ST. ELIZABETH OF THE TRINITY
Born in France on July 18, 1880
Died in France on November 9, 1906
As a youth she was described as having a terrible temper.
After hearing her first Confession, the priest told her that she was destined to become either a demon or a saint.
She made her First Communion at the age of 11 and from that point forward she became more even-tempered and increased in her desire for holiness.
Referring to her First Communion she said:
“That day, when Jesus made His dwelling within me, when God took possession of my heart I have aspired only to give my life, to return a little of His great love to the Beloved of the Eucharist who rests in my poor heart.”
She entered the Carmelite order of nuns at the age of 21. She would have gone earlier, but her mother wouldn’t let her go earlier.
The night before she went to Carmel she said to her mother:
“Darling mother, how can I resist the voice of God calling me? He is holding out His arms to me, telling me He is despised,
scorned, forsaken. Shall I abandon Him as well?”
She wrote about Carmel saying:
“It seems to me that I have found my Heaven on Earth, since Heaven is God and God is in my soul. I wish I could whisper this secret to those
I love.”
Her Postulancy was filled with joy. On the eve of her Profession she wrote:
“At last He is all mine, and I am all His! Now I have nothing else but Him, He is my all! And now I have only one desire to love Him all the time, to be zealous for His honor as a true bride, to give Him joy, to make Him happy by preparing a dwelling and a refuge for Him in my soul.”
She made a “little cell” for the Trinity in her soul and desired to be ever-vigilant and continuously with her beloved Three.\
Elizabeth grew ill from Addison’s disease and suffered intensely near the end of her life.
In spite of the tremendous pain, she accepted it as a gift.
She wrote:
“I am happy to suffer so that I may be made comfortable to my crucified Spouse.”
“My mission in heaven will be to draw souls, helping them to go out of themselves to cling to God, with a spontaneous, love-filled action, and to keep them in that great interior silence which enables God to make His mark on them to transform them into Himself.”
Her last words:
“I am going to Light, to Love, to Life!”
Her Feast Day is November 8.
She was canonized by Pope Francis on October 16, 2016.
She is the Patron Saint of sick people and loss of parents.