ASTORIA — One of the Catholic Church’s most beloved saints is fostering a special spiritual connection between a Queens pastor and one of his parishioners.
Father Vincent Chirichella, pastor of St. Joseph Church in Astoria, has been devoted to St. Thérèse of Lisieux for many years, dating back to when he was discerning for the priesthood. Yvonne Sfogliano, a Eucharistic minister at the church, is also devoted to the saint, and her attachment to the “Little Flower” dates back to her childhood.
Each prays for St. Thérèse of Lisieux’s intercession for different reasons, but their loyalty to her binds them in friendship.
Sfogliano, 79, recently cemented their bond by bestowing on Father Chirichella one of her most prized possessions — a tiny portrait of St. Thérèse of Lisieux surrounded by a crocheted border — that one of the Sisters of St. Joseph gave her when she was 6.
“I wanted Father Vincent to have it because I knew he would cherish it and take good care of it,” she said.
Touched by the gesture, Father Chirichella keeps the portrait, which is encased in a metal frame, on his desk.
St. Joseph Church marked the feast day of St. Thérèse of Lisieux (Oct. 1) with a triduum on Sept. 29, 30, and Oct.1, during which parishioners gathered to pray and reflect on the life of the French Carmelite nun who died in 1897 at the tender age of 24, yet has had an impact on Catholics all over the world because of her “Little Way” philosophy, which teaches that performing small acts of kindness and doing ordinary tasks with love can make holiness possible for everyday people.
Sfogliano was a first grader at St. Patrick School in Astoria in 1952 when one of the sisters who taught there gave the portrait to her mother, Lillian Fumai.
“The sister liked my mother and wanted to give her a gift. My mother was one of the few people who had a car back then, and she used to drive the sisters around. We always had nuns in the car,” she recalled. “I really liked them. How sweet they were. They were gentle women. They were women of peace and calm.”
However, Fumai wanted her little daughter Yvonne to have the gift, so she suggested that the nun give it to her instead.
Young Yvonne put the portrait in her room and kept it for the rest of her life. “I’ve always had it,” she said. “When I moved, it moved with me.”
Over the years, she found that praying for St. Thérèse of Lisieux’s intercession helped her remain calm during hectic times.
About 20 years ago, Sfogliano started going to Mass at St. Joseph Church, and when Father Chirichella was assigned pastor in 2021, she got to know him and found that, like her, he had a devotion to her favorite saint.
“St. Thérèse came into my life when I was discerning the priesthood,” said Father Chirichella, who was ordained in 2007. “I got an envelope in the mail from the Alaskan Missions, and there was her picture. She’s the patron saint of missions.
“So, from then on, I started praying for her help, and she started sending roses here and there throughout my life.”
Father Chirichella said he understands why she is such a beloved saint. “What I’m most attracted to is the practicality of her spirituality. ‘The Little Way,’ that we can all do small things with love,” he explained.
Sfogliano said she decided to part with the portrait because of her age.
“I thought, ‘I’m going to be 80 soon, and if anything happened to me, I would want St. Thérèse to have a good home,’ ” she said. “And because of Father Vincent, I know it does.”