Selected Writings

by Thomas More, John F. Thornton (Editor)

Drawing on a variety of More’s late writings, this collectio n provides even readers lacking a background in Renaissance humanism or history with a rich introduction to a startlingly modern man of spiritual principle. 

Thomas More is perhaps most familiar to us from his courageous struggle with Henry VIII, unforgettably portrayed in Robert Bolt’s classic, A Man for All Seasons. But that final struggle, which ended in his execution for treason, was only the crowning act in a life that he had devoted to God long before.

In the first selection in decades made for the general reader from his collected works, this volume traces More’s journey of moral conviction in his own words and writings. Also included is the famous “Life of Sir Thomas More,” written by his son-in-law, William Roper.

In the annals of spirituality certain books stand out both for their historical importance and for their continued relevance. The Vintage Spiritual Classics series offers the greatest of these works in authoritative new editions, with specially commissioned essays by noted contemporary commentators. Filled with eloquence and fresh insight, encouragement and solace, Vintage Spiritual Classics are incomparable resources for all readers who seek a more substantive understanding of mankind's relation to the divine.

Genres: Philosophy

320 pages, Paperback

First published April 8, 2003

About the author

Sir Thomas More (1477-1535), venerated by Catholics as Saint Thomas More, was an English lawyer, social philosopher, author, statesman, and noted Renaissance humanist. He was a councillor to Henry VIII and also served as Lord High Chancellor of England from October 1529 to 16 May 1532.

More opposed the Protestant Reformation, in particular the theology of Martin Luther and William Tyndale. He also wrote Utopia, published in 1516, about the political system of an imaginary ideal island nation. More opposed the King's separation from the Catholic Church, refusing to acknowledge Henry as Supreme Head of the Church of England and the annulment of his marriage to Catherine of Aragon. After refusing to take the Oath of Supremacy, he was convicted of treason and beheaded.

Pope Pius XI canonised More in 1935 as a martyr. Pope John Paul II in 2000 declared him the "heavenly Patron of Statesmen and Politicians." Since 1980, the Church of England has remembered More liturgically as a Reformation martyr. The Soviet Union honoured him for the Communistic attitude toward property rights expressed in Utopia.

Reviews

[Kristin Gottron · Rating 5 out of 5]

Many of these selections were from Thomas More’s Tower works and letters, the most profound of which was The Sadness of Christ, a lengthy meditation on the Agony in the Garden. That meditation in and of itself makes this book a worthwhile read, especially when considering that it is borne from More’s meditation on the Last Things.

[Stephen · Rating 5 out of 5]

Extraordinary book. Most of this is More's masterpiece, "The Sadness of Christ," an incredibly rich reading and reflection on Jesus' last night and the road from Gethsemani to Golgotha. Even if you just read the gospels as sheer literature and nothing else, you'd be crazy to miss this. It's a penetrating work of literary criticism, but more than that, a beautiful spiritual reflection -- in More's own words, a meditation on how "the best and kindest of physicians chose to experience sadness, dread, weariness, and fear of tortures and thus to show by these very real signs of human frailty that He was really a man."

More wrote mostly in Latin, but the translation here is fresh.

Couldn't recommend the book more highly.