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The statue of Saint Thérèse, in front of the basilica of Lisieux (Calvados). (© Le Pays d’Auge)
The good news fell on Friday April 16, 2021, to the delight of the Sanctuary of Lisieux (Calvados). The executive council ofUnesco validated the list of 60 personalities whose birthdays wish to honor during the 2022/2023 biennial. And we find the name of the saint Therese Martin (1873-1897) which will be celebrated 150th anniversary of birth in 2023.
This is how the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization honors the memory of people who have worked in the fields of peace, education, science, social science, and communication.
“The values of peace”
The Sanctuary had proposed the inscription of Thérèse de Lisieux in November 2020. France had selected and presented the candidacy of the saint and Gustave Eiffel. The two names have been retained by Unesco, which has yet to validate them definitively in November 2021 during a general assembly.
For Unesco, “the celebration of this anniversary will help to bring greater visibility and justice to women who have promoted, through their actions, the values of peace”:
Given the fame of Thérèse de Lisieux in the Catholic community, the celebration of her birthday can be an opportunity to highlight the role of women within religions in the fight against poverty and the promotion of inclusion.
Unesco also hopes that this will strengthen its message “on the importance of culture (poems and written plays) in the promotion of universal values and as a vector of interreligious dialogue”.
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