“From the blood of martyrs, saints are born.” It was nine years after the brutal tomahawking of Jesuits Isaac Jogues and John de Brebeuf by Iroquois warriors, that a baby girl came into the world, close to the site of their sacrifice, in Auriesville, New York.

Her mother, a Christian Algonquin, had been taken captive by the Iroquois, later becoming the wife to the chief of the fierce Mohawk clan – the most audacious among the Five Nations. Tragedy struck young Kateri at the age of four when a smallpox epidemic claimed the lives of her parents and little brother, leaving her scarred and nearly blind. Her uncle, who had ascended to the position of chief after her father’s death, took her in.

Although her uncle was no friend to the Blackrobes, the Jesuit missionaries, he was powerless against them due to a peace treaty with the French, which mandated their presence in villages with Christian captives. Despite the fear of her uncle’s wrath, Kateri was stirred by the teachings of the three Blackrobes who stayed in her uncle’s house. She refrained from seeking instruction, though, and also declined to marry a Mohawk warrior. It was at the age of 19 that Kateri mustered the courage to embrace her faith, and was baptized as Kateri, meaning Catherine, on Easter Sunday.

Her baptism marked the beginning of her life as a perceived slave. For refusing to work on Sundays, she was denied food. But her spiritual strength only grew with time. She spoke to a missionary about her profound reverence for the sanctity of baptism, and the incredible love of God for humanity that moved her deeply.

Despite the constant threat due to the ire her conversion and pious life had aroused, Kateri continued on her spiritual path. Following a priest’s advice, she undertook a daring 200-mile journey on foot to the Christian Indian village of Sault St. Louis, near Montreal.

Over the next three years, under the guidance of a priest and an elder Iroquois woman, she flourished in her faith, dedicating long hours to prayer, charity, and demanding penance. At 23, she took a vow of virginity, an extraordinary act for an Indian woman, as their futures often depended on marriage. Even when faced with accusations of meeting a man during her solitary prayer sessions in the woods, her commitment to her vow remained unbroken.

Her aspirations extended to establishing a religious community for women after visiting Montreal, but she was discouraged by a local priest. Accepting this with humility, she decided to lead an “ordinary” life, filled with fervent prayers and harsh fasting, in the hope of the conversion of her people. Kateri passed away the day before Holy Thursday, and those present witnessed a miraculous transformation of her emaciated, scarred face into that of a healthy child, a peaceful smile gracing her lips. She was beatified in 1980.

Saint Kateri Tekakwitha, the humble and brave maiden, was canonized by Pope Benedict XVI on October 21, 2012.

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24 COMMENTS

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  1. I had discovered about this couragious young Mohawk lady through the internet. And am felling blessed in reading bout her story,What an Inspirations she is for ALL Native American women of faith.I look forward to hearing /reading her Beautification in the year of 2012.GOD Bless her and all women.

  2. She appeared in the adoration chapel next to the exposed Eucharist at my home parish in Sunbury, Ohio in 2011. There were canonization cards in the adoration chapel and people had being praying them, that is most likely why she appeared.

  3. I live in Albuquerque,NM. We have a small mission/parish here named Queen of Angels Church/Blessed Kateri Tekawitha Parish. It is authentically Native American—they have our special feast days as well as their own. The small mission is in all in Native American decor. In the procession to the altar, the priest and an Indian Maiden as well as the lectors are all donned in their Native American attire. The priest holds a handmade pot with ashes and uses a feather to bless the congregation. It is a very moving experience!

    In Santa Fe,NM at the Basillica of St Francis Stands a life size sculpture of Blessed Kateri Tekawitha—done by a local sculptor. The sculpture is very beautiful & blessed by the Archbishop.

    • I just visited Albuquerque and Santa Fe and was thrilled to see the statue at the cathedral- which actually looks like an Indian woman, unlike most of the holy cards I’ve seen. Next time I will visit the mission church of St. Kateri, thanks for telling us about it!

  4. Please offer prayers for my family, prayers of thanksgiving for the graces and blessings we have receivec

    Prayers for the petitions we are asking for a new roof for the house – For the young ones to amend their lives –

    Thank you

  5. Dear St. Kateri,

    I long for your friendship and intersession. Help me to walk in holiness as you did amid persecution and rejection. Please intercede for a friend’s dying father, who is a fallen away Catholic (who is much like your uncle), for his repentance and return to the Catholic faith and also for his recently deceased son, who died of a heart attack right in front of him.

  6. Dear St. Kateri, Please intercede with Our Lord to help my younger girl find work so she can find her way in the world. Please also intercede with Him for several cancer patients, I know or know of, one of them two years old. Two are in great pain and awaiting complex surgeries at major hospitals. Please let them all have relief from this terrible disease which robs so many of their lives and that of their loved ones. Thank you for listening! Amen.

  7. Please continue to pray ffor my family and other families, I know that many families ar going through difficult times – thank you for your intercession on our behalf – AMEN

  8. Dear St. Ketari,

    It is a year later and I now ask for your intercession for my father in law who is in need of conviction and conversion. Dementia is setting in and he needs to go to confession. Please make a way for him to speak plainly and honestly with a priest. Help me not to be afraid to pursue this. His soul is in danger.

    AMEN

  9. St Kateri, would you please intercede on behalf of Sharon H. suffering with ALS; may she be healed in body and soul, if willed by Our Lord God.

    Also, fellow pilgrims on the journey, i encourage you to make a pilgrimage to her shrine in Fonda, NY, as well as the Shrine of the North American Martyrs just 5 miles away in Auriesville.

  10. I was born and raised in the are of where Katera lived. I attended Mass at the Aurisville Shine. Visited chapel in Fonda. NY. I feel so blessed to be able to attend Mass there and lived in that area
    CAROLE MAY

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