Quotes by John Henry Newman

About John Henry Newman:

John Henry Newman was an important figure in the religious history of England in the 19th century. He was known nationally by the mid-1830s.
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From the age of fifteen, dogma has been the fundamental principle of my religion: I know no other religion; I cannot enter into the idea of any other sort of religion; religion, as a mere sentiment, is to me a dream and a mockery.

John Henry Newman

Ten thousand difficulties do not make one doubt, as I understand the subject; difficulty and doubt are incommensurate.

John Henry Newman

If then a practical end must be assigned to a University course, I say it is that of training good members of society... It is the education which gives a man a clear, conscious view of their own opinions and judgements, a truth in developing them, a...

John Henry Newman

A university training is the great ordinary means to a great but ordinary end; it aims at raising the intellectual tone of society…It is the education which gives a man a clear conscious view of his own opinions and judgments, a truth in developing...

John Henry Newman

And this is the sense of the word "grammar" which our inaccurate student detests, and this is the sense of the word which every sensible tutor will maintain. His maxim is "a little, but well"; that is, really know what you say you know: know what you...

John Henry Newman

Without self-knowledge you have no root in yourselves personally; you may endure for a time, but under affliction or persecution your faith will not last. This is why many in this age (and in every age) become infidels, heretics, schismatics, disloya...

John Henry Newman

It is beautiful in a picture to wash the disciples’ feet; but the sands of the real desert have no lustre in them to compensate for the servile nature of the occupation.

John Henry Newman

It is often said that second thoughts are best. So they are in matters of judgment but not in matters of conscience.

John Henry Newman

Let us take things as we find them: let us not attempt to distort them into what they are not... We cannot make facts. All our wishing cannot change them. We must use them.

John Henry Newman

To live is to change, and to be perfect is to have changed often.

John Henry Newman

A great memory does not make a mind, any more than a dictionary is a piece of literature.

John Henry Newman

A great memory is never made synonymous with wisdom, any more than a dictionary would be called a treatise.

John Henry Newman

If we are intended for great ends, we are called to great hazards.

John Henry Newman

Fear not that thy life shall come to an end, but rather that it shall never have a beginning.

John Henry Newman

Growth is the only evidence of life.

John Henry Newman

In this world no one rules by love; if you are but amiable, you are no hero; to be powerful, you must be strong, and to have dominion you must have a genius for organizing.

John Henry Newman

The love of our private friends is the only preparatory exercise for the love of all men.

John Henry Newman

A man would do nothing if he waited until he could do it so well that no one could find fault.

John Henry Newman

Nothing would be done at all if one waited until one could do it so well that no one could find fault with it.

John Henry Newman

We can believe what we choose. We are answerable for what we choose to believe.

John Henry Newman

Author Bio

  • NameJohn Henry Newman
  • DescriptionEnglish cleric and cardinal
  • AliasesAuthor of Loss and gain,; Cardinal Newman; Blessed John Henry Newman
  • BornFebruary 21, 1801
  • DiedAugust 11, 1890
  • CountryUnited Kingdom
  • ProfessionTheologian; Poet; Anglican Priest; Catholic Priest; Novelist