Cyril of Jerusalem

Cyril was born around 313 and became Bishop of Jerusalem near 350, succeeding Maximus. His tenure was rocky: the hostility of Acacius of Caesarea and shifting imperial politics forced him into repeated exile. What he left behind in his old age were writings that documented the instruction of catechumens and the liturgical order of his era — primary sources that became invaluable to later scholars. He died in 386. Centuries later, the churches that venerated him as a saint found more: in 1883, Pope Leo XIII declared him a Doctor of the Church. The Roman Catholic Church marks an optional memoria…