The Life of Saint Teresa of Ávila: Third Level (Rhetoric Stage)

What parts of the writer’s experience does she assume to be universal? Which does she view as unique to herself?

Most of Teresa experiences in her earlier stage of life are universal. Like Teresa, most of us were guided to virtuous life by our parents, the Church and the school authorities from our childhood, but like Teresa too, we tended to get bad influences from world vanities and amusements right after we were adolescence. We might return to spirituality and renew our relationship with God when we are adult. However, trials and sorrows force us to fall into sin again. And the process would be repeated again and again, mostly after the end of our lives. In Teresa, although she experiences the rise and fall of spiritual life, in a way, she has reached a special bound with God farther than most of us. It is a rare grace from God that is unique in Teresa.

What parts of the story do resonate with your own experience?

The rise and fall of the spiritual life; and the astonishment when comparing my own sins and the graces God had granted me over my life. How He has been greatly patient in my early stage of life, during which I ignored Him, though not completely. How He has, ever since, called me over and again; waited for me to come back to Him; and embraced me when I finally returned.

If the writer is laying down a pattern for others to follow, do you find this pattern to be good?

Absolutely. Especially the four stages of prayer that Teresa taught us, although it is very difficult to follow, it will lead us to good. She also inspired us to never abandoning our prayers, although during hard times it seems to be fruitless. Once we abandon prayers, it would be hard to climb again to our previous stage. She (and God) convinced us that in these times, actually God never abandons us, He just waits for embracing us again when He feels right.

Find the writer’s stated reason for putting down her life in writing.

Teresa was commanded by God to write her experiences, and I think she tells this most of the time during the entire story.

How has the autobiography been changed by the years that have passed since its publication?

The main idea is still relevant (our relationship with God), but perhaps the nature of the convents and monasteries has been changing since then (I don’t know for sure). But even if it is changed, I think God still calls His chosen people, and the course of their struggles against sin and the devils are still exist.

What or whom does the writer judge? If she criticizes herself, what basis does she use for judgment?

Teresa criticized herself as ‘wicked’ or sinned woman who didn’t deserve such favours from God. She compared herself with other learned and spiritual men who, like her, have reached high stage in relation with God.

Who is ultimately responsible for her successes, and failures: society, family, God? Do you agree?

God was behind her successes, through his confessors and other people who were connected with her. Her failures were influenced by the society (her superiors, her colleagues, citizens, and her friends). The first three accused Teresa of imagining her ecstasies and her rebellion in founding the new convent, which often brought doubts to Teresa; while her friends (women) outside the convent drew her from spiritual life into vanity.

Do you reach a different conclusion from the writer about the pattern of her life?

No, I believe we all experience the same although in different stages.

What expectation did you bring to the story?

I have heard several things about Teresa Avila and her meditation prayer, but I was more curious to know what kind of woman she is in person, and how an ordinary person can become a saint.

What have you brought away from this story?

First, that saints are ordinary people who are chosen by God for certain mission. They could endure the sorrows and trials, because God helps them, guides them to accomplish the mission.

Second, that virtuous life must be fought. We are so weak and wicked, that very often we think we are alright as long as we don’t do anything evil. But in fact, not doing anything IS doing wrong. God always wait for us to come to Him, but we have the free will to respond to His call or not. And when we achieve higher level in spiritual life, don’t get satisfied too quickly, we must diligently maintain it and stay away from sin, because the closer we are to God, the more severe the devils would persecute and try us.

Do you understand more about the experience of God, than you did before you began to read? Or do you remain on the outside?

