1 October: Saint Therese of the Child Jesus, Doctor of the Church
The “Little way” within anyone’s reach
Pope Pius XI described Saint Therese of the Child Jesus and the Face as “the star of my pontificate”. He beatified her on 29 April 1923 and canonized her on Sunday, 17 May 1925, in the Basilica of Saint Peter, before a crowd of some 50,000 faithful, most of whom could not find room inside the Vatican Basilica. On that occasion, the Pontiff underlined that, “aware of her own frailty, she confidently entrusted herself to divine Providence so that, leaning solely on its help, she could attain perfect holiness of life, even through bitter difficulties, having decided to strive for it with the total and joyful abdication of her own will”.
Who was Therese, this saint who became extremely popular and known throughout the world, and is the Universal Patroness of the Missions, Secondary Patroness of France and Doctor of the Church? She certainly did not live a long life. She only lived to be 24, 10 years of which, she spent in the Carmel of Lisieux, a monastery on the outskirts of a place unknown to the world. When she was buried in the cemetery of Lisieux, she was accompanied by less than 50 people. The comparison with the 50,000 faithful who went to Rome for her canonization is cause for reflection.
What is thus the secret of her holiness? In order to understand it, we have to travel back in time. How far did Little Thérèse Françoise Marie Martin travel! She was born in Alençon, Normandy, on 2 January 1873, to a couple who worked in jewelry. Ever since she was a little girl, she had expressed the desire to become a nun at the Carmel of Lisieux, like her sisters Pauline and Marie, but she was too young. However, when she was 14 years old, she took part in a pilgrimage to Italy with the Diocese of Lisieux. After visiting the Holy House of Loreto and many places in Rome, the pilgrims were received in audience by Leo XIII on 20 November 1887. Therese courageously asked the Pope if she could enter the Carmel at the age of 15. The Pontiff replied that she would be able to do so if it was God’s will.
Her dream came true on 9 April 1888, when she was welcomed into the Carmel of Lisieux, where on 10 January of the following year, she professed her vows. On 9 June 1895, on the solemnity of the Most Holy Trinity, she offered herself as a holocaust victim to Merciful Love. Meanwhile, out of obedience, she wrote the first manuscript of her autobiography which she delivered to Mother Agnes of Jesus, her sister Pauline, on her name day, on 21 January 1896.
Perhaps Therese’s widespread fame of holiness is a result of her spiritual diary, which she began to write at the request of her sister. It would later become famous as the Story of a Soul, with the subtitle, “Story of the Springtime of a Little White Flower. Despite the romanticism suggested by the title, the description of the journey to holiness she described, had nothing to do with Romanticism. One can perceive instead, an itinerary marked by suffering, by difficulties and by misunderstandings, not to mention, her sickness, tuberculosis, which soon led to her death.
In this human scenario, there is the presence of God’s love, which shook her life. The frail Therese discovered that she was no longer alone, no longer a poor creature, beaten by the waves of adversity, but a giant in the faith. The certainty of being infinitely loved by the Lord made her an alter Christus. She no longer feared those who wanted to hurt her or cause her to suffer. She no longer had the need for anything because it was enough to have found Jesus Christ, the only love of her life. She no longer feared pain and death because she knew that God’s Providential plan has its roots in love. Whatever situation, even the worst kind, she would have to face in the future, she knew that she could not escape the hand of the Father who is in Heaven. This is why, she put love at the centre of her life, and made it the fulcrum of her spirituality.
She transformed this attitude in her spiritual childhood, as a proposal accessible to all souls, even the most simple and humble ones. It is the “little way”, which gets its strength from unconditional trust in God and from the security that the Father loves his children without reserve. It consists in searching for holiness, not in grand actions, but in daily actions, even the most insignificant ones, carried out for love of God.
After all, Therese of the Child Jesus knew that God not only dwells in the depth of our hearts, but is everywhere, even among the pans in the kitchens. No place and no situation are unknown to the Lord, as Therese wrote in Book of the Foundations: “Know that even when you are in the kitchen, Our Lord is moving among the pots and pans”.
Therese of Lisieux’s decision to invite everyone to choose “the little way of trust and love” arises from this line of thinking. It is not by chance that the Story of Souls, which is divided into three manuscripts, has been translated into 35 languages and is read across the continents. This is because Therese speaks to the heart, invites us to have trust and to never despair. Her message is for all the ages, for men and women of all cultures, religions and race. She highlighted that “Joy is not found in the objects around us, it is found in the innermost part of the soul, it can be possessed as well in a prison as in a palace “ (Manuscript A, 65).
Hers is an invitation to joy, to the certainty of already having won the battle against death because Christ is risen. And thus, even an unknown cloistered monastery in a location on the outskirts, can become a place that radiates light and peace. And a contemplative nun ignored by the world can spiritually help missionaries carry out their apostolate on the other side of the world. It is precisely because of this zeal for the Church and for evangelization, in order to bring Christ’s announcement to the world, that Pope Pius XI proclaimed her Universal Patroness of the Missions, along with Saint Francis Xavier, on 14 December 1927.
When she became sick with tuberculosis, she wrote her third Manuscript, C, dedicated to her Prioress, Mother Marie de Gonzague. On 8 July 1897, she was moved to the infirmary. Filled with pain and in the midst of the worst of trials, she died in the afternoon of 30 September 1897. Therese’s last words are a guarantee and a comfort to all men and women who have yet to have their definitive encounter with Christ.: “Oh My God, I…love…Thee!... I will return to earth to make love loved. After my death, I will send a rain of roses. I want to spend my heaven doing good on earth”.