To Be Perfect Is to Have Changed Often

The Development of John Henry Newman's Ecclesiological Outlook, 1845–1877

Ryan J. Marr

This study approaches John Henry Newman’s writings on the church from a fresh perspective by examining the development of Newman’s ecclesiological outlook over time. It demonstrates that it can be misleading to refer to Newman’s “Catholic ecclesiology” (singular), because such an approach gives the impression that Newman maintained a stable ecclesiological perspective during his Roman Catholic period. In reality, Newman’s outlook on the church underwent significant developments over the last four decades of his life. As a result of various events in his life, including the Rambler affair and his experience of the First Vatican Council, Newman slowly developed an ecclesiological outlook that counterbalanced the authority of the pope and bishops with a robust account of the role of theologians and the lay faithful in the reception and transmission of church doctrine. Whether consciously or not, Newman left his ecclesiological writings open for further development on the part of theologians who would follow after him.

Lexington Books / Fortress Academic

Pages: 234 • Trim: 6¼ x 9⅛

978-1-9787-0057-4 • Hardback • May 2018 • $117.00 • (£90.00)

978-1-9787-0058-1 • eBook • May 2018 • $111.00 • (£85.00)

Subjects: Religion / Christian Theology / History, Religion / Christian Theology / Ecclesiology, Religion / Christianity / Catholic, Religion / History

To Be Perfect Is to Have Changed Often

The Development of John Henry Newman's Ecclesiological Outlook, 1845–1877

Hardback

eBook

Summary

This study approaches John Henry Newman’s writings on the church from a fresh perspective by examining the development of Newman’s ecclesiological outlook over time. It demonstrates that it can be misleading to refer to Newman’s “Catholic ecclesiology” (singular), because such an approach gives the impression that Newman maintained a stable ecclesiological perspective during his Roman Catholic period. In reality, Newman’s outlook on the church underwent significant developments over the last four decades of his life. As a result of various events in his life, including the Rambler affair and his experience of the First Vatican Council, Newman slowly developed an ecclesiological outlook that counterbalanced the authority of the pope and bishops with a robust account of the role of theologians and the lay faithful in the reception and transmission of church doctrine. Whether consciously or not, Newman left his ecclesiological writings open for further development on the part of theologians who would follow after him.

Details

Lexington Books / Fortress Academic

Pages: 234 • Trim: 6¼ x 9⅛

978-1-9787-0057-4 • Hardback • May 2018 • $117.00 • (£90.00)

978-1-9787-0058-1 • eBook • May 2018 • $111.00 • (£85.00)

Subjects: Religion / Christian Theology / History, Religion / Christian Theology / Ecclesiology, Religion / Christianity / Catholic, Religion / History

Author

Ryan J. Marr received his PhD in historical theology from Saint Louis University and is director of the National Institute for Newman Studies.

Table of Contents

Chapter 1: An Imbalanced Ecclesiology: Newman’s Moderate Ultramontanism
Chapter 2: The Rambler Affair: Newman’s Developing Theology of the Laity
Chapter 3: Resisting the Neo-Ultramontanes: Newman and Vatican I
Chapter 4: The Grammar of Assent: Defending the Faith of the Simple and Unlearned
Chapter 5: A Balanced Ecclesiology: Newman’s Theology of the Threefold Office
Conclusion: Newman's Ecclesiological Insights Tested

Reviews

Scholars have tended to assume that out of John Henry Newman’s vast corpus of writings a systematic and static theology of the church could be extracted. Marr’s study questions that assumption. The great merit of Ryan Marr’s original and nuanced re-interpretative study is to show that, on the contrary, Newman’s ecclesiology evolved and developed over time and in line with a changing historical context and circumstances. In a learned and deeply researched analysis of Newman’s doctrine of the church, Marr conclusively demonstrates that as a Roman Catholic Newman moved from an ecclesiological outlook that heavily emphasized the governance of the pope and bishops to a more balanced perspective that emphasizes the critical role of theologians and the lay faithful in the reception and application of church doctrine. Marr’s study uncovers a key but often misunderstood dimension of Newman’s theological significance. It represents a major new contribution to Newman studies and the wider field of nineteenth-century religious history.
— Peter Nockles, University of Manchester

John Henry Newman is best known for coming up with a theory of doctrinal development. Yet he was also a theologian who developed; his mind was a mind at work. The challenge for scholars of Newman is to capture both the dynamic urgency of Newman’s occasional writings, while isolating the heart of the questions that drove Newman. Bud Marr’s monograph, which traces the development of Newman’s ecclesiology over several decades, does just this. This well-researched and crisply written book will be a valuable resource to ecclesiologists and to scholars of Newman on both sides of the Atlantic.
— Grant Kaplan, Saint Louis University

Marr seeks to make good on Frank Turner’s challenge that scholars of Newman offer more historically nuanced accounts of his thought and life. Toward this end, Marr offers a critical and appreciative approach that avoids the hagiographical tendencies and methodological missteps in studies of Newman’s ecclesiology. He engages the scholarly treatments of Newman’s ecclesiology, while drawing attention to the historical and social factors that shaped his ecclesiological outlook during the first decade-and-a half after his conversion to Roman Catholicism. The tone of the book is refreshingly irenic and critical!
— Fred Aquino, Abilene Christian University

Here is historical theology as it should be done, striking exactly the right balance between history and theology. With respect to history, Marr gains new insights into Newman's mature thought by setting it in context. With respect to theology, Marr takes what is best in Newman and his commentators in order to synthesize a convincing ecclesiology.
— Benjamin J. King, Sewanee: The University of the South

The title of Ryan Marr’s book is an oft-quoted phrase from John Henry Newman’s Essay on the Development of Christian Doctrine, which signaled his ‘change’ of membership from the Church of England to the Roman Catholic Church in 1845. Considerable attention has been focused on the series of ‘changes’ leading to Newman’s conversion, which he described so eloquently in his Apologia pro Vita Sua (1864). Minimal attention, however, has been paid to the ‘changes’ in Newman’s view of the Church after he became a Roman Catholic. Marr’s expert historical-theological tour of this neglected aspect of Newman’s ecclesiological thought provides not only well-researched data about the many post-conversion ‘changes’ in Newman’s thought, but raises provocative questions for current discussions about the Church and its teaching.
— John Ford, Catholic University of America