of S. Teresa of Jesus
of the Order of our Lady of Carmel
Discussion of Chapter 5
Discussion Content: - The faculty of the Will. - The essence of prayer. - The problem of a lack of time in which to pray. - The problem of attachment to solitary prayer to the exclusion of those obligations necessitated by obedience and fraternal charity. What accounts for this problem. - Obedience is the best way to Conform the Will to God's Will. |
█ Summary
In chapter 4, St. Teresa gave advice
to the Prioresses of her foundations
regarding the cultivation of prayer and virtue
amongst their nuns.
Here, in Chapter 5, she continues with her advice:
"There are many ways
in the way of the Spirit"
[Foundations: Ch. 5: #1 ]
and she wants to discuss some of these ways,
including prayer
and also
including the works of Obedience and Charity.
including the works of Obedience and Charity.
Here, she teaches of the Will's role in
♦ Loving God
- the essence of perfect prayer
- expressed through fraternal love
'What ye did for one of these little ones,
ye did for Me.' [ Mt 25:40]
♦ Conforming to God's will
- through intention
leading to firm resolution
leading to action
- This resignation of one's will to God
is cultivated by Obedience
to one's superiors
to one's vocational duties
► Love, the Essence of Perfect Prayer:
"Perfection lies in (loving God)
rather than in thinking"
♦ "The good of the soul
does not consist in its thinking much,
♦ but in its loving much"
[Foundations: Ch. 5: #2 ]
O my Lord !
"how mighty before Thee
is a single sigh
rising up from the heart"
[Foundations: Ch. 5: #17]
To the extent that one can, the intellect
(understanding ) should be focused on God.
But, St. Teresa teaches
that it is the Will that leads us to God
through Love of God, resignation to God's Will,
intention and firm resolution and detachment.
Through the faculty of the intellect,
one places oneself in the Presence of God
and recalls His life and works
especially by active discursive meditative prayer:
It is right...
"to persevere in meditation on His works,
and it is right to make an effort to do so".
"But it must be understood
♦ that not every imagination is
by nature able to do it,
♦ but every soul is able to love Him"
And that
♦ "the soul is not
the power of thinking, and
♦ that the will is not ordered by it"
[Foundations: Ch5: #2]
► "And if you were to ask
how is this love to be had ?"
"My answer is,
- by a good resolution
to do and suffer for God,
and
- by carrying out that resolution
into action
whenever the opportunity occurs."
[Foundations: Ch5: #2]
► Resolution converted into Action:
"A soul may attain to a firm resolution...
▪ by prayer,
meditating
on the debt we owe our Lord,
on His nature and
on ours"
▪ by obedience, and
▪ by love: responding to the needs and
for "the good of our neighbour"
[Foundations: Ch5: #3]
. St. Teresa describes a daily life of Prayer in combination with the tasks of Obedience and the services of Love ( Fraternal Charity) ► She taught that Prayer - is the utmost path toward Union with God and - its fruits are -- the growth of virtue -- good works. This growth in virtue includes Love of God and fraternal love which, in turn, promotes advancement in prayer and in selfless good works. As one is led to advancement in prayer, the soul becomes more detached and therefore more selfless in its love of God and neighbor and its performance of good works. She exemplified this by her own zeal for the benefit of souls: "if they but see that they can in any degree - help a single soul to advance, and to love God more, or - be able to comfort it in any way, or - rescue it from any danger ! And when they cannot help them in act, they have recourse to prayer, beseeching our Lord on behalf of the many souls" [Foundations: Ch5: #5] ► She stated that the time devoted to solitary prayer shouldn't take up such a portion of the day that it hinders the fulfillment of one's obligation to Obedience and to Charity / Love "...obedience, and the good of our neighbour, ...which charity constrains us, must not be hindered thereby for on such occasions, when either of these two is required of us, ( - obedience, and - the good of our neighbour, ...which charity constrains us...) we must give up for the time that (meditation) which we so much long to give to God" ► St. Teresa taught that by obedience and charity, one directly gives service to God: "To give this up... ( be(ing) alone - meditating upon Him, and - rejoicing in His consolations ) for either of the other two ( Obedience or the dictates of Charity ) is to - give pleasure to our Lord, and - do it