Modern saints: Their Lives and Faces (Book 2)

Ann Ball

• Editorial: TAN Books
• Año: 1991
• ISBN:
  9781505102505
• Categoría: Teologia e religione
• Categoría: Denominazioni cristiane

For nearly sixty years, Catholics have found in this remarkable spiritual classic a profound guide to living in Christ. Dom Mary Eugene Boylan, O.C.R., was an Irish priest and Trappist monk whose writings drew from his extensive experience as a confessor, spiritual director, and retreat master. In This Tremendous Lover, first published in 1946, he offers a compelling view of the spiritual life grounded in a vision of the Mystical Body of Christ. The author draws us into what he calls the love story of God and man. With rare clarity and consistency, he lays out a practical program of humility, charity, and abandonment to the will of God. Addressing a variety of spiritual topics— prayer, the Sacraments, spiritual reading, loving our neighbor, marriage, and much more— he shows how all these aspects of Christian life converge in God s great work of redemption. Once one has caught a glimpse of the meaning of God's plan to restore all things in Christ, Dom Boylan teaches, one has the key, not only to the whole history of the universe, but also to the history and destiny of one s own soul. All the details of the spiritual life fall into their proper perspective, and the quest of perfection is seen to be both possible and reasonable for every Christian. This new edition of Dom Boylan s beloved spiritual work, with new introductory essays and revised and expanded notes, promises to fulfill once again the author s stated purpose for writing it: to foster the development of union with God in the lives of the faithful.

1

SAINT ELIZABETH SETON

Saint Elizabeth Ann Seton, D.C.
Elizabeth Ann Bayley
1774 - 1821
United States
Died Age 46

Although she embarked on a career of public charity soon after her marriage, no one dreamed that the young Episcopal society matron, Elizabeth Bayley Seton, would one day be the first native-born American to be canonized by the Catholic Church.

Born two years before the American Revolution, Elizabeth grew up in the "cream" of New York society. She loved dancing and the theater. Elizabeth inherited a hot temper, though she would learn to control it well. A prolific reader, she read everything from the Bible to contemporary novels.

In spite of her high society background, Elizabeth's early life was quiet, simple, and often lonely. Her mother died when she was only three. Her stepmother was indifferent to Elizabeth and her sister; and her father, a physician, was often away from home. A warm, affectionate, outgoing child, Elizabeth showed an early inclination for contemplation of God, especially in her examination of His natural wonders. Her greatest pleasure was "reading prayers." As she grew a little older the Bible was to become her continual instruction, support and comfort; she would continue to love the Scriptures for the rest of her life.

In 1794, Elizabeth married the wealthy young William Seton, with whom she was deeply in love. The first years of their marriage were happy and prosperous. Elizabeth wrote in her diary that first autumn, "My own home at 20—the world—that and heaven too—quite impossible."

This time of Elizabeth's life was to be a brief moment of earthly happiness before the many deaths and partings she was to suffer. Within four years Will's father died, leaving the young couple in charge of Will's seven half brothers and sisters, as well as the family's importing business. It was also about this time that Elizabeth and two of her friends began charitably ministering to the poor and needy, earning the nickname of "Protestant Sisters of Charity." At this time Catholic sisters had not yet become well-known in the United States.

Now events began to move fast—and with devastating effect. Both Will's business and his health failed. He was finally forced to file a petition of bankruptcy. In 1802, when Elizabeth was 28 years old, the couple's fifth child was born, adding to the cares of an already large household on a frugal budget.

In a final attempt to save Will's health, the Setons sailed for Italy, where Will had business friends—the Filicchis. They took their eight-year-old daughter Anna with them for company, and left the other four children with Will's half sisters.

Things turned out badly there also, for the authorities of Tuscany had heard reports of the dread yellow fever in New York, and therefore kept the Setons for a month in a cold, damp quarantine building at the port. Will survived this, only to die eight days later of tuberculosis.

Although Elizabeth had lost the man she "loved. . .more than anyone could love on earth," she was consoled that Will had recently awakened to the things of God. This seemed an answer to her tireless prayers for him, and she was comforted that his last words were for herself, their children, and Christ Jesus.

