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The Theology of Martyrdom (Part 1)

The early theologian Tertullian once wrote, “The blood of the martyrs is the seed of the Church.”

The strength of this statement immediately raises a question: What is so significant about martyrdom, such that it is the very lifeblood of the Church?

One reason for this significance is that martyrdom highlights the important role that obedience plays in the Christian life. The Catholic Encyclopedia defines obedience as “a virtue or principle of righteous conduct,” “the moral habit by which one carries out the order of his superior with the precise intent of fulfilling the injunction.”

St. Paul’s discussion of obedience is well-known. In Romans 13, he writes, “Let every soul be subject to higher powers: for there is no power but from God: and those that are, are ordained of God. Therefore, he that resisteth the power, resisteth the ordinance of God. And they that resist, purchase to themselves damnation” (1-2). Likewise, the First Letter of St. Peter states, “Be ye subject, therefore, to every human creature for God’s sake: whether it be to the king as excelling, or to governors as sent by him for the punishment of evildoers, and for the praise of the good” (13-14).

At the same time, one’s obedience must be properly ordered, such that one’s allegiance to God comes before one’s allegiance to human authority (Acts 5:29). For this reason, martyrdom, even at the hands of civil authority, constitutes the ultimate act of obedience, because it is obedience to God. As St. Thomas Aquinas writes, “[M]artyrdom consists essentially in standing firmly to truth and justice against the assaults of persecution. Hence, it is evident that martyrdom is an act of virtue” (ST II-II:124:1). In fact, Aquinas argues “that martyrdom is the most perfect of human acts in respect of its genus, as being the sign of the greatest charity, according to John 15:13: ‘Greater love than this no man hath, that a man lay down his life for his friends’” (ST II-II:124:3). In Evangelium Vitae (The Gospel of Life), Pope St. John Paul II expands upon this theme of martyrdom as an act of obedience: “It is precisely from obedience to God—to whom alone is due that fear which is acknowledgment of his absolute sovereignty—that the strength and the courage to resist unjust human laws are born. It is the strength and the courage of those prepared even to be imprisoned or put to the sword, in the certainty that this is what makes for ‘the endurance and faith of the saints’” (73) (quoting Rev. 13:10).

The martyrdom of St. Thomas More epitomizes this call to obedience. More remained a faithful servant to King Henry VIII—the “higher power” of which St. Paul speaks—but More recognized a greater duty to God Himself. For this reason, More accepted martyrdom at the hands of the king in defense of the pope, the Vicar of Christ on earth. As Christ did before him, More went to his death in obedience to his Father in Heaven.

Like St. Thomas More, may we remain loyal to legitimate human authority, while always remembering that we too are God’s servants first.

In the next post, I will discuss the role that suffering plays in martyrdom.

St. Thomas More, pray for us!

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On the Sanctity of Human Life

The Catholic Church teaches that man is created in the image and likeness of God (Gen. 1:26).

As such, each human life is sacred, from the moment of conception to the moment of natural death. As the Catechism states, “Human life is sacred because from its beginning it involves the creative action of God and it remains for ever [sic] in a special relationship with the Creator, who is its sole end. God alone is the Lord of life from its beginning until its end: no one can under any circumstance claim for himself the right directly to destroy an innocent human being” (2258) (internal quotation marks omitted).

Furthermore, “Scripture specifies the prohibition contained in the fifth commandment: ‘Do not slay the innocent and the righteous.’ The deliberate murder of an innocent person is gravely contrary to the dignity of the human being, to the golden rule, and to the holiness of the Creator. The law forbidding it is universally valid: it obliges each and everyone, always and everywhere” (2261).

In addition to the well-known prohibitions of abortion (2270-75) and euthanasia (2276-79), the Catechism condemns the taking of one’s own life (with mental illness as a mitigating factor of one’s culpability (2282)): “Everyone is responsible for his life before God who has given it to him. It is God who remains the sovereign Master of life. We are obliged to accept life gratefully and preserve it for his honor and the salvation of our souls. We are stewards, not owners, of the life God has entrusted to us. It is not ours to dispose of” (2280).

Imprisoned in the Tower of London, St. Thomas More likely knew of his impending death. Thus, in light of the Church’s teachings on human life, one might ask, Did More not have a duty to preserve his life, which God had entrusted to him? Should he have saved himself by renouncing the pope, as King Henry had demanded? Did More violate Church teaching by choosing to die?

