Father Robert Elias Barcelos – The Transverberation of St. Teresa of Avila, August 26

In the 29th chapter of her Life, about halfway through it,  Saint Teresa writes:

I saw in the hands of this beautiful cherubim angel a large golden dart and at the end of the iron tip there appeared to be a little fire. It seemed to me this angel plunged the dart several times into my heart that it reached deep within me [in Spanish she says, “it reached into my entrañas”]. When he drew it out, I thought he was carrying off with him the deepest part of me; and he left me all on fire with great love of God. The pain was so great that it made me moan, and the sweetness this greatest pain caused me was so superabundant that there is no desire capable of taking it away; nor is the soul content with less than God. The pain is not bodily but spiritual, although the body doesn’t fail to share in some of it, and even a great deal. The loving exchange that takes place between the soul and God is so sweet that I beg him in his goodness to give a taste of this love to anyone who thinks I am lying.

She received a special grace, which is typical of what Saint Teresa refers to as the sixth mansion; it is a very extraordinary gift that God gives to very rare souls. But other people have experienced this…Saint John of the Cross, Saint Therese, Saint Mary of Jesus Crucified, and Saint Padre Pio, to name a few.

The the entrañas… What is that depth of her being that was touched so intimately by God? Saint John of the Cross describes the entrañas as the intimate center of the substance of the soul.. Saint John of Cross says that God’s purpose in granting this kind of deep communication of Himself to someone else’s depth ‘is to exalt the soul, to enlarge it, and enrich it.’

Saint Teresa’s mystical experience must not be confused with mysticism, as it is popularly known on the level of cultural or television mysticism. On that secular level, mysticism is often associated as a grandiose or paranormal psychic adventure, and that’s not the point of this experience at all.

For our holy mother, Saint Teresa, authentic mysticism always had an ecclesial dimension, in other words, genuine mysticism always involved mission for others; it wasn’t just for herself.

One of our Carmelite opening prayers expresses this aspect of mysticism leading to mission. ‘Almighty God, you filled the heart of Saint Teresa, our mother, with the fire of your love and gave her strength to undertake difficult tasks for the honor of your name.’

This is really important because Saint Teresa experienced the Transverberation before all of the marvels of her foundations…and before all that God did through her. In a way that is typical of her voice and expression, Saint Teresa says about her mission in Carmel:

‘If our Lord hadn’t granted me the favors he did, it doesn’t seem to me that I would have had the courage for the works that were done or the strength to support the trials suffered and the statements and judgments made against me.   So after the foundations were begun, the fears I previously had in thinking that I was deceived, left me. I grew certain the work was God’s and so I threw myself into difficult tasks, although always with advice and under obedience. As a result, I understand that since our Lord desire to revive the original spirit of this order, and in His mercy he took me as a means, His majesty had to provide me with what I was lacking, which was everything, in order to get results and better manifest His greatest through so wretched a thing’ (referring to herself).

This grace was a catalyst, a turning point in her life, just like the Transfiguration was to the Apostles. The mystical experience that the three Apostles had on Mount Tabor of seeing Jesus transfigured, left a special mark on their souls and it prepared them for their mission…but more so, it prepared them to endure the crisis of the Cross before they were endowed and equipped for their mission. It was a special turning point.

In the life of Saint Teresa, Allison Peers writes, “At the time of the Transverberation, though she could not have known it, she was nearing the end of the quarter century during which she had been an obscure daughter of Carmel, and she was standing on the threshold of the lifework which was to make her be immortal.”

The Transfiguration in the lives of the Apostles, and the Transverberation in the life of Saint Teresa, show that God communicates Himself in times that we need Him most, and in the times that we need it most. An authentic relationship with God is always going to have an impact on our relationships with others. God’s grace, in granting us an extraordinary experience of His love, is always…that we may have an extraordinary love for others and be willing to share in His mission for the salvation of souls.

In conclusion, to use one Mass Offertory Prayer, ‘Lord God, we offer you this victim of charity, may He kindle in us a love as intense as that which let Saint Teresa of Ávila to offer herself a living sacrifice for the Church.’

 

May we, like our holy mother, Teresa, have a generous, determined, and courageous spirit to endure all things for Christ who strengthens us…that we may be filled with the infinite fire of His divine love!

Erin Foord, ocds: St. Teresa – let nothing frighten you

All of us, to one degree or another, are spiritually broken, “If we say, ‘We are without sin,’ we deceive ourselves, and the truth is not in us. If we acknowledge our sins, he is faithful and just and will forgive our sins and cleanse us from every wrongdoing.” (1Jn.1:8-9)

When we use our fears to identify and acknowledge our attachments and weaknesses, then God cleanses the residual “stains” of “every wrong doing” on our spiritual faculties; of understanding, memory, and will that we discussed above.

The theological virtues heal and purify our spiritual faculties through the active dark night of spirit. They involve our own efforts supported by God’s grace. The spiritual faculty of human understanding, the assumptions and interpretations we derive, are purified by supernatural faith. Human memory, the storage of those perceptions, is purified by supernatural hope. And the human will which is our response to those perceptions is purified by supernatural charity.

An example will help to illustrate this idea. Imagine a beautiful spring morning, the sun is shining, the sky is blue as you drive down a street lined with majestic oak trees. You notice every tree as you pass under and are taken by the diversity. Each one is a little different – its shape or color or foliage, and each adds to the beauty of the overall tapestry. In awe of the splendor of the moment you effusively praise God as it unfolds before you.

This is the way we are meant to journey through life; acknowledging the grandeur of each moment and praising the glory of God.

Then something happens.

Out of the corner of your eye your attention is drawn to a car going the opposite direction. You look just as it has passed by and quickly notice from the back that it resembles your husband’s car. You were not able to make out the driver, but you know that the passenger was a woman.