Yes, I understand much more than before, this story is so inspiring me.

~~~~~~~~

The Life of Saint Teresa of Ávila: Second Level (Logic Stage)

Where is the life’s turning point? Is there a “conversion”?

Actually Teresa has lived in good virtues since she was a kid. After that, she has been sinned, repented, fell again into sin, and so on, that it’s difficult to find the exact turning point. Until the last end of her autobiography, Teresa still sometimes doubted God, that God rebuked her. However, I think the foundation of St. Joseph’s convent might be her turning point, because after that she could enjoy a totally secluded life from the world. And, as Teresa’s source of sins usually came from her relation with people, it’s good for her to be secluded like that.

For what does the writer apologize? In an apologizing how does the writer justify?

Teresa apologized often for her lack of trust in God. God has blessed her with so many visions and appearances to convince her, however, it’s difficult for he to understand how a sinful person like her could have been blessed so abundantly by God. And so, she doubted some times, whether it did not come from the devils who wanted to lure her from God. I think in this, Teresa justify God’s Infinite Mercy. He never judges His servants by their pureness, but by their love and persistency to serve Him. Most of the Saints were sinned severely against Him at first, and because they (including Teresa) felt the Infinite Mercy and Love from God, their repentance are perfect, and so, they don’t want anything else than serving God faithfully.

What is the model—the ideal—for this person’s life?

Teresa didn’t mention about her ideal, but as she is a severe doubter, stubborn, and has a lack of humility (something she often admitted), the ideal might be a more tender and flexible person with more determination. However, there is no perfect human being, and God chose Teresa anyway, with all her weaknesses. So, I believe the ideal would be someone who love God and trust his/her life completely to Him.

What is the end of the life: the place where the writer has arrived, found closure, discovered rest?

After the St. Joseph’s convent has been founded, Teresa’s duty for God has been fulfilled, and so He granted her chance to be out of the world, and be with Him entirely, and this could prevent her from doing sins again.

“I do not know whether it is for this reason that His Majesty has placed me in this retired place, where I am so strictly enclosed and where I am so much like a dead thing that I once thought no one would remember me again.”

“For the Lord has awakened my soul from the state in which, being neither mortified nor dead to the things of this world, I used to have such feelings; and His Majesty will not let me become blind again.”

~~~~~~~~

The Life of Saint Teresa of Ávila: First Level (Grammar Stage)

What are the central events in the writer’s life?

I know that I should have written only the most important events for this inquiry, but to refresh my memory, and really…there are a lot of important events in Teresa’s life that is so valuable, I finally rambled over this quite a long post. :)

• Teresa’s soul was aroused since childhood, thanks to the parents’ good virtues. (age 7)
• Lost her virtues through bad company – entered an Augustinian convent in spite of her bitter aversion. (age 14)
• Returned to good virtues – had serious illness; poor health – out from the convent to stay with her sister. (age 16+)
• Finally took the habit at the Convent of Incarnation, 3^rd November 1536. (age 21)
• Feeling great joy for serving God – her health worsens – went to another town for treatment.
• Suffered the inability of meditating, always needed books to pray – been misguided by her confessor. (age 23)
• Asked God to send illness and patience to endure it. God granted it, the treatment worsen her illness, she endured great pain with great patience, almost died.
• Teresa was paralyzed for almost three years, but endured it with great joy.
• She regretted her sins, took St. Joseph as her patron, and through him, God granted her prayers.
• Teresa fell again in sin from amusements and vanity, having too much freedom in the convent.
• She had a friendship with a woman – one day Christ appeared before her looking severe and warned her that the friendship displeased Him. She disobeyed still; then had a vision of a strange toad which she believed to be another God’s warning.
• For some times she stopped communing with God (meditation).
• Her father died from illness.
• Guided by her father’s confessor, Teresa began to pray again – still led two lives: divine and worldly ones.
• However, during those follies, Teresa felt that God veiled her sins from public because He must have known how Teresa longed to serve Him.
• Teresa was tormented when God granted graces to her despite of her sins.
• Teresa saw in her mind an image of Christ terribly wounded; it moved her deeply; that she called up that image in meditations which helped her a lot.
• Teresa had difficulties to stay in meditation because her thoughts were wondering; she needed an actual image to induce mental recollection in mind.
• She began reading St. Augustine’s Confessions; it helped her to incline more to spiritual graces and stayed away from things that did her harm.
• Teresa wrote the contents of this book to her confessors, but warned him to only publish till chapter 10, and left the rest in secret.
• She taught us how to do mental prayer (meditation) in 4 stages, and how to hinder the devils from taunting us. The higher the stage, the more intimate we would be to God.
• 5 or 6 years stretched along from Teresa’s first to third stages of prayer.
• People accused her of making innovations in prayer – Teresa was disturbed by it – abandoned again her prayer.
• Father Barron, a Dominican Friar, woke her up from sins – she realized how God is never tired of forgiving sinners like her.
• Whenever Teresa had an ecstasy from her 4^th stage of prayer (when God enraptured her), her body would be lifted from the ground. Along with the raptures, Teresa experienced distress from terrible loneliness – she longed to die, to be united to God – her body also suffered great pain – she accepted all happily as the way of Cross.
• After 20 years of prayer and avoiding sins, Teresa was afraid that she might be deceived by the devil. She then sought spiritual directors to guide her.
• To one of her five teachers from the Society of Jesus she confided that despite of her sins, God granted her much favours – the teachers concluded that it was from evil spirit, not God – they instructed her to resist herself from the raptures.

