Bishop Donald Hying of the Diocese of Madison celebrated the feast day of St. Bonaventure recently, referring to him as a mystic and a theologian in the Franciscan order.

“I certainly haven't studied his writings as I would like to, but I've always admired his fusion of love and knowledge,” Hying said in a video posted on Facebook. “He always said knowledge is good, but love is better. We can know everything about our faith, but if that knowledge is not somehow integrated and fused into a life of prayer and devotion, of service to our neighbor...it can simply remain a dry idea in our mind.” 

St. Bonaventure was born in 1217 in Bagnoregio, a Britannica report said. He became very sick as a child and credited his recovery to the intercession of St. Francis of Assisi. He studied at the University of Paris before joining the Franciscan order. 

Bonaventure considered the pursuit of truth a form of divine worship and a path to the love of God, Britannica said. He studied, wrote and taught extensively. Pope Gregory X appointed Bonaventure to serve as the Cardinal Bishop of Albano, Italy, in 1273. Bonaventure passed away in 1274 on July 15, and Catholics celebrate his feast day each year on July 15. Pope Sixtus V declared Bonaventure a Doctor of the Church in 1587. 

“Doctor of the Church” is an official title that a pope can bestow upon a person who has made significant and lasting contributions to the church, a report from Crossroads Initiative said. Throughout the history of the Catholic Church, only 37 people have ever been granted this title. There are three requirements to becoming a Doctor of the Church: “1) holiness that is truly outstanding, even among saints; 2) depth of doctrinal insight; and 3) an extensive body of writings which the church can recommend as an expression of the authentic and life-giving Catholic Tradition.” 

St. Bonaventure University (SBU) in New York was founded by a group of Italian friars who traveled to America to establish a Franciscan university, the SBU website said. The school was dedicated on the Feast of Saint Francis in 1858, at which time it was named after St. Bonaventure, who is the patron saint of Franciscan studies and learning. In the early 1900s, the college became the home of the School of Franciscan Studies as well as the Franciscan Institute.