Therese Martin, future Saint Therese of Lisieux, was born on January 2, 1873 in Alecon, France. By the age of 15 she had decided upon becoming a cloistered Carmelite after wanting to follow in the footsteps of her sisters but was refused by the Carmelite superior because of her young age. After also being denied entrance by the bishop, Therese even approached Pope Leo XIII while on a pilgrimage with her father and sister. After being forbidden to speak to the Pope, Therese broke the mandatory silence and begged for his approval to be accepted into the Carmelite cloister. Pope Leo XIII was impressed with Therese and she was soon accepted into the cloister and was finally able to join up with her two older sisters. Not even a year into Therese’s acceptance, she had grown so ill with a fever that people thought she was on her death bed. Then one day while Therese saw her sisters praying to the Virgin Mary statue in her room, she saw Mary smile at her and was instantly cured. From that point on, “Little Flower” as she was commonly called, lived a re-enlightened and spiritual life that led to her becoming a doctor of the church, an author, and a patron saint.
According to the Church, a doctor is one who transmits the gospel, teaching by word and example and as of today there are only thirty-three Doctors of the Church. Of the two Carmelite Doctors, Saint Therese of Lisieux is one of them. Chosen as a Doctor of the Church because of her radiant holiness, humility, goodness, integrity, and radical dedication to God’s will, these all were unmistakable seal’s of her sanctity. Not only because of her sanctity, Therese also had a theological teaching that was original, faithful, and profound leaving a strong, lasting impression. Pope John Paul II saw this and on October 19, 1997 he declared Saint Therese of Lisieux a “Doctor of the Universal Church.” That day marked a culmination of a series of honors that were bestowed upon her as a doctor ecclesiae. But the process of enumerating a Doctor of the Church is not a simple process. There are three requisites: eminent learning or doctrine, an outstanding or high degree of sanctity, and a declaration by a supreme pontiff or general council. Saint Therese met these three conditions along with a careful examination of her writing. Becoming a Doctor of the Church is truly one of the highest, most...
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...opularity with the common people because of her common works, she was beatified in 1923 and later canonized by Pope Pius XI in 1925.
Saint Therese of Lisieux led a simple life and did simple deeds that people can do everyday, yet her deeds touched people’s lives and made them feel important and worthy. Her dedication to helping out impresses me and proves that little deeds can go a long way. She also showed that the things she did do did make a difference and she was never discouraged. She believed in herself enough to approach the Pope and that alone is a pretty gutsy move in itself. After learning of Therese’s accomplishments, she has challenged and reminded me to continue to do more good works for other people around me even if they do not feel useful or necessary. To believe in myself and the things I do and never get discouraged were the way Therese lived her life and that is how I need to remember to live mine in order to be a faithful person willing to help all those in need and put others needs before my own. Saint Therese of Lisieux led a selfless life that I hope I can one day experience for myself and the joy that comes from helping others.
Frances Cabrini was born in July 15, 1850 to Agostino Cabrini and Stella Oldini in Sant’Angelo Lodigiano, Lombardi, Italy. She was one of eleven children born to the Cabrini family and one of the only four children that survived past adolescence. She was born two months premature and was small and weak as a child. These factors, as well as the strong faith of her parents, would have an impact on the rest of her life, mission, and works. Agostino Cabrini, her father, often read Propagation of the Faith to her and the rest of the family. The stories were all about the missions in China and from a young age, Frances desired to become a missionary. By the age of eighteen, Frances knew that she wanted to be a nun, however; her weak health stood in the way. She could not join the Sacred Heart of Jesus. So instead, in 1863, Frances enrolled as a boarding student at the Normal School in Arluno with the intentions of becoming a schoolteacher. The school was directed by the Daughters of the Sacred Heart. Frances lived at the school for five years, residing in the convent with the nuns. Frances was elated to live with the nuns and to share a faith-centered life with them. She graduated from the Normal School in 1868 with a degree in teaching.
born to the Empress Maria Theresa and Francis I, the Holy Roman Emperor. She lived a carefree
In her life, she has overcame obstacles that most people in life most likely would not overcome such as rape, abuse, and even losing her daughter on Christmas Day. Despite of all she has gone through in her life, she is determine to help people to their lives better.
St. Francis of Assisi was born in Umbria in the year 1182. He was a child every father hoped for, he was filled with life, a determined and courageous individual. He was gifted with rather good looks, qualities that attracted friends and a gift of leadership. His father was an extremely wealthy merchant in Assisi. But this son, his favourite, was the one who broke Peter Bernardone’s heart. The boy turned on his father, and in a vicious event that eventually resulted into a public scene. St. Francis of Assisi stepped away from his father, his business and left his father in a state of immense emotional suffering.