Cuzco School: The Second Conversion of Saint Teresa. ca. 1694

• Teresa used to keep her earthly friendship, however one day God told her in her ecstasy that He wanted her to converse not to men, but with angels – on this, she gave up her friendship and everything for God.
• Two years after Teresa was instructed to resist God’s favours, she sensed Christ’s presence at her side, though she couldn’t see him; so real the experience, it convinced Teresa that it was not the devil – her new confessor confirmed, he was Peter of Alcantara (later on a Fransiscan saint).
• Teresa often had the ‘vision’ from God (she could see Him—parts of His body or His whole body).
• People doubted that a sinner like Teresa could have such favours from God – her confessors were also unwilling to take her confession.
• St. Teresa kept welcoming the visions, though her confessors told her to stop it.
• But God reassured her by giving a token of jeweled cross and advice to deal with her opposition.
• Now the raptures began to bring great pain to Teresa’s soul like being pierced by an arrow, but at the same time the pain felt sweet—it is a combination of pleasure and pain, which disturbed Teresa.
• She was visited by Friar Peter of Alcantara who understood her experience and comforted that it came from God.
• Teresa was tormented several times by the devils, which is permitted by God. During these times Teresa was greatly tormented and only relieved after sprinkling holy water to the devils – it happened because she wanted to save another soul, so she asked God to switch the devils to her soul instead – the other soul was saved at last.
• One day Teresa had a vision of hell, she experienced its torment for a few seconds but that terrified her forever.
• She thought of what kind of penance she ought to do to avoid hell.
• God commanded her, in a vision, to found a convent of St. Joseph’s and He promised to watch over it.
• The plan was opposed by many people but God encouraged Teresa to go on – He inspired the oppositions that at the end they were willingly to help the realization.
• The Provincial suddenly changed his mind, and so the project was cancelled – Teresa was persecuted once more by her colleagues.
• God commanded her to obey her superiors – she was sure that the project will be realized nonetheless.
• The present Rector of The Society of Jesus was succeeded by a more spiritual one – under whom the project was resumed.
• God supported Teresa with encouragement and the means of building the convent, including money which she didn’t have any.
• St. Joseph and St. Clare appeared to her when she was distressed of doing everything alone – They promised to help her. St. Mary has even asked Her Son to help her; which He did.
• Teresa was able to save souls of clerics as well as her relatives by the help from God in visions.
• God insisted that the convent should be built on the principle of poverty.
• Finally Teresa was sent by God in secrecy at a perfect time to finalize the sanction and authority of the convent foundation, against her superiors’ knowledge.
• The convent of St. Joseph was founded on 1562.
• It was under greater enclosure and the new nuns were taken without dowry under the rule of poverty.
• Only four hours after that, the devils put her into spiritual battle again, planting the idea that she must have been wrong to disobey her Provincial – again God helped her and convinced her to lead the nuns.
• People who at first opposed her, began to give their consent.
• In the new convent, Teresa’s virtues much progressed – she often got visions from Saints and souls of dead ones being transported to Heaven, or being torn by the devils, according to their deeds while on earth.
• God gave her a vision to encourage her that He won’t ever abandon her at trials – also a vision of Heaven with its Throne and Angels.
• When she doubted (again!) whether the vision was from God, He rebuked her in an apparition.
• Teresa also had a vision of Virgin Mary’s assumption.
• Finally Teresa was strictly enclosed in her convent, completely out of the world and devoted her life solely to God.

