Newman's Unquiet Grave: The Reluctant Saint
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Review
'An excellent biography ... a graceful and scholarly account of Newman's life.' --The Literary Review
'Newman's Unquiet Grave is a substantial achievement...John Cornwell has taken on the task of writing a biography of Newman to make his life intelligible to the largely secular public which in a few weeks will watch on television the ceremony of his beatification. He has followed a via media between the hagiography of Meriol Trevor and the mockery of Lytton Strachey, and he has produced a Life which is readable, sympathetic and judicious... Altogether, he has succeeded in building up a vivid picture of Newman's personality.' --The Times Literary Supplement
'This present work has ruffled feathers among conservative Catholics, but it's an achievement ... [it] avoids hagiography and is squarely aimed at agnostics as well as admirers' --The Evening Standard
'I am, I confess, no theologian, but Cornwell's reflective mix of journalism and academic theology helped my understanding of Newman considerably.' --Birmingham Post
'This present work has ruffled feathers among conservative Catholics, but it's an achievement ... [it] avoids hagiography and is squarely aimed at agnostics as well as admirers' --The Evening Standard
'Cornwell tells Newman's story in an attractive, readable way, rightly stressing the importance of Newman's Evangelical conversion at the age of fifteen.' --The Victorian March, 2011
'This present work has ruffled feathers among conservative Catholics, but it's an achievement ... [it] avoids hagiography and is squarely aimed at agnostics as well as admirers' --The Evening Standard
'In these writings one gets the full weight of Newman's far-seeing insights into modern society, human nature, and religious faith.' --Contemporary Review
'This present work has ruffled feathers among conservative Catholics, but it's an achievement ... [it] avoids hagiography and is squarely aimed at agnostics as well as admirers' --The Evening Standard
'Newman's Unquiet Grave is a substantial achievement...John Cornwell has taken on the task of writing a biography of Newman to make his life intelligible to the largely secular public which in a few weeks will watch on television the ceremony of his beatification. He has followed a via media between the hagiography of Meriol Trevor and the mockery of Lytton Strachey, and he has produced a Life which is readable, sympathetic and judicious... Altogether, he has succeeded in building up a vivid picture of Newman's personality.' --The Times Literary Supplement
'This present work has ruffled feathers among conservative Catholics, but it's an achievement ... [it] avoids hagiography and is squarely aimed at agnostics as well as admirers' --The Evening Standard
'I am, I confess, no theologian, but Cornwell's reflective mix of journalism and academic theology helped my understanding of Newman considerably.' --Birmingham Post
'This present work has ruffled feathers among conservative Catholics, but it's an achievement ... [it] avoids hagiography and is squarely aimed at agnostics as well as admirers' --The Evening Standard
'Cornwell tells Newman's story in an attractive, readable way, rightly stressing the importance of Newman's Evangelical conversion at the age of fifteen.' --The Victorian March, 2011
'This present work has ruffled feathers among conservative Catholics, but it's an achievement ... [it] avoids hagiography and is squarely aimed at agnostics as well as admirers' --The Evening Standard
'In these writings one gets the full weight of Newman's far-seeing insights into modern society, human nature, and religious faith.' --Contemporary Review
'This present work has ruffled feathers among conservative Catholics, but it's an achievement ... [it] avoids hagiography and is squarely aimed at agnostics as well as admirers' --The Evening Standard
Product Description
John Henry Newman was the most eminent English-speaking Christian thinker and writer of the past two hundred years. James Joyce hailed him the 'greatest' prose stylist of the Victorian age. A problematic campaign to canonise Newman started fifty years ago. After many delays John Paul II declared him a 'Venerable'. Then Pope Benedict XVI, a keen student of Newman s works, pressed for his beatification. But was Newman a 'Saint'? In Newman's Unquiet Grave John Cornwell (author of A Thief in the Night and Hitler s Pope) tells the story of the chequered attempts to establish Newman's sanctity against the background of major developments within Catholicism. His life was marked by personal feuds, self-absorption, accusations of professional and artistic narcissism, hypochondria, and same-sex friendships that at times bordered on the apparent homo-erotic. John Cornwell investigates the process of Newman's elevation to sainthood to present a highly original and controversial new portrait of the great man's life and genius for a new generation of religious and non-religious readers alike.
