Thérèse of Lisieux
1873 — 1897 · Feast day: October 1
Born in Alençon in 1873, Thérèse Martin entered the Carmelite convent of Lisieux at fifteen after petitioning Pope Leo XIII directly in Rome. She lived nine hidden years of prayer and small service, developing her 'Little Way' of spiritual childhood — trusting God completely in ordinary life rather than seeking extraordinary feats. She died of tuberculosis at twenty-four, and her posthumously published autobiography, 'Story of a Soul,' became a global phenomenon. She was declared a Doctor of the Church in 1997.