St Therese of Lisieux -1st October

St Therese of Lisieux (1873-1897) was a French Catholic who became a Carmelite nun. However, this early childhood idyll was broken by the early death of her Mother (from breast cancer). Aged only four years old, she felt the pain of separation and instinctively turned to the Virgin Mary for comfort and reassurance. The next couple of years of St Therese’s’ life was a period of inner turmoil. She was unhappy at school, where her natural precociousness and piety made other school children jealous. Eventually, her father agreed for Therese to return home and be taught by her elder sister, Celine. She enjoyed being taught at home; however, after a while, her eldest sister decided to leave home and enter the local Carmel Convent at Lisieux. This made Therese feel like she had lost her second mother. Shortly afterwards Therese experienced a painful illness, in which she suffered delusions. Therese felt completely healed after her sister’s placed a statue of the Virgin Mary at the foot of the bed. Therese felt her health and mental state returned to normal very quickly. St Therese died tragically early at the age of 24 from tuberculosis. However after her death, the writings became avidly read by, first other nuns, and then the wider Catholic community. St Therese was declared one of the only three female Doctors of the Catholic Church (there are 33 doctors of the church in total). Thus after her death, she was able to achieve her intuitive feeling that she would be able to do something great and help save souls. St Therese was canonized by Pope Pius XI on May 17, 1925, only 26 years after her death.

1001 St Therese Lisieux 9-day novena 4p SMC 8.5 x 11 R1R 20240704

1001 St Therese Lisieux 1p SMC 8.5 x 11 R1R 20240704

My Novena Rose Prayer

O Little Therese of the Child Jesus, please pick for me a rose
from the heavenly gardens and send it to me as a message of love.
O Little Flower of Jesus, ask God to grant the favors
I now place with confidence in your hands . .
(mention in silence here)
St. Therese, help me to always believe as you did in
God’s great love for me, so that I might imitate your “Little Way” each day.
Amen.

Miraculous Invocation to St. Therese

O Glorious St. Therese,
whom Almighty God has raised up to aid
and inspire the human family,
I implore your Miraculous Intercession.
You are so powerful in obtaining every need
of body and spirit from the Heart of God.
Holy Mother Church proclaims you “Prodigy of Miracles…
the greatest saint of Modern Times.”
Now I fervently beseech you to answer my petition
(mention in silence here)
and to carry out your promises of
spending heaven doing good on earth…
of letting fall from Heaven a Shower of Roses.
Little Flower, give me your childlike faith,
to see the Face of God
in the people and experiences of my life,
and to love God with full confidence.
St. Therese, my Carmelite Sister,
I will fulfill your plea “to be made known everywhere”
and I will continue to lead others to Jesus through you.
Amen.

A Prayer to St. Therese of Lisieux

O little St. Theresa of the Child Jesus, who during your short life on earth became a mirror of angelic purity, of love strong as death, and of wholehearted abandonment to God, now that you rejoice in the reward of your virtues, cast a glance of pity on me as I leave all things in your hands. Make my troubles your own – speak a word for me to our Lady Immaculate, whose flower of special love you were – to that Queen of heaven ‘who smiled on you at the dawn of life. ‘ Beg her as the Queen of the heart of Jesus to obtain for me by her powerful intercession, the grace I yearn for so ardently at this moment, and that she join with it a blessing that may strengthen me during life. Defend me at the hour of death, and lead me straight on to a happy eternity.
Amen.

Prayer in honour of St. Therese

O Saint Therese of the Child Jesus,
seeing what confidence I have in God,
kindly present my intentions before the merciful Lord,
whom you behold face to face.
Intercede for me with the Blessed Virgin Mary,
who came to smile on you when you were suffering.
Looking on those who pray to you,
and on all those undergoing distress and trials,
I unite myself to them as my brothers and sisters.
Show yourself to be our sister, and pour on us a shower of roses.
Ask the Lord to grant the graces we desire, if it be his will,
and make us stronger in faith, hope and love on the road to life.
Help us to follow your “Little Way of Spiritual Childhood”,
trusting in the mercy and love of God like a little child,
as you learned from Jesus himself.
Give us a thirst for Holy Scripture,
a hunger for the Sacraments of the Church,
and passionate self-giving love for our neighbours,
that like you we may be love in the heart of the Church.
May we be assisted at the moment of death
so that we pass from this world into the peace of God our Father,
and know the eternal joy of the children of God.
Amen.

