The Lives of the Saints through 100 Masterpieces

Teresa

The Lives of the Saints 202 Teresa October 15 Sanctity can be contagious, as evidenced in the 1560s in the small village of Avila, in Old Castile. Some 25 years earlier, Teresa, a daughter of the local nobility, had entered the Carmel of Avila, which followed the mitigated form of the Carmelite rule, comfortably mingling worldliness with the cloistered life. She was perfectly accommodated to the status quo until an illness forced her to leave her convent for a sojourn with her family. Upon her return, realizing that there was no longer much difference between life in the world and monastic life, Teresa undertook to reform her order, and founded the convent of Saint Joseph in 1562, adopting the original rule of Carmel. This was not done without difficulty since many were quite comfortable with the relaxation of monastic discipline. However, she was supported in her endeavors by her confessor, Saint Peter of Alcantara, and in turn, she encouraged the vocation of Father John of the Cross who, following Teresa’s initiative, carried out the same reform within the men’s branch of Carmel. Together, Peter of Alcantara, John of the Cross, and Teresa of Avila were three great Spanish saints who also had in common the gift of profound mystical experiences, which they committed to writing for the benefit of others. The works of Saint John of the Cross earned him the title of doctor of the church in 1926. Teresa of Avila, whose influence is actually seen to be more profound, had to wait until 1970 to be accorded the same dignity. She was the first woman declared a doctor of the church, alongside Saint Catherine of Siena. Claudio Coello (1642–1693) Saint Teresa Receiving Communion Museo Lazaro Galdiano, Madrid ...