British troops wend their way through the ruins of Lisieux, 22 August 1944. They stand before the destroyed parish church of St. Desir, which was also the chapel of the Benedictine Abbey where St. Therese made her First Communion on May 8, 1884. The Abbey received a direct hit the day after D-Day; the great crucifix at right was unharmed.

 "Fire broke out in several places, and there was neither water to put it out nor firemen to fight it.  We were surrounded by it and on the night of June 7 we were forced to evacuate and to find refuge in the crypt of the Basilica, where we remained until August 27."

These lines are from a letter dated September 8, 1944, written by Sister Anne of Jesus, a Carmelite nun of Lisieux, and addressed to the Carmelite community at Three Rivers, Quebec.  The letter is quoted extensively in the story "Carmelites Reveal 'Miracle of Lisieux'": Petition to Mary and St. Therese Brings Protection of God," published by the Arkansas Catholic, November 3, 1944.  Please click on the title to read this eyewitness account of the fate of the Carmelite nuns of Lisieux.  During the terrible bombing of June 6-7, 63 nuns from various religious communities in Lisieux died.  All the Carmelite nuns survived.  We are most grateful to the archives of the Arkansas Catholic for the chance to share this historic account with you.  Please do click to see a legible scan of the actual 1944 newspaper with this amazing story. This entry is in honor of the 70th annniverary of D-Day. 

Eight doctors testify to the “astonishing recovery, without any medical explanation,” of a little girl, born prematurely in Spain, who is now four years old.

by Maureen O'Riordan for "Saint Therese of Lisieux: A Gateway"

 On Tuesday, May 21, 2013, Mgr Carlos Osoro Serra, Archbishop of Valencia, presided at the closing session of the diocesan tribunal which had investigated the “presumed miracle” of the healing of a baby girl, known as Carmen, who was born prematurely on October 15, 2008.  Her cure was attributed to the intercession of Blessed Louis Martin and Zélie Guérin, the parents of St. Thérèse of Lisieux. 

The closing session took place in the Gothic hall of the Archbishop’s palace.  Two French bishops traveled to Spain for the ceremony.  Mgr Jacques Habert, bishop of Séez, was present: Alençon, where Louis and Zélie spent their married life, is in the diocese of Séez.   Father Thierry Hénault-Morel, rector of the Basilica of Notre Dame in Alençon, where Zélie and Louis were married and where their daughter Thérèse was baptized, joined Bishop Habert.

Mgr. Jean-Claude Boulanger, bishop of Bayeux and Lisieux, also traveled to Valencia for the ceremony.  After Zélie died in 1877, Louis moved to Lisieux, in the diocese of Bayeux and Lisieux, and lived there until he died in 1894.  Bishop Boulanger was joined by Mgr Bernard Lagoutte, rector of the Basilica in Lisieux built in honor of Louis and Zélie’s famous daughter, St. Thérèse.  It was in this Basilica that, after the Church had accepted the healing of a newborn baby in Italy, Pietro Schilirò, as a miracle worked at their intercession, Louis and Zélie were beatified on October 19, 2008.

Story of the miracle

The little Carmen, whose family prefers to remain anonymous, was born at "October 9 Hospital" in Valencia on October 15, 2008, four days before Louis and Zélie were declared blessed.  Father Antonio Sangalli, O.C.D., an Italian Carmelite friar who is vice-postulator of the cause of Louis and Zélie, later remarked:  "Apparently,  nothing seems to connect the two events, but later faith allowed us to discover the mysterious ties  that  point to a “miracle."  Born after only six months of pregnancy, Carmen had many life-threatening health problems.

