SAINT OF THE DAY

St. Catherine of Siena

She was born on March 25, 1347 in Siena, Italy. Her parents were Giacomo di Benincasa and Lapa Piagenti. Her mother gave birth to twin daughters when she was 40 years old named Catherine and Giovanna. Giovanna died early. It is reported that Catherine had her first vision of Jesus Christ when she was five years old, when Jesus smiled at her, blessed her and left her in ecstasy. She vowed chastity when she was seven years old. When her elder sister Bonaventura died at child birth, Catherine’s parents wanted Catherine to marry the widower of her elder sister. But she refused to do so and lived a secluded life of penance and constant prayer. On seeing the position of Catherine, her parents gave up the idea of her marriage. She then joined as a tertiary of the Third Order of Saint Dominic, wearing black and white habit. In about the year 1366 she experienced a mystical marriage with Jesus as per her biography written by Raymond of Capua. She also received stigmata in the year 1375 and received communion from Jesus himself. But the stigmata were visible only on her death. She took care of poor and sick people in homes and hospitals. When the popes were residing in Avignon instead of Rome due to the western schism, she personally met pope Gregory-XI at Avignon and convinced him to return to Rome, which the pope did in January 1377. She was illiterate and so she only dictated all his letters to religious people including the pope. She died on April 29, 1380 in Rome at 33 years of age. When the people of Siena wanted to take her head to Siena from Rome, they smuggled her head in a bag praying always to Catherine herself, to escape detection by guards. But the guards asked the person with the bag containing the head of Catherine to open the bag. But when the bag was opened, the bag was found to contain only rose petals and the guards could not see the head of Catherine. After reaching Siena, when they opened the bag, Catherine’s head was there. The head was inserted in a gilt bust of bronze and was taken around the city of Siena and the mother of Catherine walked behind the bust. Catherine was canonized by pope Pius-II in the year 1461. She was declared as the Doctor of the Church in 1970 by pope Paul-VI along with St. Teresa of Avila.

St. Catherine is the patron saint of Nurses and Fire-fighters. She is also invoked against fire, bodily ills, sexual temptation and sickness.