Saint Elizabeth Ann Seton was the foundress and first superior of the Sisters of Charity in the United States. She was born to Episcopalian parents into New York in 1774. She was married in 1794 in St. Paul’s Episcopalian Church to William Seton. The family’s importing business fell into financial troubles and he later died of tuberculosis in Pisa, Italy in 1803 while attempting to get help from his business friends.
After being befriended by many people in the Catholic Church in Italy, St. Elizabeth fasted and prayed for “light.” Finally, on Ash Wednesday in 1805, she was received into the Church. Her conversion unleashed a storm among her Protestant relatives and friends and made her financial strains even greater. In January 1806, Cecilia Seton, Elizabeth’s young sister-in-law, became very ill and begged to see her ostracized sister-in-law and told her of her desire to become Catholic. When Cecilia’s decision was known, threats were made to have Mrs. Seton expelled from the state by the Legislature! On her recovery, Cecilia fled to St. Elizabeth for refuge and was received into the Church. St. Elizabeth eventually moved to Baltimore and with the help of another Catholic convert, a farm was purchased two miles from Mt. St. Mary’s College. It was there that she took Religious vows before Archbishop John Carroll and her daughter Anna. After founding the Sisters of Charity, she died in Emmitsburg, Maryland on January 4, 1821.
Let us pray (a prayer composed by St. Elizabeth). “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, our 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.”
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The Church will continue to celebrate the Christmas “season” through the Masses this Sunday, at which time we will celebrate the Baptism of the Lord. Christmas is an invitation to see the world from God’s perspective. In our sinfulness, we readily admit at Mass that we are “not worthy” that Christ should enter under our roof, but we often go so far as to keep our distance from God because we think we are not worthy of Him for many other reasons. But the Christmas season invites us to see things from His point of view. God still wishes to be incarnate. The challenge this places before us every day is to remain open, not closing ourselves off. God repeatedly reminds us “do not be afraid: He will come.” Think of the stable in Bethlehem: Jesus was born there, in that poverty, to tell us that He is certainly not afraid of visiting our hearts, in whatever shape He may find them!
