| And why not ask the entire Heavenly Court to share her joy?
“Feeling so poor and without any merit, I begged all the saints in Heaven to come to my aid, and they came to protect me and celebrate me on the day of my First Communion. I invoked the angels and the archangels, begging them to purify my heart and make it worthy to receive the God of Heaven.”
When the long-awaited day of her First Communion arrived on May 8th, 1884, it is no surprise that she then received an immense favor that would light up her entire life:
“Ah! How sweet it was, Jesus’ first kiss to my soul! It was a kiss of love, I felt loved, and I also said, ‘I love you, I give myself to you forever’. There were no demands, no struggles, no sacrifices; for a long time now, Jesus and poor little Thérèse had looked at each other and understood each other… On that day, it was no longer a gaze but a fusion, it was no longer two, Thérèse had disappeared like a drop of water in the ocean. Jesus remained alone, he was the master, the King.” (Manuscript A).
Thérèse reminds us here that the culminating moment of our union with Jesus is that of Holy Communion. Let us take advantage of this magnificent example to experience our own communions differently, to prepare for them with love, and to strive to make our heavenly host happy! Before her First Communion, Thérèse made an impressive number of small sacrifices: In three months, she made 818 sacrifices and 2,773 acts of virtue (recorded in her notebook).
Since one of the conditions for obtaining a plenary indulgence during the Jubilee Year is Mass with sacramental communion (in a state of grace), I thank Thérèse for showing us here what the best path is. That’s right! Well, all of those heavenly friends of Thérèse are indeed our friends too! |
