Saint of the Week

Catherine of Siena (1347–1380) had a deep love for Christ from a young age, so much so that when her family tried to persuade her to get married at the age of 16, she cut her hair and began fasting in protest. Her family relented, allowing her to devote her life to prayer and reflection. At the age of 18, she joined the Dominican Third Order. Gradually, her reputation for holiness and personal charisma attracted followers. Before long, she was employing many scribes to keep up a correspondence with influential Church and secular leaders…kings, queens, and even the pope. These leaders turned to her for advice, which led her to travel across Europe seeking reconciliation between warring parties. She urged Pope Gregory XI to return to Rome from France and defended Pope Urban VI during the Great Schism of 1378.

When she wasn’t resolving international crises, Catherine cared for the worst victims of the Black Plague and even burying those who had died. Today she is one of the patron saints of nurses.

Her prayer life included visions and ecstasies. Her letters are considered to be among the great works of Tuscan literature. Her rigorous penances may have contributed to her death at the age of 33. She is one of two patron saints of Italy (the other is St. Francis), one of the patron saints of Europe, and a Doctor of the Church