for Him" "so He Himself has said 'What ye did for one of these little ones, ye did for Me.' [ Mt 25:40] Chapter 5's Foot Note #4 refers to Charity / works of Love as: "Leaving Christ for Christ" Temporarily putting aside solitary prayer in order to do 'for Him' And is following Christ's own path: "...that which He chose for Himself: Obedient unto death." [Philippians 2:8] [Foundations: Ch5: #3] ► Nevertheless, she asserts the primary importance of prayer and solitude and encourages their resumption when obedience and the needs of charity are not awaiting action: "Remember, in all I say I am taking for granted that you run these risks under obedience and out of charity, and if it be not so, my conclusion always is that to be alone is better". [Foundations: Ch5: #16] . |
. ■ St. Teresa discusses the problem of a lack of time in which to pray: ► One can't always have the opportunity to pray in solitude But even in the midst of activity and company one can pray and recall the presence of God. "we ought to desire to be alone even when employed... ...this desire is ever present in those souls which really love God. [Foundations: Ch. 5: #16] "he, who is a true lover, - loves everywhere, and - always remembers the object of his love." [Foundations: Ch5: #17] "It is necessary to be on our guard in our employments, though laid upon us by obedience and charity, lest we should be careless therein, not lifting up our hearts continually unto God." [Foundations: Ch5: #18] ► She, once, thought that her continuous activity and heavy duties which reduced her time for solitary prayer, would prevent her own spiritual advancement. But later she realized ▪ that God greatly values obedience, resignation of the will, and one's intention to honor Him. ▪ that God in His Providence will prepare and order one's duties so that by one's obedience for the love of God, one will make "great progress". "... thinking within myself... that spiritual growth was not possible amidst so much hurry and confusion..." "O Lord, how different are Thy ways from what we imagined them to be !" "how Thou, if a soul be determined to love Thee, and resigned in Thy hands, askest nothing of it but - obedience; - the sure knowledge of what is for Thy greater honour, and - the desire to do it. That soul need not seek out means, nor make a choice of any, for its will is already Thine. Thou, O Lord, hast taken upon Thyself to guide it in the way the most profitable to it. And even if the superior be not mindful of that soul's profit, but only of the duties to be discharged in the community. Thou, O my God, art mindful of it; Thou preparest its ways, and orderest those things we have to do, so that we find ourselves... - spiritually growing and - making great progress... ...by faithfully observing, for the love of God, the commands that are laid upon us..." [Foundations: Ch5: #6] ► St. Teresa provided a specific example of: - How God esteems the virtue of Obedience - How, even in the midst of activity, God comes to us and we can be with Him. - How, if our solitary prayer time is curtailed by the necessitates of obedience to duty or fraternal charity, that service is a prayer of love to God. - How one is disposed to spiritual progress through the "labours of obedience and charity". She gives the examples of Obedience that she observed in the lives of Priests. She describes a Friar, "under obedience, charged with laborious offices... so much so that he could not call to mind one day that he had had to himself; Nevertheless he contrived to find, the best way he could, - some time every day for prayer, and - to have a conscience without offence" "Our Lord has amply rewarded him, for he finds himself, he knows not how, in possession of that liberty of spirit, so prized and so desired, which the perfect have, and wherein lies all the happiness that can be wished for in this life" "for, seeking nothing, he possesses all things. Such souls fear nothing, and desire nothing on earth; no troubles disturb them, no pleasures touch them" "in a word, nobody can rob them of their peace, for it rests on God alone, and, as nobody can rob them of Him, nothing but the fear of losing Him can give them any pain" [Foundations: Ch5: # 7] St. Teresa said of him and of others, "I observed such spiritual prosperity as made me marvel". "for if obedience employs you in outward things, know that even if you are in the kitchen our Lord moves amidst the pots and pans, helping us both within and without. [Foundations: Ch5: #8] She also spoke of a religious - who "resolved... never to refuse to do anything that his superior enjoined him, whatever the labour might be" - who, fatigued after a full day of labor, while obeying a command to dig in the garden. "saw our Lord before him with His cross on His shoulders, So worn and wearied that he felt his own weariness to be nothing in comparison with His". [Foundations: Ch5: #9] . |
