Doctor of the Church

In Roman Catholicism, a Doctor of the Church (Latin doctor, teacher, from Latin docere, to teach) is a saint from whose writings the whole Christian Church is held to have derived great advantage and to whom "eminent learning" and "great sanctity" have been attributed by a proclamation of a pope or of an ecumenical council. This honor is given rarely, only posthumously, and only after canonization. No ecumenical council has yet exercised the prerogative of proclaiming a Doctor of the Church.

Isidore of Seville, depicted with a book, common iconographical object for a doctor.

Ambrose, Augustine, Jerome, and Pope Gregory I were the original Doctors of the Church and were named in 1298. They are known collectively as the Great Doctors of the Western Church. The four Great Doctors of the Eastern Church, John Chrysostom, Basil the Great, Gregory of Nazianzus, and Athanasius were recognized in 1568 by Pope St. Pius V. Although the revered Catalan philosopher Ramon Llull was dubbed "Doctor Illuminatus," he is not officially considered a Doctor of the Church.

The Doctors' works vary greatly in subject and form. Some, such as Pope Gregory I and Ambrose were prominent writers of letters and short treatises. Catherine of Siena and John of the Cross wrote mystical theology. Augustine and Bellarmine defended the Church against heresy. Bede's Ecclesiastical History of the English People provides the best information on England in the early middle ages. Systematic theologians include the Scholastic philosophers Anselm, Albertus Magnus, and Thomas Aquinas (Aquinas is also seen as one of the most significant medieval thinkers of Western Europe).

Until 1970, no woman had been named a Doctor of the Church, but since then three additions to the list have been women. In this regard, it is interesting to quote a line from the New Catholic Encyclopedia (1967), "...it would seem that no woman is likely to be named because of the link between this title and the teaching office, which is limited to males."

Traditionally, in the liturgy, the Office of Doctors was distinguished from that of Confessors by two changes: the Gospel reading, Matthew 5:13-19, "Vos estis sal terrae" ("You are the salt of the earth"), and the eighth Respond at Matins, from Ecclesiasticus 15:5, "In medio Ecclesiae aperuit os ejus, * Et implevit eum Deus spiritu sapientiae et intellectus. * Jucunditatem et exsultationem thesaurizavit super eum." ("In the midst of the Church he opened his mouth, * And God filled him with the spirit of wisdom and understanding. * He heaped upon him a treasure of joy and gladness.")

The Roman Catholic Church has to date named 33 Doctors of the Church. Of these, the 17 who died before the formal Eastern Schism in 1054 are also venerated by the Eastern Orthodox Church. Among these 33 are 25 from the West and 8 from the East; 3 women; 18 bishops, 29 priests, 1 deacon, 2 nuns, 1 lay woman; 24 from Europe, 3 from Africa, 6 from Asia.

List of Doctors of the Church

Name	Born	Died	Promoted	Ethnicity	Post
St. Gregory the Great*	ca. 540	March 12,604	1298	Roman	Pope
St. Ambrose*	ca. 340	April 4, 397	1298	Roman	Bishop of Milan
St. Augustine, Doctor Gratiae*	November 13, 354	August 28, 430	1298	Numidian	Bishop of Hippo
St. Jerome*	ca.347	September 30,420	1298	Dalmatian	priest, monk
St. John Chrysostom*	347	407	1568	Syrian	Patriarch of Constantinople
St. Basil*	330	January 1,379	1568	Cappadocian	Bishop of Caesarea
St. Gregory Nazianzus*	329	January 25,389	1568	Cappadocian	Patriarch of Constantinople
St. Athanasius*	298	May 2,373	1568	Egyptian	Patriarch of Alexandria
St. Thomas Aquinas, Doctor Angelicus, Doctor Communis	1225	March 7, 1274	1568	Neapolitan	Priest, Theologian, O.P.
St. Bonaventure, Doctor Seraphicus	1221	July 15,1274	1588	Latium	Cardinal Bishop of Albano, theologian, O.F.M.
St. Anselm, Doctor Magnificus	1033 or 1034	April 21, 1109	1720	Savoyard	Archbishop of Canterbury
St. Isidore*	560	April 4, 636	1722	Andalusian	Bishop of Seville
St. Peter Chrysologus*	406	450	1729	Italian	Archbishop of Ravenna
St. Leo the Great*	400	November 10,461	1754	Roman	Pope
St. Peter Damian	1007	February 21/22,1072	1828	Ravenna	Cardinal Bishop of Ostia, monk, O.S.B.
St. Bernard, Doctor Mellifluus	1090	August 21, 1153	1830	Burgundian	priest, O.Cist.
St. Hilary of Poitiers*	300	367	1851	Gaul	Bishop of Poitiers
St. Alphonsus Liguori, Doctor Zelantissimus	September 27,1696	August 1,1787	1871	Neapolitan	Bishop of Sant'Agata de' Goti, C.S.S.R. (Founder)
St. Francis de Sales	August 21,1567	December 28,1622	1877	Savoyard	Bishop of Geneva
St. Cyril of Alexandria, Doctor Incarnationis*	376	June 27,444	1883	Egyptian	Patriarch of Alexandria
St. Cyril of Jerusalem*	315	386	1883	Jerusalem	Bishop of Jerusalem
St. John Damascene*	676	December 5,749	1883	Syrian	priest, monk
St. Bede the Venerable*	672	May 27,735	1899	British	priest, monk
St. Ephrem*	306	373	1920	Syrian	deacon
St. Peter Canisius	May 8,1521	December 21,1597	1925	Dutch	priest, S.J.
St. John of the Cross, Doctor Mysticus	June 24,1542	December 14,1591	1926	Spanish	priest, mystic, O.C.D. (Founder)
St. Robert Bellarmine	October 4,1542	September 17,1621	1931	Tuscan	Archbishop of Capua, theologian, S.J.
St. Albertus Magnus, Doctor Universalis	1193	November 15,1280	1931	German	Bishop, Theologian, O.P.
St. Anthony of Padua and Lisbon, Doctor Evangelicus	August 15,1195	June 13,1231	1946	Portuguese	Priest, O.F.M.
St. Lawrence of Brindisi, Doctor Apostolicus	July 22,1559	July 22,1619	1959	Neapolitan	Priest, Diplomat, O.F.M. Cap.
St. Teresa of Ávila	March 28,1515	October 4,1582	1970	Spanish	Mystic, O.C.D. (Founder)
St. Catherine of Siena	March 25,1347	April 29,1380	1970	Tuscan	Mystic, O.P.
St. Thérèse of Lisieux	January 2,1873	September 30,1897	1997	French	O.C.D.

*Also venerated by the Eastern Orthodox Church.

See also

• Fathers of the Church

External link

• Doctors of the Catholic Church
• Catholic Encyclopedia: Doctor of the Church