Blessed John Henry Newman by Stephen B Whatley

Blessed John Henry Newman by Stephen B Whatley

The Blessed John Henry Newman - Painted in 2010 by Stephen B Whatley - Flickr Photo Sharing!

The noteworthy painting and following description is from the website of Stephen B. Whatley:

On Sunday, September 19, 2010 the British Cardinal John Henry Newman (1801-1890) - who converted from Church of England to Catholicism in his youth - was beatified by Pope Benedict XVI at the end of his visit to Scotland and England that moved the nation.

Stephen B. Whatley was deeply inspired to paint a tribute to the now, Blessed John Henry Newman on that special day. Beginning painting after watching the live television broadcast of the beatification, the expressionist artist says his painting “was inspired by a montage of pictures of Newman throughout his life; with a focus on him as a young man, the spirit of eternal youth in heaven. The suggestion of his crucifix was inspired by that which he was photographed wearing as Cardinal, in old age. I noticed how often he fell into this contemplative pose, his hand raised to his face. The painting, made with many prayers, was complete by 4.55pm; whilst the Pope was still on British soil”.

Beatification is the penultimate stage before canonization as Saint; though by all accounts of the peaceful and holy life of deep faith and goodwill that John Henry Newman lead was that of a 'living Saint'.

Another beacon of contemporay hope present at the beatification Mass in Birmingham UK was Deacon John Sullivan from Massachusetts USA - who in 2001 experienced a miraculous cure of a spinal condition- that had threatened paralysis- and his training before ordination.

After seeing a television programme about Cardinal Newman , Mr Sullivan prayed simply: " Please Cardinal Newman intercede with God to help me go back to classes and be ordained".

For the next 8 months he was relieved of pain and able to walk upright. Then when his classes were complete, the pain returned in fury; and in hospital Mr Sullivan again prayed to Cardinal Newman's interecession. A warm sensation overwhelmed his body and in his words, ".. a tingling all over lasting about 10 minutes; and a tremendous sense of joy, exhuberance and confidence.." - and pain free ever since he was proclaimed cured at the astonishment of his doctors.

The simplest of prayers said with faith can be answered............miracles can happen.

The Blessed John Henry Newman. September 19, 2010
Oil on canvas
24 x 18in/61 x 46cm

To see other paintings by the artist, please visit the following link: Stephen B Whatley: Christian Tributes

About the artist Stephen B. Whatley: http://www.stephenbwhatley.com/about.htm

Possible John Paul II Miracle?

The following article regarding a possible miracle associated with Pope John II apeared on the Catholic News Agency:

Possible JP II miracle has not yet been examined, clarifies Vatican official : Catholic News Agency (CNA)

Vatican City - (CNA/Europa Press).- The prefect emeritus of the Congregation for the Causes of Saints, Cardinal Jose Saraiva Martins, explained this week that the possible miraculous healing of a French nun attributed to the intercession of John Paul II has not yet been examined by the Vatican Medical Commission.

Cardinal Saraiva made his statements to a group of reporters in Rome in reference to reports published a month ago in Poland claiming that the Vatican commission had dismissed the miracle supposedly experienced by Sister Marie Simon Pierre. The cardinal said the miracle could not have been rejected “because the doctors have not examined it yet.”

The nun had been suffering from Parkinson's, a degenerative disease of the nervous system, since 2001, but has testified that she was cured in the night of June 2, 2005 after praying to John Paul II, whose final years were also marked by the disease.

“All I can tell you is that I was sick and now I am cured. It is for the church to say and to recognize whether it is a miracle,” Sr. Marie Simon Pierre told reporters in 2007.

The procedure for approving a miracle through the intercession of a specific person involves first “that it be approved by a Medical Commission, which certifies that the event is scientifically unexplainable and that the healing is instantaneous, complete and lasting,” the cardinal explained.

Before beginning the final examination, “the Congregation usually gets the opinion of two doctors beforehand” and keeps the information confidential. However, in the case of the French nun, one of the doctors expressed doubt and “the news came out,” the cardinal said. He added that even so, this does not mean that the miracle has been rejected, but rather, as is usually the case, the Congregation will ask for a third opinion before beginning the official examination.

If the evaluation by the doctors is positive, the miracle will be evaluated by a Theological Commission, which will study whether or not the event is due to the intercession of John Paul II. Then, it must pass analysis by the 30 members of the Congregation for the Causes of Saints, who are like the “Parliament” of the Congregation.

Asked if this might delay the date of John Paul II’s beatification, Cardinal Saraiva said, “It’s not a case of delaying because a date was never set in the first place."