St. Thérèse Calendar 2021 Below: Gold monstrance Below: Silver monstrance holding the Relic of holding the Relic of Ss. Zélie & Louis Martin. St. Thérèse. “Irish Reliquary”, donated on behalf of the Irish people which contains the mortal remains of Blessed Louis and Zélie Martin, was first unveiled at their Beatification in Lisieux, Mission Sunday, October 19th 2008. “I give thanks to my Jesus for making me walk in darkness and in this darkness I enjoy a profound peace. I only desire that my darkness may obtain light for sinners.” St Thérèse of Lisieux 2020 has been a difficult year for many people. It is fair to say that none of us has been unaffected by the Covid-19 pandemic. Some have been sick or had a loved one sick with the virus. Others have experienced isolation or loneliness. A key element of our vocation as Carmelites is to accompany people through the significant moments of life, including births, weddings and deaths. We have seen first-hand the impact of this virus on families and friends who cannot come together to mark the passing of a loved one. Throughout this period, I have found a new appreciation for the words of St. Thérèse. She was a young woman who encountered so many hardships in her short life. She knew the worry of having an ill relative whom she could not visit; her father. She knew the pain of isolation and loneliness at the death of her mother, in challenging moments in community and in her own illness. Yet, through all this, St. Thérèse remained a person of hope. For her, suffering did not lead to self-pity but rather opened a door to empathy. In experiencing hardships, St. Thérèse grew in faith. She prayed ever more fervently, not for herself but for others. St. Thérèse is the patron saint of missionaries because she spent her life praying for the world, for people she would never meet but for whom she felt a great love and empathy. This is an example we can follow. In moments when we cannot be physically present to each other, we can offer our prayers and a word of hope and encouragement. We must be people of hope. As we approach 2021, let us hope that this year we will not ‘return to normal’ but instead will begin again. Let us begin again with a new appreciation of the loved ones in our lives and of all those little moments which we once took for granted. Let us begin again and rejoice in the little things. May God continue to bless you and keep you safe, Michael Troy, Prior Provincial St Thérèse National Office, Whitefriar Street Church, 56 Aungier Street, Dublin 2, Ireland. Tel: (01) 478 9647 / 086 819 8186 Email: [email protected] Website: www.sttherese.com St Thérèse Relics arriving in Lough Derg, 2001, accompanied by Fr. Eugene McCaffrey. The Carmelite Order are present and ministering throughout the world. Their vocation is a call to contemplative prayer, community and service. If you would like to explore your vocation, pleasecontact Fr Simon Nolan or visit us online. www.carmelites.ie www.vocationcarmelites.ie @carmelitesireland E-mail: [email protected] @ Carmelites_i e PRAYER FOR VOCATIONS O Jesus, send labourers into Your fields which are awaiting holy apostles, saintly priests, heroic missionaries and dedicated brothers and sisters. Enkindle in the hearts of men and women the spark of avocation. Grant that Christian families may desire to give Your Church helpers in the work of tomorrow. Amen. Pope St John Paul II Carmelite Church, Whitefriar Street, Dublin. Colour key for dates Red: Our Lord 01 JANUARY Blue: Our Lady Brown: Carmelite Feast Days 2021 Black: Feast Days Holy Days SUNDAY MONDAY TUESDAY WEDNESDAY THURSDAY FRIDAY SATURDAY FIRST FRIDAY 31 2 January 1873: Birth of Thérèse Martin in Alençon. 1 2 4 January 1873: Baptism of Thérèse at Notre-Dame, Alençon. 10 January 1889: Thérèse receives the Carmelite habit. Saints Basil the Great and 19 January 1940: Death of Sister Marie of the Sacred Heart Gregory Nazianzen (Marie, eldest sister and God-mother of St. Thérèse). MARY, THE HOLY MOTHER Bishops and Doctors of the FOURTH SUNDAY OF GOD Church 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 SECOND SUNDAY St Charles of THE EPIPHANY OF CHRISTMAS St Andrew OF THE LORD St Raymond of Penyafort St Peter Thomas St Andrew Corsini 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 St Hilary THE BAPTISM Bishop and Doctor of the St Ita St Fursa OF THE LORD Church Virgin Abbot and Missionary 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 Bl Angelo Paola St Fabian SECOND SUNDAY Pope and Martyr St Agnes St Vincent IN ORDINARY TIME St Sebastian, Martyr Virgin and Martyr Deacon and Martyr 24 25 26 27 28 29 30 St Aidan, Bishop The Conversion of St Thomas Aquinas Bls Margaret Ball THIRD SUNDAY St Paul Saints Timothy and Titus Priest and Doctor of the and Francis Taylor IN ORDINARY TIME Apostle Bishops St Angela Merici Church Bl Archangela Girlani Martyrs St. Thérèse National Office, Whitefriar Street Church, T: (01) 478 9647 / 478 9654 E: [email protected] 56 Aungier Street, Dublin 2, Ireland. M: 086 8198 186 W: www.sttherese.com Pope Francis, Phoenix Park, Dublin. Five year old Michael Byrne venerating the Relics in Liscooly, Co. Donegal. 