Category: Teresa of Avila

Carmelite homily for Monday, June 29, 2020, the Solemnity of Saints Peter and Paul – Lectionary 591 (Matthew 15:13-19).  

Since today’s scripture passage is the same as for February 22 (the Feast of the Chair of Peter) this is a repeat of that homily. 

In the Gospel for this Feast of the Chair of Saint Peter, Jesus asks of his disciples, “Who do people say that I am?”  And they give a bunch of answers and finally Simon says, “You are the Christ, the Son of the Living God.”  And Jesus turns to him and says, “Your name is Peter.”  He gives him a special name.  But Jesus gives us a special name.  Here’s what Saint Teresa of Avila has to write, “To always live in calm desire to rejoice solely in Christ, one’s spouse.”  That’s the name Jesus, as we get closer and closer to him, gives us: spouse.  So, yes, that’s what we celebrate on this Feast of the Chair of Peter – our espousal.  

Carmelite homily for Sunday, June 28, 2020 – Lectionary 97 (Matthew 10:37-42)

Today’s Gospel has quite a few harsh passages.  ‘If you love your father or mother more than me you’re not worthy of me.  If you love your brother or sister more than me you’re not worthy of me.  Unless you take up your cross and follow you’re not worthy of me.  If you seek to save your life you’ll only lose it.’  What’s going on?  What I think Jesus is doing is inviting us to live a little deeper than ego.  Ego is about my stuff, my power, my appetites, my wants, my control – me!  And he’s trying to get us a little deeper than that.  Saint Teresa of Avila, who would agree with this passage yet was very devoted to her family, writes, “If the soil is well-cultivated by trials and persecutions, criticisms and illnesses – for few there must be who reach this stage without them – and it is softened by living in great detachment from self-interest, the water soaks in so deep that one is never dry.”  That is the invitation, actually, of today’s Gospel: to live so deep that we are never dry.  Let us live there – try to live there – today.  

Carmelite homily for Thursday (Easter V), May 28, 2020 – Lectionary 300 (John 17:20-26)

In one of her poems, Saint Teresa of Avila writes, “Soul, you must seek yourself in Me, and in yourself seek Me.”  That to find God is a dynamic of seeking yourself in God and seeking God in yourself.  That it’s this kind of cycle or spiral of deep introspection into the things of God and into yourself.  And the deeper you move into yourself, the closer you are to God; and the closer you are to God, the closer you are to yourself.  I think that’s what Jesus is praying for in today’s Gospel when he prays for the Apostles and he says, ‘Father, that the love with which you have loved me may be in them, and I in them.’  Yes, that prayer is for the Apostles, but that prayer is also for us.  Let us seek him in ourselves and seek ourselves in him. 

Carmelite homily for Wednesday (Easter VI), May 20, 2020 – Lectionary 293 (John 16:12-15)

In today’s Gospel Jesus says that , ‘the Spirit of Truth will take what is Jesus’ and give that to us.’  Giving us that richness, that greatness, to trust the Spirit to give us what Jesus has.  This is why, I think, Saint Teresa of Avila can say, “How can we share our gifts lavishly if we do not understand that we are rich?”  That’s the call of the Gospel.  The Spirit           will take is Jesus’ and give to us.  But why?  So we can give to others, to share lavishly, because we are rich.

Carmelite homily for Monday, March 30, 2020 – Lectionary 251 (John 8:1-11)

In her work, The Way of Perfection, Teresa of Avila talks about perfection.  And she’s condemning how the sisters can be looking at each other and then reporting to the prioress all the faults.  Here’s what she has to say about that behavior, “Let us understand, my daughters, that true perfection consists in love of God and love of neighbor.  All that is in the Rule and Constitutions serve for nothing else than to be a means towards keeping these commandments with ever greater perfection.  So let each one look to herself only.  And as to the breaches and faults of the sisters, keep silence.  For perfection consists of love of God and love of neighbor; whereas, perfectionism comes from the devil.”  And today we have all these people bringing this woman caught in adultery to Jesus.  All pointing fingers at her.  And Jesus, though he’s writing on the ground, is actually pointing fingers at them, telling them, ‘be silent.’  And when he looks up, they’re gone.  It’s silent. Maybe we should’ve started there. 

Carmelite homily for Wednesday, March 18, 2020 – Lectionary 239 (Matthew 5:17-19

There’s a well-known incident in the life of Saint Teresa of Avila where she’s at dinner, and enjoying dinner, and one of the nuns looks at her unapprovingly because she’s obviously enjoying dinner so much she mustn’t be a holy woman.  And Teresa says, “When I pray I pray, and when I partridge I partridge .”  That was the menu that day.  We can get so caught up in the externals we miss the deeper things.  Saint Teresa of Avila says, “Being a friar doesn’t consist in the habit – I mean wearing it – but in enjoying the state of higher perfection, which is what it means to be a true friar.”  That’s what she’s calling us to.  And what today’s Gospel is calling us to.  To being more than just fussing with  the letter of the Law but allowing that Law to change our inside, to transform us in love, to be deeper, richer, truer, more mature people.  That’s the call of today’s Gospel.