Today's Feast: St. Elizabeth Ann Seton

“The first end I propose in our daily work is to do the will of God; secondly, to do it in the manner he wills it; and thirdly, to do it because it is his will.” ~St. Elizabeth Ann Seton

Ave Maria! Today's saint is most dear to my heart. An excellent biography about her can be found here and a Google search will lead to many others. If I were still living in Washington, DC, I'd be making a pilgrimage this week to the National Shrine of St. Elizabeth Ann Seton in Emmitsburg, Maryland. It's a beautiful place to visit, even in the deep mid-winter. St. Elizabeth Ann's presence permeates the entire place. Whenever I would go there, she would always fill my heart with the courage that lead her to make her daring leap of faith when she came into the Catholic church and was ostracized by her family as a result. Her utter love for our Lord in His Holy Word and in the Blessed Eucharist was a deep and solid one that nurtures my own. And her serene perseverance in establishing the Sisters of Charity amidst great hardships and abject poverty strengthens my faint-heartedness.

Did I say that I love this wise and holy woman? I do, I do! So today I'll make an interior pilgrimage to Emmitsburg, savoring her fruitful heritage and asking her to help me to do the will of God with the sort of joy and love that overflowed from her heart so captivated by Him.

Prayer of St. Elizabeth Ann Seton

Lord Jesus,

Who was born for us in a stable,
lived for us a life of pain and sorrow,
and died for us upon a cross;
say for us in the hour of death,
Father, forgive,
and to Your Mother,

Behold your child.
Say to us, This day you shall be with Me in paradise.
Dear Savior, leave us not, forsake us not.
We thirst for You, Fountain of Living Water.
Our days pass quickly along,
soon all will be consummated for us.
To Your hands we commend our spirits,
now and forever.
Amen.