Among the four great Fathers of the Western tradition, St. Jerome is one. (The other three are St. Ambrose, St. Augustine, and St. Gregory the Great). The 135th chapter of his book “On Illustrious Men” (De Viris Illustribus), written in 135 chapters, is about Jerome himself. In that chapter, he testifies that his father’s name was Eusebius and that he was born at Stridon (present-day Slovenia) (De Viris Illustribus 135,1). There he also gives a long list of his own works.

Born around A.D. 347 into a wealthy Christian family, St. Jerome died in Bethlehem in A.D. 420. After his primary education, at the age of twelve, he went to Rome for further studies, and it is believed that in A.D. 366 he received baptism from Pope Liberius. For about twenty years, until he settled permanently in Bethlehem in A.D. 384, he traveled to many places, stayed in different regions, experienced various ascetic lifestyles, and developed a strong desire to live as an ascetic himself.

When he was ordained a priest in A.D. 378, his greatest concern was whether his ascetic way of life would be disturbed. For about two years he served as secretary to Pope Damasus I, during which time he encouraged the Pope to establish an ascetic lifestyle for the Church and the clergy. In A.D. 389, he fulfilled his life’s aspiration by founding a monastery in Bethlehem.

One of his most renowned works is the Vulgate, the first translation of the Old Testament from its original Hebrew into Latin. He carried out this monumental translation after long years of training in Hebrew and three years of Scripture studies under St. Gregory of Nazianzus. His commentary on the Book of Proverbs is noteworthy as the first Latin commentary based directly on the Hebrew Bible.

He also translated many important works from Greek into Latin, including writings of Origen and St. Eusebius. The Church recognizes his great service by counting him among the first to be proclaimed as a Doctor of the Church.

Rev. Dr. Alex Sebastian Kollamkalam