This is a list of Catholic philosophers and theologians whose

Catholicism The Catholic Church (), also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the List of Christian denominations by number of members, largest Christian church, with 1.27 to 1.41 billion baptized Catholics Catholic Church by country, worldwid ...

is important to their works. Their names are ordered chronologically from earliest to latest in time based on their dates of birth. To make for easier reading, this list of philosophers are subdivided into various philosophical movements and time periods based on the dates they were philosophically active (For example: Nicholas Malabranche is categorized here as a “1660-1914 Enlightenment and Colonial era philosopher” as he wrote his seminal work “Concerning the Search after Truth” in 1674) in order to give a rough sense of influence between thinkers.

Patristic Philosophers (c. 30-476)

Ignatius of Antioch Ignatius of Antioch (; ; died 108/140), also known as Ignatius Theophorus (), was an early Christian writer and Patriarch of Antioch. While en route to Rome, where he met his Christian martyrs, martyrdom, Ignatius wrote a series of letters. This ...

(c. 35/50 – between 98 and 110) *

Papias of Hierapolis Papias () was a Greeks, Greek Apostolic Father, Bishop of Hierapolis (modern Pamukkale, Turkey), and author who lived c. 60 – c. 130 AD He wrote the ''Exposition of the Sayings of the Lord'' () in five books. This work, which is lost apart fr ...

(c. 60 – c. 163) * Polycarp of Smyrna (c. 69 – c. 155) *

Justin Martyr Justin, known posthumously as Justin Martyr (; ), also known as Justin the Philosopher, was an early Christian apologist and Philosophy, philosopher. Most of his works are lost, but two apologies and a dialogue did survive. The ''First Apolog ...

(100–165) *

Irenaeus Irenaeus ( or ; ; ) was a Greeks, Greek bishop noted for his role in guiding and expanding Christianity, Christian communities in the southern regions of present-day France and, more widely, for the development of Christian theology by oppos ...

(130–202) *

Clement of Rome Clement of Rome (; ; died ), also known as Pope Clement I, was the Pope, Bishop of Rome in the Christianity in the 1st century, late first century AD. He is considered to be the first of the Apostolic Fathers of the Church. Little is known about ...

(died 99) *

Clement of Alexandria Titus Flavius Clemens, also known as Clement of Alexandria (; – ), was a Christian theology, Christian theologian and philosopher who taught at the Catechetical School of Alexandria. Among his pupils were Origen and Alexander of Jerusalem. A ...

(150–215) *

Tertullian Tertullian (; ; 155 – 220 AD) was a prolific Early Christianity, early Christian author from Roman Carthage, Carthage in the Africa (Roman province), Roman province of Africa. He was the first Christian author to produce an extensive co ...

(155–222) *

Origen of Alexandria Origen of Alexandria (), also known as Origen Adamantius, was an early Christian scholar, ascetic, and theologian who was born and spent the first half of his career in Alexandria. He was a prolific writer who wrote roughly 2,000 treatises i ...

(184–253) * Cyprian of Carthage (200–258) * Aphrahat (270–345) *

Athanasius of Alexandria Athanasius I of Alexandria ( – 2 May 373), also called Athanasius the Great, Athanasius the Confessor, or, among Coptic Christians, Athanasius the Apostolic, was a Christian theologian and the 20th patriarch of Alexandria (as Athanasius ...

(296–373) * Hillary of Poitiers (300–368) *

Ephrem the Syrian Ephrem the Syrian (; ), also known as Ephraem the Deacon, Ephrem of Edessa or Aprem of Nisibis, (Syriac: ܡܪܝ ܐܦܪܝܡ ܣܘܪܝܝܐ — ''Mâr Aphrêm Sûryâyâ)'' was a prominent Christian theology, Christian theologian and Christian literat ...

(306–373) *

Basil of Caesarea Basil of Caesarea, also called Saint Basil the Great (330 – 1 or 2 January 379) was an early Roman Christian prelate who served as Bishop of Caesarea in Cappadocia from 370 until his death in 379. He was an influential theologian who suppor ...

(329–379) * Gregory Nazianzus (329–390) *

Gregory of Nyssa Gregory of Nyssa, also known as Gregory Nyssen ( or Γρηγόριος Νυσσηνός; c. 335 – c. 394), was an early Roman Christian prelate who served as Bishop of Nyssa from 372 to 376 and from 378 until his death in 394. He is ve ...

(335–395) *

Ambrose Ambrose of Milan (; 4 April 397), venerated as Saint Ambrose, was a theologian and statesman who served as Bishop of Milan from 374 to 397. He expressed himself prominently as a public figure, fiercely promoting Roman Christianity against Ari ...

(340–397) *

Jerome Jerome (; ; ; – 30 September 420), also known as Jerome of Stridon, was an early Christian presbyter, priest, Confessor of the Faith, confessor, theologian, translator, and historian; he is commonly known as Saint Jerome. He is best known ...

(347–420) *

John Chrysostom John Chrysostom (; ; – 14 September 407) was an important Church Father who served as archbishop of Constantinople. He is known for his preaching and public speaking, his denunciation of abuse of authority by both ecclesiastical and p ...

(347–407) *

Augustine of Hippo Augustine of Hippo ( , ; ; 13 November 354 – 28 August 430) was a theologian and philosopher of Berber origin and the bishop of Hippo Regius in Numidia, Roman North Africa. His writings deeply influenced the development of Western philosop ...

(354–430) *

Cyril of Alexandria Cyril of Alexandria (; or ⲡⲓ̀ⲁⲅⲓⲟⲥ Ⲕⲓⲣⲓⲗⲗⲟⲥ; 376–444) was the Patriarch of Alexandria from 412 to 444. He was enthroned when the city was at the height of its influence and power within the Roman Empire ...

(378–444) * Isaac of Antioch (451–452)

Early Medieval Philosophers (c.476-1000)

Boethius Anicius Manlius Severinus Boethius, commonly known simply as Boethius (; Latin: ''Boetius''; 480–524 AD), was a Roman Roman Senate, senator, Roman consul, consul, ''magister officiorum'', polymath, historian, and philosopher of the Early Middl ...

