Catherine of Genoa (1447–1510) was an Italian Catholic saint and mystic known for her charitable work and spiritual writings. She is the patron saint of Italian hospitals.
Born into the noble Fieschi family in Genoa, she initially sought religious life but was instead married to Giuliano Adorno, a difficult union. After years of personal struggle, she experienced a profound mystical conversion in 1473, dedicating herself to serving the sick and poor.
Catherine became deeply involved in charitable work, particularly as director of the Pammatone Hospital in Genoa. Her care for the ill, especially during the plague outbreaks of 1497 and 1501, earned admiration. Though never formally joining a religious order, she lived a life of devotion and service. She was canonized in 1737; her feast day is September 15.
St. Catherine’s Trattato del Purgatorio and Dialogo stem from her mystical experiences and theological reflections, describing purgatory as purification rather than punishment. Some scholars believe these works were compiled by her followers and finalized after her death. They were first printed with her biography in Libro de la vita mirabile et dottrina santa de la Beata Caterinetta de Genoa (1551; Life and Doctrine of Saint Catherine of Genoa.) Her life and doctrine were the subject of Baron Friedrich von Hügel’s The Mystical Element of Religion (1908.)
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We must not wish anything other than what happens from moment to moment, all the while, however, exercising ourselves in goodness.
—Catherine of Genoa
Topics: The Present, Wishes
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