THOUGHTS
OF THE SERVANT OF GOD
THÉRÈSE
OF THE CHILD JESUS
=Nihil Obstat=
REMIGIUS LAFORT, S. T. D.
_Censor_
=Imprimatur=
✠JOHN CARDINAL FARLEY
_Archbishop of New York_
NEW YORK, _October 22, 1915_
[Illustration:
THE SERVANT OF GOD
THÉRÈSE OF THE CHILD JESUS
_The Little Flower of Jesus_
]
THOUGHTS
OF THE SERVANT OF GOD
THÉRÈSE OF THE CHILD JESUS
THE LITTLE FLOWER OF JESUS
CARMELITE OF THE MONASTERY
OF LISIEUX, 1873-1897
TRANSLATED FROM THE FRENCH
“PENSÉES” BY AN IRISH CARMELITE
[Illustration]
NEW YORK · PUBLISHED BY
P. J. KENEDY & SONS · 1915
COPYRIGHT, 1915
BY P. J. KENEDY & SONS
THE · PLIMPTON · PRESS
NORWOOD · MASS · U·S·A
TO
“PETITE THÉRÈSE”
AND
MÈRE AGNÈS DE JÉSUS
A LITTLE TRIBUTE OF
REVERENT AND LOVING GRATITUDE
FROM CARMEL OF KILMACUD
_June 9, 1914_
CONTENTS
PAGE
LOVE OF GOD 3
LOVE OF OUR NEIGHBOUR 30
FAITH 40
HOPE 44
HUMILITY 50
DETACHMENT 71
MORTIFICATION 82
OBEDIENCE 95
POVERTY 97
CONFIDENCE 100
SELF-ABANDONMENT 115
GRATITUDE 124
ZEAL 130
SIMPLICITY 136
PRAYER 147
HOLY COMMUNION 157
SUFFERING 162
THE DIRECTION OF SOULS 180
THE BLESSED VIRGIN 188
VARIOUS SUBJECTS 190
PRAYER FOR THE BEATIFICATION OF THE SERVANT OF GOD 211
THOUGHTS
OF THE SERVANT OF GOD
THÉRÈSE
OF THE CHILD JESUS
[Illustration]
LOVE OF GOD
Jesus!... I would so love Him! Love Him as never yet He has been
loved....
IV LETTER TO MÈRE AGNÈS DE JÉSUS
(_Her sister Pauline._)
The science of love! Sweet is the echo of that word to the ear of my
soul. I desire no other science. _Having given all my substance for
it_, like the spouse in the Canticles, _I think that I have given
nothing_.[1]
HISTOIRE D’UNE AME, CH. VIII
Without love, deeds, even the most brilliant, count as nothing.
HIST. D’UNE AME, CH. VIII
One evening, at a loss for words to tell Jesus how I loved Him and
how much I wished that He might be everywhere served and glorified, I
reflected with pain that not one act of love would ever mount upwards
from out of the depths of hell. Then I cried out that willingly would I
consent to see myself plunged into that place of torment and blasphemy,
in order that He might be loved there eternally. That could not really
glorify Him since He desires only our happiness, but love makes one
want to say a thousand foolish things. If I spoke thus, it was not that
I did not long for heaven; but then, my heaven was none other than
_Love_, and in my fervour I felt that nothing could separate me from
the Divine object of my love....
HIST. D’UNE AME, CH. V
Seeing the eternal recompense so disproportionate to the trifling
sacrifices of this life, I longed to love Jesus, to love Him ardently,
to give Him a thousand proofs of tenderness while yet I could do so....
HIST. D’UNE AME, CH. V
The love of God reveals itself in the very simplest soul who resists
His grace in nothing, as well as in the most sublime. Indeed, the
characteristic of love being to humble itself, if all souls resembled
those of the holy Doctors who have enlightened the Church, the good
God would not seem to descend low enough in coming to them. But He has
created the infant who knows nothing and can only wail; He has created
the poor savage who has but the natural law for guidance, and it is
even unto their hearts that He deigns to stoop.
HIST. D’UNE AME, CH. I
In order that Love may be fully satisfied it must needs stoop to very
nothingness and transform that nothing into fire.
HIST. D’UNE AME, CH. XI
In times of aridity when I am incapable of praying, of practising
virtue, I seek little opportunities, mere trifles, to give pleasure to
Jesus; for instance a smile, a pleasant word when inclined to be silent
and to show weariness. If I find no opportunities, I at least tell Him
again and again that I love Him; that is not difficult and it keeps
alive the fire in my heart. Even though this fire of love might seem to
me extinct I would still throw little straws upon the embers and I am
certain it would rekindle.
XVI LETTER TO HER SISTER CÉLINE
On _the day of my conversion_ Charity entered into my heart and with it
a yearning to forget self always; thenceforward I was happy.
HIST. D’UNE AME, CH. V
I do not will that creatures should possess a single atom of my love; I
wish to give all to Jesus, since He makes me understand that He alone
is perfect happiness. All shall be for Him, all! And even when I have
nothing to offer Him I will give Him that nothing.
II LETTER TO MÈRE AGNÈS DE JÉSUS
Our Lord is more tender than a mother, and well do I know more than one
maternal heart! I know a mother is ever ready to forgive the little
involuntary failings of her child.
HIST. D’UNE AME, CH. VIII
I know of one means only by which to attain to perfection: LOVE. Let
us love, since our heart is made for nothing else. Sometimes I seek
another word to express Love, but in this land of exile _the word which
begins and ends_[2] is quite incapable of rendering the vibrations of
the soul; we must then adhere to this simple and only word: TO LOVE.
But on whom shall our poor heart lavish its love? Who shall be found
that is great enough to be the recipient of its treasures? Will a
human being know how to comprehend them, and above all will he be able
to repay? There exists but one Being capable of comprehending love; it
is Jesus; He alone can give us back infinitely more than we shall ever
give to Him.
