St. Catherine of Alexandria

Their story

Catherine of Alexandria has been one of the most popular saints since the Middle Ages, though few details of her life can be confirmed historically. According to ancient tradition, she was a young noblewoman of Alexandria in Egypt in the early 300s, brilliant and highly educated. After becoming a Christian, she boldly confronted the Roman emperor for persecuting Christians. The emperor gathered fifty of the best philosophers to argue with her and prove her faith foolish. Instead, Catherine answered every argument, and the philosophers were converted to Christ, for which they were executed. Many others, including members of the emperor’s own household, came to believe through her witness. Catherine was condemned to death on a spiked wheel, but the wheel broke when it touched her. She was then beheaded. Tradition holds that her body was carried to Mount Sinai, where the famous Monastery of St. Catherine still stands. She was among the saints whose voices St. Joan of Arc said she heard. Because her story could not be verified, her feast was removed from the universal calendar in 1969, but in 2002 it was restored. She is honored as a patron of philosophers and students.