Catherine of Ricci

Catherine de' Ricci was born Alessandra Lucrezia Romola de' Ricci in Florence on 23 April 1522, into a well-known Florentine family. Her father, Pier Francesco de' Ricci, belonged to a distinguished lineage; her mother died while she was still an infant, and she was thereafter raised in part by a stepmother. Contemporary accounts describe an early inclination to prayer and austerity. Around 1535, at about thirteen or fourteen years of age, she entered the convent of San Vincenzo in Prato, a community of Dominican tertiaries living a cloistered common life. There she received the religious name Catherine, in honor of Catherine of Siena, and remained in that house for the rest of her life.

In sixteenth-century Tuscany she became widely known for mystical phenomena as well as for ordinary conventual charity. From her early twenties she is reported to have undergone weekly ecstasies of the Passion, typically beginning on Thursday and lasting into Friday, in which she appeared to relive Christ's sufferings; these episodes are said to have continued for about twelve years. She was also associated with the stigmata and with a mystical marriage to Christ, often represented in later iconography by a ring. At the same time, the sources emphasize her work in the infirmary, her care for sick sisters, and her willingness to undertake humble tasks. The combination of extraordinary experiences and practical service shaped her reputation both inside and beyond the convent.

Catherine served several terms as prioress of San Vincenzo and was consulted as a spiritual adviser by clergy and laity. She corresponded with leading figures of the Catholic Reformation, among them Saint Philip Neri, with whom she is described as sharing a spiritual friendship although they never met in person, and Saint Charles Borromeo, who visited her at Prato. Cardinals and popes likewise sought her counsel. She continued to govern and to write from the convent until her final years and died at Prato on 2 February 1590.

After her death a cult developed around her tomb. She was beatified by Pope Clement XII in 1732 and canonized by Pope Benedict XIV in 1746. Her liturgical feast is kept on 4 February. She is invoked as a patron of the sick. Her remains are venerated in Prato in the basilica associated with the former monastery of San Vincenzo, a church later dedicated also in her name.