Father Chuck Adam blesses a new sculpture of St. Thomas More at St. Thomas More Parish in Coralville June 22.
By Lindsay Steele
The Catholic Messenger
CORALVILLE — The St. Thomas More Parish community celebrated a new sculpture of its patron saint on his feast day, June 22. Father Chuck Adam, the parish’s pastor, blessed the bronze sculpture as it gleamed in the midday sunshine.
Canadian artist Timothy Schmalz, whose work is on display in Rome and the Vatican, sculpted the piece. Titled “Man For All Seasons,” the sculpture’s design features St. Thomas More beneath an oak tree with branches displaying scenes from his life. A crucified Jesus represents the trunk of the tree.
Parishioner Wendelin Guentner discovered the piece and spearheaded its purchase, Father Adam said. Guentner helped finance the piece along with other donors from the parish.
The sculpture’s title echoes the Coralville community’s mission statement: “St. Thomas More Parish strives to be a Parish for All Seasons. We are committed to being an inclusive parish, to help all, in whatever season of life, to grow closer to God through engaging liturgies, support of family life, strong religious education, and a keen awareness of social justice.”
Thomas More, a London-born lawyer, husband and father, worked under King Henry VIII in the early 16th century. When the king divorced Catherine of Aragon and set himself up as supreme head of the Church of England, More resigned. He was arrested two years later for refusing to take the oath to the New Act of Succession and was imprisoned for more than a year in the Tower of London. Convicted of treason, he was beheaded in 1535 (osvnews.com).
God “adorned him with courage, a brilliant mind, and a steadfast conscience,” Father Adam said as he blessed the sculpture outside the church’s entrance. “Though tempted by power and pressured by a king, he remained loyal to your truth and to the Church he loved.” Father Adam prayed that all who look upon the sculpture will be inspired to follow St. Thomas More’s example by living with integrity, speaking with honesty, and serving God’s kingdom before all else. “May this sculpture remind us not only of a man who gave his life for his faith, but of the daily call to discipleship you place on each of us.”
