PRAISE OF GLORY- Elizabeth of the Trinity

2011-12-07T19:54:00.001-05:00

"If you knew the gift of God!" There is one who knew this gift of God, one who did not lose one particle of it, one who was so pure, so luminous, that she seemed to be the Light itself.. In what peace Mary lent herself to everything she did! How even the most trivial things were divinized by her."

Blessed Elizabeth of the Trinity

Prayer to the Holy Trinity

2011-06-18T21:36:00.002-04:00

O my God, Trinity whom I adore, let me entirely forget myself that I may abide in you, still and peaceful as if my soul were already in eternity; let nothing disturb my peace nor separate me from you, O my unchanging God, but that each moment may take me further into the depths of your mystery ! Pacify my soul! Make it your heaven, your beloved home and place of your repose; let me never leave you there alone, but may I be ever attentive, ever alert in my faith, ever adoring and all given up to your creative action.

O my beloved Christ, crucified for love, would that I might be for you a spouse of your heart! I would anoint you with glory, I would love you - even unto death! Yet I sense my frailty and ask you to adorn me with yourself; identify my soul with all the movements of your soul, submerge me, overwhelm. me, substitute yourself in me that my life may become but a reflection of your life. Come into me as Adorer, Redeemer and Savior.

O Eternal Word, Word of my God, would that I might spend my life listening to you, would that I might be fully receptive to learn all from you; in all darkness, all loneliness, all weakness, may I ever keep my eyes fixed on you and abide under your great light; O my Beloved Star, fascinate me so that I may never be able to leave your radiance.

O Consuming Fire, Spirit of Love, descend into my soul and make all in me as an incarnation of the Word, that I may be to him a super-added humanity wherein he renews his mystery; and you O Father, bestow yourself and bend down to your little creature, seeing in her only your beloved Son in whom you are well pleased.

O my `Three', my All, my Beatitude, infinite Solitude, Immensity in whom I lose myself, I give myself to you as a prey to be consumed; enclose yourself in me that I may be absorbed in you so as to contemplate in your light the abyss of your Splendor !

by Blessed Elizabeth of the Trinity, OCD

O Consuming Fire, Holy Spirit!

2011-06-11T21:41:00.000-04:00

"Let Us Live With God As With A Friend.."

2011-06-08T11:39:00.001-04:00

"Let us live with God as with a Friend. Let us make our faith a living thing, so as to remain in communion with Him through everything. That is how saints are made. We carry our heaven within us, since He who completely satisfies every longing of the glorified souls in the light of the Beatific Vision, is giving Himself to us in faith and mystery. It is the same thing. It seems to me I have found my heaven on earth, since heaven is God and God is in my soul. The day I understood that, everything became clear to me, and I wish I could whisper this secret to those I love in order that they also might cling closely to God through everything."

Blessed Elizabeth of the Trinity

The Greatness of our Vocation

2011-04-10T19:48:00.000-04:00

by Blessed Elizabeth of the Trinity, OCD

"I want to answer your questions. Let's treat humility first; I have read some splendid pages on it in the book I spoke to you about. The pious author says that nothing can disturb the humble. He possesses invincible peace for he has plunged into such an abyss that no one would go that far to look for him. He also says that the humble person finds his greatest pleasure in life in feeling his own weakness before God....Pride is not something that is destroyed with one good blow of the sword! Doubtless, certain heroic acts of humility, such as we read of in the lives of the saints, give it, if not a mortal blow, at least one that considerably weakens it; but without that grace we must put it to death each day! "Quotide morior" exclaimed St. Paul, "I die daily!" .. This doctrine of dying to self is the law for every Christian, for Christ said: "If anyone wants to follow Me, let him take up his cross and deny himself." But this doctrine which seems so austere, takes on a delightful sweetness when we consider the outcome of this death- life in God in place of our life of sin and misery. That is what St. Paul meant when he wrote: "Strip off the old man and clothe yourselves anew in the image of Him who created you." This image is God Himself. Do you recall His wish which He so clearly expressed on the day of creation: "Let us make man in our image and likeness"? Oh! you see, if we would think more of the origin of our soul things here below would seem so childish that we have only contempt for them. St Peter writes in one of his epistles that "we have been made sharers in His divine nature." And St. Paul recommends that "we hold firm to the end this beginning of His existence which He has given us."
It seems to me the soul that is aware of its greatness enters into that "holy freedom of the children of God" of which the Apostle speaks, that is, it transcends all things, including self. If anyone were to ask me the secret of happiness, I would say it is to no longer think of self, to deny oneself always. That is a good way to kill pride: let it starve to death! You see, pride is love of ourselves; well, love of God must be so strong that it extinguishes all our self-love. St. Augustine says we have two cities within us, the city of God and the city of SELF. To the extent that the first increases, the second will be destroyed. A soul that lives by faith in God's presence, that has this "single eye" that Christ speaks of in the Gospel, that is, a purity of "intention" that seeks only God; this soul, it seems to me, would also live in humility: it would recognize His gifts to it- for humility is truth- but it would attribute nothing to itself, referring all to God as the Blessed Virgin did.
..All the movements of pride that you feel within yourself only become faults when the will takes part in them! Without that, although you may suffer much, you are not offending God. Doubtless self-love is at the bottom of those faults which, as you say, you commit without thinking, but that... is in a way, part of us... What God asks of you is never to entertain deliberately any thought of pride, and never to act on the inspiration of pride, for this is wrong. And yet, if you find yourself doing either of these, you must not become discouraged, for again, it is pride which is irritated. You must "display your misery" like Magdalene at the Master's feet, and ask Him to set you free. He so loves to see a soul recognize its weakness. Then, as a great saint said, "The abyss of God's immensity encountrs the abyss of the creature's nothingness," and God embraces this nothingness"
Complete Works of Blessed Elizabeth of the Trinity, Volume 1, pp.124-126

Introducing Elizabeth of the Trinity

2010-11-07T14:21:00.000-05:00

Feast Day: November 8

The Carmelite Order celebrates the feast of Blessed Elizabeth of the Trinity on November 8th. Elizabeth was a beautiful soul who tasted the delights of contemplating God in the depths of her soul and invites us to do the same.
She was born July 18, 1880 in a military camp of Avor in the district of Farges-en-Septaine, France to a military family. Her father, Joseph Catez, was a captain of the 8th Squadron of the Equipment and Maintenance Corps. Her mother, Marie Rolland, was the daughter of a retired Commandant. The couple was blessed with two lovely daughters, Elizabeth and Marguerite. The family moved to Dijon in 1882. As a child, Elizabeth was described to possess a terrible temper. She was inclined to bouts of tantrums and her early photos show her flashing eyes. It was said that a Canon close to the family exclaimed after being a witness to these outburst, “this child will either grow up to be a devil or an angel.” She is described to be quick-tempered and unable to manage her anger well. This character flaw will be foremost in Elizabeth’s mind as she strove to grow deeper in the spiritual life.

But despite this weakness, Elizabeth also was gifted with good natural qualities. She was naturally affectionate and did not think twice to show it. When one reads her letters to friends, her warmth and affectionate nature come through. She was loved wherever she went and was popular among her friends. She loved to travel and loved beautiful, fashionable clothes. She was an accomplished pianist and her soul was sensitive to everything beautiful and harmonious. It was this artistic soul that will open up for her the discovery of a Presence within her.

When her father died, Mme. Catez, Elizabeth and Marguerite moved to a smaller house not far from a Carmelite monastery. In fact, it was so near to the house that Elizabeth could see the belfry of the chapel from her bedroom window. A great spiritual transformation occurred in Elizabeth during her First Communion in April of 1891. Her writings talk about her account of “being fed by Jesus.” This experience was the turning point in her life. From that moment onward, Elizabeth began a journey of self-discovery, self-mastery and self-conquest. She also discovered her vocation to Carmel.

It is wonderful to read Blessed Elizabeth’s writings because they are full of love and expressions of great longings. Her description and re-discovery of the mystery of the Divine Indwelling in her soul is so vivid that one cannot help but be immersed in what she is describing. Her writings are lofty and mystical and she spoke in the language of the mystics. She truly lived out her personal mission of being the apostle of Divine Indwelling in Carmel. Her appeal is different from St. Therese and yet Elizabeth read Therese's "Story of a Soul" while a Postulant in her Dijon Carmel. In a photo taken of her at this time with the Community, she can be seen holding this book next to Mother Germaine, her Prioress. There is a certain euphoria and excitement surrounding St. Therese but Blessed Elizabeth manifests a more subdued, serious and austere aura about her. She was very heavily influenced by the writings of Saint Paul and most, if not all of her writings, are meditations and reflections on the works of this great apostle to the gentiles. It was in one of St. Paul's letters that she discovered her personal mission in Carmel: to be "laudem gloriae", to be God's Praise of Glory. Being a praise of glory for Elizabeth meant becoming "another humanity in which Christ can renew the whole of His mystery." She expounds on St. Paul's cry of "filling up in my body what is still lacking in the sufferings of Christ." All these sentiments were not driven only by a pure sense of asceticism but more so because she understood that love is proven by the crucible of the Cross. " A Carmelite is a soul who has gazed on Christ Crucified, who has seen Him offering Himself to His Father as a victim for souls; and entering into herself under this great vision of Christ's charity, she has understood the passion of His soul and desired to give herself as He did!"

Elizabeth of the Trinity teaches me that God dwells in silence. The Rule of Carmel teaches that "your strength will lie in silence and hope." When asked by her Prioress what her favorite point of the Rule was, she referred to the practice of silence as indicated in the holy Rule. It is in silence that we must seek Him and we have to acquire that virtue of silence in order to allow God to communicate Himself to us. Being silent is not just the absence of words. Being silent more so means being abandoned, docile, submissive to the Spirit so He can accomplish his works in us. Being silent means having a “single eye” to view all things. A silent and peaceful soul is one who is convinced that nothing happens by accident, no second causes, that God ordains all, and that everything is grace. A noisy soul is one that constantly swims upstream, who constantly sees the danger behind every sacrifice, who measures every step so she doesn’t fall. It reminds me of the song The Rose -“it’s the heart afraid of breaking that never learns to dance, it’s the dream afraid of waking that never takes a chance, it’s the one who won’t be taken who cannot seem to give, and the soul afraid of dying that never learns to live."