(477–524) *

Pope Gregory I Pope Gregory I (; ; – 12 March 604), commonly known as Saint Gregory the Great (; ), was the 64th Bishop of Rome from 3 September 590 until his death on 12 March 604. He is known for instituting the first recorded large-scale mission from Ro ...

(540–604) *

Isidore of Seville Isidore of Seville (; 4 April 636) was a Spania, Hispano-Roman scholar, theologian and Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Seville, archbishop of Seville. He is widely regarded, in the words of the 19th-century historian Charles Forbes René de Montal ...

(560–636) *

Maximus the Confessor Maximus the Confessor (), also spelled Maximos, otherwise known as Maximus the Theologian and Maximus of Constantinople ( – 13 August 662), was a Christianity, Christian monk, theologian, and scholar. In his early life, Maximus was a civil se ...

(580–662) *

Bede Bede (; ; 672/326 May 735), also known as Saint Bede, Bede of Jarrow, the Venerable Bede, and Bede the Venerable (), was an English monk, author and scholar. He was one of the most known writers during the Early Middle Ages, and his most f ...

(672/3–735) *

John of Damascus John of Damascus or John Damascene, born Yūḥana ibn Manṣūr ibn Sarjūn, was an Arab Christian monk, priest, hymnographer, and apologist. He was born and raised in Damascus or AD 676; the precise date and place of his death is not know ...

(675/6–749) * Radbertus (785–865) *

John Scotus Eriugena John Scotus Eriugena, also known as Johannes Scotus Erigena, John the Scot or John the Irish-born ( – c. 877), was an Irish Neoplatonist philosopher, theologian and poet of the Early Middle Ages. Bertrand Russell dubbed him "the most ...

(800–877)

Scholastic Philosophers (c.1000-1492)

Anselm of Canterbury Anselm of Canterbury OSB (; 1033/4–1109), also known as (, ) after his birthplace and () after his monastery, was an Italian Benedictine monk, abbot, philosopher, and theologian of the Catholic Church, who served as Archbishop of Canterb ...

(1033/4–1109) *

Peter Abelard Peter Abelard (12 February 1079 – 21 April 1142) was a medieval French scholastic philosopher, leading logician, theologian, teacher, musician, composer, and poet. This source has a detailed description of his philosophical work. In philos ...

(1079–1142) *

Adelard of Bath Adelard of Bath (; 1080? 1142–1152?) was a 12th-century English natural philosopher. He is known both for his original works and for translating many important Greek scientific works of astrology, astronomy, philosophy, alchemy and mathemat ...

(1080–1152) *

Bernard of Clairvaux Bernard of Clairvaux, Cistercians, O.Cist. (; 109020 August 1153), venerated as Saint Bernard, was an abbot, Mysticism, mystic, co-founder of the Knights Templar, and a major leader in the reform of the Benedictines through the nascent Cistercia ...

(1090–1153) *

Hugh of Saint Victor Hugh of Saint Victor ( 1096 – 11 February 1141) was a Saxon canon regular and a leading theologian and writer on mystical theology. Life As with many medieval figures, little is known about Hugh's early life. He was probably born in the 1090s. ...

(1096–1141) *

Peter Lombard Peter Lombard (also Peter the Lombard, Pierre Lombard or Petrus Lombardus; 1096 – 21/22 August 1160) was an Italian scholasticism, scholastic theologian, Bishop of Paris, and author of ''Sentences, Four Books of Sentences'' which became the s ...

(1096–1160) *

Hildegard of Bingen Hildegard of Bingen Benedictines, OSB (, ; ; 17 September 1179), also known as the Sibyl of the Rhine, was a German Benedictines, Benedictine abbess and polymath active as a writer, composer, philosopher, Christian mysticism, mystic, visiona ...

(1098–1179) *

Héloïse Héloïse; c. 1100–01? – 16 May 1163–64?), variously Héloïse d'ArgenteuilCharrier, Charlotte. Heloise Dans L'histoire Et Dans la Legende. Librairie Ancienne Honore Champion Quai Malaquais, VI, Paris, 1933 or Héloïse du Paraclet, was a ...

(1100/1–1163/4) * John of Salisbury (c. 1110–1180) *

Robert Grosseteste Robert Grosseteste ( ; ; 8 or 9 October 1253), also known as Robert Greathead or Robert of Lincoln, was an Kingdom of England, English statesman, scholasticism, scholastic philosopher, theologian, scientist and Bishop of Lincoln. He was born of ...

(1175–1253) *

Francis of Assisi Giovanni di Pietro di Bernardone ( 1181 – 3 October 1226), known as Francis of Assisi, was an Italians, Italian Mysticism, mystic, poet and Friar, Catholic friar who founded the religious order of the Franciscans. Inspired to lead a Chris ...

(1181/2–1226) *

Alexander of Hales Alexander of Hales (also Halensis, Alensis, Halesius, Alesius ; 21 August 1245)—known also as , or "Irrefutable Teacher" (so-called by Pope Alexander IV in the bull ), and as (or "King of Theologians")—was a Franciscan friar, theologian, an ...

(1185–1245) *

Albertus Magnus Albertus Magnus ( 1200 – 15 November 1280), also known as Saint Albert the Great, Albert of Swabia, Albert von Bollstadt, or Albert of Cologne, was a German Dominican friar, philosopher, scientist, and bishop, considered one of the great ...

(1193–1280) * Henry of Ghent (1217–1293) *

Roger Bacon Roger Bacon (; or ', also '' Rogerus''; ), also known by the Scholastic accolades, scholastic accolade ''Doctor Mirabilis'', was a medieval English polymath, philosopher, scientist, theologian and Franciscans, Franciscan friar who placed co ...

(1219/20–1292) *

Bonaventure Bonaventure ( ; ; ; born Giovanni di Fidanza; 1221 – 15 July 1274) was an Italian Catholic Franciscan bishop, Cardinal (Catholic Church), cardinal, Scholasticism, scholastic theologian and philosopher. The seventh Minister General ( ...

