Bishop Robert Barron reflects on the life of St Katharine Drexel
A Bishop Robert Barron video
An extract from the Catholicism series on St Katharine Drexel (1858 - 1955). As a wealthy young laywoman, disturbed by the treatment of Native Americans, Katharine Drexel travelled to Rome and had an audience with Pope Leo XIII.
She begged the Pope to create an order of priests or nuns to teach and love the Native Americans. But the Pope fixed her with his gaze and said, "You should be that missionary." The Pope's words struck a nerve and changed Katharine's life.
She recognised that her deep discomfort with injustice was a sign that God was calling her to take personal action, not to wait for others to move.
Bishop Barron on St Katharine Drexel, the Pope, and personal action