In order to deepen her knowledge, Little Thérèse did what the Apostles did when they took Our Lord aside and asked Him to explain His parables to them. She spoke His language and thereby slipped into the depth of the Heart of God to snatch from Him secrets of perfection and love and reveal them on earth. She saw what she expected to see, an abyss of simplicity and uncomprehended love.

The fundamental disposition of heart which Little Thérèse spoke of: it is a mixture of humility, of trust, of habitual recourse to God in distress; it is even sometimes a kind of supernatural joy at experiencing one’s misery and great need of help from above at every moment. In short it is the Truth, true Divine Love, the true light which we must welcome and increase within ourselves by the practice of fraternal charity.

In spite of her beautiful desires, St. Thérèse was simplicity itself. What looks great and sublime in her was necessary for her canonization so that her Little Way might have some authority, but the essence of the Little Way is simply confidence, humility, and the greatest simplicity. This was not affected by her beautiful desires for suffering and martyrdom.

To give God full freedom to do what He pleases with us—that is true love, absolute trust. Have a constant desire to prove your love to Jesus.

Mother Agnès of Jesus, O.C.D. (Pauline Martin)

Little Counsels of Mother Agnes of Jesus, OCD Saint Therese’s Sister, Pauline (excerpt), Compiled by the Discalced Carmelite nuns of Ada (Parnell) Michigan

Featured image: Photographer Satria Bagaskara captured this image of a little white butterfly from the Pieridae family in Klojen, Jawa Timur, Indonesia. Image credit: pexels.com (Stock photo)

https://carmelitequotes.blog/2024/09/25/agnes-trulove/

#humility #Jesus #joy #love #MotherAgnèsOfJesus #PaulineMartin #simplicity #StThérèseOfLisieux #trust #truth

Gallipoli Carmelite monastery
25 February 1910

Most Reverend Mother Agnes of Jesus,

May the grace of the Holy Spirit always dwell in the soul of Your Reverence. Amen.

I’m sorry for the unintentional delay in replying to your two precious letters. Many things have come up that made me fail in this duty, but I’m sure you, with your great kindness, will understand and forgive me.

You can imagine how happy I was to receive your writings and how fortunate I feel to be able to ask for prayers from the blood sister of dear Sister Thérèse of the Child Jesus, whom I consider such a close confidante! Even though she’s in Heaven, this beautiful soul continues to help us here on earth, especially poor sinners.

So, it won’t surprise you, my dear Mother, that our beloved Sister Thérèse, as an angel interceding before the Heart of Jesus, performed a miracle in our monastery, working through the least of this holy community.

I’m sending you the account in Italian as you requested, but please keep it private for now. There’s a large official document in Rome with the signatures of all the sisters, the bishop, and a commission of priests, including even a holy priest from the Society of Jesus!

On the night before January 16th this year, I was not feeling well. At 3:00 a.m., almost at the limit of my strength, I managed to sit up a bit in bed to catch my breath and then drifted off to sleep.

I had a dream where I felt a hand touching me, pulling up my blanket and covering me lovingly. I thought it was one of the sisters being kind to me, so without opening my eyes, I said: “Leave me alone, don’t fan me, I’m soaked. This isn’t helping. I feel like life is leaving me.”

Then a voice I didn’t recognize said: “No, my daughter, it is a good thing, and it will not take your life.”

As she continued covering me, she smiled and added: “See, the Lord uses both the inhabitants of Heaven and earth. Here are five hundred lire to pay your community’s debt.”

Taking the money, I told her that our debt was only three hundred lire, and she replied: “The rest is extra, but since you can’t keep money in your cell, come with me.”

Without answering, I thought to myself: “How can I get up, drenched in sweat like this?”

But reading my thoughts, she smiled again and said: “Bilocation will take care of that.”

Suddenly, I found myself outside my cell with a young Carmelite nun. Her habit and veil radiated a heavenly light that lit up our path. She led me to the turn room, where she opened a wooden box with the bill for our community’s debt inside and handed me the five hundred lire. I was overjoyed and amazed and bowed down to thank her, saying: “Oh, my Blessed Mother!”

But she lovingly lifted me up and said: “No, my daughter, I’m not Our Blessed Mother. I’m the servant of God, Sister Thérèse of Lisieux! Today is a feast in Heaven and on earth, for it is the feast of the Holy Name of Jesus.”

