Now in its fifth consecutive year, this intensive seminar will examine Newman’s achievements as theologian, philosopher, educator, preacher, and writer. Remarkably, in each of these areas Newman produced works that have come to be recognized as classics: An Essay on the Development of Christian Doctrine, The Grammar of Assent, The Idea of a University, The Parochial and Plain Sermons, and the Apologia Pro Vita Sua. This seminar will approach Newman’s thought through a critical engagement with these texts.
Fr. Ian Ker is the leading authority on the thought and writings of John Henry Newman, and is the author and editor of more than 20 books on Newman, including John Henry Newman: A Biography, Newman and Faith, Newman and Truth, and The Achievement of John Henry Newman. He is also author of The Catholic Revival in English Literature 1845-1961, Mere Catholicism, G.K. Chesterton: A Biography, and most recently, Newman on Vatican II. Ker is a senior research fellow at Blackfriars Hall, Oxford University. He received his Ph.D. from the University of Cambridge, and holds Honorary Doctorates from the University of Leicester, St. Michael’s College, University of Toronto, and Seton Hall University.