LETTER TO HER COUSIN MARIE GUÉRIN
There is one ONLY THING to do here below: to love Jesus, to win souls
for Him so that He may be loved. Let us seize with jealous care every
least opportunity of self-sacrifice. Let us refuse Him nothing--He does
so want our love!
VI LETTER TO HER SISTER CÉLINE
When we really love, we rejoice in the happiness of the loved one and
make every sacrifice to procure it for him.
COUNSELS AND REMINISCENCES
True love is nourished by sacrifice, and the more the soul denies
itself natural satisfactions, the stronger and the more disinterested
becomes its tenderness.
COUNSELS AND REMINISCENCES
The good God does not need years to accomplish His work of love in a
soul; one ray from His Heart can, in an instant, make His flower bloom
for eternity....
VI LETTER TO HER SISTER CÉLINE
Love can supply for length of years. Jesus, because He is Eternal,
regards not the time but only the love.
V LETTER TO MÈRE AGNÈS DE JÉSUS
I desire no sensible consolation in loving; provided Jesus feel my love
that is enough for me. Oh! to love Him and to make Him loved ... how
sweet it is....
V LETTER TO MÈRE AGNÈS DE JÉSUS
O Jesus, I ask of Thee only Peace!... Peace, and above all LOVE--love
without bound or limit. Jesus, let me for Thy sake die a martyr; give
me martyrdom of soul or body. Ah! rather give me both the one and the
other!
HIST. D’UNE AME, CH. VIII
I have no longer any desire unless it be to love Jesus even to folly!
Yes, LOVE it is that draws me. I can say these words of the canticle of
our Father, St. John of the Cross:
In the inmost cellar
Of my Beloved have I drunk; and when I went forth
Over all the plain
I knew nothing,
And lost the flock I followed before.
My soul is occupied
And all my substance in His service;
Now I guard no flock,
Nor have I any other employment:
My sole occupation is love.
(_Spiritual Canticle, Trans. D. Lewis._)
HIST. D’UNE AME, CH. VIII
Oh! if souls weak and imperfect as mine, felt what I feel, not one
would despair of reaching the summit of the mountain of Love, since
Jesus does not demand from us great deeds, but only self-surrender and
gratitude.
_I have no need_, saith He, _of the goats of thy flocks.... If I were
hungry I would not tell thee.... Offer unto God the sacrifice of praise
and thanksgiving._[3]
See then, all that Jesus asks of us! He has not need of our works but
only of our _love_. This very God who declares that He needs not to
tell us if He were hungry, did not hesitate to _beg_ of the Samaritan
woman a little water.... He thirsted!!! But in saying: “_Give me to
drink_,”[4] it was the love of His poor creature that the Creator of
the universe besought. He thirsted for Love!
And now, more than ever is Jesus athirst. He meets with none but the
ungrateful and the indifferent among the disciples of the world; and
amongst _His own_ disciples He finds, alas! very few hearts that
surrender themselves without any reserve to the tenderness of His
infinite Love.
HIST. D’UNE AME, CH. XI
Since ever I have known Love’s mighty power
Thus hath it wrought its work within my soul--
Whate’er it findeth there, or good or ill,
It turneth all to gain; its living flame
Transforms my soul into its very self.[5]
How sweet is the way of Love! True, one may fall, one may not be always
faithful, but Love, knowing how to draw profit from all, very quickly
consumes whatsoever may displease Jesus, leaving naught but humble and
profound peace in the innermost soul.
HIST. D’UNE AME, CH. VIII
Thinking one day of those who offer themselves as victims to the
Justice of God in order to turn aside the punishment reserved for
sinners by taking it upon themselves, I felt this offering to be noble
and generous, but I was far from feeling moved to make it.
“O my Divine Master,” I cried in the depths of my heart, “shall Thy
Justice alone receive victims of holocaust? Has not Thy Merciful Love
also need of them? On all sides it is ignored, rejected ... the hearts
on which Thou wouldst lavish it turn to creatures, seeking happiness in
miserable and fleeting affections instead of casting themselves into
Thine arms, into the ineffable furnace of Thine Infinite Love.
“O my God, must Thy Love--disdained--remain within Thy Heart? Methinks
that if Thou shouldst find souls offering themselves as victims of
holocaust to Thy Love, Thou wouldst consume them rapidly; that Thou
wouldst be glad not to restrict the flames of infinite tenderness pent
up within Thee.
“If Thy Justice--the Justice which Thou dost exercise on earth--be
pleased to find voluntary victims on which to discharge its weight, how
much the more must Thy Merciful Love also desire _its_ victims, since
_Thy Mercy reacheth even to heaven_.[6]
“O Jesus, that happily I may be that holocaust consume Thy little
victim in the fire of Divine Love.”
HIST. D’UNE AME, CH. VIII
Ah! since that day love penetrates me and surrounds me; this _Merciful
Love_ each moment renews and purifies me, leaving in my heart no trace
of sin. No, I cannot fear Purgatory; I know that I do not merit even to
enter with the Holy Souls into that place of expiation, but I know too
that the fire of Love is more sanctifying than the fire of Purgatory,
I know that Jesus cannot will needless suffering for us, and that He
would not inspire me with the desires I feel if He were unwilling to
fulfil them.
HIST. D’UNE AME, CH. VIII
To offer oneself as a Victim to Divine Love is not to offer oneself
to sweetness--to consolation; but to every anguish, every bitterness,
for Love lives only by sacrifice; and the more a soul wills to be
surrendered to Love, the more must she be surrendered to suffering.
HIST. D’UNE AME, CH. XII
In order to love Jesus, to be His victim of love, the more weak and
miserable we are, the more fitting are we for the operations of this
consuming and transforming Love.... The sole desire to be victim
suffices; but we must consent to remain always poor and without
strength, and there lies the difficulty, for _where shall be found
the truly poor in spirit_? _He must be sought afar off_,[7] saith the
author of the _Imitation_.... He did not say that we must seek him
amongst great souls, but afar off, that is to say in lowliness, in
nothingness.... Oh! let us keep _afar off_ from all that glitters, let
us love our littleness, and be satisfied to feel nothing, then shall we
be truly poor in spirit, and Jesus will come to seek us how far soever
we may be; He will transform us into flames of Love!...
