Mission Statement
Theresians is a global ministry founded in the Catholic tradition. We welcome all women who desire to grow spiritually within a Christian community. Theresians pledge support by prayerfully nurturing, affirming and empowering one another to become the women God intends them to be.
By living according to Five Dimensions: Spirituality, Vocation, Community, Education, and Ministry
Charism Statement
Inspired by the prophetic vision of our founder Msgr. Elwood C. Voss and the spirit of our founding women, we are committed to the call of Vatican II. Following the example of the missionary heart of our patroness, St. Therese of Lisieux, we seek to live according to Gospel values:
SPIRITUALITY - Personal and communal prayer, scripture reflection, and faith sharing
VOCATION - Our call to discipleship by witnessing the Gospel of Jesus in and through the ordinary in our lives
COMMUNITY - Monthly gatherings that enrich, support and encourage women to grow in holiness
EDUCATION - Continued formation leading to spiritual maturity
MINISTRY - Presence and service that exemplify love, compassion, tolerance, understanding and empathy with the feminine heart and global spirit
Why Are We Called Theresians?
Therese of Lisieux was chosen Theresian patron saint because "she saw through the complicated spirituality of her own day. She worked out her own unique approach to God, apparently without entrenching herself in the more complex and sometimes stifling forms of spirituality and theology" developed by many theologians and spiritual directors over the centuries.
St. Therese knew how to communicate with God and love the people in her midst at any given moment. More recently, studies of the spiritual practices of her time, with their maudlin piety and florid imagery, and of Therese's own spiritual straightforwardness, indicate her almost radical approach toward spiritual development. She sought a "means of going to heaven by a little way, a way that ...(was) very straight, very short and totally new."
- from The Theresian Story, Women in Support of Women by Elwood C. Voss and Patricia Mullen
(A Theresian Publication, 1968), page 15
Theresians is a global ministry founded in the Catholic tradition. We welcome all women who desire to grow spiritually within a Christian community. Theresians pledge support by prayerfully nurturing, affirming and empowering one another to become the women God intends them to be.
By living according to Five Dimensions: Spirituality, Vocation, Community, Education, and Ministry
Charism Statement
Inspired by the prophetic vision of our founder Msgr. Elwood C. Voss and the spirit of our founding women, we are committed to the call of Vatican II. Following the example of the missionary heart of our patroness, St. Therese of Lisieux, we seek to live according to Gospel values:
SPIRITUALITY - Personal and communal prayer, scripture reflection, and faith sharing
VOCATION - Our call to discipleship by witnessing the Gospel of Jesus in and through the ordinary in our lives
COMMUNITY - Monthly gatherings that enrich, support and encourage women to grow in holiness
EDUCATION - Continued formation leading to spiritual maturity
MINISTRY - Presence and service that exemplify love, compassion, tolerance, understanding and empathy with the feminine heart and global spirit
Why Are We Called Theresians?
Therese of Lisieux was chosen Theresian patron saint because "she saw through the complicated spirituality of her own day. She worked out her own unique approach to God, apparently without entrenching herself in the more complex and sometimes stifling forms of spirituality and theology" developed by many theologians and spiritual directors over the centuries.
St. Therese knew how to communicate with God and love the people in her midst at any given moment. More recently, studies of the spiritual practices of her time, with their maudlin piety and florid imagery, and of Therese's own spiritual straightforwardness, indicate her almost radical approach toward spiritual development. She sought a "means of going to heaven by a little way, a way that ...(was) very straight, very short and totally new."
- from The Theresian Story, Women in Support of Women by Elwood C. Voss and Patricia Mullen
(A Theresian Publication, 1968), page 15
THERESIAN PRAYER
St. Therese, we need your help and example
To communicate with God,
as you communicated with God
To enlighten ourselves,
as you enlightened yourself
To live our Christian vocations, as you lived your Christian vocation
To love in community,
as you loved in community
To minister to people,
as you ministered to people
We ask these favors through Jesus, The Lord
Amen
St. Therese, we need your help and example
To communicate with God,
as you communicated with God
To enlighten ourselves,
as you enlightened yourself
To live our Christian vocations, as you lived your Christian vocation
To love in community,
as you loved in community
To minister to people,
as you ministered to people
We ask these favors through Jesus, The Lord
Amen