This morning (21 October), Pope Benedict XVI canonized seven saints including two Americans: Kateri Tekakwitha, the first Native American saint, and Mother Marianne Cope, who spent the last 30 years of her life ministering to the sick on the Hawaiian island of Molokai.
Saint Kateri Tekakwitha, of Algonquin and Mohawk descent, is also known as the "Lily of the Mohawks." She was born in 1656, became an orphan as a child and was raised by her uncle, the chief of the Mohawk village. A smallpox epidemic left her eyesight impaired and her face scarred for life. Despite the anger of her relatives, Kateri was drawn to the faith by the teachings of missionary priests. She ran away to Montreal, Canada, where she practiced her faith with freedom.
Saint Marianne Cope joined the Sisters of Saint Francis in Syracuse, New York, in 1862. She became a leader in the field of health care, often caring for those considered “outcasts.” This then led her to volunteer in the Hawaiian island of Molokai, where she took care of the lepers and the poor.
Among the other saints canonized today was martyr Pedro Calungsod of the Philippines, a lay catechist who suffered religious persecution.
For more information about Saints Kateri Tekakwitha and Marianne Cope, please visit:
Tekawitha Conference: Kateri Tekakwitha - Lily of the Mohawks
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