Catherine of Alexandria

Source: Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia.

Pre-Congregation
Major shrineSaint Catherine's Monastery
Feast
  • 25 November
.

Catherine of Alexandria, also spelled Katherine

martyrdom, Joan of Arc identified her as one of the saints who appeared to and counselled her.[3]

The

feast day on 24 or 25 November, depending on the regional tradition. In Catholicism, Catherine is traditionally revered as one of the Fourteen Holy Helpers and she is commemorated in the Roman Martyrology on 25 November.[4] Her feast was removed from the General Roman Calendar[5]
in 1969, but restored in 2002 as an optional memorial.

Some modern scholars consider that the legend of Catherine was probably based on the life and murder of the virgin Saint Dorothea of Alexandria and the Greek philosopher Hypatia, with the reversed role of a Christian and Neo-Platonist in the case of the latter.[6][7][8] On the other hand, the Catholic Encyclopedia states that "Although contemporary hagiographers look upon the authenticity of the various texts containing the legend of St. Catherine as more than doubtful, it is not therefore meant to cast even the shadow of a doubt around the existence of the saint".[9]

Life

According to the traditional narrative, Catherine was the daughter of Sabinella and Constus (or Costus), the governor of

orators to dispute with her, hoping that they would refute her pro-Christian arguments, but Catherine won the debate. Several of her adversaries, conquered by her eloquence, declared themselves Christians and were at once put to death.[9]

Torture and martyrdom

Icon of Saint Catherine of Alexandria, with scenes from her martyrdom

The emperor gave orders to subject the saint to terrible tortures and then throw her in prison.[10] During the confinement she was fed daily by a dove from heaven and Christ also visited her, encouraging her to fight bravely, and promised her the crown of everlasting glory.[12][13] Angels tended her wounds with salve.

During her imprisonment more than 200 people came to see her, including Maxentius' wife,

Jesus Christ, to whom she had consecrated her virginity.[16]

The furious emperor condemned Catherine to death on a spiked breaking wheel, but, at her touch, it shattered.[9] Maxentius ordered her to be beheaded. Catherine herself ordered the execution to commence. A milk-like substance rather than blood flowed from her neck.[17]

Veneration

In the 6th century, the Eastern

Emperor Justinian had established what is now Saint Catherine's Monastery in Egypt, which had been originally built encircling the purported burning bush seen by Moses. Countless people make the pilgrimage to the Monastery to receive miracle healing from Catherine.[18]

Historicity

Saint Catherine of Alexandria by Artemisia Gentileschi
Pietro Aretino, Vita di santa Caterina vergine e martire, 1636.

The Catholic Encyclopedia, while not denying her historicity, states that most of the details that embellish the narrative, as well as the long discourses that are put into the mouth of Catherine, are to be rejected as later inventions.[19] According to the Encyclopædia Britannica, no extant written mention of Catherine of Alexandria is known from before the 9th century, and "her historicity is doubtful".[16]

Donald Attwater dismisses what he calls the "legend" of Saint Catherine, arguing for a lack of any "positive evidence that she ever existed outside the mind of some Greek writer who first composed what he intended to be simply an edifying romance."[20] Harold Davis writes that "assiduous research has failed to identify Catherine with any historical personage".[21][22]

Orestes, and the bishop, Cyril.[24][25] The idea that Catherine's life was either based on or became confused with the life of the pagan Hypatia has become a popular theory among modern scholars since. However, while Christine Walsh accepts the many parallels between Catherine and Hypatia, she does not believe there is any evidence for or against the idea that Catherine was created based on Hypatia.[23][7][26]

Sometimes cited as a possible inspiration of Catherine, the writer Eusebius wrote, around the year 320, that the Emperor Maximinus had ordered a young Christian woman to come to his palace to become his mistress, and when she refused he had her punished by having her banished and her estates confiscated.[27] Eusebius did not name the woman.

The earliest surviving account of Catherine's life comes around 600 years after the traditional date of her martyrdom, in the Menologium, a document compiled for Emperor Basil II (976), although the alleged rediscovery of her relics at Saint Catherine's Monastery at the foot of Mount Sinai was about 800,[28] and presumably implies an existing cult at that date (though the common name of the monastery developed after the discovery).[citation needed]

In her book The Cult of St Katherine of Alexandria in Early Medieval Europe, Christine Walsh discusses "the historical Katherine":

As we have seen, the cult of St Katherine of Alexandria probably originated in oral traditions from the 4th-century Diocletianic Persecutions of Christians in Alexandria. There is no evidence that Katherine herself was a historical figure and she may well have been a composite drawn from memories of women persecuted for their faith. Many aspects of her Passio are clearly legendary and conform to well-known hagiographical topoi.

