St Elizabeth of the Trinity

St Elizabeth of the Trinity


"I have only to love Him, to let myself be loved, all the time, through all things."


St Elizabeth of the Trinity


"I have only to love Him, to let myself be loved, all the time, through all things."

Possessed by God

St Thérèse was a major source of inspiration for her contemporary, St Elizabeth of the Trinity from Dijon, another young French Carmelite.  Like St Thérèse, St Elizabeth died young in great suffering, from Addison’s disease which had no known treatment at the time. Elizabeth was beatified in 1984 by Pope John Paul II and canonised by Pope Francis in October 2016 - her feast day is 8th November. Although less well known than St Thérèse, St Elizabeth’s message is nonetheless profound. “I think that in heaven my mission will be to draw souls by helping them go out of themselves to cling to God by a wholly simple and loving movement, and to keep them in His great silence within…” Indeed, Pope St John Paul II described her as 'a prophet of the presence of God'. St Elizabeth’s letters and personal retreat notes breathe God and the thoughtful reader will long to share something of her remarkable relationship with the Trinity expressed most powerfully in her famous prayer which you can find below. This prayer is a perfect expression of that interior life which lies at the heart of Carmelite spirituality.

Possessed by God

St Thérèse was a major source of inspiration for her contemporary, St Elizabeth of the Trinity from Dijon, another young French Carmelite.  Like St Thérèse, St Elizabeth died young in great suffering, from Addison’s disease which had no known treatment at the time. Elizabeth was beatified in 1984 by Pope John Paul II and canonised by Pope Francis in October 2016 - her feast day is 8th November. Although less well known than St Thérèse, St Elizabeth’s message is nonetheless profound. “I think that in heaven my mission will be to draw souls by helping them go out of themselves to cling to God by a wholly simple and loving movement, and to keep them in His great silence within…” St Elizabeth’s letters and personal retreat notes breathe God and the thoughtful reader will long to share something of her remarkable relationship with the Trinity expressed most powerfully in her famous prayer which you can find below. This prayer is a perfect expression of that interior life which lies at the heart of Carmelite spirituality.
"Let us live with God as with a friend, let us make our faith a living faith in order to be in communion with Him through everything, for that is what makes us saints. We possess our Heaven within us… The day I understood that everything became clear to me. I would like to whisper this secret to those I love so they too 
might always cling to God through everything…" 

Letter 122 

 
"Let us live with God as with a friend, let us make our faith a living faith in order to be in communion with Him through everything, for that is what makes us saints. We possess our Heaven within us… The day I understood that everything became clear to me. I would like to whisper this secret to those I love so they too 
might always cling to God through everything…" 

Letter 122 
 

St Elizabeth's prayer to the Trinity


O my God, Trinity whom I adore, help me to forget myself entirely that I may be established in you as still and as peaceful as if my soul were already in eternity. May nothing trouble my peace or make me leave you, O my unchanging one, but may each minute carry me further into the depths of your mystery. Give peace to my soul; make it Your heaven, Your beloved dwelling place and Your resting place. May I never leave You there alone, but be wholly present, my faith wholly vigilant, wholly adoring and wholly surrendered to your creative action. O my beloved Christ, crucified by love, I wish to be a bride for Your Heart! I wish to cover You with glory; I wish to love You – even unto death! But I feel my weakness and ask You to clothe me with Yourself; to identify my soul with all the movements of Your soul, to overwhelm me, to possess me, to substitute Yourself for me that my life may be but a radiance of Your life. 
Come to me as Adorer, as Restorer, as Saviour. O Eternal Word, Word of my God, I want to spend all my life in listening to You, to become wholly teachable, that I may learn all from you. Then through all nights, all voids, all helplessness, I want to gaze on you always and remain in Your great light. O my Beloved Star, so fascinate that I may not withdraw from Your radiance. 

O Consuming Fire, Spirit of Love, come upon me and create in my soul a kind of incarnation of the Word; that I may be another humanity to Him in which He can renew His whole mystery. And You, O Father, bend lovingly over Your poor little creature; cover her with Your shadow, seeing in her only the Beloved in whom You are well pleased. O my Three, my All, my Beatitude, infinite Solitude, Immensity in which I lose myself, I surrender myself to You as your prey. Bury Yourself in me that I may bury myself in You until I depart to contemplate in Your light the abyss of Your greatness.                           

St Elizabeth's prayer to the Trinity


O my God, Trinity whom I adore, help me to forget myself entirely that I may be established in you as still and as peaceful as if my soul were already in eternity. May nothing trouble my peace or make me leave you, O my unchanging one, but may each minute carry me further into the depths of your mystery. Give peace to my soul; make it Your heaven, Your beloved dwelling place and Your resting place. May I never leave You there alone, but be wholly present, my faith wholly vigilant, wholly adoring and wholly surrendered to your creative action. 

O my beloved Christ, crucified by love, I wish to be a bride for Your Heart! I wish to cover You with glory; I wish to love You – even unto death! But I feel my weakness and ask You to clothe me with Yourself; to identify my soul with all the movements of Your soul, to overwhelm me, to possess me, to substitute Yourself for me that my life may be but a radiance of Your life. Come to me as Adorer, as Restorer, as Saviour. O Eternal Word, Word of my God, I want to spend all my life in listening to You, to become wholly teachable, that I may learn all from you. Then through all nights, all voids, all helplessness, I want to gaze on you always and remain in Your great light. O my Beloved Star, so fascinate me that I may not withdraw from Your radiance. 

O Consuming Fire, Spirit of Love, come upon me and create in my soul a kind of incarnation of the Word; that I may be another humanity to Him in which He can renew His whole mystery. And You, O Father, bend lovingly over Your poor little creature; cover her with Your shadow, seeing in her only the Beloved in whom You are well pleased. O my Three, my All, my Beatitude, infinite Solitude, Immensity in which I lose myself, I surrender myself to You as your prey. Bury Yourself in me that I may bury myself in You until I depart to contemplate in Your light the abyss of Your greatness.                           

"I delight in the thought of having left all for Him; it is a joy to give when one loves, 
and I so love this God who is jealous of having me for himself alone."      

 Letter 177 
"I delight in the thought of having left all for Him; it is a joy to give when one loves, 
and I so love this God who is jealous of having me for himself alone."      

 Letter 177 
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