I was moved and amazed, and without knowing what to say, I exclaimed from the bottom of my heart: “My God!” but I couldn’t finish. Then this heavenly sister touched my veil, as if to adjust it, gave me a gentle, sisterly caress, and began to walk away.

“Wait,” I called out to her, “you might go the wrong way!”

She smiled angelically and replied: “No, no, my daughter, my way is safe and I was not mistaken.”

I woke up, and despite feeling exhausted, I forced myself to get up, go to the Choir, and receive Holy Communion.

The sisters noticed I wasn’t well and wanted to call the doctor. I went through the sacristy, and when the two sacristy nuns insisted I go back to bed and call the doctor, I told them that I’d had a dream that had shaken me a little, and I recounted it simply.

They then insisted that I check the wooden box, but I told them that we shouldn’t believe in dreams and that doing so was even a sin. Eventually, because of their persistence, I went with them to the turn, opened the box, and there… we found the miraculous five-hundred-lire note!

I leave the rest to your reflection!

My dear Mother, we are all so humbled by such kindness, and we eagerly await the day when our dear Sister Thérèse, our great protector, will be raised to the honors of the altar!

Could you send me the life of this Angel in Italian? It would bring me great joy, and I will be forever grateful. I also want to thank you from the bottom of my heart for the lovely picture you sent me. May the good Lord reward you abundantly for your kindness.

Please accept the warmest regards from the whole community, who entrust themselves to your prayers.

And, dear Mother, may I ask for your prayers for my own soul? I know you will pray for me, and please consider me one of your sisters (even though I am so unworthy!), as I am the same age as your heavenly sister!

Sister Maria Carmela of the Heart of Jesus,
unworthy Carmelite religious

Note: We share the text of the letter sent by the prioress of the Carmel of Gallipoli, Mother Maria Carmela of the Heart of Jesus, to Lisieux, addressed to Mother Agnès, the sister of Saint Thérèse of the Child Jesus.

Translation from the French text is the blogger’s own work product and may not be reproduced without permission.

Featured image: This is a detail of a stained glass window created by artist Sr. Margaret Agnes Rope, O.C.D. for Holy Name parish in Oxton, Birkenhead (Cheshire) England, which is one of the best-loved stained glass images of St. Thérèse of Lisieux. You can learn more about Sr. Margaret from her sisters at the Quidenham Carmel in England. Image credit: Arthur Rope / Wikimedia Commons (For the common good)

https://carmelitequotes.blog/2024/09/24/gallipoli-ltr1910/

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INTRODUCTION

In January 1897, Saint Thérèse received a special request from her sister Pauline, the prioress of the Carmel of Lisieux, known as Mother Agnès of Jesus. She asked Thérèse to write a poem for her feast day on January 21st, the feast of Saint Agnes.

In Carmelite monasteries, the prioress’s feast day is always a joyful occasion. The community celebrates with a festive meal, perhaps a formal afternoon tea, and lively evening recreation with entertainment from the sisters.

Thérèse gladly fulfilled Pauline’s request and wrote the poem My Joy! (PN 45). She even noted a popular tune it could be sung to, Où vas-tu petit oiseau? (Where goest thou, pretty bird?), a cantilène by Paul Léopold Amat, first published in Europe in 1854 (fils de B. Schott, Mainz) and in the United States in 1859 (Oliver Ditson). Amat composed the tune for lyrics by Théodore Seguret. In the upper right-hand corner of Thérèse’s copy for Abbé Bellière, she wrote the first line of Amat’s song, “Rêve, parfum ou frais murmure” (Dream, fragrance, or cool breeze).

Thérèse later told Pauline that this poem was autobiographical, saying, “my entire soul is there!”

As we approach the 2025 Centenary of Saint Thérèse’s canonization, this novena offers a meaningful way to prepare for this milestone. In a world filled with challenges, we all long for a “cool breeze”—a fresh perspective, a source of encouragement. Thérèse’s seven stanzas offer that encouragement, pointing us toward a joy that is deep and lasting.

Our novena begins with a passage from Manuscript C of Saint Thérèse’s writings, where she shares her experience of the trial of faith. Over the next nine days, we’ll explore this poem and conclude with one of her final conversations with Pauline, where Thérèse once again speaks of trials and trust.

Where can we find joy? Thérèse will show us, through her words and her life, that true joy comes from within—where God dwells in our hearts.

