sfn|MacCulloch|1996|p=251}} The Act of Six Articles was repealed by the [[Treason Act 1547]] ([[1 Edw. 6]]. c. 12) during the reign of Henry's son, [[Edward VI of England|Edward VI]].{{Sfn| Marshall | 2017 | p = 312}}