Saint Who?
Saints Who Wrote Hymns
Saint John Henry Newman
Priest († 1890) Feast: October 9
Born in London, John Henry was raised in a Protestant home and underwent a profound conversion to Christ at the age of fifteen. After studying at Oxford, the highly intelligent, bookish young man decided to become a cleric.
John Henry continued to write while serving in a parish. He began to be troubled about the foundations of the Church of England as he read the works of the Fathers of the Church. He and some other like-minded, well-educated Anglican friends gradually founded what became known as the Oxford Movement to advocate for the restoration of certain Catholic beliefs and liturgical practices. Many, though not all, of these friends eventually became Catholic; John Henry himself resigned from his Anglican clerical position in 1843 and entered the Catholic Church in 1845.
John Henry was ordained a Catholic priest in Rome and joined the Oratorians. He served as rector of a new Catholic university in Ireland, continued to write and speak about the faith, and was eventually made a cardinal. Throughout John Henry’s long life, he was often the focal point for anti-Catholic sentiment in England. Yet his literary contributions—sermons, lectures, treatises, letters, and even works of fiction—also led many into the Catholic Church. Many of John Henry’s poems were later set to music and became popular hymns, most notably “Lead, Kindly Light.”
Most Holy Trinity, we firmly and truly place
all our trust in you.
