The first Native saint from North America, Kateri Tekakwitha’s journey of faith and resilience
Kateri Tekakwitha (1656–1680) is the first North American Indian to be beatified, and was canonized in October 2012. She was an Algonquian-Mohawk woman of New York State who converted to Christianity at an early age. The statue was created by Estella Loretto, a sculptor from the nearby Jemez Pueblo, and installed in August 2003
Kateri Tekakwitha, often called the “Lily of the Mohawks,” was born in 1656 in Ossernenon (present-day Auriesville, New York). She survived a smallpox epidemic that claimed the lives of her parents and brother, leaving her with facial scarring and impaired vision. Around age 19 (baptized April 18, 1676), she converted to Catholicism, taking the name Catherine. After facing opposition in her community, she moved to the Jesuit mission village of Kahnawake (near Montreal, Quebec), where she lived a life of devotion until her death on April 17, 1680 .
On October 21, 2012, Pope Benedict XVI canonized her, making her the first Indigenous person from North America—encompassing both current-day U.S. and Canada—to be officially declared a saint in the Roman Catholic Church.
That status is unique: as of now, she remains the only Native individual from North America to have been canonized.
This article was updated on July 11, 2025.
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