Teresa’s health grew worse on the journey there, and when they arrived at the convent she was in the state of exhaustion and would never recover. For me, it was like meeting an old friend.Īlthough Teresa was ill, she set out for Alba de Tormes in the autumn of 1582 in response to a friend who invited her to visit. It was natural to lift our hearts to God in gratitude for our Carmelite pilgrimage through France and Spain, and to implore Teresa to intercede for the intentions we carried in our hearts. Upon entering the Church we found her tomb encased high above the main altar, we knelt and prayed silently.
Teresa is entombed so that we could venerate this beloved saint. We prayed with joyful anticipation of soon arriving to the Church where St. In 2007, three Carmelite nuns, two priests and a band of pilgrims from Los Angeles prayed the Liturgy of the Hours aloud as our bus traveled along the dusty road leading to Alba de Tormes. Teresa’s incorrupt heart and transverberation As I read her texts I was captivated by her lofty but practical expression of the life of grace. Hers were the first writings that my spiritual director suggested at the time of my conversion 25 years ago. Teresa’s eloquent writings such as The Way of Perfection and The Interior Castle are perennial classics on the interior life.
The Church will celebrate the 5 th Centennial of this renowned Doctor of the Church next year, 2015.
She is an iconic contemplative in action.īorn in Avila, Spain in 1515, she died in Alba de Tormes, Salamanca in 1582 at age 67. She allowed herself to become intoxicated with God but her feet were planted on the earth in service to the Church. I sometimes wonder if this is according to the divine will, or is it because we are reluctant to allow God to lead us to higher mystical states of union with Him? One of the most beloved saints in the history of the Church, Teresa exemplifies the heart of a warrior for Christ. Few reach the mystical stage of prayer that St.
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