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 St Thérèse of Lisieux: 100th Anniversary of Birth (1973) 25 L: Birthplace of St. Thérèse (Scott 534) 55 L: St. Thérèse (Scott 535) 220 L: Lisieux Basilica (Scott 536) October 1 marks the feast day of one of Catholicism's most popular saints, Thérèse of Lisieux. She was a French Discalced Carmelite who is also known as "Therese of the Child Jesus and the Holy Face" and "The Little Flower of Jesus". Thérèse Martin was born on January 2, 1873, at Alençon, France. Her father was a watchmaker. Her mother died when she was four, at which time the family moved to Lisieux where an aunt assisted in raising the family in very traditional French Catholicism. Thérèse and her sisters entered the Carmelite Order at Lisieux (Thérèse entering at age 15). In 1895, she contracted tuberculosis and, in 1897, was moved to the convent infirmary. There she died on September 30, 1897, at age 24. She is buried at her shrine at the Basilica of St. Thérèse at Lisieux. Thérèse composed a short biography, L’Histoire d’une Ame ("History of a Soul"), which was printed into multiple languages and became popular literature of the day. David Farmer states: "[I]t is clear that her message is very close to that of the Gospels which she so frequently cited and that, carried to its logical conclusion, it requires very great courage and self-sacrifice, in which she excelled, for its realization. The way of simple, self-forgetful but complete obedience, which she recommended is a more taxing undertaking than that of the artificial use of exterior instruments of mortification she rejected."Saint Therese is typically portrayed in a Carmelite habit holding roses, recalling her promise for a ‘shower of roses’ of miracles and other favors, and many miraculous cures and special favors have been credited to her. Saint Thérèse was beatified in 1923 and canonized in 1925. She was also declared a patron of missions in 1937 and of France in 1947. In 1997 Pope John Paul II named St. Thérèse a Doctor of the Church. Starting today (October 1, 2025), the relics of Saint Therese return to the United States. The two-month tour coincides with the 100th anniversary of the canonization of Saint Therese, and dovetails with the Jubilee Year of 2025, the "Pilgrimage of Hope". The relics last visited the Unites States during the last Holy Year of 2000. The tour begins today in Royal Oak, Michigan, and her relics will make 40 stops in 11 states, continuing through December 8. This leg of the tour concludes the worldwide voyage of hope for the relics, which began in Switzerland in January. The relics are housed in a large reliquary, which is covered by a large plexiglass dome that people can touch as they pray before it. The schedule of stops can be found in the references below. REFERENCES: |
