Today is the Feast Day of St. Teresa of Avila, also known as St. Teresa of Jesus. She was a brilliant woman, a Spanish mystic, a Roman Catholic saint, a reformer of the Carmelite Order and an in-depth writer on Prayer as expounded in her book,
" The Interior Castle. "
I have written quite lengthily in my journal on St. Teresa of Avila along with my experiences in Avila, Spain in 1988, 1996, 2001 and in 2003.
Suffice it to say, that St. Teresa of Jesus was born on March 28, 1515 in Avila, Spain, died on October 15th in Alba de Tormes, Spain and canonized on March 12, 1622. She was declared Doctor of the Church, the first woman saint to hold such honor, in 1970 by Pope Paul VI. The Rule of the Carmelite Order which calls for extreme austerity is attributed to her reforms. She established many Carmelite monasteries in Spain naming the first one she founded after her favorite saint - St. Joseph. In addition, she wrote books of such profound mystical nature Church scholars praise and use.
A prolific writer, she wrote her Autobiography in 1567, the Interior Castle in 1577, the Way of Perfection, essays on the Concepts of Love and 342 letters which have all been acclaimed by many scholars. Her most known and often-quoted lines are:
Let nothing trouble you,
Let nothing make you afraid,
All things pass away,
God never changes
Patience obtains everything,
G O D alone is ENOUGH.
St. Teresa of Avila had a special regard for Holy Water. She knew by many experiences the power of this sacramental against evil spirits and temptations. She said, "There is nothing that puts the Devil to flight than Holy Water."
Knowing the excellent writings that she had produced, the Mother Prioress asked her to write a treatise on spirituality. She kept thinking of a particular topic to work on for a long time. Then, she had a vision of Jesus showing her a beautiful globe of crystal in the shape of a castle with seven rooms, the seventh at the center being occupied by the King of Glory with the most exquisite brilliancy which shone on the other rooms. The nearer the rooms lay to the center, the brighter the light and the farthest room got the least light. But around the castle was an area like a moat where there were many kinds of venomous animals (crocodiles, snakes,etc.). While still admiring its beauty, she was shaken when the crystal became totally dark and emitted a foul odor. Then it disappeared. She was so puzzled and moved by the experience!
From this vision, St. Teresa of Jesus learned four (4) important things:
1. She came to fully understand that God is present in all things by His essence, presence and power. She recalled St. Paul's words, "Sufferings of this time are not worthy compared to the glory to come that shall be revealed to us."
2. She was greatly surprised at the malice of sin and how it prevents the soul of partaking of God's powerful light.
3. She derived such humility and self-knowledge from the vision. From that moment on, she never thought of herself from the good she was doing. She further learned that the beauty and power of the soul and body are enlivened and strengthened by the power established in the center where comes all our good.
4. She derived from it the subject of the book she was ordered to write - on "Prayer."
Thus, was born one of the masterpieces of mystical theology ever written -
" The Interior Castle. "
St. Teresa of Avila wrote , " The Interior Castle, " as a guide for spiritual development through prayer and service. It is a journey of faith through seven mansions or rooms as in the vision ending with the union with God. In a nutshell, the mansions are :
1. Ordinary Prayer starts our relationship with God. It begins with the soul surrounded by sin and starting to seek God's grace through humility.
2. Mansion of the Practice of Prayer - The soul seeks to advance through the castle by daily thoughts of God by being more aware of God's presence.
3. Mansion of Exemplary Life - This is characterized by a love for God which is so great that the soul develops an aversion to mortal and venial sins and a desire to do charitable service to others for the glory of God.
4. Mansion of Contemplative Prayer - There is a "departure" from the soul actively acquiring what it gains as God increases His role in one's life.
5 and 6. Mansions of Incipient Union in which the soul prepares itself for the gifts of God. The soul spends increasing amounts of time torn between favors from God and from outside influences/afflictions. The fifth mansion can be compared to a "betrothal" and the sixth mansion can be compared to as "lovers."
7. Mansion of Spiritual Union - The soul achieves clarity in prayer and a spiritual marriage with God. This brightest mansion can only be gained by being in a state of grace through the sacraments, fervent devotion of the soul's will to Him and humbly seeing God's undefinable, incomprehensible love!
St. Teresa of Avila thought throughout all her writings of the ascent of the soul in four stages :
1. Mental Prayer - Devout concentration in prayer which can be helped by the exercise of penitence and the recall of the Passion of Jesus Christ.
2. Prayer of Quiet - An effort of the human will to be lost in God while other faculties such as memory, reason and imagination are not yet secure from worldly distractions. Partial distraction may be due to memory and imagination continue to wander.
3. Devotion of Union - Here there is an absorption of reason in God. This stage is characterized in blissful peace and conscious rapture in the love of God.
4. Devotion of Ecstasy - This is the passive state in which the consciousness of being in the body disappears. Memory and imagination are also absorbed/intoxicated in God. Sense activity ceases and the body and spirit are in a sweet happy pain between fiery glow and unconsciousness such that the body is literally lifted into space. In a number of times, St. Teresa of Avila was observed to "levitate" in ecstasy during Mass. Some other saints, like St. Francis of Assisi, have been seen to levitate while in prayer, too.
The Monastery of the Incarnation in Avila, Spain has many relics of St. Teresa of Jesus including the piece of log which she used as a pillow, the big wooden chest she brought from home to the convent and her favorite almost a foot and a half tall crucifix made from corn cobs from Mexico. A cordoned section of the stairs can be seen where the Child Jesus appeared to her and asked, "Who are you?" The saint said, "I am Teresa of Jesus," and in turn asked the Child, "Who are you?" to which came the reply, "I am Jesus of Teresa."
S
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