Originally published at The Catholic Thing
The Catholic Church is prudently patient in awarding the title “Doctor of the Church” to her greatest teachers. However luminous someone’s explication of the truths of the Catholic faith may seem in his or her time, the efficacy of that teaching can only be tested over generations, sometimes centuries. Twenty years after the death of John Paul II on April 2, 2005, it’s too early to declare St. John Paul II a Doctor of the Church. It’s not too soon, however, to imagine why such an honor might be bestowed on him in the future. Five reasons suggest themselves.