A Morning Prayer Written by St. Therese

O my God! I offer Thee all my actions of this day for the intentions and for the glory of the Sacred Heart of Jesus. I desire to sanctify every beat of my heart, my every thought, my simplest works, by uniting them to Its infinite merits; and I wish to make reparation for my sins by casting them into the furnace of Its Merciful Love.
O my God! I ask of Thee for myself and for those whom I hold dear, the grace to fulfil perfectly Thy Holy Will, to accept for love of Thee the joys and sorrows of this passing life, so that we may one day be united together in heaven for all Eternity.
Amen.

St. Therese of Lisieux’s Prayer for Priests

O Jesus, eternal Priest,
keep your priests within the shelter of Your Sacred Heart,
where none may touch them.
Keep unstained their anointed hands,
which daily touch Your Sacred Body.
Keep unsullied their lips,
daily purpled with your Precious Blood.
Keep pure and unearthly their hearts,
sealed with the sublime mark of the priesthood.
Let Your holy love surround them and
shield them from the world’s contagion.
Bless their labors with abundant fruit and
may the souls to whom they minister be their joy and consolation here and in heaven their beautiful and
everlasting crown.

9-Day Novena to Saint Therese of Lisieux – The Little Flower

The Novena to Saint Therese of Lisieux, The Little Flower, can be prayed anytime throughout the year for nine days in a row. Traditionally, it is prayed from September 22nd through September 30th. Her Memorial Feast Day is October 1st.

Day One:

Come Holy Spirit and fill the hearts of the faithful, and kindle in them the fire of divine love.

V. Send forth Your Spirit and they shall be created.

R. And You shall renew the face of the earth.

Let us pray

O God, who have instructed the hearts of the faithful by the light of the Holy Spirit; grant that by the gift of the same Spirit, we may be ever truly wise and rejoice in His consolation, through Christ our Lord.
Amen.

Acts of Faith, Hope, and Love

O my God! I believe in Thee: strengthen my faith. All my hopes are in Thee: do Thou secure them. I love Thee: teach me to love Thee daily more and more.

The Act of Contrition:

O my God! I am heartily sorry for having offended You, and I detest all my sins, because I dread the loss of heaven and the pains of hell, but most of all because they offend You, my God, who are all good and deserving of all my love. I firmly resolve, with the help of Your grace, to confess my sins, to do penance , and to amend my life.
Amen.

Day One Prayer:

St. Therese, privileged Little Flower of Jesus and Mary, I approach you with childlike confidence and deep humility. I lay before you my desires, and beg that through your intercession they may be realized. Did you not promise to spend your Heaven doing good upon earth? Grant me according to this promise the favours I am asking from you.
(Offer your personal intentions…)
Intercede for us all the days of our life, but specially during this Novena and obtain for us from God the graces and favours we ask through your intercession.
Amen.

Thought for the day:

Confidence in God. We can never have too much confidence in the good God who is so powerful and so merciful. We obtain from Him as much as we hope for.

If you are nothing, do you forget that Jesus is everything? You have only to lose your nothingness in His Infinity and think only of loving Him.

Concluding Prayer:

O Lord, you have said: Unless you become as om God the graces and favours we ask through your intercession.
Amen.

little children you shall not enter the kingdom of heaven; grant us, we beg You, so to follow, in humility and simplicity of heart, the footsteps of the Virgin blessed Therese, that we may attain to an everlasting reward.
Amen.

Day Two:

Come Holy Spirit and fill the hearts of the faithful, and kindle in them the fire of divine love.

V. Send forth Your Spirit and they shall be created.

R. And You shall renew the face of the earth.

Let us pray

Acts of Faith, Hope, and Love

O my God! I believe in Thee: strengthen my faith. All my hopes are in Thee: do Thou secure them. I love Thee: teach me to love Thee daily more and more.

