Saint Therese of Lisieux: A Gateway

The banner of St. Therese is carried into St. Peter's Basilica in Rome at her canonization ceremony, May 17, 1925. Credit: Wikipedia, Exorcisio Te, https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/Category:CC-BY-SA-4.0

St. Therese’s Canonization Ceremony

St. Therese of the Child Jesus was canonized in Rome on May 17, 1925, 95 years ago today.  The New York Times reported that at least 25,000 French and fully 15,000 American pilgrims were present for the six-hour ceremony.  The basilica held almost 60,000 pilgrims, and 200,000 more waited in the square outside.  For the first time, loudspeakers were installed in the Basilica, so that all the pilgrims crowded inside (many of whom could not see the sanctuary) were able to hear the Pope’s every word.  This innovation was a big success.

Outer Facade of Basilica Illumined for the First Time Since 1870

Countless electric lights had been installed in the basilica for the ceremony.  The newspapers reported extensively that that night, for the first time since 1870, the outer façade of St. Peter’s was illumined. 

The illumination was done entirely with thousands of torches and lanterns, which, flickering in the breeze, gave the impression that the whole basilica was enveloped in a curtain of fire.  It is estimated that this beautiful scene was witnessed  by about a million people.

The New York Times, May 18, 1925, p. 2.

The illumination was considered a step toward the reconciliation of the church and the Italian state, for it was the first time the facade pf the Basilica had been lit up since the Pope became a voluntary “prisoner in the Vatican” after the Italian government declared war on the Papal States in 1870.

Recreate St. Therese's Canonization Ceremony for Yourself

Although the rest of  this aritcle may look like a mere list of links, it is in fact, the key to a powerful interactive experience of the canonization.  To respect the intellectual property of others, I can't reproduce everything on this page, but, merely by clicking the links, you can access a vivid sense of what the pilgrims experienced 95 years ago today.

A Contemporary Eyewitness Account of St. Therese's Canonization

For a contemporary eyewitness account from Australia, which gives the reader  the sense of being present, please read "Over 60,000 at St. Therese's Canonization.  His Holiness Proclaims New Glory of Carmel.  All Nations Represented at the Happy and Impressive Event" from the Freeman's Journal (Sydney, New South Wales, July 2, 1925). 

Photographs of St. Therese's Canonization

See photographs of the celebrations at Lisieux and at Rome on the Web site of the Archives of the Carmel of Lisieux.

The Bull of Canonization for St. Therese

• To recreate the ceremony, read the Bull of Canonization.  (Thanks to the Catholic Forum and the Internet Archive).

• Also see a beautiful illuminated parchment of the Bull of Canonization.  It escaped the flames when Lisieux was bombed in 1944, but the parchment is twisted from the effects of the intense heat.  (Thanks to the Web site of the Archves of the Carmel of Lisieux). 

The Homily of Pope Pius XI at St. Therese's Canonization

See the text of the homily of Pope Pius XI. (Thanks to the Catholic Forum and the Internet Archive).  That afternoon Pope Pius, who remained extraordinarily devoted to St.Therese until his death, told Dennis Cardinal Dougherty of Philadelphia that it was the happiest day of his life.  After the tiring six-hour canonization ceremony, he returned to the Basilica later in the afternoon to venerate St. Therese.  There many of the 200,000 pilgrims who could not gain admittance in the morning had the joy of praying with him.

A Detailed Account of St. Therese's Canonization Day by John Beevers

 For a full account of the whole occasion, see this excerpt from John Beevers' book Storm of Glory: The Story of St.Therese of Lisieux.  (Thanks to Hathitrust for digitizing the book).  John Beevers was a British laywan who had a great love for St. Therese, translated her autobiography, and wrote two other books about her.  I am greatly in his debt, for I believe that it's he who introduced me and many others to St. Therese.

On April 25, 1897, St. Therese wrote, contrasting her mission with that of St. Joan of Arc:

I understood my missionwas not to have a mortal King crowned but to make the King of heaven loved, to submit to Him the Kingdom of hearts.1 

On this anniversary of St. Therese's canonization, when the whole world has such need of her way of confidence and love, let's canonize her afresh in our hearts. Above all, let's surrender our hearts to her Beloved so that we, too, can fulfill her only desire: "to love Jesus and to make Him loved."

Notes:

1.  Letters of St. Therese of Lisieux, Volume II, 1890-1897.  Tr. John Clarke, O.C.D. (Washington, D.C., Washington Province of Discalced Carmelites, Inc., p. 1085).