THE first Philippine visit of the relics of the couple Saints Louis and Zélie Martin were welcomed through a Mass at the Shrine of Saint Thérese of the Child Jesus in Villamor, Pasay City. It was held on January 2, the 144th birth anniversary of their daughter Saint Thérese, who is also known as the Little Flower of Jesus.
The concelebrated Mass was led by Military Ordinariate of the Philippines Bishop Leopoldo Tumulak, DD, and Bishop of Antipolo Francisco de Leon, DD. Priests and nuns from the Carmelite and other orders also attended the Mass.
Meg Ramos, national president of the Secular Order of Discalced Carmelites (OCDS), led the OCDS members from Makati, Manila, Parañaque and Alabang in joining the celebration of the Holy Eucharist.
French Ambassador Thierry Mathou and lay devotees also attended.
Starting on January 3, the pilgrim relics were brought to churches in different parts of the country until they are returned to France on February 28.
Louis Martin, born on August 22, 1823, wanted to be a priest since he was young. He devoted his life to God in the monastery of Great Saint Bernard. But his difficulty in mastering Latin made him give up his desire to become a priest, according to a pamphlet from the Shrine of Saint Therese of the Child Jesus.
Martin maintained his deep relationship with God through meditation. He resorted to clock making and opened a jewelry and clock shop in Alençon, France, in 1850. The former Zélie Guerin was born on December 23, 1831. She also wanted to be consecrated to God and went to the Sisters of Charity of Saint Vincent de Paul. However, she was refused entry because of poor health. She suffered from severe headaches and respiratory problems in her childhood.
Accepting her fate, Zélie prayed to the Virgin Mary for guidance. She then learned lace making and set up her office at her parents’ house in Alençon.
The relationship of Louis and Zélie, then 26, started when they chanced upon each other on the Sarthe Bridge in Alençon. A few months after, they got married on July 12, 1858, at 10 p.m. at the town of Alençon, and at midnight at Notre Dame Basilica.
The couple “continued their lives humanity and of spiritual growth leading them to holiness,” the pamphlet said.
The Martin couple had nine children, but only five survived. The surviving children—Marie, Pauline, Léonie, Celine and Thérese—all became nuns. Saint Thérese and three of her sisters joined the Carmelite Order. Léonie, who entered the Monastery of the Visitation at Caen, is also a candidate for sainthood.
Zélie died of breast cancer on August 28, 1877, at the age of 45. Louis suffered from stroke later and died after a heart attack on July 29, 1894.
The Martin couple was beatified on October 19, 2008, by Cardinal Saraiva Martins, Legate of Pope Benedict XVI. They were canonized by Pope Francis during the Synod of Family on October 18, 2015—the first couple to be canonized together in the history of the Catholic Church. Lyn Resurreccion
Image credits: Alysa Salen