Teresa Sánchez Cepeda Davila y Ahumada lived in Avila, Spain where she was born in 1515 and lived during the Reformation until her death at age 67. She was canonized in 1622, forty years after her death. St. Teresa's grandmother was forced to be converted from a Jew into a Christian during the Inquisition. Without her grandmother’s conversion, St. Teresa would never have become a Christian saint. Her parents were Godly people and showed tremendous integrity.
Through all the hardships and blood, Joan of Arc was a fierce warrior and led the French to complete victory. Starting out in a maiden village, and more of a shock for being a woman, Joan completely transform herself and France. Advancing in a year and a month, crowned a reluctant king, rallied broken people, reversed the course of a great war, and shoved history into a new path (Richey 1); Joan made a name for herself. No one can ever suppress what she achieved at such a young age.
During the Middle Ages of Europe there was a great war between France and England known as the 100 year War. Throughout this war there were many historic battles and many warriors that have had stories told about them over the years. None more famous than a young girl from a small village named Joan of Arc. Joan of Arc lived a short life, but did so much that she has many songs, stories, and even today movies made about her. If there was one person that deserved to have stories told about them, Joan of Arc is that person deserving.
Catherine of Siena was born in Italy in 1347 at a time when political and religious changes were affecting the hierarchy of the Catholic Church. Dedicating her life to the Holy Spirit from a very young age, Catherine pursued a life of purity and simplicity that served as a background to her great literary work, The Dialogue of the Divine Providence . Her work focuses on the importance of prayer and its transcendent power in human life.
Francis was born at Assisi in Umbria in the early 1180’s. His fath er was Pietro Bernadone, a very wealthy cloth merchant. His baptized name was Giovanni but it was changed to Francesco. Francis received a decent amount of schooling as a child although he did not show much interest in it. He was very spoiled and did not want to go into his father’s business. He had high status, was handsome, wore fine clothing, and was very well known with the people of Assisi.
In this paper we are going to discuss the life, work and teachings of Saint Teresa of Avila, Doctor of the Catholic Church. St. Teresa was an important figure in the Church for her reforms of the Carmelite Order. Teresa’s reforms caused a fracture of the Order and formed the Order of Discalced Carmelites, which believes in the old ways of the Carmelite Order. St. Teresa is also well known for her three books.
Saint Catherine of Siena is the saint that I have chosen to be my saint. She was very interesting to me, and her story was very intriguing. She is the patron saint of fire prevention, bodily ills, sick people, miscarriages, nurses, and illness. She was canonized in 1461 by Pope Pius II. Her feast day is now celebrated on April 29.
There are five steps to sainthood. First, the person’s local bishop investigates their life by gathering information from witnesses of their life and any writings they may have written. If the bishop finds them to be worthy of being a saint, then he submits the
St Ignatius of Loyola is an inspiring person and has touched the lives of many people even now centuries after his death. Loyola has affected the lives of an uncountable number of people, either directly or indirectly. He started as an extremely brave and tough soldier and turned into the founder of a powerful religious order. He was born in 1491 in Spain and founded the Jesuits in 1540 at the age of 49.The Jesuits today are still a devoted religious order. Everything they do is in God’s name, hence their motto AD MAIOREM DEI GLORIAM this literally means “for the greater glory of God”. (Linten, Seven Things) Many Jesuits (and even non Jesuits like Pope John Paul II) sign their documents with amdg at the end to show that they do their work for God and not solely for themselves. (Linten, Seven Things) The Jesuits have survived multiple persecutions and yet have still remained a major influence in the church and in universities around the world. If it were not for an unfortunate cannonball shattering a soldier’s leg then none of this may have happened.
“Today I appeal to the whole Church community to be willing to foster feminine participation in every way in its internal life. This is certainly not a new commitment, since it is inspired by the example of Christ himself….nevertheless, he also involved women in the cause of his kingdom; indeed he wanted them to be the first witnesses and heralds of his resurrection. In fact, there are many women who have distinguished themselves in the Church’s history by their holiness and hardworking ingenuity.”
Mother Teresa is one of the most recognized women in the world. Teresa brought in a revolutionary change in the world with her positive thoughts and love for humanity. Her missionary work started way back 1931 when she was still a little girl. She joined the Nuns as a kid in 1931, and she was later named Teresa from Agnes Gonxha Bojaxhiu. It was in respect and honor of the Saints of Theresa. Mother Teresa’s missions were concentrated around helping the poor people with their basic needs such as food, water and shelter. She also demonstrated a lot of interest in taking care of the weak and defenseless people in the society. For example, it has been recorded that she spent a lot of time caring for the elderly, disabled and injured. At the same