Today we celebrate the feast of St. Kateri Tekakwitha (1656-1680). Kateri belonged to the Turtle Clan of the Mohawks, an Iroquois community. She lived near today’s Auriesville, New York. She lost most of her family to a smallpox epidemic that broke out in her village. She herself was left with poor eyesight and facial scarring because of the smallpox.
Kateri’s uncle raised her after the passing of her parents and brother. As a teenager, she had a conversion to the Catholic faith. She refused to get married, as she wanted to give her life through consecration to the Lord. This angered her family, especially her uncle. She was baptized and received into the Church when she was 20 years old. She was taught the faith through Jesuit missionaries. It was not easy for her to live out the faith; the rest of her tribe, including the children would mock, refuse to feed, and throw stones at Kateri. She eventually escaped to live with a Christian community. She would go to Mass daily, often visit Jesus in the Blessed Sacrament, prayed the Rosary, served the sick and dying, and taught children about the faith.
St. Kateri died at the age of 24, and her final words were “Jesus, I love you.” At the moment of her death, the scars suddenly disappeared. On October 21, 2012 she was canonized a saint by Pope Benedict XVI. She is known as the “Lily of the Mohawks”.
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