Immediately, you begin to cling to that one moment, replaying it over and over in your head. Could that have been his car – isn’t he supposed to be at work? Why would he be with another woman? Fear begins to take over, “Is he cheating on me?” And anger, “I do so much for him and he is never grateful!”

Obviously, this is a silly exaggerated example, but let’s use it to examine what happened to the beautiful day and our communion with God. The beautiful day is still there and God is still with us, but we are no longer present. We have become blinded, clinging to a memory we created, trapped in the past by shackles forged from our own ego.

How would greater faith have changed our interpretation of this event? What really happened? The event itself was harmless and should not have sustained our attention. We saw the back of a car driving down a street. We could have chosen to stop following the distraction and returned our mind and heart to God. Everything beyond that point is our embellished interpretation of the event, which not only violates our faith in God, but also violates faith in our spouse.

We defy the virtue of hope when we refuse to let go of the event and begin making the worst assumptions and jumping to the worst conclusions. Our response undermines the virtue of charity when we take the event personally making it about ourselves. “…cheating on me”, “…I do so much for him”, “he is never grateful (to me)”.

Whenever we take something personally we are serving our ego not God. The same is true when we cling to the past or some imagined future, when we make uncharitable assumptions, judgements, and conclusions, and when we attempt to control others. These actions all deny God and build up our ego.

SAVE THE DATE: September 16 – The Beauty of Carmelite Prayer

A Day of Recollection
1000 Lincoln St., Santa Clara
Sunday, September 16, 2018

(Feel free to attend any part of the day which suits your Sunday schedule)

10:30am-11:30am – Holy Sacrifice of the Mass
Celebrant: Father Robert Elias Barcelos, OCD
11:45am-12:45pm – Lunch
1:00-1:45pm – Conference 1, Father Robert Elias Barcelos, OCD
1:45-2:15pm – Silent Prayer/ Rest
2:15-3:00pm – Conference 2, Daughters of Carmel, Putri Karmel
3:00-3:30pm – Silent Prayer/ Rest
3:30-4:15pm – Conference 3, Daughters of Carmel, Putri Karmel
4:15-4:30pm – Prepare for Evening Prayer/Rest
4:30-5:00pm – Adoration, Evening Prayer, and Office of Readings with Santa Clara Monastery Discalced Carmelite Sisters

HOSTED BY: The Santa Clara Discalced Carmelite Seculars (OCDS) Community of the Infant Jesus. To RSVP or for more information please contact maryducote@sbcglobal.net.

The Discalced Carmelite Seculars are practicing members of the Catholic Church who, under the protection of Our Lady of Mount Carmel and inspired by St. Teresa of Jesus and St. John of the Cross, have made the commitment to the Discalced Carmelite Order to seek the face of God for the sake of the church and the world. For information, go to http://www.ocds.info/

Free-will offering welcome at the entrance table

Erin Foord, ocds: St. Teresa – Let nothing frighten you

Let nothing frighten you:

When we are frightened it is all too often due to a defect or weakness in our possession and practice of the theological virtues of faith, hope, and love. Provincial Statute I.2 expresses that, “Secular Carmelites are called to strive to make prayer penetrate their entire existence, in order to walk in the presence of the living God [cf. 1K 17:1], through the constant exercise of faith, hope and love….”

The theological virtues are dispositions infused by God into the souls of the faithful adapting them to participate in the divine nature. (2 Pet 1:4) These virtues nourish and enhance the human soul enabling it to embrace a loving relationship with the Holy Trinity as dear children and capable of inheriting eternal life. (cf. Catechism of the Catholic Church #1812 – #1813)

Scripture confirms, “We are in fact God’s offspring.” (Acts 2:39) The divine essence that is within Jesus is also in us through Baptism, “For in him dwells the whole fullness of the deity bodily, and you share in this fullness in him.” (Col 2:9-10).

Saint Paul explains, “Those who are led by the Spirit of God are children of God. For you did not receive a spirit of slavery to fall back into fear, but you received a spirit of adoption, through which we cry, ‘Abba, Father!’” (Rom 8:14-16) Do we hear that cry, “Father!”, within our own heart? Or is it muted by the anguish of worldly fears?

The great commandment is proof that God’s desire is to be loved. He wants true love, authentic love, the type of “perfect love” that casts out all fear. “There is no fear in love …one who fears is not yet perfect in love.” (1Jn.4:18) The same is true of the theological virtues of faith and hope. There is no fear in the fullness of faith or in the fullness of hope.

When people and situations frighten us, they indicate wanting and misdirection of our virtues. Instead of our faith, hope, and love being committed entirely to God, they are invested in earthly things. Money in the bank is a good example. Doesn’t it feel good to have money in our savings account? It can make us feel safe and secure against the unexpected? It may be prudent to have a savings account, but how do we feel when the unexpected happens and the money is taken away?

If we feel vulnerable and insecure then there has been a shift in our heart’s desire from Thy will be done to My will be done. Two considerations we should know about fear is it is always based on an imagined future and is concerned with some perceived loss or not realizing a desired expectation (an attachment).

As we examine what frightens us we recognize that the threat is based upon a perceived separation or loss from people or things that we inordinately made the objects of our faith, hope, and love, rather than God.

In this way, just like with attachments, being aware of our fears can help identify to what degree we are children of God or children of the world. God is Spirit. His children are made in His image and will resemble His nature of Love.

Do we recognize our self as Spirit and know, “it is not by bread alone that people live, but by all that comes forth from the mouth of the LORD?” (Deut. 8:3)

Or, do our fears betray hearts longing for what the world has to offer, “…sensual lust, enticement for the eyes, and a pretentious life?” (1Jn.2:17)