Saint Veronica
No fixed feast day in the calendar
Veronica, who according to tradition wiped the face of Jesus on the way of the cross.
Who is she?
Veronica is the woman we meet at the sixth station every time we pray the Stations of the Cross: she wipes the face of Jesus. The Gospels do not tell this story and do not mention her name. The story comes from the devout tradition of the Church, and we know nothing more for certain about her life.
Life story
The Gospel tells that when Jesus carried his cross up to Calvary, “A large crowd of people followed Jesus, including many women who mourned and lamented him” (Lk 23:27).
According to tradition, in that crowd was a woman of Jerusalem. Jesus had been scourged and crowned with thorns, and his face was covered with sweat and blood. Around him, soldiers were shouting and many people were mocking him. She was not afraid. She squeezed through the crowd, came close to Jesus and gently wiped his face with her cloth.
Tradition goes on to say that when she opened the cloth, the face of Jesus was printed on it. According to an old explanation, the name Veronica was understood to mean “true image.” Some old stories even say she was the woman Jesus healed after she touched his cloak (cf. Mt 9:20-22), but this is not certain either.
Over the centuries, Christians have lovingly retold this story. When the devotion of the Stations of the Cross gradually took shape, her gesture was given a station of its own: the sixth station. Every Lent, all over the world, children and all the faithful stop at this station to remember her kind heart.
Why is she a saint?
Veronica could not save Jesus from the cross. But she dared to do a small act full of love, right when Jesus was suffering the most, while many others ran away or just stood and watched. Jesus teaches: “as you did it to one of the least of these my brethren, you did it to me” (Mt 25:40). That is why the faithful honor her as a model of brave mercy.
A lesson for you
- When you see a classmate being mocked or left out, don’t just stand and watch: go over and say something kind.
- A glass of water, a comforting word, a helping hand: these are ways of wiping the face of Jesus in someone who is suffering.
- When you pray the Stations of the Cross, at the sixth station, ask God to give you a brave and caring heart like Veronica’s.
Identifying marks
- A cloth showing the face of Jesus crowned with thorns: according to tradition, she wiped the Lord’s face with a cloth, and his face was printed on it.
- A veiled woman with a sorrowful look: she was moved by the Lord’s suffering on the way of the cross.
- The city of Jerusalem behind her: the road on which Jesus carried his cross up to Calvary.
- The sixth Station of the Cross (*): she is often painted kneeling beside Jesus as he carries his cross.
(*) Only in some pictures and statues.
The text on this page is the saint card in the Catholic Information app, word for word.
Collect this card and read more about the saints in the app