Saint Catherine of Siena, Virgin
S. Catharinae Senensis Virginis
Saint Catherine of Siena was a virgin of the Third Order of Saint Dominic, a great mystic and counsellor of Popes, whose holiness and wisdom made her one of the most remarkable figures of her age. She died at Rome in the year 1380.
Saint Catherine was born at Siena in Tuscany in the year 1347, the youngest of a large family. From her earliest childhood she was drawn to prayer and to the love of God, and while still very young she consecrated her virginity to the Lord. In due time she received the habit of the Third Order of Saint Dominic, living a life of penance and contemplation in her own home, where she was favoured with profound graces of prayer and a deep union with Christ.
Mystic and servant of the poor
From the hidden life of prayer Saint Catherine was led by God into a life of active charity and service. She tended the sick and the poor of Siena, especially in times of plague, and gathered about her a company of disciples, both lay and clerical, drawn by her holiness. Though she had no learning in the schools, she dictated letters and a celebrated Dialogue of surpassing spiritual wisdom, in which the mysteries of God and the way of the soul to Him are set forth with a depth that has nourished the faithful ever since.
Counsellor of Popes
In an age of great trouble for the Church, Saint Catherine was drawn into the affairs of Christendom. With burning love for the Church and for the See of Peter, she laboured for peace among the cities of Italy and pleaded with the Roman Pontiff to return to Rome from Avignon, a return in which her counsel had no small part. She spent the last of her strength in prayer and labour for the unity and peace of the Church, and died at Rome on the twenty-ninth of April, 1380, at the age of thirty-three. She was canonised in 1461, and in later centuries was declared a Doctor of the Church and a patroness of her country.
The Collect
Grant, we beseech Thee, almighty God: that we, who keep the heavenly birthday of blessed Catherine, Thy Virgin, may both rejoice in her yearly festival, and profit by the example of so great a virtue. Through our Lord Jesus Christ, Thy Son, who liveth and reigneth with Thee in the unity of the Holy Ghost, God, world without end. Amen.
Da, quǽsumus, omnípotens Deus: ut, qui beátæ Catharínæ Vírginis tuæ natalítia cólimus; et ánnua sollemnitáte lætémur, et tantæ virtútis proficiámus exémplo. Per Dóminum nostrum Iesum Christum Fílium tuum, qui tecum vivit et regnat in unitáte Spíritus Sancti Deus, per ómnia sǽcula sæculórum. Amen.
Patronage
Saint Catherine of Siena is venerated as a principal patroness of Italy and of the city of Rome, and is invoked as a patroness against fire and of the sick and those who nurse them.
In the Modern Calendar
In the modern calendar, this feast is observed on 29 April, the day of her death, and is kept with the rank of a memorial.
Common Questions
When is the feast of Saint Catherine of Siena?
In the 1962 Roman Missal her feast is kept on 30 April as a Third-Class feast. In the modern calendar it is observed on 29 April, the day of her death.
Who was Saint Catherine of Siena?
She was a fourteenth-century virgin of the Third Order of Saint Dominic, a great mystic and counsellor of Popes. She died at Rome in 1380 and was later declared a Doctor of the Church and a patroness of Italy.
What did Saint Catherine write?
Though without formal schooling, she dictated a great number of letters and a celebrated spiritual work known as the Dialogue, esteemed for its depth and wisdom and counted among the treasures of Catholic spiritual writing.
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