This article throws some light on the life of William Shakespeare and asks the question was Shakespeare a Roman Catholic ? :
His Life
Critic Daniel Wackerman argues in his essay, “To Be or Not
to Be (Catholic, That is),” that there are many biographical
reasons to believe that Shakespeare was a catholic. He writes about
how from his birth Shakespeare was in the presence of some strong
catholic influences. Wackerman and some other scholars, including
Eamon Duffy, have pointed to the family’s religious affiliations
to back this up. The Bard’s maternal grandfather was Edward
Arden, Wackerman writes that, “Arden, was patriarch to ‘one
of the most prominent Warwickshire Catholic families.” He
is even said to have secretly kept his own catholic priest, disguised
as the family gardener.”
Shakespeare scholar Stephen Greenblatt in his book Will in the World
supports the claim that Edward Arden was a catholic. He adds that
Mary Arden, Shakespeare’s mother, was “the youngest of
eight daughters, Mary was her father’s favorite.” The
tradition of Catholicism would have likely been passed down from
father to daughter. If the claim that Edward kept a private priest
is true, it is clear that Mary would have had some sort of opportunity
to converse and interact with him.
Wackerman goes on and cites scholarship that claims Mary Arden, “made
specific mention of the Blessed Virgin Mary in her will, a practice
long out of fashion for all save Catholics in 16th-century England.”
This with the connection to Edward Arden essentially captures the
Catholic connection on the maternal side of the Bard’s family;
however, since the England of Shakespeare’s time was thoroughly
patriarchal it is important to examine the religious affiliations
of the Bard’s father.
John Shakespeare was the father of William. Many scholars have highlighted
the presence of a ‘spiritual testament’ that was found
hidden in the rafters of John Shakespeare’s house after his
death. Literary critic Ralph Berry writes about the testament, “The
Spiritual Testament of John Shakespeare, William’s father,
proves him a Catholic; the document no longer exists but its authenticity
is generally accepted.” This idea is supported by Greenblatt,
Wackerman, and others. They all discuss the testament that declared
John Shakespeare a Catholic. Considering that his mother and father
were Catholic then it is likely that the Bard would have been raised
with the religion of his parents.
His surroundings would have all but guaranteed that he end up with Catholic beliefs by the time that he left for his career in London. His hometown Stratford-on-Avon was still very much a Catholic stronghold after the country officially moved to Protestantism. Even though it was nominally Protestant the town still held firmly to its old ways. Greenblatt writes about the cultural influences of Catholicism on Stratford ......
From an article by Matthew Colpitts and reprinted with kind permission
of the Student Plus website
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