"I cannot do that; God does not wish
it."
As my gaze fell on her strong, graceful hands, Therese showed me
a little, square, freshly healed wound on each of her palms. On
the back of each hand, she pointed out a smaller, crescent-shaped
wound, freshly healed. Each wound went straight through the hand.
The sight brought to my mind distinct recollection of the large
square iron nails with crescent-tipped ends, still used in the
Orient, but which I do not recall having seen in the West.
The saint told me something of her weekly trances. "As a helpless
onlooker, I observe the whole Passion of Christ." Each week, from
Thursday midnight until Friday afternoon at one o'clock, her wounds
open and bleed; she loses ten pounds of her ordinary 121-pound
weight. Suffering intensely in her sympathetic love, Therese yet
looks forward joyously to these weekly visions of her Lord.
I realized at once that her strange life is intended by God to reassure
all Christians of the historical authenticity of Jesus' life and
crucifixion as recorded in the New Testament, and to dramatically
display the ever-living bond between the Galilean Master and his
devotees.
Professor Wurz related some of his experiences with the saint.
"Several of us, including Therese, often travel for days on
sight-seeing trips throughout Germany," he told me. "It is a striking
contrast-while we have three meals a day, Therese eats nothing.
Pages:
462
463
464
465
466
467
468
469
470
471
472
473
474
475
476
477
478
479
480
481
482
483
484
485
486