The Christian world has lost a true and noble friend. Father Richard John Neuhaus, 72, died on January 8th, from complications of cancer. A leading public intellectual, Fr. Neuhaus was the founder and editor-in-chief of the journal, “First Things” and co-founder (with Chuck Colson) of the ecumenical forum, “Catholics and Evangelicals Together.”
His most influential book was The Naked Public Square, in which he contended that banishing religion from the debate of American public life amounted to excluding the voices of millions of Americans. Particularly in his popular monthly Public Square column, he carried on a brilliant engagement with all comers, a living out of his lifelong attempt to teach religious people how to bring their convictions to bear with people with whom they disagree. As a man of very deep faith, prayer, and devotion, Fr. Neuhaus lived his life as a witness to the truth, and he knew that God would take care of the rest.
After he almost died in the mid-90s, Neuhaus wrote, As I Lay Dying: Meditations upon Returning, a very honest yet hopeful reflection on his own experience. There he writes, “We are born to die. Not that death is the purpose of our being born, but we are born toward death, and in each of us the work of dying is already underway. The work of dying well is, in largest part, the work of living well.”
Fr. Neuhaus supported the work of the C.S. Lewis Foundation which shares many of his core principles. He participated as a plenary speaker in the Summer Institutes of 1988 (”The Naked University”) and 1998 (”The Politics of C.S. Lewis”). These outstanding lectures are available for purchase in CD format for $8.00 each + tax (within California) + $2.00 (S/H within the U.S.). If interested, simply contact us here.
Tags: C.S. Lewis, Fr. Neuhaus, Oxbridge, Richard John Neuhaus, Scholar, Summer Institute
