Saint Elizabeth Ann Seton (1774-1821): a wife, mother, convert, widower, religious sister, religious founder, first canonized American saint, and our namesake and patron of this University! Whew, that is a lot to acknowledge, reflect on, and celebrate! This Advent season, we will do just that as we prepare our hearts and minds for the birth of Our Savior, Jesus Christ, and celebrate Christmas. St. Elizabeth Ann Seton will be our companion on the journey of these four weeks of Advent; using the Scripture of the day intertwined with a quote from our dear patron saint, we are led along the way of Advent to prepare a place in our lives for the Christ Child. This year marks 50 years of Seton’s canonization; she continues to intercede for us and is an example of Christian living that emphasizes charity and hospitality.
Over the course of these weeks of Advent, we have chosen Setonian images to reflect on that may be familiar to you, or maybe not, but all these images can be found throughout our beautiful campus here in South Orange. For the First Week of Advent, we have chosen the image “Hazard Zet Forward.” This is the motto for the University, and this image can be seen all over the campus in banners, emblems, letterheads, shirts, and sweatshirts. What does this saying translate to and what is the meaning? One translation states, “Whatever the peril, ever forward,” or “Despite hazards, move forward,” as adapted from the Seton family crest.
This family motto sums up Mother Seton’s life. With all the joys, sorrows and struggles she went through, she always moved forward, always casting her gaze on Our Lord. The quote for today from St. Elizabeth Seton says, “Keep your heart high.” This stresses so well that despite whatever peril we go through, we move forward with our hearts set on high, on God. The Centurion in our Gospel reading today experienced this with the sickness of his servant: with faith and confidence, he approaches Jesus asking Him to cure his servant, ready to accept whatever comes his way. His request is one of charity and hospitality for someone he cares about. Jesus sees acknowledges the Centurion’s faith and commends him for this. Christ reassures us that like the Centurion, with faith and confidence in Him, we can overcome the obstacles and hazards in our lives. We move forward with assurance that God is with us!
As we begin this Advent season, let us have the assurance of our faith in Christ like the Centurion and St. Elizabeth Ann Seton—that no matter what the peril we are experiencing in life, we move forward, confident that we are in God’s hands. During this First Week of Advent, let us contemplate our University motto inherited from Mother Seton, and let us help others realize in their own lives to always move forward, no matter what the obstacle may be.
