Subj : =?UTF-8?Q?December_29th_=E2=80=93_St=2E_Thomas_Becket=2C_Archbishop=2C_ To : All From : rich Date : Mon Dec 28 2020 09:23:03 From: rich December 29th =E2=80=93 St. Thomas Becket, Archbishop, martyr (1118-1170) Archbishop Thomas Becket of Canterbury, martyr to the freedom of the Church, is venerated within the Octave of Christmas because that was the date of his death. But it is also appropriate to commemorate him soon after the birth of Christ the King, for he died in defense of the Kingdom that is not of this world. Becket was a Londoner of upper middle-class stock, the son of the sheriff of London. He started to work as a merchant=E2=80=99s clerk, but th= en, with a view to a clergy career, he joined the household of Archbishop Theobald of Canterbury, England=E2=80=99s primatial see. He may also have studied at Bologna, Italy. Prizing Thomas=E2=80=99 talents, Archbishop Theobald subsequently chose him as his chief counselor and representative. With good reason: this tall, handsome, vigorous, extroverted young man was highly intelligent and competent. On Theobald=E2=80=99s recommendation, the young king Henry II appointed Becket, then 36, as his chancellor. Thomas proved more than equal to the task. Henry not only appreciated his talent but also his company, and the two became closely attached socially. This was all the easier in the sumptuous royal court because Thomas, though a cleric, shared the King=E2=80=99s devotion to banqueting and hunting. He li= ved magnificently, even on a regal scale. In 1159, clad in armor, he led 700 of his own knights in combat in the siege of Toulouse. Wearing secular garb troubled him little. The Prior of Leicester, meeting him at Rouen, properly exclaimed, =E2=80=9CWhat do you mean by dressing like th= at? You look more like a falconer than a cleric.=E2=80=9D Becket was certainly worldly and ambitious, impetuous and harsh. Yet there was in him an idealistic and devout and pure side that would show itself more and more as he matured. King Henry was meanwhile laying plans to gain complete control over church as well as state in his kingdom. When Archbishop Theobald died, Henry foisted Thomas on the see of Canterbury, thinking that his boon companion would assist him in subjugating the Church. Thomas declined the position. He knew only too well the King=E2=80=99s motives, and he was cleric enough to realize that what he had done as chancellor he could not in conscience do as archbishop. He warned the King about this, but Henry did not believe him. On being consecrated a bishop, Thomas resigned the chancellorship. After his installation, Thomas changed his lifestyle to one of order, prayer and penance. The break in the royal friendship came only gradually. Conflict peaked in 1164, when Henry declared his intention to revive certain unspecified =E2=80=9Croyal customs=E2=80=9D. Thomas was at first willing to go along. Then, when the King presented a list of three =E2=80=9Ccustoms=E2=80=9D, he saw that he could not support= them. Among them were the demand that clergy be subject to trial in civil courts as well as church courts; that the king had a right to the income from empty clerical benefices; that no prelate could appeal from the king to the pope, or even travel to Rome, without royal consent. Thomas refused to accept. Henry stormed. Trial for treason being in the offing, the Archbishop fled to France, seeking shelter in the Cistercian Abbey of Pontigny. Even from afar, Henry lashed out at Thomas by persecuting his relatives and the local Cistercian monks. But Becket did not hesitate to excommunicate the bishops who sided with the crown against the Church. In July 1170, monarch and archbishop met in France and patched up an agreement, but without discussing the principal issues. When Thomas returned to England on December 1, the people greeted him triumphantly. Three bishops whom he had suspended for breaking church law, now appealed their cases to the King, still in France. In one of his famous rages, Henry cried out, =E2=80=9CWill nobody rid me of this pestilent cleric?=E2=80=9D Four knights who took the King at his word, left= at once for England, rode to Canterbury, and murdered Thomas in his cathedral. All Europe was shocked at this sacrilegious assassination. Miracles were soon reported at Becket=E2=80=99s tomb. The pope excommunicat= ed King Henry, who retracted his anti-church legislation and did public penance. Thomas was canonized in 1173. He had made up for his early failings by reforming his ways, but most of all, by sacrificing his life for the liberty of the Church. Saint Quotes: "Many are needed to plant and water what has been planted now that the faith has spread so far and there are so many people...No matter who plants or waters, God gives no harvest unless what is planted is the faith of Peter and unless he agrees to his teachings." "Remember the sufferings of Christ, the storms that were weathered...the crown that came from those sufferings which gave new radiance to the faith...All saints give testimony to the truth that without real effort, no one ever wins the crown." --St. Thomas Becket, Archbishop <><><><> Lord, Kindle our Lamps By St Columban (543-615) Lord, kindle our lamps, Saviour most dear to us, that we may always shine in Your presence and always receive light from You, the Light Perpetual, so that our own personal darkness may be overcome and the world=E2=80=99s darkness driven from us. Amen --- NewsGate v1.0 gamma 2 * Origin: News Gate @ Net396 -Huntsville, AL - USA (1:396/4) .