Another Look at Elizabeth Seton

by Sister Mary Sweeney, S.C.
If you've had a wonderful marriage and children whom you've loved more than you could have thought possible; if you've enjoyed deep trusting friendships with men and women; if you've found peace and joy in God's love, Elizabeth Seton will speak to your experience. But if you've watched the people you love most in three generations die; if you've suffered financial hardship; if you've been the object of slander and power, you, too, will find in her story something of your own. This month, when we celebrate the 30th anniversary of the canonization of Elizabeth Ann Bayley Seton (September 14), it might be time to recall her life and to see why she has drawn so many to find in her story a reason to trust God's ways in their own lives.

Although Elizabeth Seton is probably best known as the foundress of the Sisters of Charity in North America, and is credited with establishing a school that became the model for parochial schools in the United States, oftentimes it is in her many other facets that she has inspired others. Today we might describe her as a single parent or a recent convert to Catholicism, a working mother, or a woman of intense loyalty. When she was born in New York on August 28, 1774, to the Episcopalian couple Dr. Richard and Catherine Bayley, no one could have anticipated the many twists and turns, the mountains and valleys, which Elizabeth's path would follow.

Elizabeth's childhood was, in many respects, a difficult one. When Elizabeth was three, her mother died, and after her father married again, there was little love in the new family for her sister and her. In addition, Dr. Bayley, a noted physician, spent a great amount of time in England developing his professional skills and seemed more inclined toward his medical work than to his family. He did, however, recognize in Elizabeth a lively spirit and a quick mind and made sure that she received a broad education, a decision that would later serve her well when she became the breadwinner for her five children.

As a child and as a young woman, Elizabeth was a devout member of her Episcopal community. She was nurtured by Scripture and the Episcopal Communion Services. It seemed that the loss and sadness of her early life drew her closer to her "heavenly Father." In addition, fired by charity, she and her friends from the comfortable Lower Manhattan Episcopal parish of Saint Paul (which has become a sanctuary to many since the events of September 11, 2001) were active in aiding widows and orphans.

It was a joyous time in her life when Elizabeth was courted by, and married to, William Seton in 1794. Life seemed full of promise. Seton was the son of a successful businessman in New York and was well connected to many of the outstanding families of those early years of the new nation. The love of the young couple, as reflected in her letters to him, bespeaks hearts full of joy - a joy which faced new challenges as William's financial status shifted dramatically and sent him into bankruptcy. With five children, their needs were serious. Soon, William's financial situation was complicated by his medical problems.

In 1803 while he and Elizabeth and their eldest child were visiting Italy on doctor's advice, William died. Elizabeth was 29 years old, married less than 10 years, and now left alone with five children.

While William's death brought Elizabeth enormous sorrow, it was during this time that she first encountered the Roman Catholic Church. Thanks to friends of her husband, brothers Antonio and Filippo Filicchi and their wives, Elizabeth stayed in Italy for the winter and spent many hours visiting Catholic churches with them. She was deeply impressed by the Catholics' devotion to the Holy Eucharist and longed to find the same kind of solace in her life which Catholics found for their lives in the Eucharist.

After returning to New York, Elizabeth anguished over her desire to become a Catholic. There was great resistance from her family and friends, and the anti-Catholic attitude in the city was formidable. Yet despite the opposition, Elizabeth made her profession of faith and received her First Eucharist in March of 1805.

Spurned by many of her relatives and friends, the recent convert assisted in two schools, but opposition to her Catholicism led parents to withdraw their children. Under the guidance of the leading Catholic clergy of the new country and aided by the financial support of her few loyal friends, Elizabeth set out with her children for Maryland where she opened a school. Eventually she became the nucleus for the new religious group which found in the rule of Saint Vincent de Paul a mirror of their own desires.

As a religious superior and as the head of a boarding school, Elizabeth faced numerous difficulties, including financial need and differences of opinion with the clergy. As mother to her five children, however, she embraced the most heart-wrenching role of all: in a family beset by tuberculosis, she watched two of her daughters die. In the midst of all, her own fragile health caused her concern lest she leave her children as orphans.

So much suffering led to so much faith and trust. As her life's path took its many twists and turns, rising to mountain tops of great joy and valleys of enormous depression, Elizabeth was able to turn to her Good Shepherd and trust in his ways. The Eucharist was an unfailing source of strength for her, and the dear friends with whom she shared her needs, her sorrows, and her joys supported her both emotionally and financially. When Elizabeth died in 1821, she had accomplished far more than anyone might have dared to imagine. Her loving heart had touched many.

Today we see in Saint Elizabeth Ann Seton someone who has lived many of our own experiences as wife, widow, mother, friend, breadwinner, and vowed religious. Thirty years after her canonization, her story still stands as an example of how God's love supports and draws us through the many events of our lives.

Sister Mary Sweeney is a member of the Sisters of Charity-Halifax. She currently serves as Campus Minister at Boston College in Chestnut Hill, Massachusetts.
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