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Pope Benedict XVI- General Audiences |
General
Audience
On St. Elizabeth of Hungary
"It Is Christ Whom You Have Washed, Fed and Looked After"
H.H. Benedict XVI
October 20, 2010
www.zenit.org
Dear Brothers and Sisters,
Today I would like to speak to you about one of the women of the Middle
Ages who inspired great admiration: St. Elizabeth of Hungary, also
called Elizabeth of Thuringia. She was born in 1207 in Hungary;
historians disagree on the place. Her father was Andrew II, rich and
powerful king of Hungary who, to reinforce his political ties, married
German countess Gertrude of Andechs-Merania, sister of St. Hedwig who
was the wife of the duke of Silesia. Elizabeth lived in the Hungarian
court only the first four years of her childhood, together with a sister
and three brothers. She liked playing, music and dancing; she recited
her prayers faithfully and showed particular care for the poor, whom she
helped with a good word or affectionate gesture.
Her happy childhood was brusquely interrupted when, from far away
Thuringia, knights arrived to take her to her new headquarters in
central Germany. According to the customs of that time, in fact, her
father had decided that Elizabeth should become a princess of Thuringia.
The landgrave or count of that region was one of the wealthiest and most
influential of Europe at the beginning of the 13th century, and his
castle was the center of magnificence and culture. However, behind the
celebrations and apparent glory were hidden ambitions of feudal princes,
often at war among themselves and in conflict with the royal and
imperial authorities. In this context, the landgrave Hermann was pleased
to accept the engagement between his son, Ludwig, and the Hungarian
princess. Elizabeth left her homeland with a rich dowry and a large
entourage, including her personal maidservants, two of whom would remain
faithful friends to the end. They are the ones who have left us precious
information on the childhood and life of the saint.
After a long journey they arrived in Eisenach, then on up to the
fortress of Wartburg, the massive castle overlooking the city.
Celebrated here was the engagement between Ludwig and Elizabeth. In
subsequent years, while Ludwig learned the profession of a knight,
Elizabeth and her companions studied German, French, Latin, music,
literature and embroidery. Despite the fact that the engagement took
place for political reasons, a sincere love was born between the two
young people, animated by faith and the desire to do the will of God.
At 18, after the death of his father, Ludwig began to reign over
Thuringia. But Elizabeth became the object of silent criticisms because
her way of behaving did not correspond to the life of the court. In the
same sense, the celebration of their marriage was not lavish, and the
expenses of the banquet were given in part to the poor. In her profound
sensibility Elizabeth saw the contradictions between the faith professed
and Christian practice. She could not bear compromises. Once, entering
the church on the feast of the Assumption, she took off her crown,
placed it before the cross and remained prostrate on the ground with her
face covered. When a nun reproved her for this gesture, she replied:
"How can I, miserable creature, continue to wear a crown of earthly
dignity, when I see my King Jesus Christ crowned with thorns?" As she
behaved before God, so she behaved with her subjects. Among the
"Sayings" of the four maidservants we find this testimony: "She would
not eat food if she was not first certain that it came from the
properties and legitimate goods of her husband. While she abstained from
goods procured illicitly, she was concerned to compensate those that had
suffered violence" (Nos. 25 and 37). [She gave] a true example for all
those entrusted with charges: The exercise of authority, at all levels,
must be lived as a service to justice and charity, in constant pursuit
of the common good.
Elizabeth practiced assiduously the works of mercy: she gave to drink
and eat those who came to her door, she got clothes, paid debts, looked
after the sick and buried the dead. Coming down from her castle, she
often went with her maidservants to the homes of the poor, taking bread,
meat, flour and other foods. She would hand the food out personally and
carefully oversaw clothes and shelter for the poor. This behavior was
reported to her husband, who not only was not annoyed, but answered her
accusers: "So long as they don't come to the castle, I'm happy!" Placed
in this context is the miracle of bread transformed into roses: While
Elizabeth was going through the street with her apron full of bread for
the poor, she met her husband, who asked her what she was carrying. She
opened her apron and, instead of bread, magnificent roses appeared. This
symbol of charity is often present in depictions of St. Elizabeth.
Hers was a profoundly happy marriage: Elizabeth helped her husband to
raise his human qualities to the supernatural level and he, on the other
hand, protected his wife in her generosity to the poor and in her
religious practices. Ever more in admiration of his wife's great faith,
Ludwig, referring to her care of the poor, said to her: "Dear Elizabeth,
it is Christ whom you have washed, fed and looked after." A clear
testimony of how faith and love of God and one's neighbor reinforce
marital union and make it even more profound.
The young couple found spiritual support in the Friars Minor who, from
1222 spread in Thuringia. From among them, Elizabeth chose Friar Rudiger
as her spiritual director. When he narrated to her the circumstances of
the conversion of the young and rich merchant Francis of Assisi,
Elizabeth was even more enthusiastic on her path of Christian life. From
that moment, she decided to follow even more the poor and crucified
Christ, present in the poor. Also when her first son was born, followed
by two others, our saint never neglected her works of charity. Moreover,
she helped the Friars Minor to build a monastery in Halberstadt, of
which Friar Rudiger became the superior. Elizabeth's spiritual direction
thus passed to Konrad of Marburg.
