15 Days of Prayer with Saint Thérèse of Lisieux
Constant Tonnelier
Victoria Hébert (Translator)
Denis Sabourin (Translator)
Last year I stumbled upon a different volume in this series, 15 Days of Prayer with Saint Pier Giorgio Frassati by Père Charles Desjobert, OP, and really enjoyed it. I did some research on the series and this was the seventeenth volume I decided to work through. In my research to date there have been at least 40 volumes in this series. Many written in French and then translated, including this volume, this book was first published in English in 2000, the first French edition was 1996. Then in 2010 the series were rebranded, this is one of only a handful with digital copies currently available.
I believe as of the writing of this review there have been 40 volumes in the series in English; the earliest I found was from 1996 through to a volume which was published in 2025. Only about a dozen seem to be in print currently and of those only a handful appears to have eBooks. With my dual form of dyslexia this is disappointing. I greatly prefer eBooks so I can change the font, and the colour of font and page to make reading easier. I have added all the eBook editions I could find to my wish list. About the Series we are informed:
“15 Days of Prayer Series
On a journey, it’s good to have a guide. Even great saints took spiritual directors or confessors with them on their itineraries toward sanctity. Now you can be guided by the most influential spiritual figures of all time. The 15 Days of Prayer series introduces their deepest and most personal thoughts.
This popular series is perfect if you are looking for a gift, or if you want to be introduced to a particular guide and his or her spirituality. Each volume contains:
• A brief biography of the saint or spiritual leader
• A guide to creating a format for prayer or retreat
• Fifteen meditation sessions with reflection guides”
The description of this specific volume states:
“A Carmelite nun who joined the convent at the young age of fifteen, Saint Thérèse of Lisieux lived a cloistered life of obscurity. Though she preferred hidden sacrifice during her short life, her words, her legacy, and her “little way” have made her one of the more popular saints of today.
Thérèse’s road was one of suffering, spiritual childhood, abandonment to the benevolence of the Lord, trials of faith, periods of painful spiritual barrenness, and a life devoted entirely to love and to the Church. She felt within herself the music of holiness, and she let it resound in her heart until it made her whole life an offering of love.
Enjoy your time with Thérèse of Lisieux, and be prepared to be surprised as you journey with one of the most beloved spiritual figures of our time.”
On the back of the physical book we are informed:
“Follow the footsteps of Saint Thérése of Lisieux.
A Carmelite nun who joined the convent at the young age of fifteen, Saint Théreése of Lisieux lived a cloistered life of obscurity. Though she preferred hidden sacrifice during her short life, her words, her legacy, and her “little way” have made her one of the more popular saints of today.
Live the “little way.” Thérése’s road was one of suffering, smallness, spiritual childhood, abandonment to the benevolence of the Lord, trials of faith, periods of painful spiritual barrenness, and a life devoted entirely to love and to the Church. She felt within herself the music of holiness, and she let it resound in her heart until it made her whole life an offering of love. Her “little way” or “way of love” would unify her life. She sums up her graced philosophy in this way: “To live in love is to live Your life, glorious King....[It] is to look upon the Cross as a treasure....[It] is to sail tirelessly, sowing peace and happiness into all hearts....” Enjoy your time with Saint Thérése of Lisieux and be prepared to be surprised as you journey with one of the most beloved spiritual figures of our time.”
About the author we are informed:
“Father Constant Tonnelier is a chaplain for the Carmelites in Laval, France and is a renowned expert in Carmelite spirituality.”
The chapters in this volume are:
How to Use This Book - vii
A Chronology of the Life of Saint Thérése of Lisieux
A Few Notes About Saint Thérése of Lisieux
References and Abbreviations
Introduction: The Little One’s Journey
Along the Way of Love and Holiness
1. Day One—Fascinated by Jesus.
2. Day Two—A Little Flower of Love Despite Difficult Times
3. Day Three—Pushing Forward on the Road to Perfection
4. Day Four—Journey to Self-Abandonment
5. Day Five—The Living Desire for Sainthood
6. Day Six—My Path: To Love as You Love, O Lord
7. Day Seven—Love Beyond Sympathy
8. Day Eight—Days Without Sunlight and Happiness
9. Day Nine—Storm of Suffering, Breath of Love
10. Day Ten—A “Little Way”
11. Day Eleven—The Word: A Presence to Cherish
12. Day Twelve—Prayer: A Missionary Apostolate
13. Day Thirteen—The Vocation of Love
14. Day Fourteen—The Infinite Horizons of the Lord’s Justice and Mercy
15. Day Fifteen—Consuming One’s Life in Love
Bibliography
I highlighted a few of passages while reading this volume some of them are:
“1998: Pope John Paul II proclaims Saint Thérèse of Lisieux a Doctor of the Church.”
