The Secret Diary of Elisabeth Leseur: The Woman Whose Goodness Changed Her Husband from Atheist to Priest

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Summary: The Secret Diary of Elisabeth Leseur
Review: 'My Spirit Rejoices'& 'Light in the Darkness'
or 'The Secret Diary of Elisabeth Leseur' - Sophia Institute Press

It is not often that one finds a book of such vital import that it changes one's life. But the journal kept by Elisabeth Leseur is surely one of the most compelling books I have read in many years. It ranks with the great works of the Carmelite Saints: St. Teresa of Avila, St. John of the Cross, and St. Therese of Lisieux.

For many years now I have kept Elisabeth as my companion during Lent; a great Spiritual Director in an age of darkness. She holds the light of Eternal Truth and points out the way with calm assurance.

Elisabeth experienced an extreme degree of spiritual isolation owing to the timbre of her times in Paris high society. Her husband was aggressively atheist, as were many of his friends and associates. She kept the love of God deep in her heart, and it was to the Heart of Jesus to whom she turned for daily solace.

At Elisabeth's death her husband, Felix, found her secret journal; and as he read the pages of the journal, his heart turning to remorse, the last vestige of his hatred for the Catholic Church was swept away in the tide of his beloved wife's counsel. Reconciling to the Church, Felix Leseur entered a seminary and became a Catholic priest. Elisabeth's cause for Canonization is now open at the Vatican.