— Walsh 2007, p. 143

Name

Her name appears in Greek as Αἰκατερίνη (Aikaterínē) or Ἑκατερίνη (Ekaterínē). The etymology is debated: it could derive from ἑκάτερος (hekáteros, "each of two"); it could derive from the name of the goddess Hecate; it could be related to Greek αἰκία (aikía, "insult, outrage, suffering, torture"); or it could be from a Coptic name meaning "my consecration of your name". In the early Christian era, it became associated with Greek καθαρός (katharós, "pure"), and the Latin spelling was changed from Katerina to Katharina to reflect this.

Reflecting this confusion, Rufinus states that her first name was Dorothea (Δωροθέα) and that at her christening she acquired the name Aikaterina (Αἰκατερίνα), a name that signifies her pure, clean and uncontaminated nature (from the Greek αἰὲν καθαρινά, 'ever clean').[citation needed]

Medieval cult

Catherine of Alexandria, by Carlo Crivelli

Catherine was one of the most important saints in the religious culture of the

Margaret of Antioch, Barbara, Lucia of Syracuse, Valerie of Limoges and many others. Her power as an intercessor was renowned and firmly established in most versions of her hagiography, in which she specifically entreats Christ at the moment of her death to answer the prayers of those who remember her martyrdom and invoke her name.[citation needed
]

The development of her medieval

St. Catherine's Hill, Hampshire were the focus of generally local pilgrimage, many of which are only identified by brief mentions in various texts, rather than by physical evidence.[32]

St. Catharine's College, Cambridge Gate Catharine Wheel

St. Catharine's College, Cambridge was founded on St Catharine's Day (25 November) 1473 by Robert Woodlark (the then-provost of King's College, Cambridge) who sought to create a small community of scholars who would study exclusively theology and philosophy. Wodelarke may have chosen the name in homage to Catherine of Valois, mother of Henry VI of England, although it is more likely that it was named as part of the Renaissance cult of Saint Catherine, who was a patron saint of learning. St Catherine's College, Oxford
, developed from the Delegacy for Unattached Students formed in 1868.

Catherine also had a large female following, whose devotion was less likely to be expressed through pilgrimage. The importance of the

mystic marriage of Saint Catherine first appears in hagiographical literature and, soon after, in art. In the Western church, the popularity of her cult began to reduce in the 18th century.[41]

Veneration

Saint Catherine of Alexandria Wood Statue at the Korppoo Church in Finland.
Saint Catherine of Alexandria Wood Statue at the Korpo Church in Finland.

Her principal symbol is the spiked wheel, which has become known as the

Catholic Church of St. Catherine
, was named after Catherine of Alexandria because she was Catherine the Great's patron. A footnote to the entry for 25 November in The Synaxarion compiled by Hieromonk Makarios of Simonos Petra states: "Until the 16th century, the memory of St Catherine was observed on 24 Nov. According to a note by Bartholomew of Koutloumousiou inserted in the Menaion, the Fathers of Sinai transferred the date to 25 Nov. in order that the feast might be kept with greater solemnity."

The 1908 Catholic Encyclopedia describes her historical importance:

Ranked with

Adam of St. Victor
wrote a magnificent poem in her honour: Vox Sonora nostri chori.

In many places, her feast was celebrated with the utmost solemnity, servile work being suppressed and the devotions attended by great numbers of people. In several dioceses of France it was observed as a

Holy Day of Obligation up to the beginning of the 17th century, the splendour of its ceremonial eclipsing that of the feasts of some of the apostles. Many chapels were placed under her patronage, and nearly all churches had a statue of her, representing her according to medieval iconography with a wheel, her instrument of torture.[citation needed
]

Customs

A carving of Saint Catherine of Alexandria from the O'Crean Tomb in Sligo Abbey dating from 1506.
A carving of Saint Catherine of Alexandria from the O'Crean Tomb in Sligo Abbey dating from 1506.

In France, unwed women who had attained the age of 25 were called "catherinettes". They would wear richly decorated bonnets on the day of her feast. This custom gave rise to the French idiom 'coiffer Sainte-Catherine' ("don St. Catherine's bonnet"), to describe an unmarried woman between the ages of 25 and 30.[42]

In memory of her sacrifice in some homes, Egyptian and other Middle Eastern foods are offered for her feast, such as hummus or tabbouleh salads. Favourites also are melons cut into circles with sherbet "hubs", or cookies shaped as spiked wheels with icing.[citation needed]

Meanwhile, owing to several circumstances in his life,

Margaret of Antioch, had been divinely appointed Joan's adviser.[9]

Devotion to Catherine remains strong amongst Eastern Catholics and Eastern Orthodox Christians. With the relative ease of travel in the modern age, pilgrimages to Saint Catherine's Monastery on Mount Sinai have increased.