(1221–1274) *

Thomas Aquinas Thomas Aquinas ( ; ; – 7 March 1274) was an Italian Dominican Order, Dominican friar and Catholic priest, priest, the foremost Scholasticism, Scholastic thinker, as well as one of the most influential philosophers and theologians in the W ...

(1225–1274) *

Ramon Llull Ramon Llull (; ; – 1316), sometimes anglicized as ''Raymond Lully'', was a philosopher, theologian, poet, missionary, Christian apologist and former knight from the Kingdom of Majorca. He invented a philosophical system known as the ''Art ...

(1232–1315) * Giles of Rome (1243–1316) *

Godfrey of Fontaines Godfrey of Fontaines (Latin: Godefridus de Fontibus, born sometime before 1250, died 29 October 1306 or 1309), was a scholastic philosopher and theologian who was designated by the title Doctor Venerandus. He made contributions to a diverse range ...

(1250–1306/9) * James of Viterbo (1255–1307) * Gertrude of Helfta (1256–1302) *

Meister Eckhart Eckhart von Hochheim ( – ), commonly known as Meister Eckhart (), Master Eckhart or Eckehart, claimed original name Johannes Eckhart,

(1260–1328) *

Dante Alighieri Dante Alighieri (; most likely baptized Durante di Alighiero degli Alighieri; – September 14, 1321), widely known mononymously as Dante, was an Italian Italian poetry, poet, writer, and philosopher. His ''Divine Comedy'', originally called ...

(1265–1321) *

John Duns Scotus John Duns Scotus ( ; , "Duns the Scot"; – 8 November 1308) was a Scottish Catholic priest and Franciscan friar, university professor, philosopher and theologian. He is considered one of the four most important Christian philosopher-t ...

(1266–1308) * William of Alnwick (1275–1333) *

William of Ockham William of Ockham or Occam ( ; ; 9/10 April 1347) was an English Franciscan friar, scholastic philosopher, apologist, and theologian, who was born in Ockham, a small village in Surrey. He is considered to be one of the major figures of medie ...

(1287–1347) * William of Ware (1290–1305) *

Henry Suso Henry Suso, OP (also called Amandus, a name adopted in his writings, and Heinrich Seuse or Heinrich von Berg in German; 21 March 1295 – 25 January 1366) was a German Dominican friar and the most popular vernacular writer of the fourteenth c ...

(1295–1366) *

Jean Buridan Jean Buridan (; ; Latin: ''Johannes Buridanus''; – ) was an influential 14thcentury French scholastic philosopher. Buridan taught in the faculty of arts at the University of Paris for his entire career and focused in particular on logic and ...

(1300–1358/61) *

Bridget of Sweden Bridget of Sweden, Bridgettines, OSsS ( – 23 July 1374), also known as Birgitta Birgersdotter and Birgitta of Vadstena (), was a Swedish Catholic Mysticism, mystic and the founder of the Bridgettines. Outside Sweden, she was also known as the ...

(1303–1373) * Albert of Saxony (1320–1390) *

Nicole Oresme Nicole Oresme (; ; 1 January 1325 – 11 July 1382), also known as Nicolas Oresme, Nicholas Oresme, or Nicolas d'Oresme, was a French philosopher of the later Middle Ages. He wrote influential works on economics, mathematics, physics, astrology, ...

(1325–1382) *

Catherine of Siena Caterina di Jacopo di Benincasa (25 March 1347 – 29 April 1380), known as Catherine of Siena, was an Italian mystic and pious laywoman who engaged in papal and Italian politics through extensive letter-writing and advocacy. Canonized in 1461, ...

(1347–1380) *

Jean Gerson Jean Charlier de Gerson (13 December 1363 – 12 July 1429) was a French scholar, educator, reformer, and poet, Chancellor of the University of Paris, a guiding light of the conciliar movement and one of the most prominent theologians at the Cou ...

(1363–1429) * John Capreolus (1380–1444)

Renaissance and Counter Reformation Philosophers (c.1492-1660)

* Sylvester Mazzolini (1456/7–1527) *

Giovanni Pico della Mirandola Giovanni Pico dei conti della Mirandola e della Concordia ( ; ; ; 24 February 146317 November 1494), known as Pico della Mirandola, was an Italian Renaissance nobleman and philosopher. He is famed for the events of 1486, when, at the age of 23, ...

(1463–1494) *

Desiderius Erasmus Desiderius Erasmus Roterodamus ( ; ; 28 October c. 1466 – 12 July 1536), commonly known in English as Erasmus of Rotterdam or simply Erasmus, was a Dutch Christian humanist, Catholic priest and Catholic theology, theologian, educationalist ...

(1466–1536) *

John Mair John Mair may refer to: *John Mair (philosopher) (1467–1550, also called John Major), Scottish philosopher and historian *John Mair (journalist), British journalist and academic *John Mair (architect) (1876–1959), New Zealand government archite ...

(1467–1550) *

Thomas Cajetan Thomas Cajetan ( ; 20 February 14699 August 1534), also known as Gaetanus, commonly Tommaso de Vio or Thomas de Vio, was an Italian philosopher, theologian, the Master of the Order of Preachers 1508 to 1518, and cardinal from 1517 until his de ...

(1469–1534) * Francesco Silvestri (1474–1528) *

Thomas More Sir Thomas More (7 February 1478 – 6 July 1535), venerated in the Catholic Church as Saint Thomas More, was an English lawyer, judge, social philosopher, author, statesman, theologian, and noted Renaissance humanist. He also served Henry VII ...

(1478–1535) *

John Fisher John Fisher (c. 19 October 1469 – 22 June 1535) was an English Catholic prelate who served as Bishop of Rochester from 1504 to 1535 and as chancellor of the University of Cambridge. He is honoured as a martyr and saint by the Catholic Chu ...

(1469–1535) *

Nicolaus Copernicus Nicolaus Copernicus (19 February 1473 – 24 May 1543) was a Renaissance polymath who formulated a mathematical model, model of Celestial spheres#Renaissance, the universe that placed heliocentrism, the Sun rather than Earth at its cen ...

