Apart from the sacraments and prayer, there is hardly a greater experience than walking alongside a saint as a disciple. Dominicans, perhaps, can show us what it means to know God and His plan. Jesuits, perhaps, can show us how to conform to God’s will. Franciscans, perhaps, can show us what it means to live for eternity. Carmelite saints, whose charism is prayer, have a particular way of showing the reader what it means to have a personal relationship with God in all its radiant splendor i.e. a mystical marriage with God. Thérèse of Lisieux in many ways, takes Teresa of Jesus as her guide for life. Teresa insists upon the reader of The Book of Her Life, knowing that there is no way for a soul to merit the gifts of God and that she of all people is foremostly undeserving. Thérèse takes up this same effort, often describing herself as the smallest of all flowers and the littlest of all the saints. Teresa and Thérèse devoted themselves authentically and as completely as sinners can to the mystical marriage with God, which is the Christian life per se. In truth, we are no less called than they were to live out our charism and receive the gifts of God with all our strength and being, and no less fraught with weakness. Taking them as our guide, we can see concretely how the Divine meets corrupt humanity, and better understand what our role is in giving and receiving love to God and our neighbor. Teresa of Avila/of Jesus brings us along on her journey, describing something of her sins, vocation, graces given to her, understanding of prayer, understanding of the mystical life, and the effects receiving God’s love brings.
Teresa’s life began in an average Middle-Age Spain household, the daughter of a wool merchant. Teresa, child as she was, was beholden to the forces of culture, raised healthily in the Catholic faith, and tempted toward the vanity of beauty, power, and pleasure. She was fascinated by the nobility. Her mother died bringing her much grief. After she was taught at a boarding school of Augustinian nuns, she joined a Carmelite monastery (which was not cloistered or observant of their rule). She emphasized the importance of surrounding oneself with virtuous people when coming of age because her own virtue was awakened by doing so. After entering the convent, she became gravely ill and attributed her recovery to St. Joseph. She later viewed this time as blessed as she had little choice but to be devoted to the Lord. She began to live a relatively hollow life, teaching the power of prayer and not much living it herself. Her father then died, of whom she was convinced, was well on his way to heaven on account of his holiness at the time of his death. God then began to awaken her soul. She also speaks of her humanity in pursuit of prayer, that even if one wanes from the practice and will do so again, there is great value in returning to it and in understanding the graces God brings to us.
Next, she describes her experience of prayer and breaks it into four levels or degrees. The first of which is mediation, she also refers to this as devotion and mental prayer. This degree of prayer can be largely accomplished of one’s own volition, but not completely. She gives several cautions for each stage. The second is silent prayer, which is only achieved by a reception from God as are the remaining degrees. It communicates the nature of grace to us. The third is union. This is characterized by forgetting the physical senses. The fourth is ecstatic rapture. This stage is characterized by a forgetting of the self and body to the point of seeming dead or unconscious. She describes her experience of each as she teaches.
Thirdly, she writes of the mystical life. She, wisely, presents more caution than instruction. If any pride enters the soul when receiving these great gifts of God, it may actually be the enemy leading the soul astray, believing itself to be great, when in fact, the greatness and worthiness lie in God alone. Similar to Ignatius of Loyola, she advises the souls who go about spiritual experiences to take caution and note all the powers of the enemy. Further, she attempts to put the spiritual landscape into perspective by acknowledging that if the soul clings to God, there is no power that hell has that can separate one from God (Romans 8:35-39). A venial sin can do worse harm than anything demonic.[1] Discerning the voices we follow is key to understanding how to respond to them. She also advocates the reduction of worldly attachments, still similar to Ignatius. The enemy can ultimately control us with our fears and loves. Our loves ought to be directed properly just as our priorities begin with God, others, and ourselves; each well-informed and conformed to reality. She concludes by instructing the reader to conform every love to God and describes the temptations and attacks she received in doing so.
In conclusion, Teresa of Avila is not a well-educated author, nor it seems would she claim to be. However, it seems her focus is first to establish the reader’s concept of the source of this teaching and its nature, namely that it is not academic but spiritual, not from some holy person but a fellow sinner. She offers great practical knowledge of the life of prayer and conversion. It seems whenever such things are discussed it is important that we sense humanity present to accommodate the sacred hurts that hold us back from loving well. This may be an aspect of the answer to why Christ did not instruct us more directly in the spiritual life. Teresa of Avila seems to believe that her story is only worth telling if it praises God and helps others. Follow Teresa of Avila/of Jesus, who brings us along on her journey describing something of her sins, vocation, graces given to her, understanding of prayer, understanding of the mystical life, and the effects receiving God’s love brings.
“May He be blessed forever! I hope in His mercy that Your Reverence and I will see each other there where we shall behold more clearly the great things He has done for us, and praise Him forever and ever, amen.
This book was finished in June 1562.”[2]
Written by Carter
Carruthers & also available soon at Vivat
Agnus Dei
FN:
- Teresa of Jesus, Kieran Kavanaugh, and Otilio Rodriguez. The Collected Works of St. Teresa of Avila. Volume One. (Washington, D.C.: Institute of Carmelite Studies, 1976), 222
- Teresa of Jesus, Kavanaugh, Rodriguez, The Collected Works of St. Teresa of Avila. Volume One, 365.
No comments:
Post a Comment