# Reading the Writings of Therese of the Child Jesus 2024 Manuscripts B and C - Full Text > Reading the writings of Therese of the Child Jesus > Theresian anniversaries 2023-2025 2024: Manuscripts B and C ## Introductory Summary: Presentation In 2023, we celebrated the 150th anniversary of the birth of Therese of the Child Jesus (2nd January 1873), as well as the first centenary of her beatification (29th April 1923); and in 2025, we will be celebrating the first centenary of her canonisation (17th May 1925). At this point, the General Chapter of the Discalced Carmelites, held in Rome from 30th August to 14th September 2021, decided to propose to the Order a series of readings of Saint Therese’s writings. The General Definitory, in order to carry out this decision, has collaborated with the Province of Paris to prepare a programme of readings and reflections on the autobiographical Manuscripts and other writings of Therese. This programme will preferably be carried out during community meetings. The writings have been di-vided up as follows: - Year 2023: Manuscript A - Year 2024: Manuscripts B and C - Year 2025: Prayers and other writings. Each year, eight texts will be chosen and proposed to you. They will be accompanied by a short commentary and a few questions aimed at encouraging reflection and dia-logue. The main goal is to make us aware of the relevance of Therese’s experience and her message for us today. --- It would be good to read and meditate on Therese’s text individually, before the community dialogue. The latter could unfold in the following manner. 1. Reading of the text. 2. One of those present, having prepared a contribution in advance, discusses the text using the commentary (and other aids, if necessary). 3. Community dialogue on the text, following the model below: 3a. What is the text saying? Understanding the content and initial meaning of Therese’s text. 3b. What does the text say to us today? Discern the present-day relevance (social, ecclesial, spiritual...) of the text. 3c. What does the text say to me/us? Consider the personal and community relevance of the text. The purpose of this process is to allow Therese to speak to us herself, to question and encourage us, and to open ourselves to allow her to clarify and confirm our own personal and community path. The questions sug-gested are only indicative, and could perhaps be used in individual meditation and community sharing. --- For 2024, the texts chosen from Manuscripts B and C are the following: 1 My vocation is Love (Ms. B, 2v-3v) 2 The Eagle and the little bird (Ms. B, 4v-5v) 3 Nothing but confidence (LC 170 and LT 197) 4 The little way (Ms. C, 2v-3v) 5 The trial of faith (Ms. C, 4v-7v) 6 The treatise on charity (Ms. C, 11v-14r) 7 The power of prayer (Ms. C, 24v-26r) 8 In the arms of Jesus (Ms. C, 35v-37r) ### Overall Introduction The origin of Manuscript B During her last retreat, in solitude, Therese re-ceived a message from her sister, Marie of the Sacred Heart, asking her to share the spiritual insights received in the course of the retreat. Therese replied the same day (13th September 1896), sharing with her sister a long prayer to Jesus that she had written a few days earlier, 8th September 1896, to mark the anniversary of her religious profession. To this text she added a letter, and this, together with the prayer, constitute the whole of what we call Manuscript B. The letter has been placed at the beginning of the manuscript, as an introduction, even though it actually originated later in time. On receiving this, Sister Marie of the Sacred Heart was deeply shaken by its undeniable power. She wrote again to Therese to express her fear of not being able to follow her on the path of such complete confidence, not having such an immense love of God as Therese. Ther-ese’s reply on the 17th September 1896 is an admirable complement to Therese’s teaching in Manuscript B, and may be considered as the third part of Manuscript B. ### The Origin of Manuscript C On the 2nd June 1897, Mother Agnes, seeing how sick her sister was, ventured to seek out the Prioress who had replaced her. She spoke to her of the memoirs of her childhood that Therese had composed at her request. She pointed out that Therese developed very little about her life in the Carmel. Now that she was close to death, it would be worth asking her to do that, so as to be able to more easily compose the circular that was usually sent by a Carmel to other Carmels after the death of a sister, as a reminder of the details of her life. Mother Mary de Gonzague agreed and asked Therese the very next day to start work on this project. Despite the advanced state of her tuberculosis, Therese obeyed. She wrote this third piece of text using a pencil on paper, as she no longer had the strength to hold a pen. ## Text 1 My Vocation Is Love (Ms. B, 2v-3v) Reading the writings of Therese of the Child Jesus Theresian anniversaries 2023-2025 2024: Manuscripts B and C Text 1: My vocation is Love (Ms. B, 2v-3v) Suggestion for the community meeting: 1. Read the text together 2. One of those present, having prepared a contribution in advance, discusses the text using the commentary (and other aids, if necessary). 3. Community dialogue on the text. It would be helpful to have made individual readings and reflections on Therese’s text before the community meeting. Preliminary remark: in order to facilitate the reading of the proposed text, we invite you to first read the letter from her sister Marie of the Sacred Heart (LC 169), and the beginning of Therese’s reply (LT 196). The dialogue proposed concerns folios 2v-3v. ### My Vocation Is Love (Ms. B, 2v-3v) From Sister Marie of the Sacred Heart to Therese (LC 169) Jesus! Sunday, 13th September Dear little Sister, I am writing not because I have something to tell you but to get something from you, from you who are so close to God, from you who are His little privileged spouse to whom He confides His secrets... The secrets of Jesus to Therese are sweet, and I would like to hear about them once again. Write me a short note. This is perhaps your last retreat, for the golden cluster of Jesus must make Him desirous of gathering it. Little Therese must be tempting to those up above, Jesus and Mary, Papa and Mamma, and the four little angels, and all the saints of heaven, and all the angels whom she has taken as her relatives. Ask Jesus to love me, too, as He does his little Therese. Ah! the little Therese, she has grown up, grown up, and still she is always the little one, she is always the Benjamin, she is always the darling whom Jesus (just as in the past, her dear little father) holds by the hand. As for herself, she still goes on, as in days gone by, gazing on the stars of heaven and closing her eyes to all things here below. But her heavenly Spouse does not mislead her, anymore than did her father... He does not lead her toward precipices, He does not let her fall. Far from it!... He rocks her gently on His Heart, He smiles at her abandonment, and He gathers for her thousands and thousands of treasures... Is He not her entire fortune? So little Therese is disturbed about nothing but loving her Jesus. Ah! I ask her to pray very much for her little god-mother who loves her so much, so that she, too, closing her eyes on all things of the earth, may no longer dream of anything but of looking up above, of working for heaven, of exercising herself in the art of loving. That is the precious pearl that little Therese possesses. Little godmother would really like to enjoy this treasure with her. Marie of the Sacred Heart r. c. ind. Our mother permits you to answer me by return mail. From Therese to Sister Marie of the Sacred Heart (LT 196) 13th (?) September 1896 (LT 196) J.M.J.T. Jesus Oh, dear Sister! You ask me to give you a souvenir of my retreat, a retreat that perhaps will be the last... Since our Mother per-mits it, it is a joy for me to come to speak with you, who are my Sister twice over, with you who lent me your voice, promising in my name that I wanted to serve Jesus alone when it was not possible for me to speak... Dear little Godmother, the child whom you offered to the Lord is the one who speaks to you this evening, she is the one who loves you as a child can love its Mother... Only in heaven will you know all the gratitude that overflows my heart... Oh, dear Sister, you would like to hear the secrets Jesus confides to your little daughter; these secrets He confides to you, I know, for you are the one who taught me to gather the divine teachings. However, I am going to try to stammer some words, although I feel that it is impossible for human words to repeat things that the human heart can hardly sense. Do not believe that I am swimming in consolations; oh, no! My consolation is to have none on earth. Without showing Himself, without making His voice heard, Jesus teaches me in se-cret. It is not by means of books, for I do not understand what I am reading, but at times a word like this one that I drew out at the end of prayer (after having remained in silence and aridity) comes to console me: ‘Here is the Master I am giving you; he will teach you all you must do. I want to have you read in the book of life wherein is contained the science of Love.’ The science of Love, oh! Yes, this word resounds sweetly in the ear of my soul. I desire only this science. Having given all my riches for it, I look upon this as having given nothing, just as the spouse in the sacred canticles... I understand so well that it is only love that can make us pleasing to God that this love is the only good that I ambition. Jesus is pleased to show me the only road which leads to this divine furnace, and this road is the abandonment of the little child who sleeps without fear in his Father’s arms... ‘Whoever is a little one, let him come to me’, said the Holy Spirit through the mouth of Solomon, and this same Spirit of Love has said again: ‘Mercy is granted to little ones.’ In His name, the Prophet Isaiah reveals to us that on the last day: ‘The Lord will lead his flock into pastures, he will gather together the little lambs and will press them to his bosom,’ and as though all these promises were not enough, the same Prophet, whose in-spired glance was already plunged into the eternal depths, cried out in the Lord’s name: ‘As a mother caresses her child, so will I comfort you; I will carry you on my bosom, and I shall rock you on my knees.’ Oh, dear Godmother, after language like this, there is nothing to do but be silent and weep with gratitude and love… Ah! If all weak and imperfect souls felt what the littlest of all souls feels, the soul of your little Therese, not one would despair of reaching the summit of the mountain of love, since Jesus does not ask for great actions, but only abandonment and gratitude, since He has said in Psalm XLIX: I have no need of the he-goats from your flocks, for all the beasts of the forest belong to me, and the thousands of animals that graze on the hills; I know all the birds of the mountains...If I were hungry, I would not tell you, for the earth and all it contains are mine. Must I eat the flesh of bulls and drink the blood of goats?’ ‘Offer to God sacrifices of praise and thanksgiving.’ See, then, all that Jesus is asking from us. He has no need of our works but only of our love, for this same God, who declares He has no need to tell us if He is hungry, did not hesitate to beg for a little water from the Samaritan woman. He was thirsty... But when He said: ‘Give me to drink,’ it was the love of His poor creatures that the Creator of the universe was asking for. He was thirsty for love... Ah! I feel it more than ever. Jesus is parched; He meets only with the ungrateful and indifferent among the disciples of the world and among His own disciples He finds, alas! few hearts that give themselves to Him without any reservations, that understand all the tenderness of His infinite love. Dear Sister, how blessed we are to understand the intimate secrets of our Spouse. Ah! If you were willing to write all that you know about them, we would have beautiful pages to read, but I know that you prefer to keep in the bottom of your heart ‘the secrets of the King’. You say to me: ‘It is honourable to publish the works of the Most High.’ I find you are right in keeping silence, and it is only in order to please you that I write these lines, for I feel my powerlessness in repeating in earthly words the secrets of heaven. And, then, after having written out pages and pages, I would find that I had still not begun... There are so many different horizons, so many infinitely varied nuances, that the palette of the heavenly Painter alone will be able, after the night of this life, to furnish me with colours capable of painting the marvels that He reveals to the eyes of my soul. Dear Sister, you have asked me to write to you about my dreams and ‘my little doctrine’, as you call it... I have done this in the following pages, but so poorly that it seems to me impossible for you to understand. Perhaps you are going to find my expressions exaggerated... Ah! Pardon me, this must be laid to my un-pleasant style; I assure you that there is no exaggeration in my little soul, that all is calm and at rest there... When writing, I am speaking to Jesus; it is easier for me to express my thoughts... which, alas, does not prevent their being poorly expressed! Seeing myself so tenderly loved, I dared to pronounce these words: “O Mother! I beg you, tell me whether God will leave me for a long time on earth. Will He come soon to get me?” Smiling tenderly, the saint whispered: “Yes, soon, soon, I promise you.” I added: “Mother, tell me further if God is not asking something [2v°] more of me than my poor little actions and desires. Is He content with me?” The saint’s face took on an expression incomparably more tender than the first time she spoke to me. Her look and her caresses were the sweetest of answers. However, she said to me: “God asks no other thing from you. He is content, very content!” After again embracing me with more love than the tenderest of mothers has ever giv-en to her child, I saw her leave. My heart was filled with joy, and then I remembered my Sisters, and I wanted to ask her some favors for them, but alas, I awoke! O Jesus, the storm was no longer raging, heaven was calm and serene. I believed, I felt there was a heaven and that this heaven is peopled with souls who actually love me, who consider me their child. This impression remains in my heart, and this all the more because I was, up until then, absolutely indifferent to Venerable Mother Anne of Jesus. I never invoked her in prayer and the thought of her never came to my mind except when I heard others speak of her, which was seldom. And when I understood to what a degree she loved me, how indifferent I had been toward her, my heart was filled with love and gratitude, not only for the Saint who had visited me but for all the blessed inhabitants of heaven. O my Beloved! this grace was only the prelude to the greatest graces You wished to bestow upon me. Allow me, my only Love, to recall them to You today, today which is the sixth anniversary of our union. Ah! my Jesus, pardon me if I am unreasonable in wishing to express my desires and longings which reach even unto infinity. Pardon me and heal my soul by giving her what she longs for so much! To be Your Spouse, to be a Carmelite, and by my union with You to be the Mother of souls, should not this suffice me? And yet it is not so. No doubt, these three privileges sum up my true vocation: Carmelite, Spouse, Mother, and yet I feel within me other vocations. I feel the vocation of the WARRIOR, THE PRIEST, THE APOSTLE, THE DOCTOR, THE MARTYR. Finally, I feel the need and the desire of carrying out the most heroic deeds for You, O Jesus. I feel within my soul the courage of the Crusader, the Papal Guard, and I would want to die on the field of battle in defense of the Church. I feel in me the vocation of the PRIEST. With what love, O Jesus, I would carry You in my hands when, at my voice, You would come down from heaven. And with what love would I give You to souls! But alas! while desiring to be a Priest, I ad-mire and envy the humility of St. Francis of Assisi and I feel the vocation of imitating him in refusing the sublime dignity of the Priesthood. O Jesus, my Love, my Life, how can I combine these con-trasts? [3r°] How can I realize the desires of my poor little soul? Ah! in spite of my littleness, I would like to enlighten souls as did the Prophets and the Doctors. I have the vocation of the Apos-tle. I would like to travel over the whole earth to preach Your Name and to plant Your glorious Cross on infidel soil. But O my Beloved, one mission alone would not be sufficient for me, I would want to preach the Gospel on all the five continents simultaneously and even to the most remote isles. I would be a missionary, not for a few years only but from the beginning of creation until the consummation of the ages. But above all, O my Beloved Savior, I would shed my blood for You even to the very last drop. Martyrdom was the dream of my youth and this dream has grown with me within Carmel’s cloisters. But here again, I feel that my dream is a folly, for I cannot confine myself to desiring one kind of martyrdom. To satisfy me I need all. Like You, my Adorable Spouse, I would be scourged and crucified. I would die flayed like St. Bartholomew. I would be plunged into boiling oil like St. John; I would undergo all the tortures inflicted upon the martyrs. With St. Agnes and St. Cecilia, I would present my neck to the sword, and like Joan of Arc, my dear sister, I would whisper at the stake Your Name, O JESUS. When thinking of the torments which will be the lot of Christians at the time of Anti-Christ, I feel my heart leap with joy and I would that these torments be reserved for me. Jesus, Jesus, if I wanted to write all my desires, I would have to borrow Your Book of Life, for in it are reported all the actions of all the saints, and I would accomplish all of them for You. O my Jesus! what is your answer to all my follies? Is there a soul more little, more powerless than mine? Nevertheless even because of my weakness, it has pleased You, O Lord, to grant my little childish desires and You desire, today, to grant other desires that are greater than the universe. During my meditation, my desires caused me a veritable martyrdom, and I opened the Epistles of St. Paul to find some kind of answer. Chapters 12 and 13 of the First Epistle to the Corinthians fell under my eyes. I read there, in the first of these chapters, that all cannot be apostles, prophets, doc-tors, etc., that the Church is composed of different members, and that the eye cannot be the hand at one and the same time. The answer was clear, but it did not fulfill my desires and gave me no peace. But just as Mary Magdalene found what she was seeking by always stooping down [3v°] and looking into the empty tomb, so I, abasing myself to the very depths of my nothingness, raised myself so high that I was able to attain my end. Without becoming discouraged, I continued my reading, and this sentence consoled me: “Yet strive after THE BETTER GIFTS, and I point out to you a yet more excellent way.” And the Apostle explains how all the most PERFECT gifts are nothing without LOVE. That Charity is the EXCELLENT WAY that leads most surely to God. I finally had rest. Considering the mystical body of the Church, I had not recognized myself in any of the members de-scribed by St. Paul, or rather I desired to see myself in them all. Charity gave me the key to my vocation. I understood that if the Church had a body composed of different members, the most necessary and most noble of all could not be lacking to it, and so I understood that the Church had a Heart and that this Heart was BURNING WITH LOVE. I understood it was Love alone that made the Church’s members act, that if Love ever became ex-tinct, apostles would not preach the Gospel and martyrs would not shed their blood. I understood that LOVE COMPRISED ALL VOCATIONS, THAT LOVE WAS EVERYTHING, THAT IT EMBRACED ALL TIMES AND PLACES…. IN A WORD, THAT IT WAS ETERNAL! Then, in the excess of my delirious joy, I cried out: O Jesus, my Love.... my vocation, at last I have found it…. MY VOCATION IS LOVE! Yes, I have found my place in the Church and it is You, O my God, who have given me this place; in the heart of the Church, my Mother, I shall be Love. Thus I shall be everything, and thus my dream will be realized. Why speak of a delirious joy? No, this expression is not exact, for it was rather the calm and serene peace of the navigator perceiving the beacon which must lead him to the port…. O luminous Beacon of love, I know how to reach You, I have