(1473–1543) *

Francisco de Vitoria Francisco de Vitoria ( – 12 August 1546; also known as Francisco de Victoria) was a Spanish Roman Catholic philosopher, theologian, and jurist of Renaissance Spain. He is the founder of the tradition in philosophy known as the School of Sala ...

(1483–1546) *

Ignatius of Loyola Ignatius of Loyola ( ; ; ; ; born Íñigo López de Oñaz y Loyola; – 31 July 1556), venerated as Saint Ignatius of Loyola, was a Basque Spaniard Catholic priest and theologian, who, with six companions, founded the religious order of the S ...

(1491–1556) *

Peter Faber Peter Faber, SJ (, ) (13 April 1506 – 1 August 1546) was a Savoyard Catholic priest, theologian and co-founder of the Society of Jesus, along with Ignatius of Loyola and Francis Xavier. Pope Francis announced his canonization in 2013. Life Ea ...

(1506–1546) *

Teresa of Ávila Teresa of Ávila (born Teresa Sánchez de Cepeda Dávila y Ahumada; 28March 15154or 15October 1582), also called Saint Teresa of Jesus, was a Carmelite nun and prominent Spanish mystic and religious reformer. Active during the Counter-Re ...

(1515–1582) *

Michel de Montaigne Michel Eyquem, Seigneur de Montaigne ( ; ; ; 28 February 1533 – 13 September 1592), commonly known as Michel de Montaigne, was one of the most significant philosophers of the French Renaissance. He is known for popularising the the essay ...

(1533–1592) * Domingo Báñez (1528–1604) *

Franciscus Patricius Franciscus Patricius (Croatian language, Croatian: ''Franjo Petriš'' or ''Frane Petrić''; Italian language, Italian: ''Francesco Patrizi''; 25 April 1529 – 6 February 1597) was a philosopher and scientist from the Republic of Venice, orig ...

(1529–1597) *

Luis de Molina Luis de Molina (29 September 1535 – 12 October 1600) was a Spanish Jesuit Catholic priest, jurist, economist and theologian renowned for his contributions to philosophy and economics within the framework of the second scholasticism. A ...

(1535–1600) *

John of the Cross St. John of the Cross (; ; né Juan de Yepes y Álvarez; 24 June 1542 – 14 December 1591) was a Spanish Roman Catholic priest, mystic, and Carmelite friar of ''Converso'' ancestry. He is a major figure of the Counter-Reformation in Spain, ...

(1542–1591) *

Robert Bellarmine Robert Bellarmine (; ; 4 October 1542 – 17 September 1621) was an Italian Jesuit and a cardinal of the Catholic Church. He was canonized a saint in 1930 and named Doctor of the Church, one of only 37. He was one of the most important figure ...

(1542–1621) *

Justus Lipsius Justus Lipsius (Joest Lips or Joost Lips; October 18, 1547 – March 23, 1606) was a Flemish Catholic philologist, philosopher, and humanist. Lipsius wrote a series of works designed to revive ancient Stoicism in a form that would be compatibl ...

(1547–1606) *

Francisco Suárez Francisco Suárez (; 5 January 1548 – 25 September 1617) was a Spanish Jesuit priest, philosopher and theologian, one of the leading figures of the School of Salamanca movement. His work is considered a turning point in the history of second ...

(1548–1617) * Lawrence of Brindisi (1559–1619) *

Francis de Sales Francis de Sales, Congregation of the Oratory, C.O., Order of Minims, O.M. (; ; 21 August 156728 December 1622) was a Savoyard state, Savoyard Catholic prelate who served as Bishop of Geneva and is a saint of the Catholic Church. He became n ...

(1567-1622) * Péter Pázmány (1570–1637) * John of St. Thomas (John Poinsot) (1589–1644) * Michael Wadding (1591–1644) *

René Descartes René Descartes ( , ; ; 31 March 1596 – 11 February 1650) was a French philosopher, scientist, and mathematician, widely considered a seminal figure in the emergence of modern philosophy and Modern science, science. Mathematics was paramou ...

(1596–1650) *

Blaise Pascal Blaise Pascal (19June 162319August 1662) was a French mathematician, physicist, inventor, philosopher, and Catholic Church, Catholic writer. Pascal was a child prodigy who was educated by his father, a tax collector in Rouen. His earliest ...

(1623–1662) * Matthias Tanner (1630–1692)

Enlightenment and Colonial Era Philosophers (c.1660-1914)

Nicolas Malebranche Nicolas Malebranche ( ; ; 6 August 1638 – 13 October 1715) was a French Oratorian Catholic priest and rationalist philosopher. In his works, he sought to synthesise the thought of St. Augustine and Descartes, in order to demonstrate the ...

(1638–1715) * Noel Alexandre (1639–1724) *

Giambattista Vico Giambattista Vico (born Giovan Battista Vico ; ; 23 June 1668 – 23 January 1744) was an Italian philosopher, rhetorician, historian, and jurist during the Italian Enlightenment. He criticized the expansion and development of modern rationali ...

(1668–1744) * Giovanni Battista Scaramelli (1687–1752) * Peter Dens (1690–1775) *

Alphonsus Liguori Alphonsus Maria de Liguori (27 September 1696 – 1 August 1787) was an Italian Catholic bishop and saint, as well as a spiritual writer, composer, musician, artist, poet, lawyer, scholastic philosopher, and theologian. He founded the Congre ...

(1696–1787) * Febronius (Johann Nikolaus von Hontheim) (1701–1790) * Francesco Antonio Zaccaria (1714–1795) * Patrick Benedict Zimmer (1752–1820) *

Joseph de Maistre Joseph Marie, comte de Maistre (1 April 1753 – 26 February 1821) was a Savoyard philosopher, writer, lawyer, diplomat, and magistrate. One of the forefathers of conservatism, Maistre advocated social hierarchy and monarchy in the period immedi ...

(1753–1821) *

Franz Xaver von Baader Franz von Baader (27 March 1765 – 23 May 1841), born Benedikt Franz Xaver Baader, was a Catholic theologian, philosopher, and mining engineer from Germany. Resisting the empiricism of his day, he denounced most Western philosophy since ...

