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Blessed Kateri Tekakwitha
Lily of the Mohawks
 Tekakwitha
was the daughter of a Christian Algonquin mother and a non-Christian
Mohawk Chief. She was born in 1656 on the south bank of the
Mohawk River in a village called Ossernenon. When she was four
years old, a smallpox epidemic claimed the lives of her parents
and baby brother. Tekakwitha survived the disease, but her eyesight
was impaired and her face was scarred. The disease left her
weak the rest of her life.
In 1670, St. Peter's Mission was established
in Caughnawaga (Fonda, NY). In 1674, Father James de Lamberville
took charge of the mission. Tekakwitha met Father de Lamberville
a year later and told him of her desire to become baptized.
In 1976, April 5, she was baptized and given the name Kateri.
Abused by relatives because of her faith, in August, 1677, Kateri
fled her village to go and live at Sault St. Louis, St. Francis
Xavier Mission near Montreal. Two months later, and about two
hundred miles through woods, rivers and swamps, she arrived
at the Sault with the help of friends. On Christmas Day, 1677,
Kateri received her first Holy Communion. On March 25, 1679,
Kateri pronounced her vow of perpetual virginity. Her whole
life was devoted to teaching prayers to children and helping
the sick and aged until she was struck with an illness that
was to claim her life.
On April 17, 1680, Kateri died at the age of
24. Her last words were: "Jesos konoronkwa", "Jesus, I love
you". Fifteen minutes after her death, before the eyes of two
Jesuits and Indian friends, the ugly scars on her face suddenly
disappeared. On January 3, 1943, she was declared Venerable
by Pope Pius XII. She was Beatified by Pope Paul II on June
22, 1980.
(Adapted from HIGHLIGHTS OF THE LIFE OF
BLESSED TEKAKWITHA
by Sara Skanaieah, Syracus, NY)
PRAYER FOR HER CANONIZATION…
O GOD, who, among the many marvels of your grace in the new
world, did cause to blossom on the banks of the Mohawk and of
the St. Lawrence, the pure and tender lily, Kateri Tekakwitha,
grant we beseech you the favor we beg through her intercession-that
this young lover of Jesus and of his cross may soon be counted
among her saints by Holy Mother Church, and that our hearts
may be enkindled with a stronger desire to imitate her innocence
and faith. Through the same Christ our Lord. Amen.
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