Newman on Tap Presents

Ron Snyder

5.0 (12)
CHRISTIANITY
UPDATED BIWEEKLY

Newman on Tap Presents

Guest interviews exploring the life and thought of St. John Henry Newman

1D AGO

Invisible Presence of Christ

Dr. Scott Goins, classics professor from McNeese St. University, finds Newman’s theory of education as a model for today’s educators. Newman’s pedagogical elevation of communal learning finds a home in today’s technological teaching. The sermon “Invisible Presence of Christ” insists that by allowing God’s presence we permit ourselves to be what we are meant to be. The unlikely survival and spread of Christianity throughout the ages is evidence of the existence of that Spirit. This same Spirit enters each of us through our shared search for happiness. Excessive individuality is an attempt to replace this thirsting space of for true happiness with strange and simple natural desires which can only be found in God. We best find Him (or rather He finds us) in the tradition and teachings of His Church. It is in our heart, formed in God and for God that we find true happiness. To approach Newman's majestic thought it is highly recommended to download the formatted sermon at www.newmanontap.com. Comments and suggestions are appreciated on the same site.

22 min
JUN 23

Purity and Love

Fr Sean Magnuson, former military chaplain, analyzes Newman's sermon "Purity and Love” by explaining that fervent love must come from the substance of purity, like a candle's flame coming from the substance of its wax. The life of St. John the Evangelist shows us that his burning love for Christ and His mother fed on his purity. Newman explains that when we are drawn to God's goodness and beauty with our own powers we freely and genuinely love Him and in turn, others. Grace received in purity works within our individual will by properly ordering our desire to Divine union. Divine intimacy requires deep trust in Him, posing the ultimate question: do I love this sin or thing more than God? Nothing but love can enable you to live well or die well. To approach Newman's majestic thought it is highly recommended to download the formatted sermon at www.newmanontap.com. Comments and suggestions are appreciated on the same site.

35 min
JUN 9

Stewards and also Sons of God - Olivia Spanton

Olivia Spanton, a Catholic Studies graduate of the University of St. Thomas in St. Paul, Minnesota and now young financial planner, parish volunteer, and youth volleyball coach discusses Newman’s 1870 sermon, “Stewards and also Sons of God.” Olivia finds Newman relatable in that his style calls us out as he contrasts religion with the world. She presents the sermon theme as our need to realize that all of our God given gifts are to be returned to Him. Our duty lies in this – we are only borrowing God’s gifts therefore we have a duty to return them to Him. Newman leads us to understand that when we use our God given gifts well, we co-create with Christ. Since everything is gift, we must learn to hear the voice of God in order to affect the return. Olivia discloses that the only way to know someone’s voice is to spend time with them. Newman tells us that His voice directs us to a necessary surrender to Christ. Olivia suggests that one form of surrender is to offer Him our brokenness – surrendering our worldly filter in exchange for the filter of purity in Christ. It is in this purity that God uses our individual faculties to reveal Himself. For us to advance from servants to sons and daughters of God Newman tells us that we must “dig” into our sin to reclaim our union with Christ and we then must love in the form of “begging” for forgiveness enabling us to enter fully into the Paschal Mystery. All of us have an innate sense that sin is not our true identity. When we come to know ourselves in Christ, on the other hand, we find real freedom and joy in our “true self”. We must receive the graces freely offered by the Church to be made new in our identity in Christ. An under-examined conscience “dims” this innate sense. Without the right disposition formed by conscience our service of The Lord can become a performance rather than identity based as a son or daughter of God who receives everything as pure gift. Finally, purification of the soul avoids natural decay and since the soul is eternal, we should obviously strive for purity which is our protection against decay. Newman ends by telling us that becoming good stewards of the manifold gifts of God only happens when we allow grace to untangle our minds. With His grace we become not merely servants, but sons and daughters of God. We now have a mission to live in and move with this privileged inheritance. Its only through grace that we can merit heaven. It is like God telling us “do not run away, you cannot do this by yourself.” To approach Newman's majestic thought it is highly recommended to download the formatted sermon at www.newmanontap.com. Comments and suggestions are appreciated on the same site.

