Saint Jerome

Saint Jerome was born at Stridon in Dalmatia about 347 A.D. At Rome he received an education in philosophy, literature, and law and he acquired a great love for learning and research. After a serious illness he determined to devote himself and his intellectual gifts exclusively to the service of God.

In search of a perfect mode of life he traveled to the Holy Land and lived with the hermits of Syria, studying Hebrew and meditating on the Scriptures. He was ordained a priest at Antioch in 379, studied Origen's scriptural works at Constantinople and then returned to Rome.

There he became secretary to Pope Saint Damasus who encouraged him to make an authentic Latin translation of the Bible. He completed the New Testament and the Psalms in 384, and then set out again for the Holy Land. He settled at Bethlehem where he completed the translation of the Old Testament.

In this work he was assisted by two great Roman ladies, Saint Paula and her daughter, Saint Eustochium. Saint Jerome died about 420 A.D. His body rests in the Church of Saint Mary Major at Rome.

Saint Jerome's translation of the Bible, known as the Latin Vulgate, was the official version of the Bible for the Roman Catholic Church for over a thousand years. His great learning, his commentaries on Holy Scripture, and his zeal in defending the Church against all heresies of his time have earned him the title of Doctor of the Church.