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DOCTORS OF THE CHURCH

Definition and List

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

Doctors of the Church, Catherine of Siena 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.

St. Gregory the Great, Doctors of the Church 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

St. Leo the Great, Doctor of the Church, Early CHurch Father, Catholic Church 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

Saint Teresa of Avila, Doctors of the Church, Fathers of the Early Church, Catholic Church

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

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

· 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.