The Act of Contrition:

Day Two Prayer:

O dear little Saint, now that you see the Crucified Jesus in Heaven, still bearing the wounds caused by sin, you know still more clearly than you did upon earth the value of souls, and the priceless worth of that Precious Blood Which He shed to save them. As I am one of those children for whom Christ died, obtain for me all the graces I need in order to profit by that Precious Blood. Use your great power with our Divine Lord and pray for me.
(Offer your personal intentions…)
Intercede for us all the days of our life, but especially during this Novena and obtain for us from God the graces and favours we ask through your intercession.
Amen.

Thought for the day:

Sin. The only grace I ask, O Jesus, is never to offend Thee.

By love and not by fear, does a soul avoid committing the least fault.

Yes, even if I have on my conscience every possible crime, I should lose none of my confidence; my heart breaking with sorrow, I should go and throw myself into the arms of my Saviour.

The remembrance of my faults humbles me and makes me afraid to rely on my own strength, which is nothing but weakness.

Concluding Prayer:

O Lord, You have said: Unless you become as little children you shall not enter the kingdom of heaven; grant us, we beg You, so to follow, in humility and simplicity of heart, the footsteps of the Virgin blessed Therese, that we may attain to an everlasting reward.
Amen.

Day Three:

Come Holy Spirit and fill the hearts of the faithful, and kindle in them the fire of divine love.

V. Send forth Your Spirit and they shall be created.

R. And You shall renew the face of the earth.

Let us pray:

Acts of Faith, Hope, and Love:

O my God! I believe in Thee: strengthen my faith. All my hopes are in Thee: do Thou secure them. I love Thee: teach me to love Thee daily more and more.

The Act of Contrition:

Day Three Prayer:

Dear Little Flower, make all things lead me to Heaven and God, Whether I look at the sun, the moon, the stars and the vast expanse in which they float, or whether I look at the flowers of the field, the trees of the forest, the beauties of the earth so full of colour and so glorious, may they speak to me of the love and power of God; may they all sing His praises in my ear. Like you may I daily love Him more and more in return for His gifts. Teach me often to deny myself in my dealings with others, that I may offer to Jesus many little sacrifices.
(Offer your personal intentions…)
Intercede for us all the days of our life, but especially during this Novena and obtain for us from God the graces and favours we ask through your intercession.
Amen.

Thought for the day:

The Use of God’s Gifts. How much benefit have I received from the beauties of nature, bestowed in such abundance. How they raise me to Him who placed such wonders in this land of exile which is only to last a day.

O sparkling nature, if I did not see God in you, you would be naught but a great tomb.

With your little hand which caresses Mary, you sustain the Universe and bestow life; and You think of me, O Jesus my little King.

I do not wish creatures to have one atom of my love. I wish to give all to Jesus, since He has shown me that He alone is perfect happiness.

Concluding Prayer:

O Lord, you have said: Unless you become as little children you shall not enter the kingdom of heaven; grant us, we beg You, so to follow, in humility and simplicity of heart, the footsteps of the Virgin blessed Therese, that we may attain to an everlasting reward.
Amen.

Day Four:

Come Holy Spirit and fill the hearts of the faithful, and kindle in them the fire of divine love.

V. Send forth Your Spirit and they shall be created.

R. And You shall renew the face of the earth.

Let us pray:

Acts of Faith, Hope, and Love:

O my God! I believe in Thee: strengthen my faith. All my hopes are in Thee: do Thou secure them. I love Thee: teach me to love Thee daily more and more.

The Act of Contrition:

Day Four Prayer:

Dear Little Flower of Carmel, bearing so patiently the disappointments and delays allowed by God, and preserving in the depths of your soul an unchanging peace because you sought only God’s will, ask for me complete conformity to that adorable Will in all the trials and disappointments of life. If the favours I am asking during this Novena are pleasing to God, obtain them for me. If not, it is true I shall feel the refusal keenly, but I too wish only God’s Will, and pray in the words you used, that I “may ever be perfectly fulfilled in me.”
(Offer your personal intentions…)
Intercede for us all the days of our life, but especially during this Novena and obtain for us from God the graces and favours we ask through your intercession.
Amen.

