Today marks the end of the annual octave of prayer for Christian unity. Blessed John Henry Newman, the great English convert, helped and continues to help many Christians enter into full communion with Rome. But did he actually pray for Christian unity?
Initially, it was another Anglican convert to Roman Catholicism, Fr. George Spencer, who initiated Newman into this project by inviting him to join Catholics in France who were praying for such a goal. At first, Newman was reticent. He argued that many Catholics were not living with the charity that should have been at the center of their faith. Newman actually personally knew very few Catholics, however, and after some time with this group he admitted that he had made a generalized assumption. And so, a few months after Fr. Spencer’s petition, Newman drafted a prayer to be used by Anglicans on Fridays asking God for the re-union of Christians.
Despite his rash judgment about Roman Catholics, Newman was right in conceiving charity as the mark of a true Christian. His concern was echoed in Blessed John Paul II’s repeated insistence on fraternal charity among Christians, and of the need for a conversion of heart in ecumenical dialogue.
Today, examples of this dialogue abound. It is expressed with particular beauty in the pro-life cause, and Monday’s March for Life in Washington, DC saw a broad coalition of Christians from nearly every denomination come together in solidarity.
Still, prayer and charity do not exclude rigorous study of religious doctrine. Newman’s life, after all, was characterized by a passionate study of Scripture, the Church Fathers and liturgy. This, together with fasting, led him to ultimately accept the primacy of Peter.
There are other valuable lessons Newman teaches us about Christian unity, notably his respect for each person and his conscience, and the need for patient and prayerful discernment of God’s calls. But his sober and steady work for reunification, especially thorough sincere prayer, remains this future saint’s strongest example.
Fr. Juan R. Vélez is the author of the forthcoming Passion for Truth: the Life of John Henry Newman (TAN Books, 2012), a biography for the general reader.
January 25th, 2012 | 1:25 pm
The Blessed John Henry Newman sets a wonderful example for all of us to pray for the unification of all men with the See of St. Peter, the Holy Church of Rome, the foundation, center and instrument of unity. Like Newman, I pray that we may break down the walls of separation which divide us from one another and look with compassion on each other.
January 25th, 2012 | 1:32 pm
Excellent commentary on Newman’s desire for unity. Newman’s importance at this time in history cannot be over estimated; with so many distraught Anglicans looking to Rome, his example is one that is a “kindly light.” Those who seem to think of Newman as a modernist will do well to find the truth about Newman from Fr. Juan Velez’s forthcoming biography Passion for Truth. Newman’s example and his bravery — to renounce what he had formerly embraced — in submission to Rome — is an example to Catholics as well, those who pick and choose what to believe.
January 25th, 2012 | 4:43 pm
The story of Blessed John Henry Newman’s realization of the scandal of Christian disunity parallels his faith journey. His prayer starts off citing Jesus’ priestly prayer in St John’s Gospel (Jn 17). He ends with a call to communion. He starts with the reality of the humanity of the Church which has not yet come to the “fullness of charity”. Isn’t that still true for all of us who call ourselves “Christian”? Should this not be our deepest desire and most earnest goal? Father Vélez’ excellent piece points out one of many facets that unite us who are called “Christian”: the March for Life in Washington, DC. I experienced it personally on Monday at a conference at the Family Research Council offices and on the pavement Constitution Avenue along with thousands of fellow Christians standing up for life.
January 25th, 2012 | 6:49 pm
It is so refreshing to see here that the point of Christian Unity is to be in union with Peter. I am a convert from a zealous Sola Scriptura Protestantism.
I was so thrilled to finally be Catholic. But when I found Catholics working to be “unified” with their separated brethren, to my surprise, they were not interested in trying to evangelize them and explain how misinformed they are about the Catholic Faith! No, no, no! Their idea of Christian Unity was for Catholics to be more like Protestants and get rid of all that “Catholic baggage” or at least keep it hidden.
That drove me crazy. If Protestants only knew the truth and could get over their prejudice against Catholicism, those of good will would be just as thrilled to be received into the Catholic Church and under the mantle of our Blessed Mother as I am. I love John Henry Newman. His book, The Development of Doctrine was heavy plowing but so worthwhile, logical, and sublime. I read it as I was converting. I look forward to Fr. Velez’s new book too.
January 25th, 2012 | 11:25 pm
Father Juan,
Thank you for your excellent points.
As always, our Catholic Faith calls us to
Prayer, Sacrifice and Love for one another.
In this way, we empty our hearts so as to be filled by the One who always unifies.
January 26th, 2012 | 4:03 am
Anyone who suggests that Bl John Henry Newman was a Modernist should read his “Biglietto Speech” (1879) in which he declares that “For thirty, forty, fifty years I have resisted to the best of my powers the spirit of liberalism in religion…” “There never was a device of the Enemy so cleverly framed and with such promise of success..”
It repays careful study.
January 26th, 2012 | 12:58 pm
Thank you, Fr. Juan, for this good reminder that true Christian unity cannot come at the expense of doctrinal rigor, but that there is still much that we can do together despite our differences. I hope that the very best of each Christian tradition will always be preserved for the edification of the whole Church.
I think Bl. Newman would be particularly encouraged by the establishment of the Anglican Ordinariate, which allows for the continuation of Anglican liturgy and spirituality under the headship of St. Peter.
Like Bl. Newman, I am a convert from Anglicanism and still deeply love many things about that tradition. I am glad that much that is good about it will be preserved, even as Anglicanism fizzles out in the West.
January 27th, 2012 | 1:48 pm
Fr. Juan’s comments on the importance of greater Christian unity are much needed, and it bears repeating that faithful Christians in all groups continue to unite around a shared commitment to protecting the family and all of its members. Whether the issue is the protection of every human life from conception to natural death, or the importance of maintaining the traditional definition of marriage, the goals of faithful Christians are the same.
As a convert to Catholicism, I owe a lot to Protestant and Catholic friends in the pro-life movement who helped educate me on the rationales supporting or opposing the use of contraceptives, and in vitro fertilization. Both sides’ emphasis on reason and the Bible helped illuminate differences I had not considered. Ultimately, the Church’s full-spectrum teaching on life issues (along with other insights) helped persuade me to enter into full communion, but I am ever grateful for the principled stands I encountered from friends with whom I still disagree.
As everyone knows, today Protestants and Catholics have far more in common than ever before; especially when confronting the relativistic secularism running rampant in the world. With my own life as an example, I think there is much to be gained from partnerships in defending some issues that can – over time and with deep reflection – lead to better understandings and, eventually, conversions of heart and mind.
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