Cardinal John Henry Newman

Cited in "Brave New World", from Aldous Huxley.

Portuguese notes (end of page):

"'We are not our own any more than what we possess is our own. We did not make ourselves, we cannot be supreme over ourselves. We are not our own masters. We are God's property. Is it not our happiness thus to view the matter? Is it any happiness or any comfort, to consider that we are our own? It may be thought so by the young and prosperous. These may think it a great thing to have everything, as they suppose, their own way–to depend on no one–to have to think of nothing out of sight, to be without the irksomeness of continual acknowledgment, continual prayer, continual reference of what they do to the will of another. But as time goes on, they, as all men, will find that independence was not made for man–that it is an unnatural state–will do for a while, but will not carry us on safely to the end ...
....

"'A man grows old; he feels in himself that radical sense of weakness, of listlessness, of discomfort, which accompanies the advance of age; and, feeling thus, imagines himself merely sick, lulling his fears with the notion that this distressing condition is due to some particular cause, from which, as from an illness, he hopes to recover. Vain imaginings! That sickness is old age; and a horrible disease it is. They say that it is the fear of death and of what comes after death that makes men turn to religion as they advance in years. But my own experience has given me the conviction that, quite apart from any such terrors or imaginings, the religious sentiment tends to develop as we grow older; to develop because, as the passions grow calm, as the fancy and sensibilities are less excited and less excitable, our reason becomes less troubled in its working, less obscured by the images, desires and distractions, in which it used to be absorbed; whereupon God emerges as from behind a cloud; our soul feels, sees, turns towards the source of all light; turns naturally and inevitably; for now that all that gave to the world of sensations its life and charms has begun to leak away from us, now that phenomenal existence is no more bolstered up by impressions from within or from without, we feel the need to lean on something that abides, something that will never play us false–a reality, an absolute and everlasting truth. Yes, we inevitably turn to God; for this religious sentiment is of its nature so pure, so delightful to the soul that experiences it, that it makes up to us for all our other losses.'" 

... and continuing with comentaries from the character of the above Aldous book:

" Mustapha Mond shut the book and leaned back in his chair. "One of the numerous things in heaven and earth that these philosophers didn't dream about was this" (he waved his hand), "us, the modern world. 'You can only be independent of God while you've got youth and prosperity; independence won't take you safely to the end.' Well, we've now got youth and prosperity right up to the end. What follows? Evidently, that we can be independent of God. 'The religious sentiment will compensate us for all our losses.' But there aren't any losses for us to compensate; religious sentiment is superfluous. And why should we go hunting for a substitute for youthful desires, when youthful desires never fail? A substitute for distractions, when we go on enjoying all the old fooleries to the very last? What need have we of repose when our minds and bodies continue to delight in activity? of consolation, when we have soma? of something immovable, when there is the social order?"

"Then you think there is no God?"

"No, I think there quite probably is one."

"Then why? …"

Mustapha Mond checked him. "But he manifests himself in different ways to different men. In premodern times he manifested himself as the being that's described in these books. Now …"

"How does he manifest himself now?" asked the Savage.

"Well, he manifests himself as an absence; as though he weren't there at all."

"That's your fault."

"Call it the fault of civilization. God isn't compatible with machinery and scientific medicine and universal happiness. You must make your choice. Our civilization has chosen machinery and medicine and happiness. That's why I have to keep these books locked up in the safe. They're smut. People would be shocked it …"

Several other Quotes from the Cardinal J. H. Newman

Let us act on what we have, since we have not what we wish.

In this world no one rules by love; if you are but amiable, you are no hero; to be powerful, you must be strong, and to have dominion you must have a genius for organizing.

Growth is the only evidence of life.

We can believe what we choose. We are answerable for what we choose to believe.

Evil has no substance of its own, but is only the defect, excess, perversion, or corruption of that which has substance.

A man would do nothing if he waited until he could do it so well that no one could find fault.

Virtue is its own reward, and brings with it the truest and highest pleasure; but if we cultivate it only for pleasure's sake, we are selfish, not religious, and will never gain the pleasure, because we can never have the virtue.

It is often said that second thoughts are best. So they are in matters of judgment but not in matters of conscience.

A great memory does not make a mind, any more than a dictionary is a piece of literature.

If we are intended for great ends, we are called to great hazards.