found the secret of possessing Your flame. I am only a child, powerless and weak, and yet it is my weakness that gives me the boldness of offering myself as VIC-TIM of Your Love, O Jesus! In times past, victims, pure and spotless, were the only ones accepted by the Strong and Powerful God. To satisfy Divine Justice, perfect victims were necessary, but the law of Love has succeeded to the law of fear, and Love has chosen me as a holocaust, me, a weak and imperfect creatrue. Is not this choice worthy of Love? Yes, in order that Love be fully satisfied, it is necessary that It lower Itself, and that It lower Itself to nothingness and transform this nothingness into fire. ### Introduction to the Text As we start again this year, the texts are admittedly a bit long, because they include the preliminary reading of the two letters that we are suggesting as an introduction, to provide a basis for understanding the meaning of the selected passage. (LC 169 and LT 196). The discussion will focus on Manuscript B, but it is worth taking the time to read these two letters. Her vocation as a Carmelite ‘was not enough for her’, she needed a response from God: Therese searched for it in the Scrip-tures. She dreamed of responding to all vocations, everywhere and in all times, and in their most heroic forms. It was with the Apostle Paul that she found the reply, when he declared that Love comprises all vocations. ‘My only love’ (Ms. B, 2v): this is what Therese was to carve like graffiti on the lintel of the door of her cell: ‘Jesus is my only Love’. ‘The courage of a Crusader, of a Papal Guard’1 (Ms. B, 2v): Ther-ese, like her sister Celine, always had the quality of a warrior and a knight. She was quick to use military vocabulary. Thus, in Poem 36, she had no hesitation in saying: ‘And in the field of my apostolate/ Like a warrior, I hurl myself into combat!’ ‘Missionary’ (Ms. B, 3r): one vocation that she carried out to the full, because she was proclaimed patron of missions and missionaries by Pope Pius XI on 14th December 1927. ‘Martyrdom’ (Ms. B, 3r): among all the vocations that Therese sensed in herself, martyrdom was the dominant one. She rediscovered the martyrs during her pilgrimage to Italy, and her favourite martyr was Saint Joan of Arc, around whom she wrote two plays, RP1 and RP3). ‘To offer myself as a Victim for your Love’ (Ms. B, 3v), Ther-ese returns here to her Act of Offering to Merciful Love, which she had made on 9th June 1895. However, here she lays more emphasis on weakness, childhood and smallness. ‘May He convert this fire into nothingness’ (Ms. B, 3v): apart from one mention in Manuscript A (81v), the word ‘nothingness’ only appears with Therese in connection with the trial of faith. 1 The battalion of Papal Zouaves, created on 1st January 1861, was modelled on the Zouave troops of the French Army whose exotic uniform was very popular in the mid-19th century, and became a regiment on 1st January 1867; it was constituted of volunteers, mainly French, Belgian and Dutch, coing to defend the Papal State, whose existence was threatened by Italian unification. ### For the Community Dialogue 1. What is the text saying? Understanding the content and initial meaning of Therese’s text 2. What does the text say to us today? Discern the present-day relevance (social, ecclesial, spiritual...) of the text. 3. What does the text say to me/us? Consider the personal and community relevance of the text. The purpose of this process is to allow Therese to speak to us herself, to question and encourage us, and to open us up to her clarifying and confirming our own personal and community path. The questions suggested are only indicative, and could perhaps be used in individual meditation and community sharing. ### Questions 1. What is the essential question that Therese puts to herself when she is confronted with the trial of her faith? Is this a question which dwells in us? When does it return during the course of our lives? 2. What is my essential vocation? When and how does it express itself most insistently? What concrete place does the Church have in our Carmelite vocation? 3. What is it that allows Therese to declare that her vocation of Love is definitely authentic and that it is a gift of God? ## Text 2 the Eagle and the Little Bird (Ms. B, 4v-5v) Reading the writings of Therese of the Child Jesus Theresian anniversaries 2023-2025 2024: Manuscripts B and C Text 2: The Eagle and the little bird (Ms. B, 4v-5v) Suggestion for the community meeting: 1. Read the text together 2. One of those present, having prepared a contribution in advance, discusses the text using the commentary (and other aids, if necessary). 3. Community dialogue on the text. It would be helpful to have made individual readings and reflections on Therese’s text before the community meeting. MANUSCRIPT B, 4v-5v How can a soul as imperfect as mine aspire to the pos-session of the plenitude of Love? O Jesus, my first and only Friend, You whom I love UNIQUELY, explain this mystery to me! Why do You not reserve these great aspirations for great souls, for the Eagles that soar in the heights? I look upon myself as a weak little bird, with only a light down as covering. I am not an eagle, but I have an eagle’s EYES AND HEART. In spite of my extreme littleness I still dare to gaze upon the Divine Sun, the Sun of Love, and my heart feels within it all the aspirations of an Eagle. The little bird wills to fly toward the bright Sun that at-tracts its eye, imitating its brothers, the eagles, whom it sees climbing up toward the Divine Furnace of the Holy Trinity. But alas! the only thing it can do is raise its little wings; to fly is not within its little power! What then will become of it? Will it die of sorrow at seeing itself so weak? Oh no! the little bird will not even be troubled. With bold surrender, it wishes to remain gazing upon its Divine Sun. Nothing will frighten it, neither wind nor rain, and if dark clouds come and hide the Star of Love, the little bird will not change its place, because it knows that beyond the clouds its bright Sun still shines on and that its brightness is not eclipsed for a single instant. At times the little bird’s heart is assailed by the storm, and it seems it should believe in the existence of no other thing except the clouds surrounding it; this is the moment of perfect joy for the poor little weak creature. And what joy it experiences when remaining there just the same! and gazing at the Invisible Light which remains hidden from its faith! O Jesus, up until the present moment I can understand Your love for the little bird because it has not strayed far from You. But I know and so do You that very often the imperfect little creature, while remaining in its place (that is, under the Sun’s rays), allows itself to be somewhat distracted from its sole occupation. It picks up a piece of grain on the right or on the left; it chases after a little worm; then coming upon a little pool of water, it wets its feathers still hardly formed. It sees an attractive flower and its little mind is occupied with this flower. In a word, being unable to soar like the eagles, the poor little bird is taken up with the trifles of earth. And yet, after all these misdeeds, instead of going and hiding away in a corner, to weep over its misery and to die of sorrow, the little bird turns toward its beloved Sun, presenting its wet wings to its beneficent rays. It cries like a swallow and in its sweet song it recounts in detail all its infidelities, thinking in the boldness of its full trust that it will acquire in even greater fullness the love of Him who came to call not the just but sinners. And even if the Adorable Star remains deaf to the plaintive chirping of the little creature, even if it remains hid-den, well, the little one will remain wet, accepting its numbness from the cold and rejoicing in its suffering which it knows it deserves. O Jesus, Your little bird is happy to be weak and little. What would become of it if it were big? Never would it have the boldness to appear in Your presence, to fall asleep in front of You. Yes, this is still one of the weaknesses of the little bird: when it wants to fix its gaze upon the Divine Sun, and when the clouds prevent it from seeing a single ray of that Sun, in spite of itself, its little eyes close, its little head is hidden beneath its wing, and the poor little thing falls asleep, believing all the time that it is fixing its gaze upon its Dear Star. When it awakens, it doesn’t feel desolate; its little heart is at peace and it begins once again its work of love. It calls upon the angels and saints who rise like eagles before the consuming Fire, and since this is the object of the little bird’s desire the eagles take pity on it, protecting and defending it, and putting to flight at the same time the vultures who want to devour it. These vultures are the demons whom the little bird doesn’t fear, for it is not destined to be their prey but the prey of the Eagle whom it contemplates in the center of the Sun of Love. O Divine Word! You are the Adored Eagle whom I love and who alone attracts me! Coming into this land of exile, You willed to suffer and to die in order to draw souls to the bosom of the Eternal Fire of the Blessed Trinity. Ascending once again to the Inaccessible Light, henceforth Your abode, You remain still in this “valley of tears,” hidden beneath the appearances of a white host. Eternal Eagle, You desire to nourish me with Your divine substance and yet I am but a poor little thing who would return to nothingness if Your divine glance did not give me life from one moment to the next. O Jesus, allow me in my boundless gratitude to say to You that Your love reaches unto folly. In the presence of this folly, how can You not desire that my heart leap toward You? How can my confidence, then, have any limits? Ah! the saints have committed their follies for You, and they have done great things because they are eagles. Jesus, I am too little to perform great actions, and my own folly is this: to trust that Your Love will accept me as a victim. My folly consists in begging the eagles, my brothers, to obtain for me the favour of flying toward the Sun of Love with the Divine Eagle’s own wings! As long as You desire it, O my Beloved, Your little bird will remain without strength and without wings and will always stay with its gaze fixed upon