A Story of Goodness:
New Film Depicts the Brief, Extraordinary Life of St. Thérèse of Lisieux, Spiritually Insightful Beyond Her Years

by Richard Vara, Religion Editor for the “Houston Chronicle”

This article appeared in the “Houston Chronicle,” July 10, 2004. Used with permission.

At 14, Thérèse Martin was too young to join a cloistered convent, but with singleminded determination, she forced her way in.

When the young French nun died of tuberculosis 10 years later in 1897, she left behind a journal detailing her intense desire for holiness, a book that helped pave the way for her canonization in 1925.

	Lindsay Younce (right) portrays Thérèse Martin in the upcoming movie “Thérèse” from producer/director Leonardo Defilippis

Saint Thérèse of Lisieux’s spirituality has made her one of the world’s most popular Roman Catholic saints, with appeal even to non-Christians. Now the life story of “The Little Flower,” as she is popularly known, is the subject of a major Englishlanguage film. And in a marketing twist Mel Gibson could appreciate, Houston has a chance to host its American premiere.

“The Passion of the Christ has opened up some doors and laid a foundation that will help Thérèse,” said producer/director Leonardo Defilippis, who also appears as Thérèse ‘s father in the movie. “The Passion was unorthodox in the way it was promoted. It didn’t go through the normal system. So the people have a voice.”

Defilippis is hoping Thérèse generates the same mass popular appeal. He is promoting the movie by having cities compete for its October 1st premiere on Saint Thérèse’s feast day. “ Thérèse, like Mother Teresa of Calcutta (who took her name), has universal appeal,” the director said during a promotional stop in Houston. Her spiritual autobiography, “Story of a Soul”, emphasized humility, obedience and a childlike confidence in God. The book (first published in 1898) has been translated into 66 languages and has sold more than 100 million copies, he said.

Although Thérèse never fulfilled a desire to serve in foreign missions, Pope Pius XI declared her the patron saint of missions in 1927. His predecessor Pope Pius X called her “the greatest saint of modern times.”

Her spiritual insights have been recognized worldwide, prompting Pope John Paul II in 1997 to declare Thérèse a “doctor of the church,” a title reserved for learned scholars such as Saint Thomas Aquinas and Saint Augustine. She is one of only three women doctors of the church. The others are Saint Teresa of Avila and Saint Catherine of Siena. A century after her death, Thérèse of the Child Jesus continues to be recognized as one of the great masters of the spiritual life in our time,” John Paul II wrote.

“We are dealing with a woman of international proportions,” Defilippis said. Her spiritual insights have been studied by Hindus, Buddhists and Muslims, he said. Defilippis was aware of Saint Thérèse of the Child Jesus and of the Holy Face, her formal name as a nun, when he read her book more than 25 years ago. “I was touched by it, but it went in me and out, and I went on to other things,” he said. Those “other things” included his career as a professional actor, primarily in Shakespearean plays. He also had interests in arts and music, but not in religion.

That began to change in 1983 when he performed in a TV drama about St. Francis of Assisi.

“I just started thinking seriously about my life,” he said. “You start looking at the turbulence of your own life, the turbulence of your lifestyle. I started to think a little bit more about God. I started to go back to the church—slowly.”

Defilippis began to do live monodramas and films on saints such as Saint Maximilian Kolbe, a priest executed during World War II, and Spanish mystic Saint John of the Cross. He realized there was a void of spiritual works in the performing arts. “I said, `We can do this in the theater realm and we can do this in the film world.’ We call it sacred imagery.”

Defilippis formed his own production company, Saint Luke Productions, in Beaverton, Oregon. The production company is “dedicated to evangelizing and renewing the culture through a Catholic vision focused on the dramatic arts,” according to its mission statement.

In 1995, he was approached by Carmelite nuns to consider a production based on the life of Thérèse of Lisieux for the centennial of the saint’s death. “So in 1997, we created a play. It has been running for seven years. . . . Then after that we said, `Let’s take up another challenge. Let’s make a major motion picture.’ "

Translating Thérèse‘s life to film was more of a challenge than The Passion of the Christ was for Mel Gibson, he said. Instead of violent drama, her story was one of a sensitive and religious soul. “She is a person of gentleness, love and mercy,” he said.

In the movie, Defilippis portrays Louis Martin, who raised five daughters, including then 4-year-old Thérèse, after the death of his wife. All five eventually became nuns. Martin opposed Thérèse ‘s desire to enter the convent. While the girl was religious and prayerful, she was the “baby” of the family and acted like it. She refused to do housework and would break into tears at the slightest criticism, real or imagined.

The movie, which was filmed in Oregon, France and Rome, depicts her “Christmas conversion.” The family followed the tradition of leaving presents in shoes although Thérèse at 14 was far beyond the age for participating. When she overheard her father and sister say that it was the last year for presents, Thérèse felt that God was inspiring her to mature and to think of others instead of herself.

The movie also shows her headstrong struggles to enter the convent at 14, instead of the standard age of 18. She was refused by the superior of the convent and her bishop. Her father then took her to Rome in hopes of dissuading her. Instead, Thérèse took advantage of a general papal audience and appealed directly to the startled pontiff, Pope Leo XIII. She was carted off by guards. However, her audacity convinced church officials to allow her to join two older sisters in the convent, where her sincerity and holiness were recognized by the community of nuns.

The film already has been seen at the Vatican and some forums in the United States. You can see clips at the movie’s website: www.theresemovie.com