On Christmas Day, St. Thomas Becket excommunicated bishops who took King Henry’s position. The king, livid, uttered the long-remembered statement, “Who will rid me of this meddlesome priest?” Four of the king’s knights took that remark as an invitation and murdered the Canterbury archbishop. Despite the context of his martyrdom, the people insisted, Eire said, on “santo subito” – immediate sainthood; he was canonized just three years later, in 1173.
Canon 215, which give the faithful the right to form associations – even without the blessing of the bishop – is important as well. The right of association “is a human right,” Sister Bauer said.