Pope Leo XIV formally declared Saint John Henry Newman a Doctor of the Church on Saturday, giving him one of Catholicism’s most prestigious titles and touting him as an example of intellectual sanctity.

During Mass on Nov. 1 – Solemnity of All Saints – the pope said Newman’s spiritual and intellectual standing serve as “an inspiration to new generations whose hearts thirst for the infinite, and who, through research and knowledge, are willing to undertake that journey which, as the ancients said, takes us per aspera ad astra, through difficulties to the stars.”

The pope formally proclaimed Saint John Henry Newman a Doctor of the Church and named Newman and Saint Thomas Aquinas as co-patrons of the Church’s educational mission during a Mass in St. Peter’s Square as part of the Jubilee for the World of Education, which is part of the broader Jubilee of Hope.

Born in 1801, Newman was a member of the Anglican church and was ordained a priest in 1825.

He became part of the Oxford Movement, which aimed to more closely align the Church of England with its Catholic roots and which, among other things, eventually led to the formation of the so-called Anglo-Catholic branch of the Anglican Communion.

Newman stirred controversy when he became a member of the Catholic Church in 1845 and was later ordained a Catholic priest. He was made a cardinal by the reigning pontiff’s namesake, Leo XIII,  in 1879.

Newman died in 1890 and was beatified by Pope Benedict XIV in 2010, during Benedict’s visit to Birmingham, England. He was canonized by Pope Francis in 2019.

Following Newman’s canonization, the Bishops’ Conference of England and Wales formally petitioned the pope to name him a Doctor of the Church, which the bishops’ conferences of the United States, Ireland and Scotland also supported.

In Catholicism, the “Doctor of the Church” title is bestowed by a pope upon a saint as a recognition of the individual’s significant contribution to the church’s theology or doctrine. Newman himself is hailed for his teachings on conscience and doctrinal development.

Including Newman, there are now a total of 38 Doctors of the Church in the Catholic Church, four of whom are women.

The declaration of Newman as a Doctor of the Church was also considered an ecumenical act, as Newman’s intellectual contributions to the faith are also revered within the Anglican communion as well.

It also comes just days after Pope Leo and King Charles III shared an historic joint ecumenical prayer inside the Sistine Chapel. The Oct. 23 prayer marked the first time a pope and a head of the Church of England have prayed together in 500 years, since they split during the Reformation.

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British Deputy Prime Minister David Lammy attended Saturday’s Mass at the Vatican. In a statement for the occasion, called Newman “a man of intellect, conscience, and courage and is only the second Englishman after Saint Bede” to receive the title of Doctor of the Church.

“As I joined His Holiness Pope Leo in St Peter’s Square, it was clear this is a moment of spiritual unity and historical recognition,” Lammy said, saying he is “a proud British Christian and Saint John Henry Newman’s story of shared inheritance rather than separation speaks deeply to my own faith.”

“In an age of populism and polarization, his insistence on moral reflection calls us back to what truly matters – not what is easy, but what is right and what is just,” he said.

A delegation of the Church of England was also present, led by Archbishop Stephen Cottrell of York, who also attended the Oct. 27 prayer between Leo and King Charles.

In his homily, Pope Leo XIV told educators and students the jubilee of hope applies directly to them, because schools and universities are “laboratories of prophecy, where hope is lived, and constantly discussed and encouraged.”

He reflected on Jesus’s recitation of the Beatitudes in the day’s Gospel reading, saying they are attitudes that do not make sense to the modern world, but which are the core of the church’s teaching.

“They are the teaching par excellence,” he said, and Jesus is “the educator par excellence,” who offers meaning through knowledge.

Modern challenges might seem overwhelming, Leo said, and – quoting a speech of Pope Francis to the Dicastery for Culture and Education – urged the faithful not to be pessimistic or discouraged, saying, “we must work together to set humanity free from the encircling gloom of nihilism, which is perhaps the most dangerous malady of contemporary culture, since it threatens to ‘cancel’ hope.’”

“This reference to the darkness that surrounds us echoes one of Saint John Henry Newman’s best-known texts, the hymn Lead, Kindly Light,” he said, saying this prayer implies that while humanity is unsteady and unable to clearly see which path to take, they can still move forward with Christ as a guide.

It is the task of education, then, to offer this light to those who remain paralyzed by pessimism and fear, the pope said, saying,  “let us disarm the false reasons for resignation and powerlessness, and let us share the great reasons for hope in today’s world.”

“Let us reflect upon and point out to others those ‘constellations’ that transmit light and guidance at this present time, which is darkened by so much injustice and uncertainty,” he said.

In this sense, the pope voiced hope that all schools, universities and educational institutions would always be “gateways to a civilization of dialogue and peace” for everyone, even those who are weaker or who lack opportunities.

Pope Leo said that life is vibrant not because one is rich, powerful or beautiful, but because “we discover within ourselves the truth that we are called by God, have a vocation, have a mission, that our lives serve something greater than ourselves.”

“Every single creature has a role to play,” he said, echoing a statement he often repeated throughout his years as pastor, encouraging parishioners the two Augustinian parishes in Trujillo, Peru, to get involved and to serve when and how they were able.

Leo said that the contribution each person can make “is uniquely valuable, and the task of educational communities is to encourage and cherish that contribution.”

“Let us not forget that at the heart of the educational journey we do not find abstract individuals but real people, especially those who seem to be underperforming according to the parameters of economies that exclude or even kill them,” he said.

Leo said it is the task of Catholic education “to form people, so that they may shine like stars in their full dignity.”

“We can say, then, that from a Christian perspective education helps everyone to become saints,” the pope said, “Nothing less will do,” he said, and closed his homily voicing hope that every Catholic educational institution “will help each person to discover their own call to holiness.”

Follow Elise Ann Allen on X: @eliseannallen