You. It wants to be fascinated by Your divine glance. It wants to become the prey of Your Love. One day I hope that You, the Adorable Eagle, will come to fetch me, Your little bird; and ascending with it to the Furnace of Love, You will plunge it for all eternity into the burning Abyss of this Love to which it has offered itself as victim. O Jesus! why can’t I tell all little souls how unspeakable is Your condescension? I feel that if You found a soul weaker and littler than mine, which is impossible, You would be pleased to grant it still greater favours, provided it abandoned itself with total confidence to Your Infinite Mercy. But why do I desire to communicate Your secrets of Love, O Jesus, for was it not You alone who taught them to me, and can You not reveal them to others? Yes, I know it, and I beg You to do it. I beg You to cast Your Divine Glance upon a great number of little souls. I beg You to choose a legion of little Victims worthy of Your LOVE! The very little Sister Therese of the Child Jesus and the Holy Face ### Introduction to the Text Therese is questioning herself anew: Is this love really in her heart? The parable of the little bird illuminates this dilemma ex-perienced in the night of faith; faith remains the only path, and it is in faith that this crazy love is lived. So, the dark images, the storm, do not distress Therese; on the contrary, for her they are the cause of perfect joy; she draws her joy and happiness from her night. This first time of joy consists of being able to name the depth of the darkness in which she finds herself, of being able to have a completely lucid awareness of it. There is then the lasting reality of happiness, as the fruit of a will and an enduring patience. ‘The Eagles and the little bird’ (Ms. B, 4v): almost the entire end of manuscript B is devoted to the parable contrasting ‘the great souls, the Eagles’ with ‘the little souls ‘, represented by ‘the little bird’ (never in the plural). The images of the eagle and the little bird doubtless come firstly from the book of the ‘Life’ (particularly in Chapter 20) of Saint Teresa of Jesus. We can also take note of the classification of the three kinds of prayer made by Father Lemonnier during a retreat at the Carmel of Lisieux in 1894; firstly, the Eagles, then the doves, then the baby chicks. We should not forget the Bible, particularly Deuteronomy 32:11, Exodus 19:4, as well as Isaiah 40:29-31. ‘Raise its little wings’ (Ms. B, 5r): an analogous expression to ‘lift one’s little foot’. ‘The invisible light’ (Ms. B, 5r): Therese has entered the night of faith, and the night will become more dense during the following winter (her last). ‘To doze in front of you’ (Ms. B, 5r): deprived of sleep by a rhythm of life that did not meet the needs of a young sister, Ther-ese had very soon started dozing off during silent prayer. In 1893, she depicted herself, in a fresco painted in the Oratory, with the appearance of a sleeping angel. ‘As long as you desire it’ (Ms. B, 5v): The expression of Ther-ese’s heroism, whose love did not want to hasten the time fixed by Jesus for their meeting. ‘To a great number of little souls’ (Ms. B, 5v): Here, Therese, who up to now had only been speaking in her own name, made her message universal. ### For the Community Dialogue 1. What is the text saying? Understanding the content and initial meaning of Therese’s text 2. What does the text say to us today? Discern the present-day relevance (social, ecclesial, spiritual...) of the text. 3. What does the text say to me/us? Consider the personal and community relevance of the text. The purpose of this process is to allow Therese to speak to us herself, to question and encourage us, and to open us up to her clarifying and confirming our own personal and community path. The questions suggested are only indicative, and could perhaps be used in individual meditation and community sharing. ### Questions 1. How should we name the stages passed by the little bird? What realities are there to undermine her confidence? What does she choose regardless? 2. Therese depends on self-abasing Love, on the prayer of others (the saints), and on her engagement in prayer for others. Can I testify to the link between these three dimensions in my own prayer-life? What does Therese ask for us? 3. Therese experiences here even more deeply both the experience of sinners and little ones, and the power of the Love that abases itself for all. What is the moving force for us of our missionary desires? ## Text 3 Nothing but Confidence (LC 170 and Lt 197) Reading the writings of Therese of the Child Jesus Theresian anniversaries 2023-2025 2024: Manuscripts B and C Text 3: Nothing but confidence (LC 170 and LT 197) Suggestion for the community meeting: 1. Read the text together 2. One of those present, having prepared a contribution in advance, discusses the text using the commentary (and other aids, if necessary). 3. Community dialogue on the text. It would be helpful to have made individual readings and reflections on Therese’s text before the community meeting. Preliminary remark: these two texts are letters exchanged between Marie of the Sacred Heart and Therese. They represent the high point of Manuscript B, which is why we are choosing to present them now, rather than during the third year of the series. ### Letter to Therese 170 and Letter from Therese 197 from Sister Marie of the Sacred Heart to Therese (LC 170) 17th (?) September 1896 Jesus Dear little Sister, I have read your pages burning with love for Jesus. Your little godmother is very happy to possess this treasure and very grateful to her dear little girl who has revealed the secrets of her soul in this way. Oh! What should I say about these lines marked with the seal of love. - Simply one word concerning myself. Like the young man in the Gospel, a certain feeling of sadness came over me, in view of your extraordinary desires for martyrdom. That is the proof of your love; yes, you possess love, but I myself! No, never will you make me believe that I can attain this desired goal, for I dread all that you love. This is a proof that I do not love Jesus as you do. Ah! You say you are doing nothing, that you are a poor weak little bird, but your desires, how do you reckon them? The good God looks upon them as works. I cannot speak to you any longer. I began this note this morning, and I have not had a minute to finish it. It is five o’clock. I would like you to tell your little godmother, in writing, if she can love Jesus as you do. But only briefly, for what I have is sufficient for my joy and my sorrow. For my joy, when I see to what a degree you are loved and privileged; for my sorrow, when I have a foreboding of the desire that Jesus has to pluck His little flower! Oh! I wanted to cry when I read these lines that are not from earth but an echo from the Heart of God... Do you want me to tell you? Well, you are possessed by God, but what is called... absolutely possessed, just as the wicked are by the devil. I would like to be possessed, too, by the good Jesus. However, I love you so much that I rejoice when seeing you are more privileged than I am. A little word for your little godmother. To Sister Marie of the Sacred Heart (LT 197) J.M.J.T. Jesus 17th September 1896 My dearest Sister, I am not embarrassed to reply to you... How can you ask me if you can love the Good God as much as I love Him?... If you had understood the story of my little bird, you would not have posed that question. My desires for mar-tyrdom are nothing; they are not what give me the unlimited confidence that I feel in my heart. My desires of martyrdom are nothing; they are not what give me the unlimited confidence that I feel in my heart. It is spiritual riches, to tell the truth, that make one unjust, when one rests in them with complacency and when one believes they are something great... These desires are a consolation that Jesus grants at times to weak souls like mine (and these souls are numerous), but when He does not give this consolation, it is a grace of privilege. Recall those words of Father: ‘The martyrs suffered with joy, and the King of Martyrs suffered with sadness.’ Yes, Jesus said: ‘Father, let this chalice pass away from me.’ Dear Sister, how can you say after this that my desires are the sign of my love?... Ah, I really feel that it is not this at all that pleases God in my little soul; what pleases Him is that He sees me loving my littleness and my poverty, the blind hope that I have in His mercy... That is my only treasure, dear GODMOTHER, why would this treasure not be yours?... Are you not ready to suffer all that God will desire? I really know that you are; so if you want to feel joy, to have an attraction for suffering, it is your consolation that you are seeking, since when we love a thing the pain disappears. I assure you, if we were to go to martyrdom together in the dispositions we are in now, you would have great merit, and I would have none at all, unless Jesus was pleased to change my dispositions. Oh, my dear Sister, I beg you, understand your little girl, understand that to love Jesus, to be His victim of love, the weaker one is, without desires or virtues, the more suited one is for the workings of this consuming and transforming Love... The desire alone to be a victim suffices, but we must consent to remain always poor and without strength, and this is the difficulty, for: ‘The truly poor in spirit, where do we find him? You must look for him from afar,’ said the psalmist... He does not say that you must look for him among great souls, but ‘from afar’, that is to say in lowliness, in nothingness... Ah! Let us remain then very far from all that sparkles, let us love our littleness, let us love to feel nothing, then we shall be poor in spirit, and Jesus will come to look for us, and however far we may be, He will transform us into flames of love... Oh! How I would like to be able to make you understand what I feel!... It is confidence and nothing but confidence that must lead us to Love... Does not fear lead to Justice?... Since we see the way, let us run together. Yes, I feel it, Jesus wills to give us the same graces, He wills to give us His heaven gratuitously. Oh, my dear little Sister, if you don’t understand me, it is because you are too great a soul... or rather, it is be-cause I am explaining myself poorly, for I am sure that God would