Spiritual Leaders & Religious Figures, PAT-ROG
Religious and spiritual leaders have shaped beliefs, practices, and traditions throughout history. Learn more about influential religious leaders, spiritual teachers, founders, reformers, mystics, and other notable figures.
Spiritual Leaders & Religious Figures Encyclopedia Articles By Title
Patrick, Mary Mills
Mary Mills Patrick was an American missionary and educator who oversaw the evolution of a girls’ high school into......
Patrick, St
St. Patrick ; feast day March 17) is the patron saint and national apostle of Ireland. He is credited with bringing......
Paul of Samosata
Paul of Samosata was a heretical bishop of Antioch in Syria and proponent of a kind of dynamic Monarchian doctrine......
Paul of the Cross, St
St. Paul of the Cross ; canonized 1867; feast day October 19) was an Italian mystic and the founder of the Roman......
Paul of Thebes, St.
St. Paul of Thebes ; feast day January 15) was an ascetic who is traditionally regarded as the first Christian......
Paul the Apostle, St
St. Paul the Apostle was one of the leaders of the first generation of Christians, often considered to be the most......
Paulinus Of Nola, Saint
Saint Paulinus of Nola ; feast day June 22) was the bishop of Nola and one of the most important Christian Latin......
Paulinus, Saint
Saint Paulinus ; feast day October 10) was an Italian missionary who converted Northumbria to Christianity, became......
Peabody, Lucy Whitehead McGill Waterbury
Lucy Whitehead McGill Waterbury Peabody was an American missionary who was an influential force in a number of......
Peacocke, Arthur
Arthur Peacocke was a British theologian, biochemist, and Anglican priest who claimed that science and religion......
Pelagia Of Antioch, Saint
Saint Pelagia of Antioch ; feast day June 9) was a 15-year-old Christian virgin who, probably during the persecution......
Pelagius
Pelagius was a monk and theologian whose heterodox theological system known as Pelagianism emphasized the primacy......
Pell, Cardinal George
Cardinal George Pell was an Australian prelate who served as the Roman Catholic archbishop of Sydney (2001–14)......
Penn, William
William Penn was an English Quaker leader and advocate of religious freedom, who oversaw the founding of the American......
Perpetua
Perpetua ; feast day March 7) was a Christian martyr who wrote The Passion of Saints Perpetua and Felicity, a journal......
Peter
Peter was the Russian Orthodox metropolitan of Kiev and Moscow (1308–26) and the first metropolitan to reside in......
Peter Chrysologus, St
St. Peter Chrysologus ; feast day July 30) was the archbishop of Ravenna. His orthodox discourses earned him the......
Peter Claver, St.
St. Peter Claver ; canonized 1888; feast day September 9) was a Jesuit missionary to South America who, in dedicating......
Peter Damian, St
St. Peter Damian ; feast day February 21) was a Roman Catholic cardinal and a forceful figure in the Gregorian......
Peter Lombard
Peter Lombard was a 12th-century bishop whose Four Books of Sentences (Sententiarum libri IV) was the standard......
Peter Martyr, St.
St. Peter Martyr ; canonized 1253; feast day April 29) was an inquisitor, vigorous preacher, and religious founder......
Peter Of Castelnau
Peter Of Castelnau was a Cistercian martyr, apostolic legate, and inquisitor against the Albigenses, most particularly......
Peter the Apostle, St
St. Peter the Apostle was a disciple of Jesus Christ, recognized in the early Christian church as the leader of......
Peter the Hermit
Peter the Hermit was an ascetic and monastic founder, considered one of the most important preachers of the First......
Petri, Laurentius
Laurentius Petri was a Lutheran churchman, a leader of the Protestant Reformation in Sweden and the first Protestant......
Petrus Aureoli
Petrus Aureoli was a French churchman, philosopher, and critical thinker, called Doctor facundus (“eloquent teacher”),......
Philaret
Philaret was a Russian Orthodox biblical theologian and metropolitan, or archbishop, of Moscow whose scholarship,......
Philaret
Philaret was a Russian Orthodox patriarch of Moscow and father of the first Romanov tsar. During the reign (1584–98)......
Philip the Apostle, St
St. Philip the Apostle ; Western feast day May 3, Eastern feast day November 14) was one of the Twelve Apostles......
Philip The Evangelist, Saint
Saint Philip the Evangelist ; feast day June 6) was, in the early Christian church, one of the seven deacons appointed......
Philip, John
John Philip was a Scottish missionary in Southern Africa who championed the rights of the Africans against the......
Phillpotts, Henry
Henry Phillpotts was a Church of England bishop of Exeter (from 1830), who represented the conservative High Church......
