My Infatuation with Henry VIII

"I'm Henry VIII, I am! Henry VII I am, I am!....."

I believe that I have an addictive personality. When I find something that interests me, I obsess. I want to know anything and everything I can about that particular subject and do whatever I can to find out that information.

One of my latest obsessions is with Henry VIII.

High school was so long ago, and I didn't really remember that much about the ole chap with the exception that he had 6 wives and had 2 of them killed. I guess I should start off with how this obsession all started. I began watching Showtime's The Tudor's. Let me clarify this by stating that the show, itself, is excellent, however, it is a representation of what actually happened and is not at all historically correct. The names are mostly the same, along with some of the historical events, but it is simply a show that was created for entertainment purposes - in which I was fully entertained! Let's face it, it's easier to watch a King who is handsome and young, rather than someone who we all know was quite large and rotund!

Getting back to the obsession....as the first season progressed, I started doing my research. The power that man had, and the changes he made in religious history are mind blowing! He was King, and could do whatever he wanted. Apparently enough to change the religious beliefs and convictions of his kingdom with the signing of a mere document!? If it wasn't for him and his strong will and stubbornness, religion as we know it, would not be the same. Maybe someone else would have come along and changed things, but not with such an impact as Henry VIII.

Let me give you a little synopsis of why this has affected me. I was raised a devout Catholic. I was baptised, made my first Holy Communion, confirmed and went to Catholic school. It's what I knew. When I moved from NJ to Florida, I must have tried out 3 different churches. None of them felt "right." I started to resent the fact that every time I left mass I felt guilty. For what? Being human? Making mistakes and having human error? WHY? I still went to church as it was my obligation and that was what I grew up knowing.

After I moved from Florida to NJ, my husband and I decided to make a compromise and went both to the Catholic church I grew up in, and the Methodist church he knew and had many friends from. After trying to juggle both, it became increasingly harder for me to go to Catholic church. Let me preface this by stating that the Methodist church, called Hope, is not like any Methodist church I've ever been to. It's a relaxed atmosphere where you can celebrate and become connected with God in your own way. I'm not trying to preach here, just merely state what has been going on and why I enjoy going to Hope so much. I started feeling that my church was not so good. It's not bad or evil, I just didn't feel as though, as a Christian, that I was getting the spiritual fulfillment that I desired. Craig and I talked about it and we decided that Hope is where we want to be. We even started taking classes to become members. Naturally I started questioning, how did the Methodists come about. It all started with the breakdown of the Catholic church by Henry VIII! See it does tie in somehow!

Henry VIII fought tirelessly with the Pope and was excommunicated from the Catholic religion. He wanted a divorce from his wife, Katharine and the Pope would not allow it. He started the Church of England (Protestantism) and divorced Queen Katharine of Aragon. He then married Anne Boleyn who had their daughter and future Queen of England, Elizabeth I, and the rest is history. Let's not forget to point out that his scandalous marriages were to produce an heir. He blamed the fact that he never had a son on his wives. Funny, how that all happened when science today shows us that the male sperm is what determines the sex of a baby. Of course I've skipped over tons of important items such as Henry VIII making the decision to condemn his dear friend, Sir Thomas Moore, to death. But that's another story for another day.

I'm currently reading The Other Boleyn Girl by Philippa Gregory. It is, again, a fictitious novel regarding both Mary and Anne Boleyn's trysts with the King, but again, for entertainment purposes only! I just find it amazing that still, after all these years, how prominent King Henry VIII was and is. He changed the world. He may not have been the nicest King. I'll give you that. He was down right mean and moody at times. He wanted his name to live forever. I think he got what he wanted!

"I got married to the widow next door. She's been married seven time before!"