As a child growing up in Baltimore, I remember learning about Mother Seton. We were especially proud of this new saint, who had a connection to our hometown. St. Elizabeth Ann Seton was not only the first American-born saint, but she had spent so much of her life in Maryland.
Sometimes on a warm summer day, my parents would load us into the family station wagon to drive to Emmitsburg, Maryland, to see where Mother Seton had lived. Those road trips helped me realize saints were real people who lived in the world and did their best to serve God in ordinary and extraordinary ways.
On January 4, we celebrate St. Elizabeth Ann Seton’s feast day, and we are marking the 50th anniversary of her canonization this year. If you’re looking for a reason to get to know this saint a little better, here are a few reasons you might find her easy to turn to for help.
- She knew sorrow. During her life, St. Elizabeth Ann Seton lost her mother when she was 3, her husband not quite 10 years into their marriage, and later two of her daughters. In addition to all the personal loss she dealt with, she hit obstacle after obstacle while trying to live out her mission on earth. She is a great person to turn to when you’re experiencing loss or insurmountable problems. “Do what we can, and God will do the rest,” she said. “What seems so impossible to nature is quite easy to grace.”
- Her life had so many twists and turns—and she just kept going. St. Elizabeth Ann Seton felt called to marriage as William’s wife and welcomed five children with him. After he died, she continued to look for ways to answer God’s call, opening a school and eventually founding an order that has had a profound impact on the world. What an inspiring life—and what a perfect person to ask to intercede when you’re facing a significant life decision. Or maybe she’d love to hear from you when you feel overwhelmed with parenting and working and managing all life’s responsibilities.
- She was a Baltimorean (for part of her life). In fact, Mother Seton started the first parochial school in the United States in Baltimore. If you’re in or near Maryland, you can visit places that were important to her life, walk in the steps of a saint, and see how she made her mark.
- She was open to change—and was willing to make change happen. St. Elizabeth Ann Seton was raised in the Episcopal Church and converted to Catholicism after she learned more about the faith while in Italy. As a Catholic widow, she founded an order, the Sisters of Charity, which has founded and run orphanages, schools, and hospitals. She was an innovator and a problem solver, someone who saw a need, stepped forward in faith, and offered a solution.
- She was a woman of courage and faith. As I’ve grown up and become a wife and mother, I’m even more in awe of all St. Elizabeth Ann Seton achieved for God during her 46 years on earth. What an extraordinary person she was, navigating so many challenges in her life, seeking opportunities to grow in faith, and always living for God. “I resign the present and the future to Him who is the author and conductor of both,” she said.
Several years ago, when my husband and I were hoping and waiting to become parents through adoption, my mother and I made a pilgrimage to the Seton Shrine. I remember praying and wondering what the future would hold, unsure how soon—or whether—we would become parents.
When we left that late-December day, I was grateful for the visit, but I didn’t realize how close my husband and I were to meeting our first child. Just a few days later—on January 4, St. Elizabeth Ann Seton’s feast day—my husband and I received the call matching us with our son.
I don’t believe that was a coincidence. So, if you do become friends with St. Elizabeth Ann Seton, know that she can be a powerful intercessor.
St. Elizabeth Ann Seton, pray for us!
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