Thought for the day:

Abandonment to God. I fear only one thing—to keep my own will; take it, my God, for I choose all that You choose.

The only happiness here below is to strive to be always content with what Jesus gives us.

I can demand nothing with fervour, except the perfect accomplishment of God’s will in my soul.

O my Beloved, I offer myself to You, that You may perfectly accomplish in me Your holy designs, and I will not allow anything created to be an obstacle in their path.

Concluding Prayer:

Day Five:

Come Holy Spirit and fill the hearts of the faithful, and kindle in them the fire of divine love.

V. Send forth Your Spirit and they shall be created.

R. And You shall renew the face of the earth.

Let us pray:

Acts of Faith, Hope, and Love:

O my God! I believe in Thee: strengthen my faith. All my hopes are in Thee: do Thou secure them. I love Thee: teach me to love Thee daily more and more.

The Act of Contrition:

Day Five Prayer:

Little Flower of Jesus, from the very first moment of your religious life you thought only of denying yourself in all things so as to follow Jesus more perfectly; help me to bear patiently the trials of my daily life. Teach me to make use of the trials, the sufferings, the humiliations, that come my way, to learn to know myself better and to love God more.
(Offer your personal intention…)
Intercede for us all the days of our life, but especially during this Novena and obtain for us from God the graces and favours we ask through your intercession.
Amen.

Thought for the day:

Patience in Sufferings. I do not fear trials sent by Jesus, for even in the most bitter suffering we can see that it is His loving hand which causes it.

When we are expecting nothing but suffering, we are quite surprised at the least joy; but then suffering itself becomes the greatest of joys when we seek it as a precious treasure.

Far from resembling those beautiful saints who practiced all sorts of austerities from childhood, my penance consisted in breaking my self-will, in keeping back a sharp reply, in doing little kindnesses to those about me, but considering these deeds as nothing.

Concluding Prayer:

Day Six:Come Holy Spirit and fill the hearts of the faithful, and kindle in them the fire of divine love.

V. Send forth Your Spirit and they shall be created.

R. And You shall renew the face of the earth.

Let us pray:

Acts of Faith, Hope, and Love:

O my God! I believe in Thee: strengthen my faith. All my hopes are in Thee: do Thou secure them. I love Thee: teach me to love Thee daily more and more.

The Act of Contrition:

Day Six Prayer:

St. Therese, Patroness of the Missions, be a great missionary throughout the world to the end of time. Remind our Master of His own words, “The harvest is great, but the labourers are few.” Your zeal for souls was so great, obtain a like zeal for those now working for souls, and beg God to multiply their numbers, that the millions to whom Jesus is yet unknown may be brought to know, love and follow Him.
(Offer your personal intentions…)
Intercede for us all the days of our life, but especially during this Novena and obtain for us from God the graces and favours we ask through your intercession.
Amen.

Thought for the day:

Zeal for souls. Let us work together for the salvation of souls. We have only the day of this life to save souls and to give them to the Lord as proofs of our love.

I tell Jesus that I am glad not to be able to see, with the eyes of my soul, this beautiful Heaven which awaits me, in order that He may vouchsafe to open it forever to poor unbelievers.

I cannot perform brilliant works; I cannot preach the Gospel or shed my blood. But what matter? My brothers work in place of me, and I a little child, keep very close to the royal throne. I love for those who are carrying on the warfare.

My deeds, my little sufferings, can make God loved all over the world.

Concluding Prayer:

Day Seven:

Come Holy Spirit and fill the hearts of the faithful, and kindle in them the fire of divine love.

V. Send forth Your Spirit and they shall be created.

R. And You shall renew the face of the earth.

Let us pray:

Acts of Faith, Hope, and Love:

O my God! I believe in Thee: strengthen my faith. All my hopes are in Thee: do Thou secure them. I love Thee: teach me to love Thee daily more and more.

