On February 27, 1945, the relics of St. Therese left Lisieux for the first time.  This rare archival film (2:42) shows the ruins of Lisieux, the procession leaving the service of farewell at St. Pierre's Cathedral (one of the few buildings left standing in the town center), and the departure of the reliquary by car for Paris. The reliquary was placed first in the private chapel of Emmanuel Cardinal Suhard, Archbishop of Paris. He presided when it was venerated by fifty thousand young people in the Parc des Princes. The reliquary was carried successively into the principal churches of Paris. ending with solemn ceremonies at the Cathederal of Notre Dame in the presence of all the cardinals and archbishops of France.  Watch the procession into the Cathedral of Notre Dame and the procession through the streets afterward.  The occasion for this historic visit was the May 3, 1944 decree of Pope Pius XII naming St. Therese of the Child Jesus secondary patron of France along with St. Joan of Arc.  The Blessed Virgin is the principal patron of France.

This film was produced by Les Actualites Francaises.  We thank the Institut National Audiovisuel for making this treasure available online.  See also a short newspaper article about this visit in The Observer of Rockford, Illinois, February 25, 1945, which mentions a special Mass in Paris exclusively for the officers and enlisted men of the American Forces. 

119 years ago today, St. Therese of Lisieux spontaneously offered herself to Merciful Love on Trinity Sunday, June 9, 1895.  I've prepared an anniversary gift for you.  Please help me by unwrapping it: click where I indicate to see several documents and photographs related to the Offering on the Web site of the Archives of the Carmel of Lisieux.  Please bear with these paragraphs of unrelieved text, for the links are a doorway to beautiful images and words related to the Act.  These are but a taste of the treasures the Archives site is sharing with the world.

At the end of 1895, Therese wrote in her first autobiographical manuscript about the inspiration she had received to offer herself to Merciful Love. Thanks to the kindness of the Washington Province of Carmelite Friars and the Archives of the Carmel, you may see a photo of the handwritten manuscript and also read in English her description of how, on  the morning of June 9,1895, "I received the grace to understand more than ever how much Jesus desires to be loved."  She received this grace in the choir.  Within the next two days she wrote the Offering out; see the manuscript and the English text of her "Offering of myself as a Victim of Holocaust to the Merciful Love of God."   This prayer has often been called the "Act of Oblation," but, as you will see, that title is not from Therese; she wrote only "Offering of myself."  For all its solemnity, her written Offering retains its spontaneity; she did not write in formal terms like "Act of Oblation."  "We have nothing to fear from this Offering," she often declared happily.

To see Therese's appearance at about this time, see the photo of the Carmelites of Lisieux taken closest to this date; Therese is in the second row, second from left. 

The text of the Offering appears in Story of a Soul.  For a fuller understanding of the Offering and its significance in Therese's life and spirituality, I highly recommend the marvelous little book The Prayers of Saint Therese of Lisieux (Washington, D.C.: ICS Publications, 1996), which contains the text of the several copies and adds rich commentary.  I recommend it especially if you are thinking of offering yourself to Merciful Love with Therese and want to understand the offering better.  To "search inside" or for more information, please click on the text link or the image above.  The book also contains twenty other prayers written by Therese, and it brings her to life in a unique way.

To read more reflections on the offering right now, see my page "Offering of Myself to Merciful Love, June 9, 1895."  Blessings on the anniversary of this great day of grace.

As the world looks forward to the canonization tomorrow of Blessed John XXIII and Blessed John Paul II, we remember that both Popes held St. Therese as a dear friend.  Many Popes have loved St. Therese and trusted confidently in her intercession for them.

Pope John XXIII (public domain photo, released by the Vatican)

In his lifetime Angelo Roncallli, Pope John XXIII, made five pilgrimages to Lisieux, most while he was Papal Nuncio in Paris, but also as Apostolic Delegate in Bulgaria.  He said:

"I shall never cease blessing and exalting the little and great saint who has always been, and always will be, the lucky star of my mission in France. It was at the altar in the chapel dedicated to her in Ankara, in the heart of Turkey, that I bade farewell to the Orient, where I had spent twenty years of apostolic ministry. Every day, I look at her marble statue in my private chapel in the nunciature; better still, I turn to her in prayer and confide to her all my problems and difficulties in the ministry of reconciliation and peace which is my mission in the service of the Holy Church and of France also."

Pope John Paul II showed his love for St. Therese from the very start of his pontificate.  On June 2, 1980 he made a Papal visit to Lisieux. 

(© Yves Jeanmougin, http://www.yvesjeanmougin.com)

The photographer, M. Yves Jeanmougin, graciously created for this Web site a gallery of his enchanting photographs of Pope John Paul II's visit to Lisieux. 

