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This Present Paradise
Decades before Vatican II called for the sanctification of the laity, St. Elizabeth of the Trinity prophetically claimed that holiness is not exclusively the domain of priests and nuns but is truly for everyone. God created the human soul to be a special channel of His grace on earth and to serve as a unique image of His love. Few saints have spoken to hearts as acutely as St. Elizabeth of the Trinity, who has helped even the busiest, weariest, and most distracted of us create an inner chamber within our souls where we can rest in God s peace and love. In this tender yet powerful book, author Claire Dwyer takes you on a spiritual journey with this little-known but fast-ascending saint. She shows you how to overcome aridity in prayer and discover ways to bring peace to familial relationships. You will learn how to identify and fulfill the specific mission God has for you and how to draw courage and meaning from the inevitable sufferings you will face. Best of all, you will learn how to encounter and live in union with God, which opens up a sanctuary of peace within your soul. The purpose of your life is not something to discover in the remote future. You can begin to live your ultimate end union with the Trinity right now in the secret center of your heart, where the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit already dwell. St. Elizabeth of the Trinity has revealed the way. Read this book, and you will see with new eyes that your eternal destiny is already living within you, in this present paradise.
224 pages, Paperback
Published January 21, 2021
202 people are currently reading
670 people want to read
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 83 reviews
March 25, 2021
This is a book that I can see myself coming back to again and again. I loved reading about St. Elizabeth of the Trinity's life, and seeing how her way of living the faith can apply to my life, even though it is vastly different from hers. I found inspiration in her writings, and inspiration in Ms. Dwyer's reflections on St. Elizabeth. I underlined and notated a great deal in this book, so that I can come back to read portions again and again to bring to prayer.
The chapters are short, and take about 5 minutes to read. One could easily turn this into a daily retreat, reading and reflecting on a chapter a day. I read it with a small group of women, and we had beautiful and fruitful discussions about these chapters. I highly recommend this book for anyone looking to deepen her relationship with God.
The chapters are short, and take about 5 minutes to read. One could easily turn this into a daily retreat, reading and reflecting on a chapter a day. I read it with a small group of women, and we had beautiful and fruitful discussions about these chapters. I highly recommend this book for anyone looking to deepen her relationship with God.
March 26, 2021
This book quickly jumped to one of my favorite books. Ever since discovering St. Elizabeth of the Trinity I have had a very special devotion to her, and her insights on the spiritual life. What a spiritual renewal and joy this brought!
St. Elizabeth of the Trinity, pray for us!
St. Elizabeth of the Trinity, pray for us!
November 8, 2024
I read this veryyyy slowly. It was surprisingly engaging and challenging. The short chapters and reflections were good sized for meditation on afterwards. I really enjoyed meeting this new to me saint. I hope to come back to it again.
July 20, 2021
Short, profound insights from both the saint and the author. Many nuggets of wisdom and inspiration.
March 26, 2021
St. Elizabeth, you are the introduction to the Trinity and St. Therese that I needed! Thank you!
April 16, 2021
I am completely shook to my core, Saint Elizabeth of the Trinity is a hidden rockstar that came to me at just the right time in my life. Let me explain. Her whole mission on Earth was to make it known that Jesus lives within us (rather too in-your-face right?) WRONG —actually her Carmelite Spirituality cast vision for the laity in her life, and her teaching continued even after her death, that they could have intimacy with God in the same way that she did from a cloistered convent. Our Church wasn’t clear with us until the Second Vatican Council that this was a possibility. It was commonly thought that only priests, religious, or consecrated people shared in this type of intimacy — Saint Elizabeth was prophetic in her own time by saying this and John Paul II knew that when he beatified her.
This is something I’m so very passionate about — intimacy with God is for every single person. That kind of Spousal love that we think is only reserved for Heaven is trying to wake us up to the reality that Heaven is inside of us. Today, right now, God’s love is the only thing that is holding us up.
This is something I’m so very passionate about — intimacy with God is for every single person. That kind of Spousal love that we think is only reserved for Heaven is trying to wake us up to the reality that Heaven is inside of us. Today, right now, God’s love is the only thing that is holding us up.
March 13, 2021
Lenten Book Club Reading! Beautiful story of a beautiful soul inspiring and encouraging us on our own journey to Heaven. ...and let Him love you!
