John Henry Newman Books
Welcome to John Henry Newman Books, a division of St Philip's Books offering a comprehensive listing of books in print in English by and about Cardinal Newman.
John Henry Newman
John Henry Newman was born in London in 1801. He rose to prominence in the Church of England as a scholar and clergyman at the University of Oxford, where he held a fellowship at Oriel College and became Vicar of the University Church, St Mary the Virgin.
Through his writings and preaching Newman helped bring about the Oxford Movement, which sought to add a Catholic dimension to Anglican theology and spirituality. His researches in the history of the early Church led him progressively towards Roman Catholicism and he was received into the Catholic Church in 1845.
After a short period of study and ordination in Rome, Newman was ordained priest and returned to England where he founded the English Congregation of the Oratory, an offshoot of the religious community begun by St Philip Neri in sixteenth-century Italy.
Through his extensive theological, historical and spiritual writings he furthered the understanding of the Catholic Church and its teachings, and through private correspondence helped a remarkable number of people with their personal religious difficulties. Probably his best known and most influential book is the Apologia Pro Vita Sua, a fascinating account of the progress of his religious opinions while an Anglican. Pope Leo XIII acknowledged Newman's achievement by creating him a Cardinal in 1879.
Praised for his humility, unstinting care of souls and contributions to the intellectual life of the Catholic Church, he died in Birmingham on 11 August 1890. His legacy in England has been continued by the Oratorian houses he founded in Birmingham and London. His plans to establish a house in Oxford came to fruition in 1990 with the foundation of the Oxford Oratory.
So many Catholics were convinced of Newman's personal holiness that the Church has thoroughly investigated his life and writings. This process culminated in Newman being declared Venerable in 1991, and Blessed in September 2010. It is very likely he will be declared a Saint and Doctor of the Church in due course.