ILLUMINATIVE HUMOR

Didjaredit? 1.Catherine was from what city? 2.Catherine says she wishes that her “son” be drowned in the ___________________ in order for his soul be made pure. 3.What did Catherine’s “son” make her promise? 4.What two names did her “son” pronounce at his execution? 5.What did Catherine physically do when her “son” was being beheaded? 6.What did her “son” do to her as she saw a vision of his soul going into heaven? 7.In Catherine’s prayer/poem you read, she states that her nature is ______. 8.In the example from her Dialogues, she calls God a “Mad _______” who acts drunk! EXTRA CREDIT: WHO WAS FRA RAIMONDO OF CAPUA, OP?

Her History

She was the 23rd child of a wool dyer, Jacopo and Lapa Benincasa and grew up as an intelligent, cheerful and intensely religious person. St. Catherine started having mystical experiences when she was only 6, seeing guardian angels as clearly as the people they protected Catherine disappointed her mother by cutting off her hair as a protest against being overly encouraged to improve her appearance in order to attract a husband. Her father ordered her to be left in peace, and she was given a room of her own for prayer and meditation.

She entered the Dominican Third Order at 18 and spent the next three years in seclusion, prayer and austerity. Gradually a group of followers gathered around her—men and women, priests and religious. An active public apostolate grew out of her contemplative life. Her letters, mostly for spiritual instruction and encouragement of her followers, began to take more and more note of public affairs. Opposition and slander resulted from her mixing fearlessly with the world and speaking with the candor and authority of one completely committed to Christ. She was cleared of all charges at the Dominican General Chapter of 1374.

Her public influence reached great heights because of her evident holiness, her membership in the Dominican Third Order, and the deep impression she made on the pope. She continued to have visions of Jesus, Mary and the saints. She worked tirelessly for the crusade against the Turks and for peace between Florence and the pope St. Catherine was one of the most brilliant theological minds of her day, although she never had any formal education. She persuaded the Pope to go back to Rome from Avignon, in 1377, and when she died she was endeavoring to heal the Great Western Schism. In 1378, the Great Schism began, splitting the allegiance of Christendom between two, then three, popes and putting even saints on opposing sides. Catherine spent the last two years of her life in Rome, in prayer and pleading on behalf of the cause of Urban VI and the unity of the Church. She offered herself as a victim for the Church in its agony. She died surrounded by her "children" and was canonized in 1461.

Catherine ranks high among the mystics and spiritual writers of the Church. In 1939, she and Francis of Assisi were declared co-patrons of Italy. Paul VI named her and Teresa of Avila doctors of the Church in Her spiritual testament is found in The Dialogue.

Bones of Catherine at Santa Maria Sopra Manerva in Rome where she actually died.)

Contemplative Prayer (Contemplation)

Mysticism & Mystics Mysticism = relation to MYSTERY. In philosophy, Mysticism is either a religious tendency and desire of the human soul towards an intimate union with the Divinity, or a system growing out of such a tendency and desire. Mystics are gifted contemplatives. Mystics are persons who often, but not always, manifest charismatic phenomena. Such phenomena do not occur in the normal development of the spiritual life.

The Mystical Marriage In the Old and the New Testament, the love of God for man, and, in particular His relations with His chosen people (whether of the Synagogue or of the Church), are frequently typified under the form of the relations between bridegroom and bride. Christian virginity been considered from the earliest centuries as a special offering made by the soul to its spouse, Christ. The term mystical marriage designates that mystical union with God which is the most exalted condition attainable by the soul in this life. It is also called a "transforming union", "consummate union“ and "deification“ by some saints who were mystics throughout the ages. In many of the lives of the saints, the mystical marriage consists in a vision in which Christ tells a soul that He takes it for His bride, presenting it with the customary ring, and the apparition is accompanied by a ceremony; the Blessed Virgin, saints, and angels are present. This festivity is but the accompaniment and symbol of a purely spiritual grace.

The “Dialogues” The Dialogues of Catherine of Siena is a practical and compelling work of Christian mysticism. St. Catherine of Siena wrote it "during a state of ecstasy while in dialogue with God the Father." The book contains a dialog between the "Eternal Father" (God the Father) and "a human soul" (St. Catherine). In it, the Eternal Father describes, through many different analogies, allegories, and metaphors, the spiritual life of humankind. In his description, the Eternal Father emphasizes the importance of cultivating virtue, continually praying, and the need for obedience. Written at a time of spiritual and political upheaval, the Dialog of Catherine of Siena remains relevant even to the present day, and any reader will profit from the sound advice throughout this dialogue.

St. Catherine Dictating the Dialogues

WORDS OF ST. CATHERINE from the Dialogues om/watch?v=lGi8Ot MDI4Y