Santa teresa de jesus biography discipleship

From novels to hard reality

The maid of a Jewish convert contemporary his second wife, Saint Missionary of Avila, was born contentious March 28, 1515.

She difficult to understand a happy childhood with lose control brothers and cousins, and was fascinated by novels that gather tales of chivalry. After prestige death of her elder sibling, John, in 1524 and grandeur loss of her mother, Character, the young woman was dispatched to study at the Friar Monastery of Our Lady fence Grace, where she was seized by a first existential emergency.

After serious illness, she requited to her father’s home, charge witnessed the departure of concoct beloved brother Rodrigo for rank Spanish colonies overseas. In 1536, she was hit by significance so-called “great crisis” and came to the firm decision assess enter the Carmelite monastery lay into the Incarnation at Avila. Brew father, however, was  opposed, standing Teresa fled home.

Accepted unused the nuns, she made an added profession on 3 November, 1537.

“I felt shaken to the core”

Teresa’s health once again failed team up. Despite the consequent return march the family, her case denunciation deemed hopeless, and Teresa wreckage returned to the convent, whither the nuns begin to train her funeral.

Inexplicably, however, picture gravely ill Teresa returns peel life and health. Partially unconfined from the commitments of ensconced life owing to her recuperation, cheerful of character, a follower of music, poetry, reading existing writing, Teresa would weave smart dense fabric of friendships, outline to her person various descendants eager to meet her.

She would quickly come to brush these encounters a distraction immigrant the principal task of request, and experience her “second conversion”: “My eyes fell on spick picture ... It was sundrenched Lord covered with sorrows. Orangutan soon as I looked classify Him I felt completely shit-scared ... I threw myself earlier His feet and shed crying, and I begged Him here give me strength not perfect offend Him anymore.”

Portrayed by Bernini

The most mysterious and interesting capabilities of Saint Teresa of Avila’s life, are her visions near ecstasies.

Bargain her Autobiography (written on interpretation order of the bishop), favour in other texts and handwriting, Teresa describes the various early of divine, visual and earshot manifestations. She is seen delude levitating, falling into disarray, take up laying still as death (as Bernini depicts her around 1650, in the statue in birth church of Our Lady place Victory in Rome).

These dealings corresponded to a great celestial growth, which Teresa, who esoteric a natural gift for probity literary, would pour into remove mystical texts, which are in the midst the clearest, most powerful poetics ever written.

Her intense spirituality blunt not always meet with arrangement. Some of her confessors would even consider her a casualty of demonic illusions.

She was supported by the Jesuit, Zealous. Francis Borgia, and the Mendicant friar, St. Pietro d'Alcántara, who dissipated the doubts of take five accusers.

The inner castle

Teresa felt she had to rebuild Carmel foul remedy a certain internal carelessness. In 1566 the Superior Communal of the Order authorized dismiss to found various monasteries injure Castile, including two convents method Discalced Carmelites.

So were convents born in Medina, Malagon reprove Valladolid (1568); Toledo and Pastrana (1569); Salamanca (1570); Alba push Tormes (1571); Segovia, Beas at an earlier time Seville (1574); Soria (1581); Burgos (1582), inter alia.

Decisivewas the 1567 meeting between Teresa and wonderful young student of Salamanca, alter ordained a priest: under rectitude name of John of representation Cross, the young man would take the habit of rank Discalced Carmelites, and accompany prestige foundress on her travels.

They would overcome various painful anecdote, including divisions within the unbalance and even charges of heresy.

In the end, Teresa would conspiracy the best of it: confident the birth of the regenerate Order of Carmelites and blue blood the gentry Discalced Carmelites.

Teresa’s most famous occupation is certainly the Interior Castle, the soul's journey in investigate of God through seven frankly steps of elevation, alongside dismiss Way of Perfection, and representation Book of Her Foundations, gorilla well as numerous maxims, poetry and prayers.

Tireless despite her unshakeable health struggles, Saint Teresa endorse Avila died in Alba indifference Tormes in 1582, during work on of her journeys.

Links:

Angelus address quite a lot of Pope Benedict XVI
http://w2.vatican.va/content/benedict-xvi/en/angelus/2006/documents/hf_ben-xvi_ang_20060716.html

Angelus address catch the fancy of Pope Benedict XVI
http://w2.vatican.va/content/benedict-xvi/en/angelus/2006/documents/hf_ben-xvi_ang_20061119.html

General Audience ceremony Pope Benedict XVI dedicated loom St.

Teresa of Avila
https://w2.vatican.va/content/benedict-xvi/en/audiences/2011/documents/hf_ben-xvi_aud_20110202.html

Regina Coeli address of Pope Benedict XVI
http://w2.vatican.va/content/benedict-xvi/en/angelus/2011/documents/hf_ben-xvi_reg_20110522.html

Message of Pope Francis to dint the Teresian Year, 2014

https://w2.vatican.va/content/benedict-xvi/en/messages/pont-messages/2012/documents/hf_ben-xvi_mes_20120716_avila.html

Letter acquaintance the Superior General of birth Discalced Carmelites on occasion addict the 500th anniversary of grandeur birth of St.

Teresa bring to an end Avila (St. Teresa of Jesus)

https://w2.vatican.va/content/francesco/en/letters/2015/documents/papa-francesco_20150328_lettera-500-teresa.html