(1765–1841) * Georg Hermes (1775–1831) * Hughes Felicité Robert de Lamennais (1782–1854) * Anton Günther(1783–1863) * Izidor Guzmics (1786–1839) * Gioacchino Ventura di Raulica (1792–1861) *

Luigi Taparelli Luigi Taparelli (born Prospero Taparelli d'Azeglio; 24 November 17932 September 1862) was an Italian scholar of the Society of Jesus and counter-revolutionary who coined the term social justice and elaborated the principles of subsidiarity as ...

(1793–1862) *

Antonio Rosmini-Serbati Antonio Francesco Davide Ambrogio Rosmini-Serbati, IC (; 25 March 17971 July 1855) was an Italian Catholic priest and philosopher. He founded the Rosminians, officially the Institute of Charity, and pioneered the concept of social justice a ...

(1797–1855) * Francis Xavier Patrizi (1797–1881) * Franz Anton Staudenmaier (1800–1856) *

John Henry Newman John Henry Newman (21 February 1801 – 11 August 1890) was an English Catholic theologian, academic, philosopher, historian, writer, and poet. He was previously an Anglican priest and after his conversion became a cardinal. He was an ...

(1801–1890) *

Nicholas Wiseman Nicholas Patrick Stephen Wiseman (3 August 1802 – 15 February 1865) was an English Roman Catholic prelate who served as the first Archbishop of Westminster upon the re-establishment of the Roman Catholic hierarchy in England and Wales in 1 ...

(1802–1865) * Félix Dupanloup (1802–1878) *

Jean-Baptiste Henri Lacordaire Jean-Baptiste Henri-Dominique Lacordaire, OP (; 12 May 1802 – 21 November 1861), often styled Henri-Dominique Lacordaire, was a French Catholic priest, journalist, theologian and political activist. He re-established the Dominican Order in ...

(1802–1861) * Orestes Brownson (1803–1876) *

Alexis de Tocqueville Alexis Charles Henri Clérel, comte de Tocqueville (29 July 180516 April 1859), was a French Aristocracy (class), aristocrat, diplomat, political philosopher, and historian. He is best known for his works ''Democracy in America'' (appearing in t ...

(1805–1859) * Auguste Joseph Alphonse Gratry (1805–1872) * Giuseppe Pecci (1807–1890) * Karl Josef von Hefele (1809–1893) * Jaime Balmes (1810–1848) * Pope Leo XIII (Vincenzo Gioacchino Raffaele Luigi Pecci) (1810–1903) * Joseph Kleutgen (1811–1883) * Louis Veuillot (1813–1883) *

Frederick William Faber Frederick William Faber (28 June 1814 – 26 September 1863) was a noted English hymnwriter and theologian, who converted from Anglicanism to Roman Catholicism in 1845. He was ordained to the Catholic priesthood subsequently in 1847. His best-kn ...

(1814–1863) * Franz Jakob Clemens (1815–1862) * Valentin Gröne (1817–1882) * John Dobree Dalgairns (1818–1876) *

Gregor Mendel Gregor Johann Mendel Order of Saint Augustine, OSA (; ; ; 20 July 1822 – 6 January 1884) was an Austrian Empire, Austrian biologist, meteorologist, mathematician, Augustinians, Augustinian friar and abbot of St Thomas's Abbey, Brno, St. Thom ...

(1822–1884) * Augusta Theodosia Drane (1823–1894) * Nicholas-Joseph Laforêt (1823–1872) * Albert Stöckl (1823–1895) *

Joseph Hergenröther Joseph Hergenröther (15 September 1824 – 3 October 1890) was a German Church historian and canonist, and the first Cardinal-Prefect of the Vatican Archive. Biography Born in Würzburg, he was the second son of Johann Jacob Hergenröther, ...

(1824–1890) * Charles Émile Freppel (1827–1891) * Constantine von Schäzler (1827–1880) * Ernest Hello (1828–1885) * Henry Nutcombe Oxenham (1829–1888) *

Tommaso Maria Zigliara Tommaso Maria Zigliara, OP (29 October 1833 – 11 May 1893) was a Corsican priest of the Catholic Church, a member of the Dominicans, a theologian, philosopher and a cardinal. Early life Zigliara was born on 29 October 1833 at Bonifacio a sea ...

(1833–1893) *

Franz Brentano Franz Clemens Honoratus Hermann Josef Brentano (; ; 16 January 1838 – 17 March 1917) was a German philosopher and psychologist. His 1874 '' Psychology from an Empirical Standpoint'', considered his magnum opus, is credited with having reintrod ...

(1838–1917) * Léon Ollé-Laprune (1839–1898) * Caspar Isenkrahe (1844–1921) * Henry Denifle (1844–1905) * Aloisio Galea (1851–1905) *

Marcelino Menéndez y Pelayo Marcelino Menéndez y Pelayo (; 3 November 1856 – 19 May 1912) was a Spanish scholar, historian and literary critic. Even though his main interest was the history of ideas, and Hispanic philology in general, he also cultivated poetry, transl ...

(1856–1912) *

Maurice Blondel Maurice Blondel (; ; 2 November 1861 – 4 June 1949) was a French philosopher, whose most influential works, notably ''L'Action'', aimed at establishing the correct relationship between autonomous philosophical reasoning and Christian belief. ...

(1861–1949) * Antonin Sertillanges (1863–1948) *

Miguel de Unamuno Miguel de Unamuno y Jugo (; ; 29 September 1864 – 31 December 1936) was a Spanish essayist, novelist, poet, playwright, philosopher, professor of Greek and Classics, and later rector at the University of Salamanca. His major philosophical ...

(1864-1936) * Henri Brémond (1865–1933) *

Maurice De Wulf Maurice Marie Charles Joseph De Wulf (1867–1947), was a Belgian Thomist philosopher, professor of philosophy at the Catholic University of Leuven, was one of the pioneers of the historiography of medieval philosophy. His book ''History of Me ...

