Easter: April 29th
Memorial of St. Catherine of Siena, virgin and doctor
Other Commemorations: St. Peter of Verona, martyr (RM); St. Hugh of Cluny (RM) ; Other Titles: St. Catharine of Siena
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Catherine Benincasa, born in Siena at a date that remains uncertain, was favored with visions from the age of seven. Becoming a tertiary of the Dominican Order, she acquired great influence by her life of prayer and extraordinary mortifications as well as by the spread of her spiritual writings. Her continual appeals for civil peace and reform of the Church make her one of the leading figures of the fourteenth century. Worn out by her mortifications and negotiations she died in Rome on April 29, 1380.
According to the 1962 Missal of St. John XXIII the Extraordinary Form of the Roman Rite, St. Catherine's feast is celebrated on April 30 and today is the feast of St. Peter of Verona. He was born about 1205 at Verona. His parents were Manichaeans, but he was converted and entered the Order of Preachers with the ambition not only of preaching the faith but of giving his life for it. He had his wish, for in the course of his apostolic work he was assassinated by the Manichaeans on the road from Como to Milan in 1252. Historically today is the feast of St. Hugh of Cluny, a prince related to the sovereign house of the dukes of Burgundy. He was an adviser to nine popes.St. Catherine of SienaCatherine, the youngest of twenty-five children, was born in Siena on March 25, 1347. During her youth she had to contend with great difficulties on the part of her parents. They were planning marriage for their favorite daughter; but Catherine, who at the age of seven had already taken a vow of virginity, refused. To break her resistance, her beautiful golden brown tresses were shorn to the very skin and she was forced to do the most menial tasks. Undone by her patience, mother and father finally relented and their child entered the Third Order of St. Dominic.
- If you have never done so today would be a good time to read some of St. Catherine's Dialogue or purchase a copy.
- Learn more about St. Catherine here.
- Find quotes from St. Catherine of Siena at the Catholic Reader.
- Read 8 Things to Know and Share About St. Catherine of Siena at the National Catholic Register.
- Read The Life of Catherine of Siena for Violin and Piano.
- Learn more about the Order of Preachers founded by St. Dominic.
St. Hugh of ClunySt. Hugh was a prince related to the sovereign house of the dukes of Burgundy, and had his education under the tuition of his pious Mother, and under the care of Hugh, Bishop of Auxerre, his great-uncle. From his infancy he was exceedingly given to prayer and meditation, and his life was remarkably innocent and holy.
- Read more about St. Hugh at New Advent.