I must confess that my mind was dazzled by this experience. Could it be that I had received a rose petal hand-delivered by a saint?
Welcome to Part 17 of a weekly series on the formation journey of Josh, a first-year novice at the Marian House of Studies in Washington, D.C. Watch for a new entry every Friday.
I knelt before the Eucharist in the Novice Chapel with my brand new Divine Mercy Catholic Bible in my hands. I had just peeled off the plastic wrapping and was about to open it for the first time.
It seemed to me a significant moment, the first time reading from a new Bible that had been given to me through Divine Providence.
I prayed, “Please speak to me through the first words I read. Start me thinking about what You want.”
I flipped the Bible open at random. The first words I saw were, “Let the children come to me” (Mt 19:14).
I felt immediately that this was Jesus’ message to me, but I didn’t know yet what He wanted.
Unexpected gift
Two months later, on a Sunday at about 1:00 pm, I finished setting up for the afternoon Eucharistic Adoration. I’m the sacristan, which means that I’m responsible for setting up for Mass and adoration and for cleaning up afterward. Saint Thérèse of the Child Jesus had also been the sacristan for a time in her religious community, so I often pray to her while working.
I walked back to my pew and was about to grab some of my prayer books to take to my room. Instead, I hesitated.
There was a red rose petal resting on my pew in exactly the place where I normally sit.
My first thought was, “How beautiful!”
Then, my brain started whirring. “Who …?”
I had to find out.
Hand delivery?
Before long, I had questioned virtually everyone in our religious community. I knew that the rose petal had not been there earlier that morning when I was present for Morning Prayer. Sometime before noon, it found its way to my seat.
No one in this religious community has a reputation for lying. They’re good people. But everyone denied putting it there.
When I asked Br. Eliot, he said, “I think St. Thérèse put it there.”
Father Jim also mentioned, “I think you received a visit from your novice mistress,” a joking reference to a time when Fr. Jim had been traveling and, in his absence, we decided among ourselves that St. Thérèse was our spiritual novice-master. (She had also been the novice mistress in her community.)
I must confess that my mind was dazzled by this experience. Could it be that I had received a rose petal hand-delivered by a saint?
It was very personally meaningful.
Yet, I soon realized that it was not only about me.
Children at heart
I had been praying frequently that God and our Lady would give me the life experiences that would benefit others through this blog. I think that this was happening.
Later that day, we prayed our Divine Mercy Novena, and the reading happened to be, “Today, bring to Me the meek and humble souls and the souls of little children, and immerse them in My mercy. These souls most closely resemble My Heart. They strengthened Me during My bitter agony . . . I pour out upon them whole torrents of grace” (Diary, 1220).
The entire reading was about how Jesus delights in those who are children at heart.
I recalled that St. Thérèse was famous for the theme of spiritual childhood, which was a key element in her spirituality, known as the “Little Way.”
A few days later, in meditation, I imagined a garden of flowers with Little Therese and Our Lady, both as children at play and inviting others to join them. I realized that everyone is invited, spiritually speaking, to be more and more like little children.
I recalled with gratitude those first words that I had read in my new Bible, “Let the children come to me.” Although I have a long way to go, I realized that these words were an invitation from our Lord to me—a call to spiritual childhood—and an invitation to others as well.
Next entry: "Peril on the Road."
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