| Author: Sheila M. Coyle
Originally Published on: July 1, 2000
Used with permission from the author.
A little girl
named Therese is dying on a cold night in France.
Candles flicker
in the brick home, rain splattering against the windowpanes in the
downstairs sickroom. Therese's sisters, Celine, Leonie, and Marie
kneel by ten year-old Therese's bedside, whispering prayers, tears
flowing down their cheeks. Upstairs, in his study Louis Martin struggles
to accept God's will. How could he bear another loss? He and his
wife Zelie had lost four children, his daughter Pauline was gone,
having entered the convent, and his beloved wife...he shook his
head, unable to bear the memory of her sudden death.
His footsteps,
a sign of his dragging pain, are heavy on the staircase. Yet, in
a strange way it was almost as if Zelie was with him now in his
moment of great sorrow. Therese, the baby of the family...no...he
could not bear this alone. That is why Zelie came to him, joining
her husband and daughters in prayer in the sickroom.
Louis, a gentle,
reverent man, strokes her smooth brown bun tied at the nape of her
neck. Her busy hands, those of an accomplished lace-maker, the best
in the lace-making city of Alencon, are stilled in prayer. His attention
is distracted, and Louis is running his fingers through his beard,
his gaze wandering to the blue and white statue of The Blessed Mother
on a wooden table next to Therese's bed. Neither Zelie nor Louis
Martin know that a miracle is about to take place in that obscure
tiny place with flickering shadows dancing into a fast fading night...
Yes, dear readers, this is just a little part of the story of
St. Therese of Lisieux, affectionately called "The Little Flower"
for her promise of one day showering her love of roses from heaven
to those who seek her intercession. And just as Zelie and Louis
Martin did not know that little Therese would be a saint, neither
did Therese know her shower of roses and her smile would be known
throughout the entire world!
Her faith, however,
was fostered at an early age by the good example of her parents
and their devotion to family and their religion. Therese was the
youngest of five daughters, four of whom entered the Carmel at Lisieux,
one entering the Visitandine Order. Therese spent her childhood
in a vine-covered brick, white-shuttered home surrounded by stone-walled
gardens of pink, yelllow and white roses in the charming French
countryside of Lisieux, France. Her life seems to be idyllic with
devoted sisters and a doting father, and the early example of a
hard-working mother with rarely a moment to spare as owner of a
successful lace-making business. Louis Martin eventually left his
enterprises to help his wife in managing her business.
His fatherly devotion to family perhaps fostered the deep love
Therese and her sisters had for Louis Martin, throughout their whole
lives. And it seemed to be through this fatherly example that this
family of religious based their love and faith in God. How else
can children, or anyone, relate to the love of their heavenly Father,
or Jesus, or a spiritual form of belief such as nature and the signal
of the wind whistling through the trees, if not taught that love
and reverence through the power of example?
However, this
family full of happy outings and visits from cousins and friends,
and picnics in the countryside was marked by suffering as well,
not unlike any other family that has ever existed in the world,
or in the world to come. You can imagine that stormy night and Louis
Martin, confused and uncertain, afraid of what would happen to Therese,
fading in and out of consciousness. Even with his strong religious
beliefs and this family he took so much pride in, how would he cope
if Therese drew her last breath before the light of dawn?
And what did
happen that night?
Therese was to
remember later, that in one of her moments of consciousness she
became aware of her sisters praying beside her, next to the statue
of Our Lady. Therese's feverish red-streaked eyes turned toward
the statue, the blue and white figure taking on a soft, floating
form focusing in Therese's gaze into the beautiful figure of a smiling
woman, the movement of her blue gown and the flow of her veil outlined
in a soft white light standing against the darkness of the night.
Therese gasped! Her heavenly Mother was visiting her graces upon
this child and in that moment in the month of May, Therese was cured
of her sickness and fever.
Therese would
never forget what her Blessed Mother did for her, and Therese, as
one receiving such a great grace, eventually wanted to pass it on
to the whole world. But the way was not easy for this child who,
at the age of 15 wanted to follow her sisters into the Carmel.
