The UST Santisimo Rosario Parish received the reliquary of St. Thérèse of the Child Jesus on Thursday night, April 13.

The faithful joined the transfer and procession of the relics from the San Lazaro Chapel to the University as the reliquary made its way from one church to another during its 5th visit to the Philippines.

After the procession, Rev. Fr. Paul Reagan Talavera, O.P. presided over the Holy Mass and encouraged the devotees to deepen their understanding of the life and spirituality of St. Thérèse beyond "superstitious" beliefs.

The Parish priest emphasized that while many people develop a devotion to St. Thérèse due to answered prayers, this experience alone is not sufficient.

"We develop a devotion because of answered prayers and instant yung mga dinadasal ko parang konektado palagi...So, nagdasal ako nung prayer [card]. Tapos kinabukasan, paano na kaya yung exam--umulan. Na-cancel yung exam...that is not enough," he shared in his homily.

"Kailangan natin maintindihan yung buhay ng Santo, maintindihan natin yung spirituality nung santo then we could really say that we are devotees...For as long as superstitious pa ang ating paniniwala, kulang pa tayo,," he added.

Talavera emphasized that St. Thérèse is a "powerful intercessor," a sentiment that resonates with many Filipinos.

During the relic's initial visit in 1999, the parish priest read a letter from Archbishop Oscar Cruz, the former president of the Catholic Bishops' Conference of the Philippines.

"St. Thérèse is a friend, model, and intercessor to many Filipinos. She has shown that holiness is attainable for each person, teaching them to entrust themselves to the Father who loves them and to endure all things for the love of God, serving the salvation of the world through her little way of confidence and love," the letter read.

Relics' journey

The relics of the St. Thérèse of the Child Jesus' visited the Philippines with the theme "Lakbay tayo St. Thérèse! Ka-Alagad, Kaibigan, Ka-Misyon." It arrived last January 2, and it has then started touring dioceses in Luzon, Visayas, and Mindanao.

The relics returned to Metro Manila before Holy Week, where it was scheduled to stay from April 13 to 17 in the Archdiocese of Manila.

The reliquary of St. Thérèse was created in 1997 during the centenary of her death. It was made of tropical-scented Jacaranda hardwood and houses a solid silver case dipped in gold, which contains in part the precious remains of St. Thérèse.

As St. Thomas Aquinas' Summa Theologica states, "The saints belong to Christ; they are sons and daughters of God and His friends and, as a consequence, serve as intercessors with God for the living. Every relic is thus a record of the saint."

St. Thérèse's reliquary was transferred in the morning of April 14 to the Archdiocesan Shrine of Our Lady of Loreto in Sampaloc, Manila.