Recognize the little girl on the right? St. Terese of Lisieux.
Her sister, Céline, is at left. Today is her birthday.
Catholic Photographer & Writer Jeffrey Bruno, wrote a feature on her. An excerpt:Patron Nun of Photographers…the talents of Céline Martin gave us a window into the soul of a Saint.
If she were a saint, today (Feb. 25) would be her feast day.
But there’s always hope.
Her younger sister is St. Thérèse, her parents, Louis and Zelie, are saints, and her older sister, Leone Martin (Sister Francoise-Thérèse of the Visitation at Caen), is a Servant of God.
Perhaps it’s a matter of a miracle or two.
And if that day ever comes, perhaps she and St. Veronica can share the title of ‘Patron Saint(s) of Photographers.’
But in the meantime, I suggest that she be honored with the title ‘Patron Nun of Photographers.’
Years ago, I was searching for a gallery of images of St. Thérèse and was surprised at how many high-quality photographs existed of her. Only a handful of saints from the 19th century were photographed. And even then, not more than once or twice. But in her case, there were dozens of photos spanning her entire life.
I didn’t really appreciate the significance of how they came to be, or who took them, until I read a little bit of the autobiography of Sister Geneviève… a maverick. She had a tenacious spirit, an artist’s heart, and an engineer’s mind.
Her autobiography:
“I really liked making inventions and understanding the mechanism. Having had a sewing machine, I took it apart completely, and after cleaning each part, I put them back in their place. Speaking of the sewing machine, I also knew how to make it work, and often, our cousins and I made toilets for ourselves!”
She excelled in academics and won several prizes for excellence in mathematics.
Her talents were diverse — electroplating, sketching, photography — but painting held her heart. She received offers to study with the master’s at The Salon in Paris and was even encouraged by her father, Louis. But… she revealed to him that she felt called to be a nun.
READ: https://www.ncregister.com/features/sister-genevieve-of-the-holy-face-celine-martin-st-therese-of-lisieux
