"Sickness and Health in the Martin Family, and How St. Therese of LIsieux and Her Blessed Parents Intercede for Healing" - a conference and day of prayer at the Carmelite Monastery in Philadelphia on Sunday, April 6, 2014
An Encounter with St. Thérèse of Lisieux
and her parents, Blessed Louis and Zélie Martin
Pray in the presence of their relics on Sunday, April 6, 2014
from 10:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m. 
Blessed Louis Martin, age 68, at 7 rue Labbey, Lisieux, in 1892, with
daughters Celine (left), Leonie (right), and servants Marie and Desire Le Juif.
“Sickness and Health in the Martin Family, and How St. Thérèse
of Lisieux and Her Blessed Parents Intercede for Healing”
- a conference by Maureen O’Riordan at 1:00 p.m.
Benediction of the Most Blessed Sacrament at 3:30 p.m.
with a special blessing for the sick and prayer for healing
Carmelite Monastery Bookstore Open
1400 66th Avenue 10:00 a.m. to 3:30 p.m.
(66th Avenue and Broad Street) Spiritual books,
Philadelphia, Pa. children's books, DVDs,
Free parking in monastery lot and religious articles.
on 66th Avenue Cash and checks only
Chapel is handicapped-accessible.
Download the flyer
Please note that this month's conference will look at how the Martin family's many experiences of sickness strengthened their life of faith and prayer, and also at a few of the healings attributed to the intercession of Blessed Louis and Zelie Martin and of St. Therese of Lisieux. May learning about this aspect of their life of faith help us to accept our own illnesses and the illnesses of those we love. Please come, and pray in the presence of the reliquary of this holy family or your own healing and the healing of your beloved family members and friends.
Learn more about Blessed Louis and Zelie Martin at the Web site "Blessed Louis and Zelie Martin."
Maureen O'Riordan
in St. Therese's family; Blessed Louis and Zelie Martin; sickness and health
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Reader Comments (3)
This looks like a fascinating subject for a conference and I hope to hear more about it. Will papers be put on this website.
I think that it's a shame that the church needs a specific kind of healing miracle to 'prove' sainthood, when reading about the Martin family they experienced and understood healing and miracles in a much wider sense - both Bl Zelie dying of cancer and Bl Louis with his final illness, and how St Therese understood suffering as well.
I hope the day goes well.
I'm reading the poems of St Therese for my lenten reading which are a real blessing.
Dear Ed:
Thank you for writing. Almost all the conferences in this year's series of presentations about the spirituality of the Martin family are new material, written just for this series, and so are not ready for print publication yet. I am testing from the response of the audience which aspects of the life of St. Therese's family speak most powerfully to them. Please continue to check the Web site for any news about publication. Happy to report that visitors from at least seven states have come to Philadelphia for the days of prayer before the reliquary on the first Sunday of every month.
About your comment about the necessity of miracles for canonization: as I understand it, this applies to canonized saints, persons whom we believe God wants to hold up as a model to the faithful. Before any miracles can advance the cause, the person's life, writings, and reputation for sanctity must be examined first. Then, if a miracle occurs that seems to have been worked after the candidate's intercession was invoked, the diocese where the miracle happened examines the healing to confirm that it cannot be explained scientifically and that it occurred as a result of the sole intercession of the candidate. This process took place in Milan for the healing of the newborn Pietro Schiliro in 2002, which was accepted as the miracle for the beatification of Louis and Zelie. Then, if the diocesan tribunal finds that the "presumed miracle" warrants further examination, it is referred to the Congregation for the Causes of Saints, where panels of doctors, theologians, and cardinals examine it and make a recommendation to the Pope. The cause of Louis and Zelie is now with the Congregation for the Causes of Saints, which is examining the cure of a child called Carmen in Valencia, Spain, in 2008, and I hope you will pray for its success. I think the idea is that, if God granted a miracle to those who invoked the intercession of the holy person, God is confirming that God intends this candidate to be canonized and wants the people to learn from her or his life. Please see the article "Why does the church require miracles for sainthood?" by Heidi Schlumpf in the January 2012 issue of "U.S. Catholic" at http://www.uscatholic.org/church/2011/11/why-does-church-require-miracles-sainthood Of course, the canonization of certain saints takes nothing away from the holiness of the countless people God has made saints but who have not been canonized, the "little souls" Therese asked Jesus to raise up.
Thank you for your thanks, and for your thoughts. What you have written: "I think the idea is that, if God granted a miracle to those who invoked the intercession of the holy person, God is confirming that God intends this candidate to be canonized and wants the people to learn from her or his life" is the best understanding that I have read, and will read the article you mentioned with interest.
I am praying that Bl Louis and Bl Zelie are recognised as saints, I have received much strength and blessings from meditating upon their lives and witness.