The Little Way of St. Therese [Long]

praiseofglory.com ^ | Hans Urs Von Balthasar

[american colleen]

Thank you, JMJ333, for a beautiful post (as usual!).

I started it and would dearly love to read it all tonight, but I just got FOUR!!! new books today and I want to take my tea to bed and join those books!

Here is my reading list:
1. "The Resurrection of the Shroud" by Mark Antonaccci 2. "A History of Christianity" by Paul Johnson 3. "Jesus, eter & the Keys" by S. Butler, N. Dahlgren 4. "The Courage to be Catholic" by George Weigel

So, although I love the Little Flower, I will finish this post tomorrow.

[JMJ333]

My goodness! You have lots of reading material. I admit my reading of regular books has gone down significantly since I became addicted to FR, but I did manage to finish "Triumph" by H.W. Crocker. Excellent read.

This post is very long. I read it 30 minute incriments. =)

[american colleen]

Waiting for my teabag to steep...

I read "Triumph" when it came out earlier this year. I sent a copy to my parish priest(s) as well. It was a great read.

Theresa recommended "History of Christianity", NYer recommended "Resurrection of the Shroud", I've wanted "Jesus, Peter & the Keys" and Mr. Weigel's book got very good reviews. Should keep me out of trouble for a bit.

I feel like I read less print because of FR, but I feel like I read more in general because of FR. My gosh, I read all the Catholic posts, and now I really like a lot of the blogspots and magazines that are on-line. I find it harder to read on a screen, and I really don't enjoy it as much as having a book in my hands. Plus, I think my eyesight is fading, and I ain't getting any younger!

OK, my tea is probably mud by now! Good night!

[ELS]

I'm currently reading Triumph. It is quite fascinating. Thanks for the post on St. Therese. I will be adding von Balthasar's book to my reading list. I read The Story of a Soul last year.

[JMJ333]

I'm glad you liked it. I put up a couple of posts about von Balthasar, but they were so difficult to follow that they really weren't worth reading. von Balthasar himself is much easier to read. I think sometimes people purposely talk on an intellectual level so that no one can understand them except other intellectuals! I think I'll stick with the author from now on. ;)

[glorygirl]

After reading this I don't feel okay complaining about anything...sort of the antithesis of the "Free Republic" spirit.

Something I would like to read is anything the Little Flower had to say about St. Teresa of Avila. There are some comparisons made in this article, but the two were very different. If anybody knows of such a reading, and can direct me to it, I would appreciate it.

[JMJ333]

Bump in honor of St. Therese's feast day!

[JMJ333]

re-bump in her honor today...

[JMJ333]

re-bump in her honor today...

[nickcarraway]

REBUMP for St. Therese's Feast Day

[EODGUY]

Terrific homily about the Little Flower at Mass this morning.

God bless,

EODGUY

[JMJ333]

Thank you! Hope both your feast day was filled with love that fell like roses.

[PA Lurker]

Wow, JMJ333....do you have any idea how long it took me to read that post! I have done Temporal Punishment for about three centurys after that read! I am an old man and I find it difficult to read lengthly posts at a late hour.

However, your faith and devotion, as well as your knowledge of the great saints of the Church always inspire me in my golden years.

May the Holy Spirit continue to inflame your heart and soul. Especially St. Therese the Little Flower.

PA Lurker

[JMJ333]

Oh! I didn't expect you to read it all at once! Bless your heart! It took me several sittings to read it. lol

I am glad that I provide you with something you enjoy. I hope your day was fantastic. =)

[Salvation]

I've read about as much as I can on Therese, but I don't recall such "agressiveness".

I saw a play put on by a group of players a couple years ago and the conflict in her life and her agressiveness was a part of it. I remember her being portrayed as pretty much a "spitfire".

[Salvation]

BTTT on Feast Day of St. Therese -- 10-01-04

[Salvation]

BTTT on the Memorial of Saint Thérèse of the Child Jesus, virgin and doctor of the Church, October 01, 2005!

[Salvation]

American Catholic’s Saint of the Day

October 1, 2005

St. Thérèse of Lisieux

(1873-1897)

"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 Lisieux, France. [In French-speaking areas, she is known as Thérèse of Lisieux.] And her preference for hidden sacrifice did indeed convert souls. Few saints of God are more popular than this young nun. Her autobiography, The Story of a Soul, is read and loved throughout the world. Thérèse Martin entered the convent at the age of 15 and died in 1897 at the age of 24.

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 Carmel convent "to save souls and pray for priests." And shortly before she died, she wrote: "I want to spend my heaven doing good on earth."

[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?

[Salvation]

"Let us go forward in peace, our eyes upon heaven, the only one goal of our labors." - St. Thérèse
Look into the life of St.Thérèse from her early years as a loving child to her achievement of heroic holiness. Programs about St. Thérèse in the Pray the Little Flower Novena for nine consecutive days Letters from and to St. Thérèse reveal her deepest thoughts, her charity, and her great Love of God. Learn about St. Thérèse through her own writings, and from those who knew her. Shows parents how an intimate knowledge & love of the saints can help form character and ideals. Shows how to make sanctity attractive to and the goal of their children. Take a glimpse into the spirituality of St. Thérèse and how she came to perfection in the Carmel of Lisieux. Prayers and quotes from St. Thérèse's writings, and prayers to the saint.. Learn more about St. Thérèse of the Child Jesus and the Holy Face through these selected sources.