Elizabeth of the Trinity
Encyclopedia
Elizabeth of the Trinity (July 18, 1880 – November 9, 1906) was a French
France
The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...

 nun
Nun
A nun is a woman who has taken vows committing her to live a spiritual life. She may be an ascetic who voluntarily chooses to leave mainstream society and live her life in prayer and contemplation in a monastery or convent...

 and religious writer. She was born Élisabeth Catez in the military camp of Avord
Avord Air Base
Avord Air Base or BA 702 , named after Captain Georges Madon, is a base of the French Air Force located north northwest of Avord in central France....

 in the district of Farges-en-Septaine
Farges-en-Septaine
Farges-en-Septaine is a commune in the Cher department in the Centre region of France.-Geography:A farming area comprising the village and a couple of hamlets bordered by the banks of both the Villabon and Yèvre rivers, some east of Bourges, at the junction of the D98, D66 and the D36 roads...

 (Cher). Her parents were Captain Joseph and Marie (Rolland) Catez. Elizabeth was the first born of her family. She had a terrible temper. When Elizabeth was seven years old, her father died unexpectedly.

After receiving her First Holy Communion
First Communion
The First Communion, or First Holy Communion, is a Catholic Church ceremony. It is the colloquial name for a person's first reception of the Sacrament of the Holy Eucharist. Catholics believe this event to be very important, as the Eucharist is one of the central focuses of the Catholic Church...

 in 1891 Elizabeth became more controlled and had a deeper understanding of God
God
God is the English name given to a singular being in theistic and deistic religions who is either the sole deity in monotheism, or a single deity in polytheism....

 and the world. She also gained a profound understanding of the Trinity
Trinity
The Christian doctrine of the Trinity defines God as three divine persons : the Father, the Son , and the Holy Spirit. The three persons are distinct yet coexist in unity, and are co-equal, co-eternal and consubstantial . Put another way, the three persons of the Trinity are of one being...

. Elizabeth visited the sick and sang in the church choir. She taught religion to children who worked in factories. Soon after, Elizabeth began to be interested in entering the Discalced Carmelites
Discalced Carmelites
The Discalced Carmelites, or Barefoot Carmelites, is a Catholic mendicant order with roots in the eremitic tradition of the Desert Fathers and Mothers...

, although her mother strongly suggested her not to. Men had asked for Elizabeth's hand in marriage, but she declined, because her dream was to enter the Carmelite monastery that was located 200 meters from her home in Dijon
Dijon
Dijon is a city in eastern France, the capital of the Côte-d'Or département and of the Burgundy region.Dijon is the historical capital of the region of Burgundy. Population : 151,576 within the city limits; 250,516 for the greater Dijon area....

.

Elizabeth entered the Dijon Carmel on August 2, 1901. She said, "I find Him everywhere while doing the wash as well as while praying." Her time in the Carmel had some high times as well as some very low times. Today, we know about all that she felt and experienced in her writings. She wrote down when she felt she needed a richer understanding of God’s great love.

At the end of her life, she began to call herself Laudem Gloriæ. Elizabeth had wanted to be called that in Heaven
Heaven
Heaven, the Heavens or Seven Heavens, is a common religious cosmological or metaphysical term for the physical or transcendent place from which heavenly beings originate, are enthroned or inhabit...

 because it means "praise of glory". She said, "I think that in Heaven my mission will be to draw souls by helping them to go out of themselves in order to cling to God by a wholly simple and loving movement, and to keep them in this great silence within which will allow God to communicate Himself to them and to transform them into Himself."

Elizabeth died at the age of 26 from Addison's disease
Addison's disease
Addison’s disease is a rare, chronic endocrine disorder in which the adrenal glands do not produce sufficient steroid hormones...

, which in the early 20th century had no treatment. Even though her death was unbearable, Elizabeth still accepted that God gave her that gift and was grateful. Her last words were, "I am going to Light, to Love, to Life!"

Elizabeth was beatified by Pope John Paul II
Pope John Paul II
Blessed Pope John Paul II , born Karol Józef Wojtyła , reigned as Pope of the Catholic Church and Sovereign of Vatican City from 16 October 1978 until his death on 2 April 2005, at of age. His was the second-longest documented pontificate, which lasted ; only Pope Pius IX ...

on November 25, 1984. Her memorial day is November 8. Her best-known prayer is "Holy Trinity Whom I Adore" which she wrote out of her love of the Trinity. Blessed Elizabeth of the Trinity is a patron of illness, sick people and loss of parents.
The source of this article is wikipedia, the free encyclopedia.  The text of this article is licensed under the GFDL.
 
x
OK