Thérèse is the French form of Teresa — possibly from the Greek theros ("summer, harvest"). **Saint Thérèse of Lisieux (1873-1897)** — the **"Little Flower of Jesus" — a French Discalced Carmelite nun who entered the cloister at 15 and died of tuberculosis at 24**. **Her autobiography *Story of a Soul* (1898), published posthumously, became one of the most-read spiritual classics of the 20th century**, translated into 60+ languages. **Declared a Doctor of the Church by John Paul II in 1997 — one of only four women** ever so designated (with Catherine of Siena, Teresa of Ávila, Hildegard of Bingen). **"My vocation is love."**
Subject of Alain Cavalier's *Thérèse* (1986 film) and many devotional works.
Therese reduces to seven — the number of Little Flower.