John Henry Cardinal Newman

John Henry Newman, born on February 21, 1801, was a preeminent figure of the Victorian era. As a priest, a theologian, and a writer, he affirmed the value of tradition while engaging in dialogue with the modern world. Though often scorned by the church he loved, he was vindicated in his own lifetime when, at the age of seventy-eight, he was named a cardinal. He chose as his motto, "Heart speaks to heart."

The first half of his life is identified with Oxford, where he studied and taught, and which ever remained his spiritual home. After ordination as an Anglican priest he assumed the prestigious post of Vicar of the University Church of St. Mary. During the 1830s he achieved wide fame as one of the leaders of the Tractarian, or Oxford, movement, a conservative effort to restore the Church of England to union with the Roman Catholic church.

Newman, in his scholarly pursuits, came to believe that the development of doctrine in the Roman Church was not a distortion of the Christian faith but an unfolding of its potential in response to new questions. Thus convinced that the Roman Catholic church was faithful to its primitive origins, he accepted the inevitable conclusion that he should become a Catholic. He was received into communion with the Catholic church in 1845.

In 1847 he was ordained a priest of the Oratory of St. Philip Neri. In 1851 he was invited to Dublin to establish a Catholic university. His views on "liberal education" were presented in his book, The Idea of a University, which is now considered a classic in the field of education. Through his publications, preaching, and a number of public disputes with hostile critics of the church, Newman emerged as the most distinguished Catholic churchman of his day.

In his own time, Newman was recognized for his critical role in the reestablishment of Catholicism in England. Today he is remembered as one who struggled to keep the mind of the church open to what was good and valuable in the modern world. His understanding of the historicity of doctrine, his defense of the laity, his nonscholastic approach to theology, his spirit of tolerance, his belief in the separation of church and state, his appreciation of the spiritual integrity of the intellectual life, and his celebration of the rights of conscience – all these values are consonant with modern Catholic sensibility.

John Henry Newman died in 1890, but his influence, thought, and spirituality are felt even today. He was one of the important precursors to Vatican II (1962-65), which embraced many of his ideas.

The Catholic church in England has begun the process of seeking the church universal to declare John Henry Cardinal Newman a saint. He was declared "Venerable" (one of the stages in the process of canonization) on January 22, 1991.