Kateri Tekakwitha (1656 - April 17, 1680), the daughter of a Mohawk warrior and a Christian Algonquin woman, was born in the Mohawk fortress of Ossernenon near present-day Auriesville, New York . At the age of 4 smallpox swept through Ossernenon, and Tekakwitha was left with unsightly scars and poor eyesight. The outbreak took the lives of her brother and both her parents and Tekakwitha was adopted by her uncle, who was the chief of the Turtle-clan.

In 1666, Marquis Alexandre De Prouville de Tracy burned down Ossernenon. A new fort, Caughnawaga , was built on the north side of the Mohawk River in what is now Fonda, New York. While living here Tekakwitha was converted and baptized in 1676 by Father Jacques de Lamberville , a Jesuit. At her baptism, she took the name "Kateri", a Mohawk pronunciation of "Catherine".

Because she was persecuted by her Indian kin, she moved to Kahnawake, Canada where she lived a life dedicated to prayer, penitential practices, and care for the sick and aged. In 1679, she took a vow of chastity. A year later, Kateri Tekakwitha died at the age of 24.

She is called "The Lily of the Mohawks."

Veneration

Blessed Kateri Tekawitha
Virgin
Born	1656, Ossernon, Iroquois Territory (Modern Auriesville, New York )
Died	April 17, 1680, Kahnawake, Canada
Venerated in	Roman Catholic Church
Beatified	June 22, 1980
Canonized	Pending
Major shrine	St. Francis Xavier Church, Kahnawake, Quebec
Feast	April 17 (Canada), July 14 (US)
Attributes	Lily, Turtle
Patronage	Ecology

According to Catholic belief, Kateri's scars vanished at the time of her death. It is also held that she appeared to two different individuals in the weeks following her death.

The process of her canonization began in 1884. She was declared Venerable by Pope Pius XII on January 3, 1943. She was beatified June 22, 1980 by Pope John Paul II, and as such she is properly referred to as "Blessed Kateri Tekakwitha" within the Roman Catholic Church. She is the first Native American to be so honored.

As of mid-2004, her canonization is currently waiting a verified miracle.

In literature

Kateri Tekakwitha figures prominently as a character in fictional writings by Leonard Cohen (Beautiful Losers) and William Vollmann (Fathers and Crows).

External links

• Biography at the Canadian Dictionary of Biography Online
• Kateri On-line - largest site dedicated to the Mohawk Lily
• Kateri Tekakwitha website
• The Kateri Tekakwitha entry at Catholic-Forum.com's Patron Saint Index
• Kateri's entry at Catholic.org's Saints & Angels Index
• The (U.S.) National Kateri Shrine, in Fonda, New York