#st-teresa-of-avila — Public Fediverse posts
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Quote of the day, 29 June: St. Teresa of Avila
What I’ve said is enough now for beholding His great mercies, not the one time but the many times He has pardoned so much ingratitude.
Saint Peter, You pardoned once when he was ungrateful; me, You pardoned many times. With what reason the devil tempted me not to pretend to be a friend with one whom I treated publicly like an enemy.
What terrible blindness mine was! Where, my Lord, did I think I could find a remedy save in You?
What folly: to flee from the light so as to be always stumbling! Such proud humility the devil invented in me: withdrawing from the column and the staff which were my support against a fall so great!
Once while with this presence of the three Persons that I carry about in my soul, I experienced so much light you couldn’t doubt the living and true God was there.
In this state He gave me understanding of things I didn’t know how to speak of afterward. Among them was how the Person of the Son, and not the others, took flesh.
As I say, I wouldn’t know how to explain any of these things. For some of them take place so secretly in the soul that it seems the intellect understands, as in the case of a person who while sleeping or half asleep, thinks that what is spoken is understood within.
I was reflecting upon how arduous a life this is that deprives us of being always in that wonderful company, and I said to myself, “Lord, give me some means by which I can put up with this life.”
He replied: “Think, daughter, of how after it is finished you will not be able to serve me in ways you can now. Eat for Me and sleep for Me, and let everything you do be for Me, as though you no longer lived but I; for this is what St. Paul was speaking of” [1 Cor 10:31].
Saint Teresa of Avila
The Book of Her Life, chap. 19, no. 10
Spiritual Testimonies, no. 51Note: The Pauline spirituality expressed in Teresa’s vision—living “as though you no longer lived but I”—had already found poetic expression three years earlier in her famous verse from around 1572: Vivo sin vivir en mí, / y de tal manera espero / que muero porque no muero (I live without living in myself, / and in such a way I hope, / I die because I do not die). Christ’s words in this 1575 testimony seem to confirm and deepen the mystical theology Teresa was already experiencing and articulating through poetry.
Teresa of Avila, St. 1985, The Collected Works of St. Teresa of Avila, translated from the Spanish by Kavanaugh, K; Rodriguez, O, ICS Publications, Washington DC.
Teresa de Jesús & Álvarez, T 1994, Obras completas, Editorial Monte Carmelo, Burgos.
Featured image: “Saints Peter and Paul often assist Teresa in overcoming demons” is an engraving on paper by Adrian Collaert, engraver, and Theodoor Galle, publisher. The printer is unknown; the engraving dates to Antwerp, 1613. The banner above reads “Confide, quia a daemone nequaquam decipieris” (Trust, for you will never be deceived by a demon). The Latin inscription reads: “She sees the glorious apostles Peter and Paul often standing by her side, promising help against the demons’ illusions: nor is it a vain promise, for she was so divinely illuminated with grace that she could easily conquer all the devil’s tricks.” From the album Vita B. Virginis Teresiae A. Jesu ordinis carmelitarum excalceatorum piae restauratricis….Antverpiae, Apud Adrianum Collardum et Theodorum Gallaeum. M.DC.XIII. (BI-1904-78). Image credit: Rijksmuseum (Public domain).
⬦ Reflection Question ⬦
Have you ever found yourself speaking to God in prayer as naturally as thinking to yourself, without formal words or structure?
⬦ Join the conversation in the comments. -
Blesseds Denis and Redemptus: Missionary Martyrs
The least that any of us who has truly begun to serve the Lord can offer Him is our own life. Since we have given the Lord our will, what do we fear? It is clear that if someone is a true religious or a true person of prayer and aims to enjoy the delights of God, he must not turn his back upon the desire to die for God and suffer martyrdom.
St. Teresa of Avila
The Way of Perfection, ch. 12Courage in Mission, Journey to Sanctity
On November 29, 1638, Blessed Denis of the Nativity and Blessed Redemptus of the Cross gave their lives as martyrs in Aceh, Sumatra. These Discalced Carmelite friars—one a former cartographer and naval commander, the other a soldier turned lay brother—exemplified the missionary spirit of Carmel.
- Blessed Denis of the Nativity (Pierre Berthelot): Born in Honfleur, France, on December 12, 1600, Denis distinguished himself as a cosmographer and pilot-in-chief for the Portuguese king. His cartographic expertise was renowned, and his works contributed significantly to Portuguese navigation and exploration. Despite his prominent naval career, Denis sought a higher calling. He joined the Discalced Carmelites in Goa in 1635 under the guidance of Father Philip of the Most Holy Trinity. Denis professed vows on December 25, 1636, and was ordained a priest on August 24, 1638.
- Blessed Redemptus of the Cross (Thomas Rodriguez da Cunha): Born around 1598 in Portugal, Redemptus served as a soldier before entering the Discalced Carmelites as a lay brother in 1615. Known for his humility and dedication, he became a trusted companion to Denis, offering steadfast support in their shared mission.
Both men transformed their worldly expertise into tools for evangelization, fully committing themselves to their Carmelite vocations.
The Mission in Indonesia
In September 1638, Denis and Redemptus were assigned to accompany Ambassador Francisco de Souza de Castro on a Portuguese diplomatic mission to Aceh. Denis served as a spiritual guide and maritime expert due to his knowledge of navigation and the Malay language. However, the mission’s arrival on October 25, 1638, was shadowed by geopolitical tensions, with the Dutch East India Company (VOC), a rival of the Portuguese in the spice trade, reportedly influenced the Sultan of Aceh to betray the delegation.
Upon their imprisonment, Denis and Redemptus were subjected to relentless torture as their captors tried to force them to renounce their Catholic faith and convert to Islam. Denis became a source of strength for his fellow prisoners, depriving himself of necessities to aid others and encouraging them with words of faith and hope.
