1. Over the past two thousand
years of church history there stands out, like stars in the night,
countless thousands of exceptional Christian men and women, many of them
martyrs, whose lives and extraordinary good works echoed the message of
the Gospels. The true story you are about to hear tells of one such life.
. . living that message to the full.
Her name is Catherine, and few individuals have led
so active a life, or left such a lasting imprint on the events of her
time. Her father called her his beloved Katrina, but today she is
known and revered throughout the world as simply "Catherine of
Sienna".
This program comes to you from the studios of
Catholic Radio Productions in Balboa, California, featuring true stories
about the fascinating lives and heroic works of the saints. I’m Patrick
O’Neill, your host and narrator for today's program.
SIENA
2. Our story begins in the charming hilltop town of
Sienna, Italy. Sienna is a breathtaking mosaic of brick and stone
radiating the amber tones of autumn. A clear blue sky carries puffs
of white clouds over the bell towers and church domes clustered about
the city. Its layout is so picturesque it's called The Beautiful City. Narrow
cobblestone streets are lined with two-story brick dwellings capped with a
sea of red tile roofs. Green shutters and potted flowers grace apartment balconies overlooking the streets. There's an
array
of interesting shops and sidewalk café's under colored umbrellas. Church bells
signal the call to morning prayer and morning Mass. Vineyards wrap the slopes of Siena and
spread down to fertile valleys and farms scattered below. That’s the way it is
today, and so it was on March 25th in the year 1347 with the birth of
Catherine some six and a half centuries ago.
EARLY FAMILY LIFE
3. Catherine Benincasa was born into a large busy
family, surrounded by many brothers and sisters, and a crowd of nieces and
nephews. Jacopo, her father, was established as a wool dyer in Sienna. He
was a man of principal and taught his children the necessity of faith
and the importance of doing good works. An honest man and a good loving father, he led
his children by his own example. Catherine’s mother, Lapa, had a deep
affection for this her youngest daughter.
FIRST VISION OF CHRIST
4. When she was only six years old, Catherine began
having mystical experiences, of a sort that would continue throughout her
whole life. One day while she and her brother were walking past the church
of the Dominican Friars in Siena, Catherine had a vision of Christ. He was
dressed in papal robes and wore the papal miter. Saint Peter, Paul and
John were at his side. Jesus fixed his gaze on Catherine. He leaned over
and gave her a special blessing, using the sign of the cross. Catherine
stood transfixed, oblivious to the crowds passing by. This silent vision
was interrupted only when her brother returned to find out why she stopped
in the road. The impact of the encounter would remain with Catherine the
rest of her life. It prefigured a special role she would play in the
turbulent times which lie ahead for the Church and all of Italy
MIRACLE OF LEVITATION
- It became clear that Catherine was privileged in
some mysterious spiritual way. Her mother began to notice this when, as
a young girl, Catherine went up and down the stairs at home. It was as
if she was being lifted up into the air and her feet no longer touched
the stairs. It sometimes frightened her mother that she would go up and
down the stairs so quickly. Later in her life, the phenomena of bodily
levitation in states of ecstasy was witnessed by members of her
community and documented in a biography written by her confessor,
Blessed Raymond of Capua.
ADOLESCENCE and FIRST VOW
- In her youth, Catherine made a sacred vow to God,
consecrating her virginity and her life to Him alone. Afterward, she
referred to Jesus as her
Divine Spouse.
- At twelve, God put her vow to a test. Her parents
planned to engage her in marriage and rejected her pleas to remain
single. In a panic, Catherine cut off her hair. She doubled her prayers
and increased the penitential acts she imposed upon herself. Ultimately,
her father gave in and approved her pious devotions and her chosen way
of life. Catherine would often withdraw to quiet places and imitate the
lives of the early Church Fathers living in the desert. She would fast
and pray. Guided by the Holy Spirit, she developed a deep spiritual
awareness, a tremendous love of God and a great love for his Church. She
came to understand that in some mysterious way, suffering was connected
to the salvation of souls
DIABOLICAL VISION
- It was in this angelic state that Catherine became
a target for Satan. She was permitted by God to endure a period of trial
. . . one filled with diabolical visions where the prince of darkness
filled her soul with a cloud of darkness. She saw herself on the edge of
a cliff, but mysteriously supported by an invisible hand. It was a
terrifying experience. When it was over, Catherine had a vision of
Christ who said to her: "I was with you during this trial. The
things you experienced were bitter, but the conflict was to your merit.
