Holiness in a Secular Age – Book

Fr. Juan Velez July 23, 2018

[vc_row][vc_column][vc_empty_space height=”12px”][vc_text_separator title=”Holiness in a Secular Age” color=”chino”][vc_empty_space height=”22px”][vc_row_inner equal_height=”yes” content_placement=”top” css=”.vc_custom_1521513367489{padding-top: 24px !important;padding-right: 24px !important;padding-bottom: 24px !important;padding-left: 24px !important;background-color: #f5f5f5 !important;border-radius: 4px !important;}”][vc_column_inner css=”.vc_custom_1567477741442{background-color: #ffffff !important;}”][vc_column_text]Cardinal Newman, the great English convert to Catholicism, has much to teach us about holiness in a secular age. The book was released on July 6, 2017 by Scepter Publishers.

“Father Velez illumined Newman’s life in the biography Passion for Truth, and now he does the same for Newman’s thought. Newman can be a challenging read, and this book provides the introduction that many people need — an open window on Newman’s theology and spirituality.”
– Scott Hahn, theologian and author[/vc_column_text][vc_empty_space height=”12px”][vc_btn title=”Purchase from Scepter Publishers” style=”flat” color=”peacoc” size=”lg” align=”left” link=”url:https%3A%2F%2Fscepterpublishers.org%2Fproducts%2Fholiness-in-a-secular-age-the-witness-of-cardinal-newman||target:%20_blank|” button_block=”true”][vc_btn title=”Download Study Guide (PDF)” style=”flat” color=”sandy-brown” size=”lg” align=”left” link=”url:http%3A%2F%2Fwww.cardinaljohnhenrynewman.com%2Fwp-content%2Fuploads%2F2018%2F04%2FStudy-Guide-for-Holiness-in-a-Secular-Age.pdf||target:%20_blank|” button_block=”true”][vc_empty_space height=”12px”][vc_column_text]“Blessed John Henry Cardinal Newman has been a powerful influence in my life as a bishop, and as a Catholic in pursuit of holiness. Cardinal Newman: A Saint for our Times demonstrates that Newman’s wisdom can help all Catholics to know, love, and serve the Lord amid the challenges of the modern world. The book offers some of Newman’s best insights, and helps to apply them to the Church, and the world, today.”
– Most Rev. James D. Conley, DD, Bishop of Lincoln, Nebraska[/vc_column_text][vc_empty_space height=”44px”][/vc_column_inner][/vc_row_inner][vc_empty_space height=”22px”][vc_row_inner][vc_column_inner width=”1/3″][vc_btn title=”Kresta in the Afternoon (October 9, 2017) The Witness of Cardinal Newman (2 segments)” style=”flat” color=”peacoc” size=”lg” align=”left” link=”url:https%3A%2F%2Favemariaradio.net%2Faudio-archive%2Fkresta-afternoon-october-9-2017-hour-1%2F|||” button_block=”true”][/vc_column_inner][vc_column_inner width=”1/3″][vc_btn title=”Mark Curran, WFSI 88.5 FM Catholic Radio – Fr. Juan Velez interviewed about new book” style=”flat” color=”peacoc” size=”lg” align=”left” link=”url:http%3A%2F%2Fwww.podbean.com%2Fmedia%2Fshare%2Fpb-sh5hj-728561|||” button_block=”true”][/vc_column_inner][vc_column_inner width=”1/3″][vc_btn title=”Dan Cheely Show, Relevant Radio (June 24, 2017) Fr. Juan interview about new book” style=”flat” color=”peacoc” size=”lg” align=”left” link=”url:http%3A%2F%2Fwww.cardinaljohnhenrynewman.com%2Fholiness-secular-age-witness-cardinal-newman%2F%231498673408104-a15938bf-45c7|||” button_block=”true”][/vc_column_inner][/vc_row_inner][/vc_column][/vc_row][vc_row][vc_column][/vc_column][/vc_row]

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Links to Websites

About Cardinal John Henry Newman

National Institute for Newman Studies

Centro Internazionale degli Amici di Newman

The Oratory, Birmingham

Archdiocese of Birmingham, England

Our Books

About Cardinal John Henry Newman

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A Guide to John Henry Newman will interest educated readers and professors alike, and serve as a text for college seminars for the purpose of studying Newman.

