“Charity of St. Elizabeth of Hungary” (detail)
by Edmund Blair Leighton
“From this time onward Elizabeth’s goodness greatly increased. She was a lifelong friend of the poor and gave herself entirely to relieving the hungry…
“Apart from those active good works, I declare before God that I have seldom seen a more contemplative woman.” (From a letter of Conrad of Marburg, Spiritual Director to St. Elizabeth of Hungary)
Today is the Memorial of St. Elizabeth of Hungary, Religious. She lived in the thirteenth century and is known for her generosity and solicitude and care for the poor. She truly lived a life of heroic virtue.
Each day, God places people in our paths, just as He did with St. Elizabeth. Our first obligation of service to God is to see and recognize those He calls us to serve. The second obligation is to know the purpose of the encounter. The third obligation is to act in humble courage and confidence, fulfilling His will. In this way we become Lights for Christ in this world.
The words of St. Elizabeth’s spiritual director provide us with the key to meeting these three obligations. We must be people of prayer and action—active contemplatives. It is through ever-deepening prayer, motivated by an ever-growing love, that we come to recognize, understand and courageously live out God’s Holy Will for us in the ordinary moments of our days.