It seems that the illnesses and deaths of family members and friends would form the fabric of Elizabeth's life. The many enforced separations from dear ones by death and distance served to draw Elizabeth's heart to God and eternity. The accepting and embracing of God's will—"The Will," as she called it—would be a keynote in her spiritual life.

Elizabeth was always very concerned about the eternal destiny of her many loved ones, and she would try to direct the attention of dying friends to the next life. Fear and concern for her own and her children's eternal destiny, and desire for eternity, were always before her mind; these motives would eventually lead her into the Catholic Church.

At this time in her life Elizabeth was assisted by the Filicchi brothers, who were impressed by the young widow's beautiful soul.

The Catholic Filicchis—Antonio and Filippo (and his wife Amabilia)—were the embodiment of kindness and consideration for Elizabeth. She wrote to a friend, "Oh, my! the patience and more than human kindness of these dear Filicchis for us! You would say it was our Saviour Himself they received in His poor and sick strangers."

In Italy, Elizabeth captivated everyone by her own kindness, patience, good sense, wit and courtesy. Neighbors there were so impressed by her courage and by her devotion to her dying husband that they said, "If she were not a heretic she would be a saint."

During this time Elizabeth became interested in the Catholic Faith, and over a period of months the Filicchis guided her in Catholic instructions. One of the brothers accompanied her back to New York, for ocean travel in those days would not have been safe for a young widow alone. The brothers never abandoned her, giving her a regular allotment of money for the support of herself and her family. They became lifelong friends of Elizabeth.

When her friends in New York realized that Elizabeth meant to convert to Catholicism, they rushed to re-instruct her in the Episcopalian faith. Especially poignant were the conversations she had with the minister Mr. Hobart, a forceful and intelligent man, eloquent preacher and friend of Elizabeth, who used many arguments to dissuade her from conversion. Filippo Filicchi, on the other hand, gave her Catholic books to read and tried to impress on Elizabeth her obligation of making a serious investigation and search for the true religion. A year of uncertainty and inner anguish for Elizabeth followed.

Elizabeth's desire for the Bread of Life was to be a strong force leading her to the Catholic Church. To her dear sister-in-law Rebecca, her "Soul's Sister," she wrote, "How happy would we be, if we believed what these dear souls believe: that they possess God in the Sacrament, and that He remains in their churches and is carried to them when they are sick!. . .The other day, in a moment of excessive distress, I fell on my knees without thinking when the Blessed Sacrament passed by, and cried in an agony to God to bless me, if He was there—that my whole soul desired only Him."

Having lost her mother at an early age, Elizabeth felt great comfort in the idea that the Blessed Virgin was truly her mother. She asked the Blessed Virgin to guide her to the True Faith. Elizabeth was also attracted to the Catholic teaching that suffering can expiate sins. In the Anglican church the prayerbook's Ash Wednesday reference to "fasting, weeping and mourning" had been explained as being simply an old custom; but Elizabeth noted that the Catholic Mrs. Filicchi did not eat until three p.m. during Lent, offering the sacrifice for her sins in union with the Saviour's sufferings. Elizabeth was deeply impressed.

Elizabeth also noticed the difference between Catholic and non-Catholic deathbeds. She wrote to Mrs. Filicchi that in assisting at non-Catholic deaths, "I go through an agony never to be described," while a Catholic dying person is consoled and strengthened by every help of religion, and the priest, "the one you call Father of your soul, attends and watches it in the weakness and trials of parting nature with the same care you and I watch our little infant's body in its first struggles. . .on its entrance into life."

In her agony of soul over the crucial decisions she was called upon to make, Elizabeth lost weight and became almost a skeleton. The thought of her responsibility for her children's faith on Judgment Day weighed heavily on her. Seeing her distress, the children exclaimed, "Poor Mama!"

