Patriarch and Doctor · c. 376–444
Spirituality: Defense of the unity of Christ and the dignity of His Mother.
Reflection: Cyril was patriarch of Alexandria when Nestorius, bishop of
Constantinople, began teaching that Mary should not be called the Mother of God.
Cyril saw that this divided Christ into two persons. At the Council of Ephesus in 431,
which he led on behalf of the Pope, the Church solemnly proclaimed Mary Theotokos,
Mother of God, and the people of Ephesus escorted the bishops through the streets by
torchlight. His temperament was fierce, but his teaching on Christ was deep and
sound. Pope Leo XIII declared him a Doctor in 1882.