Episode 1 of “Descent Into Light” Podcast is Out
Today, on this Feast Day of the Doctor of the Church Saint Thérèse of Lisieux, we are so excited to share with you the first episode of Descent Into Light.
Descent Into Light — a podcast by the Sisters of the Little Way of Beauty, Truth & Goodness
Nick and I have had the honor to help produce this beautiful new podcast by Sister Danielle Victoria and Sister Theresa Aletheia of the Sisters of the Little Way, who live the mission of listening and living in solidarity with people on the fringes of the Church, especially those who have been wounded, scandalized, or abused by members of the Church.
The Series Introduction and Episode 1 are out now! Find the episodes wherever you listen to podcasts:
About the Series
Descent Into Light courageously unpacks stories often left untold—stories of adult abuse within religious settings, including spiritual abuse, abuse of power, abuse of conscience, and sexual abuse. As the Sisters write on their Substack, this podcast is about hope, “but not the easy kind.” This is about a “hope forged in darkness” and the light of God that survivors of sexual abuse bear within the Church. In the series, through the exploration of their experiences with abuse and expert interviews, the Sisters lead us to see what necessitates true healing in the Church. You can read more about the series here on the Sisters’ Substack.
Saint Thérèse of Lisieux
One of the Patron saints of the Sisters of the Little Way is the Saint of the Little Way herself: Thérèse of Lisieux. Saint Thérèse understood that belonging to Church should never be about club membership or about escaping the ills of the world, but uniting oneself to the humble, merciful, transformative love of God. That Love which descends, even into the darkest of circumstances, for our sake. A few years ago, Pope Francis wrote about Thérèse’s genius in understanding this heart of the Church: “This heart was not that of a triumphalistic Church, but of a loving, humble and merciful Church. Therese never set herself above others, but took the lowest place together with the Son of God, who for our sake became a slave and humbled himself, becoming obedient, even to death on a cross (cf. Phil 2:7-8).” (Source)
Saint Thérèse of Lisieux, pray that we may have the eyes to see and the ears to hear the wisdom and light survivors of abuse bear to us in the Church today. Pray that we may have hearts like Jesus, who did not fear the darkness, who never sought to protect himself or his reputation, but descended right into the darkness for our sake. Amen.