Men will die upon dogma but will not fall victim to a conclusion.

There is such a thing as legitimate warfare: war has its laws; there are things which may fairly be done, and things which may not be done.

Algumas notas em Português:

Newman (john Henry), cardeal e teólogo inglês, nascido em Londres. Criador de uma nova apologética e autor de “Apologia pro Vita Sua” (1801-1890).

«Nós não pertencemos a nós próprios mais do que nos pertence aquilo que possuímos.

Não fomos nós que nos fizemos, não podemos ter a jurisdição suprema sobre nós mesmos. Não somos senhores de nós. Pertencemos a Deus. Não é para nós uma felicidade encarar as coisas desta maneira? Será, por qualquer razão, uma felicidade, um conforto, considerarmos que pertencemos a nós mesmos? Aqueles que são jovens e os que estão em estado de prosperidade podem acreditá-lo. Esses podem acreditar que é uma grande coisa poder realizar tudo de acordo com os seus desejos, como eles supõem, não depender de ninguém, não ter de pensar em nada fora do alcance da vista, não ter de se preocupar com a gratidão contínua, com a oração contínua, com a obrigação contínua de atribuir à vontade de outrem o que fazem. Mas à medida que o tempo se escoa apercebem-se, como todos os homens, de que a independência não foi feita para o homem, que ela é um estado antinatural, que pode satisfazer por um momento, mas que não nos leva em segurança até ao fim ... »

Maine de Biran (Grançois-Pierre) filósofo francês, nascido em Bergerac,

"O Céu e a Terra encerram mais mistérios que os que a filosofia pode imaginar"

«Envelhecemos, temos o sentimento radical da fraqueza, da atonia, do mal-estar devido ao peso dos anos, e dizemo-nos doentes, embalamo-nos na ideia de que este estado penoso é devido a uma causa particular, de que esperamos curar-nos como nos curamos de uma doença. Vãs cogitações! A moléstia é a velhice, e ela é miserável.

Precisamos de nos resignar... Diz-se que se os homens se tornam religiosos ou devotos com o avançar dos anos é porque têm medo da morte e do que a deve seguir na outra vida. Mas tenho, quanto a mim, a consciência de que, sem nenhum terror semelhante, sem nenhum efeito de imaginação, o sentimento religioso se pode desenvolver à medida que avançamos em idade, porque, tendo-se acalmado as paixões, a imaginação e a sensibilidade menos excitadas ou excitáveis, a razão é menos perturbada no seu exercício, menos ofuscada pelas imagens ou afeições que a absorviam. Então Deus, Supremo Bem, sai como das nuvens, e a nossa alma sente-O, vê-O, voltando-se para Ele, fonte de toda a luz, porque, tudo desaparecendo no mundo sensível, a existência fenomenológica deixando de ser sustentada pelas

impressões externas e internas, sentimos a necessidade de nos apoiarmos em qualquer coisa que permanece e não engane, numa realidade, numa verdade absoluta, eterna. Porque, enfim, este sentimento religioso, tão puro, tão doce de sentir, pode compensar todas as outras perdas...»

"Mustafa Mond"  (Brave New World / Admirável Mundo Novo – Aldous Huxley)

"Não se pode prescindir de Deus, a não ser durante a juventude e a prosperidade. "Pois bem, eis que temos juventude e prosperidade até ao último dia de vida. Que resulta daí? É manifesto que não podemos ser independentes de Deus. «O sentimento religioso compensará todas as nossas perdas.»

Mas não há, para nós, perdas a ser compensadas; o sentimento religioso é supérfluo. E., porque iríamos nós atrás de um sucedâneo dos desejos juvenis, quando os desejos juvenis nunca nos faltaram? De um sucedâneo de distracções, quando continuamos a gozar todas as velhas' tolices até ao fim? Que necessidade temos nós de repouso, quando o nosso corpo e o nosso espírito continuam a deleitar-se na actividade? De consolação, quando temos a soma (narcótico)? De qualquer coisa imutável, quando há a ordem social?

Deus não é compatível com as máquinas, a medicinacientífica e a felicidade universal. É preciso escolher. A nossa civilizaçãoescolheu as máquinas, a medicina e a felicidade. Por isso se torna necessárioque eu conserve estes livros fechados no cofre-forte. São indecentes. O povo ficaria escandalizado se ...”