Memorial of Saint Thérèse of the Child Jesus, Virgin and Doctor of the Church
Reflection:
Today’s Gospel invites us to face the cost of discipleship. Three people approach Jesus with what sound like reasonable desires before they commit to follow Him: a place of security, the duty of family, and the courtesy of farewells. Yet each encounter ends with an unsettling challenge. Jesus is not trying to discourage them. Instead, He reveals how even good things—comfort, obligations, relationships—can become excuses that keep us from wholehearted acceptance of the call to discipleship.
The message is striking, but it is not without hope. Jesus is teaching us that discipleship requires focus, detachment, and trust. To follow Him is not to abandon love for family or appreciation for stability, but to place Him first above all else. Anything less leaves our hearts divided.
We see this lived out beautifully in St. Thérèse of the Child Jesus, whose feast we celebrate today. Though her life was hidden within the walls of a cloister, she understood the radical call of discipleship. Her “Little Way” was not about heroic gestures on a world stage, but about surrendering her will in small, daily acts of love. She accepted frustrations with patience, prayed fervently for missionaries she would never meet, and bore suffering with trust in God’s mercy. For Thérèse, the cost of discipleship was not measured by outward journeys but by the inner offering of her whole self. She shows us that following Christ is possible for each of us, right where we are.
The Gospel reminds us that excuses—no matter how reasonable—can mask divided hearts. We may say, “When life settles down, then I’ll pray more,” or “When I am more secure, then I’ll commit fully.” But Jesus calls us now, not later.
True discipleship means loosening our grip on whatever we think we cannot live without, so that we can discover the One who is our true security.
The cost is real, but so is the freedom. To follow Christ is to find joy beyond comfort, purpose beyond duty, and life beyond what we thought we needed. Today we might ask ourselves: What holds me back from answering Christ wholeheartedly? And where is He inviting me to step forward in trust?
