Drawing inspiration from Newman: ‘Without his legacy, perhaps I would not be Catholic today’ St. John Henry Newman, the Anglican clergyman who converted to Catholicism but whom many in both London and Rome distrusted for years, stands today as a beacon that continues to inspire many to embrace the Catholic faith as he did. \u201cI am personally grateful for the testimony of Newman\u2019s life, because without his legacy I might not be Catholic today,\u201d confesses Ryan \u201cBud\u201d Marr, a renowned scholar of the English saint, upon whom Pope Leo XIV conferred Saturday the title of doctor of the Church. Newman’s memorable quote \u2014 “to be deep in history is to cease to be Protestant” \u2014 was pivotal in Marr\u2019s personal conversion. When he first read it, “I was studying to be a Protestant pastor,” he revealed in a conversation with ACI Prensa, CNA\u2019s Spanish-language news partner. “I immediately understood that I had to read the rest of Newman’s essay to put to the test the truth of his statement. I couldn’t simply ignore that challenge and continue on the path I was on,” he explained. The expert, a former associate editor of the Newman Studies Journal, added that “there are countless similar testimonies” to his and that they will continue to grow in the coming years in light of Newman\u2019s designation as the 38th doctor of the Church. For Marr, Newman possessed a singular gift: \u201cExpressing fundamental truths in brief and memorable phrases,\u201d capable of transcending time and touching consciences. This is why so many people, over more than a century, have found in his writings a path to conversion. Development of doctrine, a decisive contribution For Marr, Newman\u2019s most significant contribution to contemporary Catholic theology is on the subject of the development of doctrine. \u201cIt\u2019s not that Newman wrote something entirely new,\u201d he explained. \u201cOther Catholic theologians, especially St. Vincent of L\u00e9rins, had already addressed the topic of doctrinal development. But Newman synthesized diverse ideas into a unified and compelling theory, so that any subsequent theologian has had to start from his \u201cEssay on the Development of Christian Doctrine\u201d when addressing this topic,\u201d he pointed out. This vision, he added, was decisive for 20th-century thought. Newman showed that \u201cthe Church\u2019s understanding of revealed truths deepens over time.\u201d \u201cIn some cases, the Church offers new formulations \u2014 as happened with the Nicene Creed \u2014 but these developments always affirm and clarify what has been handed down,\u201d he emphasized. \u201cThe deposit of faith is immutable, but our understanding of that deposit actually expands,\u201d he added. Each generation, Marr emphasized, must \u201cproclaim the truth of the faith within its own linguistic categories,\u201d but always preserving the \u201cessential while facing the challenges of its time.\u201d Conscience and the sensus fidei as means of Christian discernment When it was announced that Newman would be proclaimed a doctor of the Church, Marr recalled, \u201csome observers predicted that Pope Leo XIV might bestow upon him the title of Doctor of Conscience.\u201d This is no coincidence. Newman, he noted, dedicated some of his most influential writings to the \u201ccentrality of conscience in the journey to God,\u201d both during his Anglican period and in his new life as a Catholic. Like St. Thomas Aquinas, Marr explained, \u201cNewman believed that a person should never act against the dictates of their conscience,\u201d because doing so \u201cwould undermine the very coherence of the moral life.\u201d However, the former champion of Anglicanism, who converted to Catholicism at the age of 45, also warned about the human tendency toward \u201cself-deception,\u201d Marr explained. The scholar noted that Newman insisted on the need to \u201cform the conscience according to divine and natural law.\u201d In his 1874 \u201cLetter to the Duke of Norfolk,\u201d one of his most celebrated essays, Newman cautioned against a \u201cfalse notion of conscience,\u201d identified with the right to one\u2019s own will, an idea that, according to Marr, \u201creflects the modern mindset\u201d that values \u200b\u200bsubjective independence over objective truth. He therefore pointed out that \u201cas Catholics, we must work to restore the true vision of conscience, in line with the teaching of theological giants like Aquinas and Newman.\u201d The sensus fidei is not \u2018a populist counterweight to the hierarchy\u2019 This theme is intertwined with the concept of the sensus fidei, the supernatural sense of the faith bestowed upon the baptized: \u201cNewman was ahead of his time in recognizing that the lay faithful have an essential role in the defense and transmission of tradition. The priesthood of all believers means, in part, that the baptized possess a special sense of the faith, a capacity that we must strengthen through devotion and study.\u201d Marr noted that, for Newman, this sense also had a communal dimension, the sensus fidelium, or sense of the faithful. \u201cHe did not understand it as a populist counterweight to the hierarchy,\u201d he clarified. \u201cHe knew that the pope and the bishops exercise a divinely instituted authority, but he remembered that there have been times in history \u2014 such as during the Arian controversy \u2014 when the laity defended the faith, even when some pastors wavered.\u201d A prophet in the face of modern apostasy With prophetic clarity, the expert noted, Newman \u201cforesaw the growing irreligion of the modern world.\u201d In his 1873 sermon \u201cThe Infidelity of the Future,\u201d Newman warned that the trials of the future would be so great \u201cthat they would shake even hearts as valiant as those of St. Athanasius or St. Gregory the Great,\u201d Marr said. Newman, he explained, perceived that the greatest danger of modernity would be precisely the spread of unbelief, a society that is \u201csimply irreligious.\u201d However, faced with this bleak outlook, \u201cNewman neither called for retreat nor proposed authoritarian strategies.\u201d He courageously confronted the philosophical ideas of his time and offered a compelling explanation of the \u201creasonableness of the Christian faith,\u201d deeply rooted in Catholic tradition and in dialogue with modern philosophy, he noted. Newman and the intellectual mission of the laity Newman, the expert continued, understood the life of the Catholic Church as something \u201cdynamic,\u201d where \u201call members of the Body of Christ have an active role in the proclamation of the truth.\u201d The fathers of the Second Vatican Council took up this vision, presenting it as an urgent call to contemporary Catholics. The expert warned that it is important to understand this call well: \u201cThe laity do not fulfill their vocation by becoming more clerical, but by sanctifying the world according to their own specific mission, bringing the Gospel to education, law, medicine, and culture.\u201d This story was first published by ACI Prensa, CNA\u2019s Spanish-language news partner. It has been translated and adapted by CNA. Receive the most important news from EWTN Vatican via WhatsApp. It has become increasingly difficult to see Catholic news on social media. Subscribe to our free channel today EWTN Vatican on WhatsApp Victoria Cardiel Would you like to receive the latest updates on the Pope and the Vatican Receive articles and updates from our EWTN Newsletter. More news related to this article Sit down with the secretary of Saint John Paul II & discover why Africa is the future of Catholicism Vatican Responds to Widespread Backlash on Same-Sex Blessing Directive Pope Francis calls for \u2018paradigm shift\u2019 in theology for world of today Pope Francis: Wrath is a vice that is \u2018pervasive,\u2019 \u2018dark\u2019 Vatican announces date and theme for 2023 World Day for Grandparents and Elderly From Quito, To Rome: A Family of Families<\/p>\n