"If there is a Theresian text to remember, it is this one. It’s simply revolutionary," explains Carmelite priest Denis-Marie Ghesquière to Aleteia. “We didn’t have to wait for Thérèse’s beatification to be able to recite it as a prayer — what’s more, with a plenary indulgence granted by the Church!”
Why such haste? Why does St. Thérèse's offering of herself to God's merciful love express the essence of a fully realized Christian life? And in what sense does it mark not only a summit of her spirituality, but a considerable revelation?
To understand this, we must go back to that day in Lisieux: June 9, 1895.
The most luminous moment
Thérèse was living the most luminous period of her life. Her sister Céline had finally entered the Carmel of Lisieux. For Céline, this decision was not as clear as it has been for her other sisters who were already Carmelites. But now, Céline was there!
Moreover, Thérèse had a new responsibility within the community that she was very happy about. She was the novice mistress. Lastly, her sister, Mother Agnes of Jesus, had become prioress. Mother Agnes asked Thérèse to write down her childhood memories.
Her retrospective look at her life helps her realize how much Jesus loved her first, even before she responded with her own love. No wonder, then, that in 1895 she felt so fulfilled. She was about to experience a moment of enlightenment.
The revelation
June 9 that year promised to be a beautiful summer day. At 5:30 a.m., daylight was streaming through the window of Thérèse's cell, while silence still reigned in the community. "Ah, it's the feast of the Holy Trinity," Thérèse noted joyfully before going to breakfast, followed by silent prayer and Lauds.
As she prepared for the 8:00 Mass, Thérèse recalled the obituary of a Carmelite sister, read the day before in the refectory. Sister Ana Maria de Jesus had spent her life feeling guilty, repeating that "she didn’t have enough merits." (The Jansenist heresy had affected the spiritual life of the faithful in France at this time.)
Mercy prevails
Thérèse had been deeply affected by this news and couldn’t stop thinking about it. What was the origin of this fashion among the nuns of offering themselves as victims to God’s justice to divert to themselves the punishments reserved for unrepentant sinners?
Although such an attitude was "great and generous" and mortifications didn’t frighten her, little Thérèse sensed the ambiguity of such exercises, which often prevented people from responding to the call of love.
"How can we forget that, in any case, mercy prevails over justice, because Jesus paid for all sins? Between justice and mercy, love must have the last word,” she wrote.
Full of energy, that very morning the Carmelite nun felt ready to take the opposite path. It’s as if God whispered in her ear, "Come on, Thérèse, you have to balance things out!"
After receiving Communion, Thérèse received an immense grace. She understood that Jesus wanted to be loved, that our lack of trust and gratitude, our daily forgetfulness of him, was a suffering.
For Thérèse it was a true revelation: Jesus, who is Love, desires to be loved, but he isn’t! Seized by grace, she offered herself interiorly to his merciful love.
The commitment of love
As soon as she left the chapel, Thérèse led her surprised sister Céline to the reception room of the convent, where she saw Mother Agnes from afar. Disturbed, she stammered: "Mother, I would like to offer myself and Céline to the merciful love of God."
The prioress, to whom this sounded harmless, answered as she left through the door, "Yes, of course!”
Thérèse, happy with this reply, quickly explained to Céline what she was talking about. Then she returned to her cell to write the text of the offering.
Céline was convinced of the importance of what was happening. She wanted to join her sister's offering. This is fundamental for Thérèse: Her offering is in communion with Celine. It means that she is in communion "with all" and "for all."
On Tuesday, June 11, kneeling with her sister before Our Lady of the Smile, she prayed the offering again from the bottom of her heart. But this time the offering became missionary, because it was for the salvation of others.
You can read the full text of the Act of Offering to Merciful Love here.
