St. Therese of Lisieux: Embrace Your Weakness in the Age of Invention

Doctor of the Church: Without love, deeds, even the most brilliant, count as nothing

A holy card St. Therese of Lisieux kept with the words, “I am the Jesus of Teresa” (St. Teresa of Avila) and “Let whoever is little come to me” (Proverbs 9:4). Public domain image courtesy of Carmel De Lisieux Archives.

A tiny way child and father share the most uplifting joy: the little one sits on the shoulders of the big one (feeling tall, seeing a different life view).

St. Therese of Lisieux only lived to be 24. Now a Doctor of the Church, she teaches the power of such small moments and the little way: little ones harnessing the magnificent power of the Father, making Jesus their elevator.

“The splendor of the rose and the whiteness of the lily do not rob the little violet of its scent nor the daisy of its simple charm,” she said. “If every tiny flower wanted to be a rose, spring would lose its loveliness.”

She died on September 30, 1897 (her feast is October 1) but saw, “We live in an age of inventions. We need no longer climb laboriously up flights of stairs.”

St. Therese’s vision for allowing Jesus to show us life’s elevators

“I am determined to find an elevator to carry me to Jesus, for I was too small to climb the steep stairs of perfection,” St. Therese said. “So I sought in Holy Scripture some idea of what this lift I…