June 22 Thomas More and John Fisher
St. Thomas More and St John Fisher (Martyrs)
An unclean soul is synonymous with a heart full of frivolity. Humility and purity of conduct are the wings which raise us up to God and in a manner deify us. Remember this: The sinner who is ashamed to do evil is closer to God than the upright man who is ashamed to do good.
-- Saint Pio of Pietrelcina
St. Thomas More was a family man with four children whose first wife died; he married again, in both instances happily. He became very famous in England, the number-one confidant to King Henry VIII. St. Thomas More had everything at his beck and call, riches and power. But when King Henry threatened his faith in Christ and in the Church St. Thomas More said, "No. I will not support you." He refused to sign an oath that Henry was really the pope in England and was executed after having been thrown into the Tower of London.
St. Thomas More is a man of Witness.
A witness must love the Lord Jesus more than anyone else.
A witness must trust in God for the strength to witness to the Truth with perseverance.
A witness must live the Gospel in words and deeds.
On the same day, June 22, we celebrate the feast of Bishop John Fisher. All the other bishops in England capitulated to King Henry VIII except John Fisher for the same reasons as Thomas More--he would not renounce his faith or would not compromise his faith in Christ and in the Church. Consequently, John Fisher was put to death. Yes dear brothers and sisters, there are and there will be lots of temptations in our lives for making compromises for what we believe. But don’t make any compromises for our faith.
What were the last words of St. Thomas More? He made clear that he was dying "for the faith of the holy Catholic Church" and that he was the King's good servant but God's first. What were the last words of John Fisher? He was "dying for the faith of Christ's holy Catholic Church."
Our faith must be subordinated to nothing in this world.
St. Thomas More, Lord Chancellor of England, was highly favored by King Henry VIII. But he refused to sign the so-called loyalty oath declaring that Henry VIII was the supreme religious authority in England and not the pope. This was the beginning of the famous Reformation. Rather than sign the loyalty oath, both Thomas More and John Fisher went to their deaths.Thomas More knew that he had a wife and children. He wrote to one of them, his beloved daughter, Meg, and this is what he said:"Although I know well, Margaret, that because of my past wickedness I deserve to be abandoned by God, I can not but trust in His merciful goodness. His grace has strengthened me until now and made me content to lose goods, land and life as well rather than to swear against my conscience. "God's grace has given the king a gracious frame of mind toward me so that as yet he has taken from me nothing but my liberty. In doing this, His Majesty has done me such great good with respect to spiritual profit that I trust that among all the great benefits he has heaped so abundantly upon me, I count my imprisonment the very greatest. I can not therefore mistrust the grace of God. Either He shall keep the king in that gracious frame of mind to do me no harm or else if it be His pleasure that for my other sins I suffer in this case as I shall not deserve, then His grace shall give me the strength to bear it patiently and perhaps even gladly. I will not mistrust Him, though I shall feel myself weakening and on the verge of being overcome with fear."Finally, Margaret, I know this well that without my fault God will not let me be lost. I shall, therefore, with good hope commit myself fully to Him and if He permits me to perish for my faults then I shall serve as praise for His justice. But in good faith, Meg, I trust that His tender pity shall keep my poor soul safe and make me commend His mercy. And therefore, my own good daughter, do not let your mind be troubled over anything that shall happen to me in this world. Nothing can come but what God wills. And I am very sure that whatever that be, however bad it may seem, it shall indeed be for the best."
An unclean soul is synonymous with a heart full of frivolity. Humility and purity of conduct are the wings which raise us up to God and in a manner deify us. Remember this: The sinner who is ashamed to do evil is closer to God than the upright man who is ashamed to do good.
-- Saint Pio of Pietrelcina
St. Thomas More was a family man with four children whose first wife died; he married again, in both instances happily. He became very famous in England, the number-one confidant to King Henry VIII. St. Thomas More had everything at his beck and call, riches and power. But when King Henry threatened his faith in Christ and in the Church St. Thomas More said, "No. I will not support you." He refused to sign an oath that Henry was really the pope in England and was executed after having been thrown into the Tower of London.
St. Thomas More is a man of Witness.
A witness must love the Lord Jesus more than anyone else.
A witness must trust in God for the strength to witness to the Truth with perseverance.
A witness must live the Gospel in words and deeds.
On the same day, June 22, we celebrate the feast of Bishop John Fisher. All the other bishops in England capitulated to King Henry VIII except John Fisher for the same reasons as Thomas More--he would not renounce his faith or would not compromise his faith in Christ and in the Church. Consequently, John Fisher was put to death. Yes dear brothers and sisters, there are and there will be lots of temptations in our lives for making compromises for what we believe. But don’t make any compromises for our faith.
What were the last words of St. Thomas More? He made clear that he was dying "for the faith of the holy Catholic Church" and that he was the King's good servant but God's first. What were the last words of John Fisher? He was "dying for the faith of Christ's holy Catholic Church."
Our faith must be subordinated to nothing in this world.
St. Thomas More, Lord Chancellor of England, was highly favored by King Henry VIII. But he refused to sign the so-called loyalty oath declaring that Henry VIII was the supreme religious authority in England and not the pope. This was the beginning of the famous Reformation. Rather than sign the loyalty oath, both Thomas More and John Fisher went to their deaths.Thomas More knew that he had a wife and children. He wrote to one of them, his beloved daughter, Meg, and this is what he said:"Although I know well, Margaret, that because of my past wickedness I deserve to be abandoned by God, I can not but trust in His merciful goodness. His grace has strengthened me until now and made me content to lose goods, land and life as well rather than to swear against my conscience. "God's grace has given the king a gracious frame of mind toward me so that as yet he has taken from me nothing but my liberty. In doing this, His Majesty has done me such great good with respect to spiritual profit that I trust that among all the great benefits he has heaped so abundantly upon me, I count my imprisonment the very greatest. I can not therefore mistrust the grace of God. Either He shall keep the king in that gracious frame of mind to do me no harm or else if it be His pleasure that for my other sins I suffer in this case as I shall not deserve, then His grace shall give me the strength to bear it patiently and perhaps even gladly. I will not mistrust Him, though I shall feel myself weakening and on the verge of being overcome with fear."Finally, Margaret, I know this well that without my fault God will not let me be lost. I shall, therefore, with good hope commit myself fully to Him and if He permits me to perish for my faults then I shall serve as praise for His justice. But in good faith, Meg, I trust that His tender pity shall keep my poor soul safe and make me commend His mercy. And therefore, my own good daughter, do not let your mind be troubled over anything that shall happen to me in this world. Nothing can come but what God wills. And I am very sure that whatever that be, however bad it may seem, it shall indeed be for the best."
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