Weekly Reflection

This week, we introduce you to the sixth of our eight houses in 2023 – Catherine named after St Catherine of Siena.

St Catherine (Caterina Benincasa) was born during the outbreak of the plague in Siena, Italy on 25 March 1347. She was the 25th child born to her mother, although half of her brothers and sisters did not survive childhood. Catherine herself was a twin, but her sister did not survive infancy. Her mother was 40 when she was born. Her father was a cloth dyer.

Catherine’s parents were keen for her to marry her deceased sister’s widowed husband, but she refused. Her fasting and her devotion to her family convinced them to relent and allow her to live as she pleased. Catherine once explained that she regarded her father as a representation of Jesus and her mother as Our Lady, and her brothers as the apostles, which helped her to serve them with humility.

Despite Catherine’s religious nature, she did not choose to enter a convent and instead joined the Third Order of St Dominic, which allowed her to associate with a religious society while living at home.

Catherine died on 29 April 1380 in Rome and she was canonised in 1461. Her feast day is 29 April and she is one of the patron saints of Italy. Catherine was declared a doctor of the church in 1970 and a patron saint of Europe in 1999.

In St Catherine's words:

“Be who God meant you to be and you will set the world on fire.”

“Proclaim the truth and do not be silent through fear.”

“Nothing great is ever achieved without much enduring.”

Prayer of St Catherine

Holy Spirit, come into my heart;

draw it to Thee by Thy power, O my God,

and grant me charity with filial fear.

Preserve me, O beautiful love, from every evil thought; warm me, inflame me with Thy dear love, and every pain will seem light to me.

My Father, my sweet Lord, help me in all my actions.

Jesus, love, Jesus, love. Amen.

Click below to read more about our other new house names.

Lawrence | Dominic | MacKillop | Bakhita | Bernard