This part if
her life and her struggles to enter Carmel, even going so far as
seeking and obtaining an audience with the Holy Pontiff in Rome
at that time, is well known and commonly associated with the story
of The Little Flower, Therese. What is not so easily understood
when looking at the life of many saints, is their longing for mystical
union, as it was with Therese and her "Jesus." The spirituality
that perhaps only the very simple can live, or theologians can explain.
But it is spirituality with a communion of deep love for God, and
neighbor.
Therese had a
great love for humanity. She wanted to be a priest, a natural fulfullment
to such love as the heart of a priest belongs to everyone, yet no
one, as I once heard a priest explain the vocation of priesthood.
Yet for a young girl, who due to her determination finally did enter
the Carmel at fifteen, and for a woman who lived in the 1800's,
the desire for priesthood was an extraordinary statement. And it
appears from her writings that if she had lived she fully expected
to be a missionary priest. She also declared that she wanted to
be a great saint, which put off more than one confessor and her
superiors in Carmel. However, they did not see that Therese wanted
to be great for God, not for herself. In that sense it was natural
for her to declare her desires.
In the Carmel
she taught the novices her "little" way, a hidden path
of obedience, and small sacrifices made with patience, great things,
not big things, done for God. She fell ill, praying for priests
and their mission, and missionaries of the world. Perhaps it was
these prayers that eventually carried her mission of love around
the world in a way she could never imagine. Therese died in the
Carmel at the age of twenty-four on September 30, 1897.
God gives gifts
to His chosen ones or those who seek Him or their personal Jesus,
or light of love. His answers to prayer are not set within the boundaries
of earthly time and Therese's life is proof of it. Can you wait
for the promise of what is yours, as Therese is now showering her
roses from heaven to those who seek her intercession?
Saint Therese,
if you ask her, will take an interest in your life. Not only to
intercede for you to God, to one day go to heaven, but she is concerned
about your earthly problems as well. The saints walked this earth,
struggling with human concerns such as sickness, misunderstanding,
alienation, and the daily struggles of getting along with others
at the office or while shopping at the market, and the sometimes
delicate nature of family problems.
Yes, they lived
life just as you and I try to live it, this is why it is such a
popular practice to pray for their intercession. Sometimes in life
we get angry at God, losing the focus of our spirituality. It is
easier to relate using the example of those who once walked by His
side. The saints were priviledged to do so in the manner in which
He came to them, and through their examples show us how to walk
beside Him as well.
Now, I'd like
to end this little walk with Therese on a lighter note.
Remember I told
you Therese never forgot what Our Lady did for her when she was
a child, and sick? Well, Saint Therese likes to pass on favors as
she did to a little girl named KATIE MARIE on another dark night
in this present century...
You can find
out more about KATIE MARIE and ST. THERESE'S WEBSITE at
http://www.xlibris.com/sheilacoyle.html I don't think Saint Therese
minds me mentioning Katie - they are friends!
©Sheila M. Coyle, 2000
Permission is granted to use this article for non-commercial purposes
|
Links:
The following links and commentaries were also provided by Sheila
Coyle.
Little
Flower Tours - you can gain insight into Therese's determination
from this picture of
her as a child. There is also a short
biography of saint Therese on this web site.
Little
Flower Rosary - Simple directions for saying the chaplet to
St. Therese, with links to Catholic sites and devotions.
St.
Thérèse: Formative Relationships by Miriam Hogan
- An account by Miriam Hogan of Therese's early family relationships
and how with the help of God's grace, they were a formation for
her spirituality. This page is part of the Carmel Nuns website from
Eldridge, Iowa. The site has other links with good information on
spiritual devotion.
St. Therese of
the Child Jesus' Prayer - A prayer written by St. Therese and
a brief backround of the incident that may have inspired her to
write it.
The Love
of St. Therese for Jesus - Father Augustine Mary, MFVA discusses
Therese's sentiments, which are complementary to Our Lord's.
Other resources available on Saint Therese of Lisieux
in the Resources for Catholic Educators Website:
Extensive list of links on Saint Therese
Quotation on Saint Therese or of
saying of Saint Therese
|
