The Saint of Roses and Darkness

Today marks the 100th anniversary of St. Thérèse of Lisieux’s canonization by Pope Pius XI on May 17, 1925.

People sometimes ask why Thérèse is an important patron for our community, especially given our mission, which centers on healing and reparation in response to the reality of abuse in the Church. At first glance, she might seem like an unlikely choice: a cloistered nun known for her sentimental style and her promise to “shower roses” from heaven on those who pray for her intercession.

But Thérèse’s life was far from sheltered or romantic; it was marked by profound suffering. From the trauma of being separated from her mother as an infant, to the death of her mother when she was four, her own mysterious illness, and the emotional toll of watching her sisters leave one by one to join the convent—Thérèse endured a string of losses in her life that left deep wounds.

Her writings show someone familiar with intense anxiety and darkness that she once described as “bewildering.” In the Carmel, she experienced moments of deep spiritual crisis, even the temptation to leave. And yet, she lived her suffering on a path of radical trust. She recognized that she was what she called a “weak and helpless child” but it was her weakness, she believed, that gave her the courage to give herself completely to Jesus.

Thérèse’s “Little Way” shows us a spirituality that does not dissociate from suffering. Prayer for Thérèse was not for the purpose of seeking consolations; prayer was her consolation. Her little way, modeled on the little way of the Gospel, shows us how to choose love amid suffering. She shows us how to draw near to Christ’s own suffering—and to the suffering of others—not with fear, but with compassion and trust.

In this, Thérèse is not only a mystic or a saint of roses; she is a model for this moment in the Church. In a world in which the darkness of human sin, including within the Church, is presented to us daily on our phones and through our screens, Thérèse’s spiritual insights show us how to be small so that we can bear this with Christ within his suffering Heart. In her little way, Thérèse models a journey of purification that invites us to draw near to suffering—our own, and that of others—in the trusting confidence that we will discover Christ in the darkness.