Katharine Drexel
American Catholic sister and saint
Feast: 3 March (not on the universal Roman calendar; kept in the Roman Martyrology or local calendars)
Who they were
Katharine Drexel was born in Philadelphia on 26 November 1858, the daughter of the banker Francis Anthony Drexel, who left his daughters a large fortune when he died in 1885. When she met Pope Leo XIII in Rome in 1886, he urged her to become a missionary herself.
In February 1891 she founded the Sisters of the Blessed Sacrament to serve Black and Native American people across the United States. In 1915 she opened a high school for African-American students in New Orleans that grew into Xavier University of Louisiana. She died in Bensalem, Pennsylvania, on 3 March 1955, aged 96.
The miracles
Robert Gutherman — 1974
A fourteen-year-old boy had severe ear pain and an infection, and doctors said he would be permanently deaf. His family prayed only to Mother Katharine, and the hearing in his right ear was restored.
Amy Wall — 1994
A two-year-old girl born with nerve deafness in both ears was cured after her family asked Blessed Katharine's intercession. Several boards investigated and concluded the cure was truly miraculous.
Why that counted as sanctity
On 26 January 1987 the Church declared that this life showed the Christian virtues to a heroic degree, and gave the title Venerable. The case of Robert Gutherman was examined by the Church's doctors and theologians and approved as a miracle, opening the way to beatification. Beatification followed on 20 November 1988 by John Paul II. The case of Amy Wall was examined by the Church's doctors and theologians and approved as a miracle, opening the way to canonisation. Canonisation followed on 1 October 2000 by John Paul II.
Connected on this site
- Augustine Tolton Venerable“With the assistance of philanthropist Katharine Drexel, St Monica's was completed in 1893 at 36th and Dearborn Streets.” — Wikipedia
- Sisters of the Blessed Sacrament - the canonisation of St Katharine Drexel
- National Catholic Register - Robert Gutherman's healing
- Wikipedia - Katharine Drexel (life and the two miracles)
- Wikidata Q254227 — dates, feast day and identifiers (CC0)
- English Wikipedia — Katharine Drexel (CC BY-SA)
Checked against the sources listed on 21 September 2026. Corrections welcome.