This week it was announced that St John Henry Newman, of the Oratory, and recently declared Doctor of the Church and Patron of Catholic Education, is to be inserted into the General Roman Calendar, meaning that he will be celebrated internationally across the entire Roman Rite on 9th October. Up to this time, the liturgical celebration of St John Henry (in the Holy Mass and Liturgy of the Hours) has been mainly restricted to Oratorians as well as being included in the liturgical calendar of England and Wales. This decision to allow St John Henry’s memorial to be celebrated in all Catholic Churches reflects his universal significance as a saint and Christian teacher and his special importance for modern times.
During the homily of the Eucharistic Celebration in which the Rite of the Proclamation of Saint John Henry Newman took place, Pope Leo XIV recalled that “this reference to the darkness that surrounds us echoes one of Saint John Henry Newman’s best-known texts, the hymn ‘Lead, Kindly Light.’” The Holy father continued: “The task of education is precisely to offer this Kindly Light to those who might otherwise remain imprisoned by the particularly insidious shadows of pessimism and fear. For this reason, I would like to say to you: let us disarm the false reasons for resignation and powerlessness, and let us share the great reasons for hope in today’s world.” While the late Pope Francis, in the Encyclical Dilexit nos, highlighted another significant aspect of the life of Saint John Henry Newman, namely that he “took as his motto the phrase Cor ad cor loquitur, since, beyond all our thoughts and ideas, the Lord saves us by speaking to our hearts from his Sacred Heart. This realisation led him, the distinguished intellectual, to recognise that his deepest encounter with himself and with the Lord came not from his reading or reflection, but from his prayerful dialogue, heart to heart, with Christ, alive and present” (n. 26) In the liturgical texts for this celebration, the Collect reveals the very essence of the Saint’s spiritual journey: God guided him by his “kindly light” until he led him into the peace of his Church. That journey of his becomes for us too a source of inspiration and a reason for humble prayer, we who desire to be led out of shadows and appearances, so as to arrive at the full light of truth.