Father Sangalli told the tribunal on Monday that the child “suffered multiple pathologies, among them, a double septicemia and an intraventricular cerebral Grade IV hemorrhage, the most severe.” The doctors could do nothing for her, and her parents were told to prepare for the worst.  Her father and mother, “seeing the danger of death, immediately turned to God, and, thanks to the nuns of the Discalced Carmelite Monastery of Serra, the parents, family, and friends started a novena to the blessed Martin spouses,” continued Father Sangalli.  The Carmelites gave the child’s parents a prayer card with images of Zélie and Louis and a prayer for their canonization, and the nuns joined Carmen’s family and their friends in a sustained prayer for her healing.  Father Sangalli explains:

“This is how it started: a real and intense communion of prayer of the family, of friends, of the monastery of Serra, of all those concerned for little Carmen, who was fighting against a sure death.”  As soon as the novena began, the baby began to get better, culminating in her “astonishing recovery, without any medical explanation.” 

The vice-postulator investigates the "presumed miracle"

Father Sangalli learned of the presumed miracle through one of his Carmelite brothers.  He relates: "January 17, 2009  I was returning to France after a stay in Rome to deliver a reliquary to Benedict XVI.  It was at this time that I met Father José Castellá, rector of the Sanctuary of Saint Therese [in Lleida, about three hours from Valencia], who spoke to me about a presumed miracle.  Then I talked to the child's father and her  grandparents, who were there with Ismael, Carmen's brother.  They had come from Valencia, a round trip of 650 kilometers, to thank Louis and Zélie for saving Carmen from a sure death.   And, immediately I had the sensation of being in front of a truly unusual event that deserved a deeper investigation.  I  contacted the person in charge of the cause of canonization of the Blessed Martins and he asked me to  undertake all that was necessary to verify the presumed cure."

Later that same year, from November 6 to November 11, 2009, Father Sangalli visited Valencia for the first time.  He wanted to begin a preliminary study of the case and to establish a definitive diagnosis about Carmen's presumed cure.  Carmen's family "always collaborated, and all they sought was to thank God for Carmen´s cure."  A year later (November 8 to 12, 2010) Father Sangalli visited Valencia again.  He noted “Carmen´s new and surprising progress."  Still, to get a precise scientific picture, Carmen's family traveled to Italy from  July 6 to 13, 2011. "The child underwent a series of scientific tests and had no consequences from the cerebral hemorrhage that she had suffered," Father Sangalli explained.  In September 2012 Father Sangalli got in touch with Archbishop  Osoro about the healing that had taken place in his diocese.  On  December 8, 2012, the feast of the Immaculate Conception, he asked Archbishop Osoro to open the diocesan phase of the process to inquire into the miracle.

The diocesan process opens

On January 7, 2013, Archbishop Osoro presided at the opening of the canonical process to investigate whether Carmen’s recovery was a miracle obtained through the intercession of the Martin spouses.  Father Sangalli stated that during the sessions “eighteen testimonies have been heard: Carmen´s parents and grandparents, her teacher, a priest, four Carmelite nuns of Serra, and eight doctors.”

Every one of the eight doctors from Valencia testified before the tribunal that Carmen’s recovery is “scientifically inexplicable.”  Six of them had witnessed her healing at the time; two were appointed later by the tribunal that has investigated the miracle.  The supervising judge of the tribunal, Monsignor Ennio Apeciti, said that all eight doctors “joined in agreeing that, due to her severe health problems, the little girl should [medically speaking] have died.  All the physicians were astonished that Carmen survived.  They also believed that, due to her condition, she should have suffered significant physical and psychological consequences forever.”  They were astounded at Carmen’s “sudden, complete and lasting” cure.  Monsignor Apeciti added that she is “completely healthy” today.  Read more about Carmen's story.

The diocesan process closes

Little Carmen was present at the closing session on May 21 with her parents and other family members.  The Carmelite nuns of Serra also participated.

Watch a video (1:55) of the closing session.  You see the little Carmen waving at the photograph of Louis and Zélie and four of the Carmelite nuns who suggested the novena to Carmen’s parents and prayed it with them.