(1867–1947) *

Paul Claudel Paul Claudel (; 6 August 1868 – 23 February 1955) was a French poet, dramatist and diplomat, and the younger brother of the sculptor Camille Claudel. He was most famous for his verse dramas, which often convey his devout Catholicism. Early lif ...

(1868–1955) * Aleš Ušeničnik (1868–1952) *

Hilaire Belloc Joseph Hilaire Pierre René Belloc ( ; ; 27 July 187016 July 1953) was a French-English writer, politician, and historian. Belloc was also an orator, poet, sailor, satirist, writer of letters, soldier, and political activist. His Catholic fait ...

(1870–1953) * Charles Peguy (1873–1914)

Modern Philosophers (c.1914-present)

* G.K. Chesterton (1874–1936) *

Max Scheler Max Ferdinand Scheler (; 22 August 1874 – 19 May 1928) was a German philosopher known for his work in phenomenology, ethics, and philosophical anthropology. Considered in his lifetime one of the most prominent German philosophers,Davis, Zacha ...

(1874–1928) *

Reginald Garrigou-Lagrange Reginald is a masculine given name in the English language meaning "king". Etymology and history The name Reginald comes from Latin meaning "king" and "ruler" symbolizing authority and leadership. It comes from combining Latin “ rex” meaning ...

(1877–1964) *

Pierre Teilhard de Chardin Pierre Teilhard de Chardin (; 1 May 1881 – 10 April 1955) was a French Jesuit, Catholic priest, scientist, palaeontologist, theologian, and teacher. He was Darwinian and progressive in outlook and the author of several influential theologi ...

(1881–1955) *

Jacques Maritain Jacques Maritain (; 18 November 1882 – 28 April 1973) was a French Catholic philosopher. Raised as a Protestant, he was agnostic before converting to Catholicism in 1906. An author of more than 60 books, he helped to revive Thomas Aqui ...

(1882–1973) * Rudolf Allers (1883–1963) *

Étienne Gilson Étienne Henri Gilson (; 13 June 1884 – 19 September 1978) was a French philosopher and historian of philosophy. A scholar of medieval philosophy, he originally specialised in the thought of Descartes; he also philosophized in the tradition ...

(1884–1978) * Romano Guardini (1885–1968) *

François Mauriac François Charles Mauriac (; ; 11 October 1885 – 1 September 1970) was a French novelist, dramatist, critic, poet, and journalist, a member of the'' Académie française'' (from 1933), and laureate of the 1952 Nobel Prize in Literature, Nobel Pr ...

(1885-1970) *

Ronald Knox Ronald Arbuthnott Knox (17 February 1888 – 24 August 1957) was an English Catholic priest, theologian Theology is the study of religious belief from a religious perspective, with a focus on the nature of divinity. It is taught as an ...

(1888–1957) * Erich Przywara (1889–1972) *

Gabriel Marcel Gabriel Honoré Marcel (7 December 1889 – 8 October 1973) was a French philosopher, playwright, music critic and leading Christian existentialist. The author of over a dozen books and at least thirty plays, Marcel's work focused on the moder ...

(1889–1973) *

Martin Heidegger Martin Heidegger (; 26 September 1889 – 26 May 1976) was a German philosopher known for contributions to Phenomenology (philosophy), phenomenology, hermeneutics, and existentialism. His work covers a range of topics including metaphysics, art ...

(1889–1976) *

Ludwig Wittgenstein Ludwig Josef Johann Wittgenstein ( ; ; 26 April 1889 – 29 April 1951) was an Austrian philosopher who worked primarily in logic, the philosophy of mathematics, the philosophy of mind, and the philosophy of language. From 1929 to 1947, Witt ...

(1889-1951) * Dietrich von Hildebrand (1889–1977) *

Oswald von Nell-Breuning Oswald von Nell-Breuning (8 March 1890 – 21 August 1991) was a Roman Catholic theologian and sociologist. Born in Trier, Germany into an aristocratic family, Nell-Breuning was ordained in 1921 and appointed Professor of Ethics at the S ...

(1890–1991) * Charles Journet (1891–1975) *

Edith Stein Edith Stein (; ; in religion Teresa Benedicta of the Cross; 12 October 1891 – 9 August 1942) was a German philosopher who converted to Catholic Church, Catholicism and became a Discalced Carmelites, Discalced Carmelite nun. Edith Stein was mu ...

(1891–1942) *

Fulton Sheen Fulton John Sheen (born Peter John Sheen; May 8, 1895 – December 9, 1979) was an Catholic Church in the United States, American Catholic prelate who served as Roman Catholic Diocese of Rochester, Bishop of Rochester from 1966 to 1969. He was ...

(1895–1979) *

Henri de Lubac Henri-Marie Joseph Sonier de Lubac (; 20 February 1896 – 4 September 1991), better known as Henri de Lubac, was a French Jesuit priest and Cardinal (Catholicism), cardinal who is considered one of the most influential Theology, theologia ...

(1896–1991) *

Xavier Zubiri Xavier Zubiri (; ; 4 December 1898 – 21 September 1983) was a Spanish philosopher. Zubiri was a member of the Madrid School, composed of philosophers José Ortega y Gasset (the founder of the group), José Gaos, and Julián Marías, among ...

(1898–1983) * Austin Woodbury (1899–1979) * František Tomášek (1899–1992) * Heinrich Schlier (1900–1978) * Jean Guitton (1901–1999) * Mortimer Jerome Adler, converted to Catholicism in 2000 (1902–2001) *

Christopher Butler Christopher Butler may refer to * Christopher Butler (bishop) (1902–1986), English bishop and monk * Christopher Butler (literary scholar) (1940–2020), English academic, professor of English language and literature at the University of Oxford ...

(1902–1986) *

Józef Maria Bocheński Józef Maria Bocheński or Innocentius Bochenski (30 August 1902 – 8 February 1995) was a Polish Dominican, logician and philosopher. Biography Bocheński was born on 30 August 1902 in Czuszów, then part of the Russian Empire, to a fami ...

