This Saintly Summer, we honor St. Kateri Tekakwitha, the first Native American saint, whose feast day is celebrated on July 14. Born in 1656 and scarred by smallpox at a young age, Kateri lived a life marked by physical suffering, social rejection, and deep, unwavering faith.
Despite her hardships, St. Kateri refused an arranged marriage, converted to Catholicism through the witness of Jesuit missionaries, and took a personal vow of virginity—choosing Christ as her spouse. Her strength came not from fitting in, but from standing out in her devotion and love for Jesus, even in a world hostile to her faith.
This brief reflection reminds us: How much are we willing to stand out for the Lord? Can we see our own wounds and differences as ways we are united to Christ’s cross?
Take a moment to be inspired by her witness—and ask yourself what your faith is calling you to today
Jolt of Faith – Full Text
Our next saint this summer to learn about is Saint Kateri Tekakwitha. Her feast day is July 14. She was born in 1656 in present day Ariesville, New York, but she actually spent a lot of her life south of Montreal in Canada.When Saint Kateri was young, her parents died from a smallpox outbreak, and the same disease ended up permanently scarring Kateri’s face and left her with permanently darkened vision for the rest of her life.When she was a teenager, she was put into an arranged marriage, but she actually refused to go through with it. Shortly after, she met some Jesuit missionaries who brought her into the Catholic faith, and soon after she made a personal vow of virginity and took Jesus Christ Himself as her spouse. Her life was rather short she died at the age of 24, but her holiness was so renowned that people began making pilgrimages to the sight of her burial. And soon afterwards, people were reported miracles and seeing visions of her. And I think the thing that strikes me most about her life is that she was willing to stand out both with her physical scarring ,but most especially with her faith. She was growing up in a world, in an environment that was not very, could be sometimes very hostile to the Catholic faith. Maybe sometimes we wish that we looked different or that our faith didn’t make us stand out so much.But I think what Kateri’s secret was was that she knew her spouse.She knew who Jesus was. And he she even saw her physical deformities as making her look and resemble her, scourged and crucified savior. And her faith,she knew came from the fact that He laid down his life for her.So maybe a good check for us is, how much am I willing to stand out for the Lord? How much am I willing to be united to His cross? Not a sermon, not a homily, just that little Jolt of Faith we sometimes all need.