Catherine of Alexandria is remembered in the Church of England with a commemoration on 25 November.[43]

In 2022, Catherine was officially added to the

Episcopal Church liturgical calendar with a feast day she shares with Barbara of Nicomedia, and Margaret of Antioch on 24 November.[44]

Legacy

Cathedral dedicated to Catherine of Alexandria located in St. Catharines, Ontario, Canada.

The pyrotechnic Catherine wheel, which rotates with sparks flying off in all directions, took its name from the saint's wheel of martyrdom.[27]

The lunar impact crater Catharina is named after Saint Catherine.[45]

Santa Catarina Island in Brazil and the State of Santa Catarina are also named after her.

The Gulf of Santa Catalina is located in the Pacific Ocean on the west coast of North America. Santa Catalina Island off the coast of California, was named by Sebastián Vizcaíno, who arrived there on her feast day.[46] The Santa Catalina Mountains in Arizona are her namesake.

Kaarina, Finland, is named after her.[47] One accepted origin of the namesake of St. Catharines, Ontario, is Saint Catherine of Alexandria, but there are other proposed explanations as "no definitive documentation exists to conclusively prove that the founders chose the unique spelling for any one particular reason".[48]

St. Catherine's School, is an independent Episcopal diocesan school in Richmond, Virginia. St Helen and St Katharine, a girls' school in Oxfordshire, England celebrates "St. Katharine's Day" each November. The name of St. Catharine's School for Girls (Kwun Tong)
in Hong Kong was chosen over that of St. Anne because it sounds better when translated into Chinese.

St Catherine of Alexandria Parish and School in Oak Lawn, IL, US is named after St. Catherine.[50]

In art

Scenes from the Life of Saint Catherine of Alexandria, Germany, c. 15th century, Walters Art Museum

Countless images of Saint Catherine are depicted in art, especially in the late

martyr's palm or the sword with which she was actually executed. She often has long unbound blonde or reddish hair (unbound as she is unmarried). The vision of Saint Catherine of Alexandria usually shows the Infant Christ, held by the Virgin, placing a ring (one of her attributes) on her finger, following some literary accounts, although in the version in the Golden Legend he appears to be adult, and the marriage takes place among a great crowd of angels and "all the celestial court",[51] and these may also be shown.[citation needed
]

She is very frequently shown attending on the Virgin and Child, and is usually prominent in scenes of the Master of the Virgo inter Virgines, showing a group of virgin saints surrounding the Virgin and Child. Notable later paintings of Catherine include single figures by Raphael in the National Gallery, and by Caravaggio (in the Thyssen-Bornemisza Museum, Madrid).[citation needed]

