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PARISH COAT OF ARMS
The parish Coat of Arms of St. Thomas More Church in Fairfield, NJ is divided into three sections with each section representing something significant to our parish family. The three sections are divided by the "S" chain and Tudor Rose medallion as worn by St. Thomas More in the stained glass window above the choir loft. The Tudor Rose symbolizes the reign of King Henry VIII, a member of the Tudor family, who ruled over 16th century England. Thomas More was named Lord Chancellor of England by Henry in 1529. When Henry VIII decided to divorce his wife and declare himself head of the church in England, More opposed him. When Henry required an oath of support, Thomas More refused to sign. The King had Thomas More arrested and imprisoned in the Tower of London, seen in the top right section of the Coat of Arms. More remained in the Tower for several years until he was beheaded on July 6th, 1535.
The upper left section of the Coat of Arms contain the instruments of St. Thomas More’s life and death: the quill pen, a symbol of his writings and his best remembered work, Utopia, which appeared in 1516, and the axe, the instrument of his death.
The Church of St. Thomas More belongs to the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Newark
The lower section of the parish Coat of Arms is taken from the shield of the Archdiocese: the three blue lines representing the three rivers that run through the Archdiocese (one of which, the Passaic River, separates Fairfield from its neighboring towns), and the half-moons which represent the patronage of the Blessed Virgin Mary under her title of the Immaculate Conception.
Above the Coat of Arms are the letters STM which stand for St. Thomas More. The T is in the shape of the cross and is emerging from a crown, signifying the precedence Thomas More gave to God over King, to faith over politics, to right over wrong, to heaven over the things of this world. Below the Coat of Arms are the last words of Thomas More as he approached the scaffold: "I die the King’s good servant, but God’s first."
During the Jubilee Year 2000, Pope John Paul II proclaimed St. Thomas More the patron saint of politicians and lawyers. As a husband, father of four children, loyal subject and faithful Christian, the Church places the life of St. Thomas More before us for our veneration and imitation. The example of his life and his willingness to die for the truth stand as a witness for all. The Church of St. Thomas More in Fairfield was built in 1964 and welcomes all who come to pray and worship.