not give you the desire to be POSSESSED by Him, by His merciful Love, if He were not reserving this favour for you...or rather He has already given it to you, since you have given yourself to Him, since you desire to be con-sumed by Him, and since God never gives desires that He cannot realise. Nine o’clock is ringing, and I am obliged to leave you. Ah, how I would like to tell you things, but Jesus is going to make you feel all that I cannot write... I love you with all the tenderness of my GRATEFUL little childlike heart. Therese of the Child Jesus rel. carm. ind. ### Introduction to the Text ‘It is confidence and nothing but confidence that must lead us to Love’ (LT 197): for Therese confidence is a vital faith in the love which is absolute, infinite, eternal; the Merciful Love of God that accepts all human weakness. Jesus Christ demonstrated it in lowering Himself to human littleness, in lowering Himself to her, Therese. Because Therese knows she is a little soul infinitely loved by God. ‘I have not had a minute to finish it, it is five o’clock’ (LC 170): the time of evening prayer, which would be immediately followed by a meal (supper, during a time of fasting, at 6 o’clock). Sister Ma-rie of the Sacred Heart wants Therese to find this note before the end of her free time – the recreation period from 6.45pm to 7.40 pm (from which Therese was dispensed, being on retreat), and the evening silence. She would therefore be able to reply in writing, as Marie had asked, before finishing her retreat on the morning of Friday, 18th September 1896. ‘Remember the word of the Father’ (LT 197): this refers to Father Pichon, the citation coming from a conference on the 7th day (13th October 1887) of a retreat preached at the Carmel of Li-sieux, when Therese had written out this passage on a piece of paper in 1889. ‘Understand that to love Jesus, to be His victim of Love’ (LT 197): after Therese and Celine, Sister Marie of the Sacred Heart was the third to make her offering to Merciful Love during the summer of 1895. During a conversation with Therese, the latter told her ‘that she understood me very well, but that to offer one-self as a victim to God’s Love was not at all the same thing as to offer oneself to justice, and that I would not suffer more, that it was to be able to love God better, on behalf of those who didn’t want to love Him.’ ‘God never gives desires that He cannot realise.’ (LT 197): at the beginning of Therese’s Scripture notebook, Celine had written out this thought of Saint John of the Cross: ‘The more God wants to give us, the more He increases our desires... God so much ap-proves the hope of a soul that is constantly turned towards Him, that never lowers its eyes elsewhere, that one can say with certainty and truth, that soul will obtain as much as it hopes for...’ ### For the Community Dialogue 1. What is the text saying? Understanding the content and initial meaning of Therese’s text 2. What does the text say to us today? Discern the present-day relevance (social, ecclesial, spiritual...) of the text. 3. What does the text say to me/us? Consider the personal and community relevance of the text. The purpose of this process is to allow Therese to speak to us herself, to question and encourage us, and to open us up to her clarifying and confirming our own personal and community path. The questions suggested are only indicative, and could perhaps be used in individual meditation and community sharing. Questions: 1. Notice how much the theme of the letter uses structural elements of the little way. Which ones? Is there one that seems to be missing here? 2. To what spiritual conversion does this letter invite us? To what extent should this be seen in perspective? What should we love in ourselves? On what are we invited to depend above all? 3. ‘We have to consent to remain poor and without strength, and here is the difficulty.’ What does this mean concretely for us? ## Text 4 the Little Way (Ms. C, 2v-3v) Reading the writings of Therese of the Child Jesus Theresian anniversaries 2023-2025 2024: Manuscripts B and C Text 4: The little way (Ms. C, 2v-3v) Suggestion for the community meeting: 1. Read the text together 2. One of those present, having prepared a contribution in advance, discusses the text using the commentary (and other aids, if necessary). 3. Community dialogue on the text. It would be helpful to have made individual readings and reflections on Therese’s text before the community meeting. MANUSCRIPT C, 2v-3v You know, Mother, I have always wanted to be a saint. Alas! I have always noticed that when I compared myself to the saints, there is between them and me the same difference that exists between a mountain whose summit is lost in the clouds and the obscure grain of sand trampled underfoot by passers-by. Instead of becoming discouraged, I said to myself: God cannot inspire unrealisable desires. I can, then, in spite of my littleness, aspire to holiness. It is impossible for me to grow up, and so I must bear with myself such as I am with all my imperfections. But I want to seek out a means of going to heaven by a little way, a way that is very straight, very short, and totally new. We are living now in an age of inventions, and we no longer have to take the trouble of climbing stairs, for, in the homes of the rich, an elevator has replaced these very successfully. I wanted to find an elevator which would raise me to Jesus, for I am too small to climb the rough stairway of perfection. I searched, then, in the Scriptures for some sign of this elevator, the object of my desires, and I read these words coming from the mouth of Eternal Wisdom: “Whoever is a LITTLE ONE, let him come to me.” And so I succeeded. I felt I had found what I was looking for. But wanting to know, O my God, what You would do to the very little one who answered Your call, I con-tinued my search and this is what I discovered: “As one whom a mother caresses, so will I comfort you; you shall be carried at the breast, and upon my knees I shall caress you.” Ah! never did words more tender and more melodious come to give joy to my soul. The elevator which must raise me to heaven is Your arms, O Jesus! And for this I had no need to grow up, but rather I had to remain little and become this more and more. O my God, You surpassed all my expectation. I want only to sing Your mercies. “You have taught me from my youth, O God, and until now I have declared Your wonderful works. And until old age and grey hairs, I will continue to announce them.” What will this old age be for me? It seems this could be right now, for two thousand years are not more in the Lord’s eyes than are twenty years, than even a single day. Ah! don’t think, dear Mother, that your child wants to leave you; don’t think she feels it is a greater grace to die at the dawn of the day rather than at its close. What she esteems and what she desires only is to please Jesus. Now that He seems to be approaching her in order to draw her into the place of His glory, your child is filled with joy. For a long time she has understood that God needs no one (much less her) to do good on earth. ### Introduction to the Text ‘The grain of sand’ (Ms C, 2v): this symbol, much favoured by Therese since March 1888, had disappeared since the time of her profession (8/9/1890) and reappears here. We know that Therese liked to use grand opposites: mountain/grain of sand corresponds to eagle/little bird in Manuscript B. ‘God cannot inspire unrealisable desires’ (Ms. C, 2v): this is one of the great wellsprings in the life and thought of Therese, the theme of desire is a deep dynamic in her writings. ‘A little way, a way that is very straight, very short, and totally new.’ (Ms. C, 2v): this is the only place in her writings where Ther-ese speaks of a ‘little way’. The well-known expression ‘spiritual childhood’, while not false, was never used by Therese. For her, the important thing was let herself be led, to surrender herself to events. Her only desire was to give pleasure to Jesus. But she continues the battle. She tries to control herself, not to yield to her weaknesses, to give pleasure to others. But she does it now in gratitude for God’s free gift of love, rather than to earn that love. She does it for the good of others and no longer to achieve per-sonal perfection. Thus, when she falls short in those efforts, she rejoices, because her awareness of being little can grow, and she can receive even less deservedly the love of God. ‘An elevator’ (Ms. C, 3r): Celine wrote to her sisters from Par-is on 11/5/1887: ‘We have been in the elevators, it is very entertaining.’ When the disease gained ground, climbing the staircase to go to her cell was a real torture, and Therese was then transferred to the infirmary, which was on the ground floor. ‘The rough stairway of perfection’ (Ms. C, 3r): in The Dark Night, John of the Cross described the ‘ten degrees of the ladder of love’ to climb to God. ‘If someone is very little’ (Ms. C, 3r): already cited by Ther-ese as an essential element of the ‘little way’, with the underlying theme of Isaiah 66:12-13: ‘You will be suckled, carried on her hip and fondled in her lap. As a mother comforts a child, so I shall comfort you.’ ### For Community Discussion 1. What is the text saying? Understanding the content and initial meaning of Therese’s text 2. What does the text say to us today? Discern the present-day relevance (social, ecclesial, spiritual...) of the text. 3. What does the text say to me/us? Consider the personal and com-munity relevance of the text. The purpose of this process is to allow Therese to speak to us herself, to question and encourage us, and to open us up to her clarifying and confirming our own personal and community path. The questions suggested are only indicative, and could perhaps be used in individual meditation and community sharing. ### Questions 1. What does Therese rely on to nourish her research? How do we tackle our personal and community research and discernment? 2. Based on the fundamental experience of the deep gulf between our desire and the reality of our limitations, what attitudes does Therese invite us to cultivate? 3. Spiritually, in our relationship with Jesus, what are the differences between what Therese indicates with the symbols of the staircase and the elevator? What would be the necessary and sufficient condition to enter into the elevator? What would bring us out of it? Read LT 143, as a support for the path of our collaboration with grace, even when we are confronted with our limitations and our incapacity. 