Saint Michael Center - Blessed Father Damien

Elizabeth Ann Seton

Our First American-Born Saint 1774-1821

Elizabeth Ann Seton was canonized (made a saint) in 1975 by Pope Paul VI. An important thing to remember is, we can all become saints. God calls everyone to do that. Let us look at what this remarkable woman did to become a saint.

Elizabeth Ann was born in 1774 in New York City to a prominent Episcopalian family. She lost her mother early in life, so she became very attached to her father, who was a doctor. She would go with him when he visited the sick and poor immigrants on Ellis Island. Dr. Richard Bayley educated his daughter and raiser her to love the Lord deeply, and to obediently accept His Divine Will.

            In 1794 Elizabeth married a charming young businessman, William Magee Seton. They had five children and were very happy. But soon one disaster after another came along.

            First William Seton’s business failed and the family was left bankrupt. Then he became ill. Elizabeth went with her husband and one daughter to Italy, hoping that the climate would improve his health. But William died while held in quarantine at the docks of Livorno.

            An Italian family, business friends of her husband, and devout Catholics, cared for Elizabeth and her daughter in their sorrow. So impressed was she with their faith that when she returned to New York she decided that the Catholic Church was where she belonged. Her family was not happy about this decision and consequently withdrew their love and financial support. The next few years were difficult for her and her five children as they struggled with their poverty. Elizabeth Seton, however, held firm to her beliefs and submitted herself to God’s Will. Her cheery and loveable disposition and her natural ability to teach were qualities she put to work in order to support herself and her children.

            Elizabeth’s piety and educational gifts soon came to the attention of Bishop Carroll in Maryland. She was invited to come to Baltimore to open a school for girls. Eventually, with a lot of hard work and devotion, Elizabeth Ann Seton founded a religious community and established a school near Emmitsburg, Maryland. This was the beginning of the far-reaching Catholic parochial school system in the United States and the founding of the Daughters of Charity, the first American religious society.

            She suffered the most through the early deaths of her daughters and the worry about the fate of her sons out in the world after their schooling. An example of her trustful and cheery spirit in the face of adversity can be seen in a letter Elizabeth wrote to a friend:

            “Peace, my dear… We will job up the hill as quietly as possible, and when the flies and mosquitoes bite, wrap the cloak round and never mind them, they can only penetrate the surface.”

            When Elizabeth died on January 4, 1821, she was a soul at peace with God. She had known the great joy of learning to trust her tragedies with God and becoming a transmitter of God’s love to others.

            If you get a chance, visit the National Shrine of Saint Elizabeth Ann Seton in Emmitsburg, Maryland. Next to the beautiful church is the little white house where Mother Seton weathered poverty, heat and freezing temperatures. Sometimes the snow fell right the makeshift roof onto their beds! You can sense, as you look at the valley, the mountains, and the blue sky that she loved so very much, that something of the spirit of St. Elizabeth Ann Seton certainly remains at this holy place.

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St. Michael the Archangel

St. Michael the Archangel, defend us in battle; be our safeguard against the wickedness and snares of the devil. May God rebuke him, we humbly pray. And do you, O prince of the heavenly host, by the power of God, cast into Hell Satan and all the evil spirits who prowl about the world seeking the ruin of souls. Amen.

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