Today was the memorial of St. Thomas More, martyr. He was imprisoned and later killed by his friend, the King of England. My readings today included a most beautiful letter Thomas wrote to his daughter, Margaret, from prison.
Thomas tells her how he trusts in God, and not to worry. “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.” Later he writes: “And finally, Margaret, I know this well, that without my fault he (God) will not let me be lost. I shall, therefore, with good hope commit myself wholly to him. And if he permits me to perish for my faults, then I shall serve that his tender pity shall keep my poor soul safe and make me commend his mercy. And, therefore, my 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 the best.”
He was beheaded by order of King Henry VIII in 1535.
What I liked about the letter was its peace and confidence in God, no matter what happened ahead. He saw many others being killed, but he was now an exception, perhaps because of his prior friendship with the king. He told his daughter not to worry about the future, but if at some point bad things happened --- don’t worry about that either.
That letter was like a peek into the heart of someone who loved Jesus greatly, and trusted in all his promises.
There is a parable of the rich man, who came to Jesus asking “What must I do to obtain eternal life?” Jesus tells him to obey the commandments, which he says he does. What else? So, Jesus says to sell all he has and “follow me.” And the rich man went away, because he couldn’t bring himself to do that. I’ve seen many a discussion about that parable and how “if everyone gave away everything, everyone would starve and die.” Or sometimes the discussion would focus on how much to give away, and for what. But I think at the heart of that parable is the asking of the rich man to love, even as St. Thomas loved many years later. The rich man loved things of this earth, but Jesus said “follow me” because he has the words of eternal life. Love the things of this earth for a few happy years, or love the things of eternity --- forever. That love (agape) doesn’t end. St. Thomas knew that, and so didn’t worry about his life. He followed, and loved, as Jesus loved. He had no worry whatsoever about the future, as long as he loved as Jesus loved.
It's what we’re called to do, and then just trust. Let tomorrow bring what it does tomorrow, but for today, just love. In heaven there will be no faith nor hope, only charity, for love never ends.
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