Redemptus was executed first, shot with arrows before his throat was slit. Denis, holding a crucifix, was martyred last, receiving a fatal sword blow that split his head.
The martyrdom of Denis and Redemptus was not solely a case of religious persecution. The mission to Aceh occurred at the intersection of faith and politics, with Portugal and the Dutch VOC vying for dominance in the Southeast Asian spice trade. Their deaths highlight the challenges faced by missionaries operating in politically charged environments, even today.
Faithful Witnesses
Denis and Redemptus were beatified by Pope Leo XIII on June 10, 1900, as the first beatified martyrs of the Discalced Carmelite friars. Their feast day on November 29 honors their courage, missionary zeal, and faithful witness to Christ. Their deaths remind us of the sacrifices made to spread the Gospel, even in hostile and complex circumstances.
Want a concise account of the mission and martyrdom of Blesseds Denis and Redemptus? Click below to listen to our podcast on YouTube and be inspired by their incredible story of faith and courage.
Catholic Church 1993, Proper of the Liturgy of the Hours of the Order of the Brothers of the Blessed Virgin Mary of Mount Carmel and the Order of Discalced Carmelites (Rev. and augm.), Institutum Carmelitanum, Rome.
Discalced Carmelite Postulator, Biografia di Dionisio della Natività, accessed 27 November 2024, https://www.postocd.org/index.php/it/biografia-dionisio-della-nativita.
Discalced Carmelite Postulator, Biografia di Redento della Croce, accessed 27 November 2024, https://www.postocd.org/index.php/it/biografia-redento-della-croce.
Wikipedia, ‘Pierre Berthelot (navigateur)’, accessed 27 November 2024, https://fr.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pierre_Berthelot_(navigateur).
Featured image: OpenAI DALL·E 2024, ‘Landscape illustration symbolizing Aceh, Sumatra,’ generated 27 November 2024.
#DenisOfTheNativity #Indonesia #martyrs #missionaries #Podcast #RedemptusOfTheCross #StTeresaOfAvila
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Scripture Reading: 1 Corinthians 13:4–7
Love is patient; love is kind; love is not envious or boastful or arrogant or rude. It does not insist on its own way; it is not irritable or resentful; it does not rejoice in wrongdoing, but rejoices in the truth. It bears all things, believes all things, hopes all things, endures all things.
St. Teresa Speaks: Way of Perfection, 20:4
Let truth dwell in your hearts, as it should through meditation, and you will see clearly the kind of love we are obliged to have for our neighbor.
Reflection: The Truth of Love for Our Neighbor
Teresa urges us to let truth dwell in our hearts through meditation so that our love for others is sincere and rooted in God. Are we committed to loving our neighbor as Christ commands, or do we love only those who are easy to love? Teresa’s challenge calls us to examine whether our love is shaped by the truth of God or by selfish motives.
Novena Prayer
O Holy Mother Saint Teresa, look down from heaven and see: visit this vine and protect what thy right hand hath planted.
(Mention your intentions)
Merciful God, who by thy Spirit didst raise up thy servant Saint Teresa of Jesus to reveal to thy Church the way of perfection: grant that her teaching may awaken in us a longing for holiness until, assisted by her intercession, we attain to the perfect union of love in Jesus Christ thy Son our Lord; who liveth and reigneth with thee, in the unity of the Holy Spirit, ever one God, world without end. Amen.
Our Father…
Hail Mary…
Glory be…
Saint Teresa of Avila, pray for us!
Teresa of Avila, St. 1985, The Collected Works of St. Teresa of Avila, translated from the Spanish by Kavanaugh, K; Rodriguez, O, ICS Publications, Washington DC.
All scripture references in this novena are from the New Revised Standard Version Bible: Catholic Edition, copyright © 1989, 1993 the Division of Christian Education of the National Council of the Churches of Christ in the United States of America as accessed from the Bible Gateway website.
Don’t become discouraged and give up prayer, says St. John of the Cross. We offer varying novenas to Our Lady of Mount Carmel, as well as novenas to St. Joseph, St. Teresa of Avila, St. John of the Cross, St. Thérèse of Lisieux, Sts. Louis and Zélie Martin, St. Elizabeth of the Trinity, and St. Edith Stein.
https://carmelitequotes.blog/2024/10/10/stjnovena24-6/
#prayer #love #StTeresaOfAvila #neighbor #humility #truth #novena #meditation
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God is supreme Truth; and to be humble is to walk in truth.
The Interior Castle, VI, ch. 10, no. 7
Novena Introduction: Humility and Truth
In her writings, St. Teresa of Avila reveals that the way of perfection is a path paved with truth and humility. These virtues are not only foundational but indispensable to spiritual maturity, no matter our state in life. Whether we are engaged in work, family, service, or prayer, humility is the first step on the path toward God (cf. Way of Perfection, 17:1; Mt 23:12). As we walk this path, we must take the lowest place, as Teresa teaches, preparing ourselves with humility and allowing God to guide us as he wills. Just as she reminds us that all spiritual progress is rooted in humility, so too does she call us to walk humbly in the truth of who we are before God.
St. Teresa teaches that humility is not simply a virtue but the essential disposition we must cultivate to receive God’s grace (cf. Ja 4:6). She reminds us that true humility is “great readiness to be content with whatever the Lord may want to do with them and in always finding oneself unworthy to be called his servant” (Way of Perfection, 17:6). By embracing humility, we open ourselves to receiving the truth of who we are before God—weak, dependent, and in need of his mercy. This recognition of our unworthiness is not self-deprecating but an honest acknowledgment that apart from God, we can do nothing (cf. Jn 15:5).