Elizabeth died of Addison’s disease in November 9, 1906. Her dying words were “I am going to Light, to Love, to Life.” In her own words:

“Let us live with God as with a Friend. Let us make our faith a living thing, so as to remain in communion with Him through everything. That is how saints are made. We carry our heaven within us, since He who completely satisfies every longing of the glorified souls in the light of the Beatific Vision, is giving Himself to us in faith and mystery. It is the same thing. It seems to me I have found my heaven on earth, since heaven is God and God is in my soul. The day I understood that, everything became clear to me, and I wish I could whisper this secret to those I love in order that they also might cling closely to God through everything.

Blessed Elizabeth of the Trinity, pray for us!

The First Time I Met Her

2010-11-07T14:19:00.000-05:00

It was August 1984. I just began to be acquainted with the Sisters in a Carmelite Monastery and was cleaning the chapel that afternoon. I noticed a bulletin board at the vestibule of the Chapel with a newspaper clipping tacked to it. The article was about a Carmelite nun who was to be beatified by Pope John Paul II in November of that year. I noticed a black and white photo of a young lady seated at the piano seemingly looking straight at me. She had a penetrating gaze and long beautiful black hair.

From that moment onward, I was curious to know more about Elizabeth of the Trinity. When I entered Carmel, I saw more of her pictures in the cloister and heard more of her life and works. She became one of my favorite Carmelite Saints. I identify with her longings, struggles and her love of Carmel. I also love to meditate on her words about silence, solitude, love of God and the perpetual struggle of acquiring humility. I'm glad to know her and to continue learning about the spiritual life from her. Her name "Elizabeth" means "House of God." An appropriate name for someone who made the mystery of the Trinity her mission in heaven and earth.

"Look Inside and Above"

2010-11-06T14:11:00.001-04:00

I learned of Blessed Elizabeth the same time I was brought to Carmel as a lay person after graduating from college. Even though she read St. Therese and was heavily influenced by her sister in Carmel, Blessed Elizabeth developed her own distinct spirituality in the Church. For someone who was an enclosed nun in Carmel, her correspondences were mostly to lay people. Her fascination with Saint Paul, makes her another "apostle to the gentiles." Elizabeth was a mystical soul. She spoke in the language of the mystics and yet she found her own way of communicating the depths of her inner experiences in a language that is familiar to us. The mystery of the indwelling Trinity was the mystery which appealed to her the most, and consequently, the Divine Presence within. Her delight was such when she found out that "Elizabeth" means "house of God." How very fitting for this young lady who made it her mission to remind us that we are the "living temples of the Spirit."

"Let us live with God as with a Friend. Let us make our faith a living thing, so as to remain in communion with Him through everything. That is how saints are made. We carry our heaven within us, since He who completely satisfies every longing of the glorified souls in the light of the Beatific Vision, is giving Himself to us in faith and mystery. It is the same thing. It seems to me I have found my heaven on earth, since heaven is God and God in in my soul. The day I understood that, everything became clear to me, and I wish I could whisper this secret to those I love in order that they also might cling closely to God through everything."

How does one develop an awareness of the Trinitarian indwelling? This is a theological question requiring an expert. Far be it for me to presume such expertise! But for whatever its worth, I can share some insights. "Awareness" is an attitude requiring fine tuning. It is a habitual stance which is acquired through repeated acts and practice. But first and foremost it is a grace. Our Carmelite saints, foremost among them is St. John of the Cross, wrote that God is infinite and cannot be contained. Our mind is too small to contain God. It is only faith which can capture Him. To be aware of the presence of God within us, we can make use of the natural faculties God endowed us with. We can "imagine" ourselves as the tabernacle which contains the Blessed Host. It focuses our mind to think of something concrete. And yet, this example is not accurate because we are truly, by baptism, temples of the living God. It is not an imagined reality, it is the truth. But to be aware of this, human that we are, our mind will need something material to attach itself to so that it can picture the reality. So imagine yourself as a tabernacle, the one you see in Churches, and picture the Blessed Host within you. Then after making a habit of doing this, one can engage in a "conversation" with our Lord, at every moment, in whatever circumstances we find ourselves in. This is a practice of the interior life , a "simple glance at the King who lives in the center of the mansion" as St. Teresa would say. Use of ejaculatory prayers- short, holy expression of sentiments- can help us remain in this holy Presence.

How did Blessed Elizabeth approach prayer? Again, her words "let us live with God as with a friend," means familiarity, constancy, fidelity. Prayer, for Elizabeth, was a glance, a sigh of love and desire, a movement towards inner recollection, so that she can listen to the Master who was constantly speaking to her in the events of her life. Elizabeth's prayers were spontaneous, an ongoing dialogue with the Trinity within her. She longed for silence and solitude because they allowed her to give herself fully to the work of listening. The Teresian Carmel obliges the nuns to pray 2 hours of contemplative prayer or meditation, one in the morning and another in the afternoon. Elizabeth also would have participated in the recitation of the full Divine Office which would have required about 7 hours a day. Being in the cloister certainly facilitated contemplative prayer. Can we enjoy this kind of prayer when our lives are so different from hers, with all the work and distractions we face daily? Or is contemplation only a privilege given to a few? It depends on how one describes contemplation. In my definition, contemplation is nothing more than recognizing God in everything. It is the ability to see the will of God, through the eye of faith, in everything that happens to us. There are no accidents, no second causes. We see everything as ordained by God. St. John of the Cross, whose writings influenced Elizabeth tremendously, advised: "Where there is no love, put love, and you will find love." This kind of contemplation is our vocation. God has precisely given us Elizabeth to assure us that it is possible.

Why I Love Her

2010-11-03T23:10:00.001-04:00

Each of us is attracted to a Saint for a particular reason. Whether it be the Saint's personality, spirituality or relevance in our own life. I did not know Elizabeth of the Trinity until I entered Carmel. She was beatified the year I graduated from college. Her photos show a serious looking woman with dark and large eyes with a deep penetrating gaze. But upon closer inspection and reading of her writings, she proves herself to be lovable. Maybe because it appeals to my serious bent, and also partly because she gives voice to my own desires and longings, I feel a sense of kindred spirit in Elizabeth. Everybody loves St. Therese because of her youth, love of life and her doctrine of spiritual childhood. But Elizabeth is not so well known outside a few circles. Her spirituality is summed up in these words:
"I think 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..... This intimacy with the One who dwells within me has been the beautiful sunshine that has irradiated my life... Give peace to my soul. Make it your heaven, Your beloved dwelling and Your resting place!"

I highlighted the phrases which speak to me. Her mission of "helping us to go out of ourselves to cling to God with a spontaneous, love filled action" is an invitation to be simple and childlike in our relationship with God. Nothing is contrived and formal, everything is spontaneous in love. "Great interior silence" is a disposition of the soul. It is a requirement for divine intimacy. Many of the Saints speak of this but Elizabeth speaks of it with singularity and consistency. She speaks of a silent soul with such beauty that we are compelled to acquire it so that we too can enter this serenity of heart, undisturbed by the concerns of life because we understand what truly matters . The only way to know Elizabeth is to read her works and to let them penetrate our minds and capture our hearts so that her desires become our own.

The Carmelite and The Priest

2010-10-30T10:42:00.001-04:00

The Holy Priesthood is a very special gift cherished by every Carmelite. It is a mystery that continuously yields deep and inspiring insights. Let us listen to Elizabeth's words and ponder them as we heed Pope Benedict's call to rediscover the treasure we have of Christ's gift of the Priesthood. Together with this holy Carmelite, let us remember all those Priests who hold a special place in our lives and hearts and make Blessed Elizabeth's prayer our own:

"The priest's life and the Carmelite's life are an Advent, preparing the Incarnation in souls. Is not our mission also to prepare the way of the Lord? At His contact our soul will become like a flame of love spreading among all the members of the Body of Christ which is the Church. What power over souls has the apostle who always remains beside the fountain of living water! Then he can overflow on those about him without ever emptying his soul, because he is in communion with the Infinite! I pray a great deal for you that God may invade all the powers of your soul, that He may put you into the communion with the whole mystery, that everything in you may be divine and marked with His seal, to the end that you may be another Christ working for His Father's glory... I want to be an apostle with you from the depths of my beloved solitude in Carmel; I want to work for God's glory and for that I must be full of Him. Then I shall be all-powerful: a look, a wish, would become an irresistible prayer that would obtain everything, for one is, so to speak, offering God to God. May our souls be henceforth only one in Him, and while you carry Him to souls, I shall remain like Mary, silent and adoring at the Master's feet, asking Him to make your words bear fruit in souls. Carmelite or Apostle, it is all one... let Him be the life of our lives, the soul of our souls, and let us remain conscious of His divine action day and night."

Pope Benedict on Blessed Angela of Foligno

2010-10-13T21:36:00.000-04:00

Blessed Elizabeth of the Trinity had a particular interest in the writings of Blessed Angela of Foligno. Blessed Angela's mystical bent appealed to her and she had used quotes taken from Blessed Angela's writings.

Vatican City, Oct 13, 2010 / 10:27 am (CNA/EWTN News).- God has “a thousand ways” to touch souls and to teach them how to "really live," Pope Benedict XVI told a crowd of more than 25,000 pilgrims in St. Peter’s Square on Oct. 13.
Continuing his series of teachings on holy women in the Church’s history, the Pope turned to the 13th-century mystic, Blessed Angela of Foligno in his weekly general audience.
Blessed Angela’s life has much to teach people today, many of whom are “living as if God did not exist,” the Pope said.
The lesson of her life, he said, is that “God has a thousand ways, for each of us, to make himself present in the soul, to show that he exists and knows and loves me."
Born into wealth and privilege, Blessed Angela led a carefree life until in her late-30s, when personal tragedies made her aware of her sinfulness. She made a confession after receiving a vision of St. Francis of Assisi. Following the death of her husband and children, she entered the Franciscan Third Order. FULL ARTICLE

The Transfiguration

2010-08-05T23:11:00.002-04:00

Photo: Flicker.com

"And thou, Father bend down towards Thy poor little creature and overshadow her, beholding in her none other than Thy Beloved Son in whom Thou art well pleased." Bl Elizabeth of the Trinity

This is a constant refrain in Blessed Elizabeth's sentiments and consequently her writings. The idea that by baptism we were consecrated to God and that the life of the Trinity was infused into our souls and we became the Indwelling of the Trinity. As a consequence, we share in the life of Jesus- a life marked by His Passion, Death and Resurrection. She identifies with St. Paul's sentiments of predestination according to the life and destiny of Jesus, the "first of many brothers."
"We have been predestined by the decree of Him who works all things according to the counsel of His will, so that we may be the praise of His glory." " It is St. Paul who tells us this", exclaims Elizabeth.