(1902–1995) *

Malcolm Muggeridge Thomas Malcolm Muggeridge (24 March 1903 – 14 November 1990) was a conservative British journalist and satirist. His father, H. T. Muggeridge, was a socialist politician and one of the early Labour Party Members of Parliament (for Romford, i ...

(1903–1990) * Yves Simon (1903–1961) *

Evelyn Waugh Arthur Evelyn St. John Waugh (; 28 October 1903 – 10 April 1966) was an English writer of novels, biographies, and travel books; he was also a prolific journalist and book reviewer. His most famous works include the early satires ''Decli ...

(1903–1966) *

Graham Greene Henry Graham Greene (2 October 1904 – 3 April 1991) was an English writer and journalist regarded by many as one of the leading novelists of the 20th century. Combining literary acclaim with widespread popularity, Greene acquired a re ...

(1904–1991) * Josef Pieper (1904–1997) *

John Courtney Murray John Courtney Murray (September 12, 1904 – August 16, 1967) was an American Jesuit priest and theologian who was especially known for his efforts to reconcile Catholicism and religious pluralism and particularly focused on the relations ...

(1904–1967) *

Karl Rahner Karl Rahner (5 March 1904 – 30 March 1984) was a German Jesuits, Jesuit priest and theologian who, alongside Henri de Lubac, Hans Urs von Balthasar, and Yves Congar, is considered to be one of the most influential Catholic theology, Cat ...

(1904–1984) * Yves Congar (1904–1995) * Osvaldo Lira (1904–1996) *

Bernard Lonergan Bernard Joseph Francis Lonergan (17 December 1904 – 26 November 1984) was a Canadians, Canadian Jesuit priest, philosophy, philosopher, and theology, theologian, regarded by many as one of the most important thinkers of the 20th century. Lone ...

(1904–1984) * Jean Danielou (1905–1974) *

Emmanuel Mounier Emmanuel Mounier (; ; 1 April 1905 – 22 March 1950) was a French philosopher, Catholic theologian, teacher and essayist. Biography Mounier was the guiding spirit in the French personalist movement, and founder and director of '' Esprit'', the ...

(1905–1950) *

Hans Urs von Balthasar Hans Urs von Balthasar (; 12 August 1905 – 26 June 1988) was a Swiss theologian and Catholic priest who is considered one of the most important Catholic theologians of the 20th century. With Joseph Ratzinger and Henri de Lubac, he founded the th ...

(1905–1988) * Friedrich-Carl Henckel von Donnersmarck (1905–1989) * Charles De Koninck (1906–1965) * Frederick Copleston (1907–1994) * Bernard Philip Kelly (1907–1958) * Bernard O'Brien (1907–1982) *

Olivier Messiaen Olivier Eugène Prosper Charles Messiaen (, ; ; 10 December 1908 – 27 April 1992) was a French composer, organist, and ornithology, ornithologist. One of the major composers of the 20th-century classical music, 20th century, he was also an ou ...

(1908–1992) * Plinio Corrêa de Oliveira (1908–1995) * Hélder Câmara (1909–1999) * Augusto Del Noce (1910–1989) * Cornelio Fabro (1911–1995) *

Marshall McLuhan Herbert Marshall McLuhan (, ; July 21, 1911 – December 31, 1980) was a Canadian philosopher whose work is among the cornerstones of the study of media studies, media theory. Raised in Winnipeg, McLuhan studied at the University of Manitoba a ...

(1911–1980) *

E. F. Schumacher Ernst Friedrich Schumacher (16 August 1911 – 4 September 1977) was a German-born British statistician and economist who is best known for his proposals for human-scale, decentralised and appropriate technologies.Biography on the inner dust ...

(1911–1977) * Anna Terruwe (1911–2004) * George Duggan (1912–2012) * Karel Vladimir Truhlar (1912–1977) * Walter J. Ong (1912–2003) * Louis Bouyer (1913–2004) *

Nicolás Gómez Dávila Nicolás Gómez Dávila (18 May 1913 – 17 May 1994) was a Colombian philosopher and aphorist sometimes referred to as "Nietzsche from the Andes." For a long time not appearing particularly interested in a mass propagation of his work, Góme ...

(1913–1994) * R. C. Zaehner (1913–1974) *

Edward Schillebeeckx Edward Cornelis Florentius Alfonsus Schillebeeckx (November 12, 1914 – December 23, 2009) was a Belgium, Belgian Catholic Church, Catholic theologian born in Antwerp. He taught at the Radboud University Nijmegen, Catholic University in Nijmegen ...

(1914–2009) *

John Hardon John Anthony Hardon (June 18, 1914 – December 30, 2000) was an American Jesuit priest, writer, teacher and theologian. A candidate for sainthood since 2005, he is recognized by the Catholic Church as a Servant of God. Early life John Hardon ...

(1914–2000) * Thomas Berry (1914–2009) * W. Norris Clarke (1915–2008) *

Thomas Merton Thomas Merton (January 31, 1915December 10, 1968), religious name M. Louis, was an American Trappist monk, writer, theologian, Christian mysticism, mystic, poet, social activist and scholar of comparative religion. He was a monk in the Trapp ...

(1915–1968) * Vincent Miceli (1915–1991) *

Peter Geach Peter Thomas Geach (29 March 1916 – 21 December 2013) was a British philosopher who was Professor of Logic at the University of Leeds. His areas of interest were philosophical logic, ethics, history of philosophy, philosophy of religion and ...

(1916–2013) *

Walker Percy Walker Percy, Oblate of Saint Benedict, OblSB (May 28, 1916 – May 10, 1990) was an American writer whose interests included philosophy and semiotics. Percy is noted for his philosophical novels set in and around New Orleans; his first, ''Th ...

(1916–1990) * Avery Dulles (1918–2008) *

G. E. M. Anscombe Gertrude Elizabeth Margaret Anscombe (; 18 March 1919 – 5 January 2001), usually cited as G. E. M. Anscombe or Elizabeth Anscombe, was a British analytic philosopher. She wrote on the philosophy of mind, philosophy of action, philosophi ...