This novena draws upon the central themes of Teresa’s teaching—truth, humility, and love. As St. Teresa reminds us, “God is supreme Truth; and to be humble is to walk in truth.” To walk in humility, then, is to surrender our desire to control our spiritual growth, trusting that God, who is Truth, knows what is best for us. It means embracing the cross, as Teresa so often emphasized, allowing suffering to become a means of union with Christ. Walking in truth and humility also means loving God and our neighbor not just with words, but with action, reflecting the truth of God’s love in every aspect of our lives.
Let this novena be a time of humble surrender, that we may listen to God’s voice and open our hearts to his truth. As we meditate on the words of St. Teresa and the Scriptures, may we grow in the virtues of humility and truth, and may we experience the deep peace that comes from knowing and loving God.
Novena Meditations
Join us as we pray every day! As our novena unfolds, each day you will see a new link for our meditations from St. Teresa of Avila.
- Day 1
Recognizing God’s Supreme Truth - Day 2
Humility in God’s Presence - Day 3
Loving God Truthfully - Day 4
Humility as the Foundation - Day 5
God Alone is Truth - Day 6
The Truth of Love for Our Neighbor - Day 7
Knowing and Loving God - Day 8
Suffering as the Way of Truth - Day 9
Walking in Truth and Humility
Novena Prayer
O Holy Mother Saint Teresa, look down from heaven and see: visit this vine and protect what thy right hand hath planted.
(Mention your intentions)
Merciful God, who by thy Spirit didst raise up thy servant Saint Teresa of Jesus to reveal to thy Church the way of perfection: grant that her teaching may awaken in us a longing for holiness until assisted by her intercession, we attain to the perfect union of love in Jesus Christ thy Son our Lord; who liveth and reigneth with thee, in the unity of the Holy Spirit, ever one God, world without end. Amen.
Our Father…
Hail Mary…
Glory be…
Saint Teresa of Avila, pray for us!
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Q8R2k7J6I14
Teresa of Avila, St. 1985, The Collected Works of St. Teresa of Avila, translated from the Spanish by Kavanaugh, K; Rodriguez, O, ICS Publications, Washington DC.
All scripture references in this novena are from the New Revised Standard Version Bible: Catholic Edition, copyright © 1989, 1993 the Division of Christian Education of the National Council of the Churches of Christ in the United States of America as accessed from the Bible Gateway website.
Featured image: This anonymous 17th-century Spanish oil on canvas painting depicts St. Teresa of Avila, illuminated by the Holy Spirit, holding her writing quill with her right hand. It comes from the collections of the Prado Museum in Madrid and is on loan to another institution. Image credit: Copyright ©Museo Nacional del Prado (Used by permission)
Don’t become discouraged and give up prayer, says St. John of the Cross. We offer varying novenas to Our Lady of Mount Carmel, as well as novenas to St. Joseph, St. Teresa of Avila, St. John of the Cross, St. Thérèse of Lisieux, Sts. Louis and Zélie Martin, St. Elizabeth of the Trinity, and St. Edith Stein.
https://carmelitequotes.blog/2024/10/05/stjnovena24-0/
#God #humility #love #novena #prayer #StTeresaOfAvila #truth #virtue #walk #WayOfPerfection
- Day 1
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This is the authorization for Sister María de Jesús to make her profession. I grant it with great pleasure. May the blessing of the Lord de rore coeli et de pinguedine terrae be granted her.
Saint Teresa of Avila
Letter 263 to Blessed Mary of Jesus Lopez Rivas
From Avila, ca. August 1578This text is taken either from a note or a fragment of a letter written by St. Teresa of Avila. It was addressed to Blessed Mary of Jesus, who made her religious profession on 8 September 1578. St. Teresa’s words express her joyful authorization for Mary to take this important step in her Carmelite journey.
The blessing de rore coeli et de pinguedine terrae comes from Genesis 27:28, where Isaac blesses his son Jacob, saying: “May God give you of the dew of heaven, and of the fatness of the earth, and plenty of grain and wine.”
The Latin phrase calls upon God’s abundant blessings, both spiritual and material, asking that Mary be graced with all she needs to thrive in her vocation. It’s a powerful benediction that shows St. Teresa’s confidence in Mary and her hopes for the young nun’s future.
Blessed Mary of Jesus lived a life marked by profound humility and unwavering perseverance. Despite facing unjust persecution for nearly two decades, she remained steadfast in her faith. St. Teresa’s blessing served as a reminder of God’s care for those who trust in Him, offering strength and encouragement that is still relevant to us today.
To explore more about the life and virtues of Blessed Mary of Jesus Lopez Rivas, be sure to listen to Episode 22 of our podcast, embedded in this post.
https://youtu.be/xTztbQiP5g8?si=qAxEJqOsFa_P2Yz8
Teresa of Avila, St. 1985, The Collected Works of St. Teresa of Avila, translated from the Spanish by Kavanaugh, K; Rodriguez, O, ICS Publications, Washington DC.
Featured image: Original autograph manuscript of the Way of Perfection preserved in the Discalced Carmelite monastery of Valladolid. The photographer has focused on this sentence from Chapter 21: “They must have a great and very resolute determination to persevere until reaching the end, come what may, happen what may, whatever work is involved, whatever criticism arises, whether they arrive or whether they die on the road, or even if they don’t have courage for the trials that are met, or if the whole world collapses.” New medical and scientific research on the incorrupt body of the saint indicate that she may have been ambidextrous; she would have written her letter to Blessed Mary of Jesus with her right hand, since her left arm or wrist had been broken on Christmas Eve in 1577 and was never properly set. Image credit: Ángel Cantero, Iglesia en Valladolid / Flickr
https://carmelitequotes.blog/2024/09/11/s2ep22-lopezrivas/
#BlessedMaryOfJesusLópezRivas #blessing #DiscalcedCarmelite #humility #inspiration #perseverance #Podcast #religiousProfession #StTeresaOfAvila #trials
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Now let us speak about the type of soul that enters the second dwelling places and what such a soul does in them.
