Thérèse in Nazareth
“When I am in this state of spiritual dryness, unable to pray, or to practice virtue, I look for little opportunities, for the smallest trifles, to give pleasure to Jesus.”
The cover of Vol. 89 No. 3 featured a mosaic that forms part of the altar rail and sits just below the altar of St. Joseph. Today we return to the altar rail, this time guiding you to the opposite side of the Basilica, near the altar of the Sacred Heart. Here we see an anachronistic image of Thérèse kneeling before the Madonna and Child. Thérèse stretches out her hand as if to stroke the Child’s face.
This work also takes inspiration from artwork created at the Carmel of Lisieux. Where Thérèse aux Roses can be said to have only loosely inspired the iconographic style of the way Thérèse would come to be portrayed in the art of Little Flower Basilica, this mosaic harkens back to its source material slightly more strongly.
Nazareth by Sister Marie of the Holy Spirit presents an interesting conundrum of visual expression. Thérèse kneels in the doorway of the Holy Family’s home, light streaming from behind her as she strews flower petals before the child Jesus.
Jesus, meanwhile, runs to embrace Thérèse, or possibly welcome her into the Holy Family’s home, as Joseph and Mary look on indulgently. Behind Thérèse, Calvary and the Cross loom. However even in the family home the cross remains present, seen clearly in the shadow cast by the child Jesus. In the bottom right corner three doves gather, completely separated from the rest of the composition, possibly intended to evoke the Trinity.
The mosaic take on this motif is slightly different, the scene taking place outdoors, without St. Joseph and in the company of angels. One detail of note is that where saints in the rest of the Basilica mosaic collection are depicted with halos of gold, here, because Thérèse is in the presence of Jesus and Mary, you can see that Thérèse’s halo is now silver. The Madonna here has a more active role as she balances the child Jesus on her knee. Jesus reaches out for a much closer Thérèse, who, instead of seeming to invite the child outside and away from Mary and Joseph, here kneels in adoration. Her scattered flowers more obviously laid at the feet of the Jesus and Mary than meant to mark a path for Him. Angels look on, not actively participating in the scene, but hovering behind it.
As in the every aspect of the Basilica, the artwork, though inspired by many of the contemporary works shared by Lisieux, depicts a unique vision.
Communion Rail in the Basilica highlighting the Life of St. Thérèse. On the far left is the mosaic featured on this magazine issue’s cover, located near the altar of the Sacred Heart.
Close up image of where the mosaic is located.