John Henry Newman's Path to Sainthood
Ian KerOxford University
Melissa Villalobos
Kenneth WoodwardLumen Christi Institute
This event was cosponsored by Mundelein Seminary, the Sheil Catholic Center at Northwestern University, the Hank Center for the Catholic Intellectual Heritage at Loyola University Chicago, the Department of Catholic Studies at DePaul University, the Calvert House Catholic Center at the University of Chicago, and the John Paul II Newman Center at UIC.
What makes a modern saint? On October 13th, Cardinal John Henry Newman (1801-1890), English theologian, philosopher and cardinal, was officially canonized a saint of the Roman Catholic Church. This event at Holy Name Cathedral was a presentation on the life and sanctity of John Henry Newman by leading Newman scholar of our time Fr. Ian Ker (Oxford) and Melissa Villalobos, the woman whose miraculous cure led to Newman’s canonization. The event was moderated by Kenneth Woodward, former religion editor of Newsweek and author of Making Saints.
Fr. Ian Ker is a Fellow at Blackfriars Hall at the University of Oxford. He has taught both English literature and theology at universities in the United States and Britain. He is the author and editor of more than twenty books on Newman, including the standard biography that Oxford University Press reissued prior to Newman's beatification. Fr. Ker is also the author of The Catholic Revival in English Literature 1845-1961, Mere Catholicism, G. K. Chesterton: A Biography, and, most recently, Newman on Vatican II.
A Chicago-area mother of 7, Melissa Villalobos was miraculously healed in 2013 from a debilitating health condition after praying to John Henry Newman. This healing was subsequently accepted by the Vatican as the second miracle attributed to Cardinal Newman, fulfilling the requirement for his canonization. You can read more about Melissa's store HERE.
A graduate of St. Ignatius High School in Cleveland, Kenneth L. Woodward received his B.A. from the University of Notre Dame, where he studied literature with the legendary Frank O’Malley. He edited Newsweek’s Religion section from 1964 until his retirement in 2002, which gave him a unique vantage point on and personal acquaintance with the world’s religious leaders. He is the author of Making Saints: How the Catholic Church Determines Who Becomes a Saint and The Book of Miracles: The Meaning of the Miracle Stories in Christianity, Judaism, Buddhism, Hinduism, and Islam. In 2006, the University of Notre Dame gave him its Rev. Robert F. Griffin Award, which recognizes outstanding achievements in writing. His most recent publication is entitled Getting Religion: Faith, Culture, and Politics from the Age of Eisenhower to the Era of Obama.