This stage pertains to those who have already begun to practice prayer and have understood how important it is not to stay in the first dwelling places. But they still don’t have the determination to remain in this second stage without turning back, for they don’t avoid the occasion of sin.
These rooms, in part, involve much more effort than do the first, even though there is not as much danger, for it now seems that souls in them recognize the dangers, and there is great hope they will enter further into the castle.
I say that these rooms involve more effort because those who are in the first dwelling places are like deaf-mutes and thus the difficulty of not speaking is more easily endured by them than it is by those who hear but cannot speak. Yet, not for this reason does one have greater desire to be deaf, for after all it is a wonderful thing to hear what is being said to us.
So these persons are able to hear the Lord when He calls. Since they are getting closer to where His Majesty dwells, He is a very good neighbor. Yet this Lord desires intensely that we love Him and seek His company, so much so that from time to time He calls us to draw near Him. And His voice is so sweet the poor soul dissolves at not doing immediately what He commands.
[His appeals and calls] come through words spoken by other good people, or through sermons, or through what is read in good books, or through the many things that are heard and by which God calls, or through illnesses and trials, or also through a truth that He teaches during the brief moments we spend in prayer; however lukewarm these moments may be, God esteems them highly.
And you, Sisters, don’t underestimate this first favor, nor should you become disconsolate if you don’t respond at once to the Lord. His Majesty knows well how to wait many days and years, especially when He sees perseverance and good desires. This perseverance is most necessary here. One always gains much through perseverance.
But the attacks made by devils in a thousand ways afflict the soul more in these rooms than in the previous ones. In the previous ones the soul was deaf and [mute]—at least it heard very little and resisted less, as one who has partly lost hope of conquering. Here the intellect is more alive and the faculties more skilled.
Saint Teresa of Avila
The Interior Castle, Second Dwelling Place, chap. 1, nos. 1–3
Teresa of Avila, St. 1985, The Collected Works of St. Teresa of Avila, translated from the Spanish by Kavanaugh, K; Rodriguez, O, ICS Publications, Washington DC.
Featured image: A Discalced Carmelite novice embraces the silence in a profound moment of prayer. Image credit: Ángel Cantero, Iglesia en Valladolid / Flickr (Some rights reserved)
https://carmelitequotes.blog/2024/09/07/stj-icii1/
#Call #deafMute #God #hear #InteriorCastle #love #patience #perseverance #prayer #sin #StTeresaOfAvila
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Courage, courage, my daughters. Remember that God does not give anyone more trials than can be suffered and that His Majesty is with the afflicted [cf. 1 Cor 10:13].
For this is certain, there is no reason to fear but to hope in his mercy. He will reveal the whole truth; and some machinations, which the devil kept hidden so as to create a disturbance, will be made known. This was more painful for me than all that is happening now.
Prayer, prayer, my sisters, and now let humility shine forth—and obedience in such a way that no one, especially the former prioress [María de San José Salazar], practices it more toward the appointed vicaress [Beatriz de la Madre de Dios].
Oh, what a good time it is for gathering fruit from the resolutions you made to serve our Lord. Consider that often he desires to have proof that our works are in conformity with our resolutions and words.
Bring honor to the daughters of the Blessed Virgin, your sisters, in this great persecution, for if you help one another, the good Jesus will help you. Even though he sleeps at sea, when the storm gathers strength he calms the winds [Mt 8:23–27].
He wants us to ask of him, and he loves us so much that he is always looking for ways to be of benefit to us. May his name be blessed forever, amen, amen, amen.
Saint Teresa of Avila
Letter 284 to the nuns in Seville, nos. 2–3
31 January 1579Note: Translator and editor Fr. Kieran Kavanaugh, OCD provides the following background concerning this letter:
The community in Seville was going through a crisis. Stripped of his powers as visitator, Gracián underwent a trial initiated against him by the provincial of Andalusia. The trial was seconded by the community’s former confessor, Garciálvarez. The objective of the scheme was to discredit Gracián and depose the prioress, María de San José. Then the provincial appointed one of the most inept nuns in the community, Beatriz de la Madre de Dios, to take the prioress’s place. Teresa knew all about what was happening. Lest her letter be confiscated, she sent it to her good friend, the prior of the Carthusians, so that he might read or give it to the interested nuns.
In Teresa’s letter Father Hernando Pantoja, the Carthusian prior in Seville (Letter 283), Teresa wrote:
I certainly do not worry much about the nuns who went there earlier with me to make the foundation [six nuns from Beas were the foundresses], and I even feel joy in seeing all that they will gain in this war the devil wages against them. I do, however, feel bad for those who entered there afterward [13 nuns entered later], for when they should be learning about the order and how to remain quiet, they are very distracted by all the turmoil, which can do much harm to souls that are new. May the Lord provide a remedy.
Teresa of Avila, St. 1985, The Collected Works of St. Teresa of Avila, translated from the Spanish by Kavanaugh, K; Rodriguez, O, ICS Publications, Washington DC.
Featured image: This image of Letter 148 from St. Teresa to Madre María de San José (Salazar) in Seville is a brilliant example of the plain-speaking Saint writing to the former prioress in Seville. At the beginning of the letter, Teresa writes: “Always include on a small piece of paper a list of the things you want me to answer. Your letters are long—although they don’t seem so, because of the joy they give me; but if when in a hurry I have to read them all over in order to answer them, they do seem long.” Image credit: iStock (Stock photo)
https://carmelitequotes.blog/2024/09/01/stj-ltr284n2/
#courage #FatherJerónimoGraciánOfTheMotherOfGod #hope #Jesus #MariaDeSanJoséSalazar #mercy #monasticLife #persecution #StTeresaOfAvila #storm
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Our Discalced Carmelite nuns in Puzol (Valencia), Spain have provided a summary of the initial conclusions of medical researchers during their on-site examination of Saint Teresa’s incorrupt remains. We present our translation and a link to the original article on their blog, “Teresa, de la rueca a la pluma.”