. ■ St. Teresa discussed a possible problems of: - spending so much time in chapel to the exclusion of necessary activities, such as works of obedience and love. or - disatisfaction due to attachment to the desire to be "alone and absorbed in God even though (they) were occupied in other ways" [ Foundations: Ch5: #4 ] She goes on to explain two reasons which account for remaining too long in solitary prayer to the exclusion of their vocational active duties: ▪ The first reason is self-love and the desire for the consolations of prayer. [ Foundations: Ch5: #4 ] ▪ The second reason is the fear of offending God: preferring to isolate oneself from the world as if one could avoid conflict and temptations. [ Foundations: Ch5: #15 ] St. Teresa discusses "that inward dissatisfaction which we generally feel when we have not passed the greater part of the day alone and absorbed in God, even though we were occupied in other ways". This dissatisfaction, she says, comes "From two sources, I think: ▪ one, and this is the chief, is self-love... that is, we would please ourselves rather than God. ...when a soul has begun to taste how sweet our Lord is, it finds more pleasure in being at ease, abstaining from bodily labour, and receiving consolation". [Foundations: Ch5: #4] ▪ "The second source of this dissatisfaction, is that the soul seems to live in greater purity when left in solitude, because there are fewer opportunities therein of offending God... For if the soul is afraid of offending God, it is a very great consolation for it to meet with nothing to make it fall; and certainly this seems to me a stronger reason for desiring to avoid all intercourse with the world [Foundations: Ch5: #15] __________________________ ■ St. Teresa teaches regarding the first reason that someone may be attached to solitude: ▪ self- love - seeking comfort and consolations in prayer so that we "please ourselves rather than God". ► She advises that since the essence of perfect prayer is Love for God, the works of charity and obedience will, with the help of God, enkindle that love: "if it is given up to active work also, that is a great help whereby the soul in a very short time may attain to a better preparation for the enkindling of its love than it could attain to by many hours spent in meditation. All has to come from His hand." [Foundations: Ch5: #18] This sacrifice pleases God - because of one's loving desire and intention "But, O my Lord ! how mighty before Thee is a single sigh rising up from the heart, because of the pain it gives to us to see that we have... no opportunity of being alone, so that we might alone have the fruition of Thyself. [Foundations: Ch5: #17] - because that desire can be put to action -- "to do and suffer for God" [Foundations: Ch5: #2] -- to"do it for Him" 'What ye did for one of these little ones, ye did for Me.' [ Mt 25:40] [Foundations: Ch5: #3] St. Teresa describes a true lover of God: "for they think not of their own rest, but only how they may more and more do the will of our Lord. It is the same in things that relate to obedience: it would be a strange thing if, when God clearly told us to betake ourselves to some work that concerns Him, we were to do nothing but stand still and gaze upon Him because that gives us a greater joy" [Foundations: Ch5: #5] "but love, if perfect... we forget our own pleasure in order to please Him Who loves us so much." [Foundations: Ch5: #10] ► So, according to "the many ways ... of the Spirit", Providence leads one in their vocation to many ways of prayer and labor. ▪ God "preparest its ways, and orderest those things we have to do, so that we "find ourselves (through one's daily vocational duties) - spiritually growing and - making great progress" . [Foundations: Ch5: #6] ▪ It is not one's choice to decide their own way to serve God. That would be - following their will, not the will of God. - self-love rather than love of God - attachment rather than detachment. Through Humility and Obedience, one responds to the will of God through the commands of superiors and the necessitates of charity and events. "It would be hard if we could pray only in secret places. I see now that I cannot be alone for many hours" [Foundations: Ch5: #17] In the "Way of Perfection: