Walking with Saint Catherine of Siena

Lorraine Hess latched on to Saint Catherine of Siena in her time of need and developed a lifelong friendship and devotion. 

In May of 1986, I graduated from Saint Mary’s Dominican High School in New Orleans, an all-girls Catholic school established in 1860. Naturally, our patroness was Our Lady herself, but the patroness of our alumnae association is Saint Catherine of Siena, a third order Dominican who lived in the fourteenth century. She was a women filled with reverence and humility, but also boldness and truth, much like the profile of a Dominican graduate.  

I honestly never gave much thought to Catherine while in high school. She was one of many famous Dominicans whose names floated the halls. Fast forward to 2017, when I began singing at Saint Catherine of Siena Church in New Orleans. Just by being there, I learned more about her. One year later, my family suffered a housefire. No one was hurt, but the house was damaged significantly, and we were bracing ourselves for a very challenging year. My third child was a senior in high school, and it was in my last semester of graduate school, so I was working on my capstone paper. Our spring was filled with college deadlines, graduation festivities, insurance delays, and a bazillion decisions ... and I was trying my very best to keep it all together.  

My spiritual director recommended I cling to a saint during this time. Sometimes when we are in a fog, it helps to have others praying for us when we can’t find the words ourselves. At this point, I knew enough about Saint Catherine to decide she was going to by my girl! Many days, I sat in prayer with barely the energy to make the Sign of the Cross, much less put words together that sounded like prayer. I would quietly sit there and ask her to do the praying for me. I truly believe she prayed me through that whole ordeal. During that period, I seemed to be developing a friendship with Catherine, and it was a relationship I continue still today. 

How do you thank a saint?  

I am a Catholic composer, and I was writing a Mass setting. A Mass setting is a group of ten songs for all musical parts of the mass, (the Kyrie, Gloria, Sanctus, and so on). I decided to name it after Saint Catherine in thanksgiving for her intercession. 

Before I composed the music, I met with Sister Noelle Tomey. O.P., a Dominican nun who knew as much as one could know about Catherine. Sister Noelle had been to Siena, Italy several times. She gave me books to read about Catherine, and we talked about the saint’s love of the Eucharist and how she called out problems with the Church but maintained respect and obedience to it. In her boldness, she convinced the pope to return to Rome from France. What a woman! I fell in love with her spunk, her devotion to prayer, and I envied the depth of her love of Christ.  

The Mass setting would have to be beautiful and melodic, with moments of boldness and excitement that would enhance the liturgy. I wanted Catherine to love it! I finished the composition, and in God’s mercy, it was published by GIA Publications in 2021. Through Catherine’s intercession, no doubt, it became a finalist for Distinguished Mass Setting of the Year in 2023 by the Association of Catholic Publishers. Most composers do not write for awards and accolades, and that certainly was not my goal, but I was thrilled at the attention it might draw to Saint Catherine, and it gave me a platform to honor her to thousands of people.  

Not long after the music was published, I was invited to lead a pilgrimage to Italy, which included Florence, Assisi, Rome and Siena! I felt like Catherine was inviting me to her home to sing the Mass setting for her in Siena and in Rome where she is buried at Santa Maria Sopra Minerva. I cannot put into words the magnitude of the experience: singing where Catherine was laid to rest, praying in the house where she grew up, and walking the streets of Siena.  

My relationship with Saint Catherine began simply as a student at Dominican, but her life slowly penetrated my heart as I began singing at a church named for her. Our friendship grew because of a house fire, a wise spiritual director, and a knowledgeable Dominican nun. To this day, I pray with my dearest Catherine every day. She has become my spiritual companion. 

Who is your go-to saint?  

Attaching myself to a saint resulted in blessings far beyond my imagination. Who is your go-to saint? If you don’t have one, find someone with whom you have something in common. Pray with him or her, and you’re never alone in your prayer time. I walked in the footsteps of Saint Catherine in Italy, but she walks with me daily in my prayer.  

If you’re interested in hearing the Mass setting, check it out at GIAMusic.com.  

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Copyright 2024 Lorraine Hess
Images: copyright 2024 Lorraine Hess, all rights reserved.