HOMILY FOR THE FEAST OF SAINT THERESE OF THE CHILD JESUS, VIRGIN AND DOCTOR OF THE CHURCH
THEME: Unless you become like little children you will not enter the kingdom of heaven.
BY: Fr. Diotacious Chikontwe SMA
HOMILY FOR SATURDAY October 1 2022
*READINGS OF THE DAY*
Isaiah 66:10-14
Psalm 130
Matthew 18:1-5
*LITURGICAL COLOUR*
WHITE
*INTRODUCTION*
Dear brothers and sisters in Christ, today we celebrate the Feast of Saint Thérèse of Lisieux, also called Saint Teresa of the Child Jesus. She is also called the Little Flower. Her original names were Marie-Françoise-Thérèse Martin. She was born on January 2nd, 1873 at Alençon in France. She died on September 30th, 1897 at Lisieux. Canonized on May 17th in 1925, her feast day is on October 1st. Belonged to the Carmelite nuns. Finally, She was named a doctor of the church by Pope John Paul II in 1997.
She is a patron saint of Missions, of florists, of AIDS patients, of Aviators, of Sick People, Against Tuberculosis and Loss of Parents.
*FROM THE FIRST READING*
In our first reading today, we heard of the words of the Lord spoken through the prophet Isaiah, as He told them to have faith in Him and trust in Him, as He would restore peace, glory and happiness to Jerusalem, to His people and nation, and that they would no longer have to suffer or be in agony, as the Lord would be by their side and they would be His people.
*FROM THE GOSPEL READING*
In our Gospel passage of today, Jesus says that unless we follow the Him in the manner that the little children were following Him, then we all can have no place in God’s kingdom. At that time, as mentioned, the disciples were then arguing amongst themselves about who among them was the greatest in the kingdom of Heaven, and they were competing and arguing that each one of them had better merits and worth to be the ones trusted by the Lord, to be part of His inner circle.
*CONCLUSION*
Let us all therefore do our best to proclaim the Lord as His missionaries of faith, hope and charity, and do our best, inspired by the good examples of St. Therese of Lisieux and the innumerable other saints, holy men and women of God, that we may always be virtuous and worthy in our actions, words and deeds, even in the smallest things. Let us all strive to be holy and inspirational to others, leading a most Christian living in our daily lives to the best of our abilities. May the Lord continue to bless us and strengthen us in our efforts and endeavours, and may St. Therese of Lisieux, of the Child Jesus continue to pray for us and intercede for us sinners, now and forever more.
I wish you all a Blessed New Month of October.