Life of St. Catherine de Ricci. Thursday with the Saints

St. Catherine de Ricci.

 

Her Life

St. Catherine de Ricci was born was born in 1522 in Florence, Italy to Peter de Ricci (her father) who was married to Catherine Bonza (her mother). Saint Catherine de Ricci was given the baptismal name Alexandrina but later took the name Catherine for herself as a sign of her commitment to Christianity and whenever she was missing, she was always found on her knees in some secret part of the house.

 

She lost her mother in her infant years and showed a great love of prayer, so her father placed her at the convent of Monticelli in Florence, where her aunt (Louisa de Ricci) resided by the age of six.

 

After she returned home for a while, she chose to enter the convent of Dominican nuns at Prat in Tuscany in the year 1535 at fourteen years and was quickly selected to become Mistress of Novices and then sub prioress.  Then at twenty-five years, she was chosen to be perpetual prioress.

 

Her reputation of her wonderful sanctity, prudence and piety was known by nearly all who met her. This gave her many visits from a multitude number of bishops, princes, and cardinals, including the Cardinals Cervini, Alexander of Medici, and Aldobrandini, who all three later raised to St. Peter’s chair, under the names of Marcellus II, Clement VIII, and Leo XI.

 

 

MIRACLES & LEGEND

St. Catherine de Ricci is reported to have appeared to her friend, St. Philip Neri at Rome while he was detained, during their correspondence. St. Catherine was also famous for her experience of the, “Ecstasy of the Passion,” which occurred every Thursday from noon to Friday at 4 p.m. for twelve years.

 

MORAL LESSONS FROM THE SAINT

 

1. Her life teaches us how to live a passionate life within the path of grace God has laid out for us.

 

2. St. Catherine’s life example teaches us to abandon ourselves to God in times of plenty and in suffering.

 

3. Humility is the way to go if we want to get to heaven, if we want to receive the grace of complete union with God and see Him face to face.

 

4. We should love of God and commit to prayers.

 

 

HER QUOTES

 

1. “Look down, we beseech Thee, O Lord, on this Thy family for which Our Lord Jesus Christ did not hesitate to be delivered into the hands of the wicked, and suffer the torments of the Cross.”

 

2. You are rewarded not according to your work or your time but according to the measure of your love.”

 

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Three Points on the Spiritual Life by St Catherine de Ricci

 

 

1. We must force ourselves to DETACH the heart and the will from all earthly love; to love no fleeting things, except for the love of God and, above all, not to love God for our own sakes, for self-interest but with a love as pure as His own goodness.

 

 

2. We must DIRECT all our thoughts, words and actions to His honour and by prayer, counsel and good example, seek His glory solely, whether for ourselves or for others, so that through our means, all may love and honour God. This second point is more pleasing to Him than the first, as it better fulfils His will.

 

 

3. We must aim more and more at the ACCOMPLISHMENT of the Divine Will – not only desiring nothing special to happen to us, bad or even good, in this wretched life and thus, keeping ourselves always at God’s disposal, with heart and soul at peace but also, believing, with a firm faith, that Almighty God loves us more than we love ourselves and takes more care of us, than we could take care of ourselves.

 

 

Death and Canonization

St. Catherine de Ricci died in 1589 after suffering from a long illness at sixty-seventh years. Her beatification ceremony was performed by Pope Clement XII in 1732, and was canonized by Benedict XIV in 1746.

 

 

Patronage

St. Catherine de Ricci is the Patroness of the sick.

 

Feast Day

Her feast day in the Roman Catholic Church is February 13.

 

 

Prayer to St. Catherine de Ricci

Almighty God, you brought our sister Catherine to holiness through her contemplation of your Son’s passion. As we remember the dying and rising of your Son, help us to become courageous preachers and teachers of these mysteries. We ask this through our Lord Jesus Christ, you Son, who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, for ever and ever. Amen.

 

Meet today’s Writer

Olori Flora is a Freelance/ Remote Writer, Designer and Data Entry Officer who ensures accuracy of data entered and scrapped, writes, designs creative graphics, UI/Ux and Videos.

Olori Flora believes that creative contents are required for a better self-expression and help simplify things.

She holds an HND in Computer Science from the Auchi Polytechnic, Auchi, Edo State. She is a lover of God’s word and a Marian Devotee