Newman Catholic Ministry receives its name from a great churchman. John Cardinal Henry Newman was an extraordinary intellectual, an accomplished literary stylist, a mesmerizing preacher, and a saintly person. Having devoted his life to seeking truth, following truth without compromise, and loving Christ and His One Body boundlessly, Newman deserves the honor bestowed upon him by a multitude of Catholic groups across America's university campuses.

"Everything in its time."
Born on February 21, 1801, in London, England to a banker father, Newman lived a life of privilege. When his father's bank failed, however, Newman experienced a spiritual awakening. He took a vow of celibacy and, as an evangelical, low-church Anglican, devoted himself to working against the Catholic Church.

Newman graduated from Trinity College, Oxford, in 1821, and was ordained an Anglican priest in 1825. In 1828, he was appointed to the prestigious post of Vicar of the University Church of St. Mary. In 1830, however, he was dismissed from the evangelical, low-church because his views began to reflect a more high-church Anglican tone. To the low-church nonconformists, the high-church too closely resembled the Roman Catholic Church. Newman then became involved with the Oxford movement. As a part of the movement, he studied the theological development and dogmatic history of the Anglican Church, including its Catholic foundation. Newman wrote twenty-six of the ninety tracts that emerged from the Oxford movement. In the last, and most controversial, of the tracts, Newman attempted to interpret the thirty-nine articles of Anglican belief from the point of view of the Roman Church.

As a result of his research, Newman became increasingly attracted to Roman Catholicism and began to question the authority and teachings of the Anglican Church. Within the Catholic Church, Newman perceived a commitment to the origins of Christianity as well as an ability to respond to new questions. In 1843, he resigned from his position at St. Mary. In 1845, he published an essay, On the Development of Christian Doctrine, in which he reconciled himself to Catholic doctrine and creeds. On October 9, 1845, Newman converted to Roman Catholicism and received ordination two years later.

Newman became a member of the Oratorians of St. Philip Neri, a religious community of priests dedicated to the education of the laity. He served as the rector of Dublin Catholic University for four years, edited a newspaper for a short time, and then in 1859, founded a school for boys in Birmingham. He remained mainly in Birmingham for the rest of his life. In 1879, Newman was created cardinal by Pope Leo XIII. He died on August 11, 1890.

"Heart speaks to heart."
During his long career as teacher and spiritual director, Newman wrote many books and articles on the theological and intellectual issues of his day. His works include his autobiography, Apologia Pro Vita Sua, which discusses the spiritual and religious journey that led him to the Catholic Church, and his Grammar of Assent, in which he discusses faith and reason. Among others, these classics have led Newman to be considered one of the greatest masters of the English language.

Newman affirmed the value of tradition while simultaneously recognizing that the human experience is intimately connected with the changing times. Although now essential to Catholic thought, Newman's acceptance of the modern world, his esteem for the laity, and his distrust of the Vatican hierarchy, often put him at odds with his contemporaries. Nonetheless, he has been called the greatest theologian of his time and an intellectual giant of the Church. In fact, some seventy years after his death, his philosophy greatly influenced the direction followed at the Second Vatican Council. A concerted effort exists to canonize him.

Newman Catholic Ministry values Cardinal Newman's life and writings. The organization strives to emulate his ideas, especially the necessity of tolerance and the prominence of conscience, in its ministry.