St. Catherine was born in 287 AD and died in 305 AD, aged 18, in Alexandria, Egypt. At that time Alexandria was one of the finest cities in the world, a centre of learning, culture and faith. Christian tradition states that Catherine was of noble birth and possibly a princess. Her story is of a brave and faithful young woman, whose life illustrates the power of courageous faith. She was the fairest in the land and the most beautiful. She was wealthy, brilliant, had lots of sense and could argue with Philosophers. She was virtuous and did not have time for pagan suitors who wanted to make her a ‘trophy wife’. She wanted to be dedicated to Jesus Christ her whole life.
Early in her life Catherine had a vision of Mother Mary and Baby Jesus, which sparked her conversion to Christianity, guiding her to be in communion with Jesus. She became a Christian at the age of 14.She was clear about who her Lord was, which gave her power, purpose and strength of character.
Catherine protested the persecution of Christians under the then Emperor Maxentius. She visited him personally to denounce his cruelty. Rather than order her execution, Maxentius summoned fifty orators and philosophers to debate with her. However, Catherine was moved by the Power of the Holy Spirit and spoke eloquently in defense of her faith. She was honest and courageous with those who disagreed with her. Her words were so moving that several pagans converted to Christianity, but were immediately executed for their new faith. Unable to defeat Catherine, the Emperor ordered her to be tortured and imprisoned. She was arrested and scourged. Despite the torture, she did not abandon her faith. According to some sources, Catherine even converted the Emperor’s wife Valeria Maximilla, but she too was executed for her new faith. However there is no historical record about this and it could be a legend.
Maxentius made a final attempt to persuade beautiful Catherine to abandon her faith by proposing marriage to her. Although this would make her a powerful Empress, she refused to renounce her Christian faith saying she was married to Jesus Christ. The Emperor angrily ordered her to be executed on a breaking Wheel. This is an ancient form of torture where a person’s limbs are threaded among the spokes and the bones are shattered by the executioner with a heavy rod. It is a brutal punishment and results in a slow painful death. It is reserved for the worst criminals.
When Catherine was presented before the Wheel, she touched it and a miracle shattered the wheel; the blades flew off hitting and injuring the executors.
Unable to torture her to death, the Emperor ordered her to be beheaded. It is claimed that Angels took her body to Mount Sinai, where in the sixth century Emperor Justinian ordered a Monastery to be established in her name. The Monastery remains to this day and is one of the oldest in the world.
St. Catherine of Alexandria is a canonized Saint in the Catholic Church. According to tradition she was martyred in 305,aged 18,in Alexandria, Egypt. She is commemorated on 25th November. Her feast was removed from the General Roman Calendar in 1969 but restored in 2002,as an optional memorial. More than 1100 years after her martyrdom, Joan of Arc claimed that St. Catherine’s voice was among the heavenly voices that spoke to her.
St. Catherine is the Patron of Se Cathedral, Old Goa. She is the Patron of Scholars, Philosophers, unmarried women, potters who work with a wheel, Preachers. Learning today of her life, so courageously dedicated to Jesus, let us pray to her for strength and courage to proclaim Jesus to those who still do not know Jesus.
-J. Rodrigues