St Catherine of Siena (1347-1380) lived during a troubled period in the life of the Church and throughout the social context of Italy and Europe.
When Catherine was 16 years old, motivated by a vision of St. Dominic, she entered the Third Order of the Dominicans. While living at home, she confirmed her vow of virginity made privately when she was still an adolescent and dedicated herself to prayer, penance and works of charity, especially for the benefit of the sick.
When the fame of her holiness spread, she became the protagonist of an intense activity of spiritual guidance for people from every walk of life: nobles and politicians, artists and ordinary people, consecrated men and women and religious, including Pope Gregory XI who was living at Avignon in that period and whom she energetically and effectively urged to return to Rome. She travelled widely to press for the internal reform of the Church and to foster peace among the States.
She was canonized in 1461. Her teaching is endowed with such excellence that in 1970 the pope Paul VI declared her a Doctor of the Church, a title that was added to those of Co-Patroness of the City of Rome — at the wish pope Pius IX — and of Patroness of Italy — in accordance with the decision of Venerable Pius XII.
Like the Sienese Saint, every believer feels the need to be conformed with the sentiments of the heart of Christ to love God and his neighbor as Christ himself loves. And we can all let our hearts be transformed and learn to love like Christ in a familiarity with him that is nourished by prayer, by meditation on the Word of God and by the sacraments, above all by receiving Holy Communion frequently and with devotion. Catherine also belongs to the throng of Saints devoted to the Eucharist.
Despite her awareness of the human shortcomings of priests, Catherine always felt very great reverence for them: through the sacraments and the word they dispense the saving power of Christ’s Blood. The Sienese Saint always invited the sacred ministers, including the Pope whom she called “sweet Christ on earth”, to be faithful to their responsibilities, motivated always and only by her profound and constant love of the Church.
She said before she died: “in leaving my body, truly I have consumed and given my life in the Church and for the Holy Church, which is for me a most unique grace”. Let us learn from St Catherine to love Christ and the Church with courage, intensely and sincerely.
Pope Benedict XVI, November 24, 2010
