Fr. Richard John Neuhaus, 1936-2009

Fr. Richard John Neuhaus, former Editor-in-Chief of First Things, has died. He will be sorely missed. Joseph Bottum of First Things writes:

Father 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...until that time when everything is mended and all our tears are wiped away.

Requiem æternam dona eis, Domine, et lux perpetua luceat eis.

A fine writer and thinker, among his finest pieces are

• this one adapted from an address he gave at the Lutheran Concordia Theological Seminary; it tells the story of how he became Catholic, and
• this one, which transcribes his speech to the 2008 NRLC Convention.