Memorial of Saints (December 4)

Feasts, Obligatory and Optional Memorials of Saints

• John Damascene, priest and doctor
• Maruthas, bishop
• Anno, bishop
• Osmund, bishop
• Bernard of Parma, bishop
• Barbara, virgin and martyr

St. John Damascene (675-749 A.D.). John was born in Damascus, Syria, of a Christian Arab family. For a while he was a financial officer for a Muslim Caliph in the city before he resigned, went to Jerusalem, and entered the monastery of Mar Saba. In 726 A.D., he was ordained and spent much of his time with study and writing. John was known for his encyclopedic knowledge and theological method, both of which inspired St. Thomas of Aquinas, the Dominican. John was not only gifted in writing, but also had talent in music. His more important contribution to the Church of his time was his defense of the veneration of sacred images against the iconoclasts (died ca. 749 A.D.).

More on Saints for December 4

Saints in the Byzantine Calendar - December 4

• St. Barbara, Great Virgin-Martyr
• St. John Damascene

Related blog posts:

• December 4 is the feast of St. Barbara in both the Calendars of the Roman Catholic Church and the Byzantine Calendar. She is one of the Fourteen Holy Helpers, Learn more
• The Doctors of the Church: Teachers of the Catholic Faith, Learn more
• St. John Damascene, Priest and Doctor of the Church, Learn more

Details from the History of the Catholic Church

There were 32 Doctors of the Church before St. John Paul II raised St. Therese of Lisieux and declared her with this title on October 19, 1997 A.D.

Pope Benedict XVI added two more with St. Hildegard of Bingen, a 12th century A.D. Benedictine abbess and mystic, and St. John of Avila, a 16th century A.D. priest.

Pope Francis also added two more with the title Doctor of the Church for St. Irenaeus of Lyons and St. Gregory of Narek. As of this writing, the Catholic Church has named 37 Doctors of the Church.

Citations from Google Gemini:

18 of those named as Doctors of the Church lived and died before the Great Schism of 1054 A.D. These 18 are also held in high esteem by the Eastern Orthodox Church, although it does not use the formal title Doctor of the Church.

• Doctor of the Church, Wikipedia.org