The Little Way to Great Joy: Trusting in the God Who Redeems

Job 19:21-27, Psalm: 27, Lk 10:1-12

Memorial of Saint Thérèse of the Child Jesus, Virgin and Doctor of the Church

My dear Sisters and Brothers in Christ,

On this beautiful Memorial of Saint Thérèse of the Child Jesus, the “Little Flower” and Doctor of the Church, the Word of God presents us with a profound paradox. The prophet Job, in the midst of his unspeakable suffering, declares with unshakable faith, “I know that my Redeemer lives.” The Lord Jesus sends out the seventy-two disciples with radical simplicity, instructing them to take nothing for the journey. Saint Thérèse, who lived her “little way” of spiritual childhood, shows us that true greatness is found not in grand deeds, but in complete trust in the mercy of God.

The Book of Job contains one of the most powerful declarations of faith in all of Scripture. Job has lost everything—his children, his wealth, his health. His friends have turned against him. He is sitting in ashes, scraping his sores with broken pottery. Yet in the midst of this desolation, he cries out, “I know that my Redeemer lives, and that at the last he will stand upon the earth. And after my skin has been destroyed, yet in my flesh I shall see God.” Job’s hope is not in his circumstances; it is in his Redeemer. His faith is not a fair-weather faith; it is a faith that clings to God even in the darkness. This is the faith of Saint Thérèse: a faith that trusts in the mercy of God, even when all seems lost.

In the Gospel of Luke, Jesus sends out the seventy-two disciples to proclaim the Kingdom of God. He instructs them to take nothing for the journey—no money bag, no sack, no sandals. They are to depend entirely on the hospitality of those they serve. They are to travel light, to trust in God’s providence, and to proclaim peace. This is the “little way” of the Gospel. It is not a way of power and prestige; it is a way of humility and trust. It is a way that depends not on human resources, but on the grace of God.

Saint Thérèse of Lisieux lived this “little way” with extraordinary simplicity. She entered the Carmelite convent at the age of fifteen and died at the age of twenty-four. She never preached a sermon, never founded a religious order, never wrote a theological treatise. Yet she was declared a Doctor of the Church because of her profound spiritual insights. Her “little way” was the way of spiritual childhood: trusting in God as a child trusts in a loving father, doing small things with great love, and offering every moment as a gift to God.

Pope Benedict XVI, reflecting on Saint Thérèse, said, “Her ‘little way’ is the way of trust and love. It is the way that is open to everyone, no matter how small or weak.” Pope Francis has said, “Thérèse teaches us that holiness is not a distant dream; it is a reality that can be lived in the ordinary circumstances of life.” And Saint Thérèse herself wrote, “I understood that Love alone made the Church’s members act. If Love ever went out, the apostles would no longer preach the Gospel, the martyrs would refuse to shed their blood.”

What does this mean for us? We are called to trust in God’s providence, to depend on His grace, and to live with the simplicity of the “little way.” We are called to do small things with great love, to offer every moment as a gift to God, and to trust in the mercy of our Redeemer. We are called to be like Job, who declared, “I know that my Redeemer lives.” And we are called to be like Thérèse, who found her greatness in her littleness.

Today, let us examine our hearts. Are we trusting in God’s providence, or are we relying on our own resources? Are we doing small things with great love, or are we seeking grand gestures? Let us ask the Lord to give us the grace to live the “little way” of trust and love, to depend on His mercy, and to rejoice in the hope of our redemption. For our Redeemer lives, and He will lead us home. Amen.

May God bless you all!