36 min
MAY 26

The Duty of Self-Denial - Caitlan Rangel

Caitlan Rangel looks at Newman’s sermon “The Duty of Self-Denial”. Newman helps us realize that we discover ourselves when we find true peace in the self-denying love of Christ. When this selfless love takes the form of co-suffering there is a profound closeness to the Lord. Like Christ, by giving up ourselves, we find joy. To approach Newman's majestic thought it is highly recommended to download the formatted sermon at www.newmanontap.com. Comments and suggestions are appreciated on the same site.

36 min
MAY 12

Christian Manhood - William Yanek

William Yanek, FOCUS missionary at Bemidji State University in Bemidji, Minnesota looks closely Newman’s sermon “Christian Manhood”. Here William finds Newman explaining that true manhood is found when we break from our desire for worldly things and grow to desire only unity with God. This desire, provided by the Holy Spirit, is not a zero-sum game. We don’t earn His infinite mercy. Entering into His mercy is the only important thing. If our desires end only in worldly things, we become stuck and slaves to things of this world rather than pursue the ultimate beatitude for which we are made. The child can be blocked from realizing that there are infinitely higher views to engross his mind. If we contemplate our desires, we easily realize that nothing but the Infinite can satisfy our infinite longing. To begin the journey to the Infinite we must hand over all of your worldly wants and desires to Christ. If you want to realize what God promises you need to be willing to take a risk. It is in that space of risk and uncertainty where we learn to trust God. We then are able to rest all our hopes on Divine permanence and support. To approach Newman's majestic thought it is highly recommended to download the formatted sermon at www.newmanontap.com. Comments and suggestions are appreciated on the same site.

33 min
APR 28

The Sacred Heart of Jesus - Sr. Cinthya Carmona, PES

Sister Cinthya Carmona of the Pro Ecclesia Sancta order shares with us her thoughts on Newman’s mediations on the Sacred Heart of Jesus which can be found at newmanontap.com. All of Newman’s devotionals can be found at newmanreader.org. Sister Cinthya discovered that Newman wanted to give the best of himself to Christ. He realized that he had received so much that he responded with all that he had in order to give God glory and love. Newman makes an act of reparation to have the Lord help him purify his love for His heart. Newman speaks in the present tense because he is encountering the living God. His love is constantly given to the one that He loves. When we look to the Sacred Heart, we see a heart that is wounded enabling us to love within our own weaknesses. Wherever we are in life it is best to give our weaknesses to Him. Being open to receiving His love empowers us to bring Jesus to others. True charity in our hearts transforms other hearts. Since the Sacred Heart is shown to us as open, fragile, and vulnerable when we enter His heart we can not only heal our own wounded hearts, but we can bring that divine love to others. His heart is shown on fire because He has a burning zeal to transmit His love to us. The saints live in His zeal in such a deep way that humility is enkindled in them. Every time that we are disposed to the love of His heart we are created anew in His love. To approach Newman's majestic thought it is highly recommended to download the formatted sermon at www.newmanontap.com. Comments and suggestions are appreciated on the same site.

