The following story first appeared in the Summer 2004 Glenmary Challenge.
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Building Church Around a Table
'A giant of a man with a childlike relationship with God'
By Father Bob Dalton

BRYSON CITY, N.C .: Father Tom was hands-on in the Habitat ministry he started.

Father Tom Field was a big man physically. He also had a big heart. Father Tom, 64, died Feb. 27 in Cincinnati.

This giant of a man had a childlike relationship to God. Perhaps this is why he had such a special place in his heart for the little people of the world. He delighted in the summer camp for handicapped children he sponsored in Tennessee. And each year Santa Claus became his partner in ministry while he served in Fayetteville, Tenn. This true disciple of the Lord loved fire trucks, trains and practical jokes.

His heart also embraced the poor and marginalized. I remember listening as he expressed frustration when someone displayed prejudice for the Cherokee people with whom he worked in North Carolina.

Father Tom’s generous hospitality was experienced by many people over the years. His table ministry was a reflection of the life of Jesus, who was criticized by his enemies for being “a friend of sinners and eating with them.” Meals were ministry events for Jesus. This continued even after the resurrection—and it continues today as we gather for the Eucharist. Father Tom strengthened bonds of friendship, unified mission parishes and reconciled alienated folks to the Church over abundant meals.

Searching for God’s will was also a constant in Father Tom’s life. It led to his first vocation choice as a Benedictine brother on the northern Dakota prairie at Blue Cloud Abbey. Even after becoming a Glenmary priest, he was at ease with manual labor projects. He was seen just as often wearing a tool belt as a Roman collar.

This ongoing vocational discernment led him to resign as pastor of St. Joseph Church in Bryson City, N.C., in 2000. His battle with Parkinson’s disease was taking too great a toll. He did not want to become a burden.

But he wanted to continue to serve. So he went to St. Joseph the Worker Mission in Madisonville, Tenn., as a sacramental minister to a community established and led by pastoral coordinators. He touched deeply this emerging congregation. Providing Eucharist to them allowed him to continue his table ministry.

Glenmary priests and brothers have a tradition of lining up to form an honor guard as the body of a deceased Glenmarian is brought from the church at the end of the funeral liturgy. We always sing this same joyful song: “For all the saints who from their labors rest,/ Who you by faith before the world confessed,/ Your name, O Jesus, be forever blest. Alleluia, Alleluia!”

At our funerals we celebrate the victory of God’s grace that enabled our brother to serve with fidelity to the end. We celebrate the unique way our fellow missioner lived out his Glenmary Oath to “dedicate myself for my whole life to the missionary apostolate in the rural areas and small towns of the United States.”

The call of every Glenmary priest or brother is also a call to a community of support for one another. Father Tom responded to that call as well. He made my journey as a missionary far more enjoyable, my commitment easier, my fears for the future more manageable, my attitude toward myself more compassionate.

To read more about Father Tom