On August 30th, the first phase of the study of the remains of St. Teresa of Avila was completed in Alba de Tormes, which has already provided initial evidence about the saint’s health in the last years of her life.
“The medical team has concluded, after this initial on-site analysis, that Teresa had a very fragile physical constitution. For at least the last few years, her posture was severely affected by kyphosis, causing her to walk with a pronounced stoop,” reported Fr. Marco Chiesa, OCD, Postulator General of the Discalced Carmelite Order.
Fr. Marco pointed out that kyphosis resulted in an exaggerated forward curvature of St. Teresa’s upper back. Kyphosis is usually due to the weakness of the bones of the spine, which causes them to fracture and compress, although the medical team has indicated that St. Teresa did not suffer from osteoporosis.
“The deformation of the vertebrae of the spine forced Teresa to breathe with difficulty, at least in the last years of her life,” concluded Father Marco Chiesa. From a medical point of view, in this initial analysis, it was found that the Saint suffered from rheumatism and osteoarthritis in the left knee.
Similarly, the Discalced Carmelite Postulator General explained that Teresa of Avila suffered from plantar fasciitis in the last years of her life. “The doctors indicate that this injury must have caused her a lot of pain when walking,” said Father Chiesa.
For his part, Father Miguel Ángel González, OCD, the prior of Alba de Tormes, said that according to this initial examination, she used both her right and left hands with equal precision, which raises the possibility that she could have been ambidextrous. Until now, it was known (St. Teresa wrote about it) that on December 24, 1577, she broke her left arm in Saint Joseph’s monastery in Avila and that in May 1578, a healer from Medina del Campo reset it.
Father Miguel Ángel explained:
“This preliminary analysis indicates that there was no fracture in the left arm. There was a dislocation, especially in the wrist. When the healer from Medina del Campo was able to help her after several months, she and an assistant pulled the arm and dislocated the shoulder. In other words, the cure was worse than the disease. That arm remained quite useless for the last five years of her life.”
This issue of the arm is very well documented in the writings of St. Teresa herself and in the testimonies for her beatification.
“God was pleased that it wasn’t my right arm that suffered the damage, and so I can write this” (Letter 235, March 1578). She also wrote to Father Gracián about her visit to the healer in Medina del Campo: “I had lost the use of my wrist, for it has been a long time since I fell. So the pain and toil were terrible […]. I can move the hand well and lift the arm as far as my head” (Letter 244, 7 May 1578).
The medical team working in Alba de Tormes indicates that before the accident in 1577, the Saint used her left hand a lot and without difficulty. The reports presented by the doctors will help to clarify if she was ambidextrous.
Closure of the Sepulcher
After the conclusion of this first phase, the silver casket was closed with its four corresponding keys. Following the closure, the casket with the body of the saint was transferred to the upper chapel of the basilica from the cloister where it had remained for two days. The same people participated in the transfer two days ago.
“The silver casket with the saint’s body has been placed inside, and the marble slab has been put in place, closing it with its three corresponding keys. The grille was then locked with its three keys,” Father Miguel Ángel González, Prior of Alba de Tormes, said.
The arm, the heart, and the hand have been placed in their corresponding reliquaries, which have undergone a cleaning process. The heart and the arm have been put back in the chapel, where they remain as usual.
With the information collected, the second stage of this process will begin in Italian laboratories and research centers. The researchers announced that there is much work to be done and they will present their conclusions about the saintly remains at the appropriate time.
Father Marco Chiesa restated the previous information:
“The first stage of this on-site process in Alba de Tormes has concluded, and the second stage will now begin in Italian research laboratories. It will last several months. During 2025, the researchers will reach their conclusions, and the third stage will take place in Alba de Tormes.”
Translation from the Spanish text is the blogger’s own work product and may not be reproduced without permission.
Featured image: The Discalced Carmelite nuns of the Monastery of the Annunciation of Our Lady in Alba de Tormes, Spain, gathered with the Discalced Carmelite friars from the Iberian Province as they returned the silver casket of St. Teresa of Avila to its resting place in the marble sepulcher of the monastery. Father Miguel Ángel González, OCD, prior of the Discalced Carmelite friars in Alba de Tormes (fourth from the right, next to the sepulcher), and Discalced Carmelite Postulator General Father Marco Chiesa, OCD (fifth from the right), presided over the solemn rite. Image credit: Discalced Carmelites / delaruecaalapluma.com
https://carmelitequotes.blog/2024/08/31/stj-closecasket/
#AlbaDeTormes #DiscalcedCarmelites #illness #medicalTreatment #PostulatorGeneral #ProvinceOfIbérica #science #StTeresaOfAvila #study #suffering
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St. Teresa of Avila’s body remains incorrupt! On August 28th, her tomb was opened, confirming the preservation of her relics since 1914. #StTeresaOfAvila
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I was very much disliked throughout my monastery [Monastery of the Incarnation, Avila] because I had wanted to found a more enclosed monastery. They said I was insulting them; that in my own monastery, I could also serve God since there were others in it better than I; that I had no love for the house; that it would be better to procure income for this place than for some other.
Several of them said I should be thrown into the prison cell; others—very few—defended me somewhat. I saw clearly that in many matters my opponents were right, and sometimes I gave them explanations.
Yet since I couldn’t mention the main factor, which was that the Lord had commanded me to do this, I didn’t know how to act; so I remained silent about the other things. God granted me the very great favor that none of all this disturbed me; rather, I gave up the plan with as much ease and contentment as I would have if it hadn’t cost me anything.
One day, while I was greatly troubled with the thought that my confessor didn’t believe me, the Lord told me not to be anxious, that that affliction would soon end. I rejoiced deeply, thinking His words meant I was soon to die; and I became very happy when I thought about it.