Give your book your own title and subtitle

A God’s Servant’s Story: In Which St. Teresa of Avila Becomes One of His Most Faithful Servants Despite Of Her Sins and Weaknesses.

~~~~~~~

Scene on Three (7): The Life of Saint Teresa Ávila

From the autobiography of a saint which I just finished reading, I would like to share one of the scenes which has lasted longer in my mind than the rest.

“One day when I was at prayer, I found myself, without knowing how, plunged, as I thought, into hell. (…) The entrance seemed to me like a very long, narrow passage, or a very low, dark, and constricted furnace. The ground appeared to be covered with a filthy wet mud, which smelt abominably and contained many wicked reptiles. At the end was a cavity scooped out of the wall, like a cupboard, and I found myself closely confined in it. But the sight of all this was pleasant compared with my feelings. There is no exaggeration in what I am saying.  (…) I felt a fire inside my soul, the nature of which is beyond my powers of description, and my physical tortures were intolerable. I have endured the severest bodily pains in the course of my life, the worst, so the doctors say, that it is possible to suffer and live. (…) But none of them was in any way comparable to the pains I felt at that time, especially when I realized that they would be endless and unceasing. But even this was nothing to my agony of soul, an oppression, a suffocation, and an affliction so agonizing, and accompanied by such a hopeless and distressing misery that no words I could find would adequately describe it. To say that is was as if my soul were being continuously torn from my body is as nothing. The fact is that I can find no means of describing that inward fire and that despair which is greater than the severest torments or pains. (…) In that pestilent spot, deprived of all hope of comfort, it was impossible for me to sit or lie down; there was no room to do so. I had been put in what seemed a hole in the wall, and the very walls, which are hideous to behold, pressed in on me and completely stifled me. There is no light there, only the deepest darkness.”

Yep, it is hell, and it is really frightening. Teresa of Ávila said that she was brought there for merely several seconds. Can you imagine how will it feel to be there forever? It really made me want to go to a confession right away; but instead…well…I flipped through many pages of the book, kept reading… :) But seriously, I wish to stick this picture in my mind, to remind me everytime I seem to be falling into sin.

~~~~~~~~

Jadi bagaimana cara berpartisipasi dalam Scene on Three :

• Tuliskan suatu adegan atau deskripsi pemandangan/manusia/situasi/kota dan sebagainya ke dalam suatu post.
• Jelaskan mengapa adegan atau deskripsi itu menarik, menurut versi kalian masing-masing.
• Jangan lupa cantumkan button Scene on Three di dalam post dengan link menuju blog BacaanB.Zee.
• Masukkan link post kalian ke link tools yang ada di bawah post Bacaan B.Zee, sekalian saling mengunjungi sesama peserta Scene on Three.
• Meme ini diadakan setiap tanggal yang mengandung angka tiga, sesuai dengan ketersediaan tanggal di bulan tersebut (tanggal 3, 13, 23, 30, dan 31).

The Life of Saint Teresa of Ávila: Review

I haven’t read many autobiographies, so I was rather gambling when I bought this autobiography of one of the most famous Catholic Saints: Teresa of Ávila. Firstly because autobiography is usually serious; and this one, particularly, is religious. Tough combination! But I don’t know why, this one is tempting me since I put it in my WEM Project, and so….I dared myself to read it. In the end, it is so worth it! Although Teresa’s writing is not quite chronologic—she used to return to the past things related with the current issue that she might have forgotten, or which she thinks now is important, while is wasn’t then—and she seems to have difficulties to make things more clearly. But maybe this is because she had restriction (from God or from her superiors at that time). But above all, her autobiography is really inspiring.

I usually do the three levels inquiries for WEM, but this time I go directly to review. I will still do the inquiries after this, though :). Now about the book…..

Teresa of Ávila (Teresa de Cepeda y Ahumada) was born at Ávila in 1515, into a family with good virtues, which I believe is the solid foundation of her own devotion to God in the age of six or seven. Her mother taught her to pray. Unfortunately, at age 14, Teresa began to lose her virtues through bad friends’ influences and amusements of the world. Scared that she might fall to sin, her parents took her to a convent, although with her bitterly aversion. The secluded convent seemed to bring back Teresa’s virtues, however she began to suffer from heart disease, and this forced her father to bring her out, and put her in her relative’s.

Teresa took the habit at the Convent of the Incarnation on 3^rd November 1536, when she was 21 years old. Here she began to have great joy to serve God. Meanwhile, her health got worsened, and so she must be brought out of town for treatment, which unfortunately didn’t work as expected. It seemed that God deliberately sent the illness for her to endure, and she did endure it with patience. She was paralyzed for almost three years, yet she endured the great torment with joy. At this stage she regretted her former sins, and took St. Joseph as her advocate to God. However, once again she fell to sins because the convent provided too much liberty for a restless nun like her. One day Christ appeared before her, looking severe, telling her that her friendship with her current friend displeased Him. While she still disobeyed, God appeared in another vision.

Teresa was weary of her sin, that she lost her previous joy in virtuous things. She abandoned her communing with God (meditation). Through her confessors’ guidance, Teresa returned to her prayers, but she still lived two lives: the earthly and the divine ones. But during those times, God never ceased to veil her sins from public, as He knew that Teresa, deep in her heart, always longed to serve Him. For twenty years Teresa fell and rose in her spiritual life, again and again; this state disturbed her, but thank God, He gave her courage to keep praying, because praying helps us to be nearer to Him, as He will bear so long for us to come to Him.

