Catherine, my Catherine!
You waited until the exact moment
To call me forth to that
Place of death and
Life
Upon which crucifixions and resurrections are
Not only necessary but desired.
For this do I give thanks today.
I never knew you so personally before then
But now I come to you as a spiritual son
Understanding that my deep faith is purely a gift
Accepting that my suffering is the surest path to Christ
Believing that my repentance is warranted
Praying that I hear the uncreated silence of the Holy Spirit
Sacrificing that I follow the will of God.
For this do I give thanks today.
Believing so my spiritual sons and daughters have faith in God
Knowing so my spiritual sons and daughters see God intimately
Seeking so my spiritual sons and daughters can stay close to the path of God
Serving so my spiritual sons and daughters dedicate everything to God
Loving so my spiritual sons and daughters adore God above all else
Praying so my spiritual sons and daughters contemplate God
Offering so my spiritual sons and daughters lay down their lives for others.
For this do I give thanks today.
I am eternally grateful to you, Catherine, for calling me up yet another hill where faith in God once reigned and the desire to be more like you outstripped the enticement of the world.
The feast of Catherine the Great Martyr of Alexandria (+305) is November 25. She was the highly educated daughter of the governor of Alexandria who became Christian at 14 years old. After leading hundreds of people to convert, she was imprisoned, tortured, and killed by the age of 18.
At the top of St. Catherine's Hill (300 feet above Winchester, UK), a thicket of beech trees contains the site of the 12th-century chapel dedicated to St. Catherine of Alexandria.
This is the location of where the altar would have been positioned within the copse of beech trees.
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