Feature Article October 2006

October 1: St. Thérèse Lisieux

Marie Francoise Thérèse Martin was allowed to enter the Carmelite order on April 9, 1888, at the age of 15. She received the name Thérèse of the Child Jesus. In the cloister of Lisieux, Thérèse spent the remaining years of her life. In 1896, she contracted tuberculosis and died on September 30, 1897. Before her death at the bidding of her superiors, she wrote her autobiography in which she explained her spirituality, her Little Way of Spiritual Childhood. This spirituality consists essentially in the cultivation of that childlike relationship with the Father taught by Jesus in the Gospels. Her memoirs were gathered under the title Story of a Soul. Thérèse was beatified in 1923 and canonized in 1925. She has been named a Doctor of the Church.

According to several biographers, the child Thérèse was given a string of beads with which to count her acts of love done for God. In the fifties and sixties, similar strings were used by a number of religious orders and known as “virtue beads.” The sisters often pinned the beads to their habits. During the day, each time they performed an act of love or sacrifice, they pulled a bead. The goal was to move all the beads by the end of the day. Even young children can make and enjoy this project, and the beads can double as a single decade rosary for busy people whose prayer time is often interrupted.

Good Deed Beads

You will need:

• 1 yard of cord, string, or lacing
• 10 pony beads
• 1 inexpensive medal, cross, or heart

String the medal, cross, or heart onto the cord and move it to the center. Tie an overhand knot in the cord and pull it tight to the top of the medal. String the beads, one at a time, by running both ends of the cord through the hole from the opposite sides. As you add each bead, move it down to the previous bead to keep the two ends of the cord even. When all beads have been strung, hold the two ends of the cord together evenly and tie a knot, leaving a space of about 2 inches from the last bead so that you have room to move the beads up and down along the cord. The crossed cords will hold each bead in place as you move one bead at a time for each good deed or prayer. Trim the ends or the cord. If using a nylon type cord, an adult should burn the ends of the cord slightly to prevent them slipping through the knot; a small dab of glue can prevent unraveling of other types of cord. You may add a small safety pin at the top to attach the beads to a dress or coat if you wish.

Hints: If you are making these as a class or group project, buy the beads at a craft shop; if you only want to make one or two, it may be cheaper to look in the hair accessories section of the local dollar or grocery store. Wooden beads could also be used if they have large holes.