November 12, 2021
I was so excited after finishing this book, that I ordered a few more copies for my daughters to read. Claire Dwyer is a fabulous writer! The book has very short chapters, which are the perfect length to read when you don't have much time to read. I highly recommend this book--particularly for young women and mothers especially. Claire relates some of her own experience as a young Catholic mother and interweaves her biographical stories while recounting the experiences of young St. Elizabeth of the Trinity, a French Carmelite nun who also wrote beautifully of her experiences both before and in the convent. She died very young (only 26), but like that other young French Carmelite, St. Therese of Lisieux, she focused her short life on living totally for and with Christ. This book speaks profoundly of how we can learn from St. Elizabeth of the Trinity, to make our lives a union with Christ while we are still alive here on earth.
March 27, 2021
This book has been the preoccupation of my days this lent. It introduced me to a new-to-me saint - a young Carmelite who reminds me of St. Therese in some ways, but in others is delightfully herself. Each very short chapter is jam packed with rich food for thought: spiritual insight, biographical anecdotes, modern connections, reflection questions . . . Perfect for a daily devotional.
The Abiding Together podcast's six week study series has been a fruitful companion to this work. The ladies there have come to feel like friends over the past few years and the depth of their connections to this text really enriched my own.
Eager to read more from Claire in the future! Just wonderful.
The Abiding Together podcast's six week study series has been a fruitful companion to this work. The ladies there have come to feel like friends over the past few years and the depth of their connections to this text really enriched my own.
Eager to read more from Claire in the future! Just wonderful.
April 11, 2021
I journeyed with the Abiding Together ladies as well as a small group of ladies during Lent 2021. Claire had such a gift of bringing St. Elizabeth of the Trinity to light in a deep and personal yet simple way. On page 216 the whole book in my opinion can be summarized as this: Our universal vocation is to love. "Ask Him to make me live for love alone: this is my vocation," Elizabeth wrote, but even more fundamentally, it is to be loved. Our primary vocation is to be loved by God. What a radically freeing idea. If we simply allow God to love us, then we have done the most important work of our lives.
October 17, 2021
This was a beautiful book, and one I will revisit. The chapters are short but packed with inspiration and wisdom. It could easily be used as a 38 day at home book retreat, reading a chapter a day and journaling on the reflection questions at the end of each chapter. I highly recommend this book for women seeking to further develop their spiritual life and seeking was to enter their interior cloister even during the busy days and stages of life.
March 31, 2021
Awesome book explaining not only the life of St. Elizabeth of the Trinity but also filled with much of Claire Dwyer insights on life. So much great content on living the mundane in a holy way!
January 3, 2022
Such a beautiful read.
July 7, 2022
Absolutely incredible! The discussion questions were so good, very probing. Definitely not surface-level, but very deep yet practical. Highly recommend!!!
May 14, 2024
So good! Claire has a way to explain St. Elizabeth so well & I feel like I grew so much with this book!
March 24, 2021
An absolutely beautiful book about the life and writings of St. Elizabeth of the Trinity. Each chapter ends with applicable reflection questions for anyone at any stage in their faith-life. It was thought-provoking and awe-inspiring, yet exceptionally readable.
March 27, 2021
A lovely introduction to St. Elizabeth of the Trinity.
It's very easy to read and the author draws many parallels between St. Elizabeth's life in the late 1800's-early 1900's and our lives today.
It's very easy to read and the author draws many parallels between St. Elizabeth's life in the late 1800's-early 1900's and our lives today.
January 13, 2025
I am at a loss for words with what this means to me and has done for my prayer life. I wish everyone would read this book so I could talk about it forever.
August 30, 2024
One of the best books about a saint and her spirituality I have ever read. Truly enlightening. Perfect for prayerful reflection, adding to my go-tos for Eucharistic Adoration.
November 6, 2025
(Would be great for young adults)
March 28, 2021
St. Elizabeth is not a well-known saint. Claire Dwyer takes her life & intertwines present day life. It is a very good way to relate St. Elizabeth's life to ours. The chapter on darkness is one that I will bookmark & go back to. This book is very well written and inspires me to read more about St. Elizabeth!
March 30, 2021
I read this for Lent with the AbidingTogether podcast and some local friends. It is a book I will keep and come back to a reread, especially certain chapters. I now have a new love and devotion for St. Elizabeth of the Trinity.
