On September 9, 1855
Venerable John Henry Newman, C.O., preached a sermon, of which the following notes survive:

Life of the Soul

1. INTROD.—Gospel [Luke vii. 11-16—raising to life of the son of the widow of Naim].

Our Lord's miracles are especially typical—(1) leprosy—heresy; (2) demoniac—cleansing the soul from the evil spirit; (3) blind—John ix.; (4) loaves—so this.

2. It brings before us the natural state of man—state of the whole world [typified in it].

3. What is meant is, not that man may not have natural powers, but [being lacking in] spiritual, that left to himself, he will know nothing of the unseen world. In one sense, then, the world is alive, in another dead.

4. It is in this sense that the soul is dead. Now if dead, observe the greatness of that death. (1) Dead men are without sense or feeling: so the soul as to heavenly things, motives, objects, etc. (2) [A dead body provokes] fear and odiousness: so the [dead] soul in the sight of angels and Almighty God.

5. (3) As to the outward form [of the dead] it is the same [as the living], and this suggests much. (i) Imitation—Christianity in the world. (ii) Simulation, because they know more than they do, and pretend from shame. (iii) [Souls that are dead may still have] actual grace, [and] habits formed under it.

6. Yet in God's sight [they are] dead. Now consider Eph. ii. [see vv. 4 and 5].

7. Now reflect on all this—the terrible state of the world—in detail; here, there and everywhere. Yet, as dead men do not know they are dead, neither does the world.

8. On Christ, the sole source of life, from today's gospel—Gal. ii.

9. On the love which life implies.