This morning I read the following article:
Jan J. Martin, “William
Tyndale, John Foxe, and the ‘Boy that Driveth the Plough,’” Religious
Educator 17, no. 2 (2016): 87-105
Here is the conclusion:
Latter-day
Saints have many reasons to admire and appreciate William Tyndale. He not only
gave us our English Bible but he eloquently penned the earliest English version
of the words that would inspire the young Joseph Smith to enter a grove of
trees to ask of God and begin the process of the Restoration. Because of this,
Foxe’s depiction of Tyndale exclaiming that he would “cause a boye that dryveth
the plough” to “knowe more of the scripture” than the learned man did is
particularly meaningful to Latter-day Saints and is frequently quoted. However,
as this paper has demonstrated, the source of the ploughboy anecdote cannot be
substantiated. Moreover, Foxe’s amplifying editing of the story creates
suspicion that the conversation between Tyndale and the learned man may be a
fictional construct designed to further Foxe’s particular interpretation of
English history and Tyndale’s role in it. Though there may not be a substantial
amount of autobiographical or biographical information about Tyndale, he
frequently published his own thoughts and feelings, and they are freely
available. Perhaps the best way for Latter-day Saints to honor Tyndale in
written and verbal discourses about him would be to take the time to quote from
the words he actually said, rather than from secondhand reports of things that
he may or may not have said.