At the closing session Archbishop Osoro gave “thanks to the Lord for this fact  that we want to present to the Holy Father as a miracle worked for Carmen.”  He called the way Carmen’s parents have acted “a precious gesture,” “because you believed in the intercession of the Blessed and, through their hands, you put your daughter into the hands of God.”

  Archbishop Osoro acknowledged the conduct of the community of the Carmelite nuns of Serra during the whole process, saying “through you we see how God is made present.”  He called Blessed Zélie and Louis “a reference, and an example to imitate, who lived in constant attention to God and attentive to his signs and preferences.”

What does the closing of the diocesan process mean for the cause of the canonization of Blessed Louis and Zélie Martin?

It is an important advance toward sainthood for Louis and Zélie.  Father Sangalli explained that the court constituted in Valencia to guide the process in its diocesan phase “does not pronounce, does not announce a position on the authenticity of the miracle,  but on the seriousness of the collected documentation.”  The final decision to name saints is always made in Rome.

That the court closes the diocesan inquiry and sends the cause to the Vatican to continue its investigation is a “significant advance for the process,” as Father Sangalli noted.  He reminded us that, if the diocesan court of canonization does not find enough indications of authenticity or rigor in investigating a presumed miracle, the court has authority to stop the process.

What happens next?

Now that the diocese of Valencia collected documents, examined witnesses, and completed its inquiry, Father Sangalli, as vice-postulator, is charged with taking the documentation immediately to Rome to submit it to the judgment of the Congregation for the Causes of Saints.  There it is to be examined first by doctors, then by theologians, and finally by bishops and cardinals.  If the Congregation recommends to Pope Francis that Zélie and Louis should be named saints, the way will be open for their canonization.

The influence of Louis and Zélie

Mgr Lagoutte, the rector of the Basilica at Lisieux, told those present at the closing session that Blessed Louis Martin and Zélie Guerin continue to be “very active.”  The Shrine at Lisieux receives testimonies from “spouses from all over the world” who had been unable to have children but have have succeeded “thanks to their intervention.”

The pastoral significance of Zélie and Louis 

Father Sangalli remarked that the Martins had "an exceptional marriage.  They educated not only the most famous of their five children, Thérèse, but also the other four,  particularly Léonie, a complicated daughter, who had problems.”  

“We have just concluded the investigation of Carmen´s cure and have sent it to the Congregation for the Causes of the Saints in Rome.  We hope that the Blessed French spouses follow their daughter, Saint Therese of the Child Jesus, so that these Blessed parents can, if God permits,  be canonized by Peter´s successor, Pope Francis .  In this Year of The Faith, the Christian testimony of this marriage:  educator, teacher of faith and sanctity, presents issues that are clearly relevant for the whole Church

Bishop Boulanger of Lisieux pointed out that “The Lord has given us these spouses to accompany today’s families.”  The Discalced Carmelite nuns of Serra noted that “the Martin marriage is essential in a society as individualistic as our contemporary society.  The Martins were the example of union and of how to live spirituality as a family.”

Father Sangalli urged everyone to “repeat with force that the Martins are a special marriage, an example to our families today.  They are teachers in the field of faith, of education to domestic, ecclesial, and social sanctity.”

Sources:

1. "Ocho médicos testifican en la curación “inexplicable” de una niña valenciana de 4 años que investiga la Iglesia como presunto milagro" at elperiodic.com, 21/05/13.
2. "Sangalli: ´Los Martín son especiales'" by M. Ros, Valencia for Levante: El Mercantile Valenciano 26.05.2013 | 01:36
3. "Historia de un milagro," by Mónica Ros, Valencia, for Levante: El Mercantile Valenciano 26.05.2013 | 01:36
4. Ocho médicos testifican, “asombrados”, por un posible milagro en la curación inexplicable de una niña valencianaAtribuido a la intercesión de los padres de santa Teresita de Lisieux, ya beatificados by Eduardo Martinez 23-05-13 for Paraula

I am deeply grateful to my fellow apostle, Teodolinda Garcia of Panama, for translating the Spanish sources.  I thank elperiodic.com for permission to display the photos.

