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J.H. Newman
John Henry Newman (1801–1890) was an English preacher, theologian, and cardinal whose spiritual journey from Anglicanism to Roman Catholicism profoundly shaped 19th-century religious thought. Born in London to John Newman, a banker, and Jemima Fourdrinier, of Huguenot descent, he was the eldest of six children in a devout Church of England family. Converted at 15 in 1816 through an evangelical awakening at Great Ealing School, he studied at Trinity College, Oxford, earning a BA in 1820, and became a fellow at Oriel College in 1822. Ordained an Anglican priest in 1825, he served as vicar of St. Mary’s University Church, Oxford, where his compelling sermons ignited the Oxford Movement, seeking to revive Catholic traditions within Anglicanism. In 1821, he faced personal loss with his sister Mary’s death, and he remained unmarried throughout his life. Newman’s ministry took a dramatic turn in 1845 when, after years of studying the Church Fathers and questioning Anglican authority, he converted to Roman Catholicism, a decision that severed ties with Oxford and many friends. Ordained a Catholic priest in 1847, he founded the Birmingham Oratory and served as rector of the Catholic University of Ireland from 1854 to 1858, emphasizing education’s role in faith. His preaching, marked by intellectual rigor and emotional depth, continued through works like The Idea of a University and Apologia Pro Vita Sua (1864), a defense of his conversion. Elevated to cardinal by Pope Leo XIII in 1879, Newman died in 1890 at the Oratory in Edgbaston, leaving a legacy as a preacher whose eloquence and integrity bridged traditions, earning sainthood in 2019 for his enduring influence on Christianity.
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John Henry Newman delves into the concept of hypocrisy, explaining it as not just deceiving others knowingly, but also deceiving oneself by seeking praise through religious acts more than the praise of God. He highlights the danger of loving the praise of men over God's approval, drawing from Jesus' warning to His disciples about the leaven of the Pharisees, which is hypocrisy.
For the Love of Men
"Beware ye of the leaven of the Pharisees, which is hypocrisy" (Luke 12:1). This then is hypocrisy;--not simply for a man to deceive others, knowing all the while that he is deceiving them, but to deceive himself and others at the same time, to aim at their praise by a religious profession, without perceiving that he loves their praise more than the praise of God, and that he is professing far more than he practises. And if this be the true Scripture meaning of the word, we have some insight (as it appears) into the reasons which induced our Divine Teacher to warn His disciples in so marked a way against hypocrisy. An innumerable multitude was thronging Him, and His disciples were around Him. Twelve of them had been appointed to minister to Him as His especial friends. Other seventy had been sent out from Him with miraculous gifts; and, on their return, had with triumph told of their own wonderful doings. All of them had been addressed by Him as the salt of the earth, the light of the world, the children of His kingdom. They were mediators between Him and the people at large, introducing to His notice the sick and heavy-laden. And now they stood by Him, partaking in His popularity, perhaps glorying in their connexion with the Christ, and pleased to be gazed upon by the impatient crowd. Then it was that, instead of addressing the multitude, He spoke first of all to His disciples, saying, "Beware of the leaven of the Pharisees, which is hypocrisy;" as if He had said, "What is the chief sin of My enemies and persecutors? not that they openly deny God, but that they love a profession of religion for the sake of the praise of men that follows it."
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John Henry Newman (1801–1890) was an English preacher, theologian, and cardinal whose spiritual journey from Anglicanism to Roman Catholicism profoundly shaped 19th-century religious thought. Born in London to John Newman, a banker, and Jemima Fourdrinier, of Huguenot descent, he was the eldest of six children in a devout Church of England family. Converted at 15 in 1816 through an evangelical awakening at Great Ealing School, he studied at Trinity College, Oxford, earning a BA in 1820, and became a fellow at Oriel College in 1822. Ordained an Anglican priest in 1825, he served as vicar of St. Mary’s University Church, Oxford, where his compelling sermons ignited the Oxford Movement, seeking to revive Catholic traditions within Anglicanism. In 1821, he faced personal loss with his sister Mary’s death, and he remained unmarried throughout his life. Newman’s ministry took a dramatic turn in 1845 when, after years of studying the Church Fathers and questioning Anglican authority, he converted to Roman Catholicism, a decision that severed ties with Oxford and many friends. Ordained a Catholic priest in 1847, he founded the Birmingham Oratory and served as rector of the Catholic University of Ireland from 1854 to 1858, emphasizing education’s role in faith. His preaching, marked by intellectual rigor and emotional depth, continued through works like The Idea of a University and Apologia Pro Vita Sua (1864), a defense of his conversion. Elevated to cardinal by Pope Leo XIII in 1879, Newman died in 1890 at the Oratory in Edgbaston, leaving a legacy as a preacher whose eloquence and integrity bridged traditions, earning sainthood in 2019 for his enduring influence on Christianity.