St. Peter's 

Anglican Church

Saint Catherine of Siena

Author, Reformer of the Church,

and Trusted Spiritual Guide 

d. 1380 A.D.

["St. Catherine of Siena," by Giovanni Battista Tiepolo]

Portrait retrieved from Wikipedia.

(https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Catherine_of_Siena)

PRAYER (traditional language):

Everlasting God, who didst so kindle the flame of holy love in The heart of blessed Catherine of Siena, as she meditated on the passion of thy Son our Savior, that she devoted her life to the poor and the sick, and to the peace and unity of the Church: Grant that we also may share in the mystery of Christ's death, and rejoice in the revelation of His Glory, who liveth and reigneth with thee and the Holy Spirit, one God, for ever and ever. Amen.

From Holy Women, Holy Men:

Catherine Benincasa was the youngest of twenty-five children of a

wealthy dyer of Siena. At six years of age, she had a remarkable vision

that probably decided her life’s vocation. Walking home from a visit,

she stopped on the road and gazed upward, oblivious to everything

around her. “I beheld our Lord seated in glory with St. Peter, St. Paul,

and St. John.” She went on to say, later, that the Savior smiled on her

and blessed her.

From then on, Catherine spent most of her time in prayer and

meditation, despite her mother’s attempts to force her to be like other

girls. To settle matters, Catherine cut off her hair, her chief beauty. The

family harassed her continually; but in the end, convinced that she was

deaf to all opposition, her father let her do as she would: close herself

away in a darkened room, fast, and sleep on boards. Eventually, she

was accepted as a Dominican postulant.

Catherine had numerous visions, and was also tried most severely

by loathsome temptations and degrading images. Frequently, she felt

totally abandoned by the Lord. At last, in 1366, the Savior appeared

with Mary and the Heavenly Host, and espoused her to himself, so

ending her years of lonely prayer and struggle. She became a nurse, as

Dominicans regularly did, caring for patients with leprosy and cancer

whom other nurses disliked to treat.

Opinion in Siena was sharply divided about whether she was a saint or

a fanatic, but when the Bishop of Capua was appointed her confessor,

he helped her to win full support from the Dominican Mother House.

Catherine was a courageous worker in time of severe plague; she

visited prisoners condemned to death; she constantly was called upon

to arbitrate feuds and to prepare troubled sinners for confession.

During the great schism of the papacy, with rival popes in Rome

and Avignon, Catherine wrote tirelessly to princes, kings, and popes,

urging them to restore the unity of the Church. She even went to

Rome to press further for the cause.

Besides her many letters to all manner of people, Catherine wrote

a Dialogue, a mystical work dictated in ecstasy. Exhausted and

paralyzed, she died at the age of thirty-three.

To learn about this remarkable laywoman - Catherine of Siena - click the link below.

http://justus.anglican.org/resources/bio/150.html