The Feast of Visitation

2010-05-31T12:25:00.000-04:00

"When I read in the Gospel that "Mary went in haste to the hill country of Judea," to perform her loving service to her cousin Elizabeth, I imagine her passing by, so beautiful, so calm and so majestic, so absorbed in recollection of the Word of God within her. Like Him, her prayer was always this: "Ecce. Here I am." Who? "The servant of the Lord," the lowliest of His creatures: she, His Mother! Her humility was so real, for she was always forgetful of self, free from all anxiety. And she could sing,"The Almighty has done great things for me; henceforth all people will call me blessed."

Blessed Elizabeth

Summary of a Life

2010-04-20T16:43:00.003-04:00

Soul of Silence

2010-02-13T14:42:00.001-05:00

"A praise of glory is a soul of silence that remains like a lyre under the mysterious touch of the Holy Spirit so that he may draw from it divine harmonies; it knows that suffering is a string that produces still more beautiful sounds, so it loves to see this string on its instruments that it may more delightfully move the Heart of its God."

This is one of Elizabeth's sentiments I like to ponder. Her musical soul shines brightly on the choice of words and the lyrical flow one can glean from it. But the meaning is even more beautiful. In Elizabeth's vocabulary, silence means total surrender of one's being to God. It is a posture of listening, like a coiled spring, only to leap into action when the time is right. Silence is another word for a single-heart, a single-eye, which sees God's fingerprint in everything. Elizabeth sees silence as the soul's passivity under the hand of God, who purifies, creates, and transforms. And yet, this passive attitude is animated by faith, kept alive by love and is moved to endure when called upon to suffer. In a paradoxical way, it is also active. There is more to silence than the absence of words. One can be physically separated from material place and goods, and yet not be internally detached from many and conflicting desires. It's energy is scattered and cannot be the lyre so finely tuned capable of producing beautiful sounds at the hands of the Divine Artist.
This is Elizabeth's special mission in the Church. This is a special grace even for a Carmelite. But she calls us to strive for it. She calls us to desire it and to pray for the grace to be given it. Our part is to dispose ourselves to receive it, to prepare the ground, so to speak. With God's grace it is possible.

Continuation- Heaven In Faith

2010-01-27T20:21:00.002-05:00

This is the last chapter of this wonderful work of Blessed Elizabeth. It summarizes what we have been reading so far. Elizabeth's insight is not original. In fact, this work "Heaven in Faith" is full of borrowed quotations from different spiritual writers as well as Scriptures. But Elizabeth's talent, I think, is her ability to pull all these sentiments together and come up with a doctrine which is beautiful, lyrical and theologically accurate: the Cross as a means to love, the proof of love and the object of love. This chapter ends our review of the work "Heaven In Faith."

41. We have been predestined by the decree of Him who works all things according to the counsel of His will, so that we may be the praise of His glory. It is St. Paul who tells us this. St. Paul who was instructed by God himself. How do we realize this great dream of the Heart of our God, this immutable will for our souls? In a word, how do we correspond to our vocation and become perfect praises of glory of the Most Holy Trinity?

42. "In Heaven each soul is a praise of glory of the Father, the Word, and the Holy Spirit, for each soul is established in pure love and lives no longer its own life, but the life of God. Then it knows Him, St. Paul says, as it is known by Him. In other words "its intellect is the intellect of God, its will the will of God, its love the very love of God . In reality it is the Spirit of love and of strength who transforms the soul, "for to Him it has been given to supply what is lacking to the soul," as St. Paul says again, "He works in it this glorious transformation." St. John of the Cross affirms that the 'soul surrendered to love, through the strength of the Holy Spirit, is not far from being raised to the degree of which we have just spoken, even here below! This is what I call a perfect praise of glory!

43. A praise of glory is a soul that lives in God, that loves Him with a pure and disinterested love, without seeking itself in the sweetness of this love; that loves Him beyond all His gifts and desires the good of the Object thus loved. Now how do we effectively desire and will good to God if not in accomplishing His will since this will orders everything for His greater glory? Thus the soul must surrender itself to this will completely, passionately, so as to will noting else but what God wills.

A praise of glory is a soul of silence that remains like a lyre under the mysterious touch of the Holy Spirit so that he may draw from it divine harmonies; it knows that suffering is a string that produces still more beautiful sounds, so it loves to see this string on its instruments that it may more delightfully move the Heart of its God.

A praise of glory is a soul that gazes on God in faith and simplicity; it is a reflector of all that He is; it is like a bottomless abyss into which he can flow and expand; it is also like a crystal through which he can radiate and contemplate all His perfections and His own splendor. A soul which thus permits the divine being to satisfy in itself His need to communicate all that he is and all that he has, is in reality the praise of glory of all His gifts.

Finally, a praise of glory is one who is always giving thanks. Each of her acts, her movements, her thoughts, her aspirations, at the same time that they are rooting her more deeply in love, are like an echo of the eternal Sanctus.

44. In the heaven of glory the blessed have no rest "day or night, saying: Holy, holy, holy is the Lord God Almighty..... they fall down and worship Him who lives forever and ever..."
In the heaven of her soul, the praise of glory has already begun her work of eternity. Her song is uninterrupted, for she is under the action of the Holy Spirit who effects everything in her, and although she is not always aware of it, for the weakness of nature does not allow her to be established in God without distractions, she always sings, she always adores, for she has, so to speak, wholly passed into praise and love in her passion for the glory of her God. In the heaven of our soul let us be praises of glory of the Holy trinity, praises of love of our Immaculate Mother. One day the veil will fall, we will be introduced into the eternal courts, and there we will sing in the bosom of infinite Love. And God will give us "the new name promised to the Victor." What will it be? LAUDEM GLORIAE

Continuation- Heaven In Faith

2010-01-24T15:10:00.000-05:00

38. "Si scires donum Dei..." "If you knew the gift of God," Christ said one evening to the Samaritan woman. But what is this gift of God if not Himself? And, the beloved disciple tells us: "He came to His own and His own did not accept Him." St. John the Baptist could still say to many souls these words of reproach: "There is one in the midst of you, "in you", whom you do not know."

39. "If you knew the gift of God.." There is one who knew this gift of God, one who did not lose one particle of it, one who was so pure, so luminous that she seemed to be the Light itself: "Speculum justitiae" One whose life was so simple, so lost in God that there is hardly anything we can say about it. "Virgo fidelis," that is, "Faithful virgin, "who kept all these things in her heart." She remained so little, so recollected in God's presence, in the seclusion of the temple, that she drew down upon herself the delight of the Holy Trinity: "Because He has looked upon the lowliness of His servant, henceforth all generations shall call me blessed!" The Father bending down to this beautiful creature, who was so unaware of her own beauty, willed that she be the Mother in time of Him whose Father he is in eternity. Then the Spirit of love who presides over all of God's works came upon her: the Virgin said her fiat: "behold the servant of the Lord, be it be done to me according to your word," and the greatest of mystery was accomplished. By the descent of the Word in her, Mary became forever God's prey.

40. It seems to me that the attitude of the Virgin during the months that elapsed between the Annunciation and the Nativity is the model for interior souls, those whom God has chosen to live within, in the depths of the bottomless abyss. In what peace, in what recollection Mary lent herself to everything she did! How even the most trivial things were divinized by her! For through it all the Virgin remained the adorer of the gifts of God! This did not prevent her from spending herself outwardly when it was a matter of charity; the Gospel tells us that Mary went in haste to the mountains of Judea to visit her cousin Elizabeth. Never did the ineffable vision that she contemplated within herself in any way diminish her outward charity. For, a pious author says, if contemplation "continues towards praise and towards the eternity of its Lord, it possesses unity and will not lose it. If an order from heaven arrives, contemplation turns towards men, sympathizes with their needs, is inclined towards all their miseries; it must cry and be fruitful. It illuminates like fire, and like it, it burns, it absorbs and devours, lifting up to heaven what it has devoured. And when it has finished its work here below, it rises, burning with its fire, and takes up again the road on high."

Continuation- Heaven In Faith

2010-01-20T21:32:00.003-05:00

36. When the soul considers deep within itself, its eyes burning with love, the immensity of God, His fidelity, the proofs of his love, His favors which can add nothing to His happiness; then, looking at itself it sees its crimes against this immense Lord, it turns to its own center with such self-contempt that it does not know how it can endure its horror. The best thing for it to do is to complain to God, its Friend, of the strength of its self-love which betrays it by not letting it place itself as low as it would wish. It resigns itself to the will of God, and in self-abnegation, finds true, invincible, and perfect peace, which nothing can disturb. For it has plunged into such a deep abyss that no one will seek it there.

37. If anyone should affirm to me that to find the bottom of the abyss is to be immersed in humility, I would not contradict him. However, it seems to me that to be plunged into humility is to be plunged into God, for God is the bottom of the abyss. That is why humility, like charity, is always capable of increasing. Since a humble heart is the vessel needed, the vessel capable of containing the grace God wants to pour into it, let us be humble. The humble can never rank God high enough nor themselves low enough. But here is the wonder: their weakness turns into wisdom, and the imperfection of their acts, always insufficient in their eyes, will be the greatest delight of their life. Whoever possesses humility has no need of many words to be instructed; God tells him more things than he can learn; such was the case with the Lord's disciples.