Review by Catherine Maybanks
(Catholic Herald, April 1, 2023)

Review by Serenheed James
(Antiphon, April 2023)

 This book is being currently considered for reprinting, all enquiries to the Sales Team general@alivepublishing.co.uk
 

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Endorsement by Neyra Blanco (Amazon)
I bought this book for my son and he loved it, he wrote this review and urged my to submitted: “I think this book has a very beautiful message, because it shows how the young Newman was so determined to achieve his dream of becoming a priest, but even after his dream he continued to work in the church with passion until the day he died, it’s so admirable that even Newman so old and so weak still had that urge to continued his work of being a priest. And the book is well written with words not too complicated with very enjoyable texts and well illustrated pictures. I highly recommend this book for a 5th grader.  

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What is a Classical Liberal Arts Education? Why is it so important for the development of a person?

Fr. Juan R. Vélez answers these and more questions you might have about University Education in the 21st century. This book is aimed for parents, prospective University students, and educators. It will help you discern why adding Liberal Arts electives to your education will help it form it better, and help the student learn to reason, and not just learn.

He also explains how many Universities have changed the true meaning of Liberal Arts, and the subjects, and gives advise on how to choose College Campus, Subjects, and Teachers.

A wonderful book that every parent should also read way before your children are College bound. A Liberal Arts education can start earlier in life, even from home.

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Endorsement by Christopher Moellering (Goodreads, September 14, 2019)
In Passion for Truth Fr. Vélez gave us an outstanding biography of Cardinal Newman. In this work, he provides a concise overview of his thought and his devotion. This is a great work for someone who, perhaps hearing of Newman for the first time because of his beatification 13 October, 2019, wants to know more about this English saint.Vélez is a wonderful writer in his own right, and the frequent quotations from Newman round out the work nicely. I especially appreciated the frequent citing of Newman’s Meditations and Devotions, which show a different side of his spirituality than his more well-known works, Development of Christian Doctrine and the Grammar of Assent.

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Review by Gregory J. Sullivan (Amazon, May 25, 2012)

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Take Five: Meditations with John Henry Newman, endorsement by Illow M. Roque (Amazon, September 3, 2010)
“There is a time to put direct inquiry on hold and give ourselves to prayer and practical duties.” Sound advice from one of the earlier, thought-provoking reminders in this sparkling gem of a book: Take Five | Meditations with John Henry Newman, written by Mike Aquilina and Fr. Juan R. Vélez and published by Our Sunday Visitor. This particular paragraph, referenced above, which begins with a direct quote from soon-to-be canonized priest, cardinal and poet, John Henry Newman: “Study is good, but it gets us only so far . . .” is actually the 15th in a series of 76 concise, logically organized meditations moving from the elementary to the sublime. Each meditation–one per page–is built upon the great man’s writings and remarkably rich spirituality. Whether taken whole in one reading or in part page-by-page over a course of weeks and months, these wonderfully insightful meditations will open up, even to the busiest reader in the midst of the world, a unique pathway into prayer and contemplation. My advice to spiritual inquirers at all levels, from the novice to the spiritually adept, is to follow the authors’ recommendation to use this book as a guide for daily prayer and meditation. The structure of the book itself is ideal: first, the authors introduce us to Cardinal Newman, the man, where we are given the opportunity to get to know him through a brief sketch of his life and spirituality at the beginning of the book. This is something readers will likely find themselves referring to again and again, prompting many, I suspect, to even wider explorations of this most gifted Christian leader. Then comes the meditations, consisting of a short summary of Newman’s thoughts on subjects taken, as the authors explain, from various salient points for which Newman is justly remembered: The pursuit of objective religious truth; Teaching on the Virtues; Defense of the Catholic Church; A devout spiritual and moral life; and Generosity and loyalty in his friendships, which sets the topic and tone for each meditation to follow. Each meditation consists of an excerpt taken from Newman’s thirty-plus volumes of writings and diaries. Next comes three brief and extremely useful sections entitled: “Think About It,” which establishes a prayerfully resonant tone throughout the book; “Just Imagine,” which provides a vivid, prayerful experience of the Scriptures that tie in, and finally, “Remember,” a pithy summation which the authors suggest may be used as a daily aspiration. Each meditation is given its own page, which makes it ideal for daily reflection for readers on the go. This book is a must have for every serious Catholic who wants to take their faith to the next level, which is to respond appropriately to the universal call to holiness and seek interior union with God.
About Newman
Fr. Brian Geary

Lead Kindly Light

Lead, Kindly Light. Such are the first words of Newman’s most famous poem, and arguably among the most famous lines he ever penned.

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Fr. Brian Geary August 7, 2026
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