NOVENA MEDITATIONS

Join us as we pray every day! As our novena unfolds, each day you will see a new link for our meditations from St. Thérèse

• Day One
  Joy in the Trial of Faith
• Day Two
  Finding Joy Within
• Day Three
  Embracing Joy in Suffering
• Day Four
  Joy in Trusting God’s Will
• Day Five
  The Joy of Spiritual Childhood
• Day Six
  The Hidden Joy of Silent Suffering
• Day Seven
  The Joy of Sacrifice for Jesus
• Day Eight
  The Joy of Loving Jesus Above All
• Day Nine
  Lord, You Fill Us with Joy

NOVENA PRAYER

St. Thérèse of the Child Jesus,
remember your promise to do good on earth;
send your shower of roses in abundance
on those who call upon you,
and obtain for us from God the graces
we are waiting to receive from His infinite goodness.

mention your intentions here

God our Father,
you have promised your kingdom
to those who are willing to become like little children.
Help us to follow the way of Saint Thérèse with confidence
so that by her prayers
we may come to know your eternal glory.
Grant this through our Lord Jesus Christ, your Son,
who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit,
God, forever and ever. Amen.

We always refer to the website of the Archives of the Carmel of Lisieux for the vast majority of our quotes concerning Saint Thérèse, Saint Zélie, and Saint Louis Martin. If you would like to purchase English translations for the collected works of St. Thérèse, please visit the website of our Discalced Carmelite friars at ICS Publications. 

https://carmelitequotes.blog/2024/09/22/tejnovena24-0/

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[Mother Agnès writes:] We had brought her a bouquet of dahlias from outside; she gazed at them with pleasure, running her fingers ever so gently through the petals! After Father Denis’ First Mass, she asked to see his chalice, and because she was looking for a long time at the bottom of the cup, someone asked:

“Why are you looking so intently at the bottom of the chalice?”

Because my reflection is there; when I was Sacristan, I used to love doing this. I was happy to say to myself: My features are reflected in the place where the Blood of Jesus rested and where it will descend again. How many times, too, have I thought that at Rome, my face was reproduced in the eyes of the Holy Father.

Saint Thérèse of Lisieux

Note: Canon Joseph-Pierre-Eugène-Marie Denis de Maroy was born on 20 March 1871 in Paris. He was a friend of the Guérin and La Néele families. During his seminary years, he visited with all four of the Martin daughters—Marie, Pauline, Céline, and Thérèse—in the monastery parlor. A Lisieux native, he wanted to be ordained in Lisieux, but his ordination took place in the diocesan see of Bayeux on 18 September 1897; his first Mass was at the Carmel of Lisieux on Sunday, 19 September 1897. In 1958, Father Denis said that for his first Mass at the monastery, Thérèse had roses given to him to adorn his chalice, after she had kissed them. He died in Lisieux on 29 December 1962.

Thérèse & Clarke, J 1977, St. Thérèse of Lisieux, Her Last Conversations, Institute of Carmelite Studies, Washington DC.

Featured image: Photographer Father Lawrence Lew, O.P. captures this image of the consecration of the Mass. Image credit: Lawrence Lew, O.P. / Flickr (Some rights reserved)

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Some said that Sister St. Stanislaus called her an angel because of the smiles and signs of affection Thérèse showed her for the least service: “It’s in this way that I’ve taken God in, and it’s because of this that I’ll be so well received by Him at the hour of my death.”

“I’m very happy that meat disgusts me because then I find no pleasure in it.” (They were serving her a little meat.)

At the moment when I was leaving the infirmary to go to the refectory: “I love you!”

When the Angelus was ringing: “Must I extend my little hands?” I answered: “No, you’re even too weak to recite the Angelus. Call upon the Blessed Virgin by simply saying: ‘Virgin Mary!’ ” She said: “Virgin Mary, I love you with all my heart.” Sister Geneviève said: “Tell her that you love her for me, too.” Then she added in a whisper: “For ‘Mlle. Lili,’ for Mamma, for godmother, for Léonie, for little Marie, Uncle, Aunt, Jeanne, Francis, ‘Maurice,’ ‘little Roulland,’ and all whom I love.”

