Advice for a Lifetime

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Doctor of the Church, endurance, God alone suffices, St. Teresa of Avila, The Sophia Center for Spirituality

Today is the feast of Saint Teresa of Avila (“Sister Teresa of Jesus”), remembered for her tireless effort as a founder of many religious houses and her theological scholarship. Honored as one of the few women to be named “Doctor of the Church” in the history of Catholicism, she was not above sweeping floors and other household tasks undertaken for the good of her community.

When I was 17 years old, a senior in high school, I sought out one of our teachers, a Sister of St. Joseph, to speak of my desire to enter the convent. I had grown up with the Sisters of St. Joseph and was blessed with good examples of the religious life so it seemed right to me to deepen that relationship as a member. It was a momentous decision and one that I remember as a blessing to this day. The best gift of that encounter, however, was the prayer card that Sister Inez gave me that day. The words were those of Saint Teresa of Avila. They have guided my life and seem most appropriate at this time of trial in the world.

Here is St. Teresa’s advice that I have found worthy of a lifetime of prayer.

Let nothing disturb you, nothing frighten you. All things are passing; God never changes. Patient endurance attains all things. The one who possesses God lacks nothing. God alone suffices.

Stretching the Point

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Brian Johnson, diamonds, Doctor of the Church, irritation, perseverance, St. Catherine of Siena, The Sophia Center for Spirituality, trouble

For me, Mondays are always days of new beginnings. Looking back to what has been completed, I take pleasure in crossing items off my “to do” list. Rarely, however, do I “start from scratch” on a Monday but in recognizing what has been accomplished rather than what still remains, I avoid the frustration of the incomplete.

Brian Johnson offered me a smile this morning on his website (Optimize) in speaking of the way that precious gems are produced from pressure and challenge or irritation. Diamonds from pressure and pearls from what we might call being rubbed the wrong way but then find to have been just the right way are both worth the trouble as they often teach us lessons along the way.

It may be a stretch to see a connection here to Catherine of Siena, one of the saintliest women (and finally celebrated as such) in the history of Christianity. Her feast day is today and I see her as a great example of one who was pressured and challenged throughout her short life (33 years) without ever giving up. For her perseverance through constant irritation in her home life and serious roadblocks in her efforts to save the Church from itself, she was finally “crowned” with the title “Doctor of the Church,” one of the few women to be so named even to today. Just a quick read from the “Saint of the Day” section on http://www.franciscanmedia.org seems to me enough to prove my point.

I will take Catherine with me today as I go about my daily tasks and try to follow her example of tenacity, regardless of any jewels that may or may not accrue as a result of what happens as we go.

Holy Doctor

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bless, Carmelite, compassion, Doctor of the Church, endurance, eyes, God, good, John Michael Talbot, love of God, ministries, mysticism, patience, religious education, Roman Catholic Church, spiritual practice, St. Teresa of Avila, The Sophia Center for Spirituality

Today is the feast of Teresa of Avila. Because it is Sunday, always a “first class feast,” we don’t hear about Teresa this year. I find it difficult to let it go by, however, without some mention of this woman who is one of only four women thus far in the history of the Roman Catholic Church to achieve the title of “Doctor of the Church.” Sister Teresa was a mystic, but also very active, tireless in her work of reforming the Carmelite order of nuns in the 1500’s in the most rigorous – some thought too extreme – way. Her writings were extensive and her spiritual practice was constant, although for many years she suffered many physical illnesses and a deprivation of any spiritual consolation. She never despaired, even in the face of investigation by the Inquisition, and her writings are considered one of the great treasures of Christian mysticism.

My personal experience of the gift of Teresa’s influence is twofold. When I was 16 years old and considering entering the convent, I received a “holy card” inscribed with a piece of advice written by Teresa. For over 50 years I have held it close and shared it with people I thought would benefit from hearing it. I say it gratefully again today in the translation in which I received it:

Let nothing disturb you, nothing frighten you. All things are passing; God never changes. Patient endurance attains all things. The one who possesses God lacks nothing. God alone suffices.