Afterward, I saw clearly they referred to the arrival of this rector I mentioned because the occasion for that pain never presented itself again [Gaspar de Salazar, S.J. arrived in April 1562].
The new rector didn’t restrain my confessor but rather told him to console me; that there was no reason for fear, and not to lead me by so confining a path; that he should let the spirit of the Lord work, for at times it seemed with these great spiritual impulses that my soul couldn’t even breathe.
My confessor gave me permission again to dedicate myself entirely to this foundation. I saw clearly the toil it would bring upon me since I was very much alone and had hardly any means.
We agreed to carry on in total secrecy, and so I got one of my sisters [Juana de Ahumada] who lived outside this city [in Alba de Tormes] to buy the house and fix it up, as though it were for herself, with money the Lord provided, in certain ways, for its purchase.
It would take long to recount how the Lord was looking after it, for I took great care not to do anything against obedience. But I knew that if I said anything to my superiors, everything would be lost as happened the previous time, and things would even be worse.
In procuring the money, acquiring the house, signing the contract for it, and fixing it up, I went through so many trials of so many kinds that now I’m amazed I was able to suffer them. In some of them, I was completely alone; although my companion did what she could. But she could do little, and so little that it almost amounted to nothing more than to have everything done in her name and as her gift and all the rest of the trouble was mine.
Sometimes in distress, I said:
“My Lord, how is it You command things that seem impossible? For if I were at least free, even though I am a woman! But bound on so many sides, without money or the means to raise it or to obtain the brief or anything, what can I do, Lord?“
Saint Teresa of Avila
The Book of Her Life, chap. 33, nos. 2, 8, 11
Note: Born in Toledo, and while studying at Alcalá, Gaspar de Salazar (1529-1593) decided to enter the Jesuits, which he did in 1552. Translator and editor Kieran Kavanaugh, OCD notes that Salazar’s chronicler described him as being very devoted to the interior life with God, from whom he received many favors in prayer, and also as very intelligent and competent in business matters. In 1562 he was transferred to Avila to be rector there of the Jesuit college of San Gil. Because of difficulties that arose between the college and the bishop, Don Alvaro de Mendoza, Salazar was removed from that office after only nine months. But in that short time, he came to Teresa’s aid by putting her spiritual director, Baltasar Alvarez, at ease about her, assuring him that he had nothing to fear. And when Teresa spoke to him of her experiences, he consoled her greatly and seemed to her to have a special gift of discerning spirits (cf. Life, 33:8-9).
Teresa of Avila, St. 1985, The Collected Works of St. Teresa of Avila, translated from the Spanish by Kavanaugh, K; Rodriguez, O, ICS Publications, Washington DC.
Featured image: This is the cell St. Teresa occupied when she returned to the Monastery of the Incarnation in Avila as its prioress (1571-1574). Image credit: Fr. Lawrence Lew, O.P. / Flickr (Some rights reserved)
https://carmelitequotes.blog/2024/05/01/stj-life33/
#Avila #confessor #construction #familyLife #foundation #Jesuits #MonasteryOfTheIncarnation #monasticLife #realEstate #StJosephMonastery #StTeresaOfAvila #trials
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I took for my advocate and lord the glorious St. Joseph
and earnestly recommended myself to him.Saint Teresa of Avila
The Book of Her Life, chap. 6, no. 6Introduction
Saint Teresa’s devotion to “the glorious St. Joseph” is well known in the Church. She dedicated her first monastery of the Carmelite reform in Avila to the patronage of Saint Joseph, and she entrusted her first novices in Avila to his care.
St. Teresa’s devotion to this great saint and protector of Carmel grew ever stronger during a crisis in her life. As a professed Carmelite nun in the Monastery of the Incarnation in Avila, she became gravely ill. Her condition was so serious that her friends and family believed she was dead. After she awoke from her comatose condition, her recovery was painfully slow.
Saint Edith Stein tells the story:
Teresa suffered for three years without asking for recovery. We do not know why she now changed her mind. She only tells us that she decided to beseech heaven to end her suffering.
With this intention, she asked that a Mass be offered and turned toward the saint in whom she had always had unlimited trust, and who owes to her zeal the increased veneration shown him.
“I do not know how to think about the Queen of Angels, about all of her pains and cares with the little child Jesus without thanking St. Joseph for the dedication with which he came to the help of both of them” [Life, 6:8]. She ascribed her healing to him.
Soon he came to my rescue in very obvious ways. This most beloved father and lord of my soul quickly freed me of the weakness and suffering to which my body was consigned. . . . I don’t recall that he ever denied me anything. St. Joseph permitted his power and goodness to me to become evident. Through him, I regained my strength. I stood up, walked, and was free of the paralysis. [cf. Life, 6:6–8]
In this year’s novena to St. Joseph, we will return to the source of all devotion to St. Joseph in the Teresian Carmel: the experience and witness of St. Teresa of Avila.
In the same way that Teresa turned to Joseph in her hour of greatest need and received all that she desired—and more, besides—so we, too, may turn to Joseph and present him our needs.
May these excerpts from sacred scripture and Teresa’s writings inspire us to “go to Joseph” (cf. Gen 41:55) and take him for our advocate, trusting in his powerful intercession for all our deepest needs.
Pray each day with Saints Joseph and Teresa
- Day 1
The doctors of heaven - Day 2
My advocate and lord - Day 3
All the solemnity possible - Day 4
The desire to persuade - Day 5
My petition is always granted - Day 6
A great obligation - Day 7
St. Joseph appeared to me - Day 8
Giving thanks to St. Joseph - Day 9
I could rise and walk
Novena Prayer
St. Joseph, Man of peace,
You were a tower of strength and a steady refuge
for the Child Jesus and His Virgin Mother.
We call upon you to be our support in times of difficulty.(Mention your intentions here)
Teach us to be serene under the Heavenly
Father’s guiding hand during the challenges that we face.
