Therese of the child Jesus

• Posted on 30 September 2020
• By CatTrad
• Posted in Blogs by CatTrad
• 0

Therese of the Child Jesus is a saint that most in the Catholic Church would agree is a very gentle but very powerful intercessory saint.
Photo: Therese and Sister

Therese of the Child Jesus is a saint that most in the Catholic Church would agree is a very gentle but very powerful intercessory saint. You hear frequent stories of her leaving roses for those who have completed a novena asking her intercession. I've found St. Therese to be more mischievous and fun loving.

The Little Flower as she's also known is a much more powerful saint than most give her credit for. A tender soul but not a push over, she is the patron saint of missionaries. St Therese entered the convent at 14 when her health prevented her from becoming a missionary, her childhood dream. She's a Doctor of the Church, her little way serving to lead many Catholics to a greater devotion to God and to draw nearer to Him through every little act done for Him. 

St Therese's Little Way is incredibly groundbreaking in its approach to holiness, showing that great works are not always necessary to achieving sainthood. She believed that the best way to achieve sainthood was to become like a little child and run to Jesus. She believed that in her own time, people were too fearful of encountering the judgement of God and therefore encouraged all to become like the little children that Christ called to him in the Gospels. 

My own experience with St. Therese has been that she is a very fun loving and sometimes mischievous saint. My prayers are frequently answered through her intercession in ways not quite like what I had hoped but so much better. Her trademark of roses has definitely made its appearance, though never in the manifestation of actual roses. She's a subtle saint, sometimes choosing to let you know of her presence not through a random bouquet of roses but through the rose scented lotion of a friend I encounter that day or even in rose flavored water. 

We could all stand to learn something from Therese of the Child Jesus. Whether it be to love God like a little child or to do little things with great love, she has something to teach us all.