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Daily Feed A book review on The Doctors of the Church: An Introduction to the Church's Great TeachersThese two volumes on The Doctors of the Church are truly a spiritual treasure that all Catholics should read, study and meditate upon. Most of the writings of these great teachers of the Church are letters, sermons, and commentaries that speak of a brilliance of wisdom and insight that can only be truly inspired by God.A brief introduction There are two volumes of this book. The first volume lists down all the writings of the doctors of the first millenium. The second volume on the other hand, lists down the doctors of the second millenium. All in all, there are presently 33 who are entitled by the Church with the prestigious honor of being "Doctors of the Church" - doctor, meaning "teacher", from the Latin docere, meaning "to teach". A wisdom that applies to all time Reading one of the first millenium doctors of the Church, St. Peter Chrysologus, one can see that if one applies what they teach, it truly is effective and will indeed do what they say. For instance, St. Peter Chrysologus, in one of his sermons on Lent, said that "prayer opens the door, fasting obtains, and mercy receives." He goes on to say that these three form a unity and one without the other will not be effective. If you apply this spiritual practice and exercise it during Lent or any liturgical season of the Church, you will realize that what St. Peter Chrysologus taught, is really true. It is no wonder that their knowledge and wisdom has been exalted by the Church to be so exemplary that they deserve the title of doctor of the Church. The list of the 33 doctors of the Church according to each volume of the books
"The Great" Doctors of the Church Four of those who are in this list of 33 doctors of the Church have also earned the honorific title of "the Great": Pope Leo, Pope Gregory, St. Albert, and one, who, already during his lifetime is being given this title attached already to his name - St. Basil. St. Basil is the father of Eastern Monasticism and is credited to have built a monumental charitable institution called "the Basilade". Pope Leo, on the other hand, is known for his encyclicals in the social teaching of the Church. Pope Gregory is the Pope who extended the reach of Catholicism to many parts of Europe. He is also noted to have created the famous "Gregorian chant" - a classic liturgical way of chanting the psalms. Then, St. Albert is a noted theologian of the Middle Ages. He is the professor and mentor of St. Thomas Aquinas - the one who systematized theology in all its fields. Saint Therese of Lisieux added as the 33rd doctor of the Church It was Pope John Paul II who declared Saint Therese of the Child Jesus or Saint Therese of Lisieux, as the 33rd doctor of the Church on October 19, 1997. The spiritual doctrine of this great saint, the "Little Way", has inspired so many in our modern century. We can learn about her spirituality from her own autobiography, "The Story of a Soul". Summary There is a lot to learn from the writings of all these doctors of the Church. The two volumes are indeed a spiritual treasure one cannot do without if one wishes to steep oneself and drink of the wellsprings of eternal wisdom embedded in their teachings. Some of their teachings are applicable still for our time. Though their teaching has its origin from the context of past centuries, in general, they are still exemplary and outstanding to behold, because of the solid truth and wisdom from which they root their knowledge - the knowledge of Christ and His gospel.
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