The Little Flower Chaplet Novena

July 11, 1993
Brother John Raymond

	One cannot say enough about the miraculous intervention of St.
 Therese of the Child Jesus in many people's lives. One of the Popes
 called her the greatest Saint of modern times. Before her death St.
 Therese prophesied that she would spend her Heaven doing good upon
 the earth. We see that prophesy fulfilled all over the world today.
	I learned about the powerful intercession of St. Therese in a
 very interesting way. Before entering the monastery I was visiting
 with a friend. We were sitting out on the patio. Her daughter was
 just coming out of the house when my friend said, "watch this." I
 was a bit perplexed as to what she was referring to. Her daughter
 went over to a little flower garden picked out a rose and brought it
 to her. I really didn't see anything so amazing about that. Seeing
 the questioning look on my face my friend said she was praying a
 novena to St. Therese. I still didn't understand. So she went on to
 explain to me that St. Therese gave her a rose as a sign that the
 request of her novena would be granted. Her daughter knew nothing
 about all of this! Now I was impressed! Since that time I have heard
 other similar stories.
	One person praying a novena had rose petals fall out of nowhere
 in her car while she was driving. Also another person praying a
 novena tried to get on a bus which the driver said was completely
 full. The person looked back in the bus and saw a vacant seat with
 three roses on it. She told the driver about this. He looked back
 and said that he didn't know how the seat became empty. When she
 asked the people sitting near the seat who left the roses they said
 they did not know. She began to suspect who had emptied the seat and
 left the roses - St. Therese.
	Some people make a novena to St. Therese by praying a chaplet
 which honors the 24 years of her life. The origin of this chaplet is
 quite interesting. Father Putigan, S.J. started a novena to St.
 Therese on December 3, 1925. He prayed the "Glory be to the Father"
 24 times each day in thanksgiving to God for all the graces He
 showered upon this Saint during the 24 years of her short life. He
 asked St. Therese, as a sign that his novena was heard, to give him
 a fresh rose. On the third day of the novena Father Putigan received
 a fresh rose from an unknown person.
	Father Putigan decided for his next novena on December 24 to give
 St. Therese a bigger challenge. This time he asked specifically for
 a white rose as a sign. On the fourth day of this novena a Sister
 brought him a white rose saying that St. Therese wanted him to have
 it. Father Putigan was amazed and asked the Sister where she got the
 rose. Sister said that she was praying in a chapel. When she went
 got up to leave she passed by an altar with a picture of St. Therese
 above it. From the bouquet of flowers on the altar a white rose fell
 at her feet. She wanted to put it back but the thought came to her
 to bring it to him.
	Father Putigan, in thanksgiving to St. Therese for the favors he
 received through these novenas, promised to spread this devotion for
 her greater honor. Thus began the practice of making a novena of
 chaplets to St. Therese.
	One practice which has sprung from Father's devotion is the
 custom of praying the novena from the ninth to the seventeenth of
 each month and adding to one's own intentions all the intentions of
 those who are making the novena at the same time.

The Little Flower Chaplet Novena

		One form of the chaplet to pray each day is the following:

	Pray 24 Glory Be's saying between them, "Saint Therese of the
 Child Jesus, pray for (mention the specific intention)."
	One can ask St. Therese to send a rose or conclude with the
 following prayer:
	St. Therese, the Little Flower, please pick me a rose from the
 heavenly garden and send it to me with a message of love. Ask God to
 grant me the favor that I implore and tell Him I will love Him each
 day more and more.