Catherine of Siena

Catherine of Siena
St. Catherine of Siena. Detail of a work by Domenico Beccafumi, c. 1515
Virgin and Doctor of Church
Born	1347-03-25 Siena, Italy
Died	1380-04-29 Rome, Italy
Venerated in	Roman Catholicism, Evangelical Lutheran Church in America
Canonized	1461 by Pope Pius II
Feast	April 29 (new); April 30 (traditional)
Attributes	Dominican habit, lily, book, crucifix, heart, crown of thorns, stigmata, ring, dove, rose, miniature ship bearing Papal coat of arms
Patronage	against fire, bodily ills, diocese of Allentown, Pennsylvania, USA, Europe, firefighters, illness, Italy, miscarriages, nurses, people ridiculed for their piety, sexual temptation, sick people, sickness, television

Saint Catherine of Siena (March 25, 1347 - April 29, 1380) was a Dominican Tertiary (lay affiliate) of the Dominican Order. Catherine was the 23rd child out of 25 (her twin sister, the 24th, died at birth); her parents were Giacomo di Benincasa, a cloth-dyer, and his wife, Lapa Piagenti, daughter of a local poet.

A native of Siena, Catherine received no formal education. At the age of seven she consecrated her virginity to Christ despite her family's opposition; in her eighteenth year she took the habit of the Dominican Tertiaries. As a tertiary, Catherine lived at home as an anchoress (see Hermit) rather than in a convent, and she practiced acts of mortification there which a prioress would probably not have permitted. She is especially famous for fasting by living for long periods of time on nothing but the Blessed Sacrament.

In about 1366, Catherine experienced what she described in her letters as a 'Mystical Marriage' with Jesus, after which she began to tend the sick and serve the poor. In 1370 she received a series of visions of Hell, Purgatory, and Heaven, after which she heard a command to leave her withdrawn life and enter the public life of the world. She began to write letters to men and women in authority, especially begging for peace between the republics and principalities of Italy and for the return of the papacy from Avignon to Rome. She carried on a long correspondence with Pope Gregory XI, also asking him to reform the clergy and the administration of the Papal States.

In June of 1376 Catherine went to Avignon herself as ambassador of Florence to make peace with the Papal States, but was unsuccessful. She impressed the Pope so much, however, that he returned his administration to Rome in January of 1377. During the Western Schism of 1378 she was an adherent of Pope Urban VI, who summoned her to Rome where she lived until her death in 1380.

Catherine's letters are considered one of the great works of early Tuscan literature. More than 300 letters have survived. In her letters to the Pope, she often referred to him affectionately as "Papa" or "Daddy" ("Babbo" in Italian). Her major work is the Dialogue of divine providence.

Pope Pius II canonized Catherine in 1461. Her feast day is April 29 in the new Roman calendar and April 30 in the traditional Roman calendar. This date is observed by various Christians including Lutherans although many refer to such days as commemorations and such. Pope Paul VI bestowed on her in 1970 the title of Doctor of the Church - making her the first woman, along with Saint Teresa of Ávila, ever to receive this honor. In 1999 Pope John Paul II made her one of Europe's patron saints. Saint Catherine is also the patroness of the historically Catholic American sorority, Theta Phi Alpha.

Catherine died while in Rome, and the people of Siena wished to have her body. There is a myth that explains how Catherine's head was able to get to Siena. The people of Siena knew they could not get her whole body past Roman guards and decided to take only her head which they placed in a bag. They were still stopped by guards and they prayed to Catherine to help them because they knew Catherine would rather be in Siena. When they opened the bag to show the guards it no longer held her head, but was full of rose petals. Once they got back to Siena they reopened the bag and her head reappeared. Because of this myth, Catherine is often seen holding a rose.

File:Statue of Catherine of siena (benincasa).jpg

Statue of Catherine of Siena, just outside Siena, Italy.

Catherine's body is currently interred in Rome, in the basilica Santa Maria sopra Minerva near the Pantheon. Her head and right thumb are in Siena, and her foot in Venice. St. Catherine is the patron saint of fire prevention and Italy. Her great learning earned her the title doctor of the church and she used her wisdom to challenge the authorities on matters she was passionate about. Her ability to engage important issues with popes was a highly unusual and controversial role for women of her time.

See also

• Avignon Papacy
• Western Schism
• Relics
• Christian mystics
• Flying Saints
• Anchorite
• War of the Eight Saints

References

• Works by Catherine of Siena at Project Gutenberg
• "St. Catherine of Siena" by Edmund G. Gardner. The Catholic Encyclopedia, 1908.
• Saint Catherine of Siena, Virgin at EWTN
• Letters of Catherine from Gutenberg
• Saint Catherine of Siena: text with concordances and frequency list
• Drawn by Love. The Mysticism of Catherine of Siena