Reading St. Augustine’s Confessions has helped her to incline more to spiritual graces and to stay away from things that did her harm. She taught us that there are four stages in prayer; the higher the stage the more intimate we would be with God. After 5 or 6 years exercising to 3^rd stage of praying, Teresa was being accused and attacked by people who said that it’s only her innovations. She was disturbed by this fuss, and fell again to sins, until a Dominican Friar woke her up from it, and she realized how God is never tired to forgiving sinners.

Teresa now often had an ecstasy, when God enraptured her. She was afraid at first whether it was not a deception from the devils, however in many visions and appearances God convinced her that it was from Him. God gave her favours in the raptures and visions; He even brought her to visit Hell and Heaven. The ‘tour’ to Hell was very horrible, that she couldn’t even describe it in words. Not only the tortures to body—she felt greater pain than she had ever endured on earth—but also the torture of soul, which was still much more painful than of the body. With these favours, Teresa began to incline to save souls, with the guidance from God.

God commanded her to found a convent of St. Joseph’s. Through so many obstacles (that distressed Teresa so much, since, as usual, she was torn between God’s promise that everything would be OK as this was His wish, and her own thoughts that she was deceiving herself and others—which was clearly came from the devils), the convent was finally founded on 1562. During the process, Teresa received much opposition from others, including her colleagues and superiors, and even her confessors. However, as this was a work from God—and God was extra patience to convince the stubborn Teresa about it—the new convent was finally established. People opposed it because it was a reformation of convent’s standard system. St. Joseph’s convent took poverty as its main rule, and this they did not accept dowry from new members—as the standard of convents at that time—and strictly closed the convent from outer world so that the nuns could focus their devotion mainly to God. It really fitted Teresa, whose sins were mostly from her connection with the outer world.

---------

From this autobiography, I learned that Saints are ordinary people like us; that although they have achieved higher step in spirituality: 1) They still sinned every now and then. 2) It doesn’t mean that the devils stop tempting them; the tighter your relation with God is, the bolder the devils would tempt and attack you. They become even more aggressive now that the chance to snatch the souls from God is smaller. The only consolation we get from God, is that He won’t let us fall if we put 100% trust in His protection and keep on praying. That is very relieved, but we almost always forget it during trials! :)

People who oppose Catholic and other Christian Church often attack us by saying: If God loves us, why, while we are so devoutly to him, that He let the devils tempt and attach us, that we must suffer much? Oh yes, God do let them do it, as I read from Teresa’s words. God allows the devils to do that to test our strength and to make us realize of His power to save us from harm. That’s why, we mustn’t retreat from our virtuous life when trials come, but strengthen it with more prayers and with humility.

One important fact that astonished me is the powerful effect of Holy Water. Teresa told us that one day a devil appeared to her when she was praying; she was afraid, so she raised a cross to it, and it soon went away. However, a moment later it re-appeared. Teresa did the same action twice more, but the devil kept coming. So, Teresa reached for Holy Water, and sprinkled it to the devil, and this time it vanished and never returned. So great is the power of the Holy Water!

There are so many valuable things I got from this inspiring book, a book which Teresa has written by the guidance of God. Teresa then submitted the manuscript to a Reverence to be published. She died on October 1582, but not before she founded many more St. Joseph’s convents (the Carmelite nuns). Forty years after her death, Teresa was canonized by Pope Gregory XV, and was named a Doctor of the Church by Pope Paul VI.

Last but not least, here’s a lovely quote to help us all living this hard lives….

“For in this life we cannot always remain in the same state. Sometimes we are fervent, and at other times not; sometimes we are restless and at other times calm in spite of temptations. He told me to trust Him and not be afraid.”

In fact, Teresa’s life was like that, she was not a perfect human being, but she kept loving God, did her best to please Him, and put her trust in Him. We are not perfect either, and we might not become Saints, but we can do our best to reach the eternal life as long as we put trust in Him to guide us.

Four and a half stars for this autobiography, for although it is very inspiring, but so tough in reading, with the small fonts and Teresa’s inconsistent writing and sometimes full of ramblings.

~~~~~~~~~

I read Penguin Classics paperback edition

*This book is counted as:*

5th book for Baca Bareng BBI – September theme: biography

8^th book for Back To The Classics 2013

55^th book for The Classics Club Project

WEM Self Project