You may be curious to know the saints and blessed Pope Benedict references in Verbum Domini, or whose work he used.
The Pope said, "The interpretation of sacred Scripture would remain incomplete were it not to include listening to those who have truly lived the word of God: namely, the saints" (48).
And, "No sooner do I glance at the Gospel, but
immediately I breathe in the fragrance of the life of Jesus and I know where to
run. Every saint is like a ray of light streaming forth from the word of God..." (49).
Who are the saints?
Mary, the Mother of God
Saint PeterSaint John the Evangelist
Saint Paul
Saint Bernard of Clairvaux
Saint Bonaventure
Saint Thomas Aquinas
Saint John of the Cross
Saint Irenaeus of Lyons
Saint John Chysostom
Saint Maximus the Confessor
Saint Jerome
Saint Gregory the Great
Saint Ambrose
Saint Augustine
Saint Anthony Abbot
Saint Basil the Great
Saint Benedict
Saint Athanasius
Saint Francis of Assisi
Saint Clare of Assisi
Saint Dominic
Saint Teresa of Avila
Saint Thérèse of the Child Jesus
Saint Ignatius of Loyola
Saint John Bosco
Saint John Mary Vianney
Saint Pius of Pietrelcina
Saint Josemaría Escrivá
Saint Teresa Benedicta of the Cross
Saints Gaetano Errico
Saint Maria Bernarda Bütler
Saint Alphonsa of the Immaculate Conception
Saint Narcisa de Jesús Martillo Morán
Saint Ignatius of Antioch
Saint Elizabeth
Blessed Jordan of Saxony
Blessed Teresa of Calcutta
Blessed Aloysius Stepinac
Saint Gregory the Great
Saint Ambrose
Saint Augustine
Saint Anthony Abbot
Saint Basil the Great
Saint Benedict
Saint Athanasius
Saint Francis of Assisi
Saint Clare of Assisi
Saint Dominic
Saint Teresa of Avila
Saint Thérèse of the Child Jesus
Saint Ignatius of Loyola
Saint John Bosco
Saint John Mary Vianney
Saint Pius of Pietrelcina
Saint Josemaría Escrivá
Saint Teresa Benedicta of the Cross
Saints Gaetano Errico
Saint Maria Bernarda Bütler
Saint Alphonsa of the Immaculate Conception
Saint Narcisa de Jesús Martillo Morán
Saint Ignatius of Antioch
Saint Elizabeth
Blessed Jordan of Saxony
Blessed Teresa of Calcutta
Blessed Aloysius Stepinac
Blessed John XXIII
Plus, the Pope uses the works of Origen, Richard of Saint
Victor and Hugh of Saint
Victor, the last two are notable scholars and saintly men; Richard and Hugh are not saints but may be we can push their cause.
"Read the divine Scriptures frequently; indeed, the sacred book should never be out of your hands. Learn there what you must teach."
You forgot Origen. Not a saint, maybe, but a teacher of saints. Oh, and St. Maximus the Confessor. Can't forget him. Tons of guys in the footnotes. :)
Oh, and you forgot Mary. Although honestly, she's in every encyclical and everything else, so it's almost cheating to count her.
Very good idea for a post. I had no clue how many folks were mentioned.
Maureen, Thanks for catching St Maximus the Confessor. That was an oversight. When it came to Origen I had decided to skip him but that he's the spiritual father of saints, I thougtht again. And, that Mary, the Mother of God is also the Mother of Saints and we do say we live in the School of Mary, I added her name.
PAX!