April 18, 2021
I really appreciated this book. There is a great depth in its simplicity. It was a wonderful introduction to St. Elizabeth of the Trinity, but there are also so many gems that you can discover in the author's own experience. It was beautiful to see how God works in both of their lives, which enables the reader to really take the point or theme and make it their own.
This is definitely a book to pray with. I found myself torn between wanting to read and discover more and yet wanting to remain at a certain point longer in order to savor the depth and allow it to truly penetrate my heart and my relationship with God. As a result, I found myself highlighting and making notes throughout the text as I read - gems to return to in my prayer. I foresee myself rereading this book in another moment to continue deepening in certain aspects, allowing God the space to work.
As I have seen in many reviews, I started reading this book due to the Abiding Together Podcast Lenten Book Study in 2021. This was an excellent way to dive deeper into the content and allow it to feed my soul in many ways. I would highly recommend a reader to listen to that series as they read, in order to enrich their experience and prayer with the book, though it is not necessary.
As a writer and lover of words, I must also express the beauty with which this book is written. It's beauty, the wording, all help draw you deeper into the experience of God and entering into that Cloister of the Heart, the place where He dwells within us.
This is definitely a book to pray with. I found myself torn between wanting to read and discover more and yet wanting to remain at a certain point longer in order to savor the depth and allow it to truly penetrate my heart and my relationship with God. As a result, I found myself highlighting and making notes throughout the text as I read - gems to return to in my prayer. I foresee myself rereading this book in another moment to continue deepening in certain aspects, allowing God the space to work.
As I have seen in many reviews, I started reading this book due to the Abiding Together Podcast Lenten Book Study in 2021. This was an excellent way to dive deeper into the content and allow it to feed my soul in many ways. I would highly recommend a reader to listen to that series as they read, in order to enrich their experience and prayer with the book, though it is not necessary.
As a writer and lover of words, I must also express the beauty with which this book is written. It's beauty, the wording, all help draw you deeper into the experience of God and entering into that Cloister of the Heart, the place where He dwells within us.
January 13, 2023
3.5 ⭐️
Buen libro pero esperaba más, me lo habían pintado mejor. Aunque tuve luces que me ayudaron mucho.
El libro te va contando la historia de santa Elizabeth. Cada capítulo tiene preguntas buenas y concretas para reflexionar e ir a la oración.
Es muy interesante conocer la vida de una santa que se le adelantó muchos años al concilio Vaticano II.
Me recordó que los santos también fueron humanos.
Me impresionan los corazones de los santos. Si conocemos sus escritos y nos sorprenden con sus vidas y sus legados, no me imagino si los hubiéramos podido ver rezar en vivo.
La clave con estos libros siempre es rezarlos.
“Our primary vocation is to be loved by God. What a radically freeing idea. If we simply allow God to love us, the we have done the most important work of our lives.”
Buen libro pero esperaba más, me lo habían pintado mejor. Aunque tuve luces que me ayudaron mucho.
El libro te va contando la historia de santa Elizabeth. Cada capítulo tiene preguntas buenas y concretas para reflexionar e ir a la oración.
Es muy interesante conocer la vida de una santa que se le adelantó muchos años al concilio Vaticano II.
Me recordó que los santos también fueron humanos.
Me impresionan los corazones de los santos. Si conocemos sus escritos y nos sorprenden con sus vidas y sus legados, no me imagino si los hubiéramos podido ver rezar en vivo.
La clave con estos libros siempre es rezarlos.
“Our primary vocation is to be loved by God. What a radically freeing idea. If we simply allow God to love us, the we have done the most important work of our lives.”
May 1, 2021
This book is for Mommies only
This book is not written in the third person. It is written in the first person. It is directed to mothers. The author gives retreats to women.If you enjoy Mommy blogs you might find this interesting. Men are simply excluded from the author's thoughts.By the time I got to 40 percent rear the author just totally abandoned St Elizabeth and just wrote on and on about her life How she left her purse in a shopping cart, how she had to cut short her prayer time to pick up cheerios from the floor. On and on. I will buy a copy of St. Elizabeth's writings. Each chapter ends with questions for reflection. Author clearly intended this book to be read by a women's group.
