Since St. Therese was proclaimed a Doctor of the Church on October 19, 1997, the 20th anniversary falls on October 19, 2017. But the time is not too long to explore a topic so rich. For some weeks I've been musing on how to contribute to the celebration of her first 20 years as a Doctor.
The Holy Spirit seemed to suggest that the celebration could move in two directions, interior and exterior. That is, we can celebrate and honor Therese as a teacher in at least two ways.
- One, attending to our own interior formation: inviting Therese as doctor (both as teacher and as healer) to influence us as individuals and in common, so that her ministry of teaching and miracles may continue to transform not only individuals, families, and communities but also nations, the whole Church, and the whole world. This might draw us to reflecting, meditating, and praying, alone and together, on texts and resources related to Therese's doctorate and to what she teaches us.
- How is that teaching growing and evolving? Therese was considered the greatest saint of modern times and the perfect antidote to Jansenism, excessive fear of God and anxiety over imaginary sins. Now that we are in the post-modern era, when Jansenism is no longer so widespread, we need to bring our contemporary life experience to the text of Therese to draw out how she speaks to new generations, some of whom have grown up in a largely secular environment, and to our personal struggles and societal issues in the present. It is by coming defenseless to the text—prepared to allow the real God and the real Therese to encounter the real me—that I can hope to deepen my knowledge and experience of Therese. We must never dismiss her as a treasure we've already exhausted (let alone treat her as a kind of heavenly cashier who places our orders with God), but always be willing to let her surprise us.
- Second, celebrating the doctorate might call us to a thrust in the other direction. How can we make the Doctor of Merciful Love known, understood, and loved so that she is in a position to help as many souls as possible? To be fruitful, this mission must always be rooted in nourishing our interior life. In practical terms, this could mean moving from enjoying the resources that have formed our knowledge and experience of Therese (and of the Merciful Love of God flowing through her) to exploring how to invite other people to encounter her life and spirituality:
- promoting (both online and in person) various resources, books, and films
- sponsoring webinars, retreats, and programs in parishes and in our local communities;
- incorporating learning about St. Therese into existing programs and curricula;
- circulating Therese's memoir, Story of a Soul and other valuable works
To support the movement to interior formation and to proclaiming the gospel through making Therese known, I propose to present, from now at least through October 2017, a variety of resources:
- articles about Therese’s doctorate to furnish some text and history
- brief excerpts from the papal remarks about Therese as a doctor;
- resources to help us share Therese
- brief texts from Therese that highlight what she has to teach us
- icons, books, films, and other resources
Many of these resources are already on “Saint Therese of Lisieux: A Gateway,” but I hope that presenting them in bite-size chunks during the anniversary year will make it easy for you to enjoy them yourselves and use them for others. For the moment, I hope to post items in this series two or three times a week. They will be distinguished from other articles by a smaller version of the graphic you see above, for which I thank Deb Thurston, and by a focus on Therese as teacher. I expect to offer a smorgasbord of options, so that you can take what appeals to you and leave the rest.
The late Patrick Ahern, auxiliary bishop of New York, was tireless in promoting St. Therese as a prospective Doctor of the Church. Exactly how much he contributed to the process remains unknown. To honor his inexhaustible affection and advocacy for Therese, I open the series with his 1997 article "Therese, a Doctor of the Church," with thanks to the Internet Archive. Enjoy!