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Gospel: Mark 6:34-44
When Jesus saw the vast crowd, his heart was moved with pity for them,
for they were like sheep without a shepherd;
and he began to teach them many things.
By now it was already late and his disciples approached him and said,
“This is a deserted place and it is already very late.
Dismiss them so that they can go
to the surrounding farms and villages
and buy themselves something to eat.”
He said to them in reply,
“Give them some food yourselves.”
But they said to him,
“Are we to buy two hundred days’ wages worth of food
and give it to them to eat?”
He asked them, “How many loaves do you have? Go and see.”
And when they had found out they said,
“Five loaves and two fish.”
So he gave orders to have them sit down in groups on the green grass.
The people took their places in rows by hundreds and by fifties.
Then, taking the five loaves and the two fish and looking up to heaven,
he said the blessing, broke the loaves, and gave them to his disciples
to set before the people;
he also divided the two fish among them all.
They all ate and were satisfied.
And they picked up twelve wicker baskets full of fragments
and what was left of the fish.
Those who ate of the loaves were five thousand men.
The Gospel of the Lord.
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Saint Elizabeth Ann Seton, whose feast day we celebrate today, is the first American-born Saint.
Born into a wealthy Episcopal family in New York City, her life was a series of ups and downs, of heartache and hope.
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Her mom died when she was three. Her younger sister died a year later.
She was married at the age of 19, but became a penniless widow with five children to raise by the age of 28.
Once filled with fortune and promise, Elizabeth’s life seemed to have reached a dead end.
But she knew that God wasn’t finished with her just yet.
Shortly after the death of her husband, she made a leap of faith, converting to Catholicism and becoming a nun. This decision led to a series of firsts.
She established the first American convent for nuns, the first Catholic school, and the first Catholic orphanage in the United States. She also became the namesake of my alma mater, Seton Hall University.
One act of faith led to another…and another….and another. By the end of her life, she changed thousands of lives for the better.
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So, what can Elizabeth Ann Seton teach us today?
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God always has a plan for our lives. Think of Elizabeth when she was penniless with five children at the age of 28. She had nothing – but she turned to Jesus.
That decision led to life in abundance.
The same can be true for us. When one door closes, another one can open. But sometimes a leap of faith is needed.
As the old saying goes, “Leap and the net will appear.”
God will never let us down.
Saint Elizabeth Ann Seton, pray for us.
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Image credits: (1) Allegro Design (2) Catholic Online, Elizabeth Ann Seton (3) Family Tree Acupuncture