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This book is a systematic study of religious morality in the works of John Henry Newman (1801-1890). The work considers Newman’s widely discussed views on conscience and assent, analyzing his understanding of moral law and its relation to the development of moral doctrine in Church tradition. By integrating Newman’s religious epistemology and theological method, the author explores the hermeneutics of the imagination in moral decision-making: the imagination enables us to interpret complex reality in a practical manner, to relate belief with action. The analysis bridges philosophical and religious discourse, discussing three related categories. The first deals with Newman’s commitment to truth and holiness whereby he connects the realm of doctrine with the realm of salvation. The second category considers theoretical foundations of religious morality, and the third category explores Newman’s hermeneutics of the imagination to clarify his view of moral law, moral conscience, and Church tradition as practical foundations of religious morality. The author explains how secular reason in moral discernment can elicit religious significance. As a result, Church tradition should develop doctrine and foster holiness by being receptive to emerging experiences and cultural change. John Henry Newman was a highly controversial figure and his insightful writings continue to challenge and influence scholarship today. This book is a significant contribution to that scholarship and the analysis and literature comprise a detailed research guide for graduates and scholars.

A theme rightly associated with the personality of John Henry Newman is that of conscience. To the general reader, Newman's life story comes across as a witness of someone who followed the light of his conscience wherever it lead him. Yet, for those who decide to enter into a more familiar knowledge of the man, it will soon become clear that the meaning of conscience in his life goes much deeper than was originally thought. The main aim of this book is to discover what Newman understands by the term conscience in a particular period of his life, that which stretches from 1816 to 1843, his Anglican period. Within this particular period we find two sources that are intimately linked with one another. They are his sermons, the Parochial and Plain Sermons, and the varied biographical events as they come across to us through his Letters and Diaries. This book aims to find in these two sources the answers to the question: How is Newman's own understanding of conscience within the Parochial and Plain Sermons related to his personal life story? This question is dealt with from the standpoint of the biographical events and that of the written word. For this reason this volume is divided into two parts: The first examines the whole domain of the events, aiming to highlight the importance they hold for the theme of conscience. The second is directly concerned with Newman's writing on conscience within the Parochial and Plain Sermons. Contents: The discovery of Conscience 1816-1825; Advocacy of Conscience 1825-1832; Advocacy of Conscience 1833-1843; The reason behind the sermon; Analysis of the term Conscience; Conclusion.

What has Newman to say today, not just to Christians, but to those shapers of public opinion in education and the media for whom Christianity is no longer a point of reference, or to those for whom all religion is merely a matter of personal and subjective “opinion”? This is the central question of this volume. As it shows, Newman challenges us to think in an integrated way, “connecting” different areas of thought and experience. He invites us to reflect on the nature of the human “person” and the “self”, on the nature of conscience and its role in contemporary political life, and on the relationship between the individual and the community. The contributions here show that Newman challenges us to examine the relationships between different academic disciplines in the quest for a “connected view or grasp” of things. He invites us to see faith as not just a question of “believing”, but also as a quest for a personal, living relationship. His thought throws fresh light on the nature of inter-religious dialogue and contemporary evangelism.