Blessed John Henry Newman
Jul 26th, 2006 by Fr. Joshua
by the late Mr. Gerard Tracey:
John Henry Newman was born on 21st February, 1801, in London, the eldest son of a London banker. His family were ordinary church-going members of the Church of England, without any strong religious tendencies, though the young John Henry did learn at an early age to take a great delight in the Bible. He was sent to Ealing School in 1808, and it was there, eight years later, that he underwent a profound religious conversion, which was to determine the rest of his life as a quest for spiritual perfection. In 1817 he entered Trinity College, Oxford, where he was a very successful student. Five years later he was elected to a coveted Fellowship of leading Oriel College. He was ordained and worked, first as a curate in the poor Oxford parish of Saint Clement’s, and a little later as Vicar of the University Church of Saint Mary the Virgin. There, his spiritual influence on his parishioners and the members of the University was truly enormous. He worked as a College Tutor, and a little later began to research the first of the many theological works which were to put him at the forefront of religious writers.
