July 11, 2004
St. Jerome, Patron Saint of Scripture Scholars
First, the Catholic Church uses the term Saint to refer to those we know are already in heaven. The Church uses saints (lowercase) to refer to the faithful on earth. The Saints, as we’ve attempted to show on this blog, are a wonderful resource for Christians that we can ask to pray for us - just like we would ask a friend to pray for us, but we know Saints are especially holy, since they are already in heaven.
So what is a Patron Saint? Certain Saints are very well known for specific characteristics for various reasons. For example, St. Jerome is well-known for being a pre-eminent Scriptural Scholar. So St. Jerome was named the Patron Saint of Scripture Scholars, which is fitting since Scriptural Scholars are most likely to be asking for his help! It’s that simple and straightforward. Since we do a significant amount of talking about Scripture, I thought I would post the traditional prayer to St. Jerome here.
Master of unworldliness and founder of monasteries, you had a deep love for God’s inspired Word and were a most careful translator of the Sacred Scriptures.Your single-mindedness in seeking God’s glory is a perfect model for all exegetes. Inspire them with respect for the sacred text as well as for Tradition and the Church’s Magesterium.
Help them to impart to all the true meaning of the Word of God.
God bless,
Jay
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