Who was this Saint? Marie Francoise Therese Martin took her first breath on the 2nd January in 1873, when she was born into a simple family who lived in the Rue de Saint Blaise at Alencon, a vulnerable young baby girl, who’s spirituality would, in later years, help to transform the hearts and lives of countless Catholics. We know her today as Saint Therese, or as she used to call herself, ‘the little flower.’
Therese was one of nine children to a father, Louis Martin, who was a watchmaker, and a mother, Zelie Martin, who made Alencon lace. However due to the poor living conditions in those days only five of their children would survive, all of whom were daughters who struck up a close bond that would last all their lives.
Sadly it wasn’t long before tragedy would visit this family again and when Therese was only four and a half years of age her mother, Zelie Martin, died of breast cancer. At the time Pauline, who was the oldest of the daughters, at the young age of only 16, became Therese’s second mother. Consolation would be short lived for Therese, since Pauline, only five years later would enter the Carmelite convent.
This caused more heartache to the 9 year old and at one point Therese became so ill with a heavy fever that people thought she was going to die. Her sisters gathered round her bed and prayed to the statue of the Blessed Virgin Mary. Therese also prayed but she saw Mary smile at her and was instantaneously cured. Therese tried to keep this sudden healing a secret but it was not long before word had spread through the towns and villages. For a time she was plagued by many people asking questions about the appearance of Our Lady but when she would not answer their questions people passed the happenings as child’s play.
Seeing the Blessed Mother and being miraculously cured had a profound effect upon her life and without knowing it, by the age of 11 she had developed the habit of mental prayer. She would find a quiet place in her room and she would think about God, Heaven, Life, and the call to eternity.
Her other sisters, Marie and Leonie, later left to join religious orders and Therese found herself left alone with her father, Louis and her other sister Celine. Seeing her other sisters leave for religious life caused her to cry. In fact it could be said that she cried all the time, especially if someone criticised her, or if she thought someone had criticised her or didn’t appreciate her; she would cry. Then she would cry because she had cried!
Therese wanted to enter Carmelite to join both her sisters Pauline and Marie but how would she convince Religious that she was strong enough to handle the demands of Carmelite life; after all people saw her as someone who could not handle her own emotions. What was she to do? Therese decided to pray that Jesus would help her.