[.ca] Maurice and Therese: The Story of a Love (ISBN 0385497407)

From Amazon.com:
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

Wonderful:
What a wonderful book about a wonderful saint! This book, while not a difficult read, is certainly rich in emotion, beauty, and spirituality. If you have read St.Therese's "Story of a Soul", this is an excellent "second book" to read. It tells of the story of a relationship between a seminarian/priest and St.Therese in her last days. I recommend it for anyone's spiritual edification, especially Catholic Christians.

The Humanity of a Saint:
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.

Inspiring, moving, thought-provoking:
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.

A most beautiful book about Little Therese of Lisieux:
if you admire and hold lots of devotion for St. Therese of Lisieux as I have for so long now- she always said she was Little Therese. However in this book the most moving charisma of her love and personality are seen in a "big" way regarding her friendship with Maurice. We see a saint so full of love and compassion for his shortcomings and never does she once in this book show anything but encouragement to Maurice. There are many lessons to be learned in reflecting on this book . One of the most significant things I feel is our should be support to our priests, bishops and clergy in the universal catholic church. As Maurice radiates in this book as an aspiring semanarian our clergy does have up's and down's also. May we all love our clergy as St. Therese did, does and symbolizes her special love for the priests, and bishops. A most marvelous book. As the late John Cardinal O'Connor said in his review to Ahern's book " We see Therese now more as a woman and we are fascinated. :)

A Testimony of God's Love:
I had never much cared for St. Therese--largely because her followers made her out to be a somewhat maudlin "little flower." After reading this book, I realized that the "little flower" is actually a giant Sequoia. The passionate love of God and its expression in the support and prayers given to a fellow religious are profoundly moving. I found myself lingering over passages and truly beginning to understand why Therese's "Little Way" has been called "an elevator to union with God." Highly, highly recommended.