What Ida Görres Says About Newman

Quotes from the new book. What the critics are saying.

Today we celebrate the Feast of St. John Henry Newman with:

• An article about Ida Görres and where Newman “ranks” among her most favorite saints.

• A look at the new release John Henry Newman: A Life Sacrificed by Ida Friederike Görres.

RECENT ARTICLE

Check out the article “Newman and the Work of Ida Friederike Görres“ at the The Newman Review, September 30, 2024.

QUOTES FROM CHAPTER 1

A preview from the first chapter.

Ida Görres writes:

Suppose you ask me what really moves and captivates me most about the great figure of our ‘‘Father Newman’’, as we call him with love and adoration. In that case, I do not need to think long about the answer: it is not his noble humanistic harmony, not his embodying the form of gentleman transfigured by Christianity, not the vastness of his gaze into the future beyond what his contemporaries saw, his carefully reasoned sharpness of judgment, his impartiality and independence of conscience, not the soul-stirring power of his sermons, not the comprehensive scholarship of the consummate scholar, not the in- corruptibly heart-searching vision of a great psychologist, educa- tor, and spiritual guide, which reveals itself in his sermons as well as in his letters—one could go on for a long time and enumerate merits, gifts, and virtues that radiate toward us captivatingly from his truly noble image. But it is none of that. Rather, it is this one realization: that Newman was a man who was sacrificed.

And:

In the following, we want to try to investigate the person of Newman: the boy, puzzled, who was startled and overwhelmed by God; the active, creative young prophet of his church in crisis; the hermit, who he was and wanted to be all his life; and the fighter, who he was with and against his will: the saint of the Church and the saint of humility, the one perfected in sacrifice.

CRITICS SAY: “Eloquence and Insight”

The publication of this long-forgotten work by Ida Friederike Görres marks an exciting development in Newman scholarship. Görres’ study of Newman’s life and conversion, and the hostile society in which he lived, is a must-read for both Newman devotees and readers keen to learn more about this brilliant, enigmatic, troubled English saint. As Görres reveals with effortless eloquence and insight, Newman stands as a spiritual and intellectual giant of the Victorian era, and a beacon of hope in our own troubled times.

—Fiorella de Maria, Author, Father Gabriel Mysteries series

St. John Henry Newman stands on the shoulders of the English martyrs. Yet, as this excellent biography shows, Newman was also a martyr, albeit a ‘white martyr’ who died of old age. Ostracized by the British establishment for his ‘defection’ to Rome, he was also poorly treated by English Catholics, particularly by his fellow converts. Newman suffered greatly for the following of his reason and conscience. This excellent book goes deeper than other biographies of Newman, enabling us to see the man and his life and work with a fresh and penetrative perspective.

—Joseph Pearce, Author, Faith of Our Fathers: A History of True England

Wishing you a blessed Feast of St. John Henry Newman.

St. Newman, pray for us!