Today is the centenary of the first exhumation of the relics of St. Therese of Lisieux.  On September 6, 1910 the body of Sister Therese of the Child Jesus was exhumed from her grave in the Carmelite plot at the municipal cemetery at Lisieux for the first time. Therese had been buried here on the morning of October 4, 1897 after a funeral Mass at Lisieux Carmel.  A small funeral procession followed her body to the cemetery that day.  Her sister Leonie led them, since her uncle, Isidore Guerin, was ill.  Isidore had recently bought this plot in the town cemetery for the use of the Carmelite nuns, and his niece Therese was the first to be buried there. 

It was to this grave that the first pilgrims came, many to give thanks for favors and cures received from God through the intercession of Sister Therese.  Some miracles took place at the tomb.  On May 25, 1908, the mother of little Reine Fauquet, a four-year-old girl from Lisieux who was blind, brought her child to Therese's tomb.  The next day the child's vision was suddenly restored.  Dr. La Neele, Therese's cousin  by marriage, who did not favor the introduction of her cause, nevertheless had to sign a certificate attesting to the cure.  (See Therese and Lisieux by Pierre Descouvement and Helmut-Nils Loose.  Toronto, Ontario: Novalis, 1996, p. 316). 

Bishop Lemonnier of Bayeux prays with the Archbishop of Paris at Therese's grave.

Though Therese had died less than thirteen years before, the process to inquire into her sanctity was already underway.  The tribunal convened by the bishop of the diocese of Bayeux had begun in August 1910 to interview witnesses at Lisieux.

The custom of exhuming the body of a person who might be declared a saint was rooted in the time when the Church considered, among other criteria, whether the body of the candidate had been preserved. Because the Church has found that incorruptibility may be caused by environmental conditions, exhumation is no longer necessary.For more about this question see the article by Dwight Longenecker.

The night before Therese's exhumation, she appeared to Mother Carmela of the Heart of Jesus, the prioress of the Carmel of Gallipoli in Italy.  Mother Carmela was not aware that the body of Therese was to be exhumed in France the next day.  She reported that Therese's "countenance was very beautiful and shining, her garments glittered with a light as of transparent silver."  Therese said to her "Only my bones will be found."  (See Storm of Glory: The Story of St. Therese of Lisieux, by John Beevers.  New York: Doubleday, 1955, p. 128).  [For an account of the miracles God worked through Therese in 1910 and 1911 to rescue the Carmel of Gallipoli from near bankruptcy, please see "The Miracle of Gallipoli" by Giovanni Ricciardi.  This miracle confirmed her little way and was given a special session in the diocesan process]. 

The exhumation of Sister Therese's body took place in the presence of Bishop Lemonnier, the bishop of Bayeux,  and of about a hundred other people.  Dr. de Corniere and Dr. La Neele, who looked after Therese in her illness, were present and confirmed that her body had disintegrated in the usual way soon after her death.   Therese had said "You will not find me anything but a little skeleton."  Her sister Pauline recorded that on August 20, 1897, Therese had said to her, "with a happy and mischievious air:  'I shall soon be in the horrors of the tomb!  And you will be there also, little Mother!  And when I see you arrive next to me, my humbled bones will leap with gladness!'  (See St. Therese of Lisieux: Her Last Conversations.  Washington, D.C.: ICS Publications, 1977, p. 156).

The first exhumation of the body of the Servant of God, Sister Therese of the Child Jesus of the Holy Face, at the Lisieux cemetery on September 6, 1910

Only the bones covered with bits of cloth remained.  But the palm branch that had been placed inside when she was buried was still fresh and green, as it is today.  Was this God's way of confirming that God had granted Therese's desire to win "the palm of martyrdom"?  "that thus I may become a martyr of Your love, O my God!" 

