Love for Jesus Christ

A distinguishing characteristic of Elizabeth Eppinger was her love for Jesus Christ. Already in her early childhood, she gave a privileged place to Jesus. She discovered Him step by step through the accounts of the Passion, which she attentively listened to. In her autobiography, she narrated that at the age of four, she was so moved by a conversation about the Passion of Christ that she had to cry at the thought of how Jesus had to suffer. The attraction for the crucified Jesus never left her again, and when she herself suffered most, she held a little crucifix in her hand. The teachings of the catechism have a great impact on her; the frequent meditations on the sufferings of the crucified Jesus gave rise to a more personal appropriation. One also has to admit that this parishioner eager to attend Divine service nourished her piety in this regard from ceremonies of the Holy Week or from devotions like the Stations of the Cross or the devotion to the Sacred Heart.
What is striking is the fact that the young Elizabeth was very sensitive to the aspect of atonement in the sufferings of Christ. She saw in them the expression of Christ’s love for man and she said in her own way that Jesus had died to compensate for the sins of man, to get from His Father forgiveness for our sins. She always repeated her faith in the mystery of Redemption and it occupied a central place in her meditations and her devotion.
Another distinguishing characteristic of the spiritual life of the Servant of God is her longing to be intimately united with Christ. Concerning this, she used different forms of expression.
When she spoke about prayer, she mentioned her wish to be before Jesus and to bless and praise His name all day long.
At Communion, she made the following request: “Oh my dear Jesus, now I have You in my heart. How long I have been sighing for You! But now You will stay in my heart, won’t You? Look, I give myself completely to You. You will embellish my heart with the virtues You like best, won’t You? Never again do I want to insult You, so help me always, my Jesus. Oh Mary, my dearest mother, help me adore my beloved Jesus, now I have received Him in my heart”. Thus, the feeling of Christ’s presence in her and the wish that this presence may last are expressed.
Sometimes she used a language which is more mystical when speaking about Christ, the Divine Spouse. Now we are in the domain of union of love. At her time according to the ideal of virginity under the direction of Father Reichard, she could regard herself as a “consecrated virgin”. Later, when she herself was a member of the Congregation of the Divine Savior, she could also claim this title of spouse of Christ and apply it to the other Sisters of the Congregation.
The Original Rule shows that Mother Alphonse Maria was very sensitive to “the merciful love of Jesus, who heals the sick and is attentive to the distressed calling for Him from the depth of their misery”.
Finally, the subject of “Christ, who lives in me”, which can be read between the lines in many passages, is clearly expressed in the Original Rule: “The spirit (of the Divine Savior) must animate (the Sisters of the Congregation), must penetrate them so that one can find it in every single one of their actions and words. In summary, they must be able to say with the Apostle: ‘It is no longer I, but Christ living in me’.”