In Anglican tradition, the twelfth day of March is one of the lesser feasts or "black letter days." It commemorates St. Gregory the Great (ca. 540-604). He came from a patrician family, and he served a number of years as a Roman civil servant. Around the age of 35, he became a monk, and a few years later was called upon to be a papal representative in Constantinople. Despite a personal desire to return to monastic life, he was elected Bishop of Rome (Pope) in 590 A.D.
Gregory was pope during a time of turmoil, and Italy was beset by natural disasters and Germanic invasions. Contacts with the Eastern portions of the Empire were often disrupted, and civil authority was weak. The Church was the strongest institution in Italy and the West, and as Bishop of Rome, Gregory used his authority for both religious and temporal purposes. In these circumstances, papal power and claims grew in both the civil and ecclesiastical realms (often expressed in ways that Eastern Orthodox, Anglicans, and other Protestants consider unfortunate).
As bishop, Gregory accomplished a great deal. He helped the needy and cultivated better relationships with Germanic groups. He sent missionaries headed by Augustine of Canterbury to the Anglo-Saxons. He also sought to improve church life and pass on the traditions of the ancient Church as he understood them. For these reasons, Gregory is the fourth great Latin Doctor of the Church (along with Ambrose, Augustine of Hippo, and Jerome).
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