She had a desire for a certain type of food, a very simple one, and one of us told our Uncle about it: “It’s very strange that we make this known in the world! Well, I offered it up to God.” I told her that it wasn’t my fault, for in fact I had forbidden it. She replied by taking the little plate: “Ah! it’s offered up to God. It no longer matters. Let them think what they want!”

During Matins: “Little Mother, oh! how I love you!” With a pretty smile, trying to speak: “Let’s say something, just the same; let’s say . . . If you only knew how the thought of going soon to heaven leaves me calm. However, I’m very happy, but I can’t say that I am experiencing a living joy and transports of happiness, no!”

I asked: “You prefer to die rather than to live?“ “O little Mother, I don’t love one thing more than another; I could not say like our holy Mother St. Teresa: ‘I die because I cannot die’ (cf. Poetry, 1, “Vivir sin vivir en mí”). What God prefers and chooses for me, that is what pleases me more.”

Saint Thérèse of Lisieux

Yellow Notebook of Mother Agnès, 4 September 1897

Note: A touching anecdote concerning Sister St. Stanislaus: She suffered from hearing loss, so Thérèse would express her gratitude by giving Sister St. Stanislaus’ hand a gentle squeeze. As for the persons on St. Thérèse’s prayer list, they are Sister Geneviève (Céline), Mother Agnès of Jesus (Pauline), Sister Marie of the Sacred Heart (Marie), Léonie Martin, Sister Marie of the Eucharist (Thérèse’s cousin, Marie Guérin), M. and Mme. Guérin, Mme. La Néele and Dr. La Néele, Fr. Bellière and Fr. Roulland.

Thérèse & Clarke, J 1977, St. Thérèse of Lisieux, Her Last Conversations, Institute of Carmelite Studies, Washington DC.

Featured image: This Croatian painting of St. Thérèse was captured by the renowned Croatian photographer Zvonimir Atletić, who traveled with Saint Mother Teresa of Calcutta. Image credit: zatletic / Adobe Stock

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Mother Agnès: I was reading the Sunday Gospel to her: the parable of the Good Samaritan.

Saint Thérèse: … I’m like that poor traveler “semivivo”, half dead, half alive.

Mother Agnès: It’s hard to suffer without any inner consolation.

Saint Thérèse: Yes, but it’s suffering without worry. I’m happy to suffer because the good Lord wills it.

Agnès of Jesus, OCD (Pauline Martin) and St. Thérèse of Lisieux

The Last Conversations, Yellow Notebook
29 August 1897

Translation from the French text is the blogger’s own work product and may not be reproduced without permission.

We always refer to the website of the Archives of the Carmel of Lisieux for the vast majority of our quotes concerning Saint Thérèse, Saint Zélie, and Saint Louis Martin. If you would like to purchase English translations for the collected works of St. Thérèse, please visit the website of our Discalced Carmelite friars at ICS Publications. 

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JUNE 1944

Excerpt from the Circular of Mother Agnès of Jésus

The war is hanging over our Normandy. The air raids intensify. Great anguish embraces our hearts, facing a terrible unknown.

On the evening of the 6th, a first bombardment fell on the city, shaking the walls of the Monastery and foreshadowing a continuation.

All night long, our beloved Mother was sheltered, with part of the Community, in the infirmary where Sister Marie of the Sacred Heart had died; the bombs rained down around us because our improvised shelter was just near the string of missiles that had been fired on the street in front of our Carmel.

Grouped together next to our valiant Mother, terrified, we prayed with her, and she remained calm; to see her, to experience ourselves alongside her was our strength. But as soon as there was a lull, she rushed to the Turn to ask for news of the terrible drama.

The next morning, Monsignor Germain, Director of Pilgrimages, came to the sacristy and offered to give us Holy Communion, because the situation was too insecure for us to celebrate Holy Mass. The chaplains’ house was no longer fit for habitation, and the house of our Sisters of the Carmel Saint Joseph, adjoining us, had partially collapsed.

The city was an immense inferno, there were more than one thousand victims; all the reports that reached us were distressing. The population fled to the surrounding countryside, because another bombardment, we were told, had been expected for the beginning of the afternoon.

This time, we wanted to take refuge in the other wing of the convent, in the Infirmary of our little Saint. But unaware of the danger, and faithful to her duty, our Mother lingered and one of us had just enough time to take her in her arms to huddle with her in an apartment when the deluge of bombs surrounded us again.