Your victory over it was due to my presence." This was to prepare
Catherine for the severe battle that would arise in the times ahead.
ENTERS THE CONVENT AT 18
- At eighteen Catherine entered a Dominican convent,
taking the black and white habit of the Sisters of Penance of St.
Dominic. Her small room became her paradise. She began to experience
numerous visions of Christ, of his Blessed Mother and of the saints.
VISION OF THE SACRED HEART
- One day while she was in prayer, Catherine
continued to recite the words from Psalm 51: "A pure heart create
for me, O God, put a steadfast spirit within me." Over and over
again she asked the Heavenly Father to take away her own heart and will
and replace it with his own. Her prayer was answered. In a vision of the
Sacred Heart, Jesus appeared to her. It seemed to Catherine that he
opened her left side, took out her heart and then went away with it.
Afterward, she told her confessor that she no longer had a heart. While
she tried to convince him, he quietly dismissed her claim. Later when
Catherine was in the Church of St. Dominic, she fell into an ecstasy and
a bright light encircled her as Jesus appeared again holding in his
hands a bright red human heart. He opened her left side once again and
placed the heart within her chest, saying: "Dearest daughter, as I
took your heart away, now you see, I am giving you Mine, so that you can
go on living with it forever." He closed the opening he made, but
as a sign of the miracle, a scar remained.
The scar was not the only sign of this miracle.
Afterward, in her prayers after receiving Holy Communion, her heart would
very often throb with joy, making such a loud noise that it could be heard
even by her companions." Noticing this so often, they told her
confessor about it. On finding it to be true he wrote "This noise
bore no resemblance to the gurgling that goes on naturally in the human
stomach; There was nothing natural about the noise at all. There is also
nothing surprising in the fact that a heart given in a supernatural way
should act in a supernatural way also, for as the Prophet says, "My
heart and my flesh have rejoiced in the Living God."
MYSTICAL FAST
- Catherine experienced another change that altered
the nature of her stomach. It was discovered that she no longer had a
need for food, nor could she eat food without it causing her pain. If
she forced herself to eat, she became sick and her digestion wouldn't
function. She felt stronger and healthier when she refrained from food,
and lived on the Blessed Eucharist alone. This is a rare phenomenon
known as a Mystical Fast. While contradicting the laws of nature, it was
experienced by a number of mystics over the centuries. These were able
to sustain rigorous lives with little or no food except the Holy
Eucharist.
- Her days and nights were spent in meditation and
prayer, contemplating the divine mysteries. Through humility, obedience,
and denial of her own will, Catherine grew stronger in the spiritual
life. She found a delight in her spiritual exercises and experienced a
close communion with God. The fruits of all this were supernatural gifts
and deep spiritual insights.
OTHER MARVELS - LEARNING TO READ AND WRITE
- When Catherine entered the religious life, she was
illiterate. For a long time she wished to recite the Psalms in the
breviary. After many lessons on how to read, the difficulty remained.
Then suddenly she could not only read, but also write. Not in a simple
style but in a classical literate form. Friar Thomas of Siena confirmed
the miracle: "The Blessed Catherine learned to write
miraculously" and in one of her letters Catherine wrote: " . .
. God gave me the facility to write, so that when coming forth from
ecstasy, I might discharge my heart: and as the Master who instructed
the pupil shows him the model which he must copy, so He placed before my
mental vision, the things that I should write you."
MYSTICAL MARRIAGE
14.
On the day before Ash Wednesday, while
others in the household were feasting before the long Lenten fast,
Catherine withdrew alone to her room "seeking through prayer and
fasting the face of her eternal Bridegroom. Suddenly Our Lord appeared to
her and said: "Since for love of Me you have forsaken vanities and
despised the pleasure of the flesh and fastened the delights of your heart
on Me, I have determined to celebrate the wedding feast of your soul and
to espouse you to Me in faith as I promised." Then appeared also, the
Blessed Virgin Mary, St. John the evangelist, the Apostle Paul, St.
Dominic and the prophet David with his harp. Jesus held out a gold ring
with four pearls set in a circle with a diamond in the middle. He slipped
it onto Catherine's finger saying, "There! I marry you to me in
faith, to me, your Creator and Savior. Keep this faith unspotted until you
come to Me in Heaven and celebrate the marriage that has no end."
After that vision, Catherine could always see the ring on her finger.
Miracles such as this demonstrate her powerful love of God and his
response to the strength of her faith.