VI LETTER TO SŒUR MARIE DU SACRÉ-CŒUR
(_Her sister Marie._)
To be truly a Victim of Love requires absolute self-surrender. _The
soul is consumed by Love only in so far as she surrenders herself to
Love._
COUNSELS AND REMINISCENCES
It appears to me that for Victims of Love there will be no judgment,
but rather, that the good God will hasten to recompense with eternal
delights His own Love, which He will see burning in their hearts.
COUNSELS AND REMINISCENCES
At any cost I will cull the palm of Saint Agnes; if not by shedding my
blood then it must be by Love....
IV LETTER TO MÈRE AGNÈS DE JÉSUS
O my God, Thou knowest I have never desired but to love Thee alone. I
seek no other glory. Thy Love has gone before me from my childhood, it
has grown with my growth, and now it is an abyss the depths of which I
cannot fathom.
HIST. D’UNE AME, CH. XI
Love attracts love, mine rushes forth unto Thee, it would fain fill up
the abyss which attracts it; but alas! it is not even as one drop of
dew lost in the Ocean. To love Thee as Thou lovest me I must borrow Thy
very love--then only, can I find rest.
HIST. D’UNE AME, CH. XI
Just as a torrent sweeps along with it unto the depths of the sea
whatsoever it encounters on its course, even so, my Jesus, does the
soul which plunges into the boundless ocean of Thy Love draw after her
all her treasures. Lord, Thou knowest that for me these treasures are
the souls it has pleased Thee to unite to mine.
HIST. D’UNE AME, CH. XI
Charity gave me the key to my vocation. I understood that the Church
being a body composed of different members, the most essential, the
most noble of all the organs would not be wanting to her; I understood
that the Church has _a heart_ and that this heart is burning with
love; that it is love alone which makes the members work, that if love
were to die away apostles would no longer preach the Gospel, martyrs
would refuse to shed their blood. I understood that love comprises all
vocations, that love is everything, that it embraces all times and all
places because it is eternal!
HIST. D’UNE AME, CH. XI
O my Well-Beloved! I understand to what combats Thou hast destined me;
it is not on the battle field that I shall fight.... I am prisoner
of Thy Love; freely have I riveted the chain which unites me to Thee
and separates me for ever from the world. My sword is LOVE; with it
_I shall chase the stranger from the kingdom, I shall make Thee to be
proclaimed King_ in the souls of men.
HIST. D’UNE AME, APPENDIX
_Love!_... that is what I ask.... I know but one thing now--_to love
Thee_, O Jesus! Glorious deeds are not for me, I cannot preach the
Gospel, shed my blood ... what does it matter? My brothers toil instead
of me, and I, _the little child_, I keep quite close to the royal
throne, _I love_ for those who fight.
HIST. D’UNE AME, CH. XI
How shall I show my love since love is proved by deeds? Well,--_the
little child will strew flowers_ ... she will embalm the Divine Throne
with their fragrance, will sing with silvery voice the canticle of love.
Yes, my Beloved, it is thus that my life’s brief day shall be spent
before Thee. No other means have I of proving my love than to strew
flowers; that is, to let no little sacrifice escape me, not a look,
not a word, to avail of the very least actions and do them for Love.
I wish to suffer for Love’s sake and for Love’s sake even to rejoice;
thus shall I strew flowers. Not one shall I find without shedding its
petals for Thee ... and then I will sing, I will always sing, even if
I must gather my roses in the very midst of thorns--and the longer and
sharper the thorns the sweeter shall be my song.
HIST. D’UNE AME, CH. XI
Sœur Thérèse de l’Enfant Jésus often spoke of a well-known toy with
which in childhood’s days she had amused herself: a kaleidoscope; in
form somewhat like a small telescope; on looking through, one sees an
endless succession of pretty and many-coloured designs, varying at each
turn of the kaleidoscope.
“This toy,” she said, “aroused my admiration and I used to wonder what
could produce so pleasing a phenomenon; when one day, after serious
examination, I saw there were simply a few tiny scraps of paper and
of wool cut no matter how, and thrown here and there. I pursued my
investigation and discovered three mirrors inside the tube: I had there
the key to the problem.
“This was for me the image of a great mystery. As long as our actions,
even the least of them, remain within the focus of Love, the Blessed
Trinity, which is figured by the three mirrors, reflects them, and
endows them with a wondrous beauty. Jesus, looking at us through the
little lens, that is to say, as it were through Himself, finds all our
actions pleasing to Him. But if we leave the ineffable centre of Love,
what will He see? Mere straws ... actions sullied and nothing worth.”
COUNSELS AND REMINISCENCES
This little prayer which includes all my desires I ask you to say for
me each day:
“Merciful Father, in the name of Thy sweet Jesus, of the Blessed Virgin
and of the Saints, I pray Thee that my sister be fired with Thy spirit
of love, and that Thou wilt grant her the grace to make Thee greatly
loved.”
If God should take me soon to Himself, I ask you to continue each day
this same prayer, for in Heaven my desire will be the same as upon
earth; to love Jesus and to make Him loved.
III LETTER TO HER MISSIONARY “BROTHERS”
She was looking at the sky one day when some one remarked to her:
“Very soon you will dwell beyond the blue sky; with what love you
contemplate it!”
She merely smiled, but afterwards said to the Mother Prioress:
“Mother, our Sisters little know what I suffer! Looking at the blue sky
I was thinking only of the beauty of the material heavens; _the other
is more and more closed to me_.... I was at first distressed by that
remark, then an interior voice answered: ‘Yes, through love thou didst
look at the heavens. Since thy soul is wholly consecrated to Love, all
thy actions, even the most indifferent, bear the impress of this divine
seal.’ I was instantly consoled.”