Our courtyard disappeared under an acrid and yellowish smoke. We got out of it unscathed, but what were our prospects for the next night? Just a few days earlier, Mother Agnès of Jesus confided:

“I’ve made the sacrifice of our little Carmel to the good Lord if he wants it!”

Carmelite Nuns of Lisieux

Excerpt from the obituary notice called a “circular”, that was written by the nuns for the other Carmels in France and across the Order. A separate English obituary also was prepared, which is not a strict translation of the French text.

Lisieux after the bombing raids of June 1944. The Basilica of St. Thérèse is seen in the background. Photo credit: PhotosNormandie / Flickr (Some rights reserved). Visit their Lisieux photo album for more images of the city in June 1944.

In the featured image, we see the front page of The New York Times on Tuesday, June 6, 1944, which was a map of the invasion sites below the headline: ALLIED ARMIES LAND IN FRANCE IN THE HAVRE-CHERBOURG AREA; GREAT INVASION IS UNDERWAY.

The caption underneath the map says:

“General Eisenhower’s armies invaded northern France this morning. While the landing points were not specified, the Germans said that troops had gone ashore near Havre and that fighting raged at Caen (1). The enemy also said that parachutists had descended at the northern tip of the Normandy Peninsula (2) and heavy bombing had been visited on Calais and Dunkerque (3).”

Although the New York Times map does not indicate by name the location of Lisieux, it is southeast of Deauville on the railway.

Military scholar Dr. Stephen A. Bourque provides additional detail concerning the June 6 Allied bombing raid on Lisieux in his article, “Operational Fires Lisieux and Saint-Lô – The Destruction of Two Norman Towns on D-Day.” In this excerpt from the 2010 article in the journal, Canadian Military History (Vol 19, 2), Professor Bourque explains the reason for the terror described by the nuns.

Before the sun came up, reconnaissance units from the 12th SS Panzer Division passed through the centre of [Lisieux], heading west toward the sounds of the fighting. Unit commanders noted the citizens’ apparent calm, and, in spite of the obvious sounds of war, they appeared to be beginning the day as if it was just like any other.

The rumble of battle continued all morning and Allied aircraft seemed to be everywhere above the clouds. No one on the ground realized that at 0900 hours 81 B-17 Flying Fortress aircraft were overhead and prepared to drop their bombs on the city. The bombardiers, however, could not locate their targets through the cloud cover and turned back to England.

As the morning turned into afternoon, the citizens heard less from the beaches, and the firing was not quite as loud and more intermittent. Allied aircraft, primarily fighter-bombers, flew over the town and sometimes machine-gunned the German convoys along Route 13.

Watching these events, the citizens now waited with foreboding that the cannonade would surely come their way. Allied commanders were not happy that the main east-west highway was still open on the afternoon of 6 June. They knew that the 12th SS Panzer was on the move and that Hitler had ordered SS General Joseph (Sepp) Dietrich, commander of the 1 SS Panzer Corps, to throw the invaders “back into the sea.”

Determined to stop German units from heading to the front, they directed the bombers to repeat the aborted mission again and to strike Lisieux before sunset. Around 2000 hours, 72 B-24 Liberators crossed the English Channel and flew towards the city.

This time, since the leaders expected that the cloud cover would prohibit any precision, they ordered the crews to use “overcast bombing techniques,” a euphemism for area bombing, without regard to either accuracy or civilian casualties. To make accuracy more problematic, increasingly bad weather forced the aircraft to fly higher than anticipated, now up to 23,000 or 24,000 feet. Still, many aircraft were unable to find either this or any target, and headed back to England.

However, 25 B-24s fought through the weather and headed for Lisieux intent on dropping their 73 tons of explosives on their assigned objective. At 2020 hours, the Liberator squadrons appeared over the city centre and began dropping their munitions, just as the citizens sat down for their evening meals and young children went to bed. The streets were empty, as the evening curfew had just taken place, and almost everyone was at home.

Bourque, S 2010, ‘Operational Fires Lisieux and Saint-Lô – The Destruction of Two Norman Towns on D-Day’, Canadian Military History, vol. 19, no. 2, pp. 29–30.

The New York Times 1944, First Allied Landing Made on Shores of Western Europe, The New York Times, viewed 5 June 2024, <https://timesmachine.nytimes.com/timesmachine/1944/06/06/issue.html>.

Translation from the French text is the blogger’s own work product and may not be reproduced without permission.

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