THE GREAT PLAGUE
16. The peaceful days of convent life were about to
end in a nightmare to be shared by much of the western world. In 1374, a
great plague ravaged through much of Italy. The same plague devastated
Sienna carrying-off 80,000 of its citizens in a disaster unmatched in its
history. Catherine, then twenty-seven, devoted herself to serving the
infectious victims. Ignoring the stench of death carts lining the streets
of Sienna, she brought comfort to those in living in misery. For many of
those stricken, she obtained miraculous cures through her prayers. She
also helped the spiritually troubled in many ways and soon became
renowned throughout the land as a peacemaker. The most hardened
sinners and those in prison were deeply moved to change their lives
through her support.
REACHING OUT TO THE WORLD
16. Catherine was aware that love of God and love
of neighbor were inseparable in the Christian life. That one cannot exist
without the other. So she reached out to the world around her with works
of charity to the poor and served the sick and suffering. She brought
comfort to condemned prisoners and dressed the wounds of lepers ordered
out of the town. God rewarded these works by even more miracles. When a
famine followed the plague, Catherine continued her service. On many
occasions the food she handed out mysteriously multiplied. Yet, there were
insults and persecution against her from the people of her town.
Nonetheless, Catherine continued her prayers for the Church and the
conversion of sinners.
INTERCESSORY PRAYERS
17. One day, a wealthy landowner in the town was
brought to Catherine for healing. He was bitter and contentious and his
cruelty made many enemies. Her conversation had no effect on him, so
suddenly, she stopped in the middle of her comments and offered her prayers
for him. To everyone’s amazement, these prayers were heard instantly.
Right then and there an enormous change came over the man. In tears, he
reconciled himself to his enemies and began a penitential life. He gave
Catherine an estate he owned outside of town which Catherine turned into a
convent.
MIRACLE OF THE STIGMATA
18. In the year 1375, Catherine, then twenty-eight,
was in the town of Pizza. She was praying before a crucifix in the little
church of St. Christina. It was there she received the stigmata, the five
wounds of the crucified Christ. The marks in her hands and feet were not
apparent to others during her lifetime, but they became clearly visible at
the time of her death. Her visit to Pisa bought about a massive
spiritual revival there, the effects of which are still apparent to this
day in the artwork and shrines established in her honor and the many
murals in churches depicting this miracle.
19. Attracted by her supernatural gifts, thousands
flocked from distant parts of the country just to see her. Many were so
inspired by Catherine they experienced a true and instant repentance which
transformed their lives. Nonetheless, there were also those who thought
she was a fake. Complaints brought her before the chapter general of the
Dominican Order in Florence. But after a thorough review by her superiors,
all the accusations were dismissed.
UPRISING IN ITALY
20. It was at this time, that factions divided the
powerful commonwealth of Florence. There was a move underway to rise up
against the Holy See and strip the Church of the lands it possessed in
Italy. The pope at that time, Gregory XI, was the fifth consecutive pope
to reside in Avignon rather than in Rome. The Italians complained that the
bishop of Rome had forsaken Italy for the past seventy-four years. Their
clamor threatened a schism. By the year 1376, the turmoil had all the
elements of an uprising against the Church. Magistrates in Florence were
sent to Sienna to beg Catharine - the peacemaker to mediate the
crises. They promised to accompany her to Avignon, with their ambassadors
to ratify a reconciliation. Meanwhile, the Florentines carried on secret
intrigues to draw the whole of Italy away from obedience to the Holy See.
The threat of schism grew stronger.
CATHERINE GOES TO AVIGNON
21. When Catherine arrived in Avignon on June 18,
1376 she was met with honors by Pope Gregory XI and a host of cardinals.
The pope had misgivings about continuing the papal residence in France. He
had even taken a secret vow, known only to God, that he would return to
Rome. The idea was not popular with his court, so he consulted Catherine.
Her answer to him was simple: "Fulfill what you promised to
God." The pope was stunned that she knew by revelation what he had
never before mentioned to any person on earth. He then decided with
finality to return to Rome.
22. Three prelates in the pope’s company,
suspicious of Catherine, grilled her on matters of the interior life and
religious topics. But, to their surprise, they found themselves in awe of
the answers she gave to their questions. Aware that she was unschooled in
theology, they realized her knowledge came directly from God. They
confided to the pope that they had never seen a soul so enlightened and
yet so profoundly humble as Catherine. After she left Avignon, Catherine
wrote several letters to the pope urging him to hasten his return to Rome.
Three months later, Gregory XI moved the papal residence to Rome, where it
remains to this day.
