Question 1

True or false: John Wycliffe was a key figure in the first complete English translation of the Bible.

Accepted Answer

True. Wycliffe oversaw the translation of the Vulgate Bible into Middle English, making scripture accessible to common people—a radical move at the time.

Question 2

True or false: Wycliffe was executed by burning at the stake for heresy in 1384.

Accepted Answer

False. Wycliffe died of a stroke in 1384; his remains were exhumed and burned by the Church in 1415 as a posthumous punishment.

Question 3

True or false: Wycliffe's followers, the Lollards, faced severe persecution after his death.

Accepted Answer

True. Lollards were suppressed by the English crown and church, with many executed under the 1401 statute De heretico comburendo.

Question 4

True or false: Wycliffe argued that the Church should be poor, like in apostolic times, and own no property.

Accepted Answer

True. He believed clerical wealth corrupted the Church and called for a return to apostolic poverty, inspiring later reformers.

Question 5

True or false: Wycliffe was the first person to suggest that the Pope was the Antichrist.

Accepted Answer

False. Earlier critics like Joachim of Fiore had already made that claim; Wycliffe applied it to specific popes but wasn't the first.

Question 6

True or false: Wycliffe was a trained physician and wrote medical texts alongside his theological works.

Accepted Answer

False. Wycliffe was a theologian and philosopher at Oxford, with no record of medical training or medical writings.

Question 7

True or false: Wycliffe denied the doctrine of transubstantiation, arguing that bread and wine remain unchanged.

Accepted Answer

True. He rejected the Catholic teaching that the bread and wine become Christ's literal body and blood, calling it a dangerous error.

Question 8

True or false: Wycliffe was a close friend and ally of the English king Richard II.

Accepted Answer

False. Wycliffe had some royal protection but was often at odds with church authorities; Richard II never considered him a personal ally.

John Wycliffe Trivia Questions