Many years later, I heard a song by John Michael Talbot whose lyrics are attributed to Teresa, but not found in her writings. I offer it often when speaking to people who work in religious education or other ministries – and lately use it in any situation where I want to emphasize to people how important we are in bringing the love of God to others. Please take a moment to consider it as a word to you today.

Christ has no body now but yours; no hands, no feet on earth but yours. Yours are the eyes through which He looks compassion on this world. Yours are the feet with which He walks to do good. Yours are the hands with which He blesses all the world.  Yours are the hands, yours are the feet, yours are the eyes. You are his body. Christ has no body now on earth but yours.

Angelic Doctor

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Doctor of the Church, faith, harmony, hymns, natural truth, prayers, reason, St. Thomas Aquinas, Summa theologiae, The Sophia Center for Spirituality, theologian, unity

Today is the feast of St. Thomas Aquinas (1225-1274), one of the most celebrated theologians of all times, held in the esteemed title of Doctor of the Church. Not only was he a theologian and philosopher but he was also a very devout man and priest who wrote beautiful prayers and hymns. Fr. Don Miller (Franciscan Media) captures the essence of his genius, I think, when he comments that “unity, harmony and continuity of faith and reason, of revealed and natural truth pervades his writing.”

The most striking insight of this brilliant man came, it seems, three months before his death. His last work, the Summa theologiae, a compendium of Catholic theology, was unfinished; he stopped writing after celebrating Mass on December 6, 1273. When asked why, he replied, “I cannot go on…All I have written seems to me like so much straw compared to what I have seen and what has been revealed to me.”

I find myself feeling deeply compassionate for this brilliant, holy man who had worked all his life to understand the workings of God and the universe only to find at the end of his life that holy mystery cannot be captured by the mind but only lived in wonder and awe in one’s whole being. My compassion moves to joy for the fullness of what he had seen that was, paradoxically, the completion of his life’s work.

Teresa of Avila

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all things are passing, Christ, contemplative, Doctor of the Church, faithful love, God alone suffices, mystic, prayer, soul, St. Teresa of Avila, The Sophia Center for Spirituality, trust in God

There is so much to say about St. Teresa of Jesus (3/18/1515 – 10/4/1582) who is honored today as one of only four women given the title “Doctor of the Church.” A Carmelite contemplative and mystic, writing extensively about the interior life, she was at the same time a woman of action, reformer of her community who worked tirelessly in spite of poor health at a time when the Church and the world were in great turmoil.

My life has often been punctuated by Teresa, beginning when I was 16 years old and spoke for the first time my desire to enter the convent to one of my high school teachers. In addition to her kind words, she gave me a small card with a prayer of Teresa printed on the back. I memorized the prayer which has shown up as a framed cross-stitch gift from a student, on a meaningful card at the time of my father’s death and in many conversations over the years when I or others needed support. For me, that is the gift of Teresa: her example of faithful love for and trust in God that carried her through every day no matter what was happening in her life and the life around her. A song by John Michael Talbot called Teresa’s Prayer has become a staple in prayer services that I create to remind participants of our place in this world. And recently I have come to love a chant by Darlene Franz, based on Teresa’s words. I sing it to myself, imagining God singing it to me when I am alone. I share these three texts in hopes that this great saint will be seen also as a companion on the spiritual journey giving voice to our own walk with God.

1. Let nothing disturb you, nothing frighten you. All things are passing; God never changes. Patient endurance attains all things. The one who possesses God lacks nothing. God alone suffices.
2. Christ has no body now but yours. No hands, no feet on earth but yours. Yours are the eyes through which Christ looks with compassion into the world. Yours are the feet with which Christ walks to do good. Yours are the hands with which Christ blesses the world.
3. Beautiful, gracious, painted in my heart, you were created for love. Beautiful, gracious, soul of my beloved, seek yourself in me.