Yesterday, Pope Benedict declared St. John of Avila a doctor of the Church, making him the 34 saint with that honor. The Holy Father made the announcement at the conclusion of a special World Youth Day Mass for seminarians at Madrid’s Cathedral of the Almudena.
St. John of Avila was born in 1500 about 155 miles south of Madrid, Spain. He was a Christian, but was of Jewish descent. He became a priest and a great preacher, author and mystic whose writings influenced St. Theresa of Avila, St. John of the Cross and St. Francis Borgia. His best known work was Audi Fili which was a tract on Christian perfection.
St. John of Avila was canonized by Pope Paul VI in 1970, and his feast day is May 10.
The title of “Doctor of the Church” is given to individuals whose writings have universal importance to the Church.
The last saint to be given that title was St. Theresa of Lisieux. Pope John Paul II honored her in August 1997, also during a World Youth Day.
A report on this is found at: Catholic News Agency.
By the way, I learned that all the seminarians from the diocese of Winona are attending the World Youth Day in Madrid. May God bless them, and may the deeply appreciate the experience they have been given.
