Elizabeth of Reute, T.O.R., (also known as ''Betha the Good; Betha von Reute; Elisabeth Acheer; Elisabeth Achlin; Elisabeth Bona von Reute; Elisabeth den Gode; Elisabeth the Good; Elizabeth Acheer; Elizabeth of Reute; Elizabeth the Good; Elizabeth the Recluse; Elsbeth Achler; Elsbeth Achlin; Elsbeth von Reute''; 25 November 1386 – 25 November 1420) was a German Franciscan

Tertiary Tertiary (from Latin, meaning 'third' or 'of the third degree/order..') may refer to: * Tertiary period, an obsolete geologic period spanning from 66 to 2.6 million years ago * Tertiary (chemistry), a term describing bonding patterns in organic ch ...

sister A sister is a woman or a girl who shares parents or a parent with another individual; a female sibling. The male counterpart is a brother. Although the term typically refers to a familial relationship, it is sometimes used endearingly to ref ...

who is

venerated Veneration (; ), or veneration of saints, is the act of honoring a saint, a person who has been identified as having a high degree of sanctity or holiness. Angels are shown similar veneration in many religions. Veneration of saints is practiced, ...

as a mystic and as having borne the

stigmata Stigmata (, plural of , 'mark, spot, brand'), in Roman Catholicism, Catholicism, are bodily wounds, scars and pain which appear in locations corresponding to the Crucifixion of Jesus, crucifixion Five Holy Wounds, wounds of Jesus in Christian ...

Life

Elizabeth was born on 25 November 1386, to Hans and Anna Achler in Waldsee in the region of

Upper Swabia Upper Swabia ( or ) is a region in Germany in the federal states of Baden-Württemberg and Bavaria.''Brockhaus Enzyklopädie.'' 19. Auflage. Band 16, 1991, p. 72. The name refers to the area between the Swabian Jura, Lake Con ...

(an historic and linguistic region in Germany). She was raised in a pious home, hearing the

Gospels Gospel originally meant the Christian message (" the gospel"), but in the second century AD the term (, from which the English word originated as a calque) came to be used also for the books in which the message was reported. In this sen ...

explained to her by her mother in the form of stories, where she developed a strong devotion to the

Passion of Christ The Passion (from latin language, Latin , "to suffer, bear, endure") is the short final period before the death of Jesus in Christianity, Jesus, described in the four canonical gospels. It is commemorated in Christianity every year during Holy ...

. She became a member of the

Third Order of St. Francis The Third Order of Saint Francis, or Franciscan Tertiaries, is the third order of the Franciscan tradition of Christianity, founded by the medieval Italian Catholic friar Francis of Assisi. Francis founded the Third Order, originally called t ...

at the age of fourteen. Seeking to further her spiritual growth, she took as her

confessor In a number of Christian traditions, including Eastern Orthodoxy, Catholicism, Lutheranism and Anglicanism, a confessor is a priest who hears the confessions of penitents and pronounces absolution. History During the Diocletianic Persecut ...

the

provost Provost may refer to: Officials Ecclesiastic * Provost (religion), a high-ranking church official * Prince-provost, a high-ranking church official Government * Provost (civil), an officer of local government, including the equivalent ...

of the local

Canonry Canon () is a Christian title usually used to refer to a member of certain bodies in subject to an canon law, ecclesiastical rule. Originally, a canon was a cleric living with others in a clergy house or, later, in one of the houses within the p ...

of St. Peter in Waldsee, Konrad Kügelin. Under his guidance, she and several other girls who belonged to that Franciscan fraternity sought to follow a more intense experience of their Franciscan

vocation A vocation () is an Work (human activity), occupation to which a person is especially drawn or for which they are suited, trained or qualified. Though now often used in non-religious contexts, the meanings of the term originated in Christianity. ...

