Saint Elizabeth of Portugal

The Dioceses of the United States have the opportunity of celebrating the memorial of Saint Elizabeth of Portugal today. Before, the feast day of Saint Elizabeth fell on July 4, which of course is Independence Day. "Elizabeth was born of the royal family of Aragon in 1271. As a girl she was given in marriage to the king of Portugal and bore him two children. She overcame trials and tribulations through prayer and charitable work. After her husband's death she distributed her goods to the poor and took the habit of the Third Order of St. Francis. She died in 1336 while trying to make peace between her son and son-in-law" (Loose-Leaf Lectionary, 2473). As I told the people at Mass this morning at St. Augustine in Washington, Saint Elizabeth would be a good example of Prayer and Action, since our communities just hosted this wonderful ministry of the Youth Office of the Diocese of Salina. Like her biography stated, she overcame her trials and tribulations through prayer and charitable works. Prayer is a very beautiful gift that we need to use each day and probably many times a day. Our prayer leads us into action, to do charitable works, and to live the corporal works of mercy. Prayer and Works go hand-in-hand and we can learn a lot from the model that we have today. Saint Elizabeth of Portugal, pray for us!!!