St Thérèse of Lisieux - Feast day 1st October
When asked what she meant by the ‘little way’, she answered, “It is the way of spiritual childhood, the way of trust and absolute surrender.” At the centre of this way is the willingness to make small sacrifices to God. Most people do not have the opportunity to do great acts in their lives, but each of us can offer small daily sacrifices of love to God. In this way, Thérèse teaches that each of us can achieve holiness, simply by willingly offering each act of love to God. “There is only one thing to do here below”, she wrote, “to offer Our Lord the flowers of little sacrifices”.
Love is at the centre of her writings: love for God expressed in acts of love to the people we encounter.
Thérèse certainly knew her faults, but – thanks to her path of spiritual childhood – remained untroubled by them: “I suppose I ought to be distressed that I so often fall asleep during meditation and thanksgiving after Holy Communion, but I reflect that little children, asleep or awake, are equally dear to their parents.” When asked what it means to remain a child, Thérèse answered, “to acknowledge one’s own nothingness, to expect everything from God and not to be upset by one’s failures.”
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| Statue of St Thérèse in the Padre Pio garden at Ladyewell, Fernyhalgh (near Preston), Lancashire |
Love is at the centre of her writings: love for God expressed in acts of love to the people we encounter.
Thérèse did not only speak of this Little Way: she lived it.
In Carmel she had much basic and simple work to do. She did it willingly and offered it to God. Thérèse tried to treat all the other sisters equally, even going out of her way to be kindest to those whom she did not like. She wrote prayers and poems; she devised plays for the enjoyment of the sisters. All of this she did with a spirit of love for God. Thérèse certainly knew her faults, but – thanks to her path of spiritual childhood – remained untroubled by them: “I suppose I ought to be distressed that I so often fall asleep during meditation and thanksgiving after Holy Communion, but I reflect that little children, asleep or awake, are equally dear to their parents.” When asked what it means to remain a child, Thérèse answered, “to acknowledge one’s own nothingness, to expect everything from God and not to be upset by one’s failures.”
“You ask me for a method of attaining perfection. I know of Love – and Love only! Our hearts are made for it alone.” St Thérèse of Lisieux (1873-1897)