The Little Flower of Jesus
St. Theresa of Lisieux (French: Thérèse de Lisieux) was a French Discalced Carmelite who is widely venerated in modern times. Her religious name was Sr. Theresa of the Infant Jesus and of the Holy Face (Thérèse de l’Enfant Jésus et de la Sainte Face). She is popularly known in English as the Little Flower of Jesus, or simply the Little Flower, and in French as la petite Thérèse (“little Therese”).
St. Theresa was born Marie Françoise-Thérèse Martin on Rue Saint-Blaise, in Alençon, France on January 2, 1873. She was the daughter of Marie-Azélie Guérin (usually called Zélie), a lace-maker, and Louis Martin who was a jeweler and watchmaker. Both her parents were devout Catholics who would eventually become the first (and to date only) married couple canonized together by the Roman Catholic Church (by Pope Francis in 2015).
St. Theresa felt an early call to religious life and, after overcoming various obstacles, in 1888, at the early age of 15, she became a nun and joined two of her elder sisters in the cloistered Carmelite community of Lisieux, Normandy (another sister, Céline, also later joined the order). After nine years as a Carmelite nun, having fulfilled various offices such as sacristan and assistant to the novice mistress, in her last eighteen months in Carmel she fell into a dark night of faith, in which she is said to have felt Jesus was absent and been tormented by doubts that God existed. Persevering in her faith and love of God throughout this great trial, she entered eternal life on September 30,1897 at the age of 24 after battling tuberculosis.
St. Theresa has been a highly influential model of sanctity for Catholics and for others because of the simplicity and practicality of her approach to the spiritual life. She is one of the most popular saints in the history of the church, although she was obscure during her lifetime. In obedience, she wrote down her autobiography before she died, which included her childhood memories, life in the Carmel, and her “little way” of spiritual childhood. Her community published her writings after her death and the “Story of a Soul”, as it was titled, has become one of the most popular spiritual classics of all time. Devotion to her grew rapidly after her death and she was declared a saint 28 years after. Pope St. Pius X declared her “the greatest saint of modern times”. By the apostolic letter Divini Amoris Scientia (The Science of Divine Love) of October 19. 1997, Pope St. John Paul II declared St. Theresa a Doctor of the Church, one of four women so named, the others being Teresa of Ávila, Catherine of Siena and Hildegard of Bingen.
Her feast day in the General Roman Calendar was October 3rd from 1927 until it was moved in 1969 to October 1st. She is well known throughout the world, with the Basilica of Lisieux being the second most popular place of pilgrimage in France after Lourdes.
How did St. Theresa become known as the “Little Flower”?
St. Theresa loved nature, and often used the imagery of nature to explain how the Divine Presence is everywhere, and how everything is connected in God’s loving care and arms. Theresa saw herself as “the Little Flower of Jesus” because she was just like the simple wild flowers in forests and fields, unnoticed by the greater population, yet growing and giving glory to God. She did not see herself as a brilliant rose or an elegant lily, by simply as a small wildflower. This is how she understood herself before the Lord – simple and hidden, but blooming where God had planted her.
St.Theresa believed passionately that Jesus was delighted in his “Little Flower,” and just as a child can be fascinated by the grandeur of a simple flower, she believed that Jesus was fascinated by her as his “Little Flower.” Theresa understood that she was just like the tiny flower in the forest, surviving and flourishing through all the seasons of the year. Because of God’s grace, she knew that she was stronger than she looked. Following the Carmelite tradition, Theresa saw the world as God’s garden, and each person being a different kind of flower, enhancing the variety and beauty which Jesus delighted in. When various people tried to explain her powerful inspiration and her place within the Church, it always seemed to come back to one title “the Little Flower.”
