BIRMINGHAM - 25 February 2008 - 400 words
Birmingham:
Newman University College celebrates 40th anniversary
Peter Jennings
Archbishop Vincent Nichols spoke about Cardinal Newman, St Augustine and truth, during his homily at a Mass to celebrate the 40th anniversary of Newman University College and the anniversary of the birth of the Venerable John Henry Cardinal Newman in London on 21 February 1801.
The Archbishop of Birmingham, who was
the principal concelebrant at the Mass held in the chapel at Newman
University College, on Thursday, said: "Two of the great
figures of Catholic education, Augustine of Hippo and Cardinal
John Henry Newman, both engaged in a great quest for truth and
for freedom."
The Archbishop, who is Chairman of the Catholic Education Service,
said: "For Augustine this search for truth had an absolute
radical quality to it and in fact drove him from faith in the
Catholic Church for a while. Yet as a result of his study he
returned to embrace not only the Church but also the mystery that
it seeks to live with enthusiasm and integrity. How did this come
about?"
He explained: "Augustine tells us the story of his quest in his great book, The Confessions. There he speaks to us of the human being you and I being a great enigma. We know that people are capable of great goodness and of creating great beauty. Yet we also know, with equal certainty, that human beings are capable of destructiveness and great obscenity. Augustine pointed out that we have to understand ourselves either as an absurdity or as participants in a great mystery. That's our choice: absurdity or mystery."
He continued: "Today we celebrate the anniversary of the birth of Cardinal John Henry Newman and rejoice in the rapidly growing recognition of his wisdom and holiness. Throughout his long life, he consistently followed this inner search for the truth of God as the foundation of all his decisions.
"Some of the things he had to say
relate to us directly today. He foresaw the challenge that we
face: of living in an age which proclaims that really
there is no such thing as truth. Our age tells us that beyond
what each person sees or decides for herself or himself there
is nothing more to be known.
"Speaking on 12 May 1879 Cardinal Newman described this new growing phenomena, this 'culture' which proclaims, in his words, that 'there is no positive truth in religion; one creed is as good as another; all are to be tolerated for all are matters of opinion. Rather it is the right of each individual to make religion say just what strikes his fancy'. These words of Cardinal Newman from 1879 are so relevant to us today."
The Archbishop said: "So our search for truth, and our commitment to that search, is crucial: it is crucial for the quality of education that we offer; it's crucial for the health of our society. Only an understanding of the fundamental unchanging truth about what it is to be a human person can be the foundation of our true freedom. Only with such freedom can we follow the pathway of this search for truth."
At the start of his homily Archbishop Nichols described the special Mass as "a great act of thanksgiving" for the staff and pupils and spoke of pride in the achievements of Newman College during the past 40 years. He highlighted the fact that it had recently obtained degree awarding status. "That", he said, "is of immense importance and a great tribute to the present staff and its leadership."
Archbishop Nichols said: "Newman University College stands in the great tradition of Catholic institutions dedicated to education. Yet being a Catholic institution brings with it some difficulties. Nowadays there is some suspicion that faith in God and education do not go well together."
He added: "The view is abroad that faith undermines education. That, of course, is a blinkered and often prejudiced point of view. It certainly betrays an ignorance of the true nature of faith, because it casts faith as no more than superstition; and it also betrays an ignorance of what education truly is, because it casts education as no more than the acquiring of competence and skills to serve a technological age. But both faith and education are far more than that and in fact they go well together."
Archbishop Vincent Nichols concluded: "This evening we thank the Lord for guiding this College through these forty years of its history. We ask his blessing on the next years under the gracious patronage of John Henry Newman."
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