St. Thomas More Home

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The parish of St. Thomas More was established as a mission in 1940 by Archbishop McNicholas to serve the Catholics of the Withamsville, Mt. Carmel, Forestville, and Amelia areas. In late 1940, the former Glen Este-Withamsville Elementary School was purchased by the Archdiocese to establish a Catholic presence in the area. Still in use by the parish as More Martyr Hall, the building served as the first church. The first Mass was celebrated on January 19, 1941. The mission was elevated to the canonical status of a parish in 1950. Father Francis Heider was installed as pastor by the Very Reverend Monsignor Raymond Stoll on December 21, 1950.

By 1944, the parish was seeking larger quarters. Near the original church was an abandoned pre-Civil War era Methodist-Episcopal Church, which had been acquired by Union Township. The township hoped to convert the building into a fire station. The Pastor of St. Thomas More, Fr. Francis Heider, convinced township officials that it would be a better use of public funds to sell the building to the parish, and use the funds to build a new fire station. Archbishop John T. McNicholas dedicated this second church August 20, 1944. When State Route 125 was widened to four lanes of traffic during the 1950’s, the interior layout of the church was reversed to move the altar to the south wall.

In the fall of 1944, the old church building reopened as St. Thomas More Elementary School. During the summer of 1945, the Glaser residence, near the new church, added 4 additional classrooms. The Glaser property also included three acres of land, which connected the two parish properties. The Glaser residence is still in use, being converted to the parish rectory shortly after Fr. Heider’s twenty-fifth anniversary of ordination, on June 14, 1949.

The present elementary school building known as Father Heider Hall was built in June of 1948, with 4 classrooms and a large auditorium. Bishop Rehring, Auxiliary Bishop of Cincinnati, dedicated the school in 1949. Four additional classrooms were added in 1952.

Again pressed for worship space, the parish embarked on the building of a larger church. Bishop Leibold laid the cornerstone, and Archbishop Altar dedicated the new church in 1961. The building was referred to by many as the “Cathedral in the Cornfield” due to its great size in comparison to the size of the community at that time.

By 1996, the parish had grown to 1200 families, and the planning of what is known as “Phase I” began. Included in this ambitious project were the remodeling of the front entrance, a multi-purpose building (gym), library, parish dining room and kitchen, meeting rooms, and kindergarten. Phase I also brought the renovation of the church undercroft that is now used for junior high classrooms. The concept of a Marian Grotto at St. Thomas More Parish began during the planning stage of Phase I.

Developing the parish properties into a cohesive, attractive campus has been the focus of Phase I. In order to provide adequate parking and enlarge the church driveway, the second church building and convent west of the church were razed in September of 1999. This left vacant a strip of ground adjacent to the parking area to the east of the church. The Pastor, Fr. John P. Fischer suggested a Grotto be built overlooking the school and church. The Grotto was constructed and dedicated in the spring of 2001.

Fr. William C. Wagner was appointed Pastor of St. Thomas More Parish in July of 2001. During Fr. Wagner’s first year, the Sanctuary of the church and the Sacristy were reappointed. A new state of the art sound system was also installed in the church replacing a system that had been pieced together over a period of 20 years. More Martyr Hall was remodeled for meeting use and the outside entrances to Heider Hall were upgraded. In the fall of 2002, three new modular buildings were installed that included four additional large rooms and a new state auxiliary facility. In late 2003, the adjoining property at 804 Ohio Pike was purchased for use as our short-term St. Vincent de Paul home for those in need in our community. In November 2005, the parish celebrated their 65th anniversary with the release of a new parish photo directory. In 2006, a state of the art digital telephone system was installed along with our own email server. We continue to ensure we have the latest technology available for our school and for managing our parish. In 2007, all new energy efficient windows and blinds were installed in Heider Hall.

Today, St. Thomas More Parish has over 1525 families and the Parish Council is working on planning for our growth in the future. Our parish is located in one of the fastest growing areas in the Cincinnati metropolitan area.

The English statesman, Sir Thomas More, later canonized as Saint Thomas More (1935), was born the son of a lawyer who later became a judge. He was educated at St. Anthony's School and was appointed a page in the home of Archbishop (later Cardinal) Morton, who sent him to Canterbury Hall, Oxford, in the early 1490s. At Oxford, More studied under Colet and Linacre. More left Oxford without a degree to study at new Inn and Lincoln's Inn in London. His lectures dealt not only with law but also with St. Augustine's City of God. He spent three years as a reader in Furnival's Inn and spent the next four years in the Charterhouse in "devotion and prayer." He early composed various English poems and Latin epigrams that were not printed for several years. However, a Latin translation of four Greek dialogues of Lucian appeared in 1506, and an English translation of the Latin life of his model, Giovanni Pico della Mirandola, in 1510.

Increasingly involved in public affairs, More became a member of Parliament in 1504, beginning the career that led to the well-known events of his chancellorship and his martyrdom.

Introduced to Henry VIII through Wolsey, More became master of requests (1514), treasurer of the exchequer (1521), and chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster (1525). He was speaker of the House of Commons, and was sent on missions to Francis I and Charles V. On the fall of Wolsey in 1529, More, against his own strongest inclinations, was appointed lord chancellor. In the discharge of his office he displayed a primitive virtue and simplicity.

The one stain on his character as judge is the harshness of his sentences for religious opinions. He sympathized with Colet and Erasmus in their desire for a more rational theology and for radical reform in the manners of the clergy, but like them also he had no desire to break with the historic church. He witnessed with displeasure the successive steps which led Henry to the final schism with Rome. In 1532 he resigned the chancellorship.

In 1534 Henry was declared head of the English Church and More's refusal to recognize any other head of the church then the pope led to his sentence for high treason after a harsh imprisonment in the Tower for more than a year. Still refusing to recant his opinions, More was beheaded on July 7, 1535.

More was twice married. His daughter Margaret, the wife of his biographer William Roper (Life of Sir Thomas More), was distinguished for her high character, accomplishments, and pious devotion to her father. More takes his place with the most eminent humanists of the Renaissance.

The 2008 Archdiocese decree on Child Protection is now in effect In order to volunteer with children in any capacity, you must receive certification in the program AND successfully pass a background fingerprinting check. We say “thank you” to the over 700 parishioners who have participated in the program and are approved to volunteer!

For those who have yet to comply with the program, you will need to do so if you plan to work with children. If you have been recently fingerprinted and certified, you cannot volunteer until we are notified of the results by the diocese. This could take an unspecified amount of time based upon each individual's circumstances. Fingerprinting can be completed at IHM, 7820 Beechmont Avenue on Tuesdays, Wednesdays, and Thursdays from 9 am to 6 pm or at the Archdiocese offices on the 8th floor, 100 E. 8th Street, Monday thru Friday, 9 am to 4 pm.

Certification classes take place at our parish.

You may also take the class at another location. Please click here for a current schedule. You must bring a copy of your certificate to the Parish Office validating your certification.

Classes at St. Thomas More:

Saturday, August 16, 2008, 12:15 PM, Conference Room B (Peg Fischer)

Classes at St. Veronica - 4473 Mt.Carmel-Tobasco Road:

Please call the St. Veronica Parish Office to register at 528-1622

Classes at Immaculate Heart of Mary - 7820 Beechmont Avenue

Will be held the second Monday of each month at 7:30 PM and

the third Wednesday of each month at 4:00 PM - Must have 5 in the class. Class 388-4466 to register

Watch the bulletin for future scheduled times.

For more information on the Decree on Child Protection, click on this link to the Archdiocese of Cincinnati:

Protecting our Children