TURMOIL IN FLORENCE
23. After returning to her convent in Siena,
Catherine again wrote to Pope Gregory XI this time urging him to now
strive for a reconciliation and peace in Italy. In response, the Pope
commissioned Catherine to go to Florence, which was still divided and
obstinate toward the papacy. In that turmoil she faced real dangers to her
own life. At one point swords were actually drawn against her. But, she
remained undaunted and ultimately brought about a reconciliation in Italy
in 1378.
THE CROWN OF THORNS
24. In one of her visions, Christ presented
Catherine her with two crowns, one of gold and the other of thorns. He
offered her the choice of either one. She answered, "I desire, O
Lord, to live conformed to your passion, to accept pain and suffering as
my repose and delight." Then taking the crown of thorns, she forcibly
pressed it upon her head. For Catherine, suffering was an invitation from
the Father to share in the sufferings of his Son for the salvation of
souls. She viewed the crucified Christ and her own sufferings as
mysteriously linked. She knew that suffering paid for something very
precious. In God’s plan for salvation, it bought the grace of
conversion, it purchased renewal and true repentance, and like the
suffering Christ endured on the cross, it accomplished the salvation of
souls.
INTERCEDES FOR THE END OF SCHISM IN EUROPE
25. The election of Pope Urban VI brought on a new
division. Once again Catherine was called upon as mediator. She was sent
along with St. Catherine of Sweden, to meet with Joan, the Queen of
Sicily. The queen had sided with Robert of Geneva, an
"anti-pope" unlawfully elected under the name "Clement
VII". His election by a group of dissident cardinals, was invalid.
Catherine wrote a letter to Queen Joan, and two letters full of holy fire
to the King of France, the King of Hungary and to others in high places
exhorting them to renounce the schism dividing the Church.
CATHERINE DIES IN ROME
26. It was at during all this, that Catherine
suffered a paralytic stroke. She died a few days later in Rome on April
29, in the year 1380. She was thirty-three years old. The prayer you are
about to hear was written by Catherine herself honoring the Blessed
Trinity. This prayer reflects the honest and powerful love she had for
God. It’s considered so rich and inspiring it was added to the
collection of official prayers used by the Church on her feast day April
29.
PRAYER OF ST. CATHERINE
27. "
Eternal
God, Eternal Trinity, you have made the blood of Christ so precious
through his sharing in your divine nature. You are a mystery as deep as
the sea; the more I search, the more I find, and the more I find, the more
I search for you. But I can never be satisfied; what I receive will ever
leave me desiring more. When you fill my soul I have an even greater
hunger, and I grow more famished for your light. I desire above all to see
you, the true light, as you really are.
I have tasted and seen the depth of your mystery
and the beauty of your creation with the light of my understanding. I have
clothed myself with your likeness and have seen what I shall be.
Eternal Father, you have given me a share in your
power and the wisdom that Christ claims as his own, and your Holy Spirit
has given me the desire to love you. You are my Creator, eternal Trinity,
and I am your creature. You have made of me a new creation in the blood of
your Son, and I know that you are moved with love at the beauty of your
creation, for you have enlightened me.
Eternal Trinity, Godhead, Mystery deep as the sea,
you could give me no greater gift than the gift of yourself. For you are a
fire ever burning and never consumed, which itself consumes all the
selfish love that fills my being. Yes, you are a fire that takes away the
coldness, illuminates the mind with its light and causes me to know your
truth. By this light, reflected as it were in a mirror, I recognize that
you are the highest good, one we can neither comprehend nor fathom. And I
know that you are beauty and wisdom itself. The food of angels, you gave
yourself to man in the fire of your love.
You are the garment which covers our nakedness, and
in our hunger you are a satisfying food, for you are sweetness and in you
there is no taste of bitterness, O triune God!"
LEGACY
28. Catherine of Siena was one of the greatest
Christian mystics in church history. She recorded her mystical experiences
published later as the Dialogue of St. Catherine, a work still sold
in book stores today. Her legacy includes some three hundred and
sixty-four letters to people in every class of society. These letters give
evidence of a truly remarkable life, one tracked and analyzed by over 200
authors and historians who published major works on her life and
spirituality. Catherine was the only survivor of twins and only half of
her other brothers and sisters lived beyond infancy. She was the last of
twenty five children. She was canonized a saint by Pope Pius II in 1461,
made the patron of Italy in 1939 and declared a Doctor of the Church by
Pope Paul VI in 1970. The Church officially celebrates her feast day
around the world in the calendar of the Mass on April 29th. Her life of
grace and spirituality is one that stands out in history with all the
brilliance of a star in the night.
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