John Constable (Jesuit)

John Constable (alias Lacey; pen-name Clerophilus Alethes) (10 November 1676 or 1678, in Lincolnshire – 28 March 1743) was an English Jesuit controversial writer.

Life

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In 1695 he entered the Society of Jesus. For many years he served the Fitzherbert family at Swinnerton, where he is buried.

Works

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Constable's chief controversial opponents were:

  • Pierre François le Courayer (1681–1776)[1] who championed Anglican orders, came over to England in 1728, was lionized, and eventually buried in the cloisters of Westminster; and
  • Charles Dodd, a pseudonym of Hugh Tootell, who wrote, Constable maintained, with a prejudice against Jesuits.

The chief writings of Constable are:

  • "Remarks on Courayer's Book in Defense of English Ordinations, wherein their invalidity is fully proved", an answer to Courayer's "Dissertations" of 1723;
  • "The Stratagem Discovered to show that Courayer writes 'Booty', and is only a sham defender of these ordinations", by "Clerophilus Alethes" (8vo, 1729), against Joseph Trapp, The Church of England Defended Against the Calumnies and False Reasoning of the Church of Rome (1727):
  • "Doctrine of Antiquity concerning the Eucharist" by "Clerophilus Alethes" (8vo, 1736);
  • "Specimen of Amendments proposed to the Compiler of 'The Church History of England'", by "Clerophilus Alethes" (12mo, 1741);
  • "Advice to the Author of 'The Church History of England'", manuscript at Stonyhurst.

Joseph Gillow enumerates a few other writings by Constable.

References

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  1. ^ Stephen, Leslie, ed. (1887). "Courayer, Pierre François le" . Dictionary of National Biography. Vol. 12. London: Smith, Elder & Co.
Attribution