Saint Catherine de' Ricci

Alessandra de' Ricci was born in Florence in 1522 to a prominent family. At thirteen she entered the Dominican convent of San Vincenzo in Prato, taking the name Catherine. Her early years in the convent were marked by illness and misunderstanding, but she grew in prayer and deep devotion to the Passion of Christ.

From 1542, for about twelve years, she experienced a weekly ecstasy from Thursday noon to Friday afternoon in which she contemplated and seemed to share in the sufferings of Jesus. Crowds came to see her, and she asked her sisters to pray that the phenomenon would cease. She served as prioress for many years, governing wisely and caring for the sick. Her letters show practical wisdom, and she corresponded with Saint Philip Neri and gave advice to cardinals and princes. She died in Prato on February 2, 1590, and was canonized in 1746.

Her body rests in the Basilica of San Vincenzo and Santa Caterina de' Ricci in Prato, where the Dominican nuns and the city honor her as patroness.

Dominican communities around the world, including the Dominican Sisters of Saint Catherine de' Ricci in the United States, remember her as a model of union between contemplation and charity.