Kateri Tekakwitha: Lily of the Mohawks

A Journey of Hope

The heart of the Mohawk Nation, 1674. Among the dense forests and flowing rivers of the mountains of what is today upstate New York, a village stood. In it, a generation before, a young Jesuit named Isaac Jogues was martyred. Now, Christian missionaries continue to slowly spread the gospel across the new continent. Into this world, hostile to them for so long, a young French priest will make an unlikely convert - whose story will be famous for centuries to come. Her name? Kateri Tekakwitha.

The Clumsy One

At a young age, a Mohawk girl lost both her parents to smallpox. She also contracted the disease, leaving her face scarred and her eyes almost useless. From this, she gained the name Tekakwitha ("she who bumps into things"). She was taken in by relatives. Her uncle, hostile to Christianity, did his best to raise her and integrate her into the life of the community. But for Tekakwitha, something was missing from this life. She knew that her sister lived in a community of Christians some distance away, and missed her terribly. She also felt the stirrings of a different call—a call that promised a path filled with trials, courage, and unwavering faith. When she found herself at a gathering at the Christian longhouse, she felt that she was finally hearing what she was missing.

Family Expectations

When she was a young teenager, Tekakwitha’s adoptive parents tried to force her into marriage to a neighboring chief's son. Their primary interest was in the political alliance that this marriage would bring about. Overwhelmed by the expectations placed upon her, Tekakwitha fled out of the gathering, where she encountered the missionary priest whom she had heard preaching earlier. This chance meeting deepened her conviction that she was called to a different life. Like Saint Catherine of Siena, she felt a calling to a life as a consecrated virgin. She resolved to learn more about Christianity. As her baptismal name, she took the Mohawk version of the name Catherine - Kateri. Her baptism, however, brought immediate scorn and threats from her family and village. Faced with very real dangers, she had to discern how to serve the Church while staying true to her identity as a Mohawk. Finally, she found there was only one option: to leave her village and her family behind. 

With the aid of her brother-in-law André, Kateri embarked on a perilous journey to the Christian mission in Kahnawake, traveling north by canoe. Pursued by bounty hunters sent by her furious uncle, Kateri and André barely escaped from the clutches of these hunters through dangerous rapids. Finally safe, they made their way to the mission in Kahnawake. Kateri was finally reunited with her sister Teresa, and she found peace in her new Christian community.

Freedom of the Children of God

This week, The Saints: Adventures of Faith and Courage, hear the inspiring story of Saint Kateri Tekakwitha - the lily of the Mohawks. Discover the remarkable journey of Saint Kateri as she meets the Christian missionaries. Hear each step of her heart-pounding journey as she escapes from the violent persecution of her home village. Finally, hear the beautiful story of the witness offered by her new life with her sister and brother-in-law in Kahnawake. Check out thesaintspodcast.com to listen to the entire story!

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