Philostorgius
Philostorgius was a Byzantine historian, partisan of Arianism, a Christian heresy asserting the inferiority of......
Philotheus Kokkinos
Philotheus Kokkinos was a theologian, monk, and patriarch of Constantinople, a leader of the Byzantine monastic......
Philoxenus of Mabbug
Philoxenus of Mabbug was a Syrian bishop, theologian, and classical author. He was a leader of the Jacobite miaphysite......
Photius, Saint
Saint Photius ; feast day February 6) was the patriarch of Constantinople (858–867 and 877–886), defender of the......
Pico della Mirandola, Giovanni, Conte Di Concordia
Giovanni Pico della Mirandola, count di Concordia was an Italian scholar and Platonist philosopher whose De hominis......
Pimen
Pimen was the 14th Russian Orthodox patriarch of Moscow and of all Russia. He served as spiritual leader of his......
Pio, Padre
Padre Pio ; canonized June 16, 2002; feast day September 23) was an Italian priest and Capuchin friar known for......
Pius I, St.
St. Pius I ; feast day July 11) was the Latin pope from approximately 142 to about 155. Pius was formerly enslaved,......
Plunket, Saint Oliver
Saint Oliver Plunket ; canonized 1975; feast day July 11) was the Roman Catholic primate of all Ireland and the......
Polding, John Bede
John Bede Polding was the first Roman Catholic bishop in Australia (from 1835), where eight years later he became......
Pole, Reginald
Reginald Pole was an English prelate who broke with King Henry VIII over Henry’s antipapal policies and later became......
Polkinghorne, John
John Polkinghorne was an English physicist and priest who publicly championed the reconciliation of science and......
Polycarp, St
St. Polycarp ; feast day February 23) was a Greek bishop of Smyrna and an Apostolic Father who was the leading......
Pontian, Saint
Saint Pontian ; feast day August 13) was the pope, the leader of the Roman Catholic Church, from 230 to 235. Many......
Potok, Chaim
Chaim Potok was an American rabbi and author whose novels introduced to American fiction the spiritual and cultural......
Powell, Vavasor
Vavasor Powell was a Welsh preacher and Fifth Monarchist during the English Civil Wars and Commonwealth. Educated......
Prejean, Sister Helen
Sister Helen Prejean is an American nun, who was a leader in the movement to abolish the death penalty. Prejean......
Priesand, Sally J.
Sally J. Priesand is an American rabbi who on June 3, 1972, became the first woman in the United States to be so......
Priestley, Joseph
Joseph Priestley was an English clergyman, political theorist, and physical scientist whose work contributed to......
Priscillian
Priscillian was an early Christian bishop who was the first heretic to receive capital punishment. A rigorous ascetic,......
Pro Juárez, Miguel
Miguel Pro Juárez was a Mexican Jesuit priest martyred during anti-Roman Catholic persecutions of the 1920s in......
Prokopovich, Feofan
Feofan Prokopovich was a Russian Orthodox theologian and archbishop of Pskov, who by his administration, oratory,......
Prosper of Aquitaine, Saint
Saint Prosper of Aquitaine ; feast day July 7) was an early Christian polemicist famous for his defense of Augustine......
Proud, Joseph
Joseph Proud was an English Swedenborgian minister and hymn writer who possessed considerable gifts as a preacher.......
Provoost, Samuel
Samuel Provoost was a North American colonial and later U.S. clergyman, the first Protestant Episcopal bishop of......
Prudentius
Prudentius was a Christian Latin poet whose Psychomachia (“The Contest of the Soul”), the first completely allegorical......
Purandaradasa
Purandaradasa was an Indian saint who was a major poet and composer of Haridasa devotional song, one of the major......
Putnam, Robert D.
Robert D. Putnam is an American political scientist and educator best known for his study of social capital. Just......
Páez, Pedro
Pedro Páez was a learned Jesuit priest who, in the tradition of Frumentius—founder of the Ethiopian church—went......
Quadratus, St.
St. Quadratus ; feast day May 26) was the earliest known Apologist for Christianity. With only a fragment of his......
Quimby, Phineas Parkhurst
Phineas Parkhurst Quimby was an American exponent of mental healing who is generally regarded as the founder of......
Quinet, Edgar
Edgar Quinet was a French poet, historian, and political philosopher who made a significant contribution to the......
Quiroga, Vasco de
Vasco de Quiroga was a Spanish bishop, social reformer, and humanist educator who founded the Colegio de San Nicolás......
Rabanus Maurus
Rabanus Maurus was an archbishop, Benedictine abbot, theologian, and scholar whose work so contributed to the development......
Rabbula
Rabbula was a reforming bishop of Edessa and theologian who was a leading figure in the Christian church in Syria.......