HIST. D’UNE AME, CH. XII
Until two days before her death she wished to be alone at night,
however, notwithstanding her entreaties, the Infirmarian used to rise
several times to visit her. On one occasion she found our little
invalid with hands clasped and eyes raised to Heaven.
“But what are you doing?” she asked; “you should try to sleep.”
“I cannot, dear Sister, I suffer too much! then I pray....”
“And what do you say to Jesus?”
“I say nothing, _I love Him_!”
HIST. D’UNE AME, CH. XII
A sister was speaking to her of the happiness of Heaven: Thérèse
interrupted, saying:
“It is not that which attracts me....”
“What is it then?”
“Oh! it is LOVE! To love, to be beloved, and _to come back to earth to
make_ LOVE _loved_.”
HIST. D’UNE AME, CH. XII
Love alone have I ever given to the good God, with love He will repay
me.
HIST. D’UNE AME, CH. XII
All that I have written regarding my desire of suffering is most true;
oh! I do not repent of having surrendered myself to Love.
HIST. D’UNE AME, CH. XII
Jesus! Jesus! if it be so sweet to desire Thy Love, what will it be to
possess and to enjoy it for ever!
HIST. D’UNE AME, CH. XI
O Jesus! could I but tell all _little souls_ of Thine ineffable
condescension!... I feel that if it were possible to find one more
weak than mine Thou wouldst take delight in showering upon her greater
favours still, provided that she abandoned herself with entire
confidence to Thine Infinite Mercy.
But why these desires, O my Beloved, to impart the secrets of Thy Love?
Is it not Thyself alone Who hast made them known to me and canst Thou
not reveal them to others? Yes, I know it and I implore Thee to _do_
so: _I beseech Thee to let Thy divine gaze rest upon an immense number
of little souls, I beseech Thee to choose in this world a Legion of
little victims worthy of Thy Love!_
HIST. D’UNE AME, CH. XI
Her last words--looking at her crucifix:
“OH!... I LOVE HIM!... MY GOD, I ... LOVE ... THEE!!!”
HIST. D’UNE AME, CH. XII
O my God, Most Blessed Trinity, I desire to love Thee and to make Thee
loved, to labour for the glory of Holy Church by saving souls still
on earth and by delivering those who suffer in purgatory. I desire to
accomplish Thy Will perfectly, and to attain to the degree of glory
which Thou hast prepared for me in Thy Kingdom, in one word, I desire
to be a saint, but I know that I am powerless, and I implore Thee, O my
God, to be Thyself my sanctity.
Since Thou hast so loved me as to give me Thine only Son to be my
Saviour and my Spouse, the infinite treasures of His merits are mine,
to Thee I offer them with joy, beseeching Thee to see me only as in the
Face of Jesus and in His Heart burning with Love.
Again, I offer Thee all the merits of the Saints--in Heaven and on
earth--their acts of love and those of the holy Angels; and finally
I offer Thee, O Blessed Trinity, the love and the merits of the Holy
Virgin, my most dear Mother; it is to her I entrust my oblation,
begging her to present it to Thee.
Her Divine Son, my well-beloved Spouse, during His life on earth, told
us: “_If you ask the Father anything in My Name He will give it to
you._”[8] I am then certain that Thou wilt hearken to my desires....
My God, I know it, the more Thou willest to give the more dost Thou
make us desire. Immense are the desires that I feel within my heart,
and it is with confidence that I call upon Thee to come and take
possession of my soul. I cannot receive Thee in Holy Communion as often
as I would; but, Lord, art Thou not Almighty?... Remain in me as in the
Tabernacle--never leave Thy little Victim.
I long to console Thee for the ingratitude of the wicked and I pray
Thee take from me the liberty to displease Thee! If through frailty
I fall sometimes, may Thy Divine glance purify my soul immediately,
consuming every imperfection--like to fire which transforms all things
into itself.
I thank Thee, O my God, for all the graces Thou hast bestowed on me,
and particularly for making me pass through the crucible of suffering.
It is with joy I shall behold Thee on the Last Day bearing Thy
sceptre--the Cross; since Thou hast deigned to give me for my portion
this most precious Cross, I have hope of resembling Thee in Heaven and
seeing the sacred stigmata of Thy Passion shine in my glorified body.
After exile on earth I hope to enjoy the possession of Thee in our
eternal Fatherland, but I have no wish to amass merits for Heaven, I
will work for Thy Love alone, my sole aim being to give Thee pleasure,
to console Thy Sacred Heart, and to save souls who will love Thee for
ever.
At the close of life’s evening I shall appear before Thee with empty
hands, for I ask not, Lord, that Thou wouldst count my works.... All
our justice is tarnished in Thy sight. It is therefore my desire to be
clothed with Thine own Justice and to receive from Thy Love the eternal
possession of Thyself. I crave no other Throne nor other Crown but
Thee, O my Beloved!...
In Thy sight time is nothing, _one day is as a thousand years_.[9] Thou
canst in an instant prepare me to appear before Thee.
That I may live in one Act of perfect Love, I OFFER MYSELF AS A VICTIM
OF HOLOCAUST TO THY MERCIFUL LOVE, imploring Thee to consume me without
ceasing, and to let the tide of infinite tenderness pent up in Thee,
overflow into my soul, that so I may become a very martyr of Thy Love,
O my God!
May this martyrdom, having first prepared me to appear before Thee,
break life’s thread at last, and may my soul take its flight,
_unretarded_, into the eternal embrace of Thy Merciful Love.
I desire, O Well-Beloved, at every heart-beat to renew this Oblation an
infinite number of times, _till the shadows retire_[10] and I can tell
Thee my love eternally face to face!
[_Signed_] MARIE-FRANÇOISE-THÉRÈSE
DE L’ENFANT JÉSUS ET DE LA SAINTE FACE
_Rel. Carm. ind._
Feast of The Most Holy Trinity.
The 9th of June in the year of grace, 1895.
