Exploring St John Henry Newman

John Henry Newman, recently in the public eye due to his canonisation in 2019, continues to intrigue and influence thinking about the nature of knowledge, the unity of truth, and the purpose of higher education. In our increasingly siloed and individualistic society and economy today, we could do well to revisit Newman's vision of fostering a broad, integrated sense of knowledge and a more holistic education system. The summer 2023 issue of Studies: An Irish Quarterly Review steps up to the plate in publishing a number of contributions to the recent discussion panels co-hosted by UCD's Newman Centre and The Notre Dame Newman Centre for Faith and Reason.

Finola Kennedy presents an overview of Newman's relations with Ireland in the context of his university project which highlighted the value of the tutorial system; Paul Shrimpton, exploring the tutorial system further, notes how Newman considered it as fulfilling a pastoral role for students; Katherine O'Donnell examines Newman's idea of personal development and observes that his idea of a gentleman is about the cultivation of grace and dignity, rather than the image of highly-charged masculinity we see as presenting as normative today; Dermot Roantree looks at Newman's idea of development and how he compared the growth in wisdom and knowledge of the Church to the psychological evolution of an individual.

Elsewhere, Timothy Quinlan, on a topical theme in the context of the Church's current synodal journey, considers how we can bridge the gap between the institutional and the local Church; Mary Murphy calls for a reimagining of contemporary capitalism, which is spreading ripples of societal, economic and environmental destruction - she proposes an ecosocial solution which is capable of effecting transformative change; William Kingston, in addressing the hot topic of research funding in Ireland, proposes that funding be directed towards companies that can partnership with universities and enable the research results to have tangible impact; Brian Feeney presents a comprehensive history and overview of the Northern Irish Protocol. Two review articles complete the essays: Peadar Kirby discusses two books on human agency and climate change; and Declan Kelly reviews a recent publication by Stanley Hauerswas on Karl Barth.

LINK

Irish Review: www.studiesirishreview.ie/product-category/default-category/current-issue/