St. Catherine of Alexandria
Feast 11-25
Patron of
About
Catherine of Alexandria was, according to tradition, a noble and learned young woman of the early fourth century who converted to Christianity after a vision. When the emperor Maxentius began persecuting Christians, she rebuked him to his face and, when he summoned fifty philosophers to refute her, she is said to have converted them all.
The emperor condemned her to death on a spiked wheel, but the wheel shattered at her touch, and she was beheaded instead. Angels are said to have carried her body to Mount Sinai, where the monastery that bears her name was later built.
Catherine became one of the most popular saints of the Middle Ages, venerated as a patron of philosophers, scholars, and students. She is one of the Fourteen Holy Helpers, and in art she is shown with the broken wheel and a sword. Her feast is celebrated on November 25.
Suggested prayer
O God, who gave Catherine wisdom to confound fifty philosophers and courage to face the wheel, grant through her intercession that students may grow in wisdom and defend the faith with courage. We ask this through Christ our Lord. Amen.