To pray is to be a Christian, to be a Saint is to have prayed often. John Henry Cardinal Newman was a man of prayer and this book contains the culmination of his prayers and devotions, divided into three sections. The first and second parts contain the vocal prayers he wrote for public use, the litanies – the Stations of the Cross and short meditations. The long meditations in the third part of the book are intended for private use, which draw one into a deeper sense of intimacy with Our Lord.
The prayers are also a testament to his particular devotion to Our Lady with moving commentaries on her several titles from the Litany of Loreto. These are tender and profound, yet without any trace of sentimentality.
Newman's meditations are full of doctrine. Doctrine is the expression of Truth, and above all things, Newman longed to bear witness to the Truth. It is from the Scriptures, the Church Fathers and the living Church that Newman drew his doctrine, and in his meditations he made it his own. |