The answers to these questions—all of which are in the negative—involve the Church’s theology of martyrdom. I will turn to this issue in the next few posts.

St. Thomas More, pray for us!

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Who was St. Thomas More?

In 1520 English grammarian Robert Whittington wrote that Thomas More was “a man of marvelous mirth and pastimes, and sometime of as sad gravity. A man for all seasons.”

Whittington’s description is apt, for More was a complex man living in complex times. He was a man of deep faith and tradition, yet a proponent of the “New Learning” of the Renaissance. He was a loyal statesman, yet an outspoken opponent of his King’s Protestantism. He was a contemplative and an ascetic, yet a devoted husband and father to several children.

His complexity continues into the present day, as he is venerated by both Catholics and communists alike.

More was born on February 7, 1478 in London. He was a student at a prestigious school and worked as a page to the Archbishop of Canterbury, eventually making his way to the University of Oxford, where he received a classical education.

Despite his social connections and intellectual abilities, More was drawn to the contemplative life. He considered becoming a monk and spent time as a postulant at the Carthusian charterhouse in London. He left the monastery—some have speculated that he was expelled—to live the life of a layman, though he continued certain ascetical practices, such as wearing a hair shirt, for the duration of his life.

More had three daughters and a son with his first wife, who died about six years into the marriage. More married again only thirty days after his wife’s death, a decision the Church allowed because of More’s good character and reputation. He had no children with his second wife, but he did raise a step-daughter from his second wife’s previous marriage. He also became a guardian to a young girl who eventually married his son. He was known as a loving father who emphasized the importance of writing and education, even with respect to his daughters, which was uncommon at the time.

As a lawyer, More had a successful career in politics, serving as a member of Parliament and in various other administrative capacities. He was knighted in 1521, elected as Speaker of the House of Commons in 1523, and became Chancellor in 1525. He also worked as a secretary and personal advisor to King Henry VIII.

More was a scholar who published several religious polemics, but his most famous work was Utopia, which has become a classic of English Renaissance literature. Written in Latin, Utopia describes a fictional island that exists as a social paradise, in contrast to the disorder More saw in Europe.

A zealous Catholic, More was a fierce opponent of Martin Luther and the Protestant Reformation, and he took efforts to suppress Protestant literature and investigate religious subversives. He denied accusations that he tortured heretics, except in two known cases of corporal punishment, but he did approve of executing religious dissidents, a common practice among both Catholics and Protestants of the time. His actions against Protestants remain a matter of debate to this day, with some accusing him of cruel and inhumane treatment, and others noting that he acted in accordance with his duties as a public servant during a tumultuous time.

More was executed for treason on July 6, 1535. His opposition to King Henry’s divorce of Catherine of Aragon and subsequent marriage to Anne Boleyn remain well known, as does his loyalty to the pope and his refusal to recognize the king as the Supreme Head of the Church of England.

The Catholic Church recognizes Thomas More as a martyr, as does—surprisingly—the Church of England, which speaks further to the complexity of the man and the time in which he lived. Pope Pius XI canonized More in 1935, and in 2000 Pope St. John Paul II declared More the “heavenly Patron of Statesmen and Politicians.”

St. Thomas More, pray for us!

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Welcome to God’s Servant First

Now is an appropriate time to launch this website, in light of two recent anniversaries: first, the 482nd anniversary of St. Thomas More’s martyrdom, a landmark event during the early Counter-Reformation; and second, the tenth anniversary of Pope Benedict XVI’s motu proprio Summorum Pontificum, a decree that allowed for the widespread celebration of the Tridentine Mass.

Though separated by more than 450 years, More’s death and Benedict’s pronouncement both demonstrate the central role that sacrifice plays in Catholicism. By giving his life in defense of papal supremacy and the Social Kingship of Christ, St. Thomas united himself with Christ’s sacrifice on Calvary, a sacrifice that the Traditional Latin Mass re-presents in unbloody form, through its sublime Offertory and ancient Roman Canon. Like most Catholic martyrs, More knew only the Latin Mass (though it had not yet been codified in its Tridentine form), and Pope Benedict’s decree has renewed the sacredness of this venerable rite for current generations.

In the coming posts, we will explore the life and martyrdom of St. Thomas More—a man who was God’s Servant first. For more information about this website, please see the About the Site and About Me pages.

St. Thomas More, pray for us!