Description

Lead Thou Me On

It is called a crisis of faith when someone begins to doubt their faith, and the deeper that faith runs the more devastating the crisis. And it happens every day across this darkening world

John Henry Newman was born in London on February 21, 1801. He was born into a family of some affluence and was raised in the Church of England. Then at the age of 15 he converted to Evangelical Christianity, a conviction he describes as “more certain than that I have hands or feet.” Shortly after he entered Oxford University where he studied at Trinity College. In 1825, Newman was ordained a priest at Christ’s Church Cathedral in Oxford.

In 1828, Newman’s views began to change. He became associated with what was called, The Oxford Movement, which was described as follows,

This movement consisted of professors and scholars who were considered members of the “High Church” of Anglicanism. They suggested that the Church of England rediscover some older Christian traditions of faith that had been preserved in Catholicism. They noted that the historical study of the Church of England led them into the Catholic tradition.

Newman became a soul in turmoil, for while his evangelical conversion was real, his connection to the Anglican Church was tenuous at best—and waning. Things were happening within the Church that deeply troubled him. He wrote,

I felt affection for my own Church, but not tenderness; I felt dismay at her prospects, anger, and scorn at her do-nothing perplexity. I thought that if Liberalism once got a footing within her, it was sure of the victory in the event. I saw that Reformation principles were powerless to rescue her. As to leaving her, the thought never crossed my imagination.

In December 1832, Newman set out with friends for the south of Europe. The new experiences that came with foreign shores turned his thoughts inward.

I naturally was led to think that some inward changes, as well as some larger course of action, were coming upon me.

Then May 26, 1833, at Sicily, Newman sat down on his bed and began to weep. When asked why he wept so bitterly, he replied, “I have a work to do in England.” He yearned to be home but was delayed due to the lack of a vessel. At last, he booked passage on an orange boat bound for Marseilles. However, in the straits of Bonifacio the sailing vessel was becalmed by a lack of wind.

It happened June 16, 1833, John Henry Newman was sick in body and mind. Longing to be home and knowing not why, frustrated and impatient, he was troubled with doubt about the faith of his upbringing, while his body struggled against the effects of illness. As he lay on the deck of the ship gazing out through the darkening fog, and longing for peace and relief, he saw on the distant shore, a lighthouse. Gifted with inspiration, he penned the following words,

Lead, Kindly Light, amid the encircling gloom,
Lead Thou me on;
The night is dark, and I am far from home,
Lead Thou me on.
Keep Thou my feet;
I do not ask to see the distant scene;
one step enough for me.

I was not ever thus, nor prayed that
Thou shouldst lead me on;
I loved to choose and see my path; but now
Lead Thou me on.
I loved the garish day, and, spite of fears, pride ruled my will;
remember not past years.

So long Thy power hath blessed me, sure it still
Will lead me on.
O’er moor and fen, o’er crag and torrent, till
The night is gone;
And with the morn those angel faces smile,
Which I have loved long since, and lost awhile.

That poem, later set to music, has given hope, comfort, and peace to many stranded in darkness both seen and unseen. If for you it is dark and you are far from home, look up and cry “Lead thou me on!”

Sources:

https://newmanu.edu/about-newman/history-of-newman/lead-kindly-light

https://olmc.us/2020/10/07/lead-kindly-light-the-hymn-and-its-author/

https://wordwisehymns.com/2010/02/21/today-in-1801-john-newman-born/

https://www.newmanreader.org/works/apologia65/chapter1.html

https://olmc.us/2020/10/07/lead-kindly-light-the-hymn-and-its-author/

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/John_Henry_Newman