“Before her rose could bloom, Thérèse had to suffer the pricks of thorns. Even though her two sisters were with her, Thérèse respected the rigors of monastic life. She suffered greatly at the death of her father. Her letters to her sister Céline showed just how much she was affected. After having experienced a period of barren faith, Thérèse professed her vows on September 8, 1890, on the feast day of the Birth of the Blessed Virgin Mary.”
“The canonical process for her beatification was begun in 1910. Thérèse of the Child Jesus was declared “blessed” on April 29, 1923 by Pope Pius XI and was canonized as a “saint” on May 17, 1925.”
“To live in love is to live Your life, glorious King.… [It] is to look upon the Cross as a treasure.… [It] is to banish all memory of past mistakes.… [It] is to sail tirelessly, sowing peace and happiness into all hearts.… To love you, Jesus, what a bountiful loss.… I want to leave this world singing “I am dying of love.””
“Our own holiness will not be a copy of Thérèse’s, but one which God wants to realize through us in the freedom of our love. That doesn’t stop us from using Thérèse’s way as a guide, a beacon, or a ray of hope.”
“The brilliant lights which would like to captivate our attention are numerous along our human paths. Their brilliance may be bright enough to even stop us along the pathway of life. Thérèse mourns: The King of that shining homeland came to live in this land of darkness for thirty-three years. Alas! The darkness did not understand that this Divine King was the light of the world.”
“The very desire to love you brings happiness, while spurned love brings sorrow. You made us for your happiness, for the happiness to love; if sorrow appears, it is a warning for us to return to the road toward heaven, our eyes riveted on the glorious light.”
“Only a heart that beats in God’s charity will find the strength to believe in love until it discovers it. Only those who rely upon the Lord can follow the road and persevere.”
“We are just little flowers, not majestic trees in the forest; small, frail flowers, open to the hazards of the weather, but also offered to the divine Sun of love.”
“We are little flowers that exist to make the Lord happy. Thérèse points out: “The little flower bloomed in the shadow of the Cross; the tears and blood of Jesus became its dew and its Sun was his Adorable Face, veiled with tears” (Ms A, 71r).”
“The little flower, at its very conception, is made to be picked by the divine gardener, for Thérèse avers: “Jesus will come get us, no matter how far away we are, and change us into flames of love” (LT 197).”
“Give grateful thanks to God for all of the graces he has given you and don’t be so ungrateful that you do not recognize them! You act as if you are a little villager who, when the king proposes marriage, doesn’t dare accept because she feels she is neither rich enough nor experienced enough in courtly manners, not taking into consideration that her royal fiancé knows about her poverty and weakness even better than she does herself."
“What we need is the knowledge of love, for it is then that love becomes the dynamic force of the road just as much as the goal. Thérèse says: “I understand completely that only love can make us acceptable to God. I strive only for that love” (LT 196).”
“The road to perfection demands that the first choice be love for Jesus, through whom all human love will find its road.”
“Identify for yourself those moments and those qualities that make you feel good about your spiritual journey. List those qualities and moments that lead to frustration or anxiety. When you feel good how would you describe your prayer? When you are feeling discouraged are there distinct movements and happenings in your prayer that you can identify? Can you bring both the good moments and the not-so-good moments to the Lord in prayer today?”
“This path is the self-abandonment of the little child who sleeps without fear in his father’s arms….”
“Jesus doesn’t ask for great deeds, only self-abandon and recognition.”
“Offer God the sacrifices of praise and thanksgiving. That is what Jesus asks of us. He doesn’t need anything else from us, only our love.”
“The little one’s self-abandonment is not learned by reading books, but in secret in the heart. The teacher is Jesus himself.”
“But it is God who calls us to love, to love in the same way as he loves, not in our own way.”
“If someone else exasperates you occasionally, understand that you also do the same to them at times. We do not always draw sympathy to ourselves because of who we are, our attitudes, and our responses.”
“We can make ourselves pray that we will be able to give, to understand that we are the giver and the other person is obligated to us, but this is neither sympathy nor charity.”
“The feeling must be a part of our being, something to be mastered, not to be despised. Without charity, who could draw upon the source, which is God.”
“When everything is going our way, when our cares and our concerns seem light, it is easy to believe and to continue the spiritual journey. However, there are times that we should expect that the journey will not be pleasant and even may be challenging. We have to learn to take the good moments and the difficult moments together.”
“We see everything as being black because of life’s troubles and worries; at times, heavy responsibilities rest on our shoulders. They are truly there; we can’t pretend they’re not. But this is the time when we should hear in our hearts that the Lord “gives power to the faint and strengthens the powerless” (Isa 40: 29). It is up to us to find this strength and power even through the darkness. It is up to us to ask if we are truly on the right path.”
