St. Thomas More & Free Speech

Here is an excerpt from an excellent article written by Andrew Haines of First Things about St. Thomas More and free speech: (To read the entire article click here.)

"While it was traditional for a Speaker to urge the King toward clemency in the event that some opinion aired should prove unpleasing to His Majesty, More went a step further. Rather than pleading merely for future pardon, he made the bold suggestion that freedom to speak one’s mind was, in fact, an essential principle of honest and profitable debate."