The Envious Man

[Weedy]

The Envious Man

The envious man is cruel, proud, unfaithful, impatient, and
quarrelsome; and, what is strange, when this vice gains the mastery,
he is no longer master of himself, and he is unable to correct his
many faults. If the bond of peace is broken, if the rights of
fraternal charity are violated, if truth is altered or disguised, it
is often envy that hurries him on to crime.
What happiness can such a man enjoy in this world? To be envious
or jealous of another, because such a one is virtuous and happy, is to
hate in him the graces and blessings God has showered down upon him.
-- Saint Cyprian of Carthage

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25 November – Blessed Elisabeth Achler TOR

known as ” Blessed Elisabeth the Good” and Elizabeth of Reute, Betha,
Elsbeth – Franciscan Tertiary Sister, Mystic, Stigmatist, Apostle of
the Holy Eucharist, prayer and charity, gifted with the charism of
prophecy – born on 25 November 1386 at Waldsee, Wurttemberg, Swabia,
Germany and died on 25 November 1420 at Reute, Germany of natural
causes. Patronage – Swabia, Germany.

Elisabeth was born on 25 November 1386 to Hans and Anna Achler in
Waldsee in the region of Upper Swabia (a historic and linguistic
region in Germany). She was raised in a pious home, hearing the
Gospels explained to her by her mother in the form of stories, where
she developed a strong devotion to the Passion of Christ.

She became a member of the Third Order of St Francis at the age of
fourteen. Seeking to further her spiritual growth, she took as her
confessor the provost of the local Canonry of St Peter in Waldsee, Dom
Konrad Kügelin (1366-1428). Under his guidance, she and several other
Franciscan tertiaries sought to follow a more intense experience of
their Franciscan vocation. To this end, they acquired a house in Reute
on the outskirts of Waldsee in 1403.

This community was a proto-monastery of the Order, as tertiaries of
the mendicant orders had not yet been allowed to profess vows.
Elisabeth threw herself into a life of prayer and service, working in
the cloister kitchen and in the garden, where she would spend long
hours in prayer. She was known for her hospitality to visitors to the
little monastery, especially for her concern for the poor who came to
the gate to beg. Her love of the Blessed Sacrament was so great that
she lived the last twelve years of her life subsisting solely on the
consecrated hosts.

Her head showed the marks of the crown of thorns worn by Christ and
her body the marks of Christ’s scourging. Although the Stigmata only
occasionally appeared on her hands, she always felt its pain. She was
credited with the gift of prophecy foretelling the election of Pope
Martin V and the end of the Great Western Schism. She died on her
birthday in 1420. She was buried in the parish church of Reute. A
biography of her was written by Kügelin, her confessor and sent to the
Bishop of Konstanz. However, popular veneration for Elisabeth occurred
only after 1623, when her tomb was opened by the then-provost of
Waldsee.

Miracles were attributed to her, which were compiled into a formal
document by a contemporary canon, Heinrich Scheffler (d. 1635). Pope
Clement XIII officially approved her cultus on 19 June 1766. Her major
shrine is at the Convent of the Franciscan Sisters of Reute, Bad
Waldsee, Germany where her feast is celebrated today.

https://anastpaul.com/2019/11/25/

Saint Quote:
No one is to be called an enemy, all are your benefactors, and no one
does you harm. You have no enemy except yourselves.
--St. Francis of Assisi


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Reflection and Prayer from the Imitation of Christ

To study the truths of religion, not so much to know as to practice
them; to listen to the Divine Word, which speaks more to the heart
than to the understanding; to know and to do what is necessary for
salvation is the true science of a Christian. I am weary of
speculative knowledge, which does not change nor move my heart, but
only flatters the curiosity of my mind; I am tired of knowing and
saying so much concerning eternal truths and salvation, and yet doing
so little to obtain it.

Prayer:
O Jesus! Who hast taught us that not all those who say Lord, Lord,
shall enter into the Kingdom of Heaven, but only such as do the will
of Thy Father, whose lives correspond with their belief, grant us a
truly Christian spirit, a Christian heart, and guide us in the paths
of a Christian life. Grant that I may become detached from all things,
and in all things seek Thee alone. Grant that I may direct all my
knowledge, my whole capacity, all my happiness, and all my exertions,
to please Thee, to love Thee, and to obtain Thy love for time and
eternity. Amen.