“The blessing is not in the hardship itself, but in the lesson the Lord gives us to help us through it. It is a lesson given in the darkness of the blackest night, in the day without sunshine.”
“We must incorporate the unity of our life into a communion with God so that we can live in unity with God. The end of our road is to be one with God, to live with him in his kingdom, in the glory of heaven.”
“Experience is the great teacher, but it is inexperience that often precedes the teaching moment and which frames the challenge. To try and lead before full awareness and understanding is achieved is unwise and is often the root of our anxiety and our suffering.”
“What a difference there is between a storm and a breath! A storm destroys, while a breath restores life, but they are both given on the road we have to travel.”
“The Cross was the road of our Lord Jesus. His suffering was for love—a misunderstood, rejected, and scorned love. He didn’t seek the suffering of the Cross; he didn’t let the Cross stop him, he carried it of his own free will.”
“The Little Way presumes a childlike attitude toward life. It presumes awareness of who we are before God. The Little Way invites us to “unlearn” many of our supposedly mature and adult ways of looking at the world and learn the new ways of childlike dependence.”
“Confidence, self-abandonment, offerings: these are the characteristics of the road that the Lord teaches to the humble, the road of the will of God which he puts in our whole heart.”
“This is the way in which we must humbly and simply give ourselves up to God’s hands, and repeat to ourselves in the words of Thérèse: “I am this child, object of the provident love of the Father” (Ms A, 39r).”
“What are the choices that I need to make in order to be in a daily relationship with the Word? What other words do I listen to instead of listening to the word that comes from the Lord?”
“The power of our prayer is a dynamic response to the call of our God to join in proclaiming the kingdom of God. Our prayer is not static but rather goes out from us, unites with the prayers of our brothers and sisters, and produces the fruit of the harvest.”
“As in any environment of growth, it is not necessarily the same people who tend to all its aspects from start to finish. Some can only draw from the source to give to others who benefit from it. No one can claim to harvest spiritually entirely on his or her own.”
“We must work to find our place to serve in the Church so we can fill our service with love.”
“Every person readily calls to mind a distinct and unique picture of God when they begin to reflect on God’s justice and mercy. Our image of God is informative of who we are as a person in relationship to the Father, Son, and Spirit.”
“The little way is not a road of fear and dread, but a path of confidence and love, for love casts out fear.”
“If Jesus walked the Father’s route toward humankind, then humankind can walk the earthly road towards the Father.”
I hope those quotes give you a feel for this volume. Over the years I have read much about and by Saint Thérèse of Lisieux and I really enjoyed working through these 15 days with the saint, her words, and her thoughts.
This volume was originally published in 1996 in French. The first English edition was in 1999. At was part of a rebranding at some point since then.
This is a great volume in an excellent series. Spending these 15 days with Saint Thérèse of Lisieux was informative, inspiring and challenging. The written reflections and the discussion questions were engaging. I just really wish all of the 40 volumes were available as eBooks, I would work through them all if so.
A great read in an excellent series!
Note: This book is part of a series of reviews: 2026 Catholic Reading Plan!
CTS Books and Booklets on the life and spirituality of St Thérèse:
Thérèse of Lisieux - On the visit of her relics to Great Britain (Do 810)
Louis and Zélie Martin, Parents of Thérèse of Lisieux, by Paulinus Redmond (B 709)
The Prayer of St Thérèse of Lisieux by Vernon Johnson (CL23)
...
Other books by or about Lisieux:
15 Days of Prayer with Saint Thérèse of Lisieux - Constant Tonnelier
...
Books in the 15 Days of Prayer With Series:
Blessed Frédéric Ozanam - Christian Verheyde
Dietrich Bonhoeffer - Matthieu Arnold
Don Bosco - Robert Schiele
Henri Nouwen - Robert Waldron
Jean-Claude Colin - Francois Drouilly
Johannes Tauler - Andre Pinet
Meister Eckhart - André Gozier
Peter Joseph Triest - Brother René Stockman
Pierre Teilhard de Chardin - André Dupleix
Saint Alphonsus Liguori - Jean-Marie Segalen
Saint Augustine - Jaime García
Saint Benedict - André Gozier
Saint Catherine of Siena - Chantal van der Plancke
Saint Dominic - Alain Quilici
Saint Elizabeth Ann Seton - Betty Ann McNeil
Saint Eugene de Mazenod - Bernard Dullier
Saint Francis de Sales - Claude Morel
Saint Francis of Assisi - Thaddée Matura O.F.M.
Saint John of the Cross - Constant Tonnelier
Saint Katharine Drexel - Leo Luke Marcello
Saint Martín de Porres: A Saint of the Americas - Brian J. Pierce
Saint Thomas Aquinas - Suzanne Vrai and André Pinet
The Curé of Ars - Pierre Blanc
…
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