Spectres of John Ball - The Peasants' Revolt in English Political History, 1381-2020 - James Crossley
Ball and the English Reformation
Spectres of John Ball - The Peasants' Revolt in English Political History, 1381-2020 - James Crossley
James Crossley [+]
St Mary's University, London
James Crossley is Research Professor in Bible, Society, and Politics at MF Norwegian School of Theology, Religion, and Society, Academic Director of the Centre for the Critical Study of Apocalyptic and Millenarian Movements (CenSAMM), and Professor of Bible and Society at St Mary's University, Twickenham, London. He is author of numerous books and articles on Christian Origins, reception history of the Bible, and English politics and religion, reception history of the Bible, including Cults, Martyrs and Good Samaritans: Religion in Contemporary English Political Discourse (Pluto, 2018). The website John Ball, English Legend provides images and resources discussed in Spectres of John Ball.
Description
This chapter looks at how and why Ball became a convenient foil for debates around rebellion, national security, Catholicism, and the perceived extremities of Protestantism in the sixteenth century. This also includes discussion of a tradition of Ball as a proto-Protestant martyr which needed to be presented with great care.