Born in 1207, Elizabeth was the daughter of the king of Hungary. She moved to Marburg, Germany, where she dedicated herself to the Franciscan ideal of poverty. Once, after helping sick people in her Marburg hospital, Elizabeth is said to exclaimed, “How happy for us to have the honor of bathing our Lord and covering him!”
Elizabeth of Hungary’s desire to help and her willingness to take risks is still relatable for many modern servant-leaders. She put her money where her beliefs were. She seemed outraged by the huge gap in resources – the hungry, poor, sick people just beyond the castle’s gates. People weren’t being cared for and she thought that was scandalous. So she helped them. She did it herself. She didn’t say, “Let’s send somebody.” What we profess as Christians is what she did.
This excerpt is from “Remembering Elizabeth of Hungary” by Karris Golden in the November 2016 Gather magazine. Today we commemorate Elizabeth of Hungary, renewer of society, 1231.
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