November 25 – III Class Feast
Saint Catherine of Alexandria, a noble virgin of great beauty and intellect, lived in the early 4th century during the reign of Emperor Maximinus (circa A.D. 305). Though still a young woman, she was thoroughly educated in the liberal arts and well-versed in philosophy and sacred doctrine. Having embraced the Christian faith, she dedicated herself to the service of Christ with the zeal of both virginity and wisdom.
When the Emperor Maximinus came to Alexandria and began persecuting Christians, Catherine confronted him openly, rebuking his cruelty and defending the truth of the Christian faith. Astonished by her wisdom, the Emperor summoned fifty of the most learned pagan philosophers to dispute with her, intending to refute her arguments. Instead, Catherine, filled with the Holy Ghost, so soundly defeated them in debate that many of them embraced the Faith and were martyred for their conversion.
Frustrated and infuriated, the Emperor attempted to win Catherine over by promises of wealth and marriage. Upon her refusal, he ordered her to be scourged and imprisoned. During her imprisonment, many, including the Emperor’s own wife and a high-ranking officer named Porphyrius, came to visit her. Struck by her sanctity and eloquence, they too converted—and were soon martyred for the Faith.
Maximinus then commanded that Catherine be tortured on a spiked breaking wheel, designed to tear her body apart. But as she was placed upon it, the wheel miraculously broke into pieces at her touch—an event which led many onlookers to believe in Christ.
At last, unable to overcome her constancy, the Emperor ordered her beheaded. At the moment of her martyrdom, tradition holds that milk, rather than blood, flowed from her neck—a sign of her virginal purity. Her body was carried by angels to Mount Sinai, where, centuries later, the famous Monastery of Saint Catherine was built and remains a site of Christian pilgrimage and devotion.
✠ From the Traditional Roman Martyrology (November 25):
At Alexandria, Saint Catherine, Virgin and Martyr, who, for the confession of the Christian faith, was cast into prison, scourged with rods, and finally beheaded under the Emperor Maximin. Her body, carried by angels, was buried on Mount Sinai. Her feast is celebrated with great solemnity in the East and the West.
✠ Spiritual Reflection
Saint Catherine stands as a radiant example of intellectual courage, holy virginity, and unwavering faith. Her life reminds us that the wisdom of the world cannot stand against the truth of Christ when spoken with purity and boldness.
In a time when Christian truth is often ridiculed or ignored, Saint Catherine teaches us to study the Faith deeply, to defend it with charity, and to remain faithful even in suffering.
✠ Prayers
Collect from the Traditional Latin Mass (November 25):
O God, who gavest the law to Moses on Mount Sinai, and through the holy angels didst miraculously place there the body of blessed Catherine, thy Virgin and Martyr: grant, we beseech thee, that by her intercession, we may reach unto the mountain which is Christ. Through the same our Lord Jesus Christ…
Short aspirations:
Saint Catherine, glorious virgin and martyr, pray for us.
Saint Catherine, destroyer of false wisdom, obtain for us true knowledge of Christ.
✠ Liturgical Note
In the Traditional Roman Calendar, this feast is of Third Class, meaning it is celebrated with Gloria and Credo at Mass, unless impeded by a higher feast or a Sunday. In older Missals, it is often kept with solemnity, especially in communities devoted to the wisdom and purity of the Virgin Saints.
Saint Catherine is the patroness of philosophers, theologians, preachers, unmarried women, and students. She is one of the Fourteen Holy Helpers and held in great veneration in both the Eastern and Western Churches.
✠ Suggested Devotional Reading (Learning Path: Lives of the Saints)
If you’d like to explore more about her life and the tradition surrounding her, consider the following:
- The Golden Legend (Legenda Aurea) by Blessed Jacobus de Voragine – one of the richest medieval accounts of her life.
- St. Alphonsus Liguori’s “Victories of the Martyrs” – which includes a meditation on her courage and purity.
- History of Saint Catherine’s Monastery on Mount Sinai, one of the oldest functioning Christian monasteries in the world.