Continuation- Heaven In Faith

2010-01-11T19:02:00.000-05:00

photo: Google

35. "God who is rich in mercy, impelled by His exceeding love, even when we were dead because of our sins, has brought us back to life in Christ Jesus..... " "Because all have sinned and have need of the glory of God, they are justified freely by His grace, through the redemption which is in Christ, whom God has set forth as propitiation for sins, showing both that he is just and that He makes just him who has faith in Him." (St. Paul).
"Sin is such a terrifying evil that in order to seek any good whatsoever, or to avoid any evil whatsoever, no sin should be committed." "Now we have committed very many." How can we keep from "fainting in adoration when we plunge into the abyss of mercy and the eyes of our soul are fixed upon this fact: God has taken away our sins." He said to Himself: "I will blot out all their iniquities and I will no longer remember their sins." "The Lord in His mercy, willed to turn our sins against themselves to our advantage; He found a way to make them useful for us, to convert them into our hands into a means of salvation. But do not let this diminish in any way our horror of sinning, nor our sorrow for having sinned. But our sins "have become a source of humility for us."

Continuation- Heaven In Faith

2010-01-10T17:49:00.003-05:00

The Well

33. Christ said one day to the Samaritan woman that "the Father seeks true adorers in spirit and in truth." To give joy to His heart, let us be these true adorers. Let us adore Him in "spirit", that is, with our hearts and our thoughts fixed on Him, and our mind filled with His knowledge imparted by the light of faith. Let us adore Him in "truth," that is, for our works for it is above all by our actions that we show we are true: this is to do always what is pleasing to the Father whose children we are. And finally, let us "adore in spirit and truth," that is, through Jesus Christ and with Jesus Christ, for He alone is the true Adorer in spirit and in truth.

34. Then we will be daughters of God; we will "know with an experiential knowledge the truth of these words of Isaiah: "You will be carried at the breast and He will caress you on His knees." In fact "God seems to be wholly occupied with overwhelming the soul with caresses and marks of affection like a mother who brings up her child and feeds it with her own milk." Oh! Let us be attentive to the mysterious voice of our Father! "My daughter," He says, "give Me your heart."

Continuation- Heaven In Faith

2010-01-09T20:20:00.002-05:00

32. This is the measure of the holiness of the children of God: "to be holy as God, to be holy with the holiness of God", and we do this by living close to Him in the depths of the bottomless abyss "within". "Then the souls seems in some way to resemble God Who, even though He delights in all things, yet does not delight in them as much as He does in Himself, for He possesses within Himself a supereminent good before which all others disappear. Thus all the joys which the soul receives are so many reminders inviting her to enjoy by preference the good she already possesses and to which nothing else can compare." "Our Father who art in heaven..." it is in "this little heaven" that he has made in the center of our soul that we must seek Him and above all where we must remain.

Continuation- Heaven In Faith

2010-01-06T19:23:00.001-05:00

31. "God has predestined us to the adoption of children through Jesus Christ, in union with Him, according to the decree of His will, to make the glory of His grace blaze forth, by which He has justified us in His beloved Son. In whose blood we have redemption, the remission of our sins, according to the riches of His grace, which has abounded beyond measure in us in all wisdom, grace, which has abounded beyond measure in us in all wisdom and prudence..." The soul now a true daughter of God is, in the words of the Apostle, moved by the Holy Spirit Himself: "All who are led by the Spirit of God are children of God," And again: "We have not received a spirit of slavery to be still led by fear, but the spirit of adoption as children in which we cry out; Abba, Father! The Spirit Himself gives witness with our spirits that we are children of God. But if we are children, we are heirs as well; I mean heirs of God and co-heirs with Jesus Christ if only we suffer with Him so as to be glorified with Him." " It is to bring us into this abyss of glory that God has created us in His image and likeness."
"See" says St. John, "what manner of love the Father has bestowed on us, that we should be called children of God; and such we are.... Now we are the children of God, and we have not yet seen what we shall be. We know that when He appears, we shall be like Him, for we shall see Him just as He is. And everyone who has this hope in Him makes Himself holy, just as He Himself is holy."

Continuation- Heaven In Faith

2010-01-05T19:46:00.001-05:00

29. "And when He first came into the world what did He say" "You no longer delight in holocaust; so I have assumed a body and I come, O God, to do your will." During the thirty-three years of His life this will became so completely His daily bread, that at the moment of handling over His soul into His Father's hands. He could say to Him: "All is accomplished," yes, all Your desires, all have been realized, that is why "I have glorified You on earth." When Jesus Christ spoke to His apostles of this food which they did not know. He explained to them "that it was to do the will of Him who sent Me." Also He could say: "I am never alone. He who sent Me is always with Me because I do always the things that are pleasing to Him."

30. Let us lovingly eat this bread of the will of God. If sometimes His will is more crucifying, we can doubtless say with our adored Master; "Father, if it is possible, let this cup pass me by" but we will add immediately: "Yet not as I will, but as You will;" and in strength and serenity, with the divine Crucified, we will also climb our Calvary singing in the depths of our hearts and raising a hymn of thanksgiving to the Father. For those who march on this way of sorrows are those "whom he foreknew and predestined to be conformed to the image of His divine Son," the One crucified by love!

Continuation- Heaven In Faith

2009-12-23T19:59:00.004-05:00

28. "It seems to me that all is loss since I have known the excelling knowledge of my Lord Jesus Christ. For love of Him I have forfeited everything. I have accounted all else rubbish that I may gain Christ. What I want is to know Him, to share in His sufferings, to become like Him in His death. I pursue my course striving to attain what he has destined me for by taking hold of me. My whole concern is to forget what is behind and to strain forward constantly to what is ahead. I run straight to the goal, to the vocation to which God has called me in Christ Jesus." That is: I want only to be identified with Him: "Mihi vivere Christus est" "Christ is my life!"
All the intensity of St. Paul's soul is poured out in these lines. The object of this retreat is to make us more like our adored Master, and even more, to become so one with Him that we may say" "I live no longer I, but He lives in me. And the life that I now live in this body of death, I live in the faith of the Son of God, who loved me and gave Himself up for me." Oh! Let us study this divine Model: His knowledge, the Apostle tells us, is so excelling.

Stairway of Love

2009-12-21T20:42:00.001-05:00

photo: staircase in the cloister of Elizabeth's convent

One of our joys this Christmas is the realization that God "came down from heaven" to be with us. The stairway of perfection is a long and windy staircase. Isn't it wonderful to meditate on the goodness of God, and how by coming to us, He has made it possible for us to go to Him? "It is not that we love God, but that God loved us first" (St. John the Apostle)

Continuation- Heaven In Faith

2009-12-12T20:33:00.001-05:00

The Chapel of the military camp where Elizabeth was baptized

26. "Those whom God has foreknown, He has also predestined to become conformed to the image of His divine Son...." And those whom He has predestined, He has also called; and those whom He has called He has also justified; and those whom He has justified, He has also glorified. What then shall we say after that? If God is for us, who can be against us?.... Who will separate me from the love of Christ?" This is how the mystery of predestination, the mystery of divine election appeared to the enlightened gaze of the Apostle. "Those whom He foreknown." Are not we of that number? Cannot God say to our soul what He once said through the voice of His prophet: "I passed by you and saw you. I saw that the time had come for you to be loved. I spread my garment over you I swore to you to protect you, and I made a covenant with you, and you became mine."

27. Yes, we have become His through baptism, that is what Paul means by these words: "He called them," yes, called to receive the seal of the Holy Trinity; at the same time we have been made, in the words of St. Peter, "sharers in the divine nature," we have received "a beginning of His existence"... Then, He has justified us by His sacraments, by His direct "touches" in our contemplation "in the depths of our soul; justified us also by faith and according to the measure of our faith in the redemption that Jesus Christ has acquired for us. And finally, He wants to glorify us, and for that reason, says St. Paul, He "has made us worthy to share in the inheritance of the saints in light," but we will be glorified in the measure in which we will have been conformed to the image of His divine Son. So let us contemplate this adored image, let us remain unceasingly under its radiance so that it may imprint itself on us; let us go to everything with the same attitude of soul that our holy Master would have. Then we will realize the great plan by which God has "resolved in Himself to restore all things in Christ."

Continuation- Heaven In Faith

2009-12-08T19:10:00.001-05:00

25. "The highest perfection in this life," says a pious author "consists in remaining so closely united to God that the soul with all its faculties and its powers is recollected in God, that its affections united in the joy of love find rest only in possession of the Creator. The image of God imprinted in the soul is formed by reason, memory, and will. As long as these faculties do not bear the perfect image of God, they do not resemble Him as on the day of creation. The form of the soul is God who must imprint Himself there like the seal on wax, like the stamp on its object. Now, this is not fully realized unless the intellect is completely enlightened by knowledge of God, the will captivated by the love of the supreme good, and the memory fully absorbed in contemplation and enjoyment of eternal happiness. And as the glory of the blessed is nothing else than the perfect possession of this state, it is obvious that the initial possession of thee blessings constitutes perfection in this life. To realize this ideal we must keep recollected within ourselves, remain silently in God's presence, while the soul immerse itself, expands, becomes enkindled and melts in Him, with an unlimited fullness.

Continuation- Heaven In Faith

2009-12-06T17:07:00.002-05:00

24. "Be holy for I am holy." It is the Lord who speaks. "Whatever may be our way of life or the clothing we wear, each of us must be the holy one of God." Who then is "the most holy?" "The one who is most loving, who gazes longest on God and who most fully satisfies the desires of His gaze." How do we satisfy the desires of God's gaze but by remaining simply and lovingly turned towards Him so that He may reflect His own image as the sun is reflected though a pure crystal. "Let us make man in our own image and likeness" such was the great desire in the Heart of our God. 'Without the likeness which comes from grace, eternal damnation awaits us. When God sees that we are prepared to receive His grace, His generous goodness is ready to give us the gift that will give us His likeness. Our aptitude for receiving His grace depends on the inner integrity with which we move towards Him And then God, "bringing us His gifts," can give Himself, imprint on us His likeness, forgive and free us.

Continuation- Heaven In Faith

2009-12-05T19:32:00.002-05:00

22. "God chose us in Him before creation, that we should be holy and immaculate in His presence, in love."
The Holy Trinity created us in its image, according to the eternal design that is possessed in its bosom before the world was created, in this "beginning without beginning" of which Bosuet speaks following St. John: "In principio erat Verbum." "In the beginning was the Word" and we could add: in the beginning was nothing, for God in His eternal solitude always carried us in His thought. The Father contemplates Himself in the abyss of His fecundity, and by the very act of comprehending Himself He engendered another person, the Son, His eternal Word. the archetype of all creatures who had not yet issued out of the void eternally dwells in Him, and God saw them and contemplated them in their type in Himself. This eternal life which our archetypes possessed without us in God, is the cause of our creation.