4. How does this text clarify the Theresian way of understanding what is true sanctity? Note the final insistence on spiritual poverty, linked with the account of the discovery of the little way. ## Text 5 the Trial of Faith (Ms. C, 4v-7v) Reading the writings of Therese of the Child Jesus Theresian anniversaries 2023-2025 2024: Manuscripts B and C Text 5: The trial of faith (Ms. C, 4v-7v) Suggestion for the community meeting: 1. Read the text together 2. One of those present, having prepared a contribution in advance, discusses the text using the commentary (and other aids, if necessary). 3. Community dialogue on the text. It would be helpful to have made individual readings and reflections on Therese’s text before the community meeting. MANUSCRIPT C, 4v-7v Dear Mother, you know well that God has deigned to make me pass through many types of trials. I have suffered very much since I was on earth, but, if in my childhood I suf-fered with sadness, it is no longer in this way that I suffer. It is with joy and peace. I am truly happy to suffer. O Mother, you must know all the secrets of my soul in order not to smile when you read these lines, for is there a soul less tried than my own if one judges by appearances? Ah! if the trial I am suffering for a year now appeared to the eyes of anyone, what astonishment would be felt! Dear Mother, you know about this trial; I am going to speak to you about it, however, for I consider it as a great grace I received during your office as Prioress. God granted me last year, the consolation of observing the fast of Lent in all its rigor. Never had I felt so strong, and this strength remained with me until Easter. On Good Friday, however, Jesus wished to give me the hope of going to see Him soon in heaven. Oh! how sweet this memory really is! After re-maining at the Tomb until midnight, I returned to our cell, but I had scarcely laid my head upon the pillow when I felt something like a bubbling stream mounting to my lips. I didn’t know what it was, but I thought that perhaps I was going to die and my soul was flooded with joy. However, as our lamp was extinguished, I told myself I would have to wait until the morning to be certain of my good fortune, for it seemed to me that it was blood I had coughed up. The morning was not long in coming; upon awakening, I thought immediately of the joyful thing that I had to learn, and so I went over to the window. I was able to see that I was not mistaken. Ah! my soul was filled with a great consolation; I was interiorly persuaded that Jesus, on the anniversary of His own death, wanted to have me hear His first call. It was like a sweet and distant murmur that announced the Bridegroom’s arrival. It was with great fervor that I assisted at Prime and the Chapter of Pardons. I was in a rush to see my turn come in order to be able, when asking pardon from you, to confide my hope and my happiness to you, dear Mother; however, I add-ed that I was not suffering in the least (which was true) and I begged you, Mother, to give me nothing special. In fact, I had the consolation of spending Good Friday just as I desired. Nev-er did Carmel’s austerities appear so delightful to me; the hope of going to heaven soon transported me with joy. When the evening of that blessed day arrived, I had to go to my rest; but just as on the preceding night, good Jesus gave me the same sign that my entrance into eternal life was not far off. At this time I was enjoying such a living faith, such a clear faith, that the thought of heaven made up all my hap-piness, and I was unable to believe there were really impious people who had no faith. I believed they were actually speaking against their own inner convictions when they denied the existence of heaven, that beautiful heaven where God Himself wanted to be their Eternal Reward. During those very joyful days of the Easter season, Jesus made me feel that there were really souls who have no faith, and who, through the abuse of grace, lost this precious treasure, the source of the only real and pure joys. He permitted my soul to be invaded by the thickest darkness, and that the thought of heaven, up until then so sweet to me, be no longer anything but the cause of struggle and torment. This trial was to last not a few days or a few weeks, it was not to be extinguished until the hour set by God Himself and this hour has not yet come. I would like to be able to express what I feel, but alas! I believe this is impossible. One would have to travel through this dark tunnel to understand its darkness. I will try to explain it by a comparison. I imagine I was born in a country that is covered in thick fog. I never had the experience of contemplating the joyful ap-pearance of nature flooded and transformed by the brilliance of the sun. It is true that from childhood I heard people speak of these marvels, and I know the country I am living in is not really my true fatherland, and there is another I must long for without ceasing. This is not simply a story invented by someone living in the sad country where I am, but it is a reality, for the King of the Fatherland of the bright sun actually came and lived for thirty-three years in the land of darkness. Alas! the darkness did not understand that this Divine King was the Light of the world. Your child, however, O Lord, has understood Your di-vine light, and she begs pardon for her brothers. She is re-signed to eat the bread of sorrow as long as You desire it; she does not wish to rise up from this table filled with bitterness at which poor sinners are eating until the day set by You. Can she not say in her name and in the name of her brothers: Have pity on us, O Lord, for we are poor sinners!... Oh! Lord, send us away justified... May all those who were not enlightened by the bright flame of faith one day see it shine... O Jesus! if it is needful that the table soiled by them be purified by a soul who loves You, then I desire to eat this bread of trial at this table, until it pleases You to bring me into Your bright Kingdom. The only grace I ask of You is that I never offend You! What I am writing, dear Mother, has no continuity; my little story which resembled a fairy tale is all of a sudden changed into a prayer, and I don’t know what interest you could possibly have in reading all these confused and poorly expressed ideas. Well, dear Mother, I am not writing to produce a literary work, but only through obedience, and if I cause you any boredom, then at least you will see that your little child has given proof of her good will. I am going to continue my little comparison where I left off. I was saying that the certainty of going away one day far from the sad and dark country had been given me from the day of my childhood. I did not only believe this because I heard it from persons much more knowledgeable than I, but I felt in the bottom of my heart real longings for this most beautiful country. Just as the genius of Christopher Columbus gave him a presentiment of a new world when nobody had even thought of such a thing; so also I felt that another land would one day serve me as a permanent dwelling place. Then suddenly the fog that surrounds me becomes more dense; it penetrates my soul and envelops it in such a way that it is impossible to discover within it the sweet image of my Fatherland; everything has dis-appeared! When I want to rest my heart fatigued by the darkness that surrounds it by the memory of the luminous country after which I aspire, my torment redoubles; it seems to me that the darkness, borrowing the voice of sinners, says mockingly to me: “You are dreaming about the light, about a fatherland embalmed in the sweetest perfumes; you are dreaming about the eternal possession of the Creator of all these marvels; you believe that one day you will walk out of this fog that surrounds you! Advance, advance; rejoice in death which will give you not what you hope for but a night still more profound, the night of nothingness.” Dear Mother, the image I wanted to give you of the darkness that obscures my soul is as imperfect as a sketch is to the model; however, I don’t want to write any longer about it; I fear I might blaspheme; I fear even that I have already said too much. Ah! may Jesus pardon me if I have caused Him any pain, but He knows very well that while I do not have the joy of faith, I am trying to carry out its works at least. I believe I have made more acts of faith in this past year than through my whole life. At each new occasion of combat, when my enemies provoke me, I conduct myself bravely. Knowing it is cowardly to enter into a duel, I turn my back on my adversaries without deigning to look them in the face; but I run toward my Jesus. I tell Him I am ready to shed my blood to the last drop to profess my faith in the existence of heaven. I tell Him, too, I am happy not to en-joy this beautiful heaven on this earth so that He will open it for all eternity to poor unbelievers. Also, in spite of this trial which has taken away all my joy, I can nevertheless cry out: “You have given me DELIGHT, O Lord, in ALL your doings.” (Ps. 91) For is there a joy greater than that of suffering out of love for You? The more interior the suffering is and the less apparent to the eyes of creatures, the more it rejoices You, O my God! But if my suffering was really unknown to You, which is impossible, I would still be happy to have it, if through it I could prevent or make reparation for one single sin against faith. My dear Mother, I may perhaps appear to you to be ex-aggerating my trial. In fact, if you are judging according to the sentiments I express in my little poems composed this year, I must appear to you as a soul filled with consolations and one for whom the veil of faith is almost torn aside; and yet it is no longer a veil for me, it is a wall which reaches right up to the heavens and covers the starry firmament. When I sing of the happiness of heaven and of the eternal possession of God, I feel no joy in this, for I sing simply what I WANT TO BELIEVE. It is true that at times a very small ray of the sun comes to illumine my darkness, and then the trial ceases for an instant, but afterward the memory of this ray, instead of causing me joy, makes my