The Little Flower in Prison

The relics of the saint, who wrote the wonderful autobiography, Story of a Soul, and who was made a doctor of the Church—one of three women so honored—by Pope John Paul II, is being brought into an English prison in October, as reported by the Catholic Herald of Great Britain.

An excerpt.

“The relics of St Thérèse of Lisieux are to be taken into a high-security London jail as part of a visit to England and Wales this year.

“A casket containing some of the bones of the "Little Flower" will spend October 12 in Wormwood Scrubs.

“The prison is home to nearly 1,300 adult male prisoners, about 300 of whom are Catholic. All are classed as category B on a scale of A to D, meaning it is necessary for prison authorities to make escape "extremely difficult".

“Mgr Keith Baltrop, the tour organiser, said the idea was to give prisoners a chance to pray for the intercession of St Thérèse, a French Carmelite nun who was described by Pope Pius X as the "greatest saint of modern times".

“He said it was important to take the relics to "places not just where the faithful gather but where she is most needed".

“He said: "We are taking her to the big Church of England chapel and the relics are going there for approximately three and a half hours. They will be left there and it will be left for the prison authorities to enable as many people as possible to come and venerate them."

“He added: "God has made her a particular figure for our modern age. She was extremely humble but she had this sense that she was going to be a great saint. God had chosen her to be a powerful channel of grace…

“St Thérèse, who died in 1897 from tuberculosis at the age of 24, also said that she intended to spend her time in heaven "doing good on earth".

“She is famous for her theology of the "little way" - carrying out even the smallest and most mundane daily tasks or deeds with love. She was made one of just three women doctors of the Church by Pope John Paul II in 1997.

“She is considered such a powerful intercessor that in 1927, as the Soviet Union fell into the grip of Stalinist Communism, she was named by Pope Pius XI as the patron saint of all works for Russia, as well as a co-patron saint of France and co-patron of the missions. Her relics were flown to Baghdad in December 2002 in the hope that her intercession would prevent the Iraq war.”