Charity and Hospitality: Praying through Advent with St. Elizabeth Ann Seton

December 14, 2025 - The Third Sunday of Advent

"Let every fiber of the heart now suffer with Him, that eternity may be glorious, pure, serene, and loving." -St. Elizabeth Ann Seton

We begin the Third Week of Advent with the rose candle lit reminding us of the joy and hope the Savior conveys to us in the upcoming Christmas celebration. Our Setonian images for this week emphasize the holiness of St. Elizabeth Ann Seton.  

The middle image is a stained-glass window found in President’s Hall.  In a reflection given on Founders Day in 2013, Rev. Msgr. Robert Wister, Professor Emeritus of Church History at Immaculate Conception Seminary School of Theology, wrote about the meaning of this stained-glass window. He said: 

“There is some folklore of an image of Mother Seton that many unknowingly have passed by. It is a stained-glass representation in Presidents Hall, installed by her nephew the bishop in the 1860s. He approved it so it may resemble her; although she died when he was six. When you walk into Presidents Hall, three stained glass windows gaze at you from the stairway landing, lending the building an ecclesiastical air. Saint Joseph is on the left, the Virgin Mary in the middle, and on the right, in this exalted company, is she who would become the first American-born saint, Saint Elizabeth Ann Seton, This is, for me, the most intriguing portrayal of Elizabeth Seton. Her image in glass on a green background faces you. She looks directly at you. When you look carefully, you will see that the portrait is rendered so that there is a lead frame of green glass, exactly the same color and design as the background, forming a halo around her head. Seton Hall lore says that her nephew, Bishop Bayley, had a premonition that she would be a canonized saint, and that, at some future date, his successors would be able to remove the green glass and replace it with a golden and glorious halo. Fortunately, they have not done so and the window remains as a tribute to a nephew’s foresight and devotion.”  

The sanctity of Mother Seton’s life was sensed while she was alive, after her death and in the years that followed eventually leading to her canonization in 1975 by Pope St. Paul VI. This year we celebrate Fifty Years of her canonization as the first American born saint. 

The image on the left is from the shrine of St. Elizabeth Ann Seton found in the University Chapel. Countless students, faculty, staff and alumni have knelt before this image imploring the assistance of this heroic woman and being inspired by her holy life. At the altar of this shrine is a candle that burns to her 24/7 and a sign that reads, “May the example and prayers of Mother Seton enlighten the minds, hearts, and spirits of all who call this university home.” 

Finally, the third image on the right is a photo taken during Eucharistic Adoration in our Seminary Chapel of the Good Shepherd here on campus of the Monstrance that contains the Real Presence of Our Lord in the Host. In the conversion story of St. Elizabeth Ann Seton, it was through her understanding and love of Jesus in the Eucharist, realizing He is truly present in this sacrament, that led Mother Seton to embrace the Catholic faith. The Eucharist was central to her prayer life and the key to her holiness. All her activities were anchored in the Eucharist. Here on campus, we are privileged to have opportunities for Eucharistic Adoration both in the University Chapel and in the Seminary Chapel. 

Today’s Second Reading from the Letter of St. James reminds us to be patient until the coming of the Lord keeping our hearts firmly in the Lord. Holiness comes through patience. During this Advent Season, in what ways are we growing in holiness? Like St. Elizabeth Ann Seton, how are we welcoming the Lord into our lives especially as we get closer to the celebration of Christmas? May the holiness of St. Elizabeth Ann Seton inspire us in our own quest to be holy, with patience and perseverance.  

O God, who see how your people faithfully await the feast of the Lord's Nativity, enable us, we pray, to attain the joys of so great a salvation and to celebrate them always with solemn worship and glad rejoicing. Through our Lord Jesus Christ, your Son, who lives and reigns with you in the unity of the Holy Spirit, God, for ever and ever. (Roman Missal)

Rev. Dominic Ciriaco, Director of Preaching as Hospitality Formation Program and Adjunct Professor of Systematic Theology

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