Saturday, October 1, 2016

Thérèse and the Reformation

Today on Facebook I wrote: 


"Next October is the 500th anniversary of the Reformation. I recommend St. Thérèse of Lisieux as the Doctor of the Church most likely to help Catholics and Protestants find common ground in our discussions of trust, mercy, confidence, and divine providence. All who read her will find that Catholics are not about works-righteousness."

And when I say "all will find" I mean all. Catholics themselves fall very easily into the assumption that we are trying to earn Heaven. 


For a follow up on how St. Thérèse (and Margaret Mary and Faustina) are important for bridging the gap between Catholic and Protestant, listen to this homily from Divine Mercy 2016. (Yeah, I lifted a lot of the timeline from Fr. Michael Gaitley's talks on Divine Mercy, but we have all wondered about how Thérèse managed to square the circle of free will and confident surrender.)