John Henry Newman’s Theology of History: Historical Consciousness, Theological ‘Imaginaries’, and the Development of Tradition

This monograph delineates John Henry Newman’s “theology of history’,

which refers to his theological understanding, or "view’, of history

that one finds pervading his work like a rich atmosphere. Newman’s view

led to his crafting of provisional theories that not only were more

historically conscious, but also could support and promote revealed

religion and religious epistemology in the present. This project traces

these developing theories and the presuppositions on which they rested,

as well as distills from them Newman’s "theological imaginary’, which

can be understood as his "idea’ of the church, an idea which he believed

must become manifest in the world. Newman’s theology of history is thus

inextricably bound up with the realization of Christianity in its

authentic ecclesial manifestation. This monograph highlights the import

of Newman’s theology of history for our own theological "imaginaries’ in

the present, post-Vatican II context, ultimately developing an original

"relational-developmental model of doctrine’.