St. Catherine of Bologna

             Briefly touched on in our reading was Catherine of Bologna.  She was a Saint that came from a noble family and was very well educated.  Later in her life she joined an order of the Franciscans and was eventually located in Bologna (CP 32).  During her life, Catherine wrote The Seven Spiritual Weapons,  a "guide to novices and a record of her own spiritual journey" (CP 33).  Her book, which she only became public near her death, had a small influence on the Christian faith and is still being used today.  What I find interesting is the evolution of the Christian faith.  With each new saint, and new order being founded the understanding of Christian faith was changing.  However, most of the change did not come from huge movements like the reformation, like we typically think. The evolution of it came from small changes over time, such as Catherine's book or the founding of the Dominican order.  With each small change brought a new idea, and a new way of viewing Christianity.  

              What particularly intrigued me about Catherine of Bologna was not her life, but her death.  Above is a picture of her body which is on display in the city of Bologna.  It was said that after she died miracles occurred at her grave site and "her body was exhumed eighteen days later when a heavenly perfume was noticed to come from the area" (source can be found here).  Her body  was then declared incorrupt and put on display for the people to see.   I'm a skeptical person and I am not sure whether the miracles reported at her grave site were true, but what amazes me is the ability of Catherine to affect people in great ways even after her death.  She was such an inspiring person in her real life that people believed even in her corpse, that truly speaks to what an amazing person she must have been. 

Photo credit: http://www.roman-catholic-saints.com/saint-catherine-of-bologna.html