Maurice and Therese (Hardcover)

by Patrick Ahern (Author) "It is in the name of the great St. Teresa and on her Feast day that I come to you with a request, and I..." (more)
Key Phrases: dear little brother, dear little sister, good little sister, Mother Gonzague, White Fathers, Our Lord (more...)

Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com Review
St. Therese of Lisieux, who died unknown in a Carmelite convent at the age of 24, became one of the most influential women in the world after her autobiography (The Story of a Soul) was posthumously published in 1898. Mother Teresa of Calcutta took her name from Therese; Edith Piaf kept Therese's picture on her night table; in 1997, Pope John Paul II made her a Doctor of the Church-- only the third woman to receive this distinction. Her autobiography describes a spiritual life full of everyday revelations--she saw God in jam sandwiches, pretty hats, and beautiful flowers. Maurice and Therese: The Story of a Love shows how her commonplace spirituality ministered to an aimless young priest unsure of his vocation and unstable in his devotion. Maurice Belliere wrote to Therese's Mother Prioress to ask that a nun pray for him, Therese was assigned to the task, and their 21 letters (edited and with commentary by Patrick Traherne) illustrate the young woman's extraordinary ability to love. She wasn't deeply familiar with Maurice, and she didn't agree with him on lots of things, but she was naturally inclined to have faith in him--a necessary aspect of love, and one that deserves attention. --Michael Joseph Gross

From Library Journal
Ahern, the auxiliary bishop of New York, explores the relationship between the Carmelite nun St. Therese of Lisieux and a struggling young priest, Maurice Belliere, by compiling the 21 letters exchanged between them and providing biographical details. St. Therese had a short life, dying at the age of 24 of tuberculosis, but she expressed in her prose meaning and inspiration that brought peace to troubled souls. Through this correspondence, the reader is able to "listen in" on the intimate conversation she shared with Maurice as she encouraged his self-acceptance. The two became soulmates through their letters from 1896 until St. Therese's death in 1897. Expressing the suffering and passion of two imperfect persons touched by God, their story captures what St. Therese did best: showing by example how to be holy in life. Recommended for large religious collections.?Leo Vincent Kriz, West Des Moines Lib., IA
Copyright 1998 Reed Business Information, Inc.

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Product Details

• Hardcover: 304 pages
• Publisher: Doubleday; 1st edition (September 15, 1998)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0385492618
• ISBN-13: 978-0385492614
• Product Dimensions: 7.5 x 5.4 x 1.1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 11.4 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 5.0 out of 5 stars See all reviews (26 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #344,533 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

15 of 15 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars An exquisite memoir of Therese's friendship with Maurice, September 17, 1999

By A Customer

I am delighted to see the correspondence between Maurice and Therese, which I have appreciated for many years in Therese's letters, so beautifully interpreted here. Rich in insights in Therese's love for her "dear little brother," to whom she wrote, "I see how much your soul is sister to mine . . . "; in insight into her missionary consciousness, her love for the priesthood, her acute compassion for humanity, her extraordinary availability to souls, her theology. Bishop Ahern's luminous appreciation of Therese and Maurice lights the book up. Therese ended her correspondence with these words written on the back of holy picture, "last souvenir of a soul, sister of your own soul," and this book is truly that.

12 of 12 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars The Humanity of a Saint, May 9, 2000

By	Catherine Miller (Denver, Colorado) - See all my reviews

Never have I read a book on a saint that was more revealing than this. The correspondence between this beloved Saint and a wonderfully ordinary priest washes away the mystique of St. Therese. What it reveals is a very human woman who through the love of Jesus helps another human being find the love God wants us to share in. It is very intense and emotional. You will find it difficult to put down and easy to re-read.

11 of 11 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Inspiring, moving, thought-provoking, April 25, 2001

By	Colin Paterson "b-lever" (Chicago, IL) - See all my reviews

Knowing something of the fame of Saint Therese, I found this book very interesting in that it provided a look at the human being she was. Her ability to relate so quickly and meaningfully with Maurice in these letters makes it clear that she was a person of wonderful qualitiies, capable of simple yet extraordinary accomplishments.

The book also presents a beautiful picture of a life lived with reliance on faith...even when doubts occur. In her last year, Therese experienced profound feelings of spiritual emptiness which troubled her. We see no evidence of this in her letters to Maurice, but Mr. Ahern's lucid commentaries explain what was going on in her personal life and make it clear that she realized where her mission should be -- in helping a young man who needed encouragement, not in turning attention to her own needs.

That a person does not have to be built on heroic proportions in order to do good in the world -- that is the message I took away from this book. And, I recommend tha others to pick it up and read it.