Saint Katherine the Great Martyr of Alexandria
The Life of Saint Katherine
St. Katherine is one of the early Church's most beloved Saints, indeed a
Saint honored and esteemed for over 1,600 years. Inasmuch as she
ranks among the most important of Saints, it behooves us to remember
her life. During the time of the Emperor Maxentius at the beginning
of the fourth century, there lived in Alexandria a young woman of
royal blood. She was not only a lady of stunning beauty and
considerable wealth, but she had also been blest to be the recipient
of a first-rate education, the best education that money could buy in
that age. She was thoroughly tutored in all of the philosophy,
history, science, and poetry of the ancients Homer, Virgil, Plato,
Aristotle, Herodotus, Thucydides, Hippocrates, Galen, and so forth;
and she excelled at logic, rhetoric, and languages. All who knew her
were astonished at her brilliance.
As one would expect, many of the rich and famous sought her hand in
marriage, for in addition to all that we have just mentioned, she was
an heiress to a throne. However, Katherine was not particularly
interested in all of these proposals of marriage. She let it be known
that the man she would marry would have to be young, and would have
to be her equal in wealth, wisdom, beauty, and compassion. Any
petitioner for her hand less than her equal in all these things
rendered him automatically unworthy. So it was that all potential
suitors were decisively stopped in their tracks. Even the son of the
emperor himself, though certainly wealthy and apparently
compassionate, lacked wisdom and beauty.
Since this meant that her daughter would likely not in the circumstances
find a spouse at all, St. Katherine mother sought the counsel of a
wise and saintly ascetic, who lived on the outskirts of Alexandria.
The holy man listened to the story of the girl life and of her
resolve not to marry an inferior, which actually denoted her
determination not to marry at all. Since this man was a Christian, he
decided to tell the young lady of Christ Jesus and His teachings. I
can direct you to a magnificent man, a man who is lordly and majestic
in his bearing, who is wise and wealthy beyond your greatest dreams,
who is compassionate beyond compare, and whose beauty causes the very
sun itself to fade. Katherine was, needless to say, astonished,
believing that the hermit was speaking of some extraordinary but
still wholly earthly man. When she asked whose son this wondrous
person might be, he replied that this man had no earthly father. He
was, said the ascetic, born of a holy Virgin, who is the very Queen
of Heaven and Earth and who is honored and served by the angels.
Katherine asked how she might see and meet the young man of whom the hermit
spoke, to which the old man replied that he was prepared to instruct
her so that she might someday look upon the eternal and excellent
man. Young Katherine was not sure why it was so, but she nevertheless
was moved by the warm expression on the old man face to place her
trust in him. Giving her an icon of the Holy Virgin Mother holding
the Child Christ, the hermit told her to pray before it and ask the
Holy Virgin to grant her the privilege of seeing Him whom she was
seeking. Katherine returned home and that night prayed, as she had
been instructed. Soon, she fell deeply asleep and dreamt of the Holy
Virgin Mary holding the Christ Child, as they appeared in the icon
she had been given. In her dream, the Child kept his gaze on His
mother, but away from young Katherine.
The Holy Virgin spoke to Him, saying, Look, my Son, at Your beautiful and
pious servant, Katherine.
The Child answered, No, she is not beautiful but ugly and unbelieving,
and I will not look at her.
The Holy Mother implored Him again, saying, But she is among the wisest,
wealthiest, and most beautiful of people in the world.
No, he responded, she is silly and ignorant and I will not let her see
me.
However, he added, if she will return to the man who gave her the icon and
follow his instructions rigorously, then she will someday see me and
be consoled.
Upon arising from sleep, Katherine immediately went with her entourage to
see the hermit again, and upon reaching his cave, bowed deeply before
him. She told him of the dream and begged him to instruct her fully
in the Christian faith.
She, being very gifted, soon absorbed all of the ascetic teaching about
God's glory, of His creation of the world, of the mission of Christ God
here on Earth, of the wonders of Heaven, and of the terrors of hell.
Soon, she consented to be baptized.
The night after her baptism, she dreamt again of the Mother and Child,
but this time Christ said, Before she was poor, and now she is rich;
before she was ignorant, and now she is truly wise; before she was
proud, and now she is humble. She is now worthy and I accept her as
my bride.
Christ then placed a ring on her hand, saying, Today, I take thee as my
bride, for all eternity.
It happens that at this time the Emperor demanded that the people of
Alexandria show their loyalty to the state through their devotion to
the old gods, and so they were instructed to offer animal sacrifices
to the idols; Katherine refused. Instead she publicly proclaimed her
devotion to the one God who had given Himself over to be crucified
for the sake of humanity. I am the bride of the Lord Jesus Christ,
she insisted.
She, a prominent person, was arrested for outraging the pagan gods, and
detained. Thereafter, she was examined by various scholars and
philosophers, who attempted to win her away from the Christian Faith
she had adopted. Instead, she convinced them. The Emperor was furious
and ordered that they be burned, but God intervened and none were
harmed. Maxentius then used promises of great fortune alternating
with threats of terrible calamity to try himself to win Katherine
away from her newfound religion. It was to no avail. She was then
flogged and tortured. She was, among other things, attached to a huge
wheel edged with sharp blades, but it fell apart before it could do
harm. Finally, his patience exhausted, the Emperor ordered her
executed by beheading.
Before her repose, she spoke these words, Do
not grieve, but rather be joyous, for I go now to meet my Savior, my
Creator, and my Bridegroom, Jesus Christ. In His Heavenly Kingdom I
shall reign with him for ever more. Do not cry therefore for me, but
for yourselves who will soon suffer greatly. She then was executed.
Immediately, her body was taken by angels to Mount Sinai, where later
it was discovered by pious monks who built a monastery at the site.
That monastery, named for St. Katherine, still stands and there, to
this day, the relics of the Great Martyr are still honored.