Dear Parishioners of Mary Immaculate and Saint Rose,

This weekend on Sunday, October 13, John Henry Cardinal Newman will be declared a saint of the Roman Catholic Church.  Since the Catholic Newman Center movement is named in his honor, I thought it might be good to reflect on this in light of our connection with the Newman Center.                        

John Henry Newman was born in England in 1801.  Newman was a member of the Church of England and was ordained an Anglican priest in 1825.  He was a professor at Oxford University, where he became a part of the Oxford Movement.  This movement tried to restore elements of Catholic worship to the services of the Church of England.                                                      

Somewhere in his faith journey, Newman began to read the early Church Fathers and in spite of his earlier distrust of all things Catholic, he became more and more convinced of the Truth of the Catholic Faith.                                    

In his early forties he finally converted to the Catholic Faith.  In joining the Catholic Church he severed ties with his family, friends, and university. Shortly after joining the Catholic Church, he began preparation for his education as a Catholic priest.  He was ordained as a member of the religious community known as the Oratorians.                                                                           

ne of his accomplishments as a priest was to found a club for Catholic university students at Oxford.  The idea was to support their Catholic Faith in a non-Catholic environment.  This club was the seed that eventually grew into the Catholic Newman Centers on state university campuses in this country.  These centers are to provide a place of support and ministry to Catholic students on state-run university campuses.                                                               
In 1879 John Henry Newman was named a cardinal of the Roman Catholic Church.  He was never a bishop so this honor was bestowed in recognition of his work as a Catholic priest and for the suffering he endured because of his conversion to Catholicism.  Newman died in 1890.                                                                                                              

o today we celebrate a wonderful witness of the Catholic Faith.  He joined our Church in spite of tremendous opposition and persevered in the Faith in spite of great persecution in the press and in intellectual circles. Living the truth of the Catholic Faith became more important to him than approval and comfort.

Saint John Henry Cardinal Newman, pray for us!
O Lord, support us all the day long,                                                                                                      until the shadows lengthen and the evening comes,                                                                          and the busy world lies hushed, and the fever of life is over,                                                          and our work is done.                                                                                                                              Then in thy mercy grant us a safe lodging,                                                                                           and a holy rest, and peace at the last.                                                                                                                        
  (A Daily Prayer by Cardinal Newman)
                         Msgr. Cox