Carmelite QuotesQuote of the day, 21 June: St. Thérèse
Jesus be in your soul, my dear little brother in Christ.
I beg you, never think you’re “bothering me or distracting me” by speaking so much about yourself. Could it be possible for a sister not to take interest in everything that concerns her brother? As for distracting me, you have nothing to fear—on the contrary, your letters unite me more closely to the good God by allowing me to contemplate more intimately the wonders of His mercy and love.
Sometimes Jesus delights in “revealing His secrets to the little ones”; proof of this is that after reading your first letter of 15 October 1895, I thought the same thing as your spiritual director: You can’t be a sort-of saint—you must be one completely or not at all. I sensed that you had an energetic soul, and that’s why I was happy to become your sister.
Ah! my dear little brother, since it was given to me to understand the love of the Heart of Jesus, I confess that it has driven all fear from my heart. The memory of my faults humbles me, and makes me never rely on my own strength, which is only weakness; but more than that, this memory speaks to me of mercy and of love.
How could our faults not be consumed forever, when we cast them with childlike confidence into the burning furnace of Love?
Saint Thérèse of Lisieux
Letter 247 to Abbé Maurice Bellière (excerpts)
21 June 1897
“You can’t be a sort-of saint—you must be one completely or not at all.”
— St. Thérèse of Lisieux
This quote comes from St. Thérèse’s letter to seminarian Maurice Bellière, written on 21 June 1897. Thérèse had been corresponding with him since October 1896, and this particular letter replies to his Pentecost Monday message (7 June 1897), in which he shares that he will begin his novitiate with the Missionaries of Africa (White Fathers) on 1 October.
In it, Thérèse recalls thinking the same as Bellière’s spiritual director: “You cannot be a saint by halves; you must be one completely or not at all.” That phrasing comes from the English translation by Fr. John Clarke, O.C.D., published by ICS Publications.
In this post, we offer a dynamic rendering: You can’t be sort of a saint—you have to be one completely or not at all. The goal is clarity and impact while preserving Thérèse’s original intensity.
The French phrase à demi—meaning “incompletely” or “partially”—contrasts directly with her emphatic tout à fait (“completely”). This distinction is clarified in the Trésor de la Langue Française, an exhaustive historical dictionary of French usage known for its precision and literary depth. The TLFi notes that à demi often implies something unfinished or imperfect—unlike demi, which quantifies (e.g., demi-tasse). In Thérèse’s usage, à demi signals the danger of mediocrity in the spiritual life; she counters it with the language of totality.
This remark also echoes Bellière’s first letter of 15 October 1895, in which he expressed both his longing for holiness and his awareness of personal weakness. He asked that one of the nuns pray for him—and Mother Agnès chose Thérèse. Their exchange became the foundation of a profoundly spiritual correspondence. Studies on this pivotal dialogue were published in Vie Thérésienne, nos. 12–14 and 66–69 (October 1963 – April 1964).
Translation from the French text is the blogger’s own work product and may not be reproduced without permission.
Featured image: Abbé Maurice Barthélémy-Bellière (1874–1907) is seen in this undated photo, wearing the habit of the Pères Blancs (White Fathers), formally known as the Missionaries of Africa. Adobe Express creates a collage of images of Bellière and St. Thérèse, featured with a background image of zebras grazing in Malawi, where Bellière served in the missions. Image credit: Carmelite Quotes (Some rights reserved).
⬦ Reflection Question ⬦
What thoughts or feelings arise when you realize what Thérèse is really saying to Bellière?
⬦ Join the conversation in the comments.
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