Bishop Kevin J. Sweeney visited St. Therese Parish in the Succasunna neighborhood of Roxbury Township, N.J., on Oct. 3 to celebrate Mass for the feast day of its patroness, St. Thérèse of Lisieux, which the universal Church traditionally observes on Oct. 1.
Father Richard D. Kilcomons, pastor of St. Therese, and Father Dulibber G. Gonzalez, and Father Vic Leviste, the parish’s parochial vicars, concelebrated the Mass with Bishop Sweeney. Deacon Joe Padron and Deacon Gregory F. Marchesi assisted with the liturgy.
Worshippers included St. Therese’s parishioners, students of the parish school and religious education program and their families.
St. Thérèse of Lisieux was a Carmelite nun called the “Little Flower,” who lived a cloistered life of obscurity in the convent of Lisieux, France. Her preference for hidden sacrifice converted souls. Her autobiography, The Story of a Soul, is read and loved worldwide. According to Franciscan Media, Thérèse Martin entered the convent at age 15 and died in 1897 at age 24.
