A Moment with Saint Katharine for May

   

  The daughter born to Francis Anthony and Hannah Langstroth Drexel on November 26, 1858, was baptized “Catherine Mary Drexel.” 1858 was the year of the appearances of Our Blessed Mother in Lourdes. Kate, as the child was affectionately called, and her family visited the Shrine at Lourdes in 1875. As a young woman, Kate and her two sisters returned to Lourdes in 1884 and 1886.

         Is it any wonder that St. Katharine had a great devotion to Our Lady?

         St. Katharine urged the Sisters of the Blessed Sacrament to “not forget to propagate as much as possible devotion to the Rosary and meditation on the mysteries.” We can imagine the various stages of Our Lord’s life from His Birth to His Ascension into heaven, seating at the right hand of God the Father. We can also imagine Our Lady’s role in Jesus’ life from the Annunciation, the Wedding Feast of Cana, the establishment of the Eucharist, and her Assumption and Coronation as Queen of heaven and earth. At the Wedding Feast of Cana, somehow Mary learned of the newly wed couple’s dilemma – they were out of wine! Mary merely mentioned it to her Son; He brushed her off, saying, in effect, so what? Nonetheless, Jesus changed water into fine wine. And fine it was; the in-laws noted that most hosts serve the best vintage first and the lesser vintages after the guests had been drinking awhile. With the help of Mary and Jesus, the newly weds served the best last. We may have to go through a few struggles like running out of wine but if we go to Mary, she will intercede with her Son to help us through any dilemma. St. Katharine noted: “If God the Father deemed Mary holy enough to Mother His only Son, who is there who may not confide ourselves to her – we are her children.”

         We have recently celebrated Divine Mercy Sunday. St. Katharine noted that the Heart of God was “full of pity and mercy,” an “ocean of mercy.” In traveling to Rome to get the Constitutions approved, St. Katharine would have spent days and weeks surrounded by only the ocean. But she knew that God was always with her, on land or on an “ocean of mercy.”

         May we grow to feel the presence of Jesus and Mary around us at all times.

         In May we also celebrate Memorial Day, remembering all the deceased members of our military. St. Katharine could hear the rumble of troop trains, traveling on the tracks just beyond the Motherhouse. She prayed for the soldiers and their chaplains. We can also pray for members of our armed forces and their chaplains, living and dead, each day.

         Our Lady, Queen of Peace, pray for us.

Stephanie Morris, Ph.D., ASBS
April 26, 2026