Saint Thomas More

A Lawyer, a judge, a politician…. A Saint! That was St. Thomas More.
He was born on the 7th February 1478, the son of Sir John More, a renowned lawyer and judge, and his wife Agnes Graugner, the second son of six children. Thomas received his first education at St. Anthony’s, one of the best London schools at the time. When he was 12 years old he served John Morton, the Archbishop of Canterbury, as a household page. Morton realised that Thomas was highly intelligent, so he secured a place for him at Oxford University, where he started what was known as ‘a classical education’ when he was 14 years old. However, after only 2 years, his father insisted that he should leave Oxford to start training in legal practice in London.

Thomas started his studies at Lincoln’s Inn, a legal society that trained barristers for the British Bar. He was recognised as a lawyer when he was 26 years old. It was at this time that Thomas, living close to a Carthusian Monastery, was attracted to monastic life, even joining the monks in their spiritual practices. It is believed that Thomas, attracted by the Franciscan ideal, became a member of the secular Third Order of St. Francis. Eventually, Thomas decided to remain a layman,  a devout Catholic, still upholding ascetic practices in his personal life.
In 1504 , he was elected to Parliament and the following year he married Jane Colt. They had four children, but only after 6 years of marriage his wife died. Then he married Alice Middleton, a widow with a daughter. Thomas was an affectionate father, not only towards his children but also towards his stepdaughter and to two young girls for whom he became a guardian. He also dedicated his time to literary works, among others “Utopia,” still acclaimed to this day.
Thomas More grew in stature as a public figure and he was knighted in 1521. King Henry Vlll, the English Monarch of the time, admired his loyalty and integrity and chose him to be his secretary and personal advisor. In 1529, the King appointed him Lord Chancellor, a position of ultimate trust. This meant that he was First Minister to the King and Head of Government, so that he was involved in the running of the country especially in law enforcement as delegated by the King, representing him in Parliament, even supervising the King’s correspondence sealing it with the King’s Seal!

During this time, Thomas also took all action in his power to suppress the Protestant movement that moved to England from Europe, challenging Catholic beliefs.
However , a conflict developed between the King and the Pope, when the King requested the annulment of his marriage from Queen Catherine to marry Anne Boleyn. The conflict escalated to the point that King Henry Vlll separated from the Catholic Church and requested an Oath from his subjects acknowledging him as the Head of the Church of England. Thomas More, adhering to his loyalty to the Pope and the Catholic Church, felt he could not take the Oath.
He resigned his top position as Lord Chancellor. He was accused of treason and after being imprisoned in the Tower of London for 14 months he was executed on July 6th, 1535.
His last words were “I die the King’s good servant, but God’s first”