I watched the movie Therese last night and was profoundly moved by its ending. For those who may not know, it's a 2005 film based on the life of St. Therese of Lisieux and it followed her young life, from her childhood through her visits to the bishop and Pope to obtain permission to enter the Carmelite monastery at the young age of 15 - and then through her short time there, until she died from TB.
St. Therese's book, The Little Way, and her autobiography that contains excerpts (Story of a Soul) has guided many on their spiritual journey. Here's an excerpt:
Meditating on these words of Jesus, Mother, I began to see how imperfect my own love was; it was so obvious that I didn't love my sisters as God loves them. I realise, now, that perfect love means putting up with other people's shortcomings, feeling no surprise at their weaknesses, finding encouragement even in the slightest evidence of good qualities in them. But the point which came home to me most of all was that it was no good leaving charity locked up in the depths of your heart. "A lamp," Jesus says, "is not lighted to be put away under a bushel measure; it is put on the lamp-stand, to give light to all the people of the house." The lamp, I suppose, stands for charity; and the cheerful light it gives isn't meant simply for the people we are fond of; it is meant for everybody in the house, without exception.
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