Souvenirs of the first exhumation: the palm branch; bits of the coffin

Pauline wrote that on July 3, 1897 she said to Therese:  "When you are dead, they will place a palm in your hand."  Therese answered, "Yes, but I'll have to let it go whenever I want to, in order to give graces by the handful to my little Mother.  I will have to do everything that will be pleasing to me."  (See Last Conversations, p. 72). 

 The gravediggers noticed the scent of violets that came from the rotting boards of the decaying casket. (Therese and Lisieux, p. 310).  Dwight Longenecker mentions the remarks of one of the witnesses to the exhumation about this scent.

Today the same cross, now enclosed in stone and glass,  that marked Therese's first grave from 1897 through 1910 marks the site where that first grave was.  The statue nearby marks the site of her second grave.Part of the Carmelite plot in the town cemetery. The cross marks the site of Therese's first grave (1897-1910); the statue marks her second grave (1910-1923).

The cross has the words "I want to spend my heaven in doing good on earth."

After this first exhumation, Therese's body was reburied in a cemented vault in a different burial plot near the center of the Carmelite plot.

The second grave of Sister Therese of the Child Jesus of the Holy Face (1910-1923).

 As Therese's fame spread, growing numbers of pilgrims came to visit this second grave.

 Pilgrims pray at the second grave of St. Therese. Many who had been cured through the intercession of Therese left their crutches and canes there in thanksgiving.

 The cross that marked this second grave is on display today at the "parcours Theresien," a beautiful display of objects associated with Therese at the Lisieux Carmel. 

A notice from the "parcours Theresien," an exhibit pilgrims may visit at the Lisieux Carmel

On exhibit in the "parcours Theresien" at Lisieux Carmel, the cross that marked Therese's second grave (1910-1923)

  Pilgrims scribbled their petitions and thanksgivings all over the cross.

Today a statue marks the site of Therese's second grave, where her body remained until it was returned to Carmel on March 26, 1923, a month before she was beatified.

Statue marking the spot in Lisieux cemetery where Therese was buried, 1910-1923

At the base of the statue are written (in French) Therese's words "My God, You have surpassed my expectations, and I want to sing of Your mercies."

Several other Carmelites are also buried in the plot where Therese's second grave was, including her prioress, Mother Marie de Gonzague; her novice mistress, Sister Marie of the Angels; and Mother Marie-Ange of the Child Jesus, who entered Lisieux Carmel after Therese's death.  Profoundly convinced of Therese's sanctity, she petitioned Bishop Lemonnier on the very day of her election as prioress in 1908 to open the cause of Therese, and he granted her petition.

Plate bearing the names of three nuns buried in the same plot: Mother Marie de Gonzague, Therese's prioress; Sister Marie of the Angels, Therese's novice mistress; and Mother Marie-Ange of the Child Jesus, a prioress who entered after Therese's death

Three of Therese's novices, Sister Martha of Jesus, Sister Marie-Madeleine of the Blessed Sacrament, and Sister Marie of the Trinity, are also buried here.

Mme. Tifenne, a friend of the Martin family from Alencon and the godmother of Therese's sister Leonie, maintained that this statue resembled Therese more than any other. (See Collected Little Flower Works by Rev. Albert Dolan.  Chicago: Carmelite Press, 1929, p. 160.

Statue marking the site of Therese's second grave in the plot her uncle bought in the town cemetery for the Carmelites

As we pass through the years leading up to the centenary of Therese's canonization, we will celebrate the centenary of many important events, including the close of the diocesan process, the opening of the cause at Rome, the Apostolic Process, the second exhumation, the declaration of Pope Benedict XV that Therese practiced heroic virtue (on which occasion he delivered a long proclamation recommending her way of confidence and love to the whole Church), the solemn translation of Therese's relics to the Carmel, her beatification, and her canonization.  May they be occasions of grace for the whole world.

For permission to use photos I thank the late Fr. J. Linus Ryan and photographers Peter and Liane Klostermann, Juan Marrero, and Jesus Moreno Pacheco.