June 2, 1980:  Pope John Paul II praying in the infirmary where St. Therese died. 

Years later, on March 26, 1994, Pope John Paul II declared Therese's mother and father, Blessed Louis and Zelie Martin, "venerable" (an important step on the road to sainthood).  Thet were declared blessed by Pope Benedict XVI on October 19, 2008.

On August 24, 1997, in his Angelus message at the close of World Youth Day in France, Pope John Paul II announced that he would name St. Therese of Lisieux a Doctor of the Church on Mission Sunday, October 19.  Three days later, at his general audience on August 27, 1997, he described Therese as the "authoritative teacher" of the "overwhelming message of God's love."

At the ceremony on October 19, 1997, the Pope's Apostolic Letter proclaiming St. Therese a Doctor of the Church, was proclaimed; it was titled "Divini Amoris Scientia" (the Science of Divine Love).  He said that Therese's teaching

excels for the depth and wise synthesis it achieved. Her doctrine is at once a confession of the Church's faith, an experience of the Christian mystery and a way to holiness. Thérèse offers a mature synthesis of Christian spirituality: she combines theology and the spiritual life; she expresses herself with strength and authority, with a great ability to persuade and communicate, as is shown by the reception and dissemination of her message among the People of God.

In this letter the Pope also stressed the importance of Therese as a woman, a contemplative, and a young person.  In his homily at the Doctoral Mass, Pope John Paul II stated:

Therese of Lisieux did not only grasp and describe the profound truth of Love as the center and heart of the Church, but in her short life she lived it intensely. It is precisely this convergence of doctrine and concrete experience, of truth and life, of teaching and practice, which shines with particular brightness in this saint, and which makes her an attractive model especially for young people and for those who are seeking true meaning for their life. Before the emptiness of so many words, Therese offers another solution, the one Word of salvation which, understood and lived in silence, becomes a source of renewed life. She counters a rational culture, so often overcome by practical materialism, with the disarming simplicity of the "little way" which, by returning to the essentials, leads to the secret of all life: the divine Love that surrounds and penetrates every human venture. In a time like ours, so frequently marked by an ephemeral and hedonistic culture, this new Doctor of the Church proves to be remarkably effective in enlightening the mind and heart of those who hunger and thirst for truth and love. An eminent model and guide for Christians today.

 The next day, in his speech to the pilgrims gathered in Rome for the doctoral Mass, Pope John Paul said:

For our time Thérèse is a powerful and accessible witness of an experience of faith in God, the faithful and merciful God, who is just by his very Love. She lived deeply her membership in the Church, the Body of Christ. I think that young people really find in her an inspiration to guide them in the faith and in ecclesial life, at a time when their way can be crossed by trials and doubts. Thérèse experienced all kinds of trials, but it was granted to her to remain faithful and trusting; she bears witness to that fact. She supports her brothers and sisters on all the paths of the world.

 We rejoice to see the Popes who understood the mission of St. Therese of Lisieux so well join her as canonized saints.

 Keith J. Egan, T.O.C.

On Sunday, October 21, at 3:00 p.m. at Transfiguration Church in Tarrytown, New York, Professor Keith J. Egan, T.O.C. wll speak on "Saint Therese's Struggle to Believe."  Admission is free, and everyone is welcome to attend the lecture at this parish staffed by the Carmelite friars.  Please take advantage of this chance to hear this theologian reflect on St. Therese's struggle for faith as we begin the year of faith and celebrate the 50th anniversary of Vatican II, which brought into the life of the Church so many themes from the prophetic spirituality of St. Therese. 

Keith Egan has several audio/DVD programs about Carmelite spirituality available from Now You Know Media, including Therese of Lisieux: Wisdom's Daughter. Below you may view one session, "Therese: A Child Surrounded by Love" from his 12-part program.

 Professor Egan is Aquinas Chair in Catholic Theology Emeritus at Saint Mary's College in Notre Dame, Indiana.  He founded the College's Center for Spirituality, where the Carmelite Summer Seminar has taken place for more than 25 years, and is a founding member of the North American Carmelite Forum.   Keith Egan s Adjunct Professor of Theology at the University of Notre Dame and is the former president of the Carmelite Institute.  He has spoken and published much on Christian spirituality and mysticism, especially on Carmelite spirituality, to audiences in North America, Ireland, England, and Rome.  With Laurence Cunningham, he is the co-author of Christian Spiritualty: Themes from the Tradition.  He is the editor of Carmelite Prayer: A Tradition for the 21st Century.  His lectures "Saint Therese: Doctor of the Church" and "The Discovery of Merciful Love" are available on CD from Carmel Clarion Communications.