23. "Our created essence asks to be rejoined with its principle" "the Word" the Splendor of the Father, is the eternal archetype after which creatures are designed on the day of their creation. This is why God wills that, freed from ourselves, we should stretch out our arms towards our exemplar and possess it " rising" above all things towards our model." This contemplation opens the soul to unexpected horizons. In a certain manner it possesses the crown towards which it aspires, "the immense riches that God possesses by nature, we may possess by virtue of love, by His dwelling in us and by our dwelling in Him. " It is by virtue of this immense love that we are drawn into the depths of the intimate sanctuary where God imprints n us a true image of His majesty. Thus it is, thanks to love and through love, as the Apostle says, that we can be holy and immaculate in God's presence, and can sing with David; "I will be unblemished and I will guard myself from the depths of sinfulness within me."

Continuation- Heaven In Faith

2009-11-24T21:05:00.004-05:00

21. "If your eye is single, your whole body will be full of light." What is this single eye of which the Master speaks but this "simplicity of intention" which "gathers into unity all the scattered forces of the soul and unites the spirit itself to God. It is the simplicity which gives God honor and praise; it is simplicity which presents and offers the virtues to Him. Then permeating and penetrating all creatures, it finds God in its depths. It is the principle and end of virtues, their splendor and their glory. I call simplicity of intention that which seeks only God and refers all things to Him." This is what places man in the presence of God: it is simplicity that gives him light and courage: it is simplicity that empties and frees the soul from all fears today and on the day of judgment. It is the interior slope and the fountain of the whole spiritual life. It crushes evil nature underfoot, it gives peace, it imposes silence on the useless noises within us. It is simplicity that hourly increases our divine likeness. And then, without the aid of intermediaries, it is simplicity again that will transport us into the depths where God dwells and will give us the repose of the abyss. The inheritance which eternity has prepared for us will be given us by simplicity. All the life of the spirits, all their virtue, consists, with the divine likeness, in simplicity, and their final rest is spent on the heights in simplicity also. And according to the measure of its love, each spirit possesses a more or less profound search for God in its own depths. The simple soul, rising by virtue of its interior gaze, enters into itself and contemplates in its own abyss the sanctuary where it is touched by the touch of the Holy Trinity. Thus it has penetrated into its depths "to the very foundation which is the gate of life eternal."

Continuation- Heaven In Faith

2009-11-22T19:28:00.002-05:00

photo: "The Passion of the Christ"

20. "We have come to know and to believe in the love God has for us." "That is our great act of faith, the way to repay our God love for love; it is the "mystery hidden" in the Father's heart, of which St. Paul speaks, which, at last, we penetrate and our whole soul thrills!" When it can believe in this exceeding love which envelopes it, we may say of it as was said of Moses, "He was unshakable in faith as if he had seen the Invisible." It no longer rests in inclination and feelings; it matters little to the soul whether it feels God or not, whether He sends it joy or suffering; it believes in His love. The more it is tried, the more its faith increases because it passes over all obstacles, as it were, to go rest in the heart of infinite Love who can perform only works of love. So also to this soul wholly awakened in its faith the Master's voice can say in intimate secrecy the words He once addressed to Mary Magdalene: "Go in peace, your faith has saved you."

"My Crucifix"

2009-11-21T21:26:00.002-05:00

photo: Elizabeth's Profession Crucifix

"O my Crucifix, it is when I look at you that I understand all the malice of sin. My Beloved, when the executioners pierced Your hands and feet and while You are enduring such torture upon the cross, You saw my innumerable sins and all my unfaithfulness. How they made You suffer. My Jesus, forgive me all the pain I have inflicted upon Your Divine Heart. Forgive me and look only upon my love."

Silence in Carmel

2009-11-15T22:14:00.002-05:00

“Then the Lord passed by and sent a furious wind that split the hills and shattered the rocks. But the Lord was not in the wind. The wind stopped blowing and then there was an earthquake. But the Lord was not in the earthquake. After the earthquake there was a fire. The Lord was not in the fire. And after the fire, there was a soft whisper of a voice. When Elijah heard it, he covered his face with his cloak, and went out and stood at the entrance of the cave.” Kings 19:11-13

For centuries, this passage in Scripture has been influential in a Carmelite’s attitude on silence and solitude. As time passed, I have also understood silence and solitude in this light. As for me, silence is not just a momentary break in the routine of the day in order to seek a quiet place to rest and pray. I understand it as a way of life. It is the habitual inclination of the soul to attend to the presence of God and to listen intently to what he has to say at every moment. Silence is the atmosphere where I am given the time to understand myself, my strengths, limitations and fears. It is the time when God nourishes me the most and makes my soul grow.
There are two elements present in silence, the active and passive. The active part is my continuous effort to discern God’s will using my resources and faculties. Silence is a good medium for that. Then there is the passive element of receiving from God all that he wishes to reveal to me. Silence is necessary for that. There should be external and internal silence. They complement each other. There can be no internal silence unless room is given to the external one. We are made of body and spirit, our internal senses receive their stimulation from the external activities received by the senses. External silence, however, should be animated by internal recollection otherwise it will only be a form of social isolation and self-preoccupation.
Silence is so necessary in religious life because our sole aim is God. Our lives are consecrated so as to make God our only goal in life. God comes to us in “many disguises.” If we are not “sober” and “alert” we will be slow to recognize the ways and forms in which he reveals himself to us. Silence gives us that “single-eye” to see him. Silence unifies our strength. A religious who does not seek silence scatters her energy and makes herself vulnerable to the assaults of the world. Silence is also necessary in religious life because we aspire to model ourselves after Mary “the woman wrapped in silence.” She is the best example of true religious life lived out in silence.

Continuation- Heaven In Faith

2009-11-15T14:56:00.002-05:00

Sixth Day

19. "To approach God we must believe." Thus speaks St. Paul. He also says, "Faith is the substance of things to be hoped for, the evidence of things not seen." That is, "faith makes so present and so certain future goods, that by it, they take on existence in our soul and subsist there before we have fruition of them. St. John of the Cross says that it serves as feet to go to God, and that it is possession in an obscure manner. It alone can give us true light concerning Him whom we love, and our soul must choose it as the means to reach blessed union. It pours out in torrents in the depths of our being all spiritual goods, Christ, speaking to the Samaritan woman, indicated faith when he promised to all those who would believe in Him that he would give them a fountain of water springing up unto life everlasting. Thus even in this life faith gives us God, covered, it is true, with a veil but nonetheless God himself. "When that which is perfect comes", that is clear vision, then "that which is imperfect" in other words, knowledge given through faith, "will receive all its perfection."

Continuation- Heaven In Faith

2009-11-13T16:11:00.003-05:00

18. "He who eats my flesh and drinks my blood, remains in Me and I in Him." "The first sign of love is this; that Jesus has given us His flesh to eat and His blood to drink." The property of love is to be always giving and always receiving. Now the love of Christ is generous. All that he has, all that He is, He gives; all that we have, all that we are, He takes away. He asks for more than we of ourselves are capable of giving. He has an immense hunger which wants to devour us absolutely. He enters even into the marrow of our bones, and the more lovingly we allow Him to do so, the more fully we savor Him. He knows that we are poor, but He pays no heed to it and does not spare us. He himself becomes in us His own bread, first burning up, in His love, all our vices, faults and sins. Then when He sees that we are pure, He comes like a gaping vulture that is going to devour everything. He wants to consume our life in order to change it int His own; ours, full of vices, His, full of grace and glory and all prepared for us. If only we will renounce ourselves. even if our eyes were good enough to see this avid appetite of Christ who hungers for our salvation, all our efforts would not prevent us from disappearing into His open mouth. Now, this sounds absurd, but those who love will understand. When we receive Christ with interior devotion, His blood, full of warmth and glory, flows into our veins and a fire is enkindled in our depths. We receive the likeness f His virtues, and He lives in us, and we in Him. He gives us His soul with the fullness of grace, by which the soul persevere in love and praise of the Father. Love draws its object into itself; we draw Jesus into ourselves; Jesus draws us into Himself. Then carried above ourselves into love's interior, seeking God, we go to meet Him, to meet His Spirit, which is His love, and this love burns us, consumes us, and draws us into unity where beatitude awaits us. Jesus meant this when he said: "With great desire have I desired to eat this pasch with you."

I Have Found God -Major Spiritual Writings
Volume I - "Heaven in Faith"
pp.100 - 101

Continuation- Heaven In Faith

2009-10-29T22:04:00.006-04:00

Fifth Day

17. "Behold, I stand at the door and knock. If any man listens to My voice and open the door to Me, I will come in to him and have supper with him, and he with me."
Blessed the ears of the soul alert enough, recollected enough to hear this voice of the Word of God; blessed also the eyes of this soul which in the light of a deep and living faith can witness the coming of the Master into His intimate sanctuary. But what then is this coming? "It is an unceasing generation, an enduring hymn of praise." Christ comes with His treasures, but such is the mystery of the divine swiftness that he is continually coming, always for the first time as if He had never come; for His coming, independent of time, consists in the eternal now, and an eternal desire eternally renews the joys of the coming. The delights that He brings are infinite, since they are Himself. "The capacity of the soul, enlarged by the coming of the Master, seems to go out of itself in order to pass through into the immensity of Him who comes; and a phenomenon occurs; God, who is our depths, receives God coming to us, and God contemplates God; God in whom beatitude consists."

Continuation- Heaven In Faith

2009-10-23T21:27:00.007-04:00

Fourth Day

15. "Deus ignia consumens." Our God, wrote St. Paul, is a consuming Fire, that is "a fire of love" which destroys, which "transforms into itself everything that it touches." The delights of the divine enkindling are renewed in our depths by an unremitting activity; the enkindling of love in a mutual and eternal satisfaction. It is a renewal that takes place at every moment in the bond of love. Certain souls have chosen this refuge to rest there eternally, and this is the silence in which, somehow, they have lost themselves. Freed from their prison, they sail on the ocean of divinity without any creature being an obstacle or hindrance to them.

