Featured Saint: St. Kateri

By: Abigail Delic

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There are, seemingly, not many interesting aspects about St.Kateri, this month’s spotlight saint and patroness of ecology and the North American Indigenous. She has a textbook sainthood story, surviving a deadly illness and converting to Catholicism despite her relative's and community’s objection. Her story is not one of excitement, full of miracles or martyrdom, such as that of St Paul or St Francis. 

However, there is one aspect of her story that is unique. There is a legend that states she slept on a bed of thorns, supposedly as a way to pray for her relatives' conversion. It is not stated if sleeping on this bed of thorns had any impact at all,, remaining a mere eccentricity of her character, as opposed to a spiritual confrontation with God. One could almost be forgiven for glancing over her story when compiling a list of great saints. Almost.

St. Kateri holds a special message that this blessed St. Michael’s community needs to hear. God does not need you to be great. He does not need you to go to the best school, have the most followers or have the highest average, and He wants you to know that you do not need these things for a happy life. He wants you to be pierced by Him, to draw closer to Him in your pain and uncertainty. How many times did St. Kateri lay on her mat of thorns, missing her family and wishing that she could have been the daughter they had wanted. How many times have you wished to be different, and felt so lonely because of it? In her pain and loneliness, St Kateri drew closer to God, sheltering under Him like the trees sheltered the birds.

God urges you to remember that you are not alone in your pain, in your fear or in your worst crises. You may often think you need to accomplish more to fill the spaces inside of you. But the answer is already here, reaching for you through the thickets and briars, begging for you to take His hand. You do not need to be “great” or even “good enough”. Your presence is all that's required.