BLESSED KATERI TEKAWITHA

This Catholic stained glass window is centered on Kateri Tekawitha. She was born in 1656 of a Mohawk warrior and a Catholic Algonquin woman, in the Mohawk fortress near present-day Auriesville, New York. When she was four, smallpox swept through her village, and Tekakwitha was left with unsightly scars on her face and poor eyesight. The outbreak took the lives of her brother and both her parents. She was then adopted by her uncle, who was a chief of the Turtle-clan. As the adopted daughter of the chief, she was courted by many of the warriors looking for her hand in marriage. However, during this time she began taking interest in Christianity, which was taught to her by her mother. At the age of 20, Tekakwitha was baptized on Easter Sunday, April 18, 1676 by Father Jacques de Lamberville, a Jesuit. At her baptism, she took the name "Kateri," a Mohawk pronunciation of the French name "Catherine". Tekakwitha literally means "she moves things."Unable to understand her zeal, members of the tribe often chastised her, which she took as a testament to her faith. Because she was persecuted by her Native American kin, which even resulted in threats on her life, she fled to an established community of Native American Christians located in Kahnawake, Quebec, where she lived a life dedicated to prayer, penance, and care for the sick and aged. In 1679, she took a vow of chastity, as in the Catholic expression of Consecrated virginity. A year later, Kateri died at the age of 24, with her last words being "Jesus, I love You!" Kateri exercised physical mortification as an route to sanctity. She is called "The Lily of the Mohawks," the "Mohawk Maiden," the "Pure and Tender Lily. She was recognized as blessed by Pope John Paul II on June 22, 1980.

At the top of the window is a dove surrounded by tongues of fire. The dove represents the Holy Spirit who inspired Blessed Kateri to convert and lead a holy life.

Below the central image are two ovals. The one on the left contains a symbol of the beatitudes that Kateri lived to an heroic degree. The one on the right contains the Holy Eucharist, to which she was especially devoted. IN the outer frame are seven stars that represent the seven spirits (angels) of God that surround his throne in the book of Revelation. The twenty light blue circles in the window represent the twenty mysteries of the rosary, which is a contemplative prayer of the life of Jesus and Mary. The two lilies represent her childlike simplicity and purity.