From: rich <
richarra@gmail.com>
17 November ' St Elizabeth of Hungary
(1207-1231)
=E2=80=9CElizabeth was a lifelong friend of the poor and gave herself entir= ely
to relieving the hungry. She ordered that one of her castles should be converted into a hospital in which she gathered many of the weak and
feeble. She generously gave alms to all who were in need, not only in
that place but in all the territories of her husband's empire. She
spent all her own revenue from her husband's four principalities an=
d
finally she sold her luxurious possessions and rich clothes for the
sake of the poor.
Twice a day, in the morning and in the evening, Elizabeth went to
visit the sick. She personally cared for those who were particularly
repulsive; to some she gave good, to others clothing; some she carried
on her own shoulders and performed many other kindly services. Her
husband, of happy memory, gladly approved of these charitable works.
Finally, when her husband died, she sought the highest perfection;
filled with tears, she implored me to let her beg for alms from door
to door.
On Good Friday of that year, when the altars had been stripped, she
laid her hands on the altar in a chapel in her own town, where she had established the Friars Minor and before witnesses she voluntarily
renounced all worldly display and everything that our Saviour in the
gospel advises us to abandon. Even then she saw that she could still
be distracted by the cares and worldly glory which had surrounded her
while her husband was alive. Against my will she followed me to
Marburg. Here in the town she built a hospice where she gathered
together the weak and the feeble. There she attended the most wretched
and contemptible at her own table.
Apart from those active good works, I declare before God that I have
seldom seen a more contemplative woman.
Before her death I heard her confession. When I asked what should be
done about her goods and possessions, she replied that anything which
seemed to be hers belonged to the poor. She asked me to distribute
everything except one worn-out dress in which she wished to be buried.
When all this had been decided, she received the body of our Lord.
Afterward, until vespers, she spoke often of the holiest things she
had heard in sermons. Then, she devoutly commended to God all who were
sitting near her and as if falling into a gentle sleep, she died.=E2=80=9D
=C2 ' from a letter by Fr Conrad of Marburg, spiritual director o=
f Saint
Elizabeth of Hungary
Elizabeth understood well the lesson Jesus taught when he washed his
disciples' feet at the Last Supper:=C2 the Christian must be one=
who
serves the humblest needs of others, even if one serves from an
exalted position. In her short life, Elizabeth manifested such great
love for the poor and suffering that she has become the patroness of
Catholic charities and of the Secular Franciscan Order. The daughter
of the King of Hungary, Elizabeth chose a life of penance and
asceticism when a life of leisure and luxury could easily have been
hers. This choice endeared her in the hearts of the common people
throughout Europe.=C2 Of royal blood, Elizabeth could have lorded it
over her subjects. Yet she served them with such a loving heart that
her brief life won for her a special place in the hearts of many.
Elizabeth is also an example to us in her following the guidance of a
spiritual director. Growth in the spiritual life is a difficult
process. We can play games very easily if we don't have someone to
challenge us.
St Elizabeth of Hungary, pray for us!
From Anastpaul 2017
=E2=80=9CMercy imitates God and disappoints Satan.=E2=80=9D
--St John Chrysostom (347-407) Father & Doctor of the Church
=E2=80=9CTwo works of mercy set a person free:
Forgive and you will be forgiven
and give and you will receive.=E2=80=9D
=E2=80=9D Love is itself the fulfillment of all our works.
There is the goal;
that is why we run:
we run toward it and once we reach it,
in it we shall find rest.
--St Augustine (354-430) Father & Doctor of the Church
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Prayer
O holy God, who didst endow thy servant and bishop Hugh of
Lincoln with wise and cheerful boldness, and didst teach him
to commend the discipline of holy life to kings and princes:
Grant that we also, rejoicing in the Good News of thy mercy,
and fearing nothing but the loss of thee, may be bold to speak
the truth in love, in the name of Jesus Christ our Redeemer,
who liveth and reigneth with thee and the Holy Spirit, one
God, now and for ever.
--- NewsGate v1.0 gamma 2
* Origin: News Gate @ Net396 -Huntsville, AL - USA (1:396/4)