Vigils Reading – St Elizabeth of the Trinity

Writings from the Journal of St Elizabeth of the Trinity  [1]

It seems to me that the soul that is aware of its greatness enters into that “holy freedom of the children of God” of which the apostle speaks, that is, it transcends all things, including self/ The freest soul, I think, is the one most forgetful of self. If anyone were to ask me the secret of happiness, I would say it is no longer to think of self, to deny oneself always. That is a good way to destroy pride: let it starve to death! You see, pride is a love of ourselves; well, love of God must be so strong that it extinguishes all our self-love.  St. Augustine says that we have two cities within us, the city of God and the city of SELF. To the extent  that the first increases, the second will be destroyed. A soul that lives by faith in God’s presence, that has this “single eye” that Christ speaks of in the gospel, that is, a purity of intention that seeks only God; this soul, it seems to me, would also live in humility: it would recognize His gifts to it – for “humility is truth: – but it would attribute nothing to itself, referring all to God as the Blessed Virgin did.

All the movements of pride that you feel within yourself only become faults when the will takes part in them! Without that, although you may suffer much, you are not offending God. Doubtless self-love is at the bottom of those faults which you commit without thinking, but that ism in a way part of us. What God asks of you is never to entertain deliberately any thought of pride, and never to act on the inspiration of pride, for this is wrong. And yet, if you find yourself doing either of these, you must not become discouraged, for again, it is pride that is irritated. You must “display your misery” like Magdalene at the Master’s feet, and ask Him to set you free. He loves to see a soul recognize its weakness. Thejn, as a great saint said, “The abyss of God’s immensity encounters the abyss of the creature’s nothingness” and God embraces this nothingness.

[1] The Complete Works of Elizabeth of the Trinity – vol one – ICS Puublications – 1984 – pg 124