Thérèse of Lisieux

"Our Lord made me understand that the only true glory is that which lasts for ever; and that to attain it there is no necessity to do brilliant deeds, but rather to hide from the eyes of others, and even from oneself, so that "the left hand knows not what the right hand does."[1]"

It is wrong to pass one’s time in fretting, instead of sleeping on the Heart of Jesus.

La oración es un impulso del corazón, una simple mirada hacia el cielo, un grito de agradecimiento y amor en medio de la prueba o en medio del gozo. En fin, es algo [25vº] grande, sobrenatural que me dilata el alma y me une a Jesús.

The large room filled with snow-white dresses in which each child was to be clothed in her turn! Above all, the procession into the chapel and the singing of the morning hymn: “O altar of God, where the angels are hovering!” I don’t want to enter into detail here. There are certain things that lose [5]their perfume as soon as they are exposed to the air; there are deep spiritual thoughts which cannot be expressed in human language without losing their intimate and heavenly meaning; they

Another time I was working in the laundry, and the Sister opposite, while washing handkerchiefs, repeatedly splashed me with dirty water. My first impulse was to draw back and wipe my face, to show the offender I should be glad if she would behave more quietly; but the next minute I thought how foolish it was to refuse the treasures God offered me so generously, and I refrained from betraying my annoyance. On the contrary, I made such efforts to welcome the shower of dirty water, that at the end of half an hour I had taken quite a fancy to this novel kind of aspersion, and I resolved to come as often as I could to the happy spot where such treasures were freely bestowed.

Si la tela pintada por un artista pudiera pensar y hablar, ciertamente no se quejaría de ser tocada y retocada incesantemente por un pincel y tampoco envidiaría la suerte de este instrumento pues sabría que la belleza del que está revestida no se la debe al pincel sino al artista que lo mueve. Por su parte, el pincel no podría gloriarse de la obra maestra hecha por él, pues sabe que los artistas no se inquietan, se ríen de las dificultades y a veces se dan el gusto de elegir instrumentos endebles y defectuosos.

My only consolation lies in not having any here below.

"I am now at a time of life when I can look back on the past, for my soul has been refined in the crucible of interior and exterior trials. Now, like a flower after the storm, I can raise my head and see that the words of the Psalm are realised in me: "The Lord is my Shepherd and I shall want nothing. He hath set me in a place of pasture. He hath brought me up on the water of refreshment. He hath converted my soul. He hath led me on the paths of justice for His own Name's sake. For though I should walk in the midst of the shadow of death, I will fear no evils for Thou are with me."[6]"

If we examine the poems of Thérèse of Lisieux at all, they reveal themselves richer than we first thought. And this is the problem with her poetry: We have to go beyond the simple style, which is naturally and deliberately artless — as is fitting for a “Carmelite poem” — to discover the treasures it conceals.

All good things have come to me since I no longer seek them for myself. -Saint John of the Cross

Clearly we must not be attached to anything, no matter how innocent, because it will slip from our grasp when least expected; nothing but the eternal can content us.

Comprendí que para llegar a ser santa había que sufrir mucho, buscar siempre lo más perfecto y olvidarse de sí; comprendí que había muchos grados en la perfección y que cada alma [10vº] era libre de responder a las insinuaciones de nuestro Señor, de hacer poco o mucho por Él, en una palabra de elegir entre los sacrificios que Él pide. Entonces como en los días de mi infancia exclamé: «¡Dios mío, “lo elijo todo”. No quiero ser una santa a medias, no me da miedo sufrir por ti, lo único que temo es conservar mi voluntad.

El amor verdadero se alimenta de sacrificios. Cuanto más se niega el alma las satisfacciones naturales, tanto más desinteresado se vuelve su cariño.
Al amar a Cristo, el corazón se ensancha y puede dar incomparablemente más cariño a los que le son queridos que si se hubiera concentrado en un amor egoísta e infructuoso.

La joie réside au plus intime de l'âme; on peut aussi bien la posséder dans une obscure prison que dans un palais.

For me, prayer is an aspiration of the heart, it is a simple glance directed to heaven, it is a cry of gratitude and love in the midst of trial as well as joy; finally it is something great, supernatural, which expands my soul and unites me to Jesus.