By Susan Ciancio
Thérèse loved those around her with every ounce of her being, and she knew that that love would change the world. It did, and it still does. Will the love you have for others also change your world?
With CLSP’s new lesson booklet, both you and your kids can learn to create your own Little Way to love just like St. Thérèse of Lisieux.
Who was St. Thérèse of Lisieux?
St. Thérèse was born in France in 1873. From a young age, she knew she wanted to dedicate her life to God and join the Carmel monastery. At the age of 14, she was bold enough to ask the pope. While he did not give her the answer she wanted, it wasn’t long before she did gain admission, and just a year later, she was allowed to join.
Thérèse spent the rest of her short life in that monastery. She died at the age of 24, but in those nine years, she created such an impact on those around her that her mother superior, who was also her sister, asked her to write her thoughts and memories in a book. We know it today as Story of a Soul.
Thérèse often said that she knew she couldn’t travel the world, serve as a missionary to thousands, or teach at the university level, for she understood that she was just a small flower in a large garden. But she also understood her worth and she knew that she had a role to play right there where God placed her.
Loving as best she could became known as her Little Way. This is the lesson she tried to teach others, and she worked every day to shine the light of Christ and help others feel valued and cherished.
Thérèse even told the other sisters that her goal in heaven was to continue praying and interceding on people’s behalf and that she would give evidence of that by sending a “shower of roses from the heavens.” She explained, “I will spend my heaven doing good upon earth.”
Countless people have received rose signs or even smelled the scent of roses in response to prayers. I myself have had several rose signs throughout my life; the most incredible sign happened after I finished a novena to Thérèse. A stranger literally walked up to me and handed me a rose!
We can trust that St. Thérèse is indeed interceding on our behalf. And her Little Way is her legacy—a way that we too can live as we work to build a culture of life here on earth.
And now you and your 1st and 2nd graders can learn about her remarkable life in St. Thérèse of Lisieux: Small Deeds, Big Love. This newest lesson booklet in CLSP’s collection offers concrete examples for how your kids can take action now to stand up for others so they can grow in faith and love. These important concepts help build that pro-life foundation that kids need so that, as they grow, they also grow in understanding about the value of the preborn, those with disabilities, the elderly, and anyone else whom society deems unworthy of life.
Like Thérèse, we may not be able to do grand things, but we—even our young children—can do little things with immense love.
Implementing the Little Way
We know that you have a lot on your plate. You juggle work, school, sports, after-school activities, and family time. But as parents, we cannot forget that our job—our promise to God when we baptized our children—is to attempt to raise future saints.
We do this by teaching them Catholic and pro-life values, like these lessons from the saints. That’s one of the reasons our newest lesson booklet is so crucial. It will transform your family life by helping you see the value in the small things you do. By devising your own Little Way, you can find God in the little things and help others see Him there as well.
What that looks like is different for everyone. Maybe that’s happily helping a family member with a chore, sharing something precious, spending time with a sick friend or lonely neighbor, praying as a family, calling an elderly relative and giving them the gift of your time, or making cards or baking treats for moms in a local shelter to show that they’re not alone. Everything we do for others matters. And when we make it a point to do things with great love, we can change our corner of the world. And that’s no small thing!
So, as we grow closer to St. Thérèse’s feast day (October 1), celebrate with your family by downloading St. Thérèse of Lisieux: Small Deeds, Big Love and learning about her life. This fun booklet (which has an awesome craft activity at the end!) is easy to teach and will foster great conversations. You can easily read it to your kids while sitting at the dinner table or while cuddling on the couch.
No good deed or act of love is ever too small. When we strive to emulate St. Thérèse and implement her teachings into our lives, we too become more saintlike, and soon we will find that our littleness really isn’t so little.