16. For these souls, the mystical death of which St. Paul spoke yesterday becomes so simple and sweet. They think much less of the work of destruction and detachment that remains for them to do than of plunging into the furnace of love burning within them which is none other than the Holy Spirit, the same Love which in the Trinity is the bond between the Father and His Word. They "enter into Him by living faith, and there, in simplicity and peace" they are "carried away by Him" beyond all things, beyond sensible pleasures, "into the sacred darkness and are transformed int the divine image. They live, in St. John's expression, "in communion with the Three Adorable Persons, "sharing" their life, and this is the "contemplative life"; this contemplation leads to possession. Now this simple possession is eternal life savored in the unfathomable abode. It is there, beyond reason, that the profound tranquility of the divine immutability awaits us.

Continuation- Heaven In Faith

2009-10-20T20:35:00.007-04:00

11. "You have died and your life is hidden with Christ in God."
St. Paul comes to bring us a light to guide us on the pathway of the abyss. "You have died!" What does that mean but that the soul that aspires to live close to God "in the invincible fortress of holy recollection" must be set apart, stripped, and withdrawn from all things" (in spirit). This soul "finds within itself a simple ascending movement of love to God, whatever creatures may do; it is invincible to things which "pass away", for it transcends them, seeking God alone."

12. "Quotidie morior," "I die daily." "I decrease, I renounce self more each day so that Christ may increase in me and be exalted; I remain very little in the depths of my poverty. I see my nothingness, my misery, my weakness; I perceive that I am incapable of progress, of perseverance; I see the multitude of my shortcomings, my defects; I appear in my indigence." I fall down in my misery, confessing my distress, and i display it before the mercy of my Master. "Quotidie morior" I place the joy of my soul (as to the will, not sensible feelings) in everything that can immolate, destroy, or humble me, for I want to make room for my Master. I live no longer I, but He lives in me; I no longer want to live my own life, but to be transformed in Jesus Christ so that my life may be more divine than human, so that the Father in bending attentively over me can recognize the image of His beloved Son in whom He has placed all His delight.

Continuation- Heaven In Faith

2009-10-17T16:45:00.007-04:00

Third Day

9. "If anyone loves me, he will keep My word and My Father will love him, and We will come to him and make our home in him." The Master once more expresses His desire to dwell in us. "If anyone loves Me." It is love that attracts, that draws God to His creatures: not a sensible love but that love "strong as death that deep waters cannot quench."

10. "Because I love my Father, I do always the things that are pleasing to Him," thus spoke our holy Master, and every soul who wants to live close to Him must also live this maxim. The divine good pleasure must be its food, its daily bread; it must let itself be immolated by all the Father's wishes in the likeness of His adored Christ. Each incident, each event, each suffering, as well as each joy, is a sacrament which gives God to it; so it no longer makes a distinction between these things; it surmounts them, goes beyond them to rest in its Master, above all things. It "exalts" Him high on the "mountain of its hearts" yes, "higher than His gifts, His consolation, higher than the sweetness that descends from Him." "The property of love is never to seek self, to keep back nothing, but to give everything to the one it loves." "Blessed the soul that loves in truth; "the Lord has become its captive through love."

Continuation- Heaven In Faith

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7. "Hurry and come down, for I must stay in your house today." The Master unceasingly repeats this word to our soul which He once addressed to Zacchaeus. "Hurry and come down." But what is this descent that He demands of us except an entering more deeply into our interior abyss? This act is not "an external separation from external things" but a "solitude of spirit," a detachment from all that is not God. 8. "As long as our will has fancies that are foreign to divine union, whims that are now yes, now no, we are like children; we do not advance with giant steps in love for fire has not yet burnt up all the alloy; the gold is not pure; we are still seeking ourselves; God has not consumed all our hostility to Him. But when the boiling cauldron has consumed "every imperfect love, every imperfect sorrow, every imperfect fear," "then love is perfect and the golden ring of our alliance is larger than Heaven and earth. This is the secret cellar in which love places his elect," this "love leads us by ways and paths known to him alone; and he leads us with no turning back, for we will not retrace our steps."

Continuation- Heaven in Faith

2009-10-06T22:38:00.005-04:00

Second Day

5. "The Kingdom of God is within you."
A while ago God invited us to "remain in Him," so to live spiritually in His glorious heritage, and now He reveals to us that we do not have to go out of ourselves to find Him. "The kingdom of God is within... "St. John of the Cross says that "it is in the substance of the soul where neither the devil nor the world can reach" that God gives Himself to it; then "all its movements are divine, and although they are from God they also belong to the soul, because God works them in it and with it."

6. The same Saint also says that "God is the center of the soul. So when the soul with all "its strength will know God perfectly, love and enjoy Him fully, then it will have reached the deepest center that can be attained in Him." Before attaining this, the soul is already "in God who is is center," "but it is not yet in its deepest center, for it can still go further. Since love is what unites us to God, the more intense this love is, the more deeply the soul enters in God and the more it is centered in Him. When it "possesses even one degree of love it is already in its center"; but when this love has attained its perfection, the soul will have penetrated into its deepest center. There it will be transformed to the point of becoming very like God." To this soul living within can be addressed the words of Pere Lacordaire to St. Mary Magdalene; "No longer ask for the Master among those on earth or in Heaven, for He is your soul and your soul is He."

to be continued....

"Remain in Me"

2009-10-03T15:04:00.006-04:00

Continuation- Heaven In Faith

3. "Remain in Me." It is the Word of God who gives this order, expresses this wish. Remain in Me, not for a few moments, a few hours which must pass away, but "remain...." permanently, habitually, Remain in Me, pray in Me, adore in Me, love in Me, suffer in Me, work and act in Me. remain in Me so that you may be able to encounter anyone or anything; penetrate further still into these depths. This is truly the "solitude into which God wants to allure that soul that He may speak to it," as the prophet sang.

4. In order to understand this very mysterious saying, we must not, so to speak, stop at the surface, but enter ever deeper into the divine being through recollection. "I pursue my course," exclaimed St. Paul; so must we daily descend this pathway of the Abyss which is God; let us slide down this slope in wholly loving confidence. "Abyss calls to abyss." It is there in the very depths that the divine impact takes place, where the abyss of our nothingness encounters the Abyss of mercy, the immensity of the all of God. There we will find the strength to die to ourselves and, losing all vestige of self, we will be changed into love... "Blessed are those who die in the Lord!"

to be continued....

Heaven In Faith- Major Work

2009-09-30T19:26:00.005-04:00

"Heaven in Faith" is the first of Bl. Elizabeth's major works. It was written in August 1906 with barely 3 months left before her death in November 1906. It was conceived as a surprise gift for her sister Marguerite whom she had a very close relationship. This work is a great exposition of Elizabeth's own faith even amidst darkness. It reminds us that heaven is a reality which begins here on earth, not something we can only experience after we die, for someone who knows how to search for it in the dark night of faith.

The entirety of the work "Heaven In Faith" will be presented here in parts. The source is from ICS Publications of Blessed Elizabeth of the Trinity's "Complete Works- Volume I."

FIRST PART- HEAVEN IN FAITH

FIRST DAY
First Prayer
1. "Father, I will that where I am they also whom You have given Me may be with Me, in order that they may behold my glory which You have given Me, because You have loved Me before the creation of the world."
Such is Christ's last wish, His supreme prayer before returning to His Father. He wills that where He is we should be also, not only for eternity, but already in time, which is eternity begun and still in progress. It is important then to know where we must live with Him in order to realize this divine dream. "The place where the Son of God is hidden is the bosom of the Father, or the divine Essence, invisible to every mortal eye, unattainable by every human intellect." as Isaiah said: "Truly You are a hidden God." And yet His will is that we should be established in Him, that we should live where He lives, in the unity of love; that we should be , so to speak, His own shadow.

2. By baptism, says St. Paul, we have been united to Jesus Christ. And again: "God seated us together in heaven in Christ Jesus, that He might show in the ages to come the riches of His grace." And further on: "You are no longer guests or strangers, but you belong to the city of saints and the House of God." The Trinity, this is our dwelling, our "home," the Father's house that we must never leave. The Master said one day: "The slave does not remain with the household forever, but the son remains there forever." (St. John).

to be continued....

When She Was Among Us...

2009-09-29T19:58:00.003-04:00

It is easy to imagine Elizabeth of the Trinity in these places graced by her presence. Contemplating the lives of Saints does wonder to our souls because it reminds us that they were human as you and I.

"A Carmelite in the World"

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"Saint Teresa says that the soul is like a crystal in which the Divinity is reflected. I so love this comparison, and when I see the sun invade our cloisters with its rays, I think that God invades the soul that seeks only Him in the same way! Listen to what St. John of the Cross says: "O soul, most beautiful of creatures, who desire so ardently to know that place where your Beloved dwells in order to seek Him and unite yourself to Him; you yourself are the retreat where He takes refuge, the dwelling where He hides Himself." That is the whole life of Carmel; to live in Him, then, all sacrifices, all immolations become divine, for through everything the soul sees Him whom it loves and everything leads it to Him; it is a continual heart to heart exchange! You see that you can already be a Carmelite in your heart. Love silence and prayer for this is the essence of the life of Carmel. Ask the Queen of Carmel to teach you to adore Jesus in profound recollection."

Blessed Elizabeth to Germaine de Gemeaux
September 14, 1902

"All My Sisters!"

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(First Row: Elizabeth as Postulant & Mother Germaine holding "Story of a Soul"-autobiography of St. Therese of Lisieux)

Community life is a sharing of common goals in prayer, ministry and service. It is a visible pledge of our relationship with Christ, with each other and with the whole Church, the People of God. Community living is an expression of faith manifested in the pursuit of a call heard in the silence of a heart, a manifestation of hope in the promise of life and happiness in God, and the struggle of living the life of charity commissioned to us by Jesus amidst human imperfections and limitations. It is a visible sign of how God's grace can triumph over human frailties and accomplish the works of God - works of love, joy, charity- among the Sisters and God's people.
(carmelite sisters website)

Community living is one of the most challenging consequence of following Christ. It calls for self-forgetfulness, faith and humility to accept one's weaknesses and failures in the daily struggle to love others as Jesus loved them. It also calls us to learn to accept ourselves as others see us. For all it's difficulties and challenges, living with others can be a source of joy, strength and spiritual growth, a source of inspiration and edification, a place to journey together as sisters and family in the Lord.

