#i always loved the bread and roses story as a child

St. Elizabeth, who gave without reserve to those in need, pray for us, that we too might serve our brothers and sisters with generous hearts.

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The roses on Elizabeth’s dress represent the Miracle of the Roses attributed to her. One day, Elizabeth was secretly carrying bread to the poor when she was stopped by a relative—sometimes identified as her husband, other times her brother-in-law—who, thinking she was stealing from the castle, demanded to see what she hid beneath her cloak. When she opened it, God had miraculously transformed the bread into roses. Her charitable work continued.

Whether or not this story is true, Elizabeth’s life is an example to us of generosity and service. She did not regard her noble status as an excuse to ignore the suffering of others, and she used her own wealth, including her dowry money, to care for the poor and the sick, and even to build a hospital, which she herself worked in.