The Catechetical Review - Communicating Christ for a New Evangelization

The Spiritual Life: St. Teresa of Avila and Pope Francis, Pt. 3

Authored by Fr. Jean-François Lefebvre in Issue #1.3 of Catechetical Review
At the beginning of her consecrated life, St. Teresa experienced a “surprising” joy: “I was filled with a joy so great, that it has never failed me to this day…I was filled with a new joy that surprised me, nor could I understand whence it came.”[i] At the same time, though, she was also attracted by worldly vanities, which tempted her even in the cloister.[ii] How did she become able to sacrifice immediate “vain” joys for lasting joy? She needed to experience a true conversion, a kind of liberation. Like Mary Magdalene, she reached joy through the experience of tears. Fidelity to prayer was, for Teresa, the path of her conversion and the way to reach true joy.

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This article is from The Catechetical Review (Online Edition ISSN 2379-6324) and may be copied for catechetical purposes only. It may not be reprinted in another published work without the permission of The Catechetical Review by contacting [email protected]

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