"When the time approached for her to receive the religious habit, Mother Prioress said to her: "You still will have much to acquire, perhaps it will be postponed." Elizabeth answered: 'It is true, my Mother, that I am quite imperfect, but I believe that God wants to do me this favor. As for my sisters, how can they refuse me? They must love me for I love them so!"

Mother Germaine's testimony (Blessed Elizabeth's Prioress)

"I Have Nothing Else But Him"

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On January 11, 1903, on the Feast of Epiphany, Sr. Elizabeth of the Trinity pronounced her Solemn Vows in the Chapter Room which was decorated with flowers. It was a private ceremony and so only her religious Community was present. She received her Profession Crucifix from Mother Prioress as a sign of her new status as the Spouse of the Crucified.

"Who could describe the joy of my soul when, on contemplating the crucifix which I received after my profession and which our Reverend Mother placed "as a seal on my heart," I could say to myself: "At last He is all mine and I am all His. I have nothing else but Him. He is my All!" And now, I have only one desire, to love Him, 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, so that there He may forget, by the strength of my love, all the abominations of the wicked!"

Blessed Elizabeth
February 15, 1903 (letter 156)

" I Closed My Eyes... "

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Abandonment- that is what surrenders us to God. I am quite young, but it seems to me that I have suffered much sometimes. Oh, then, when everything was dark, when the present was so painful and the future seemed even more gloomy to me, I closed my eyes and abandoned myself like a child in the arms of this Heavenly Father... We look at ourselves too much, we want to see and understand, we do not have enough confidence in Him who envelops us in His love. We must not stop before the cross and regard it in itself, but recollecting ourselves in the light of faith, we must rise higher and think that it is the instrument which is obeying divine Love. "One thing alone is necessary; Mary has chosen the better part which shall not be taken from her." This better part, which seems to be my privilege in my beloved solitude of Carmel, is offered by God to every baptized soul. He offers it to you... in the midst of your
cares and .. concerns. Believe that His whole desire is to lead you ever deeper into Himself. Surrender yourself and all your preoccupations to Him..."

Blessed Elizabeth
July 25, 1902 (letter 129)

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Carmel of Dijon Refectory during Elizabeth's time

"... You are to eat whatever may have been given you in a common refectory, listening together meanwhile to a reading from Holy Scripture where that can be done without difficulty."

Rule of St. Albert, Chapter 7

The Carmel

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Carmel of Dijon

"There, in the depths of my heart, in the Heaven of my soul, I love to find Him, since He never leaves me. "God in me, I in Him." Oh, that is my life! Did I ever tell you what my name will be in Carmel: "Marie Elizabeth of the Trinity." I think this name indicates a special vocation; isn't it beautiful? I so love this mystery of the Holy Trinity; it is an abyss in which I lose myself!"

Blessed Elizabeth
June 14, 1901 (letter 62)

Alone with Him

2009-09-04T19:56:00.006-04:00

"I sleep deeply on my straw mattress, something I never experienced before. The first night I did not feel very secure and I thought that before morning i would roll out of one side or the other, but nothing happened, and now my bed seems delightful to me. If you only knew how quickly time passes in Carmel, and yet it seems to me that I have always lived in this dear house. I can't find words to express my happiness. Here, there is no longer anything but Him. He is All. He suffices and we live by Him alone. I find Him everywhere, while doing the wash as well as while praying. Just picture to yourself Elizabeth in her little cell which is so dear to her; it is our sanctuary, just for HIM and for me... "
Blessed Elizabeth
September 11, 1901 (letter 91)

"... Each of you is to have a separate cell, situated as the lie of the land you propose to occupy may dictate, and allotted by the disposition of the Prior with the agreement of the other brothers, or the more mature among them"- Rule, Chapter 6

" Each one of you is to stay in his own cell or nearby, pondering the Lord's law day and night and keeping watch at his prayers unless attending to some other duty." - Rule, Chapter 10

FAITH IS HEAVEN ON EARTH

2009-09-01T22:15:00.009-04:00

"It seems to me that I have found my heaven on earth for heaven is God, and God is in my soul... I live in the heaven of faith in the center of my soul. Faith alone can give us genuine light on Him whom we love. It is faith which floods our inner being with all spiritual blessings.. faith gives us God even in this life, veiled it is true, but nonetheless God Himself. When we have learned to believe in God's excessive love for us, it may be said that we are made strong by the very sight of Him who is "invisible." We no longer stops at tastes or feelings. We care little whether we feel God present or not, whether He gives us joy or pain; the more we are tried the stronger grows our faith, because we over-leap, so to speak, all obstacles to find our rest in the bosom of Infinite love.. I confide to you that it is this intimacy with Him which has been the bright sunshine lighting up my life, making it already an anticipated heaven. It is what upholds me today in my suffering. I am not afraid of my weakness, in fact it is what gives me confidence, for the mighty God is in me and He is all powerful, powerful enough to carry out His purpose beyond all our hopes and dreams." - Bl. Elizabeth

Solitude and Silence

2009-08-30T14:16:00.009-04:00

In our modern age of hustle and bustle, of computer and networking, of 24/7 media onslaught and hectic pace of life, silence is a precious commodity. Even if one lives in a convent as I do, silence and solitude are values often misunderstood. Our western culture measures productivity by how busy we get and success by how efficient we are at completing a project. I find that in active ministry this is no exception. But there seems to be a double- standard. When a lay person works hard for their living, we call them materialistic and workaholics. If a Religious becomes obsessed with work, we call it holy dedication and "for the love of God and Community." As most of us work in the active world, we can take solace in these words of Blessed Elizabeth.

"As I cannot break from the world and live in solitude, give me at least solitude of heart... Solitude and silence are so precious ...I realize that one can enjoy interior solitude and silence, for what can distract a heart possessed by love? Noise reaches no further than the surface, deep down there is only Him! And He alone can satisfy our hearts.. Exterior silence is not the most necessary; in certain circumstances it is even impossible. Then the soul's resource is to take refuge within itself, in that interior solitude which alone is necessary for union with God. But outward silence must be sought as much as possible, because it helps interior silence and normally leads to it: the love of silence leads to the silence of love.
God in me and I in Him, that is my life!... but for the vision, we always possess Him as the Blessed do in heaven. How wonderful is this presence of God in us, in the inner sanctuary of one's soul! There we always find Him... Let us try never to leave Him alone, so that our lives may be an unceasing prayer."

Blessed Elizabeth of the Trinity

Love For the Crucified

2009-08-27T20:44:00.006-04:00

Blessed Elizabeth's Profession Crucifix

"A Carmelite is a soul who has gazed on the Crucified One; who has seen Him offering Himself as a Victim to His Father for souls and, recollecting herself in this great vision of the charity of Christ, has understood the passionate love of His soul, and has wanted to give herself as he did! On the mountain of Carmel in silence, in solitude, in a prayer that never ends- for it continues through everything - the Carmelite already lives "with God alone" as in Heaven. So she hungers for silence that she may always listen, always penetrate further His infinite Being. She is identified with Him whom she loves. She finds Him everywhere; through everything she sees His radiance! Is this not Heaven on earth!"

Blessed Elizabeth of the Trinity

Friends and Friendships

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Elizabeth with her friends (Bl. Elizabeth first on right)

Elizabeth was endowed with a rare combination of gaiety and contemplative spirit. She could be very engaged in earthly friendships and still was very conscious of the Presence of God within her. Her gregarious and charming personality won for her intimate friends who testified to her unique spirituality. "Elizabeth had a rare and delightful talent as a pianist; she felt music deeply. It seems to me that I can still hear her playing "Le chant du nautonier." She was very lively and endowed with great charm, not a trace of austerity; she enthusiastically took part in the diversions of our age..." testified a friend named Manitin Auburtin. Listen to this letter Elizabeth wrote in the Spring of 1901 to a friend: "We went to buy the material for Marie-Louise at the new shirtmaker's on the Rue de la Liberte; there was a nice choice. Afterwards, Mme. Hallo took us for a snack at the pastry shop. After dinner Charles gave us a concert; we ran through The Barber of Seville. I will wait until you return to see about the hats. Besides, they can be made so quickly in the Parisian styles that it won't take me long. Have a good time! The horse show is going on now; it seems that it is outstanding this year... Nothing new to relate except for MAdeleine Eugster's marriage to M. Marchal, the handsome lieutenant of the Dragoons.. Do you remember Cauvel, that accessory shop in Paris? One of his daughters, who married the Brother's cook a few days ago, lives there; her husband, the famous chef, is dreadfully fat: poor boy, it is sad at his age!"

It is interesting to read this part of her letter without being struck with how human she was! Her language and interests were that of a young woman tackling the current interests of her days. What made Elizabeth live in the everyday and still remain at the feet of the Master, like Mary, listening to his words? Elizabeth herself gave us the answer: "I think nothing can distract us from Him when we act only for Him, always in His holy presence, under that divine gaze which penetrates the inmost depths of the soul. Even in the midst of the world we can listen to Him in the silence of a heart which wants to belong only to Him!"

The Pain of Discipleship

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These words of Elizabeth before entering Carmel can be a source of consolation to those who leave home and family to answer the call of God to Religious life. Leaving loved ones is never easy even if we know we leave them for God. The pain of separation is all too real for anyone but for someone entering the Carmelite cloister, with its strict rule on enclosure, it was felt as a form of death. Elizabeth felt the same way. When St. Teresa of Avila left her father, she wrote: "I felt like every bone in my body was being torn apart." But GOD is never outdone in generosity. Just like a mother who feels the pain of labor, that pain is changed to joy when her child is born. Let us listen to Blessed Elizabeth as she describes her own experience:

"How good God is! How wonderful it is to give oneself to Him and to abandon oneself to His will. When He wills anything, He is able to overcome all obstacles, and smooth away all difficulties. I had entrusted all my affairs to Him and asked Him to speak to my darling mother Himself. He did it so well that there was nothing left for me to say. Poor Mother! She is admirable! She understands that God wants me and that nothing can be done about it, and so she will allow me to enter Carmel in two months time. you must not imagine I do not feel the sacrifice. I offer it up to God every time I think of the parting to come. Could I offer a greater sacrifice than a mother like mine? He understands. He knows it is for His sake and He upholds me. O what Love! this one word says everything. To live for love means to live only for Him, in Him, by Him, and is to have, already here on earth, a foretaste of Paradise."

