New Doctor of the Church

October 7, we will have a new Doctor of the Church. This is big. The last saint to be promoted to Doctor of the Church was St. Therese of Lisieux in 1997, who was proclaimed so by Pope John Paul II. You don’t see this every day, and if a saint becomes a Doctor of the Church you can be sure they’re worth getting to know.  Here’s a list of them for you to start your research.

It’s worth noting that St. Hildegard will be the fourth female Doctor of the Church, and as you’ll learn watching this video, she achieved lots of things. From medicine to screenplays, she is a worthy role model for persistence and devotion.

Hildegard used her spiritual gifts for the renewal of the Church and the spread of authentic Christian living.
-Pope Benedict XVI

I believe we should try following her example in this manner, looking at our gifts and talents, then being unashamed to use them for the glory of Jesus. In everything we do, we should aspire to be saints by giving our gifts back to the One who bestowed them. It’s more than just writing a spiritual article or singing a worship song every now and then. It includes living it in our everyday life and making it a part of us. Our endeavors will only be worth it if we put Christ first.

Not everyone’s going to be a Doctor of the Church, but we should all try to be saints. We’re put here to give hope to people with everything we do, in many different ways–from smiling at someone on the street, to subtle lights in stories you write. I think if you don’t use your example to give someone hope, your talents are wasted: So many people in the world are already crying. When you sing a song, when you write a story, or even just carry out a conversation–you have the chance to lighten their spirits or push them farther down. What would Jesus do?

I encourage you to watch this video about St. Hildegard, then look at your own talents. Ask yourself how you can sneak seeds of hope into peoples’ hearts, leaving them there to grow when needed. It’s within your power and it’s worth doing. If there’s not hope, what is there?

With the intercession of St. Hildegard, go try your best. We are beacons!

Mariella Hunt

Mariella Hunt

Mariella Hunt is a writer of historical fiction and a blogger. She has a profound love for the Roman Catholic Church and prays that God will use her writing to bring His children home. She is an avid reader and publishes thoughts about novels weekly at her official website.

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8 thoughts on “New Doctor of the Church”

  1. Benedict 16 quoted from her vision of 1170 in his 12/20/10 address to the Roman Curia:

    “And Christ’s wounds remain open because of the sins of priests. They tear my robe, since they are violators of the Law, the Gospel and their own priesthood; they darken my cloak by neglecting, in every way, the precepts which they are meant to uphold; my shoes too are blackened, since priests do not keep to the straight paths of justice, which are hard and rugged, or set good examples to those beneath them. Nevertheless, in some of them I find the splendour of truth.” … fascinating stuff

  2. Pingback: Eucharistic Fast St. Hildegard Transalpine Redemptorists | Big Pulpit

  3. great video! I recently took a collegiate class called Mary and Mariology and we read Hildegard of Bingen’s work. I love how some saints are unfamiliar to us even though their lives are so fascinating and inspiring. I definitely will be back on this site- its my first time on but it seems like the right kind of site for me.

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