Saint Elizabeth Ann Seton
Saint Elizabeth Ann Seton Statue
October 25, 2021Elizabeth Ann Seton is most well known as the first American to be canonized as a saint. She was born in New York, NY on August 28th, 1774 into a wealthy Episcopalian family. Unfortunately, her mother passed away when Seton was only three years old.
When Seton was nineteen, she married William Magee Seton and they had five children together. They had a fantastic marriage focused on family values and a focus on their Episcopal faith. Tragedy struck when her husband, William, became ill. In an effort to get him better treatment they went to Leghorn, Italy but only eight days after completing the quarantine process, William passed away.
Converting to Catholicism
Before returning to the United States, Seton spent time in Italy learning about Roman Catholicism. Seton would return to New York City in 1804 with an internal struggle as her growing interest in Roman Catholicism conflicted with her Episcopal upbringing. But on March 14, 1805 she officially converted to Roman Catholicism and was confirmed in 1806. Through her admiration of the Virgin Mary, Seton would choose Mary as her saint name
Beginning Catholic Parochial School System in the United States
By 1808, Seton would move to Baltimore, MD where she opened Saint Joseph’s Academy and Free School, which was a school dedicated to Catholic girls’ education. Soon after, she would form a religious community with other women that was focused on the care of the children of the poor. This would later become the Sisters of Charity and was the first sisterhood in the United States. Together, they opened the first free Catholic school in the country. In turn, this marked the beginning of the Catholic parochial school system.
Canonization of Elizabeth Ann Seton
While living in Maryland, two of Seton’s daughters passed away from tuberculosis in 1812 and 1816. Then on January 4, 1821, Seton passed away at the age of 46 and became canonized on September 14, 1975 by Pope Paul VI. Through this canonization, Seton became the first native-born saint in the United States.
Miracles of Elizabeth Ann Seton
Her miracles that qualified her to be canonized were through her prayers. The first was when Sister Gertrude Korzendorfer made a full recovery from pancreatic cancer. Additionally, a child named Ann Theresa O’Neill was cured of acute lymphatic leukemia. This miracle occurred after Seton’s passing but was credited to her because Sister Mary Alice prayed to Seton. In 1963, Carl E. Kalin was given a few hours to live when he was diagnosed with meningitis of the brain. Kalin would soon end up in a coma. A piece of Seton’s bone was placed on him while in the coma by The Sisters of Charity and a prayer was made to Seton. Kalin would soon wake up from his coma. All of these cures could not be explained by medical professionals, making them miracles through Seton.
Saint Elizabeth Ann Seton was a compassionate woman who did a tremendous amount of work for the community. She will be remembered for her development of the parochial school system, the Sisters of Charity, and of course being the first American to be canonized by the Catholic Church.