The Act of Contrition:

Day Seven Prayer:

O little martyr of Love, you know now even better than in the days of your pilgrimage that Love embraces all vocations; that it is Love alone which counts, which unites us perfectly to God and conforms our will with His. All you sought on earth was love; to love Jesus as He had never yet been loved. Use your power in Heaven to make us love Him. If only we love Him we shall desire to make Him loved by others; we shall pray much for souls. We shall no longer fear death, for it will unite us to Him forever. Obtain for us the grace to do all for the love of God, to give Him pleasure, to love Him so well that He may be pleased with us as He was with you.
(Offer your personal intentions…)
Intercede for us all the days of our life, but especially during this Novena and obtain for us from God the graces and favours we ask through your intercession.
Amen.

Thought for the day:

Love of God. I will love God alone and will not have the misfortune of attaching myself to creatures, now that my heart perceives what He has in store for those who love Him.

What attracts me to the kingdom of Heaven is the call of our Lord, the hope of loving Him as I have so desired and the thought that I shall be able to make Him loved by a great number of souls who will bless Him forever.

When Christ said, “Give Me a Drink,” it was the love of His poor creatures that He, the Creator of all things, desired. He thirsted for love.

Remember that the dear Jesus is there in the tabernacle expressly for you, for you alone. Remember that He is consumed with a desire to come into your heart.

Concluding Prayer:

Day Eight:

Come Holy Spirit and fill the hearts of the faithful, and kindle in them the fire of divine love.

V. Send forth Your Spirit and they shall be created.

R. And You shall renew the face of the earth.

Let us pray:

Acts of Faith, Hope, and Love:

O my God! I believe in Thee: strengthen my faith. All my hopes are in Thee: do Thou secure them. I love Thee: teach me to love Thee daily more and more.

The Act of Contrition:

Day Eight Prayer:

Dear St. Therese, like you I have to die one day. I beseech you, obtain from God, by reminding Him of your own precious death, that I may have a holy death, strengthened by the Sacraments of the Church, entirely resigned to the most holy Will of God, and burning with love for Him. May my last words on earth be, “My God. I love You.”
(Offer your personal intentions…)
Intercede for us all the days of our life, but especially during this Novena and obtain for us from God the graces and favours we ask through your intercession.
Amen.

Thought for the day:

Death. It says in the catechism that death is nothing but the separation of the soul and body. Well, I have no fear of a separation which will unite me forever with the good God.

I am happy to die because I shall be able to help souls who are dear to me, far more than I can here below.

Life is not sad; it is very joyous. If you say, “This exile is sad,” I understand you. We are wrong to give the name “life” to something which will end; it is only to the things of Heaven that we should apply this beautiful name.

Concluding Prayer:

Day Nine:

Come Holy Spirit and fill the hearts of the faithful, and kindle in them the fire of divine love.

V. Send forth Your Spirit and they shall be created.

R. And You shall renew the face of the earth.

Let us pray:

Acts of Faith, Hope, and Love:

O my God! I believe in Thee: strengthen my faith. All my hopes are in Thee: do Thou secure them. I love Thee: teach me to love Thee daily more and more.

The Act of Contrition:

Day Nine Prayer:

Dear Little St. Therese, by love and suffering while you were on earth, you won the power with God which you now enjoy in Heaven. Since your life there began, you have showered down countless blessings on this poor world; you have been an instrument made use of by your Divine Spouse to work countless miracles. I beg of you to remember all my wants. Sufferings must come to me also, may I use them to love God more, and follow my Jesus better. You are especially the little missionary of love. Make me love Jesus more, and all others for His sake. With all my heart I thank the Most Holy Trinity for the wonderful blessings conferred on you, and upon the world through you.
(Offer your personal intentions…)
Intercede for us all the days of our life, but especially during this Novena and obtain for us from God the graces and favours we ask through your intercession.
Amen.

Thought for the day:

The Mission of the Little Flower. I do not intend to remain inactive in Heaven. I want to work for the Church and for souls. I have asked this of God and I am certain that He will grant my request.

I will spend my Heaven doing good upon earth. This is not impossible, since the angels though always enjoying the beatific vision, watch over us. No, I cannot be at rest until the end of the world.

I beseech Thee, O Jesus, to cast Thy divine glance on a great number of little souls. I beg of Thee to choose in this world a legion of little victims, worthy of Thy Love.

Concluding Prayer: