I just read that Richard John Neuhaus died this morning. From First Things...
Our great, good friend is gone.
Fr. Richard John Neuhaus slipped away today, January 8, shortly before 10 o’clock, at the age of seventy-two. He never recovered from the weakness that sent him to the hospital the day after Christmas, caused by a series of side effects from the cancer he was suffering. He lost consciousness Tuesday evening after a collapse in his heart rate, and the next day, in the company of friends, he died.
My tears are not for him—for he knew, all his life, that his Redeemer lives, and he has now been gathered by the Lord in whom he trusted.
I weep, rather for all the rest of us. As a priest, as a writer, as a public leader in so many struggles, and as a friend, no one can take his place. The fabric of life has been torn by his death, and it will not be repaired, for those of us who knew him, until that time when everything is mended and all our tears are wiped away.
Funeral arrangements are still being planned; information about the funeral will be made public shortly. Please accept our thanks for all your prayers and good wishes.
In Deepest Sorrow,
Joseph Bottum
Editor
First Things
I respect Mr. Neuhaus as a brilliant writer and one of the leaders of the movement to bridge the divide between Protestants and Rome through his work on Evangelicals and Catholics Together: Toward a Common Mission . Unfortunately, he also left a Protestant church and embraced Rome in 1990. To that end, I fear he has placed his hope in good works and sacraments, venerating saints and the accompanying false teachings of Rome. A great writer and brilliant thinker, but one who embraced a false Gospel in life. It is my sincere hope that he placed his faith completely and totally on Christ and His work on the cross, not in religious formalism and his own good works.
I would imagine reaction is forthcoming from a number of sources.
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