October 1st is the feastday of one of our most popular and endearing Saints: St. Therese of Lisieux. The wisdom which God provided “the Little Flower,” as she is also known, is remarkable and for the ages.
St. Therese maintained that, like children, we are invited to let ourselves be visited by God in our littleness, our poverty, and our weaknesses, in order to receive new strength: the strength of trust and faith. She was influenced by St. Paul, who wrote, “God’s strength is made perfect in weakness.” St. Therese of Lisieux received a special grace to encourage us to adopt the trusting attitude of small children. In her own words: “I have always tried to stay little, having no other occupation than that of picking flowers, the flowers of love and sacrifice, and offering them to God for His pleasure.”
Today’s feastday gives us a chance to remember that the Little flower did not aim at extraordinary feats, nor great deeds that everyone would admire. In what she called “the banality” of her everyday life, she sought to please God in little things. She was alert for every opportunity to show simple signs of love, offering herself to God … not to accumulate merits or rise above other people – but for love, to please God. Obviously, we still have much to learn from her.
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El 1 de octubre toda la Iglesia celebra el día festivo de Santa Teresa de Lisieux. En 1923, el Papa Pío XI celebró la ceremonia de su beatificación y dos años más tarde la canonizaría. Dos años después, en 1927, la declaró patrona de las misiones junto con el jesuita San Francisco Javier. El Papa se refirió a Santa Teresa como “la estrella” de su pontificado. Durante la homilía de la canonización, el Papa dijo: “Si todos siguen este camino de infancia espiritual, todos verán con qué facilidad se puede realizar la reforma de la sociedad humana, que hemos propuesto desde el inicio de nuestro pontificado.”
La espiritualidad sencilla (pero poderosa) de Santa Teresa ha cautivado la imaginación de católicos y no católicos durante el último siglo. Su sentido del compromiso la llevó a una profunda experiencia del amor a Dios y al prójimo. Nunca tuvo una vida fácil, pero vivió con un gran sentido de la paz y la alegría.
Para reflejar: https://youtu.be/T0_z7QsIgR0