FOOTNOTES:
[1] Cant., viii, 7.
[2] St. Augustine.
[3] _Cf._ Ps. xlix, 9, 12, 14.
[4] John, iv, 7.
[5] St. John of the Cross.
[6] _Cf._ Ps. xxxv, 6.
[7] _Cf. Imit._, II, xi, 4.
[8] John, xvi, 23.
[9] _Cf._ Ps. lxxxix, 4.
[10] Cant., iv, 6.
[Illustration]
LOVE OF OUR NEIGHBOUR
There are moments when we are so wretched within, that we must needs
hurry away from ourselves. The good God does not oblige us to remain at
such times in our own company; indeed He often permits that it should
be displeasing to us just that we may leave it. And I see no other
means of going out of ourselves than by going to visit Jesus and Mary,
that is, hastening to deeds of charity.
COUNSELS AND REMINISCENCES
I applied myself above all to practise quite hidden little acts of
virtue; thus I liked to fold the mantles forgotten by the Sisters, and
sought a thousand opportunities of rendering them service.
HIST. D’UNE AME, CH. VII
Had I been rich I never could have borne to see a poor person hungry
without giving him to eat. It is the same in my spiritual life: knowing
there are souls on the point of falling into Hell, I give them my
treasures according as I earn anything, and I have never yet found a
moment to say: “Now I am going to work for myself.”
COUNSELS AND REMINISCENCES
I feel that when I am charitable it is Jesus alone who acts in me; the
more I am united to Him the more do I love all my Sisters. If, when I
desire to increase this love in my heart, the demon tries to set before
my eyes the faults of one or other of the Sisters, I hasten to call
to mind her virtues, her good desires; I say to myself that if I have
seen her fall once, she may well have gained many victories which she
conceals through humility; and that even what appears to me a fault may
in truth be an act of virtue by reason of the intention.
HIST. D’UNE AME, CH. IX
True Charity consists in bearing with all the defects of our neighbour,
in not being surprised at his failings, and in being edified by his
least virtues; Charity must not remain shut up in the depths of the
heart, for _no man lighteth a candle and putteth it under a bushel,
but upon a candlestick, that it may shine to all that are in the
house_.[11] It seems to me that this candle represents the Charity
which ought to enlighten and make joyful, not only those who are
dearest to me, but _all who are in the house_.
HIST. D’UNE AME, CH. IX
There is no artist who does not like his work praised, and the Divine
Artist of souls is pleased when we do not stop at the exterior, but
penetrating even to the inmost sanctuary which He has chosen for His
dwelling, we admire its beauty.
HIST. D’UNE AME, CH. IX
I ought to seek the company of those Sisters who according to nature
please me least. I ought to fulfil in their regard the office of the
Good Samaritan. A word, a kindly smile, will often suffice to gladden a
wounded and sorrowful heart.
HIST. D’UNE AME, CH. X
Oh! what peace inundates the soul when she rises above natural
sentiment. No joy can compare with that known to one who is truly poor
in spirit. If he ask with detachment for some necessary thing, and it
is not only refused him, but an attempt made besides to deprive him of
what he already has, he follows the counsel of our Lord: “_And if a man
will contend with thee in judgment and take away thy coat, let go thy
cloak also unto him._”[12]
To yield up our cloak means, I think, to renounce our last rights, to
consider oneself as the servant, the slave of others. When we have
abandoned our mantle it is easier to walk, to run; therefore Jesus
adds: “_And whosoever will force thee one mile, go with him other
two._”[13]
It is not enough that I should give to whosoever may ask of me, I must
forestall their desires, and show that I feel much gratified, much
honoured in rendering service; and if they take a thing that I use, I
must seem as though glad to be _relieved_ of it.
HIST. D’UNE AME, CH. IX
If it is hard to give to whoever asks, it is still harder to let what
belongs to us be taken, without asking it back, or rather, I ought to
say it _seems_ hard; for _the yoke of the Lord is sweet and light_:[14]
when we accept it we feel its sweetness immediately.
HIST. D’UNE AME, CH. IX
When Charity is deeply rooted in the soul it shows itself exteriorly:
there is so gracious a way of refusing what we cannot give, that the
refusal pleases as much as the gift.
HIST. D’UNE AME, CH. IX
To want to persuade our Sisters that they are in the wrong, even
when it is perfectly true, is hardly fair, as we are not responsible
for their guidance. We must not be _Justices of the peace_, but only
_angels of peace_.
COUNSELS AND REMINISCENCES
Jesus wills that we give alms to Him as to one poor and needy. He puts
Himself as it were at our mercy; He will take nothing but what we give
Him from our heart, and the very least trifle is precious in His sight.
He stretches forth His Hand, this sweet Saviour, to receive of us a
little love, so that in the radiant day of Judgment He may be able to
address to us those ineffable words: “_Come, ye blessed of My Father;
for I was hungry, and you gave Me to eat; I was thirsty, and you gave
Me to drink; I was a stranger, and you took Me in; sick and you visited
Me; I was in prison, and you came to Me._”[15]
XV LETTER TO HER SISTER CÉLINE
If I were still to live, the office of Infirmarian is the one which
would please me most. I would not ask for it, but if it came direct by
obedience I should think myself highly privileged. It seems to me that
I would discharge its duties with a tender love, thinking always of our
Saviour saying: “_I was sick and you visited me_.”[16] The Infirmary
bell should be for you as Heavenly music. You ought purposely to pass
along beneath the windows of the sick to give them facility in calling
you and asking your services. Ought you not to consider yourself like
a little slave whom everyone has a right to command? If you could but
see the Angels who from the heights of Heaven watch you battling in
the arena! They await the end of the combat to cover you with flowers
and wreaths. The good God does not disdain these combats, unknown
and therefore all the more meritorious. “_The patient man is better
than the valiant, and he that ruleth his spirit than he that taketh
cities_.”[17]
By our little acts of charity practised in the shade we convert souls
far away, we help missionaries, we win for them abundant alms; and
by that means build actual dwellings spiritual and material for our
Eucharistic Lord.
