St John Henry Newman’s thinking is notoriously difficult to summarise. His contribution to theology and the life of the Church is wide ranging, and his output vast. Scholars entering the field of Newman studies are confronted with a daunting array of sources: around forty five major works, including those published posthumously, and thirty two substantial volumes of correspondence. Added to this is a body of secondary literature, of varying quality, produced by what is often described as the Newman industry. How, then, does Fr Hermann Geissler manage to distil so much learning into a slim 120 page book on the latest, and thirty eighth, Doctor of the Universal Church?
The answer lies partly in Geissler’s background. His doctoral thesis examined conscience and truth in Newman’s writings. He then spent twenty five years working at the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith, during which time he published numerous articles on Newman’s spirituality and theology. More recently, he has delivered lecture courses on Newman at theological institutions in Rome and elsewhere. He is therefore able to draw on a wealth of experience to provide an excellent point of entry for educated Christians into the life and thought of St John Henry.
Geissler is to be congratulated on his choice of chapter topics. After an overview of Newman’s life, readers are guided through five Newmanian themes, four of them drawn from four of Newman’s seminal works. All but one include sections explicitly addressing relevance, making clear the author’s intention to demonstrate how Newman’s thought speaks to the present moment. The chapter on The Development of Christian Doctrine, for example, concludes by relating Newman’s seven notes of genuine doctrinal development to some of the most pressing questions currently facing the Church.
On Consulting the Faithful in Matters of Doctrine has been both used and misused since its publication in 1859, when it was even sent to Rome on suspicion of heresy. Geissler mines the essay with care, presenting Newman’s understanding of the role of the faithful in the transmission of sound doctrine. Clear explanations of key terms such as sensus fidei and consensus fidelium enable readers to grasp Newman’s expansive vision of the place of the lay faithful in the life and mission of the Church.
The theme of conscience runs through the two chapters drawing on the Apologia pro Vita Sua and the Letter to the Duke of Norfolk. Here, Geissler writes as someone thoroughly at home in Newman’s thought, particularly his account of conscience, and as someone who brings the authority and insight of long experience at the Church’s doctrinal centre.
Newman’s method of arriving at truth can perplex the uninitiated. He approaches reality from multiple angles in an effort to understand creation and its Creator, often holding apparently disparate truths in creative tension. His method draws on the religious imagination, sacramental vision, and the personal, subjective, relational, and existential, in contrast to approaches that privilege the purely objective or systematic.
The risk of this approach is that Newman’s carefully balanced thought can be distorted by selective quotation. This is a familiar tactic among those who seek to enlist Newman in support of their own positions rather than attending closely to his nuanced prose. There is no trace of such one sidedness in Geissler’s treatment. Instead, the reader is helped to see aspects of reality as Newman himself perceived them.
In the final chapter, Geissler shifts his focus to Newman’s reflections on the inner dispositions of the apostle, drawing on his sermons on St Paul. This change of register allows him to present another dimension of the latest Doctor of the Church, one that highlights the centrality of the heart and the importance of personal influence. As Newman praises the virtues of the Apostle to the Gentiles, his sympathy for others, his welcoming spirit, and his love of humanity, the reader gains insight into Newman’s own apostolic heart, expressed in his cardinalatial motto, Cor ad cor loquitur.
The principal weakness of the book lies in the translation from the original Italian, which is sometimes uneven and can, at points, confuse or mislead the reader. It is also unfortunate that Latin phrases and some technical English expressions are not consistently translated or explained. Despite these shortcomings, Geissler has rendered a valuable service to English speaking readers and has fulfilled his stated aim: “to present, in simple terms, some of the most important and timely themes of [Newman], bringing out their relevance to current theological and ecclesial discussion.”
Paul Shrimpton
St John Henry Newman: A New Doctor of the Church is available now from CTS.
Paul Shrimpton’s latest volume is ‘The most dangerous man in England’: Newman and the Laity.