This book is not written in the third person. It is written in the first person. It is directed to mothers. The author gives retreats to women.If you enjoy Mommy blogs you might find this interesting. Men are simply excluded from the author's thoughts.By the time I got to 40 percent rear the author just totally abandoned St Elizabeth and just wrote on and on about her life How she left her purse in a shopping cart, how she had to cut short her prayer time to pick up cheerios from the floor. On and on. I will buy a copy of St. Elizabeth's writings. Each chapter ends with questions for reflection. Author clearly intended this book to be read by a women's group.
December 10, 2024
Have you ever wondered if God sees your suffering, if our suffering means anything at all, or even if suffering has a purpose? How much does faith play into salvation if you feel nothing at all when prayer has become like sand in your mouth? How does Good see us when we fall again and again and still keep falling? Do you really "get points for trying"? What happens when all of this befalls us, yet our eyes still remain on the cross, and we offer ourselves back to God? Can you even DO that???
If you have a broken heart and a broken will and you're dying inside, be assured that a little Carmalite Nun in France knew exactly how you feel. This is not the end of you, it's the beginning.
Read the last chapter, Chapter 38, first.
If you have a broken heart and a broken will and you're dying inside, be assured that a little Carmalite Nun in France knew exactly how you feel. This is not the end of you, it's the beginning.
Read the last chapter, Chapter 38, first.
April 12, 2021
This book really made Carmelite spirituality come to life for me. Specifically, I felt really drawn to the presentation of St. Elizabeth of the Trinity's understanding of the indwelling of the Trinity in each soul and the ability to find God in the midst of everyday life by developing an cloistered heart. Reminds me of Catherine Dougherty's "Poustinia," which also emphasizes the accessibility of contemplative prayer and a quiet spirit amidst the chaos of the world.
Claire Dwyer does a wonderful job of presenting St. Elizabeth's life and writings as simple and accessible yet richly profound. I appreciated that each chapter has a stand-alone theme, with quotes from other saints and holy men and women interspersed (including some of St. John Paul II's poetry!) to create a well-rounded portrait of St. Elizabeth's passion for living out one's personal vocation with great devotion.
Claire Dwyer does a wonderful job of presenting St. Elizabeth's life and writings as simple and accessible yet richly profound. I appreciated that each chapter has a stand-alone theme, with quotes from other saints and holy men and women interspersed (including some of St. John Paul II's poetry!) to create a well-rounded portrait of St. Elizabeth's passion for living out one's personal vocation with great devotion.
December 30, 2022
I had never heard of St. Elizabeth of the Trinity before I picked up this book, but have come to love her as one of my favorite Saints after reading this beautiful treasure! The book is broken down into 38 accessible sections of a few pages each, which are perfect to read daily and savor the wisdom and beautiful found in each one throughout the day. Would especially recommend this to wives and mothers as the author weaves stories from her own life in this vocation. Although a Carmelite nun, St. Elizabeth makes it clear that holiness is not just for religious but for all of us. Can't recommend this book more!
April 15, 2021
I haven’t really dedicated time to learning about the lives of any saints and I have never heard of St. Elizabeth of the Trinity. I have Abiding Together Podcast to thank for inspiring me to pick up this book they chose for a Lenten study :) I really enjoyed reading the excerpts St Elizabeth’s letters, she wrote so beautifully of her love for God! And Claire Dwyer is great too, loved how she weaved her personal stories into themes from St. Elizabeth’s writing. Overall, I really enjoyed this book.
February 3, 2024
This book is such a treasure trove of truth and beauty. I didn’t know anything about St. Elizabeth of the Trinity but she just became my new favorite saint.
Claire Dwyer is a talented writer and managed to introduce me to this saint by painting a vivid portrait of her life (including sharing much of her writings) and at the same time write a book that is incredibly personal and filled with so many invitations for one’s own deeper spiritual growth.
It’s a book that is very easy but also is a book I know I’ll go back to again and again to keep gleaming new pieces of wisdom from.
Claire Dwyer is a talented writer and managed to introduce me to this saint by painting a vivid portrait of her life (including sharing much of her writings) and at the same time write a book that is incredibly personal and filled with so many invitations for one’s own deeper spiritual growth.
It’s a book that is very easy but also is a book I know I’ll go back to again and again to keep gleaming new pieces of wisdom from.
Displaying 1 - 30 of 83 reviews