Adam first came across John Wyclif whilst the two men were studying at Oxford. They shared a common interest in the writings of both William of StAmour and Richard FitzRalph attacking the Friars. Adam may even have loaned Wyclif his own copies of both works. Yet increasngly the broad thrust of Wyclif's life was to attack not just the Friars, but every aspect of the Church, both spiritual and temporal. He raged against the hierarchy, wealth and power over secualr life that the Church had established and as we have seen (see the section on the 14th Century Church) he was far from alone.

Yet the Church had other things to worry about and just as Wyclif produced his most vociferous attack in 1376, the Pope packed up the papal Court in Avignon to return to Rome and try and re-establish his secular authority (and the taxes that went with that) over the states of central Italy that had risen in open rebellion against him.