A harsh test was her farewell to her husband, at the end of June of
1227, when Ludwig IV joined the crusade of Emperor Frederick II,
reminding his wife that this was a tradition for the sovereigns of
Thuringia. Elizabeth replied: "I will not dissuade you. I gave myself
wholly to God and now I must also give you." However, fever decimated
the troops and Ludwig himself fell ill and died in Otranto before
embarking, in September of 1227, at 27 years of age. Elizabeth, on
hearing the news, had such sorrow that she withdrew in solitude, but
later, strengthened by prayer and, consoled by the thought of seeing him
again in heaven, she again became interested in the affairs of the
kingdom.
However, another test awaited her: her brother-in-law usurped the
government of Thuringia, declaring himself the true heir of Ludwig and
accusing Elizabeth of being a pious woman incompetent to govern. The
young widow, with her three sons, was expelled from the castle of
Wartburg and began to look for a place of refuge. Only two of her
maidservants stayed with her, accompanied her and entrusted her three
sons to the care of friends of Ludwig. Traveling through villages,
Elizabeth worked wherever she was received: She helped the sick, spinned
and sewed. During this calvary, endured with great faith, patience and
dedication to God, some relatives, who had remained faithful to her and
considered her brother-in-law's government illegitimate, rehabilitated
her name. Thus Elizabeth, at the beginning of 1228, was able to receive
an adequate income to withdraw to the family castle in Marburg, where
her spiritual director, Friar Konrad, also lived. It was he who referred
to Pope Gregory IX the following event: "On Good Friday of 1228, with
her hands on the altar in the chapel of the city of Eisenach, where she
had received the Friars Minor, in the presence of some friars and
relatives, Elizabeth gave up her own will and all the vanities of the
world. She wanted to give up all her possessions, but I dissuaded her
for love of the poor. Shortly after she built a hospital, took in the
sick and the invalid and served the most miserable and abandoned at her
own table. Having reproached her for these things, Elizabeth answered
that from the poor she received a special grace and humility" (Epistula
magistri Conradi, 14-17).
We can see in this affirmation a certain mystical experience similar to
that lived by St. Francis: the Poverello of Assisi said, in fact, in his
testament that, by serving the lepers, what was previously bitter became
a sweetness of the soul and body (Testamentum, 1-3). Elizabeth spent her
last three years in the hospital she founded, serving the sick, staying
by the bedside of the dying. She always tried to carry out the most
humble services and repugnant jobs. She became what we could call a
consecrated woman in the midst of the world (soror in saeculo) and
formed a religious community with other friends of hers, using a gray
habit. It is no accident that she is patroness of the Third Order
Regular of St. Francis and of the Secular Franciscan Order.
In November of 1231 she was affected by severe fever. When news of her
illness spread, many people came to see her. Some 10 days later, she
requested that her doors be closed to remain alone with God. She gently
fell asleep in the Lord on the night of Nov. 17. Testimonies of her
holiness were such and so many that, only four years later, Pope Gregory
IX proclaimed her a saint and, in the same year, the beautiful church
built in her honor in Marburg was consecrated.
Dear brothers and sisters, in the figure of St. Elizabeth we see how
faith and friendship with Christ create the sense of justice, of the
equality of everyone, of the rights of others, and they create love,
charity. And from this charity hope is born, the certainty that we are
loved by Christ and that the love of Christ awaits us and thus makes us
capable of imitating Christ and of seeing Christ in others. St.
Elizabeth invites us to rediscover Christ, to love him, to have faith
and thus find true justice and love, as well as the joy that one day we
will be immersed in divine love, in the joy of eternity with God. Thank
you.
[Translation by ZENIT]
[The Holy Father then greeted the pilgrims in several languages. In
English, he said:]
Dear Brothers and Sisters,
In our catechesis today I wish to speak about Saint Elizabeth of
Hungary, also known as Saint Elizabeth of Thuringia. She was born in the
early thirteenth century. Her father was the King of Hungary, and
Elizabeth was known from an early age for her fidelity to prayer and her
attention to the poor. Though she was married to Ludwig, a nobleman, for
political reasons, she and her husband developed a sincere love for each
other, one deepened by faith and the desire to do the Lord’s will.
In her married life, Elizabeth did not compromise her faith in spite of
the requirements of life at court. She preferred to feed the poor than
to dine at banquets, and to clothe the naked than to dress in costly
garments. Because of their deep faith in God, Elizabeth and Ludwig
supported each other in their religious duties. After his early death,
she dedicated herself to the service of the poor, always performing the
humblest and most difficult works. She founded a religious community,
and lived her vows until her death at an early age. She was canonized
four years later, and is a patroness of the Third Order of Saint
Francis. May her dedication to the poor and needy inspire in us the same
love for Christ in our neighbour.
I am pleased to welcome all the English-speaking pilgrims and visitors
present today. In particular, I extend greetings to members of the
Congregation of the Holy Cross and to the Sisters of Saint Joseph and
the Sacred Heart, along with their students, friends and benefactors
here for the canonization of Saint André Bessette and Saint Mary
MacKillop. Upon all of you, I invoke God’s abundant blessings.
[At the end of the audience, the Pontiff added in Italian:]
Lastly, my thoughts turn to youth, the ill and newlyweds. Dear friends,
the month of October invites us to renew our active cooperation in the
mission of the Church. With the fresh energy of youth, with the power of
prayer and of sacrifice, and with the potential of married life, may you
be missionaries of the Gospel, offering your concrete support to those
struggling to bring [the Gospel] to those who still do not know it.
[Translation by ZENIT]
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