Celebrating the Feast Day of

Blessed John Duns Scotus

Blessed John Duns Scotus

November 8 is the feast day of Blessed John Duns Scotus – a renowned Franciscan friar and scholar. Scotus was born in 1266 and hailed from Duns, Berwick, Scotland (as his name indicates). His father was a wealthy farmer and uncle – Elias Duns – a Franciscan friar in the city of Dumfries. John Duns Scotus ended up being a friar in Dumfries as well.

Duns, Scotland

An excellent student, John studied at the Universities of Oxford and Paris. He finished his doctorate at the University of Paris where he also worked as a teacher. Besides lecturing in Paris, John taught at Oxford and Cambridge.

John continued discerning his religious vocation during his studies too. It led to his ordination at St. Andrew’s Church in Northampton. He was 25 at the time. Deeply immersed in religious life, John delighted in the Augustinian-Franciscan tradition. A true intellectual he devoured the works of Aquinas, Aristotle, and a number of Muslim philosophers.

Oxford, England

In 1305, John received his doctorate. Two year later he brought forth arguments in the defense of the Immaculate Conception of Mary. Outside of today’s scholarly circles, he is best known for this defense. The University of Paris actually accepted John’s ideas on the Immaculate Conception of Mary and the Church defined them in 1854.

Cologne, Germany

John Duns Scotus died in Cologne, Germany in November 1308, a year after moving to the city. He is buried not far from the famous Cologne Cathedral. On March 20, 1993, Pope John Paul II beatified him.