In music

Contemporary media

See also

Notes

  1. Latin
    : Catharina Alexandrina).

References

Citations

  1. ^ "Holy Great Martyr Katherine". Self-Ruled Antiochian Orthodox Christian Archdiocese of North America. Archived from the original on 26 December 2014. Retrieved 11 December 2014.
  2. ^ "Wednesday of the Thirty-Fourth Week of Ordinary Time; Optional Memorial of St. Catherine of Alexandria, virgin and martyr – November 25, 2020 – Liturgical Calendar". www.catholicculture.org.
  3. ^ Williard Trask, Joan of Arc: In Her Own Words (Turtle Point Press, 1996), 99
  4. )
  5. ^ Calendarium Romanum (Libreria Editrice Vaticana, 1969), p. 147
  6. ^ Walsh 2007, pp. 3–26.
  7. ^ a b Deakin 2007, pp. 135, 202.
  8. ^ Maria Dzielska: Hypatia of Alexandria, Cambridge (Massachusetts) 1995, p. 21; Christian Lacombrade: Hypatia. In: Reallexikon für Antike und Christentum, Bd. 16, Stuttgart 1994, Sp. 956–967, here: 966; Gustave Bardy: Catherine d'Alexandrie. In: Dictionnaire d'histoire et de géographie ecclésiastiques, Bd. 11, Paris 1949, Sp. 1503–1505, here: 1504.
  9. ^ a b c d Clugnet 1908.
  10. ^ a b "Great Martyr Katherine of Alexandria". www.oca.org.
  11. ^ "Catharina K". United States Geological Survey. Retrieved 29 October 2023. Origin: St. Catherine of Alexandria; Greek theologian, philosopher
  12. ^ Irene González Hernando, Catherine of Alexandria
  13. ^ The Golden Legend: Volume VII
  14. ^ "Saint Catherine of Alexandria". Encyclopædia Britannica. Retrieved 29 October 2010.
  15. ^ "St Catherine of Alexandria". Downside Abbey Archives and Library. 25 November 2014. Retrieved 25 April 2023.
  16. ^ a b "St. Catherine of Alexandria | Egyptian martyr". Britannica. Retrieved 11 December 2021.
  17. ^ Morton 1841, p. 133.
  18. ^ a b Foley & McCloskey 2009.
  19. ^ "Catherine of Alexandria, Saint". Catholic Answers. Retrieved 11 December 2021.
  20. ^ de Azevedo 2005, p. 324.
  21. ^ Harold Thayer Davis, Alexandria: The Golden City (Principia Press of Illinois, 1957), p 441
  22. ^ Allen 1997, pp. 214–217.
  23. ^ a b Walsh 2007, p. 10.
  24. ^ Watts 2006, pp. 197–198.
  25. ^ Deakin 1994, pp. 234–243.
  26. ^ Maria Dzielska: Hypatia of Alexandria, Cambridge (Massachusetts) 1995, p. 21; Christian Lacombrade: Hypatia. In: Reallexikon für Antike und Christentum, Bd. 16, Stuttgart 1994, Sp. 956–967, here: 966; Gustave Bardy: Catherine d'Alexandrie. In: Dictionnaire d'histoire et de géographie ecclésiastiques, Bd. 11, Paris 1949, Sp. 1503–1505, here: 1504.
  27. ^ a b "Catherine of Alexandria, Lives of Saints". John J. Crawley & Co., Inc. Retrieved 26 August 2013.
  28. ^ a b S. R. T. O d'Ardeene and E. J. Dobson, Seinte Katerine: Re-Edited from MS Bodley 34 and other Manuscripts (Oxford: Oxford University Press, 1981), xiv.
  29. ^ John Mandeville, The Travels of Sir John Mandeville (New York: Dover Publications Inc., 1964); Felix Fabri, The Wanderings of Felix Fabri (New York: AMS Press, 1971), 217.
  30. ^ Walsh 2003, p. 31.
  31. ^ Lewis 2003, p. 44.
  32. ^ Lewis 2003, pp. 49–51.
  33. ^ Bugge 2012, p. 132.
  34. ^ Lewis 2000, p. 229.
  35. ^ Duffy 1992, p. 174.
  36. ^ Lewis 1999.
  37. ^ de Pizan 2003, p. 146.
  38. ^ Christine de Pizan, The Book of the City of Ladies trans. by Rosalind Brown-Grant (New York: Penguin Books, 1999), 203
  39. ^ Barnhouse 2006, pp. 126, 193.
  40. ^ Yuste, Belén; Rivas-Caballero, Sonnia L. "Santa Catalina Tomás". Real Academia de la Historia. Retrieved 3 November 2023.
  41. ^ Allen 1997, p. 217.
  42. ^ "Coiffer sainte Catherine". La France pittoresque (in French). 24 November 2016.
  43. ^ "The Calendar". The Church of England. Retrieved 8 April 2021.
  44. ^ "General Convention Virtual Binder". www.vbinder.net. Archived from the original on 13 September 2022. Retrieved 22 July 2022.
  45. ^ "Catherine of Alexandria". Gazetteer of Planetary Nomenclature. USGS Astrogeology Research Program.
  46. ^ Otte, Stacey; Pedersen, Jeannine (2004). "Catalina Island History". A Catalina Island History in Brief. Catalina Island Museum. Archived from the original on 24 February 2008. Retrieved 28 January 2008.
  47. ^ "St Catherine's Church". The Lutheran Church in Turku and Kaarina. Retrieved 24 June 2022.
  48. ^ "Why St. Catharines with two "a's" ? · So Many Catharine's · Brock University Library". exhibits.library.brocku.ca. Retrieved 23 June 2022.
  49. ^ Our History., St. Catherine University. Retrieved May 7, 2018.
  50. ^ "Home". parish.scaoaklawn.org.
  51. ^ Caxton 1900, p. 1.
  52. .
  53. ^ "Peter O'Toole comes out of retirement for Katherine of Alexandria". the Guardian. 26 November 2013.

Sources

External links