COUNSELS AND REMINISCENCES
A novice remarked to Sœur Thérèse: “I do not like to see others suffer,
especially saintly souls.” She replied instantly:
“Oh! I am not like you: to see saints suffer never moves me to pity! I
know they have the strength to endure, and they thus give great glory
to God: but those who are not holy, who know not how to profit by their
sufferings, oh! how I pity them; they do indeed arouse my compassion,
and I would do all I could to comfort and help them.”
COUNSELS AND REMINISCENCES
Seeing her extreme weakness the doctor ordered some strengthening
remedies; Sœur Thérèse was distressed at first on account of their high
price: then she said to us: “I am no longer grieved about taking these
costly remedies, for I have been reading that St. Gertrude rejoiced at
the thought that all would be to the advantage of those who do us good,
since our Lord has said: ‘_As long as you did it unto one of these My
least brethren you did it unto Me._’”[18]
She added: “I am convinced of the uselessness of medicine for the
purpose of curing me, but I have made a compact with the good God, that
He is to allow some poor Missionaries to profit by it, who have neither
time nor means to take care of themselves.”
HIST. D’UNE AME, CH. XII
Remembering that _Charity covereth a multitude of sins_,[19] I draw
from this fruitful mine opened to us by our Lord in His sacred
Gospels. I search the depths of His adorable words and cry out with
David: “_I have run in the way of Thy commandments when Thou didst
enlarge my heart._”[20] And charity alone can enlarge my heart....
O Jesus! since this sweet flame consumes it I run with delight in
the way of Thy new Commandment, and therein will I run until the
blessed day when with Thy Virgin train I shall follow Thee through Thy
boundless Realm singing Thy _New Canticle_ which must surely be _the
Canticle of LOVE_.
HIST. D’UNE AME, CH. IX
FOOTNOTES:
[11] _Cf._ Matt., v, 15.
[12] Matt., v, 40.
[13] Matt., v, 41.
[14] _Cf._ Matt., xi, 30.
[15] Matt., xxv, 34-36.
[16] Matt., xxv, 36.
[17] Prov., xvi, 32.
[18] Matt., xxv, 40.
[19] Prov., x, 12.
[20] Ps., cxviii, 32.
[Illustration]
FAITH
What helps me most when I picture to myself the interior of the Holy
Family is to think of a quite ordinary life.
The Blessed Virgin and St. Joseph knew well that Jesus was God, but
wondrous things were nevertheless hidden from them and like us they
lived by faith. Have you not noticed what is said in the sacred text:
“_And they understood not the word that He spoke unto them_,”[21] and
these other words no less mysterious: “_His father and mother were
wondering at those things which were spoken concerning Him?_”[22] Does
not this imply that they heard of something new to them, for this
wondering suggests a certain astonishment?
COUNSELS AND REMINISCENCES
During her temptations against faith she wrote: “I strive to work by
faith though bereft of its consolations. I have made more acts of Faith
in this last year than during all the rest of my life.
“On each fresh occasion of combat, when the enemy desires to challenge
me, I conduct myself valiantly: knowing that to fight a duel is an
unworthy act, I turn my back upon the adversary without ever looking
him in the face; then I run to my Jesus and tell Him I am ready to shed
every drop of blood in testimony of my belief that there is a Heaven,
I tell Him I am glad to be unable to contemplate, while on earth, with
the eyes of the soul, the beautiful Heaven that awaits me so He will
deign to open it for eternity to poor unbelievers.”
HIST. D’UNE AME, CH. IX
He whose Heart ever watcheth, taught me, that while for a soul whose
faith equals but a tiny grain of mustard seed, he works miracles, in
order that this faith which is so weak may be fortified; yet for His
intimate friends, for His Mother, He did not work miracles until He
had put their faith to the test. Did He not let Lazarus die though
Martha and Mary had sent to tell Him that he was sick? At the marriage
at Cana, the Blessed Virgin having asked Him to come to the assistance
of the Master of the house, did He not reply that His hour was not yet
come? But after the trial, what a recompense! Water changed to wine,
Lazarus restored to life....
HIST. D’UNE AME, CH. VI
A sister said to her that beautiful Angels clothed in white robes, and
of joyous and resplendent countenance, would bear away her soul to
Heaven. She replied: “These imaginations do not help me: I can draw no
sustenance except from the Truth. God and the Angels are pure Spirits,
no one can see them as they really are, with corporal eyes. That is why
I have never desired extraordinary favours. I would rather await the
Eternal Vision.”
COUNSELS AND REMINISCENCES
“I have asked God to send me a beautiful dream to console me when you
are gone,” said a novice.
“Ah! that is a thing I should never do--ask for consolation!... Since
you wish to be like me you well know that I say:
Oh! fear not, Lord, that I shall waken Thee:
I await in peace th’ eternal shore....
“It is so sweet to serve the good God in the dark night of trial; we
have this life only in which to live by faith.”
COUNSELS AND REMINISCENCES
FOOTNOTES:
[21] Luke, ii, 50.
[22] Luke, ii, 33.
[Illustration]
HOPE
Time is but a shadow, a dream; already God sees us in glory and takes
joy in our eternal beatitude. How this thought helps my soul! I
understand then why He lets us suffer....
VIII LETTER TO HER SISTER CÉLINE
A day ... an hour ... and we shall have reached the port! My God, what
shall we see then? What is that life which will never have an end?...
Jesus will be the soul of our soul. Unfathomable mystery! “_Eye hath
not seen, nor ear heard, neither hath it entered into the heart of man
what great things God hath prepared for them that love Him._”[23] And
this will all come soon--yes, very soon, if we ardently love Jesus.
VI LETTER TO HER SISTER CÉLINE
Life is passing, Eternity draws nigh; soon shall we live the very life
of God. After having drunk deep at the fount of bitterness, our thirst
will be quenched at the very source of all sweetness.
