There were many many more Catholics who who were coerced and took the Oath out of great fear . In other words ...without full consent, a necessary component for mortal sin. So no one here should be asserting that these Catholics committed mortal sin.
Yes, certainly people were afraid of the consequences of upholding their Faith. But...you're just looking at this from the human standpoint. You're assuming they took the oath "without full consent". If God puts one in a situation where the decision is Faith vs Death, then He will INFALLIBLY give us the grace to face the (human) fear and grace will make it possible (if we cooperate) to choose Faith.
We cannot say that God gave the graces necessary to the English martyrs but He didn't give the graces to the martyr's next door neighbors (all of whom were catholic, as there was no protestantism in England until after the Oath). Fear aside, grace will overcome fear....if the person
cooperates with grace.
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It would certainly be grave matter, but may not be mortal sin.
Obviously, we cannot say that those people who apostasized are in hell, but we also cannot say they didn't commit a mortal sin. Objectively, they abandoned their Faith. Objectively, they joined a new religion. The grace was available for them to hold fast and they didn't. The Church has never condoned this type of action, nor has She ever made excuses for those who were cowards.
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God will never test us beyond our strength, so if His Divine Providence, from all eternity, determined that these Catholics were to live through the English Persecution, then He would have ordered/provided for them to have the grace to not be tested (not everyone had to take the Oath, but many did), or to become martyrs for the Faith.