November 10, 2015: Memorial of Saint Leo the Great
Pope St. Leo the Great facing Attila the Hun, a sculpture in St. Peter's Basilica, Vatican City Today the Church celebrates the memorial of St. Leo the Great, pope and doctor, during whose pontificate the Council of Chalcedon (451) defined that Christ is one divine person with two natures, divine and human. It was a confirmation of his Epistola Dogmatica (Tomus) to the Patriarch Flavian of Constantinople. He vigorously defended the unity of the Church. He detained the onrush of the barbarians under Attila. (See video below.) Church historians recognize two popes with the title "Great": St. Leo I (reign 440–461) and St. Gregory I (590–604). Some add St. Nicholas I (858–867). Pope St. John Paul II’s canonization prompted discussion over whether he, too, should be afforded this title. No one, however weak, is denied a share in the victory of the cross. No one is beyond the help of the prayer of Christ. — St. Leo the Great Read Pope St. John XXIII's Enc