Saint Thérèse of the Child Jesus

Hey guys! My name is Therese and I am a new writer to the Modern Maiden. I cant wait to join this incredible journey called life with you all.

For my first post, I want to share with you a little bit about Saint Thérèse of the Child Jesus and how she has impacted my family, since her feast day was at the beginning of this month.

Saint Thérèse was born on January 2, 1873, to Louis and Zelie Martin in Alencon, France. She had four older sisters, and their names were Pauline, Marie, Leonie, and Celine. She loved flowers, and would often create little bouquets and give them to her family. Thérèse lived happily with her family until she was only four years old, when her beloved mother died of breast cancer. Not long after her death Louis Martin moved the family to Lisieux, France, where Thérèse spent the rest of her life. Pauline, who was Thérèse’s favorite sister, entered the Carmelite convent to become a nun.

Since she was a small child, Thérèse’s love for God had been very great. She loved to make small sacrifices, and she loved God with every little thing she did. Eventually, she wanted to become a nun at the same Carmelite convent as her sister, but was refused admission because she was so young. However, after going to Rome and pleading with the Pope, she entered the convent at the age of 15. She spent the rest of her life there in quiet prayer, and even the most difficult nun at the convent could not dampen her extreme love for the Lord. When she was 24, she caught tuberculosis. Even through all the pain, Thérèse did not complain, and actually found joy in her suffering. She died of the tragedies of the sickness on September 30, 1897. Her feast day is on October 1.

Here are some famous quotes by Saint Thérèse that have impacted me:

• “Remember that nothing is small in the eyes of God. Do all that you do with love.”

• “After my death, I will let fall a shower of roses. I will spend my heaven doing good on earth.”

A few miracles that Saint Thérèse did are as follows: She gave a rose to Pope Francis by means of a mysterious man as a sign for something, she appeared to a man in Vietnam and taught him how to be an “apostle of love,” and attained a miraculous cure for a protestant woman with stomach cancer, and she converted to Catholicism.

Saint Thérèse has impacted my family in many ways, but I’m going to share the best one. My parents had been married for a few years, and they really wanted kids, but hadn't had any yet. They were at a party and were on their way out when a man came up to them with two roses. “These were extra, and I thought you might want them,” he said. My parents took the roses and didn’t really think anything about it. Not long after, they started fostering my sister, and soon after got pregnant with me. This was when my parents realized that those roses were not just ordinary roses, but instead that Saint Thérèse had given them to them. This is how my name is Thérèse and my sister’s middle name is Rose.

I encourage you guys to pray to your patron saint for their intercession, and trust me, your prayers will not go unnoticed!

Ad maiorem Dei gloriam (For His Greater Glory)

-Thérèse