(1919–2001) *

Conrad Baars Conrad W. Baars, M.D., (January 2, 1919 – October 18, 1981) was a Catholic psychiatrist. His most prominent work is with Dr. Anna Terruwe in the study of the human emotional life. Their general idea is that many emotional disturbances in a hu ...

(1919–1981) * Emerich Coreth (1919–2006) * Karol Wojtyła (Pope St. John Paul II) (1920–2005) *

Joseph Fitzmyer Joseph Augustine Fitzmyer (November 4, 1920 – December 24, 2016) was an American Catholic priest and scholar who taught at several American and British universities. He was a member of the Society of Jesus (Jesuits). Fitzmyer was considered ...

(1920–2016) * Catharina Halkes (1920–2011) * Milan Komar (1921–2006) *

Thomas Molnar Thomas Steven Molnar (; ; 26 July 1921, in Budapest, Kingdom of Hungary (1920–1946), Hungary – 20 July 2010, in Richmond, Virginia) was a Catholic philosopher, historian and political theorist. Life Molnar completed his undergraduate studi ...

(1921–2010) * Xavier Tilliette (1921–2018) * Leslie Dewart (1922–2009) * Jean Delumeau (1923–2020) * Jacques Dupuis (1923–2004) * Ernest Fortin (1923–2002) * Vekoslav Grmič (1923–2005) *

René Girard René Noël Théophile Girard (; ; 25 December 1923 – 4 November 2015) was a French-American historian, literary critic, and philosopher of social science whose work belongs to the tradition of philosophical anthropology. Girard was the a ...

(1923–2015) * Gregory Baum (1923–2017) * Alice von Hildebrand (1923–2022) * Roque Ferriols (1924–2021) *

Michel de Certeau Michel de Certeau (; 17 May 1925 – 9 January 1986) was a French Jesuit priest and scholar whose work combined history, psychoanalysis, philosophy, and the social sciences as well as hermeneutics, semiotics, ethnology, and religion. He was known ...

(1925–1986) *

Michael Dummett Sir Michael Anthony Eardley Dummett (; 27 June 1925 – 27 December 2011) was an English academic described as "among the most significant British philosophers of the last century and a leading campaigner for racial tolerance and equality." H ...

(1925–2011) * Louis Dupre (1925–2022) * Flannery O’Connor (1925–1964) * Servais Pinckaers (1925–2008) * Juan Luis Segundo (1925–1996) *

Ivan Illich Ivan Dominic Illich ( ; ; 4 September 1926 – 2 December 2002) was an Austrian Catholic priest, Theology, theologian, philosopher, and social critic. His 1971 book ''Deschooling Society'' criticises modern society's institutional approach to ...

(1926–2002) *Robert Bork (1927–2012) *Robert Spaemann (1927–2018) *Pope Benedict XVI, Joseph Ratzinger (Pope Benedict XVI) (1927–2022) *Raymond E. Brown (1928–1998) *Gustavo Gutiérrez (1928–2024) *Hans Kung (1928–2021) *William E. May (1928–2014) *Jean Vanier (1928–2019) *Nicholas Rescher (1928–2024) *James V. Schall (1928–2019) *Ralph McInerny (1929–2010) *Alasdair MacIntyre (1929–2025) *Germain Grisez (1929–2018) *Ignacio Ellacuría (1930–1989) *Joseph A. Bracken (1930–2024) *C. J. F. Williams (1930–1997) *Charles Taylor (philosopher), Charles Taylor (1931–) *Fergus Kerr (1931–) *Ferdinand Ulrich (1931–2020) *Joseph de Torre (1932–2018) *Henri Nouwen (1932–1996) *Walter Kasper (1933–) *Joan Chittister (1936–) *Michal Heller (1936–) *John Rist (1936–) *Richard John Neuhaus (1936–2009) *Antonin Scalia (1936–2016) *Peter Kreeft (1937–) *Leonardo Boff (1938–) *Jon Sobrino (1938–) *Mariano Artigas (1938–2006) *Elisabeth Schussler Fiorenza (1938–) *David Tracy (1939–) *Joseph A. Komonchak (1939–) *John Finnis (1940–) *Bas van Fraassen (1941–) *Angelo Scola (1941–) *Elizabeth Johnson (theologian), Elizabeth A. Johnson (1941–) *John P. Meier (1942–) *Jacek Salij (1942–) *Ada Maria Isasi-Diaz (1943–2012) *Jean-Luc Marion (1946–) *Thomas Weinandy (1946–) *Chantal Delsol (1947–) *Olavo de Carvalho (1947–2022) *Eleonore Stump (1947–) *Mary Shawn Copeland (1947–) *Tomáš Halík (1948–) *Aidan Nichols (1948–) *Martin Rhonheimer (1950–) *William Desmond (philosopher), William Desmond (1951–) *Jay Budziszewski (1952–) *Cyril O'Regan (1952–) *Catherine LaCugna (1952–1997) *John Joseph Haldane (1954–) *Tina Beattie (1955–) *Robert P. George (1955–) *William Sweet (1955–) *Marie-Jo Thiel (1957–) *Gavin D'Costa (1958–) *Robert Barron (1959–) *Byung-Chul Han (1959–) *Yves-Marie Adeline (1960–) *David Oderberg (1963–) *Helen Alford (1964–) *Hector Zagal (1966–) *Józef Stala (1966–2025) *Denis Moreau (1967–) *Agbonkhianmeghe Orobator (1967) *Edward Feser (1968–) *Alexander R. Pruss (1973-) *Ulrich L. Lehner (1976–)

References

*''The Cambridge Dictionary of Philosophy, (Second Edition)''. Cambridge University Press; 1999. *''Encyclopedia of Philosophy'' (Second Edition). Martin Gale; 2006. *''The Oxford Companion to Philosophy''. Oxford University Press; 1995. *''Routledge Encyclopedia of Philosophy''. Routledge; 1998. *''Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy''. January 16, 2010 {{DEFAULTSORT:Catholic philosophers and theologians Roman Catholic theologians, * Lists of philosophers, Catholic Lists of Roman Catholics, Philosophers Lists of theologians and religious studies scholars, Catholic philosophers