Three Carmelite Doctors
There
are thirty-three doctors of the Church. Three of these doctors come from the Carmelite
order. They are St. Teresa of Avila, St. John of the Cross, and St. Therese of Lisieux.
These three doctors of the Church were classified as doctors for their contribution
to the spiritual teachings of the Church.
St.
Teresa of Avila was born in 1515 as the third child of Don Alonso Sanchez de
Capeda, and his second wife Doña Beatriz Davila y Ahumada, who died when Teresa
was fourteen. She was sent to study with the Augustinian nuns at Avila, but
would leave for medical reasons after eighteen months. She joined the Carmelite
order at the Convent of the Incarnation at Avila in 1535. She became ill and it
was during this illness that she would begin a regular practice of mental prayer.
She began to receive visions from God, but was advised that these were from the
evil spirit and should be fought against. However, God pursued her with an even
greater effort. Most notable perhaps, is St. Peter of Alcantara, who would become
one of her most trusted spiritual directors that got her off on the right track.
St. Teresa is most known for her autobiography and the Interior Castle, which are considered two of the most important works
ever written concerning the spiritual life. St. Teresa would not write about
those things she did not experience first hand, rather, everything she wrote
about, she experienced. 1
St.
John of the Cross was born in the year 1542 to a poor family at Hontoveros, Old
Castile. He was the youngest in his family and his father died at a young age,
leaving his mother as a widow. He was an intelligent youth that placed great
demands on his body. He was supposedly saved twice by the intercession of the
Blessed Virgin Mary. St John was told in prayer that he was to help bring back
the ancient perfection found within the order. The Carmelites had founded a
house at Medina, where he took the habit in 1563, and was ordained a priest in
1567. He was ready to leave the Carmelite order to join the Carthusians until
St. Teresa of Avila persuaded him to stay to help rebuild the Carmelite order
to its ancient traditions. He would join Teresa as director and confessor at
the convent of the Incarnation, without interruptions for five years. St. John
was ordered to return to Medina, but he refused to do so, and was taken prisoner
for nine months. It was during his time of harsh imprisonment that he wrote
many of his spiritual works. He would suffer illness and contempt for the
remainder of his earthly life, which ended December 14, 1591. 2
The
third Carmelite doctor of the Church is St. Therese of Lisieux, and is perhaps
my personal favorite. Born Therese Martin as the last of nine children of Louis
and Zelie Martin, Therese needed much attention due to her sensitive nature. Her
mother died when she was only four years old, which persuaded her father and
sisters to give her whatever she wanted out of sympathy for young Therese. She
encountered a profound conversion at the age of 14, on Christmas Eve 1886, and
would no longer be the sensitive little girl she was. She entered the Carmelite
convent in Lisieux at the age of 15. Her full religious name was Sister Therese
of the Child Jesus and the Holy Face. She acquired great intimacy with God
through a very hidden, simple life of prayer and virtue. Therese died after a very
difficult struggle with tuberculosis on September 30, 1897, at 24 years old. 3
St.
Therese is most known for her “little way” in which she describes her way of
spiritual childhood. St. Therese is known for doing little things with great
love. According to her, this is what God desires the most. Not that we do great
things in the world, but that everything we do, be done with the greatest love.
Therese loved flowers and would often refer to herself as the “little flower” that
would give glory to God just by being herself among all the other flowers in
the garden. She was canonized by Pope Pius XI on May 17, 1925. Her little way
has touched millions throughout the world because of its simplicity, yet profound
efficacy. 4
Footnotes:
1 Benedict Zimmermam, "St. Teresa of
Avila." The Catholic Encyclopedia. Vol. 14. New
York: Robert Appleton
Company, 1912. 24 Apr. 2019 at newadvent.org.
2 Benedict Zimmerman, "St. John of the
Cross." The Catholic Encyclopedia. Vol. 8. New York:
Robert Appleton
Company, 1910. 24 Apr. 2019 at newadvent.org.
3 “Saint Therese: The Little Flower.” Society of the Little Flower, accessed
26 April 2019 at littleflower.org.
4 “Saint Therese: The Little Flower.” Society of the Little Flower, accessed
26 April 2019 at littleflower.org.
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