In her autobiography, she beautifully explains this spirituality:
“Jesus set before me the book of nature. I understand how all the flowers God has created are beautiful, how the splendor of the rose and the whiteness of the lily do not take away the perfume of the violet or the delightful simplicity of the daisy. I understand that if all flowers wanted to be roses, nature would lose her springtime beauty, and the fields would no longer be decked out with little wild flowers. So it is in the world of souls, Jesus’ garden. He has created smaller ones and those must be content to be daisies or violets destined to give joy to God’s glances when He looks down at His feet. Perfection consists in doing His will, in being what He wills us to be.”
Why was her religious name Theresa of the Infant Jesus & of the Holy Face?
Following the biblical tradition, when people entered religious life, they took a new name to signify their new call from God. When she entered the Carmelite Monastery to give her life to God, Marie Francoise Therese Martin took the religious name “Theresa of the Infant Jesus and of the Holy Face.” Theresa had a great devotion to the Infant Jesus, and her spirituality was a childlike simplicity and trust in God’s love. In Lisieux, the Carmelite Monastery had a great devotion to the suffering Holy Face of Jesus that was reflected on the veil of Veronica. This included an outdoor shrine in the cloister garden. Because Therese was constantly looking to see the hidden Holy Face of Jesus in everyone and everything, Therese took that second part of her religious name. She explained: “I desire that, like the Face of Jesus, my face be truly hidden that no one on earth would know me. I thirsted after suffering and I longed to be forgotten.” Her religious name, Sr. Theresa of the Infant Jesus and Holy Face, therefore came to signify what she was about and how God’s grace was working in her.
What is meant by her “Little Way”?
St. Theresa saw herself as a child of God. She liked to keep things simple and focused as a child does. Trust, especially trust in God, is a childlike virtue. Some spiritualities have stressed complicated practices and extraordinary journeys of the soul as it responds to God’s grace and love. Therese’s spirituality is simple and she calls it her “little way.” She believed and taught us that life presents enough challenges and opportunities for grace. She teaches us that God is everywhere – in every situation and person – and in the ordinary, simple details of life.
“Everything is grace” is probably the theme song of her spirituality. Her “Little Way” teaches us to do the ordinary things of life with extraordinary love. A smile, a note of encouragement, a phone call, suffering in silence, kindness in the midst of personal trials, a simple unnoticed task to brighten the life of another, and so many other simple deeds, done with love – these are the examples of her spirituality. The smallest action, done with love, is more important than great deeds done for personal glory or gratification. St. Theresa teaches us that Jesus is everywhere and is the power for love and goodness operating within us. Such is the power and presence of grace. St. Theresa’s life was hidden. To many even in the convent, there was nothing extraordinary about her. Her greatness showed in the constancy of her love for others in the most simple ways.
Even in prayer, St. Theresa teaches simplicity – talking to Jesus in direct, personal and heartfelt ways. She struggled with long and complicated prayers. Like a child, she would often fall asleep during her meditations. She prayed from her heart as a child speaks honestly and trustingly to a parent they love. God calls us to respond to Divine Love in a childlike relationship of love, trust and bold confidence to the Father, “Abba” (which literally means ‘Daddy’), as Jesus taught us to say. This simplicity also gave her a strong love for the liturgical prayer and devotions of the Church. She was faithful to the observances of her community, even when they proved to be difficult due to her own trials and limitations.
Therese was faithful to the Gospel of Jesus and the core of His message. She invites us to join in her “spiritual childhood” or “little way.” The power, appeal and simplicity of her message is why Holy Mother Church declared her a Doctor of the Church in 1997.
St. Theresa’s Prayer for Priests
St. Theresa had a great love for the priesthood and an immense understanding of the importance of spiritually supporting our priests as they work in the Vineyard of the Lord, seeking souls who have gone astray. She entered Camel with the intention of “saving souls, and above all, to pray for priests”. She prayed for priests not only for their own souls, but for the sake of the souls they serve. When she encountered mediocre and scandalous priests on her pilgrimage to Rome, she was fueled with a great desire not to criticize them, but to pray for their sanctification. She understood that their role in the life of the Church was crucial. She became a spiritual sister to many priests during her lifetime, and continues to pray for them today. Please join us in praying for our priests: