In 1659, in New France (present day Canada),  little Tekakwitha sits on her uncle’s shoulders while men, women, and children follow close behind. In the distance, the longhouses are burning. After frequent contact with European traders, smallpox has ravaged her small village. Half of  the community has died, including Tekakwitha’s parents and brother. The disease has also left her face horribly scarred. To keep his tribe safe, the chief, her uncle, has decided to burn the disease out and start a new village. 

Soon after the new village is built, tension between the Mohawk Tribe and the French escalates. When Tekakwitha is ten years old, a peace treaty is signed between the French and the Mohawks. Part of the treaty agreement involves allowing in Catholic missionaries. The Black Robes (Jesuits) must be allowed to visit every Mohawk village, much to the Tekakwitha’s uncle’s chagrin.

The Black Robes caused a division betweenTekakwitha and her uncle. Tekakwitha sees how their  kindness and devotion to God draws the curiosity of the tribe.  Soon people begin asking to be baptized, including Tekakwitha. At her baptism, the Black Robes gave her a new name, Kateri, the Iroquois pronunciation of Catherine. Kateri Tekakwitha  desires a Christian life and has no interest in marrying the man her aunt and uncle have chosen for her. This angers her uncle to the point of threatening to kill her.   Caught between two worlds as a newly baptized Christian, she has to make a decision. Will she abandon her Christian faith and marry the young Mohawk warrior, or will she find a new path as a faithful Mohawk Christian woman?

In “Lily of the Mohawks,” Voyage Comics transports us back in time to the 17th century in New France with this retelling of Saint Kateri Tekakwitha’s life with beautiful descriptive art.  The depictions of the Black Robes and the Mohawk tribe is drawn with great love and care. There was some honest conflict, but most interactions between the two were respectful.  The front cover is captivating. The top half shows St. Kateri Tekakwitha kneeling by a river holding a cross. In the background is her aunt and uncle on one side of her and longhouses on the other. In the reflection, she stays the same, but instead of her aunt and uncle there are two priests. The longhouses are now a church. The cover sums up her story and her title of Lily of the Mohawks. 

It’s interesting to note the significance of Kateri Tekakwitha’s name. The Iroquois name Tekakwitha means to bump into things. It is a very appropriate name for her, since she bumped into Christianity through the missionaries. I in turn bumped into her while studying American History in middle school. Kateri, her baptismal name, means Catherine in the  Iroquois language. She was named after St. Catherine of Siena. Both  saints have a deep love of Jesus and a strong spiritual life of prayer and fasting. Saint Kateri Tekakwitha and Saint Catherine of Siena, pray for us.