Prayer to Saint Catherine of Siena
O admirable Saint Catherine, thou who didst merit to make of thy whole life the noblest holocaust, constantly inspiring thyself to a most ardent love for Jesus, the Lamb without blemish, and for His beloved Spouse the Church, whose rights thou didst strenuously affirm and support in troubled times, obtain, likewise, for us the grace not only to pass unscathed through the corruption of this world, but also to remain unshakably faithful to the Church, in word, in deed, in example, to see always, and to make others see, in the Vicar of Christ our anchor, as it were, in the storms of life, the beacon light that points the way to the harbor of safety in the dark night of our times and of men’s souls. Amen.
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O God,
who set Saint Catherine of Siena on fire
with divine love in her contemplation of the Lord’s Passion
and her service of your Church,
grant, through her intercession,
that your people, participating in the mystery of Christ,
may ever exult in the revelation of his glory.
Who lives and reigns with you in the unity of the Holy Spirit,
one God, for ever and ever.
Amen.
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An Act of Thanksgiving to the Holy Spirit
From the Dialogue On Divine Providence by Saint Catherine of Siena, Virgin and Doctor of the Church
Eternal God, eternal Trinity, you have made the blood of Christ so precious through his sharing in your divine nature. You are a mystery as deep as the sea; the more I search, the more I find, and the more I find the more I search for you. But I can never be satisfied; what
I receive will ever leave me desiring more. When you fill my soul I have an even greater hunger, and I grow more famished for your light. I desire above all to see you, the true light, as you really are.
I have tasted and seen the depth of your mystery and the beauty of your creation with the light of my understanding. I have clothed myself with your likeness and have seen what I shall be. Eternal Father, you have given me a share in your power and the wisdom that Christ claims as his own, and your Holy Spirit has given me the desire to love you. You are my Creator, eternal Trinity, and I am your creature. You have made of me a new creation in the blood of your Son, and I know that you are moved with love at the beauty of your creation, for you have enlightened me.
Eternal Trinity, Godhead, mystery deep as the sea, you could give me no greater gift than the gift of yourself. For you are a fire ever burning and never consumed, which itself consumes all the selfish love that fills my being. Yes, you are a fire that takes away the coldness, illuminates the mind with its light and causes me to know your truth. By this light, reflected as it were in a mirror, I recognize that you are the highest good, one we can neither comprehend nor fathom. And I know that you are beauty and wisdom itself. The food of angels, you gave yourself to man in the fire of your love.
You are the garment which covers our nakedness, and in our hunger you are a satisfying food, for you are sweetness and in you there is no taste of bitterness, O triune God!