By Colleen Pressprich
On April 29, the Catholic Church celebrates the feast of St. Catherine of Siena, one of the most well-known female saints. She’s a personal favorite of mine and patron of my daughter, so we enjoy celebrating her day.
Who was St. Catherine of Siena?
St. Catherine of Siena was born to a middle-class family in Siena, Italy in 1347. She was one of 25 children, though many of her siblings did not survive childhood.
Catherine felt a calling to the consecrated life as a girl and informed her parents that she would never marry. Instead, she chose to live as a third-order Dominican (meaning she took simple vows but lived outside of a convent) in her parents' home.
Catherine had mystical visions throughout her life and quickly gained a reputation as a wise and holy woman. Her service to her family and the poor in her city was always completed with passionate love and fervent hope that they would come to know how much Christ loved them. As her reputation spread, she became more involved in the larger Church and even traveled as an emissary of the pope on several occasions.
Catherine died at the age of 33 years old. She was canonized in 1461 by Pope Pius II and named a Doctor of the Church by Pope Paul VI in 1970.
More Fun Facts About St. Catherine
- Catherine, alongside Teresa of Avila, was the first woman to be awarded the title of Doctor of the Church.
- She is credited with ending the Avignon Papacy and returning the Popes to Rome.
- Catherine’s body is buried in Rome, but her head is in her hometown of Siena.
- Her mystical visions and ecstasies are recorded in The Dialogue.
- It is said of her that for long periods of her life, she lived entirely on the Eucharist and ate no other food.
How To Celebrate St. Catherine of Siena
There are many ways to celebrate this wonderful saint, but my favorite is by writing a letter. St. Catherine was a voluminous letter writer. She wrote to the wealthy and the poor, the powerful and the powerless. Almost 400 of her letters survive today, and the thing that they all have in common is her tremendous ability to speak truth with love.
St. Catherine never shied away from calling people out (she told the pope he was wrong several times!), but she always did so with such love. Every time she wrote it was with the end goal that the recipient would come away knowing that they were deeply loved by God.
For her feast day, my kids and I like to write notes to people we love. Sometimes they are long and deep, other times they’re short and sweet. The littles just draw pictures. But in every letter, we try to emulate Catherine’s ability to encourage and remind people of their dignity as children of God.
I have always found St. Catherine to be a powerful intercessor for my family. I hope that you find the same!
Colleen Pressprich is a homeschooling mom of five and the author of Marian Consecration for Families with Young Children, The Women Doctors of the Church, The Jesse Tree For Families, and God the Father’s Love: A Journey Through Scripture for Catholic Families. You can learn more about her, order her books, and read more of her writing at elevatortoheaven.com.