12 February 1889: Illness of St. Louis Martin, who is taken to the 02 FEBRUARY Bon Sauveur Hospital in Caen. 25 February 1959: Death of Sr. Geneviève of the Holy Face 2021 (Céline Martin) at Lisieux Carmel. SUNDAY MONDAY TUESDAY WEDNESDAY THURSDAY FRIDAY SATURDAY 1 2 3 4 5 FIRST FRIDAY 6 St Brigid St Blaise Saints Paul Miki Abbess, Secondary Patron THE PRESENTATION Bishop and Martyr St Agatha and Companions of Ireland OF THE LORD St Ansgar, Bishop Virgin and Martyr Martyrs 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 St Jerome Emiliani Our Lady of Lourdes FIFTH SUNDAY St Josephine Bakhita St Scholastica St Gobnait IN ORDINARY TIME Virgin Virgin Virgin 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 SIXTH SUNDAY Saints Francisco and IN ORDINARY TIME The Holy Face ASH WEDNESDAY Jacinta Marto 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 FIRST SUNDAY The Chair of St Peter St Polycarp OF LENT Apostle Bishop and Martyr 28 I have always wanted to be a saint... I want to seek out a SECOND SUNDAY St. Thérèse of Lisieux OF LENT means of going to Heaven by a little way... St. Thérèse National Office, Whitefriar Street Church, T: (01) 478 9647 / 478 9654 E: [email protected] 56 Aungier Street, Dublin 2, Ireland. M: 086 8198 186 W: www.sttherese.com NOVENA PRAYER TO THE SERVANT OF GOD, SISTER FRANÇOISE-THÉRÈSE (LÉONIE MARTIN) Lord our God, Through the example of Sister Françoise-Thérèse, Leonie Martin, You have given us an understanding of the mercy and the tenderness of Your Love. You watched over her fragile health from the first hours of her life. You supported her in the difficult times of her childhood and adolescence. You called her to the consecrated life, and You sustained her on the delicate path of her response. You inspired her to lead a hidden and humble life, to accept her limitations and to offer herself as a gift to your Love, as a Visitation nun at Caen. Lord, if such is your will, deign to grant us the grace that we ask of you (...) through the intercession of the Sister Françoise-Thérèse. May she, one day, be counted among the Venerables of your Church. Through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen. The Servant of God Sr. Françoise-Thérèse (Léonie Martin). Colour key for dates Red: Our Lord 03 MARCH Blue: Our Lady Brown: Carmelite Feast Days 2021 Black: Feast Days Holy Days SUNDAY MONDAY TUESDAY WEDNESDAY THURSDAY FRIDAY SATURDAY 1 2 3 4 5 FIRST FRIDAY 6 St David St Casimir St Kieran Bishop NOVENA OF GRACE BEGINS Bishop 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 St John of God THIRD SUNDAY Religious St Frances of Rome St Aengus OF LENT St Senan, Bishop Religious Bishop and Abbott 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 ST JOSEPH Spouse of the ST PATRICK St Cyril of Jerusalem Blessed Virgin Mary FOURTH SUNDAY Bishop, Principal Bishop and Doctor of Principal Protector, OF LENT Patron of Ireland the Church Carmelite Order Bl Francis Palau y Quer 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 FIFTH SUNDAY St Turibius of Mongrovejo St Macartan THE ANNUNCIATION OF LENT Bishop Bishop OF THE LORD 28 29 30 31 26 March 1923: Transfer of the remains of St. Thérèse of the Child Jesus from the cemetery to the Carmel of Lisieux. 26 March 1994: Louis and Zélie are declared “Venerable”. PALM SUNDAY OF THE MONDAY IN TUESDAY IN WEDNESDAY IN LORD’S PASSION HOLY WEEK HOLY WEEK HOLY WEEK St. Thérèse National Office, Whitefriar Street Church, T: (01) 478 9647 / 478 9654 E: [email protected] 56 Aungier Street, Dublin 2, Ireland. M: 086 8198 186 W: www.sttherese.com Prayer to St. Thérèse of the Child Jesus Little Thérèse of the Child Jesus Owho 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 and listen to my prayer. I leave everything in your hands. Make my troubles your own. Speak a word for me to Our Lady Immaculate – to the Queen of Heaven “who smiled on you at dawn of life”. Beg her as Queen of the Heart of Jesus to obtain for me by her powerful intercession the grace I yearn for so ardently at this moment.