Who Was Newman?
Our community (like all Catholic campus ministry communities on secular campuses in the U.S.) is named after Venerable John Henry Newman (1801-1890), an Oxford don, famous as a scholar, educator, theologian, and philosopher. At the age of 44, Newman converted to Catholicism and founded the first English-speaking Oratory of St. Phillip Neri. Newman's scholarly work was so outstanding that he was made a cardinal of the Catholic Church in 1879.
He stood as a giant influencing many academic and spiritual disciplines, and his writings and lifelong search for religious truth have inspired scholars throughout the world.
Newman's reform-minded philosophy and theology was so influential that he became known as the "Invisible Father" of the Vatican Council II. His ideas energized the conversations that set the council in the direction of reconciliation and dialogue with the modern world. His writing also set in motion the Council's teaching on the role of the laity, conscience, and education. In 1991 Pope John Paul II declared Newman to be "Venerable", or worthy of reverence, in recognition of his having practiced the virtues of holiness to a heroic degree. So, in our university setting Newman represents for us the ideas of rigorous academic scholarship, and outstanding leadership, combined with a vivid faith and deep spirituality. Because of his deep academic commitment and saintly life, Newman is a suitable person to identify with campus ministry.
