This short essay was submitted on December 3, 2019 for my Christian Ethics of Love course.
While reading excerpts from Therese of Lisieux’s autobiography Story of a Soul, the youthful and passionate desire to love and surrender to God stood out to me as a simple, yet powerful approach to Christian love. She trusts that God is a good God, one who looks out for the well-being of all through the demonstration of perfect mercy and justice. Therese says, “What a sweet joy it is to think that God is Just, i.e. that He takes into account our weakness, that He is perfectly aware of our fragile nature” (pg. 180). It is clear how elated she is about God’s perfect justice, and she is just as thankful for His mercy, even in times of darkness: “Never have I felt before this, dear Mother, how sweet and merciful the Lord really is, for He did not send me this trial until the moment I was capable of bearing it” (pg. 214). Through these passages, it is also clear that Therese believes that God has a truly personal relationship with everyone, knowing each of our strengths and weaknesses, and tailoring his interactions with us accordingly. The abundance of trust Therese has in God’s love allows her to feel a sense of freedom, knowing she is taken care of by a just and merciful God who knows her more than she does.
Therese’s youthfulness sheds a positive and hopeful light on God and Christianity. Her hope in God’s will keeps her optimistic throughout the night of faith she experienced, “in spite of this trial which has taken away all my joy, I can nevertheless cry out: ‘You have given me DELIGHT, O Lord, in ALL your doings’” (pg. 214). Moreover, in her child-like fervor she displays a simple account of how to live a life according to the spirit. According to Therese, to live a Christian life is to actively choose to surrender your life to God’s will, allowing His love to fuel every action, and desiring to be united with Him. Quoting a canticle of St. John of the Cross, she says “‘Now I occupy my soul / and all my energy is in his service / I no longer tend the herd, / nor have I any other work / now that my every act is LOVE’” (pg. 178). Therese depicts a total and passionate surrender to God, “How I want to apply myself to doing the will of God always with the greatest self-surrender!” (pg. 181). This is a choice that is difficult to make, but the liberation and joy that Therese experiences due to her surrender to God’s love is a simple but inspiring portrait of Christianity. Therese’s life fuelled by God’s love is a refreshing account of Christianity, especially after reading a more cynical perspective from Kirkegaard, and more intellectual perspectives from Augustine and Aquinas.
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