Rachel
Rachel, in Genesis, the first book of the Hebrew Bible (Old Testament), one of the two wives of the patriarch Jacob.......
Radegunda, St.
St. Radegunda ; feast day August 13) was the queen of the Merovingian king Chlotar I, who left her husband to become......
Raimundo, Don
Don Raimundo was an archbishop and leading prelate of the 12th-century Spanish Christian church, whose patronage......
Rainald Of Dassel
Rainald Of Dassel was a German statesman, chancellor of the Holy Roman Empire, and archbishop of Cologne, the chief......
Rajneesh, Bhagwan Shree
Bhagwan Shree Rajneesh was an Indian spiritual leader who preached an eclectic doctrine of Eastern mysticism, individual......
Ramana Maharshi
Ramana Maharshi was a Hindu philosopher and yogi called “Great Master,” “Bhagavan” (the Lord), and “the Sage of......
Rampolla, Mariano
Mariano Rampolla was an Italian prelate who played a notable role in the liberalization of the Vatican under Leo......
Ramsey, Michael, Baron Ramsey of Canterbury
Michael Ramsey, Baron Ramsey of Canterbury was the archbishop of Canterbury (1961–74), theologian, educator, and......
Rashīd Riḍā
Rashīd Riḍā was an Islamic scholar who formulated an intellectual response to the pressures of the modern Western......
Rauscher, Joseph Othmar von
Joseph Othmar von Rauscher was a cardinal and the influential tutor of the Habsburg emperor Francis Joseph; he......
Rebekah
Rebekah, in the Hebrew Bible, matriarch who is the wife of Isaac and the mother of Jacob, both key patriarchs.......
Reeves, Ambrose
Ambrose Reeves was an Anglican prelate who was bishop of Johannesburg, South Africa (1949–61), and a strong opponent......
Reinkens, Joseph Hubert
Joseph Hubert Reinkens was a German bishop, historical scholar, and a leader of the Old Catholics (Altkatholiken),......
Remigius of Reims, Saint
Saint Remigius of Reims ; feast day October 1) was a bishop of Reims who greatly advanced the cause of Christianity......
Renan, Ernest
Ernest Renan was a French philosopher, historian, and scholar of religion, a leader of the school of critical philosophy......
Renwick, James
James Renwick was the last of the prominent Covenanter martyrs of Scotland. Educated at Edinburgh University, Renwick......
Retz, Jean-François-Paul de Gondi, Cardinal de
Jean-François-Paul de Gondi, cardinal de Retz was one of the leaders of the aristocratic rebellion known as the......
Reverend Ike
Reverend Ike was an American clergyman who built his prosperity gospel on the concepts of self-motivated wealth......
Reynolds, Walter
Walter Reynolds was an archbishop of Canterbury best known for his political involvement with Edward II. Reynolds......
Rhodes, Alexandre de
Alexandre de Rhodes was a Jesuit missionary who was the first Frenchman to visit Vietnam. De Rhodes was admitted......
Ricci, Matteo
Matteo Ricci was an Italian Jesuit missionary who introduced Christian teaching to the Chinese empire in the 16th......
Richard le Grant
Richard le Grant was the 45th archbishop of Canterbury (1229–31), who asserted the independence of the clergy and......
Richard of Chichester, Saint
Saint Richard of Chichester ; canonized Jan. 28, 1262; feast day April 3) was a bishop of Chichester, who championed......
Richelieu, Cardinal
Cardinal Richelieu was the chief minister to King Louis XIII of France from 1624 to 1642. His major goals, which......
Ridley, Nicholas
Nicholas Ridley was a Protestant martyr, one of the finest academic minds in the early English Reformation. Ridley......
Rishabhanatha
Rishabhanatha, the first of the 24 Tirthankaras (“Ford-Makers,” i.e., saviours) of Jainism, a religion of India.......
Robert of Jumièges
Robert of Jumièges was one of the Normans given high position by the English king Edward the Confessor. Robert......
Roberts, Oral
Oral Roberts was an American Pentecostal evangelist known for his televised faith-healing ministry. Roberts was......
Robertson, Pat
Pat Robertson was an American evangelist who was noted for his conservative views. He founded (1960) what became......
Robinson, John
John Robinson was an English Puritan minister called the pastor of the Pilgrim Fathers for his guidance of their......
Robinson, V. Gene
V. Gene Robinson was the ninth Episcopal bishop of New Hampshire (2004–13) and the first openly gay bishop in the......
Roger of Pont l’Évêque
Roger of Pont l’Évêque was an archbishop of York and adviser of King Henry II of England, who supported the King......
Rogers, Fred
Fred Rogers was an American television host, producer, minister, and writer best known for Mister Rogers’ Neighborhood......