Yes, _the figure of this world passeth away_,[24] soon shall we see new
heavens; a more radiant sun will brighten with its splendours ethereal
seas and infinite horizons.... We shall no longer be prisoners in a
land of exile, all will be at an end and with our Heavenly Spouse we
shall sail o’er boundless waters: now our _harps are hung upon the
willows that border the rivers of Babylon_,[25] but in the day of our
deliverance what harmonies will then be heard! With what joy shall we
not make every chord of our instruments to vibrate! Today, _we weep
remembering Sion ... how shall we sing the songs of the Lord in a
strange land?_[26]
V LETTER TO HER SISTER CÉLINE
How I thirst for Heaven--that blessed habitation where our love for
Jesus will have no limit! But to get there we must suffer ... we must
weep.... Well, I _wish_ to suffer all that shall please my Beloved, I
wish to let Him do just as He wills with His “_little ball_.”
V LETTER TO SR. MARIE DU SACRÉ-CŒUR
Oh! What mysteries will be revealed to us later.... How often have
I thought that I perhaps owe all the graces showered upon me to the
earnest prayer of a little soul whom I shall know only in Heaven. It
is God’s will that in this world by means of prayer Heavenly treasures
should be imparted by souls one to another, so that when they reach the
Fatherland they may love one another with a love born of gratitude,
with an affection far, far exceeding the most ideal family affection
upon earth.
There, we shall meet with no indifferent looks, because all the Saints
will be indebted to each other.
No envious glances will be seen; the happiness of every one of the
elect will be the happiness of all. With the Martyrs we shall be like
to the Martyrs; with the Doctors we shall be as the Doctors; with the
Virgins, as the Virgins; and just as the members of a family are proud
of one another, so shall we be of our brethren, without the least
jealousy.
Who knows even if the joy we shall experience in beholding the glory
of the great Saints, and knowing that by a secret dispensation of
Providence we have contributed thereunto, who knows if this joy will
not be as intense and sweeter perhaps, than the happiness they will
themselves possess.
And do you not think that on their side the great Saints, seeing what
they owe to quite little souls, will love them with an incomparable
love? Delightful and surprising will be the friendships found there--I
am sure of it. The favoured companion of an Apostle or a great Doctor
of the Church, will perhaps be a young shepherd lad; and a simple
little child may be the intimate friend of a Patriarch. Oh! how I long
to dwell in that Kingdom of Love....
COUNSELS AND REMINISCENCES
A sister showed her a photograph representing Joan of Arc consoled in
the prison by her Voices. Sœur Thérèse said: “I too am consoled by an
interior voice. The Saints encourage me from above, they say to me:
‘So long as thou art in fetters thou canst not fulfil thy mission; but
later, after thy death--_then_ will be the time of thy conquests.’”
COUNSELS AND REMINISCENCES
In Heaven the good God will do all I wish, because I have never done my
own will upon earth.
COUNSELS AND REMINISCENCES
Even now I know it; yes, all my hopes will be fulfilled ... yes ...
the Lord will work wonders for me which will surpass infinitely my
immeasurable desires.
VIII LETTER TO MÈRE AGNÈS DE JÉSUS
FOOTNOTES:
[23] I Cor., ii, 9. _Cf._ Is., lxiv, 4.
[24] I Cor., vii, 31.
[25] _Cf._ Ps. cxxxvi, 2.
[26] _Cf._ Ps., cxxxvi, 1, 4.
[Illustration]
HUMILITY
It appears to me that humility is the truth. I know not whether I am
humble, but I know that I see the truth in all things.
COUNSELS AND REMINISCENCES
I have understood what true glory is. He whose _Kingdom is not of this
world_[27] showed me that the only enviable royalty consists in loving
_to be unknown and esteemed as nothing_,[28] and finding our joy in
contempt of self. I wished that like the Face of Jesus, mine might
be _as it were hidden and despised_.[29] _That none upon earth might
esteem me._ I thirsted to suffer and to be forgotten.
HIST. D’UNE AME, CH. VII
Jesus made me understand that the true, the only glory is that which
will last for ever; that to attain to it we need not perform wonderful
deeds, but rather, those hidden from the eyes of others and from self,
so that _the left hand knoweth not what the right hand doth_.[30]
HIST. D’UNE AME, CH. IV
Thérèse is weak, very weak; of this she has new and salutary experience
every day. But Jesus takes pleasure in teaching her how to _glory in
her infirmities_.[31] It is a great grace this, for herein is found
peace and tranquillity. When we see ourselves so miserable, we wish no
longer to look at self but only on the Well-Beloved.
II LETTER TO HER COUSIN MARIE GUÉRIN
I am a _very little_ soul who can offer only _very little_ things to
the good God; yet, it often happens that these little sacrifices which
give such peace to the heart, escape me; but that does not discourage
me, I bear with having a little less peace and I try to be more
watchful another time.
HIST. D’UNE AME, CH. X
Veiled in the white Host, O my Well-Beloved, how meek and humble of
heart dost Thou show Thyself to me! Thou couldst not stoop lower to
teach me humility, and I, to respond to Thy Love, desire to put myself
in the lowest place and share Thy humiliations, that I may _have part
with Thee_[32] in the Kingdom of Heaven.
I beseech Thee, my Jesus, to send me some humiliation every time that I
shall attempt to put myself above others.
HIST. D’UNE AME, APPENDIX
What pleases the good God in my little soul is to see me love my
littleness and my poverty, it is seeing the blind trust that I have in
His Mercy.
VI LETTER TO SR. MARIE DU SACRÉ-CŒUR
To draw near to Jesus we must be so little.... Oh! how few souls aspire
to be little and unknown....
XIV LETTER TO HER SISTER CÉLINE
I am no longer surprised at anything, nor do I grieve at seeing that
I am frailty itself; on the contrary I glory in it, and expect to
discover new imperfections in myself each day. These lights concerning
my nothingness do me more good, I affirm, than lights regarding faith.
