St Vincent Seminary - Symposium Yearbook (Latrobe, PA)

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fe img . it f U'llllI alillll lm. g E f :- S : Ill Ill E E E '- A X ,Mg 3 ', rx '1 .15 Hllllllllml X ,fr 'l . , . . H . . wx- I 0 X, 9712 r Y . l ' ' A 4 . . . . . . . . . . , . . - 1 . . . 7 7 . . . . 5 ulllllllfllllu Q - E lla - . - 5 . - 2 Ili Ulllnllnlr e Human Side of Cardinal Newman GEORGE P HAUSSER A B HE name of Cardinal Newman IS well known to every student of history and literature. Those who study history know him as the great leader of the Oxford Movementg those who study literature, as a man of unsurpassing literary endowments. But significant and scholarly as are the works and the genius of the man, there are few, indeed, who are acquainted with his human side. Men know him in his great historical, religious, political and social actsg few know him as he lived his life away from the crowded highways of humanity in the solitary solemnity of his little cell. The latter is the objective of this essay. It proposes to give the human side of Cardinal Newman. Throughout his youth he was ever a solemn, serious little lad who found greater delight in intellectual pursuits than in the rough and ready sports of the day. His was an unusual intel- lectual avidity which grew with the passing of years and won for him at the end of his primary course, a scholarship at Oxford University. Upon his entrance to the University he seemed little different from the rest of his fellowmen, yet, he possessed unusually deep religious convictions and was endowed with unexcelled powers of mind. At a very early age he found consolation in the con- viction that there were two, and two only, supreme and lumin- ously self-evident beings in the world, himself and his Creator This IS one of the great principles of Newman's life, a principle the understanding of which is indispensable for any adequate appreciation of the noble sacrifices of the man. Across every page of the Apologia this conviction stands forth in bold characters without it Newman s life IS a commingling of inconsistencies. With the passing of years his religious fervor grew more in- tense and it induced him upon receiving his degree, to begin study for orders in the Anglican Church. Here his powers of mind won the universally coveted scholarship to Oriel College one of the highest honors attainable at the University. Conscious as Newman must have been of his gifts of mind, he was never proud nor did he glory, in their possession. He was fully cogni- Q lx If will :ii T. wr? t .1 I . ' Lf ' gmlnnutig Ear'- 5 llllg llla :nnnmuun 51 He was born at the very dawn of the nineteenth century.

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nmmuimn IIIIIIIIIIINZ Ellli alunlg lllllllillllllll 7 ! ! 7 Y general dissatisfaction in non-Catholic bodies, for the reason that Y 5 . . I 7 ' ! I J illl! 'HIIIIIIIIIHIH Af,-'23 Another important element in development has been and is a zealous clergy zealous most of all, by their example. Lessons in good c1t1zenship should be preached here through action, the ex- ample of a good life spent with attention to a pastoral charge The greatness of such an influence is immeasurable, it has in it the calm of quiet occupation and indifference to the rasping voices of b1gotry hatred and political bickering. The priest then, should be a c1t1zen of thought, abiding by the conviction of h1s conscience having at the same time a good grasp of the issues at hand The opponents of the Church have taken courses which border on the hysterical and the results are sad. We see a the people desire to hear the Word of God from their shepherd and not a pol1tical harangue. The advancement of God's kingdom on earth IS the fundamental purpose behind all our actions, it IS the motive power of all our deeds. We have various natural means for the advancement of that kingdom' and the root of all means is the individual as a thinking unit. Better government better laws, and more respect for constituted authority, breed closer intimacy between the individual and his church and pastor, a natural result of public governmental health. We should, then principally by example, strive to overcome those disturbing elements in social life fin order to correct affairs politi- cal 1n this regard Shakespeare in his understanding manner has asked Cans t thou not minister to a mind diseased Raze out the written troubles of the brain, And with some sweet oblivious antidote, Cleanse the foul bosom of that perilous stuj, Which weighs upon the heart The immense convention hall lies sprawled in the dazzling sun like some huge monster, and upon it is the appearance of desertion Upon entering we find the area confronting us strewn with confetti and other signs of merry-making and rejoicing, all used at the birth of the new citizen whom we have just con sidered -We grow retrospective and wonder. Was his birth in vain? Was his the life of a day? The fullness of our pride and confidence answers for us, and instead of a negative answer or even a doubting reply, we breathe a prayer for his continued progress progress not toward an envisioned Utopia but toward the ach1evement of the happiness God has appointed for man on this earth. l60ll lx X ga Ill W gn-.unmni allllllllllllllj slllr SIIIIIIE sllls 'lllllllllllllh Pluck from the memory a rooted sorrow, i

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E 'E I E Elllllli Slllllli z E 5 5 n a 'llllllllillllf' 6 6 ' . . . . l ? . 'Ill . -mnmngur site 1 r jlll' lllllls Ill zant of the truth that much will be required of him to whom much has been given. With this ideal before his mind his days were passed in the fulfillment of his duties to God and his fellow- men. In respect to the latter he was always gracious and charit- able He was 1n every sense of the word the true gentleman He lived a life of sacrifice and love so akin to sainthood that often it seemed as if St Augustine had reappeared to walk the ways of men. His personality and powers grew with the passing of years and won, four years after his ordination in the Church of England, the curacy of St. Mary's. Here he became the moral and intellec- tual leader of this great center of learning. Here his powers as a 'preacher drew the young Oxonians to worship at his feet. Here, too, he spent himself in his work, so much so that it began to affect his health. He was badly in need of a rest. Hence, when Hurrel Froude, his bosom friend, likewise delicate in health, invited him to make a trip to southern Europe, he gladly accept- ed. There he found opportunity to renew his failing health in the doubly soothing atmosphere of European skies and affectionate friendship. Together these two tired souls cruised along the Mediterranean, seeking the fountains of health amidst the once resplendent glories of the ancient world. During this cruise, in the hours of loneliness and foreboding that frequently overcame him, he wrote some eighty-five verses, one of which has endeared 'itself to the hearts of all those who seek light amidst the en- circling gloom of this earthly pilgrimage. Early in 1833 he was back in England ready to begin those years of unimaginable sorrow that lay before him. He returned just in time to become involved in the scholarly Oxford Move- ment. This was an attempt upon the part of some of the in- tellectuals at Oxford to revive in the failing religious fervor of the Anglican Church that fiery ardor and hunger for the king- dom of God which characterized the primitive Church. Fervor zeal and the old enthusiasm had given way to a deadening com- placency. The great bulk of the clergy walked along the smooth path of least resistance enjoying an honorable prestige among their people by the few external functions they performed upon Sundays. For the rest they differed neither outwardly nor in- wardly from the great bulk of the laity to whom the Church was .a useful organization for the maintenance of Religion, as by law established But the awakening came at last. It was brought about by the famous Oxford Movement, a historical event so prodigious in .-l--- 'llllllllllllll' 7 7 7 ! ' H A mmunum , fi , umumuuu: s 5 - ,glllg , slllllla : z 2 f- .. .. - - 'illllllllllllli ' , V ' . , Q! ll62ll