Finally, after much interior anguish, Elizabeth decided, "I will go peaceably and firmly to the Catholic Church: for if faith is so important to our salvation, I will seek it where true Faith first began, seek it among those who received it from God Himself." She looked forward with great anticipation to receiving the Sacraments for the first time, saying she would even be ready to make her confession "on the housetops" in return for absolution. After her First Communion she wrote, "At last. . .at last, GOD IS MINE AND I AM HIS! Now, let all go its round—I Have Received Him."

Thus Elizabeth finally joined the Catholic Church in 1805. When her sister-in-law converted to Catholicism, Elizabeth became the object of suspicion and distrust, so it became very difficult for her to remain in New York; this city, like most places in the young American nation, was decidedly prejudiced against Catholicism. During her few remaining years in New York Elizabeth tried to establish several ventures in order to become self-supporting, but they all failed.

The president of St. Mary's College in Baltimore suggested that Elizabeth come and start a school in that city. A natural teacher, Elizabeth gladly accepted the chance to educate and to spread the Faith. She added religion to the curriculum at St. Mary's, and soon two other young women came to help with her work. They began plans for a sisterhood. A wealthy convert donated $10,000.00 to the project, and the group moved to Emmitsburg, Maryland, where they established the first free Catholic school in America. When the young community adopted their rule, they made provision for Elizabeth to continue raising her children.

On March 25, 1809, Elizabeth Seton pronounced her vows of poverty, chastity and obedience, binding for one year, in the presence of Archbishop John Carroll of Baltimore. From that time, she was called Mother Seton. The sisters adopted a formal religious habit that same year.

As with all fledgling communities, there were periods of trouble and setbacks. Additionally, Mother Seton suffered personal hurts and losses; two of her sisters-in-law died, and her daughter Annina made a foolish engagement. Further suffering (though also relief) came when the young man broke the engagement. This daughter died an early and painful death of consumption at age 16. Guided by her mother, she attained to great virtue and holy dispositions during her last year and was received into the new sisterhood before she died. Elizabeth's sense of loss at the death of her daughter was profound, but she completely submitted herself to God's Will in this, as in all matters. "Never by a free act of the mind will I ever regret His Will," she stated.

Although Mother Seton was now afflicted with tuberculosis, she continued to guide her children. Elizabeth's sons were a constant source of heartbreak. She said they were her "greatest anxiety in life." At one point she wrote to her favorite child, William, "To lose you here a few years of so embittered a life is but the common lot; but to love as I love you, and lose you forever—oh, unutterable anguish!" But although she did not live to see it, their lives turned out well in the end, through the prayers and perseverance of their saintly mother. One son died at sea while charitably nursing a companion. The other died a good death and was the father of an archbishop and a nun.

The rule of the Sisterhood was formally ratified in 1812. It was based upon the rule St. Vincent de Paul had written for his Daughters of Charity in France. Despite the hardships of poverty and the tragedy of a number of early deaths, the number of applicants to join the sisters in their work increased steadily from the beginning. Today six groups of sisters trace their origins to Mother Seton's initial foundation.

The frail little mother was a perfect pattern for her sisters. Outwardly, she retained her composure, even through the pain of another daughter's death in 1816. Calmly she guided and directed the sisters in their growth. By 1818, in addition to their first school, the sisters had established two orphanages and another school.

As a teacher and an administrator, Mother Seton was most capable. She visited the classrooms daily and hired competent lay teachers to instruct the children in fields where she felt her sisters were not properly prepared. The children under her care, as well as the sisters, admired and loved her.

Mother Seton was full of the kindness and tenderness of a mother toward her spiritual daughters and her pupils. She guided them with practical advice, making sure they realized how serious they must be about their souls. "You must be in right earnest, or you will do little or nothing." She told the sisters, ". . .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."

Mother Seton firmly believed that the essential purpose of an education was to bring the pupils to lead good Catholic lives with their sights clearly set on eternity, the purpose of all human existence. She warned them that it was wise to avoid balls, the theatre, and the gay life in general in order to avoid "singeing their wings" like the butterfly on the candle. Yet she was not trying to turn the girls into nuns. She told them that she wanted to prepare most of them to become good mothers of families.

Mother Seton was full of maternal tenderness for "her girls." She wrote frequent litt...