Who is Saint Thérèse de Lisieux?

St Thérèse the Little Flower of Jesus was canonized on May 17, 1925

There are three Saint Teresa’s that most of us have heard of. St. Thérèse the Little Flower of Jesus was named after St. Teresa of Avila, and St. Teresa of Calcutta (Mother Theresa) named herself after Saint Thérèse the Little Flower. All three Teresa’s loved Jesus tremendously and were devoted to His Blessed Mother. These great saints dedicated their lives to serving God.

From a very young age Thérèse knew she wanted to be a nun. Two of her sisters had entered the Carmel Monastery of the order of the Carmelites in the same village in France where their family lived. At that time it was normal to enter a monastery or convent when one reached adulthood but Thérèse had a great desire to leave her life behind and spend her days in prayer and service to others as a Carmelite Sister. Thérèse wanted to become a nun when she was only 12 years old but was not accepted due to her age. Then she had a chance to speak to Pope Leo the 13^th. St. Theresa tried to convince Pope Leo to help her by telling him that the Monastery of Carmel will surely accept her if his holiness would only recommender her! To her disappointment Pope Leo simple instructed Thérèse to do whatever the Superiors of Carmel may decide.

Thérèse was finally accepted to join the Carmelites. However Thérèse wasn’t given any special treatment or allowances due to her age. Thérèse had to obey some strict rules. In fact the Prioress of Carmel, Mother Gonzaga, was especially hard on her to make sure this was what Thérèse really wanted. Over the years she did every menial job she was told to do. Thérèse was extremely obedient.

Here’s an example of Thérèse’s uncomplaining obedience. None of the other Sisters wanted to eat leftovers that had been warmed up over and over, day after day but since Thérèse never complained she was always served the leftovers. Thérèse made sacrifices like this all the time. Thérèse believed in denying herself little pleasures. She didn’t seek praise or attention. She didn’t make excuses when she was reprimanded for doing something wrong. Neither did she deny having done wrong even when she was unjustly blamed.

Thérèse was always cheerful and smiling. When she was sick Thérèse was still patient and caring to those around her. She was concerned about the feelings of others and ignored her own concerns and difficulties. In the winter she was very cold, especially at night, but Thérèse never complained. She had trouble sleeping due to being extremely cold but she told no one. In fact Thérèse got so sick one winter that she died from tuberculosis. She was only 24 years old when she died.

It wasn’t until she was close to dying that the others knew how much she had been suffering. St Thérèse lived The Little Way and later she wrote about it. St Thérèse knew that after she died her writings would help many people. She made statements such as: "My mission to make God loved will begin after my death…" I will spend my heaven doing good on earth...” “Because I never did my will on earth, the good God will do all that I want in heaven...”

When I was young everyone I knew had heard of St. Thérèse. Every Church and Catholic school had statues or pictures of her. We had a picture of St. Therese in our home when I was growing up. I had a little statue of her in my bedroom. She was called the greatest Saint of the 20^th Century. But what made her such a great a saint?

1. She turned her will over to God. God asks all of us to do this.
2. She loved everyone no matter what. She looked for the good in everyone. We are to do this also.
3. She had a great devotion to our Blessed Mother. We would be wise to follow St. Thérèse in this devotion. “What a joy to remember that she is our Mother! Since she loves us and knows our weakness, what have we to fear?” St. Thérèse
4. She suffered very much but she combined her suffering with the suffering of Jesus. She accepted her suffering. This is difficult to do but we are to try.
5. She prayed day and night. She was always concerned about the poor souls in purgatory and when she knew she was dying she was especially concerned about those dying who were not in the state of grace. She prayed that they would turn to God. How much do we pray? Who do we pray for?
6. She was a great spiritual writer. In fact her writings were so great that she was made a Doctor of the Church. We would do well to read the story of her life (Story of a Soul) and learn of her teachings. “Love alone have I ever given to the good God; with love He will repay me.” St. Thérèse

St. Thérèse did all these things but what made her such a great saint compared to others? Think about the great saint Mother Teresa now called St. Teresa of Kolkata. She did so much good for so many people while St. Thérèse rarely left the monastery.

There are different kinds of saints; saints who do much for God by preaching the gospel and by helping the poor at home and in foreign missions; saints who become martyrs, dying for their belief in God. Many people live their lives for God as St. Thérèse did by giving up the world and joining an order of sisters or monks. These holy souls take vows of chastity, obedience, poverty and sometimes silence. They spend much time fasting and praying.

We are all called to be saints. God needs different kinds of saints to spread His love and mercy. The saints are an example for us. Just as Saint Teresa of Avila was an example for St. Thérèse, St Thérèse was an example for Mother Teresa.

Mother Teresa did so many great things and helped so many people. Mother Teresa and St. Teresa of Avila did many things that St. Thérèse could not do. Yet Mother Teresa adopted St. Thérèse’s Little Way to heaven. Though Mother Teresa had great responsibilities, Mother Teresa remembered that Jesus said we must be like a child to enter heaven. Through St. Thérèse, Mother Teresa learned how to abandon herself to Our Lord, to be as a little child who trusts completely in her parents; Mother Teresa learned to put all her trust in God, knowing that God would take care of her needs. By trusting in God Mother Teresa was able to receive help from people all over the world to care for the sick and dying. Mother Teresa didn’t even have to ask for money or ask people to come help her care for the sick and the dying because Mother Teresa trusted in God and God took care of these things for her. Mother Teresa followed the Little Way of St. Thérèse. “In this life we cannot do great things. We can only do small things with great love.” Mother Teresa.

