Saint Thérèse of Lisieux (of the Infant Jesus): the Little Way of Spiritual Childhood

The Discovery of the Little Way

Saint Thérèse of Lisieux is universally known as the Saint who taught the world the "Little Way of Spiritual Childhood". She often spoke of the need to "make oneself small before God" and of having found "a completely straight, very short path, a brand new little way" to go to heaven.

Doctor of the Church

Anxious that this "little way" be taught to Christians, Saint Thérèse is not afraid to decisively reject the faith of the wise and the intelligent. Her way to heaven is the way of simplicity, the way of the meek and the pure of heart. Complicated treatises, where faith seems reserved for theologians and a chosen few, do not interest her. Thérèse tirelessly repeats that the Good News is revealed to the little ones and that the Word of God grants wisdom to the simple.

The Way of Simplicity and Humility

Saint Thérèse in her littleness and humility is the mother and model of all children of God. Emptied of everything, she receives herself as a gift from the Father. She feels herself to be nothing and in God she becomes everything. She allows herself to be made fruitful by grace, she lets God act in her, like a little child in the arms of her father.

Total Abandonment to God

The ultimate spiritual gesture indicated by Thérèse is abandonment, the only way that inevitably leads into the arms of God. Thérèse desires nothing else but to hide herself in the arms of God, to let herself be caressed by Him, to let herself be flooded by the ocean of His Mercy. Abandonment is ultimately the most definitive and authentic act of trust, because it is the complete renunciation of one's own will and the total submission to the will of the Father.

Miracles and the "Hurricane of Glory"

Saint Thérèse shakes the Church and the world like a "hurricane of glory" (Pius XI). Already during her lifetime there was an incredible wave of miracles: (the famous "shower of roses") which persuaded the Christian people that God was accrediting that "little saint" by making her glorious and powerful. Likewise, there was also a wave of conversions: people who felt themselves literally guided by the gentle hand of this young girl.

Even today the whole world finds itself cherishing Thérèse: she is called the most beloved young woman on earth. Thérèse cries out to everyone that Jesus wants to forgive us, wants to heal us, wants to flood us with His love, because He Himself needs love.

Jesus' Thirst for Love

To Him we go with the weight of our sins. And He is happy to purify us. He does not get dirty embracing us, while His embrace purifies us: "This is all that Jesus expects from us: He does not need our works, but only our love. He was thirsty, but in saying: Give me to drink, the Creator of the universe was asking love from His creature. He was thirsty for love".

Holiness: God's Gift, Not Human Effort

Thérèse of Lisieux puts us in touch with her soul. An acute contemplative, rich in experience and wisdom, she points out the simplest itinerary to reach the end of life: to enter into intimacy with God as a merciful and tender Father toward those who, convinced of their own weakness and miseries, turn to Him with unlimited confidence.

She transmits her message in a simple and disarming language and cries out to us that being holy is not the result of human effort, but a gift of God.

The Longing to Become Little

Turning our gaze to Thérèse, the longing to become like those little ones to whom Christ gives the kingdom of heaven as an inheritance will be born in each of us. We will understand how life is a gift that human beings receive, without any merit. A gift and a means to receive and give love and thus realize the essence of being human: "Need to love and to be loved".

Today the whole Church loves this splendid Saint, a woman, the youngest Doctor of the Church in its two-thousand-year history. Thérèse's teaching can and must reach us through her life recounted in the light of a love relationship. One can only be fascinated and surprised to see the wonders of God upon the soul of this Saint, who had the courage to abandon herself to His Mercy. "If your heart accuses you of sin, God is greater than your heart".

Those who make their life an exchange of love experience freedom and happiness, while those who allow their intelligence, love or faith to be stolen, renounce living and fall into that anguishing solitude that so many human beings experience even today. A situation that can still be overcome by seeking a personal encounter, a strong experience, an authentic guide that introduces us to a life worthy of being lived for that God of whom little Thérèse speaks to us with her whole life, in the continuous and intense search for His face.

The steps of this itinerary will be revealed in the journey proposed below, which will attempt to reveal the abundant substance of the spirituality of this very great saint, for all those who wish to begin to become intoxicated with her fragrance.

A Special Invitation to Prayer

If you desire to attain joy and acquire virtues, listen to Jesus' invitation: "Whatever you ask for in prayer with faith, you will receive" (Mt 18:20). Indeed, without prayer, no spiritual journey is possible, nor can one follow the Footsteps of Jesus, our Savior.

If you wish to respond to the invitation, or simply pray from your home, click here and you will find an extraordinary prayer group. You will thus be able to spiritually unite with so many brothers and sisters scattered across all continents, and your life will change.

If you wish to receive the prayer booklet, fill out the form and you will receive it at your address at no cost.

You can visit the prayer group after reading and meditating on the following interesting pages.