39 min
APR 14

Religion of the Pharisee the Religion of Mankind - Dr Jennifer Bryson

Dr Jennifer Bryson, (English translator of Ida Friederike Görres’ (1901–1971) long lost mid-20th century work, John Henry Newman – A Life Sacrificed (Ignatius Press)) looks at sermon 2 of Newman’s Sermon Preached on Various Occasions, “Religion of the Pharisee, the Religion of Mankind,” preached on July 20, 1856. Dr. Bryson finds that Newman, by defining the characteristic marks of a Christian, distances his audience from the vague notion of truth found in relativism and the mushy ecumenicism where all religious paths are understood to lead to the same place. Newman asks us to consider that the true Christian is headed towards holiness by recognizing that we need God and that sin distances us from God. We need to look to the saints to find ways to seek God. The saints reorient their entire life because of their inward self aims for God in Jesus Christ through lives led by never ending thankfulness and perpetual humiliation. Newman uses Peter, Job, Isaiah, and Daniel as examples of saints that are aware of the fall but are not conquered it. The saints give us insight into their apprehension of God and His claim on us. They are careful to not embrace an insufficient sense of obedience and duty. Newman describes the Pharisee as an example of this insufficient sense of obedience and duty by standing merely approved in their own sight. They are careless to know what God says of them. Rather the true Christian asks how God judges me beyond what the people of this world expect. The Pharisee considers themselves the measure of their own excellence. Worldly duties have a narrow horizon when contrasted with heavenly duties. When God is perceived as perfection there is always a gap between man and the Divine. The saints accept the gap yet are not disheartened - they try to lessen the gap. The worldly role models have no fear of future scrutiny whereas the saints love the standard that God’s mercy offers. The saints love that they are in relationship with God. They don’t need to be self-actuated, self-fulfilling, self-guides. They are connected to and reliant on God. They find their connection in their conscience. When conscience is disconnected from the Divine, we are left with natural conscience of man which is content that it tells him very little since it has access to only part of the moral law. Natural conscience is not sufficient. True conscience understands its limit because the holder of that conscience understands that I am a sinner and I need God’s grace. The separation of moral reason from obedience to God is the real root of every degeneration of conscience. Only both, inseparably united, form a healthy conscience. Dr. Bryson suggests the text The Church and the Flesh (Cluny Media) as a starting point to discover Görres brilliant insights into the spiritual life. To approach Newman's majestic thought it is highly recommended to download the formatted sermon at www.newmanontap.com. Comments and suggestions are appreciated on the same site.

44 min
MAR 31

Difficulty of Realizing Sacred Privleges - Jake Robbins

In this episode seminarian, Jake Robbins looks at Newman’s 1839 Easter sermon, “Difficulty of Realizing Sacred Privileges” where we find insights into how we move from questioning to heartfelt acceptance of our faith. We come to realize the unknown by realizing truths in our heart. Our deepest desire is to know God at the heart level which God blesses. If we have a deep desire for God more will be given. God takes our small seeds of faith and multiplies it. By little and little the truth breaks upon us. Jake compares Newman’s “by little and little” to the river of God smashing against the rocks of our hearts, slowly eroding the hardness of our heart. Slow growth is real growth. We see more of the next world by looking back over time seeing God’s operations in our lives. We are so used to God’s help and presence that we don’t see it. Newman explains that over time, we gain truths without knowing it. It’s one thing to say that God has a plan for your life. However, it’s a totally different thing to look back and see how the plan really worked out. As we reflect on our lives, we realize that we are giving up the shadows and we are finding the substance. Season after season we learn duty, obedience, self-denial, and sacrifice which makes us more devoted. God is the reason we came into being (our efficient cause) but He is also our final cause – God created us for Himself. Everything in the Christian life is this going forth from God and returning to Him. The reason God has certain laws for us is that they lead us back to Him. We must “unclothe ourselves” from earthly wants and desires to enable us to say yes to a higher reality. The only way to reach God is through shedding of our worldly attachments. All temptations come from the world, the flesh, and the devil – the devil steps in only when he needs to blind us from seeing the reality of God. This attachment to the world prevents our realizing of what God has shown us; "This is the Day which the Lord hath made; (where) we will rejoice and be glad in it." Psalm cxviii. 24. To approach Newman's majestic thought it is highly recommended to download the formatted sermon at www.newmanontap.com. Comments and suggestions are appreciated on the same site.

35 min

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Guest interviews exploring the life and thought of St. John Henry Newman

Creator

Ron Snyder
Years Active

2022 - 2025
Episodes

72
Rating

Clean
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© 2025 Newman on Tap Presents
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