Intentions of the Holy Father for April

Ecology and Justice. That governments may foster the protection of creation and the just distribution of natural resources.
Hope for the Sick. That the Risen Lord may fill with hope the hearts of those who are being tested by pain and sickness.

The Little Flower, Our Little Sister

St. Therese of the Child Jesus, Virgin and Doctor of the Church (1 Oct)

We all want to be big kids, grownups. We want to be big, strong, smart, quick, and otherwise self-sufficient. We don't want people telling us what to do. We want to make our own plans for our life. We want to be in charge and in control. It's in our blood, and our Western culture certainly encourages it.

Yet the readings from today's Mass (Mon after XXVI Sunday of Ord: Zec 8:1-8; Ps 102; Lk 9:46-50) tell us that this path is the wrong one. We want to build ourselves up, but as the psalm response says, The Lord will build up Zion again and appear in all His glory. In the Gospel for today we are told what to think about building ourselves up: An argument arose among the disciples about which of them was the greatest. Jesus resolved the quarrel by drawing a little child to his side and stating, "For the one who is least among all of you is the one who is the greatest," (Lk 9:46, 48). St. Matthew, who records the event similarly, recalls Jesus saying, "Truly, I say to you, unless you turn and become like children, you will never enter the kingdom of heaven. Whoever humbles himself like this child, he is the greatest in the Kingdom of Heaven," (Mt 18:3-4). Upon brief inspection, it is actually amazing how many times Jesus refers to His disciples as His children, how frequently He urges them to depend upon our Father without worries, how often He reminds them that our Father will provide for all of our needs if we just ask Him. Our Father does not want us to conquer the world for Him, go as a missionary to the remotest corners for Him, become well versed in theology or scripture to impress Him.


All our Father wants is for us to let Him carry us in His big, strong arms, and to be happy as Daddy's little boy, as Daddy's little princess. Therese Martin, who took the name Therese of the Child Jesus when she entered the Carmel monastery at Lisieux, discovered these words on virtually every page of scripture. She was acutely aware of her own limitations. She was not extraordinarily intelligent, nor was she very well placed in society, nor was she wealthy. She lived her entire brief adult life in a cloister sequestered from the rest of the world. Within the confines of her little world, this little girl who died in 1897 at the age of 24 came to understand that all Jesus wanted of her was that she let Him love her, and that she let Him live in her to love Him back. Fueled by His intense love, she herself became a blazing furnace of love. She had no great mission to accomplish while in the cloister, and so made a deliberate effort to do all the little day to day things with great love. She discovered her vocation in these little acts powered by immense love. She knew that she could do nothing great and famous, and was happy just to please God, like a Little Flower in His garden of souls. She called this spiritual path her Little Way. After noting all the great vocations of the various members of the Body of Christ, she was finally able to articulate her own place in the Body:
"In the heart of the Church, my mother, I will be love!"
She was known to thank Him in every circumstance, and had an amazing ability to see and embrace sincerely His love in all circumstances. Even as she coughed up blood upon her deathbed, gasping for air, among her last words she gasped, "Oh my God, how I love you!"

In this way, she eventually became the great role model for another religious sister named Teresa, the one in Calcutta. Not only Mother Teresa, but literally tens of millions of people have read and been inspired by the autobiography her superior requested her to write. Her Story of a Soul is like a roadmap for loving Jesus. It has been on the nightstand of many holy people ever since. This little child, who felt and knew herself incapable of any great endeavors has literally begun a great revolution of love that is still unfolding today.

Even to love the Father is very difficult, especially when He asks great sacrifices of us for reasons we cannot understand: our career and self-confidence, our vocation, our home and security, even the life of a loved one or our own life. We must not be embarrassed to go to our Father and tell Him what we need: Daddy, I love you. I want to love you. It's so hard. Please help me love you! He might not always win us the lottery, but if we just ask Him, He will always win us our soul. When it is hard to go to the Father, go to Jesus. When it is hard to go to Jesus, go to Mama Mary. When it is hard to go to Mama Mary, go to our little sister, St. Therese. When it is hard to go to St. Therese, go to a brother or sister in Christ here on earth. Just do not be too proud to ask for help, to proud to be like a little child.



St. Therese of the Child Jesus, pray for us.

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