John Henry Newman: The Challenge to Evangelical Religion

by Frank M. Turner

One of the most controversial religious figures of the nineteenth century, John Henry Newman (1801–1890) began his career as a priest in the Church of England but converted to the Roman Catholic Church in 1845. He became a cardinal in 1879. Between 1833 and 1845 Newman, now best known for his autobiographical Apologia Pro Vita Sua and The Idea of a University, was the aggressive leader of the Tractarian Movement within Oxford University. Newman, along with John Keble, Richard Hurrell Froude, and E. B. Pusey, launched an uncompromising battle against the dominance of evangelicalism in early Victorian religious life. By 1845 Newman’s radically outspoken views had earned him censure from Oxford authorities and sharp criticism from the English bishops. Departing from previous interpretations, Turner portrays Newman as a disruptive and confused schismatic conducting a radical religious experiment. Turner demonstrates that Newman’s passage to Rome largely resulted from family quarrels, thwarted university ambitions, the inability to control his followers, and his desire to live in a community of celibate males.

752 pages, Hardcover

First published September 10, 2002

About the author

Frank M. Turner was a distinguished intellectual historian who forged his entire career at Yale, making a distinctive mark as scholar, teacher, mentor and senior administrator. He rose from being a teaching assistant in the History department to serving as Provost, the second-highest office in the University, from 1988 to 1992. In 1993 he became the John Hay Whitney Professor of History. In 2010 he was appointed Yale University Librarian, overseeing one of the largest academic library systems in the world: 18 libraries and special collections of primary source material. Turner had been director of one of those units, the Beinecke Rare Book and Manuscript Library, from 2003. He died only two months into his five-year term.

Reviews

[Josiah Bates · Rating 4 out of 5]

Profound at points.
Never not thought-provoking... or just never not provoking in general.

[Sarah · Rating 3 out of 5]

If you want to know everything about John Henry Newman's life, theology and written works during his time contributing to the Tractarian movement, thereby setting the context to his conversion to Catholicism but without actually covering that conversion, then this is the scholarly, detailed and exhaustive book that you need.

[Jon Wilson · Rating 5 out of 5]

Very good. Thesis holds together, and a great insight into all of the characters of the Tractarian Movement. Have been reading about the growth of evangelicalism in the late 1700's into the Civil War era, and this well-researched and well-written tome supplements that.