St. Teresa of Avila

Teresa was born at Avila in Spain in 1515. Her parents taught their children the faith and encouraged the reading of good books. As a girl she was drawn to stories of saints, although she also became absorbed in romances and the amusements of her companions. After a period of education with Augustinian nuns and further reflection on her vocation, she entered the Carmelite convent of the Incarnation at Avila.

Religious life brought both joy and severe trials. Teresa suffered a prolonged illness that left her very weak and, for a time, unable to move freely. A book given to her by an uncle helped her practice mental prayer. She learned to place herself before God inwardly, even when she needed a book to gather her thoughts and found sustained reflection difficult.

Recovery of health did not end her spiritual struggles. The convent received many visitors, and Teresa's affectionate disposition drew her into conversations that scattered her attention. She later described years of movement between a desire to give herself wholly to God and attachments that held her back. At one point she gave up her regular practice of mental prayer. Returning to it became essential to her renewal.

Butler draws on her own account of this gradual conversion. Teresa learned to persevere through dryness and to bring her faults honestly before God. She sought experienced confessors and submitted her extraordinary experiences in prayer to their judgment. Her writings continually connect prayer with humility, obedience and charity toward other people. The ordinary duties of a community remained part of that spiritual life.

In 1562 she established the small convent of St. Joseph at Avila. The foundation sought a more recollected Carmelite life through poverty, enclosure, prayer and a close common observance. Opposition arose in the town and within her religious surroundings. Teresa had to return for a time to the Incarnation while the new house's position was settled. Ecclesiastical approval and the help of friends enabled the community to continue.

Further foundations followed. Teresa traveled, found buildings and support, formed communities and dealt with practical difficulties. She took her turn in work such as spinning, sweeping and cooking. The reform also extended to Carmelite friars, with the help of St. John of the Cross and others. Disputes brought serious suffering to those involved. Her letters and conduct show the combination of firmness, patience and good sense needed to guide the work.

She wrote to help others pray and live their vocation. Her Life recounts her own spiritual history. The Way of Perfection gives practical instruction to her nuns, while the Interior Castle considers the soul's growth in prayer and union with God. The Foundations records the establishment of new communities and the difficulties met along the way. Her teaching grew from experience, reflection and the demands of governing real households of religious women.

Teresa died at Alba de Tormes in 1582. The communities and books she left continued her work of teaching people to seek God faithfully. Her story gives room to the long years of preparation as well as the achievements that followed: illness, repeated beginnings in prayer, wise counsel, and the daily responsibilities through which her love of Christ became service to the Church.