Saintly Advice from St. Therese - On Humility

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I have read a few books on St. Therese, including of course her autobiography. But there is one book that stands out and that is one I recently started reading with much interest, Complete Spiritual Doctrine of St. Therese of Lisieux by Father Francois Jamart. He beautifully explains the spiritual childhood or little way of this beloved saint. The following are quotes by St. Therese from the book:

On Humility:

"It means that we acknowledge our nothingness, await everything from the good Lord, refuse to attribute to ourselves the virtues we practice..."

We need to be able to see ourselves are we really are:

"weak, powerless, poor and wretched!"

"Humility is truth."

"The lower we are, the more we attract God; on the contrary, when we lift ourselves up we go counter to that movement of love."

It is clear that we must acknowledge our littleness. We must love to see ourselves as we really are. We must bear the imperfections that are inherent in our nature. This is not easy. We all want to think we are special, wonderful and someone others will look up to. It is really hard to acknowledge our failings, weaknesses and imperfections. Yet by doing so, we are growing that much closer to sanctity! I am still in awe how this young saint has given us the secret to becoming a saint and the secret is not at all difficult.  We just need to practice it more and more each day.   I am just very sorry it has taken me so long to listen to her.

Comments

  1. Anonymous9:15 am, June 02, 2011

    St Therese is a dear friend and a wise councilor,thank you for posting, and isn't the picture beautiful?

    ReplyDelete
  2. EC Gefroh1:11 pm, June 02, 2011

    She sure is! Yes, it is very beautiful.

    ReplyDelete
  3. Clare1:19 pm, June 02, 2011

    Thank you for sharing, Esther. Those are beautiful and powerful words.

    ReplyDelete
  4. Mary N.2:04 pm, June 02, 2011

    Esther,
    I just LOVE St. Therese! Her "little way" opened up a door for all us regular, average people who so want to please the Lord but had no clue how to go about it. She truly has changed the lives of millions of people and filled us with hope. Her autobiography gave me a much greater understanding of God's love and the beauty of being simple and "little". Great post!
    Thanks for letting us know about the book by Fr. Jamart - I'll have to get this one!

    ReplyDelete
  5. Unknown4:39 pm, June 02, 2011

    St Therese is so profound in her simplicity.Thanks for her quotes on humility- I definitely need them!

    ReplyDelete
  6. EC Gefroh11:09 am, June 03, 2011

    Clare, Mary and Karinann, thank you for sharing you comments about our dear little saint! She gives me much hope when I feel I fail God terribly.

    ReplyDelete

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