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October 1
St. Thérèse of Lisieux
(1873-1897)
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"I
prefer the monotony of obscure sacrifice to all ecstasies. To pick up a pin for
love can convert a soul." These are the words of Theresa of the Child Jesus, a Carmelite nun called the "Little Flower," who lived a
cloistered life of obscurity in the convent of
Life in a
Carmelite convent is indeed uneventful and consists mainly of prayer and hard
domestic work. But Thérèse possessed that holy insight that redeems the time,
however dull that time may be. She saw in quiet suffering redemptive suffering,
suffering that was indeed her apostolate. Thérèse said she came to the
[On October 19, 1997, Pope John Paul II
proclaimed her a Doctor of the Church, the third woman to be so recognized in
light of her holiness and the influence of her teaching on spirituality in the
Church.]
Comment:
Thérèse has
much to teach our age of the image, the appearance, the "sell." We
have become a dangerously self-conscious people, painfully aware of the need to
be fulfilled, yet knowing we are not. Thérèse, like so many saints, sought to
serve others, to do something outside herself, to forget herself in quiet acts
of love. She is one of the great examples of the gospel paradox that we gain
our life by losing it, and that the seed that falls to the ground must die in
order to live (see John 12).
Preoccupation
with self separates modern men and women from God, from their fellow human
beings and ultimately from themselves. We must relearn to forget ourselves, to
contemplate a God who draws us out of ourselves and to serve others as the
ultimate expression of selfhood. These are the insights of St. Thérèse of
Lisieux, and they are more valid today than ever.
Quote:
All her
life St. Thérèse suffered from illness. As a young girl she underwent a
three-month malady characterized by violent crises, extended delirium and
prolonged fainting spells. Afterwards she was ever frail and yet she worked
hard in the laundry and refectory of the convent. Psychologically, she endured
prolonged periods of darkness when the light of faith seemed all but extinguished.
The last year of her life she slowly wasted away from tuberculosis. And yet
shortly before her death on September 30 she murmured, "I would not suffer
less."
Truly she
was a valiant woman who did not whimper about her illnesses and anxieties. Here
was a person who saw the power of love, that divine alchemy which can change
everything, including weakness and illness, into service and redemptive power
for others. Is it any wonder that she is patroness of the missions? Who else
but those who embrace suffering with their love really convert the world?
Patron Saint of:
Florists
Missionaries
Pilots
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