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Most Helpful Customer Reviews
14 of 16 people found the following review helpful
Format:Hardcover
Cornwell's new portrait of Newman is by far the most readable biography ever written of his fascinating thinker and writer. Cornwell breaks out of the constraints of dry theology and Victorian Church history to provide a flesh and blood real life character who taught the fullness of christianity through powerful imaginative writing. He also tells us why Newman has something to say to young people in the 21st century, of all faiths and of none. The carping of Peter Jenning's review is typical of the hide-bound self-referential partisanship which has closed off Newman to the wide reading public that he deserves. Readthis book it will change your mind about religion, about Christianity, and renw your spirituality whichever creed you professs
23 of 27 people found the following review helpful
Format:Hardcover
at last we have a portrait of this wonderful man Newman which is not dry as dust. Cornwell's vivid life of Newman takes us from his youthful scepticism, through evangelicalism, to Catholicism. Newman believed that one should not just accept the teachings of family, church and school, everything should be questioned and argued through. the guiding principle of his life was conscience: "conscience first, the pope afterwards." Newman was a new voice in Christian teaching and spirituality: he lies in wait for all of us to study anew. The pope's visit in September will be a great occasion for all English speaking Christians, and Cornwell's book is a suitable introduction to this much neglected figure.
21 of 25 people found the following review helpful
Format:Hardcover|Amazon Verified Purchase
John Cornwell's book is superb.It is scrupulously fair and intensely illuminating.He writes as someone very familiar with the catholic world ,but what emerges is a flesh and blood man whose exceptional stature is too great ,too loving ,too intense and sincere for his time ;someone who continually and continuously EVOLVES.
The first part makes a wonderful picture of Newman's early life ,its pains ,loves and successes;the culture around him also comes clear .
For example the whole question of sexuality and the conflict with Kingsley are put into a totally convincing framework .This is not just a biography but a work of art seeing Newman under different lights.
The second part ,detailing the transition to Catholoicism and all it entailed is gripping; and more ,you can feel the struggles he underwent without in any way feeling any whitewash around.
The last part is fairly brief but very moving.The Ambrose St John issue is most intelligently approached and convincingly covered.
This is just what good biography should be ,a means of bringing the subject to life without seeking to prove a point or merely recount facts.
J H Newman seems like a figure who continuously evolved, beyond limited versions of Christianity into something much more universal,more CATHOLIC than ever the Roman catholic church has been; maybe ever .
The book ends with a fair account of what seems to be going on among Roman Catholics to make Newman an authorised saint which to an impartial view feels like an effort to "bottle the wind ".
Maybe the one remark one might question is that of Newman "coming to rest " in the RC Church.It is impossible to think of this spirit not ACTIVE.
But for a compact accurate and loving biography one could not do better.
The first part makes a wonderful picture of Newman's early life ,its pains ,loves and successes;the culture around him also comes clear .
For example the whole question of sexuality and the conflict with Kingsley are put into a totally convincing framework .This is not just a biography but a work of art seeing Newman under different lights.
The second part ,detailing the transition to Catholoicism and all it entailed is gripping; and more ,you can feel the struggles he underwent without in any way feeling any whitewash around.
The last part is fairly brief but very moving.The Ambrose St John issue is most intelligently approached and convincingly covered.
This is just what good biography should be ,a means of bringing the subject to life without seeking to prove a point or merely recount facts.
J H Newman seems like a figure who continuously evolved, beyond limited versions of Christianity into something much more universal,more CATHOLIC than ever the Roman catholic church has been; maybe ever .
The book ends with a fair account of what seems to be going on among Roman Catholics to make Newman an authorised saint which to an impartial view feels like an effort to "bottle the wind ".
Maybe the one remark one might question is that of Newman "coming to rest " in the RC Church.It is impossible to think of this spirit not ACTIVE.
But for a compact accurate and loving biography one could not do better.
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Most Recent Customer Reviews
Newman's unquiet grave; The reluctant saint
Mr Cornwell is a 'genius'. I have read his books and could predict the value of this one. I find Newman a difficult character. Read more
Published 15 months ago by Cofton Park
A serious book and a holiday read
Possibly surprisingly, I took this book on a beach holiday. I didn't look up. John Cornwell's gift is in combining serious and dense information with regular anecdotes which make... Read more
Published 22 months ago by Emily Glencross
A Sheer Pleasure to Read
I came to this book wanting to know more about John Henry Newman, having heard of the Oxford Movement, and knowing of Newman's conversion to the Catholic Church, but knowing little... Read more
Published 22 months ago by Dr. R. Brandon
Much ado?
Mr. Cornwell acknowledges his debts to the works of Meriol Trevor and Fr. Kerr, which is quite right, since the narrative depends heavily upon those works. Read more
Published 23 months ago by Penelope Pitstop
Stamp of Approval
Given the huge interest and importance - to Catholics and non-Catholics - of Pope Benedict XVI's visit to England this summer and the beatification of John Henry Newman, the... Read more
Published on 25 May 2010 by Mary Maguire
OBSERVATIONS BY PETER JENNINGS
MY OBSERVATIONS*
By Peter Jennings, journalist, writer, broadcaster about the Catholic Church who has worked on the Cause for the Beatification of Cardinal Newman since... Read more
By Peter Jennings, journalist, writer, broadcaster about the Catholic Church who has worked on the Cause for the Beatification of Cardinal Newman since... Read more
Published on 22 May 2010 by Peter Jennings
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