HIST. D’UNE AME, CH. IX
When we commit a fault we must not think it due to a physical cause,
such as illness or the weather, we must attribute this fall to our
imperfection, but without ever growing discouraged.
COUNSELS AND REMINISCENCES
Since Jesus has gone back to Heaven I can follow Him only by the path
He has traced. Oh how luminous are His footprints--diffusing a divine
sweetness.... I have but to glance at the holy Gospels and immediately
I inhale the fragrance of the life of Jesus, and I know which side
to take. Not to the first place do I run but to the last. I let the
Pharisee go up, and full of confidence I repeat the humble prayer of
the publican. Above all I copy the example of Magdalene; her amazing,
or rather, her loving audacity, which so touched the Heart of Jesus,
charms my own.
HIST. D’UNE AME, CH. XI
With a simplicity that delights me my little Sisters, the novices, tell
me of the interior combats I arouse in them, in what way they find me
trying; they are no more embarrassed than if it were question of some
one else, knowing that by acting thus, they greatly please me.
Ah! truly it is more than a pleasure, it is a delicious feast which
replenishes my soul with joy. How can a thing so disagreeable to
nature give such happiness? Had I not experienced it I could not have
believed it.
One day when I had an ardent desire for humiliation, it happened that
a young postulant so fully satisfied it, that the thought of Semei
cursing David came to my mind and I repeated interiorly with the holy
King: _Yes, it is indeed the Lord who has commanded him to say all
these things to me_.[33]
Thus the good God takes care of me. He cannot always offer me the
strength-giving bread of exterior humiliation, but from time to time He
permits me to feast upon _the crumbs that fall from the table of the
children_.[34] How great is His Mercy!
HIST. D’UNE AME, CH. X
All creatures might incline towards _the little flower_, admiring it
and overwhelming it with their praise, but never would that add a
shadow of vain satisfaction to the true joy of knowing itself to be a
mere nothing in the sight of God.
HIST. D’UNE AME, CH. IX
Because I was little and weak, Jesus stooped down to me and tenderly
instructed me in the secrets of His Love.
HIST. D’UNE AME, CH. V
I am too little to have any vanity, I am also too little to know how to
turn beautiful phrases so as to make it appear that I have a great deal
of humility. I prefer to acknowledge simply that _He that is mighty
hath done great things to me_;[35] and the greatest is His having shown
me my littleness, my powerlessness for all good.
HIST. D’UNE AME, CH. IX
The only thing not subject to be envied is the lowest place, it
is therefore this lowest place alone which is without vanity and
affliction of spirit. Still, _the way of a man is not always in his
power_[36] and sometimes we are surprised by a desire for that which
glitters. Then, let us take our place humbly amongst the imperfect,
deeming ourselves little souls whom the good God must sustain at each
moment. As soon as He sees us truly convinced of our nothingness and
we say to Him: _My foot hath slipped: Thy mercy, O Lord, hath held me
up_,[37] He stretches out His Hand to us; but if we _will_ attempt
to do something grand, even under pretext of zeal, He leaves us
alone. It is enough therefore that we humble ourselves, and bear our
imperfections with sweetness: there, for us, lies true sanctity.
COUNSELS AND REMINISCENCES
The most eloquent discourses would be incapable of inspiring one act of
love without the grace that moves the heart.
See a beautiful, rose-tinted peach, of so sweet a savour that no craft
of confectioner could produce nectar like it. Is it for the peach
itself that God has created this lovely colour and delicate velvety
surface? Is it for the sake of the peach that He has given it so
delicious a flavour? No, it is for us; what alone belongs to it and
forms the essence of its existence is its stone; it possesses nothing
more.
Thus is Jesus pleased to lavish His gifts on some of His creatures,
that through them He may draw to Himself other souls; but in His mercy
He humiliates them interiorly, and gently constrains them to recognize
their nothingness and His Omnipotence. These sentiments form in them,
as it were, a kernel of grace, which Jesus hastens to develop for that
blessed day when clothed with a beauty, immortal, imperishable, they
shall without danger have place at the Celestial banquet.
XVI LETTER TO HER SISTER CÉLINE
The Apostles, without Jesus, laboured long--a whole night--without
taking any fish; their toil was pleasing to Him but He wished to show
that He alone can give anything. He asked only an act of humility:
“_Children, have you any meat?_”[38] and St. Peter confesses his
helplessness: “_Lord we have laboured all night and have taken
nothing._”[39] It is enough! The Heart of Jesus is touched.... Perhaps
if the Apostle had taken a few little fishes the Divine Master would
not have worked a miracle; but he had _nothing_, and so through God’s
power and goodness his nets were soon filled with great fishes.
That is just our Lord’s way. He gives as God, but He _will_ have
humility of heart.
XVII LETTER TO HER SISTER CÉLINE
To think ourselves imperfect, and others perfect--that is happiness.
That creatures should recognize we are without virtue takes nothing
from us, makes us no poorer; it is they who by this lose interior joy;
for there is nothing sweeter than to think well of our neighbour.
COUNSELS AND REMINISCENCES
It is a great joy to me, not only when others find me imperfect, but
above all when I feel that so I am: compliments, on the contrary,
cause me nothing but displeasure.
COUNSELS AND REMINISCENCES
A novice confided to her that she made no progress and felt quite
discouraged.
“Till the age of fourteen,” said Thérèse, “I practised virtue without
feeling its sweetness. I wished for suffering but had no thought of
finding my joy therein; that is a grace which has been granted me
later. My soul was like a beautiful tree whose blossoms no sooner
opened than they fell.
“Offer to the good God the sacrifice of never gathering the fruits of
your labours. If He so will that during your whole life you feel a
repugnance to suffer and to be humiliated, if He permit that all the
flowers of your desires and of your good-will fall to earth without
fruit, be not troubled. At the moment of your death He will know well
how to bring to perfection, in the twinkling of an eye, beautiful
fruits on the tree of your soul.