Chapter XXIII: Saying Goodbye to Raimondo

Monday, December 24, 2012
Christmas Eve

Catherine of Siena by Sigrid Undset
Chapter XXIII

So, we reach the end of Advent.  Not the end of the book, which I will finish without writing a daily reflection, but there is an ending in this chapter.

Catherine goes to Rome, happy to be near her friend Raimondo and close enough to serve Pope Urban VI who seems so excessively fond of her and to trust her absolutely.  However, Raimondo gets sent to a foreign court in an attempt to reconcile the schismatics with the Church.  Catherine knows she will die before Raimondo returns.

Undset handles the schism somewhat oddly, talking about the political ramifications as if only one side is trading meaningful spiritual blows, but that's a topic for another time.

What really moved me in this chapter was the discussion of why Raimondo was so special a relationship for Catherine.  Undset makes a point of saying that Catherine loved all of her spiritual sons equally in their own way, "melancholy Neri, the joyous Stefano..."  Somewhat peevishly, I wish there was more discussion in this book of her female friendships since we keep seeing bare hints of them, but I can imagine in that world most men left a greater mark than most women so Undset knows more to tell us more.

Undset describes quite beautifully what was different about Raimondo.  He could come close to being her spiritual equal.  He was a "grown up son" with whom she could truly share her experiences on a deeper level.  What a wonderful gift.  How lonely it must be to exist in a world the rest of us rarely are blessed enough even to glimpse.  So much especially of her early life is the story of Catherine doing apparently strange and inexplicable things to the consternation, scorn, or just befuddlement of those around her.  How lonely it must be, after awhile, when even your supporters and followers cannot truly understand.

Their goodbye and the longest conversation they ever had that preceded it speak of what a comfort he was to her, how much she needed him.  Or at least how greatly she appreciated the chance to enjoy the (hard-won, remember their early relationship) equal friendship with the man who could understand some of the fire which drove her and the spiritual experiences which shaped her.

What a wonderful gift God gave to Catherine, who reading this book has made me feel again and again must have been one of his favorite children.  Of course, like Catherine and her spiritual sons, I know that God loves us all the most in our different ways, but there must still be a special place for someone like Catherine - who can understand a little more than the rest of us the reality of God.