Theologian

Thomas Aquinas

Thomas Aquinas

1225 – March 7, 1274
Priest and Theologian, Known as Doctor of the Church
From Kingdom of Sicily, Italy
Served in Italy
Affiliation: Catholic
"Man’s ultimate happiness consists in the contemplation of truth, for this operation is specific to man and is shared with no other animals. Also it is not directed to any other end since the contemplation of truth is sought for its own sake. In addition, in this operation man is united to higher beings (substances) since this is the only human operation that is carried out both by God and by the separate substances (angels)."

Venerable Bede

Venerable Bede

672 - May 26, 735
Monk, Writer, and considered the "Father of English History"
From Monkton, England
Served in Monkwearmouth, England
Affiliation: Catholic
"Whenever we enter the church and draw near to the heavenly mysteries, we ought to approach with all humility and fear, both because of the presence of the angelic powers and out of the reverence due to the sacred oblation; for as the Angels are said to have stood by the Lord’s body when it lay in the tomb, so we must believe that they are present in the celebration of the Mysteries of His most sacred Body at the time of consecration."

Augustine of Hippo

Augustine of Hippo

November 13, 354 - August 28, 430
Theologian and Writer
From Algeria
Served in Algeria
Affiliation: Catholic
"You wish to be great, begin from the least. You are thinking to construct some mighty fabric in height; first think of the foundation of humility. And how great soever a mass of building one may wish and design to place above it, the greater the building is to be, the deeper does he dig his foundation."

Athanasius

Athanasius

296 - May 2, 373
Twentieth Bishop of Alexandria
From Alexandria, Egypt
Served in Alexandria, Egypt
Affiliation: Christian
"Dead men cannot take effective action; their power of influence on others lasts only till the grave….The Saviour is working mightily among men, every day He is invisibly persuading numbers of people all over the world, both within and beyond the Greek-speaking world, to accept His faith and be obedient to His teaching. Can anyone, in face of this, still doubt that He has risen and lives, or rather that He is Himself the Life? Does a dead man prick the consciences of men...?"

Tertullian

Tertullian

155 - 240
Theologian and Church Leader
From Carthage, Africa
Served in Carthage, Africa
Affiliation: Christian
"But carry on, good officials. You will become much better in the eyes of the people if you will sacrifice the Christians for them. Torture us! Your iniquity is the proof of our innocence. For this reason God permits us to suffer these things... Yet your tortures accomplish nothing, though each is more refined than the last; rather they are an enticement to our religion. We became more every time we are hewn down by you: the blood of Christians is seed."