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List of the Doctors of the church

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BettyBoopToo
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First Name:	Betty
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Posted: Thu Apr 26th, 2007 04:31 pm

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Doctors of the Church

DOCTORS OF THE CHURCH

Definition and List

by Marcellino D’Ambrosio, Ph.D., Catholic Theologian and Speaker

Unlike the popular title “Father of the Church,” the title “Doctor of the Church” is an official honor that is bestowed by the Pope in recognition of the outstanding contribution a person has made to the understanding and development of Christian doctrine.

As of 2005, there are thirty-three Doctors of the Church who hail from all ages of the Church’s history. Of these, three are women (Catherine of Siena, Teresa of Avila, and Therese of Lisieux) and twenty-four are quoted in the Catechism of the Catholic Church (The eight who are not quoted are Saints Ephraem, Isidore, “the Venerable” Bede, Albert the Great, Anthony of Padua, Peter Canisius, Robert Bellarmine, and Lawrence of Brindisi).

There are three requirements that must be fulfilled by a person in order to merit being included in the ranks of the

“Doctors of the Church”:

1) holiness that is truly outstanding, even among saints;

2) depth of doctrinal insight; and

3) an extensive body of writings which the church can recommend as an expression of the authentic and life-giving Catholic Tradition.

During the "golden age of the Fathers,” (300-600), eight Doctors of the Church particularly stand out and are called “Ecumenical Fathers” because of their widespread influence. Bronze statues of several of these eight are to be found in St. Peter’s Basilica. Four of these Doctors of the Church hailed from the Western (Latin-speaking) half of the Roman Empire.

·        St. Ambrose, 340-397

·        St. Jerome , 345-420

·        St. Augustine, 354-430

·        St. Gregory the Great (Pope), 540-604

Four of the Ecumenical Fathers who were Doctors of the Church came from the Eastern (Greek-speaking) Roman Empire:

·        St. Athanasius, 295-373

·        St. Basil the Great, 330-379

·        St. Gregory of Nazianzus, 330-390

·        St. John Chrysostom, 345-407

There are eight other Doctors of the Church from the patristic period:

·        St. Ephraem the Deacon, 306-373 (Syriac)

·        St. Hilary, 315-368 (Latin)

·        St. Cyril of Jerusalem, 315-387 (Greek)

·        St. Cyril of Alexandria, 376-444 (Greek)

·        St. Leo the Great (Pope), 390-461 (Latin)

·        St. Peter Chrysologus, 400-450 (Latin)

·        St. Isidore of Seville (last of the Latin Fathers), 560-636

·        St. John Damascene (last of the Greek Fathers), 676-749

There are nine Doctors of the Church during the Latin Middle Ages:

·        St. Bede “the Venerable,” 673-735

·        St. Peter Damian, 1007-1072

·        St. Anselm, 1033-1109

·        St. Bernard of Clairvaux, 1090-1153

[font=Arial target="_blank"]·        St. Anthony of Padua , 1195-1231

·        St. Albert the Great, 1200-1280

·        St. Bonaventure, 1217-1274

·        St. Thomas Aquinas, 1225-1274

·        St. Catherine of Siena, 1347-1379

There are six Doctors of the Church who were prominent in the 16th century Catholic Reformation, all from the Latin Church:

·        St. Teresa of Avila, 1515-1582

·        St. Peter Canisius, 1521-1597

·        St. John of the Cross, 1542-1591

·        St. Robert Bellarmine, 1542-1621

·        St. Lawrence of Brindisi, 1559-1619

·        St. Francis de Sales, 1567-1622

There are two Doctors of the Church in the modern era, both from the Latin Church:

·        St. Alphonsus Liguori, 1696-1787

·        St. Therese of Lisieux, 1873-1897 (proclaimed Doctor of the Church by John Paul II 10/19/97)



This list of the Doctors of the Church was adapted from that provided by Louis Miller, Beacons of Light: Profiles of Ecclesiastical Writers Cited in the Catechism (Liguori, MO: Liguori, 1995), 61-62.

For more Catholic resources to feed your faith

http://www.crossroadsinitiative.com/library_article/128/Doctors_of_the_Church.html

If you click on the link it will take you to the page at crossroads so you can click the doctors name and read a summary about each one.

thank you and God Bless

Betty

____________________
Patience

"Whenever anything disagreeable or displeasing happens to you, remember Christ crucified and be silent."
St. John of the Cross

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