Pope Leo XIV has announced he will proclaim Saint John Henry Newman a Doctor of the Church on November 1 during the Jubilee of the World of Education.
The Dicastery for the Causes of Saints had announced on July 31 that the English Cardinal would be declared a Doctor of the Church however a date had not been formally set.
The title Doctor of the Church is given by the Church to a saint who is recognised as having made a significant contribution to theology or doctrine through their research, study, or writing. Saint John Henry Newman will become the 38th person to be given the title.
Both Pope Leo XIV's predecessors declared two Saints to be Doctors of the Church.
St Newman was born in London on February 21, 1801. He was ordained an Anglican priest but became Catholic in 1845. He was made a cardinal in 1879 by Pope Leo XIII and died in Edgbaston, near Birmingham, in 1890.
He was an important figure in the life of the Church in England in the 19th century, particularly following his conversion to the Catholic Church.
The Australian Catholic Bishops' Conference was one on of the 20 conferences around the world which petitioned the Vatican to recognise Saint Newman as a Doctor of the Church, along with England and Wales, Scotland, Ireland, the United States and Canada.
The Dicastery for the Causes of Saints said of Saint Newman: “His thought has had a significant impact on 20th-century theology, especially on the Second Vatican Council. Several Popes, from Leo XIII to Francis, have drawn from his authoritative teaching in their pontifical magisterium.”