October 1, 2004

Dear Friends,

Ordinary life is stressful! From the time we wake up (probably already tired and sleep deprived) to the time we drift off to dreamland (lamenting what didn’t get done that day and loathing the dreadful duties of tomorrow), STRESS!

First, you thoughtlessly gravitate toward the coffee pot to jump-start your brain. You wake the kids, make breakfast, grab your second cup of coffee, make sure everyone is set for work or school, and they’re off. Okay, now it’s time to take a deep breath. Then you clean the house, run errands, etc…, or you rush off to work to perform a plethora of other toilsome tasks only to return home to all those dreadful domestic duties. Ahhh, it makes you want to scream!

Sound familiar? Life certainly is stressful, especially in our materialistic and money-driven world. But the question is really much more existential: Is the Christian life ordinary?

First of all we must acknowledge that human life is not ordinary. There are countless kinds of living creatures, plants and animals of all sorts – some so small that they cannot be seen by the naked eye. Yet the sum total worth of all of these is nowhere near the value of even one human person. From the time of conception to natural death, even the littlest human person reflects God’s glory in an extraordinary way. That is what we mean when we say that the human person is a spiritual soul created in the image and likeness of Almighty God. Our Christian faith makes known to us the even more extraordinary reality of human existence. Faith makes us confident that through the toilsome tasks of ordinary life we can with the help of God’s grace attend to the highest duties of human existence – including our participation in the salvation of souls.

This truth is exemplified in the life of St. Thérèse. She saw herself as just a little soul who had nothing spectacular to offer God or men in comparison with those who are puffed-up and proud, either in the world or in the spiritual life. St. Thérèse determined, therefore, to follow the little way, to do the ordinary tasks of everyday life with great love and to offer such acts for the salvation of souls. St. Thérèse saw in such ordinary tasks, the extraordinary path that leads to heaven. In other words, love transforms the ordinary to the extraordinary. The next time you feel stressed out by the toilsome tasks of everyday life, remember that Christian love has the power to transform the stressful to the sacred – and instead of losing your mind, save a soul.

PLEASE NOTE: The new movie Thérèse by Luke Films is now playing in 37 theatres nationwide. For more information call 1-800-683-2998 or visit www.theresemovie.com.

Fr. Sylvester Mary Mann, CFR
Director of St. Anthony Residence, residing at St. Crispin Friary in the South Bronx
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