We entrust to your intercession all of our intentions,
for ourselves, for our loved ones, and for the whole world.
Please provide for us a home of refuge and peace.Our Father…
“Strive to pray with attention” (Way of Perfection, 24:6)
Glory be…
“The Trinity is in our souls by presence, power, and essence” (Spiritual Testimonies, 49)
Our novena prayer to St. Joseph comes from the Carmel of St. Joseph, Terre Haute, Indiana USA
All scripture references in this novena are from the New Revised Standard Version Bible: Catholic Edition, copyright © 1989, 1993 the Division of Christian Education of the National Council of the Churches of Christ in the United States of America as accessed from the Bible Gateway website.
Stein, E. 2014, The Hidden Life: hagiographic essays, meditations, spiritual texts, translated from the German by Stein, W, ICS Publications, Washington DC.
Teresa of Avila, St. 1985, The Collected Works of St. Teresa of Avila, translated from the Spanish by Kavanaugh, K; Rodriguez, O, ICS Publications, Washington DC.
Don’t become discouraged and give up prayer, says St. John of the Cross. We offer varying novenas to Our Lady of Mount Carmel, as well as novenas to St. Joseph, St. Teresa of Avila, St. John of the Cross, St. Thérèse of Lisieux, Sts. Louis and Zélie Martin, St. Elizabeth of the Trinity, and St. Edith Stein.
https://carmelitequotes.blog/2024/03/09/joenovena24-i/
#advocate #Avila #intercession #Lord #novena #prayer #StJoseph #StJosephMonastery #StTeresaOfAvila
- Day 1
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"Make those who will profess vows here learn through a long trial period not to think their life will amount to words alone, without deeds also."
(St. Teresa of Avila, The Way of Perfection 32:5, footnote 1, Kavanaugh translation)
#lent #StTeresaOfAvila #religiouslife #Catholic #Carmelite #quoteoftheday -
"Love, when it is grown, cannot be without action."
#StTeresaOfAvila -
St. John of the Cross Novena, Day 5: Trust
Reading
In tribulation, immediately draw near to God with trust, and you will receive strength, enlightenment, and instruction.
Sayings of Light and Love, 66
Scripture
Have mercy on me, God, men crush me;
they fight me all day long and oppress me.
My foes crush me all day long,
for many fight proudly against me.When I fear, I will trust in you,
in God whose word I praise.
In God I trust, I shall not fear:
what can mortal man do to me?All day long they distort my words,
all their thought is to harm me.
They band together in ambush,
track me down and seek my life.You have kept an account of my wanderings;
you have kept a record of my tears;
are they not written in your book?
Then my foes will be put to flight
on the day that I call to you.This I know, that God is on my side.
In God, whose word I praise,
in the Lord, whose word I praise,
in God I trust; I shall not fear:
what can mortal man do to me?I am bound by the vows I have made you.
O God, I will offer you praise
for you rescued my soul from death,
you kept my feet from stumbling
that I may walk in the presence of God
and enjoy the light of the living.Meditation
Oh, blessed tribulation, that sure sign that God is madly in love with you.
Tribulation is a word that is no longer part of our daily vocabulary. It appears in word puzzles and still makes its way into Hollywood film scripts, although it sounds more appropriate coming from the lips of the revered British actor Charles Laughton, whose King Herod once posed the legendary rhetorical question: “Why does the prophet visit me with worse than the tribulations of Job?”
Saint Teresa of Jesus understood what Saint John of the Cross meant when he was writing about tribulation because she had seen her fair share of it in her lifetime. Here’s just one example from Testimony 53 written in Seville, 8 November 1575:
On the octave day of All Saints I spent two or three very troublesome days over the remembrance of my great sins and because of some fears of my being persecuted that had no foundation, except that false testimony was going to be raised [She had been falsely accused before the Inquisition of Seville]. And all the courage I usually have for suffering left me. Although I wanted to encourage myself, and I made acts and reflected that this suffering would be very beneficial to my soul, all these actions helped me little. For the fear didn’t go away, and what I felt was a vexing war. I chanced upon a letter in which my good Father [Jerome Gracián, Discalced Carmelite and Apostolic Visitor] refers to what St. Paul says, that God does not permit us to be tempted beyond what we can suffer (1 Cor 10:13). That comforted me a lot, but it wasn’t enough. Rather, the next day I became sorely afflicted in seeing I was without him, since I had no one to whom I could have recourse in this tribulation. It seemed to me I was living in great loneliness, and this loneliness increased when I saw that there was no one now but him who might give me comfort and that he had to be absent most of the time, which was a great torment to me.
On the next night, while reading in a book a saying of St. Paul which began to console me, I was thinking of how present our Lord had previously been to me, for He had so truly seemed to be the living God. While I was thinking about this, He appeared in an intellectual vision, very deep within me, as though on the side where the heart is, and said: “Here I am, but I want you to see what little you can do without Me.”
I felt reassured right away, and all my fears were gone. While I was at Matins that same night, the Lord, through an intellectual vision so intense it almost seemed to be an imaginative one, placed Himself in my arms as in the painting of the fifth agony. This vision caused me great fear. For it was so clear, and He was so close to me that I wondered if it was an illusion. He told me: “Don’t be surprised by this, for My Father is with your soul in an incomparably greater union.”
This vision has so remained up till now. What I said of our Lord lasted more than a month. Now it is gone.
Now, we may not be falsely accused before the Inquisition, but in our daily lives, we see plenty of tribulation. And Saint Teresa makes it clear that if we are seeking to make love our ambition, to grow in that untiring love of which St. John of the Cross speaks, then we will be blessed with tribulation.
Blessed with tribulation?