St. Thérèse wanted to be a missionary. She came very close to being sent on a mission to the country that is now Viet Nam but she became too sick to go. Instead of becoming bitter about not being able to fulfill her dream she accepted God’s will. I believe St. Thérèse finally fulfilled her dream of becoming a missionary through Mother Teresa since in her missionary work, Mother Teresa followed the Little Way of St. Thérèse. I believe St. Thérèse gave Mother Teresa much consolation and help in Mother Teresa’s work with the poorest of the poor. I believe St. Thérèse gives missionaries all of the world consolation and support.

Because of her writings, St. Thérèse was declared a Doctor of the Church by Pope John Paul II in 1997. Every one of us can study and practice St. Therese’s Little Way and apply it in our lives whether we are out in the world bringing souls to God or spend most of our time praying and reading Holy Scripture.

What does it meant to be a Doctor of the Church? There are thousands of great writers throughout church history but only 35 are Doctors of the Church. The criteria for becoming a Doctor of the Church is based on what we can learn from them and their high level of holiness. To be a Doctor of the Church the writings of the saint must help us better understand a doctrine of the Church or give us a deeper understanding of one of the mysteries of Christ. The Catechism of the Catholic Church tells us that a Doctor of the Church must have a high degree of sanctity. St. Thérèse of the Child Jesus met both of these criteria and thus was declared a Doctor of the Church.

What is so great about her writings that she was declared a Doctor of the Church? St Thérèse helped many people prepare for heaven through her teachings. St. Thérèse wrote about which she called “The Little Way. St Thérèse knew she couldn’t do all those things that some of the great saints did. St. Thérèse often spoke to Jesus asking Jesus to help her and though she tells us that she never saw Jesus or heard His voice as some of the other saints did, Jesus always answered her when she asked for help. It was through Jesus that she was able to write about The Little Way.

We hear in the Gospels of Matthew and Mark how Jesus drew attention to the little children around him to teach us what we must do to get to heaven. Jesus spoke of the importance of becoming like little children.

“Amen, I say to you, unless you turn and become like children, you will not enter the kingdom of heaven. Whoever humbles himself like this child is the greatest in the kingdom of heaven. Matthew 18:3-5

Then children were brought to him that he might lay his hands on them and pray. The disciples rebuked them, but Jesus said, “Let the children come to me and do not prevent them; for the kingdom of God belongs to such as these. Matthew 19:13-14

“Let the children come to me; do not prevent them, for the kingdom of God belongs to such as these. Mark 10:15

When a child does something wrong he doesn’t do it to offend God. But if I break one of the commandments I know it’s going to offend God. That’s why I feel very sad when I go to Confession and remember my sins.

Since studying St. Thérèse’s Little Way I learned a lot about myself. I make mistakes all the time. People get frustrated with me but I don’t do these things to upset people on purpose. I desire to always do the right thing. When I was corrected for doing something wrong, I used to make excuses like I was tired or I didn’t know I was supposed to do that or my brain doesn’t work right. I used that last one a lot. It covered everything I did wrong but I try not to make excuses anymore. The reason I tell you this is because St. Thérèse Doctor of the Church helps me better understand the teachings of Jesus. “God would never inspire me with desires which cannot be realized; so in spite of my littleness, I can hope to be a saint.” St. Thérèse

I try to be perfect because I want to go to heaven. I know I’m far from perfect but Jesus knows how much I try. St. Thérèse helps me see that Jesus would not be so hard on a child. I realized that if I want to be with God for all eternity I need to have the heart of a child. My favorite beatitude has always been, “Blessed are the pure of heart for they shall see God.” After studying Thérèse’s Little Way I understand why this beatitude is my favorite. I need to be dependant on God as one who is pure of heart with pure intentions as one who trusts completely in God, as a trusting child.

If we believe the words of Jesus, if we believe Jesus spoke the truth, we will understand how extremely important St. Thérèse’s teaching of the Little Way is for us. Now I understand why Jesus told us “Amen, I say to you, unless you turn and become like children, you will not enter the kingdom of heaven.”

St. Thérèse wrote “Holiness consists simply in doing God's will, and being just what God wants us to be.”

I learned about love from St. Thérèse. Her whole life was motivated by her tremendous love of Our Lord and this spilled over unto everyone she came in contact with. She had no trouble being loving, kind and forgiving even to the most difficult people. St. Thérèse knew that to love God is the most important thing we will ever need to do. If we love and trust God then we are more inclined to love all people.

“Then, overcome by joy, I cried, 'Jesus, my love. At last I have found my vocation. My vocation is love. In the heart of the Church, my mother, I will be love, and then I will be all things.” “Do you realize that Jesus is there in the tabernacle expressly for you- for you alone? He burns with the desire to come into your heart… don’t listen to the demon, laugh at him, and go without fear to receive the Jesus of peace and love…” St. Thérèse

Most of the quotes of St. Thérèse are taken from her autobiography or from other writings such as letters she had written.