Saint Elizabeth of the Trinity: The Complete Works, Vol. 1: Revised Edition (Major Spiritual Writings)

Saint Elizabeth of the Trinity (1880–1906) is a mystic for our times. She entered the Discalced Carmelite monastery in Dijon, France, at the age of twenty-one and died just five years later. In her short time as a Carmelite nun, she advanced profoundly in the spiritual life. Her spirituality is marked by her attention to the indwelling Trinity and her call to become a “praise of glory” for God. Her writings are imbued with biblical spirituality—especially the epistles of St. Paul—and an apostolic impetus to share the message of finding heaven on earth within the soul’s union with God.

This first of three volumes contains a biographical sketch, a general introduction to her complete works, and her major writings. The introductory material, as well as the critical notes throughout, were composed by her French biographer and editor, Father Conrad De Meester, O.C.D. The major writings included in this volume consist of two sets of retreats, “Heaven in Faith,” written for her younger sister just three months before her death, and “Last Retreat,” her expression of thirst for the love of God. Also included are “The Greatness of Our Vocation,” “Let Yourself Be Loved,” and her famous prayer, “O My God, Trinity Whom I Adore.”

This revised edition reflects the minor changes and corrections to the French critical edition since this translation’s first publication in 1984. The reissue of this volume under its new series title reflects the saint’s canonization in 2016 and anticipates the publication of the long-awaited third volume in 2025.

St. Elizabeth of the Trinity (Elizabeth Catez, 1880-1906): Elizabeth of the Trinity, who died in 1906 at the age of 26 in the Carmel of Dijon, is a mystic for our times, with a profound spirituality rooted not in visions and voices but in attention to the indwelling Trinity and in the call to become a "praise of glory" for God. Elizabeth Catez was born in 1880 in the diocese of Bourges in France. In 1901 she entered the Discalced Carmelite monastery of Dijon. There she made her profession of vows in 1903 and from there she was called to “light, love, and life” by the Divine Spouse in 1906. A faithful adorer in spirit and in truth, her life was a “praise of glory” of the Most Blessed Trinity present in her soul whom she loved amidst interior darkness and an excruciating illness. In the mystery of divine inhabitation, she found her “heaven on earth,” which was her special charism and her mission for the Church.