"I am God's. He created me and is my beginning and my end."
What the world was like
Teresa grew up in Chile, a country with a stable economy and a parliamentary system of government. In this type of government, the congress held most of the power. Congress elected a president who did not have much power. During Teresa's lifetime, Orville and Wilbur Wright made their first flight in an aircraft. The automobile became mass-produced. Phonographs and radio programming became popular in homes. The ocean liner, RMS Titanic, hit an iceberg in the North Atlantic and sank on its first voyage. World War I was fought.
Who she was
Teresa was born in Santiago, Chile. When she was baptized, she was given the name Juana. Her family and her friends all called her Juanita. She grew up in a large Christian family. Juanita was intelligent and attended school where she was taught by the Sacred Heart nuns.
Juanita was a normal young girl. She was very happy, cheerful, and attractive. She played the piano and participated in swimming and horseback riding. She had many friends and enjoyed playing jokes on her family and friends. She taught religion to the young children in her parish.
Juanita read about the life of the Saint Therese of Lisieux. This French-born saint, known as the Little Flower, was a Carmelite nun. After reading about this saint, Juanita decided that she wanted to serve God as Saint Therese had done and to become a Carmelite nun. At age nineteen, Juanita entered the Carmelite monastery and was given the name Teresa.
During her short life of twenty years, Teresa wrote many letters, sharing her thoughts about God with others. Teresa was very kind to the elderly and to the poor. When Teresa was twenty years old, she became ill and died. Teresa is the first saint from Chile.
What this saint means to us
Teresa enjoyed doing many of the things children today enjoy doing. She went to school, participated in sports, and had fun with friends. She was an ordinary person, yet she focused her life on Jesus and tried to love others as He loves them.