“It is clear that since God wants to lead those whom He greatly loves by the path of tribulation—and the more He loves them the greater the tribulation—there is no reason to think that He despises contemplatives, for with His own mouth He praises them and considers them His friends.” (Way 18:1)
But what if I don’t want to be a contemplative?
For the faithful, this truly is not an option if we desire to be united with Christ in heaven, where we will be contemplatives for all eternity! St. Paul writes, “and we all, who with unveiled faces contemplate the Lord’s glory, are being transformed into his image with ever-increasing glory, which comes from the Lord, who is the Spirit” (2 Cor 3:18).
The Catechism reminds us:
Because of his transcendence, God cannot be seen as he is, unless he himself opens up his mystery to man’s immediate contemplation and gives him the capacity for it. The Church calls this contemplation of God in his heavenly glory “the beatific vision.”
Citing St. Cyprian, the Catechism continues:
How great will your glory and happiness be, to be allowed to see God, to be honored with sharing the joy of salvation and eternal light with Christ your Lord and God, . . . to delight in the joy of immortality in the Kingdom of heaven with the righteous and God’s friends. (CCC 1028)
To be able to contemplate Christ for all eternity, the tribulation is worth it.
We notice that a great Saint and Doctor of the Church like Our Holy Mother Teresa was not immune from tribulation and anxiety. She was suffering terribly: there were “very troublesome days” and fears of being persecuted. She had lost her courage, and every remedy, every action that normally helped in past situations didn’t help at all. She was stuck in her fears and left with what she calls a guerra desabrida… a rather unsavory war—fruitless, vexing, and pointless. Even reading a letter from the priest who meant more to her than any other friar in the world couldn’t console her; his advice was to read St. Paul, but she admitted that it “comforted me a lot, but it wasn’t enough.”
Poor St. Teresa, she was really in emotional distress and in a spiritual bind. The next day she became even more upset because Father Gracián wasn’t there to encourage and console her in her anxiety. “I had no one to whom I could have recourse in this tribulation” and for her, the loneliness seemed to be the worst part.
St. John of the Cross says that it’s in times like these that we must “immediately draw near to God with trust” and that is exactly what St. Teresa did. She didn’t give up praying, seeking, and hoping, and she didn’t abandon God. Quite the opposite: she continued to draw near to God, even though He seemed distant or hiding. It seems that she may have had difficulty praying with peace, so she turned to spiritual reading instead.
Now, the Lord made himself known to St. Teresa at that moment through a mystical experience. However, that may not necessarily be the path the Lord chooses for each one of us. What St. John of the Cross explains is that if we draw near to God with trust, then we will receive “strength, enlightenment, and instruction.”
St. Elizabeth of the Trinity gives the following advice to ordinary folks like you and I for how best to draw near to God when troubled or anxious in those moments that St. John and St. Teresa called “tribulation”:
You must build a little cell within your soul as I do. Remember that God is there and enter it from time to time; when you feel nervous or you’re unhappy, quickly seek refuge there and tell the Master all about it.
Ah, if you got to know Him a little, prayer wouldn’t bore you anymore; to me it seems to be rest, relaxation. We come quite simply to the One we love, stay close to Him like a little child in the arms of its mother, and we let our heart go (Letter 123).
Prayer
O St. John of the Cross
You were endowed by our Lord with the spirit of self-denial
and a love of the cross.
Obtain for us the grace to follow your example
that we may come to the eternal vision of the glory of God.O Saint of Christ’s redeeming cross
the road of life is dark and long.
Teach us always to be resigned to God’s holy will
in all the circumstances of our lives
and grant us the special favor
which we now ask of you.Mention your request
Above all, obtain for us the grace of final perseverance,
a holy and happy death and everlasting life with you
and all the saints in heaven.
Amen.Let’s continue in prayer
Day 1 — Self-trust
The Escape of St John of the Cross
Day 2 — Self-giving
Day 3 — Cleansing
Day 4 — Walking in love
Day 5 — Trust
Day 6 — Prayer
Day 7 — Humility
Day 8 — Eternal Silence
Day 9 — Silent love
18th c. French
Oil on canvas, 1768
Carmel of Pontoise
© Ministère de la Culture (France), Médiathèque de l’architecture et du patrimoine, Diffusion RMN-GP. Used by permission.The novena prayer was composed from approved sources by Professor Michael Ogunu, a member of the Discalced Carmelite Secular Order in Nigeria.
John of the Cross, St 1991, The Collected Works of St. John of the Cross, rev. edn, Kavanaugh, K & Rodriguez, O (trans.), ICS Publications, Washington DC.
Teresa of Avila, St 1985, The Collected Works of St. Teresa of Avila, Kavanaugh, K & Rodriguez, O (trans.), ICS Publications, Washington DC.
Elizabeth of the Trinity, S 2003, The Complete Works of Elizabeth of the Trinity volume 2: Letters from Carmel, Nash, A (trans.), ICS Publications, Washington DC.
All scripture references in this novena are from the New Revised Standard Version Bible: Catholic Edition, copyright © 1989, 1993 the Division of Christian Education of the National Council of the Churches of Christ in the United States of America as accessed from the Bible Gateway website.
Don’t become discouraged and give up prayer, says St. John of the Cross. We offer varying novenas to Our Lady of Mount Carmel, as well as novenas to St. Teresa of Avila, St. John of the Cross, St. Thérèse of Lisieux, Sts. Louis and Zélie Martin, St. Elizabeth of the Trinity, and St. Joseph.
#anxiety #doctorOfTheChurch #elizabethCatez #enlightenment #icsPublications #inquisition #instruction #johnOfTheCross #letter #letters #loneliness #novena #persecution #psalms #sabeth #sanJuanDeLaCruz #stElizabethOfTheTrinity #stJohnOfTheCross #stTeresa #stTeresaOfAvila #stTeresaOfJesus #strength #teresa #tribulation #troubles #trust #wayOfPerfection #worries