Review of 33 Days to Merciful Love: A Do It Yourself Retreat in Preparation for Consecration to Divine Mercy

Review of 33 Days to Merciful Love: A Do It Yourself Retreat in Preparation for Consecration to Divine Mercy

Review of 33 Days to Merciful Love: A Do It Yourself Retreat in Preparation for Consecration to Divine Mercy, by Fr. Michael Gaitley (especially The Little Way, pp. 47-65) by Jet Booth, Luminaries Night Community, League City, Texas
   
Pssst! You! Yes, you! You need to read this book. Way back in 2020 my sister Theresian, Helen Anderson, and I discovered this book. Normally I would pass up a book with such a pious title and impossible goal. But Thérèse’s gaze in the picture on the cover gripped me. I was directed to read the book day by day for 30 days to make my consecration to Divine Mercy. Helen followed the rules but I did not! I gobbled the book down in no time flat and re-read it several times. Fr. Mike gets St. Thérèse! We were both excited to share Fr. Mike’s insights into St. Thérèse and we had a wonderful sharing with our community over the next months during the COVID pandemic.

We read so much about St. Thérèse and her doing little things with great love. We so often only get half of St. Thérèse’s spirituality. We often picture her on pretty holy cards but she is so much MORE! Thérèse’s way of love came from a tremendous realization about Divine Mercy. Her actions came from a deep relationship with Jesus. Her Little Way is about doing little things with great love AND being a little soul. What does it mean to be a little soul? How can we become an army of little souls she prayed for?

This book is a do-it-yourself retreat that prepares you for a consecration to Divine Mercy-but in the style of St. Thérèse. You do a lot of heart-pondering prayer. You understand St. Thérèse a lot more. You get to understand her Offering to Merciful Love. She had an insight so profound about the heart of Jesus. She saw how He longs to pour His mercy into our hearts and have a real relationship with us. He pursues us and wants to give us so much. We all struggle to believe that. We don’t trust enough to let go. We want to be in the driver’s seat. St. Thérèse saw how to do it.
​
This book helps you see that all He asks us is simply to surrender and have gratitude. The part that brought me to tears every time was the quote from Letter #197 where Thérèse responds to her sister Marie. She speaks of such a tender, seeking Jesus: “…let us love our littleness, let us love to feel nothing, then we shall be poor in spirit, and Jesus will come to look for us….” I picture Him seeking and finding me. Get the book. Get the Kleenex. Read this book.

---