The Heart of Newman by Erich Przywara (review)

reView: writiNGs of NewmaN The Heart of Newman. By Erich Przywara. Foreward by Joseph Pearce. San Francisco, CA: Ignatius Press, 2010. Pages: xxiii + 387. Paperback: ISBN 978–1–58617–498–9. $17.95. This re-issue by Ignatius Press of Erich Przywara’s classic collection of Newman’s writings offers readers an excellent overview of the recently beatified Englishman’s thought. Originally published in German in 1922 as J. H. Newman-Christentum: Ein Aufbau, Przywara’s synthesis first appeared in six volumes, each prefaced by an “argument” written by Przywara as a summary of that volume’s contents. Many readers will be disappointed that Przywara’s original “arguments” have been omitted in this re-issue, but the selection of Newman’s writings presented here stands as a compelling piece on its own. Przywara has revealed the heart of Newman in twenty-one sections, beginning with passages about our innate knowledge of God and moving into Christian revelation and our spiritual development in our lives as Christians.Many sections end with devotional prayers composed by Newman, offering a fitting conclusion to the particular topic. The passages are drawn from the whole gamut of Newman’s writings—ranging from his Parochial and Plain Sermons to his Grammar of Assent—and reveal a striking unity of thought between his Anglican and Roman Catholic writings. Well-known themes in Newman’s writings emerge and are presented in a compelling and logical arrangement. For example, the section titled “God” presents Newman’s conception of God’s immanence and providence as reflected in our consciences and in the course of history.The section “Preparations for Christianity”contains insightful reflections on the“whispers”of the Diety echoing through the pagan world. The section on “The Church” presents Newman’s characteristically vivid depiction of the Church as both a Divine and human institution molding and being molded by the course of history. In a series of sections on faith, a collection of beautiful passages conveys the gradual process of God’s speaking to our hearts as we develop into mature Christians. In the sections titled “The God of the Soul” and “The Sinner’s God,” one finds Newman’s deeply personal acknowledgement that God alone is the fulfillment of our deepest longings.In the section“Bond of Love,”we are reminded that true friendship will only thrive if centered on“something that is Unchangeable and essentially Good.” The sections on “The Life of the One Body” and “The Next World” emphasize the transitory nature of this world.And in the section“BetweenThis World and the Next,” we are called to reflect on the hidden realities beneath the surface of this world, which, if we are observant, will prepare us for the world to come. The book culminates in a beautiful section titled“The Child,”where Newman reminded us that “we walk to heaven backward” and must become children again and learn to love without calculation, struggle or self-regard. Przywara’s book covers the whole range of Newman’s writings; hence summarizing it is tantamount to summarizing the entirety of Newman’s work. NEWMAN STUDIES JOURNAL 94 95 REVIEW: WRITINGS OF NEWMAN Fortunately, Newman himself offered his own vision of the task he sought to complete during his life. In an excerpt included from the Parochial and Plain Sermons, Newman noted that “the work we have to do” in our lives here on earth is “to change the heart and will of man,” though “the time for reaping what we have sown is hereafter, not here.” Przywara’s compilation seeks to do just that: mold our hearts to love as true Christians as we progress forward in our lives.Today, over 200 years Newman’s birth, as we continue to reap the fruits of the writings of this great Englishman, both the seasoned Newman scholar and those just discovering his writings will find Przywara’s book an excellent compilation through which Newman’s voice may continue to speak to our hearts: cor ad cor loquitur. Ryan Vilbig Department of Physics,The Catholic University of America When the intellect has once been properly trained and formed to have a connected view or grasp of things, it will display its...