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XXI - X IX : Saints Gregory the Great, Ignatius of Antioch , Polycarp St. Jerome 18-St. Jerome (347 AD – 420 AD) [Doctor of the Church] St. Jerome is a great ascetic who lives a hermetical lifestyle in the deserts and monasteries for some periods of his life. He is a prolific writer best known for his translation of the Septuagint into Latin. His writings also include commentaries on Scriptures, letters to friends and heretics, and the collections of previous Church Fathers. Most of his writings have a rhetorical/polemic nature, whereby usually he defends the orthodox doctrines of the Church against heretics and schismatic groups. It is not possible to discuss his works in any comprehensive manner in this tiny blog post. However, to have a taste of this fervent and passionate defender of orthodoxy, one of his letters will suffice. In response to a monk named Jovinanus, whose theological stances have been condemned by the Council of Milan in 390 AD. Copies of his writings ar...

The Church, or the community of believers, is surrounded by a “cloud of witnesses,” righteous souls of brothers and sisters who have passed on to the glory and whose presence sustains their brothers and sisters on this earth (Hebrews 12:1). These souls are the various Martyrs and Saints whose witness for Christ strengthens their contemporary brothers and sister, while also planting the seed of the Church among the heathens. Today, the Saints still shower us with their prayers and intercession, helping us in our journey to our heavenly home. Their protection and intercession is a gift of God who promises that “watchmen” will always be “posted” around the “walls of Jerusalem,” which refers to the Church of the New Testament (Isaiah 62:6). These “watchmen” will never be “silent day or night” (Isaiah 62:6). They will not “give themselves rest,” nor will they give the Lord any “rest till He establishes Jerusalem and makes her the praise of the earth” (Isaiah 62:7). Having been promised ...