Elizabeth Goes On Vacation!

2009-07-19T14:16:00.008-04:00

Summer is the season for holidays and vacations. There is something about getting away and enjoying sights never before seen or being in places never before visited. Elizabeth of the Trinity was a woman who traveled and enjoyed vacations with families and friends. Her mystical soul saw in Nature a reflection of the beauty and majesty of the God she possessed within her. Her letters bear witness to this. This is one of the letters she wrote in September 1893: "I am delighted with my vacation! We spent two weeks at Gemeaux with Madame de Sourdon who did not want to let us go. We had a very enjoyable time there: we played endless games of croquet, took nice walks, and I often played the piano; Monsignor de Gemeaux loves music very much. We often went to the Chateau."

Every other year, Elizabeth went to Carlipa to visit her mother's cousins she called her aunts. This is a letter addressed to a friend about how she spent this time with them: "We spent our morning on the beach admiring the sea, which I love so, and watching the bathers. At four, we went to Carlipa where we were pampered and coddled by my cousins and we did honor the excellent southern cooking." (August 10, 1896). Elizabeth then wrote her aunts after she had entered Carmel to better express what this meant to her: "Didn't you feel my soul in this little church where, morning and evening, I so loved to come pray beside you? Do you also recall our walks on the Serre in the evening by the moonlight when we heard the lovely carillon? Oh, how beautiful it was, my dear aunt, that starlit valley, that immensity, that infinity; it all spoke to me of God. Never will I forget those vacations spent with you; they will always be in my fondest memories..." (beginning of October 1902).

As you look forward to your own vacations spent with families and friends, may you also build up wonderful memories of beauty, peace and love. I remember a poster I saw once in a religious store: "How can one look at a sunset and not think of God?" Yes, He is everywhere!

Mary, Gate of Heaven ("Janua Coeli")

2009-07-03T15:58:00.004-04:00

Carmel is totally Mary in it's life, history and spirituality. The early hermits of Mt. Carmel dedicated themselves under her patronage and erected an oratory in her honor at Mount Carmel. They were henceforth known as "The Brothers of Blessed Mary of Mount Carmel." The Carmelites relate to Mary as Queen, Mother, Sister, Most Pure Virgin and Model of discipleship. These are not just devotional themes but the product of a long relationship down the centuries.

Blessed Elizabeth of the Trinity, being a true daughter of Carmel, also had a special devotion to Mary. She particularly mentions her in her writings and meditations. She loved to meditate on Mary at the Visitation, when Mary after having consented to the message of the angel, hastened to visit her cousin Elizabeth. "In what peace, in what recollection Mary lent herself to everything she did! How even the most trivial things were divinized by her! For through it all the Virgin remained the adorer of the gift of God! This does not prevent her from spending herself outwardly when it was a matter of charity- never did the ineffable vision that she contemplated within herself in any way diminish her outward charity."

She also loved to compare her vocation to Carmel with the spiritual motherhood of Mary. Through her prayers and sufferings, she wanted to save souls for her beloved Christ and to be "another humanity" where she can reincarnate the mysteries of Christ.
During Elizabeth's last illness, she often referred to Mary as "Janua Coeli" (Gate of Heaven). Realizing that her time on earth was short, she entrusted herself to the care of the Mother of Carmel, who will lead her on to enter the gates of Paradise.

As the Carmelite Order celebrates the Solemnity of Our Lady of Mount Carmel on July 16th, we listen to the uplifting words of one of her illustrious daughters, Blessed Elizabeth of the Trinity, as she shares with us her own thoughts on our Lady:

"No one has penetrated the mystery of Christ in all its depths except the Blessed Virgin.. compared with the light given to Our Lady, the saints remain in shadow. The secret which she kept and pondered in her heart, no tongue can tell, no pen record. This Mother is going to form my soul so that her little child may be a living, striking image of her "First-born", the Eternal Son, the one who was the perfect praise of His Father's glory. When I read in the Gospel that Mary went with haste into the hill country of Judah to fulfill her duty of charity to her cousin Elizabeth, I see her pass on her way, so beautiful, so calm and majestic, so recollected in the presence of God within her! Her prayer, like His, was always "Ecce!" Here I am!" Who?.. "the handmaid of the Lord," the least of His creatures, she, His Mother!
She was truly humble because she was always oblivious of self, unconscious of self, freed from self!... She is also the Queen of Martyrs, but again it was her soul that was "pierced by the sword" for with her everything takes place within... How beautiful she is to contemplate... so enveloped in a majesty which breathes forth strength and gentleness... She is there at the foot of the Cross, and my Master says to me; "Behold your Mother." He gives her to me as my Mother! She is still there to teach me to suffer as He did, to make known to me the last utterances of His soul, which she alone, His Mother, was able to catch. It is Our Lady, full of light, pure with the divine purity, who will take me by the hand to lead me into heaven, that realm of dazzling brightness."

To Surrender to Love

2009-06-11T20:05:00.009-04:00

"Oh how good it is in silence
To listen to Him over and over,
To enjoy the peace of His presence,
and then to surrender wholly to His love.

O Lamb, so pure and so meek,
You my All, my only One,
How well you know that your fiancee,
Your little one, hungers greatly for You.

She hungers to feed upon her Master,
Above all to be consumed by Him,
To surrender fully to Him her whole being
So she may be totally taken.

Oh, that I may be possessed by You;
One who lives by You alone,
Yours, your living host,
Consumed by you on the Cross."

(Bl. Elizabeth of the Trinity)

PRAYER TO THE MOST HOLY TRINITY by Sr. Elizabeth of the Trinity, OCD

2009-06-10T12:55:00.005-04:00

Blessed Elizabeth of the Trinity was born at Bourges, France, July 18, 1880, of a family distinguished in civic and religious virtue, entered the Carmel of Dijon, August 2, 1901. Swiftly ascending the summits of perfection, her earthly life was signed with unusual suffering for months preceding her early departure to Him Whom she loved intensely, November 9, 1906. Taking the name of her vocation on earth and mission in heaven, "The Praise of the Glory of the Most Holy Trinity", continuously urging those she loved to live an interior and recollected life with God, Blessed Elizabeth has influenced countless souls to adopt the truly Christian practice of living intimately in the Divine Presence. In honor of the Most Holy Trinity whose feast we celebrated June 7th, I present this poem for our meditation:

"My God, Trinity whom I adore! help me to become wholly forgetful of self, that I may be immovably rooted in Thee, as changeless and calm as though my soul were already in eternity. May nothing disturb my peace or draw me forth from Thee, O my unchanging Lord, but may I, at every moment, penetrate more deeply into the depths of Thy mystery! Establish my soul in peace; make it thy heaven, thy cherished abode, and the place of thy rest. Let me never leave thee alone, but remain ever there wholly absorbed in thee, in living faith, plunged in adoration, and wholly yielded up to thy creative action!

O my Christ whom I love! Crucified for love! Would that I may be a bride of your heart! Would that I may cover thee with glory and love thee- even until I die of love! Yet I realize my weakness and beseech me to clothe me with thyself, to identify my soul will all the movements of thine own. Immerse me in Thyself; possess me wholly; substitute Thyself for me, that my life may be but a radiance of Thy life. Enter my soul as Adorer, as Restorer, as Savior! O Eternal Word, Utterance of my God! I long to spend my life in listening to Thee; to become wholly teachable, that I may learn all from Thee! Through all darkness, all privations, all helplessness, I yearn to keep my eyes ever upon Thee, and to dwell beneath Thy great light. O my beloved Star! so fascinate me that I may be unable to withdraw myself from Thy rays!

O Consuming Fire, Spirit of Love! Come down into me and reproduce into me, as it were, an incarnation of the Word; that I may be to Him another humanity, wherein he may renew all His mystery! And Thou, O Father, bend down toward Thy poor little creature and overshadow her, beholding in her none other than Thy beloved Son in whom Thou art well pleased.

O my Three, my All, my Beatitude, infinite Solitude, Immensity wherein I lose myself! I yield myself to thee as Thy prey. Immerse Thyself in me that I may be immersed in Thee, until I depart to contemplate in Thy light the abyss of Thy greatness!

photo courtesy: www.mgrfoundation.org/trinity.html

Life in Carmel

2009-06-09T15:14:00.008-04:00

Postulant

Elizabeth entered Carmel in August 1901 at the age of 21. It was a painful parting because she loved her mother and sister very much. On the eve of her entrance to Carmel there was one who alluded to her musical talent. The person pointed out to Elizabeth how great a sacrifice it must be for her to give up playing the piano. But Elizabeth replied: "The only sacrifice is to leave my mother and sister." She faced many obstacles to come to this moment of total surrender to the call of Jesus to a life of sacrifice and intimacy in solitude and silence.
One of the Sisters who testified at Elizabeth's beatification stated: "She (Elizabeth) had hardly crossed the threshold of Carmel when she showed herself serene, calm and strong. The first words that she spoke to me were: "God is here! How present He is! How He envelops me!"

At the beginning of her Postulancy they asked her what her ideal of sanctity is? Her answer: To live by love.
When asked what is the quickest means of achieving it? Her answer: "To make oneself quite little and to surrender oneself without reserve."
When asked as to which defect she disliked the most? Her answer: "Egoism in general."
When asked what name she will have in heaven? Her answer: "The Will of God."
Elizabeth was happy in Carmel. She often repeated these words: "Carmel is Heaven."

Elizabeth as a Postulant was allowed to write letters to her family and friends on a monthly basis. This is one of her letters written 2 days after she entered Carmel to a her dear friend Francoise de Sourdon:

"If you knew how happy your Sabeth is, you couldn't cry anymore, but on the contrary, you'd be thanking God for me! You are wondering perhaps , how I can find so much happiness, since in order to enter this dear solitude I had to let go of those I loved. But you see, my darling, in God I have everything. Close to Him, I find once again all those I left. Ah! how I entrust my little Framboise to Him. I will always be her little mother, nothing will be changed between us, don't you see? Tell yourself that the grilles will in no way be a separation and that I'll always keep your place for you in my heart. ..... If you knew how good everyone is here... It seems like I've been among them for a long time..."