. To this end, they acquired a house in Reute on the outskirts of Waldsee in 1403. This community was a proto-monastery of the Order, as tertiaries of the

mendicant order Mendicant orders are primarily certain Catholic religious orders that have vowed for their male members a lifestyle of poverty, traveling, and living in urban areas for purposes of preaching, evangelization, and ministry, especially to less we ...

s had not yet been allowed to profess vows. Elizabeth threw herself into a life of prayer and service, working in the cloister kitchen and in the garden, where she would spend long hours in prayer.Mershman, Francis. "Blessed Elizabeth of Reute." The Catholic Encyclopedia
Vol. 5. New York: Robert Appleton Company, 1909. 18 June 2016 She was known for her hospitality to visitors to the little monastery, especially for her concern for the poor who came to the gate to beg. Her love of the

Blessed Sacrament The Eucharist ( ; from , ), also called Holy Communion, the Blessed Sacrament or the Lord's Supper, is a Christian rite, considered a sacrament in most churches and an ordinance in others. Christians believe that the rite was instituted by J ...

was so great that she lived the last twelve years of her life subsisting solely on the consecrated hosts. She died on her birthday in 1420. Her head is said to have shown the marks of the

crown of thorns According to the New Testament, a woven crown of thorns ( or ) was placed on the head of Jesus during the Passion of Jesus, events leading up to his crucifixion of Jesus, crucifixion. It was one of the Arma Christi, instruments of the Passion, e ...

worn by

Christ Jesus ( AD 30 or 33), also referred to as Jesus Christ, Jesus of Nazareth, and many other names and titles, was a 1st-century Jewish preacher and religious leader. He is the Jesus in Christianity, central figure of Christianity, the M ...

, and her body the marks of Christ's

scourging A scourge is a whip or lash, especially a multi-thong type, used to inflict severe corporal punishment or self-mortification. It is usually made of leather. Etymology The word is most commonly considered to be derived from Old French ''escorgie ...

. Although

only occasionally appeared on her hands, she always felt its pain. She was credited with the gift of

prophecy In religion, mythology, and fiction, a prophecy is a message that has been communicated to a person (typically called a ''prophet'') by a supernatural entity. Prophecies are a feature of many cultures and belief systems and usually contain di ...

foretelling the election of

Pope Martin V Pope Martin V (; ; January/February 1369 – 20 February 1431), born Oddone Colonna, was the head of the Catholic Church and ruler of the Papal States from 11 November 1417 to his death in February 1431. His election effectively ended the We ...

and the end of the Great

Western Schism The Western Schism, also known as the Papal Schism, the Great Occidental Schism, the Schism of 1378, or the Great Schism (), was a split within the Catholic Church lasting from 20 September 1378 to 11 November 1417, in which bishops residing ...

Veneration

She was buried in the

parish church A parish church (or parochial church) in Christianity is the Church (building), church which acts as the religious centre of a parish. In many parts of the world, especially in rural areas, the parish church may play a significant role in com ...

of Reute. A

biography A biography, or simply bio, is a detailed description of a person's life. It involves more than just basic facts like education, work, relationships, and death; it portrays a person's experience of these life events. Unlike a profile or curri ...

of her was written by Kügelin, her confessor, and sent to the Bishop of

Konstanz Konstanz ( , , , ), traditionally known as Constance in English, is a college town, university city with approximately 83,000 inhabitants located at the western end of Lake Constance in the Baden-Württemberg state of south Germany. The city ho ...

. However, popular veneration for Elizabeth occurred only after 1623, when her tomb was opened by the then-provost of Waldsee.

Miracle A miracle is an event that is inexplicable by natural or scientific lawsOne dictionary define"Miracle"as: "A surprising and welcome event that is not explicable by natural or scientific laws and is therefore considered to be the work of a divi ...

s were attributed to her, which were compiled into a formal document by a contemporary canon, Heinrich Scheffler (d. 1635).Klöster

Pope Clement XIII Pope Clement XIII (; ; 7 March 1693 – 2 February 1769), born Carlo della Torre di Rezzonico, was head of the Catholic Church and ruler of the Papal States from 6 July 1758 to his death in February 1769. He was installed on 16 July 1758. ...

officially approved her ''cultus'' on 19 June 1766. Her

feast day The calendar of saints is the traditional Christian method of organizing a liturgical year by associating each day with one or more saints and referring to the day as the feast day or feast of said saint. The word "feast" in this context does n ...

is celebrated in Germany on 25 November.

References

External links

Patron Saints: Elizabeth Achler
{{DEFAULTSORT:Elizabeth Of Reute 1386 births 1420 deaths People from Bad Waldsee German beatified people Franciscan beatified people Nuns of the Franciscan Third Order Regular Stigmatics 14th-century venerated Christians 15th-century venerated Christians