The Rev. Canon Ginny Doctor, Mohawk, who has served Alaska faithfully for many years and who know goes to serve as the Canon Missioner for Indigenous People in the Church of Canada, posted on Facebook that “I rejoice with my Mohawk sisters and brothers!” about the news of the impending sainthood for Blessed Kateri. Blessed Kateri is known as “Lily of the Mohawks” or “Beautiful Flower Among True Men.” The Catholic Church declared Kateri venerable in 1943. She was beatified in 1980 by Pope John Paul II. Kateri is the first Native American to be declared Blessed. Her feast is celebrated on July 14th in the United States. The true rejoicing comes as the news that Pope Benedict XVI signed the decree necessary for the canonization of Blessed Kateri. Her tomb is located at the St. Francis Xavier Mission, on the Mohawk Nation at Kahnawake, near Montreal, Quebec. There is a shrine for her in Fonda, New York, and in Auriesville, New York. Blessed Kateri’s name is pronounced kä’tu-rē. Her Iroquois name, Tekakwitha, is often pronounced tek”u-kwith’u.
“I am no longer my own. I have given myself entirely to Jesus Christ.”
~ Blessed Kateri Tekakwitha