John Wycliffe dies at fifty-six on December…

John Wycliffe dies at fifty-six on December 31, 1384.

His followers, the Lollards, are highly critical of the power and wealth of the church.

The Lollards’ leaders, Wycliffe's "poor priests," are trained and organized to teach from his English translation of the Bible and to preach a nonsacramental Christianity that minimizes clerical authority and emphasizes poverty, ethical purity, and devotional intensity.

The movement will spread rapidly during the decade following Wycliffe's death, enjoying the support of Oxford scholars, powerful nobles and country gentlemen, wealthy merchants, and masses of common people.

Lollard preachers, who base their teachings on personal faith, divine election, and on the Bible, teach that the commonly held doctrines of transubstantiation, indulgences, and hierarchical church organization are unscriptural.