March 3 + Saint Katharine Drexel

Katharine was an American heiress, philanthropist, religious sister, educator, and foundress. She was the second canonized saint to have been born in the United States and the first to have been born a U.S. citizen.

Born in Philadelphia in 1858, Katharine Mary Drexel was the second child of a wealthy investment banker Francis Anthony Drexel and Hannah Langstroth. Hannah died just five weeks after giving birth. When Francis married Emma Bouvier in 1860, a third daughter, Louisa, was born.

The family's wealth did not prevent them from living out a serious commitment to their faith. Her stepmother opened up the family home three times a week to feed and care for the poor, and her father had a deep personal prayer life. Both parents encouraged their daughters to think of the family's wealth not as their own, but as a gift from God which was to be used to help others.

During the summer months, Katharine and her sisters would teach catechism classes to the children of the workers on her family’s summer estate. The practice would prepare her for a life of service, with a strong focus on education and attention to the poor and vulnerable.

As a young and wealthy woman, Katharine made her social debut in 1879. However, watching her stepmother's three-year struggle with terminal cancer taught her the Drexel money could not buy safety from pain or death. And her life took a profound turn.

While traveling with her family through the U.S., Katharine witnessed the poor living conditions of the Native Americans. Eventually she would give much of her money to fund the missions and schools in these seriously deprived areas. The inspiration for this work came to her during a visit to Rome, where she was granted an audience with Pope Leo XIII. During that time, Katharine had been considering a vocation to cloistered contemplative life as a nun. But when she asked Pope Leo XIII to send missionaries to Wyoming, he told Katharine she should undertake the work herself.

In February of 1891, she made her first vows in religious life – formally renouncing her fortune and her personal freedom, for the sake of growing closer to God in solidarity with the victims of injustice.

Although African Americans had been freed from slavery, they continued to suffer serious abuse, and were often prevented from obtaining even a basic education. Much the same situation held in the case of the Native Americans. Katharine founded the Sisters of the Blessed Sacrament, for the purpose of living with these communities while helping them acquire education and grow in faith.

Katharine led her order in the founding and maintenance of almost 60 schools and missions. Among the prominent achievements was the founding of Xavier University in New Orleans, the first Catholic University in the United States for African Americans.

At age 77, Mother Drexel suffered a heart attack and was forced to retire. Then came almost 20 years of quiet, intense prayer from a small room overlooking the sanctuary. Small notebooks and slips of paper record her various prayers, ceaseless aspirations, and meditations. She died at 96 and was canonized in 2000.