St. Elizabeth

Elizabeth, mother of St. John the Baptist, was a cousin of the Blessed Virgin Mary and the wife of Zechariah of Judæa. All that is known of her appears in the first chapter of the Gospel according to St. Luke: "In the reign of Herod king of Judæa there was a priest named Zechariah" His wife, whose name was Elizabeth, was also of priestly descent. Both of them were upright and devout, blamelessly observing all the commandments and ordinances of the Lord. But they had no children, for Elizabeth was barren, and both were well on in years.

"Once, when it was the turn of his division and he [Zechariah] was there to take part in the temple service, he was chosen by lot, by priestly custom, to enter the sanctuary of the Lord and offer the incense; and at the hour of the offering the people were all assembled at prayer outside. There appeared to him an angel of the Lord, standing on the right of the altar of incense. At this sight, Zechariah was startled and overcome by fear. But the angel said to him, "Do not be afraid, Zechariah; your prayer has been heard: your wife Elizabeth will bear you a son, and you are to name him John. He will be great in the eyes of the Lord."

Zechariah questionied the truth of the angel's announcement and was struck speechless until the birth of John. Elizabeth did conceive and went into seclusion because she felt people would be critical of her being pregnant at her age.

Meanwhile, the angel Gabriel appeared to Elizabeth's cousin Mary and told her she was going to conceive a son by the power of the Holy Spirit. Mary went to visit her cousin Elizabeth. Again, in the words of Luke's Gospel: "And when Elizabeth heard Mary's greeting, the baby stirred in her womb. Then Elizabeth was filled with the Holy Spirit and exclaimed in a loud voice, "God's blessing is on you above all women, and his blessing is on the fruit of your womb. Who am I, that the mother of my Lord should visit me? I tell you, when your greeting sounded in my ears, the baby in my womb leapt for joy. Happy is she who has had faith that the Lord's promise to her would be fulfilled!" Mary then spoke the words we know as The Magnificat ("My soul doth magnify the Lord") which are often said or sung as a canticle in the service of Evening Prayer.

Elizabeth was canonized in 1263 at the request of St. Bonaventure, one of the most famous followers of St. Francis of Assisi. Her feast day, shared with Zechariah, is Nov. 5