Kateri was the daughter of a great Mohawk chief and an Algonquin Christian mother. Her parents died of small pox when the girl was four. She was raised by her uncle, the new chief, who wanted no part of the Christian faith. Kateri believed that the French missionary priests had brought to her village the message of the one true God. She was attracted to the Eucharistic Jesus and to the love of neighbor the blackrobes taught. She desired with all her heart to become a Christian. That desire led her down paths more treacherous than the densest of forest trails. Kateri was persecuted and ostracized for her refusal to conform to traditional Iroquois ways. Even so, she felt compelled to live out her short life totally dedicated to God through her vow of virginity.