darkness even more dense. Never have I felt before this, dear Mother, how sweet and merciful the Lord really is, for He did not send me this trial until the moment I was capable of bearing it. A little earlier I believe it would have plunged me into a state of discouragemeant. Now it is taking away everything that could be a natural satisfaction in my desire for heaven. Dear Mother, it seems to me now that nothing could prevent me from flying away, for I no longer have any great desires except that of loving to the point of dying of love. June 9 ### Introduction to the Text ‘The trial I am suffering for a year now’ (Ms. C, 4v): this refers to the challenge to her faith that began around Easter 1896, in April. ‘You know about this trial’ (Ms. C, 4v): Therese confirms that Mother Marie de Gonzague most likely already knew about the ‘trial of faith’ that Mother Agnes only knew about in 1897. ‘Last year’ (Ms. C, 4v): we keep in mind that, apart from Ma-rie de Gonzague, this account is addressed to Agnes of Jesus. ‘The fast of Lent in all its rigor’ (Ms. C, 4v): nothing in the morning; a meal at 11.30 am with soup, fish, vegetables and dessert (cheese or fruit); no eggs or dairy products; all cooked in water or oil; and finally a small dish at 6 pm, with 6 oz. of bread, no jam, and with raw or dried fruit. ‘On Good Friday’ (Ms. C, 4v): Therese had her first hemoptysis during the night of 2nd to 3rd of April 1895, then a second in the evening of Friday 3rd April (Good Friday). A hemoptysis is a symptom manifested by the emission of blood during a fit of coughing, one of the symptoms of tuberculosis. ‘My soul was flooded with joy’ (Ms. C, 4v): the theme of this whole paragraph does not conceal the happiness felt by Therese at this signal of her approaching death. ‘A country covered in thick fog’ (Ms. C, 5v): one needs to know the town of Lisieux and particularly the basin where the Carmel is located, beside a little stream. At times, you cannot see the building in front of your own! ‘She begs pardon for her brothers’ (Ms. C, 6r): in January 1897, for the first time, Therese designates sinners as her brothers, in Poem 46. ‘She is resigned... she does not wish to rise up from this ta-ble’ (Ms. C, 6r): this is the total acceptance of her vocation that she had foreseen in 1887, with the Pranzini case (cf. Ms. A, 45v). ‘Without becoming discouraged’ (Ms. C, 6v): always the theresian tenacity, she is never discouraged. ‘I fear I might blaspheme’ (Ms. C, 7r): Therese’s feelings are so horrified, that this is the only time she uses this word in all her writings. ‘Loving to the point of dying of love’ (Ms. C, 7v): the graphic emotion of these last lines show Therese’s exhaustion, who in fact was working in bed, on a very hard straw mattress. ### For Community Discussion 1. What is the text saying? Understanding the content and initial meaning of Therese’s text 2. What does the text say to us today? Discern the present-day relevance (social, ecclesial, spiritual...) of the text. 3. What does the text say to me/us? Consider the personal and com-munity relevance of the text. The purpose of this process is to allow Therese to speak to us herself, to question and encourage us, and to open us up to her clarifying and confirming our own personal and community path. The questions suggested are only indicative, and could perhaps be used in individual meditation and community sharing. ### Questions 1. Therese suffered very much. We can bring to mind her physical, emotional and spiritual suffering. How is Therese able to help us in our own trials? 2. How does Therese deepen her little way in this context? How does this bear fruit on the mystical and apostolic levels? 3. How does this passage illumine the way to live through spiritual combat? To accept suffering, to attribute meaning to it? 4. In synthesis, what meaning can we give to the trial of faith that Therese experienced? Can I name the trial of my own faith, its meaning, its fruits...? ## Text 6 the Treatise on Charity (Ms. C, 11v-14r) (Pending) ## Text 7 the Power of Prayer (Ms. C, 24v-26r) Reading the writings of Therese of the Child Jesus Theresian anniversaries 2023-2025 2024: Manuscripts B and C Text 7: The Power of Prayer (Ms. C, 24v-26r) Suggestion for the community meeting: 1. Read the text together 2. 3. One of those present, having prepared a contribution in advance, discusses the text using the commentary (and other aids, if necessary). Community dialogue on the text. It would be helpful to have made individual readings and reflections on Therese’s text before the community meeting. MANUSCRIPT C, 24v-26r It was during Lent, and I was occupied then with the one and only novice who was here and whose angel I was. She came looking for me one morning, her face radiant with joy, and said: “Ah! if you only knew what I dreamt last night. I was with my sister and wanted to detach her from all the vanities she loves so much. To do this I was explaining this stanza of Vivre d’Amour [“Living on Love”]: Loving you, Jesus, is such a fruitful loss!… All my perfumes are yours forever. “I had a feeling that my words penetrated her soul and I was carried away with joy. This morning when I awoke I thought that God perhaps willed that I give Him this soul. May I write to her after Lent to tell her about my dream and tell her that Jesus wants her entirely for Himself?” Without giving it much thought, I told her she could try to do this, but first she must ask permission from Mother Prioress. As Lent was still far from coming to a close, you were very much surprised, dear Mother, at the request which appeared too premature; and cer-tainly inspired by God, you answered it was not through letters that Carmelites must save souls but through prayer. When I learned of your decision, I understood at once it was that of Jesus, and I said to Sister Marie of the Trinity: “We must get to work; let’s pray very much. What a joy if we are answered at the end of Lent!” Oh! infinite mercy of the Lord, who really wants to answer the prayer of His little children. At the end of Lent one more soul was consecrated to Jesus. It was a real miracle, a miracle obtained by the fervor of a humble novice! How great is the power of Prayer! One could call it a Queen who has at each instant free access to the King and who is able to obtain whatever she asks. To be heard it is not necessary to read from a book some beautiful formula composed for the occasion. If this were the case, alas, I would have to be pitied! Outside the Divine Office, which I am very unworthy to recite, I do not have the courage to force myself to search out beautiful prayers in books. There are so many of them it really gives me a headache! and each prayer is more beautiful than the others. I cannot recite them all and not knowing which to choose, I do like children who do not know how to read, I say very simply to God what I wish to say, without composing beautiful sentences, and He always understands me. For me, prayer is an aspiration of the heart, it is a simple glance directed to heaven, it is a cry of gratitude and love in the midst of trial as well as joy; finally, it is something great, supernatural, which expands my soul and unites me to Jesus. However, I would not want you to believe, dear Mother, that I recite without devotion the prayers said in common in the choir or the hermitages. On the contrary, I love very much these prayers in common, for Jesus has promised to be in the midst of those who gather together in His name. I feel then that the fervor of my Sisters makes up for my lack of fervor; but when alone (I am ashamed to admit it) the recitation of the rosary is more difficult for me than the wearing of an instrument of penance. I feel I have said this so poorly! I force myself in vain to meditate on the mysteries of the rosary; I don’t succeed in fixing my mind on them. For a long time I was des-olate about this lack of devotion that astonished me, for I love the Blessed Virgin so much that it should be easy for me to recite in her honor prayers which are so pleasing to her. Now I am less desolate; I think that the Queen of heaven, since she is my MOTHER, must see my good will and she is satisfied with it. Sometimes when my mind is in such a great aridity that it is impossible to draw forth one single thought to unite me with God, I very slowly recite an “Our Father” and then the angelic salutation; then these prayers give me great delight; they nourish my soul much more than if I had recited them precipitately a hundred times. The Blessed Virgin shows me she is not displeased with me, for she never fails to protect me as soon as I invoke her. If some disturbance overtakes me, some embarrassment, I turn very quickly to her and as the most tender of Mothers she always takes care of my interests. How many times, when speaking to the nov-ices, has it happened that I invoked her and felt the benefits of her motherly protection! ### Introduction to the Text ‘The one and only novice’ (Ms. C, 24v): this refers to Sister Marie of the Trinity. In fact, there were a total of 4 young novices (Sister Martha of Jesus, who should have moved on from the novitiate in 1894 but who had stayed there through her affection for Therese; Sister Marie-Made-leine of the Holy Sacrament; Sister Genevieve of Saint Teresa (her bio-logical sister, Celine); and Sister Marie of the Trinity). It should be understood that: ‘On 21 March 1896, Mother Marie de Gonzague was reelected Prioress, and decided to combine that office with that of Novice Mistress. Reverend Mother Agnes of Jesus advised her to take as much help as possible from Sister Therese of the Child Jesus, she who had so perfectly fulfilled the mission entrusted to her for the past three years. Mother Marie de Gonzague adopted this position with ease and, in practice, left the entire direction of the novitiate to Sister Therese of the Child Jesus, who was thus the Novice Mistress, without having the official title, until her death on 30 September 1897. So it was not until having thus replaced Mother Marie de Gon-zague at the novitiate – in other words, from March 1896 – that she brought the novices together every day after Vespers, from two-thirty to three o’clock (according to the custom of that time). She did not give a conference as such. Her teaching was in no way systematic. She would read or have them read passages from the Rule, the Constitutions or the Guide, gave explanations or clarifications that she thought important, or answered their questions. Then she would correct any of their failings, if any, and talk familiarly with them about whatever interested them at that moment, whether concerning spirituality or ongoing work.’ (Advice and memories of a novice, collected by Sister Genevieve of the Holy Face). ‘An aspiration of the heart, a simple glance directed to heaven, it is a cry of gratitude and love in the midst of trial as well as joy’ (Ms. C, 25r): Therese is wary of beautiful prayers that are recited as beautiful phrases, without meditation or understanding. One is almost liable to forget that this serene Novice Mistress is also a young woman who is sick and prey to the most painful suffering. ### For Community Discussion 1. What is the text saying? Understanding the content and initial meaning of Therese’s text 2. What does the text say to us today? Discern the present-day relevance (social, ecclesial, spiritual...) of the text. 3. What does the text say to me/us? Consider the personal and community relevance of the text. The purpose of this process is to allow Therese to speak to us herself, to question and encourage us, and to open us up to her clarifying and confirming our own personal and community path. The questions suggested are only indicative, and could perhaps be used in individual meditation and community sharing. ### Questions 1. 2. 3. 4. Reread Ms. A, 45v-46v (Text 4 from last year), as a precursor of this passage in Ms. C. What evolutions do you see? Therese stresses the communal nature of this prayer: shared intention, mediation of the Prioress, the lasting commitment in common of Therese and her novice... Do we choose specifically to live the prayer of request in this way with others. Are there obstacles to doing this? ‘For me, prayer is an aspiration of the heart, it is a simple glance directed to heaven, it is a cry of gratitude and love in the midst of trial as well as joy; finally, it is something great, supernatural, which expands my soul and unites me to Jesus.’ What is inspired in us by Therese’s testimony on prayer? In light of Therese’s account, how are we supported by communal prayer, such as the Divine Office, the Eucharist, silent prayer, collective vocal prayer? ## Text 8 in the Arms of Jesus (Ms. C, 35v-37r) Reading the writings of Therese of the Child Jesus Theresian anniversaries 2023-2025 2024: Manuscripts B and C Text 8: In the Arms of Jesus (Ms. C, 35v – 37r) Suggestion for the community meeting: 1. Read the text together 2. 3. One of those present, having prepared a contribution in advance, discusses the text using the commentary (and other aids, if necessary). Community dialogue on the text. It would be helpful to have made individual readings and reflections on Therese’s text before the community meeting. MANUSCRIT C, 35v-37r Mother, I think it is necessary to give a few more explanations on the passage in the Song of Songs: “Draw me, we shall run,” for what I wanted to say appears to me little understood. “No man can come after me, unless the FATHER who sent me draws him,” Je-sus has said. Again, through beautiful parables, and often even without using this means so well known to the people, He teaches us that it is enough to knock and it will be opened, to seek in order to find, and to hold out one’s hand humbly to receive what is asked for. He also says that everything we ask the Father in His name, He will grant it. No doubt, it is because of this teaching that the Holy Spirit, before Jesus’ birth, dictated this prophetic prayer: “Draw me, we shall run.” What is it then to ask to be “Drawn” if not to be united in an intimate way to the object which captivates our heart? If fire and iron had the use of reason, and if the latter said to the other: “Draw me,” would it not prove that it desires to be identified with the fire in such a way that the fire penetrate and drink it up with its burning substance and seem to become one with it? Dear Mother, this is my prayer. I ask Jesus to draw me into the flames of His love, to unite me so closely to Him that He lives and acts in me. I feel that the more the fire of love burns within my heart, the more I shall say: “Draw me,” the more also the souls who will approach me (poor little piece of iron, useless if I withdraw from the divine furnace), the more these souls will run swiftly in the odour of the ointments of their Beloved, for a soul that is burning with love cannot remain inactive. No doubt, she will remain at Jesus’ feet as did Mary Magda-lens, and she will listen to His sweet and burning words. Appearing to do nothing, she will give much more than Martha, who torments herself with many things and wants her sister to imitate her. It is not Martha’s works that Jesus finds fault with; His divine Mother submitted humbly to these works all through her life since she had to prepare the meals of the Holy Family. It is only the distress of His ardent hostess that He willed to correct. All the saints have understood this, and more especially those who filled the world with the light of the Gospel teachings. Is it not in prayer that St. Paul, St. Augustine, St. John of the Cross, St. Thomas Aquinas, St. Francis, St. Dominic, and so many other famous Friends of God have drawn out this divine science which de-lights the greatest geniuses? A scholar has said: “Give me a lever and a fulcrum and I will lift the world.” What Archimedes was not able to obtain, for his request was not directed at God and was only made from a material viewpoint, the saints have obtained in all its fullness. The Almighty has given them as fulcrum: HIMSELF ALONE; as lever: PRAYER which burns with a fire of love. And it is in this way that they have lifted the world; it is in this way that the saints still militant lift it, and that, until the end of time, the saints to come will lift it. Dear Mother, now I would like to tell you what I understand by the odour of the ointments of the Beloved. Since Jesus has reascended into heaven, I can follow Him only in the traces He has left; but how luminous these traces are! How perfumed! I have only to cast a glance in the Gospels and immediately I breathe in the perfumes of Jesus’ life, and I know on which side to run. I don’t hasten to the first place but to the last; rather than advance like the Pharisee, I repeat, filled with confidence, the publican’s humble prayer. Most of all I imitate the conduct of Magdalene; her astonishing or rather her loving audacity which charms the Heart of Jesus, also attracts my own. Yes, I feel it; even if I had on my conscience all the sins that can be committed, I would go, my heart broken with sorrow, and throw myself into Jesus’ arms, for I know how much He loves the prodigal child who returns to Him. It is not because God, in His anticipating Mercy, has preserved my soul from mortal sin that I go to Him with confidence and love. ### Introduction to the Text Now we are at the last page of Manuscript C, Therese is finally at the end of her strength, and will leave this manuscript unfinished. ‘To be united in an intimate way’ (Ms. C, 35r): Therese has now passed onto the mystical plane, with this comparison of the iron that desires to be identified with the fire. ‘The more these souls will run swiftly in the odour of the ointments’ (Ms. C, 36r): « It is through herself being so totally drawn into the flames of the love of Jesus – to the point of being incandescent – that Therese became so attractive. That is how she is still drawing so many men and women to Jesus throughout the world, by demonstrating through her life, as through a clear mirror, all the fascinating and al-luring beauty of the Love of Jesus. » (François-Marie Léthel, Thérèse de l’Enfant Jésus, docteur de l’Amour, Venasque, 1990, p. 114). ‘A soul that is burning with love cannot remain inactive’ (Ms. C, 36r): transcription of a line of Saint Teresa of Jesus. ‘It is only the distress...’ (Ms. C, 36r): from this word on, the text is written in pencil. On 8th July, Therese was taken down to the infirmary. She wrote a few more lines, but her weakness prevented her from finishing her manuscript. ‘Was it not in prayer’ (Ms. C, 36r): prayer is the last word, Therese’s last teaching, because it is the key to everything, the way to union with God, the lever which ‘lifts the world’. ‘I have only to cast a glance in the Gospels’ (Ms. C, 36v), until the very end, Therese retained her sensitive and wondering love of the per-son of Christ. ‘The traces He has left; but how luminous these traces are! How perfumed! I have only to cast a glance in the Gospels and immediately I breathe in the perfumes of Jesus’ life’ (Ms. C, 36v): cf. The Living Flame, Verse 3. ‘Has preserved my soul from mortal sin’ (Ms. C, 36v): Therese is referring here to the solemn declaration of Father Pichon (cf. Ms. A, 70r), but in order to reinforce her last message, which is that, even if she had committed ‘all the sins’ possible, she declares that she would nevertheless go to throw herself into the arms of Jesus. ### For Community Discussion 1. What is the text saying? Understanding the content and initial meaning of Therese’s text 2. What does the text say to us today? Discern the present-day relevance (social, ecclesial, spiritual...) of the text. 3. What does the text say to me/us? Consider the personal and community relevance of the text. The purpose of this process is to allow Therese to speak to us herself, to question and encourage us, and to open us up to her clarifying and confirming our own personal and community path. The questions suggested are only indicative, and could perhaps be used in individual meditation and community sharing. ### Questions 1. 2. 3. Concerning the Song of Songs, 1:4: what kind of prayer is Therese insisting on here, as she is coming to the end of her last manuscript? What does this verse of the Song express for us? How are we affected by her teaching on prayer? What realities is she stressing? How does this passage illumine our own life of prayer? Therese expresses here in her own way the accomplishment of the spiritual life. Compare Therese’s commentary with that notably of Teresa of Jesus in the Seventh Mansions, where we find again a reference to Martha and Mary. --- **Source:** OCD General Curia, *Theresian Anniversaries 2024: Manuscripts B and C* (Rome: OCD General Curia, 2024).