Ch. 17, she wrote: "Reflect that true humility consists... - in being ready for what the Lord desires to do with you and happy that He should do it, and - in always considering yourselves unworthy to be called His servants". "Remember that there must be someone to cook the meals and count yourselves happy in being able to serve like Martha." [Luke 10:40] "what should it matter to us if we do one of these things rather than another ?" "let the Lord of the house do that, for He - is wise and powerful and - knows what is fitting for you and for Himself as well. [Way of Perfection - Ch17] "we are His slaves, sold for love of Him, with our own consent, to the virtue of obedience, seeing that for its sake we give up, in a certain way, the fruition of God Himself; [Foundations: Ch5: #18] "Consider, my sisters, whether the pleasures of solitude abandoned be not amply repaid. I tell you that you will be none the worse for the loss of solitude in your preparation for attaining to that true union of which I am speaking, which is that of ♦ making our own will one with the will of God. [Foundations: Ch5: #14] _____________________________ ■ St. Teresa responds to the second reason: (Because of the fear of offending God, one remains in solitude to avoid temptations.) a). St. Teresa said that one should proceed "not trusting at all to himself" but should "place..all his confidence in God". [Foundations: Ch5: #16] b). The works of one's vocation under obedience to one's superior as well, as those necessitated by charity must override any fear. "Remember, in all I say I am taking for granted that you run these risks under obedience and out of charity, and if it be not so, my conclusion always is that to be alone is better". [Foundations: Ch5: #16] c). That temptations can not be avoided. They are everywhere, even in our own faults "the evil spirits and we, ourselves, are everywhere." [Foundations: Ch5: #15] d). That "Trials show us what we are". Rather than being avoided, they are an opportunity for growth ( Self-knowledge and Humility ). Trials lead to self-knowledge of our faults and weaknesses. They also, with the help of God, can lead to Humility and the realization of - our dependence on God and - that without Him, we can do nothing. "if we but knew how great is our wretchedness ! There is danger in everything if we do not know it, And I consider one day of humbling self-knowledge, which may have cost us much sorrow and distress, to be a greater grace of our Lord than many days of prayer; [Foundations: Ch5: #17] "it makes us know - what we are, and - how far our virtue can reach." "A person always alone, however holy he may think himself to be, - does not know whether he possesses patience and humility, and - has no means of learning. A man may be very courageous, but how is it to be known if he has not been seen in battle ?" [Foundations: Ch5: #16] Through trials, one can grow in grace and in strength of purpose: "our gain will be incomparably greater, though there may be more faults committed, and even some slight falls. [Foundations: Ch5: #16] "and for that reason it is a great blessing to us that we are under authority, so that we may discern our own meanness." [Foundations: Ch5: #17] e). Love should not be restricted "love must be made known; not in secret places, but in the midst of temptations" [Foundations: Ch5: #16] Just as "There are many ways in the way of the Spirit", [Foundations: Ch. 5: #1 ] one is given many opportunities daily to express love. . |
. From Obedience to Resignation of the Will Although Obedience and Conformity of the Will to God's will are discussed throughout chapter 5, Paragraph 6 to 14 especially expounds these topics. Included here is an excerpt from those paragraphs which were not already quoted above: ■ Obedience - the quick road to the highest perfection: ► "there is no road that leads more quickly to the highest perfection than this of obedience" "It is clear that (perfection / holiness ) does not lie in interior delights, not in great raptures, not in visions, not in the spirit of prophecy, but in the conformity of our will to the will of God, so that there shall be nothing that we know that He wills that we do not - will ourselves with our whole will, and - accept the bitter as joyfully as the sweet, knowing it to be His Majesty's will. This seems to be very hard to do; not the mere doing of it, but the being pleased in the doing of that which, according to our nature, is wholly and in every way against our will" "for our sufferings, however great they may be, are sweet when we know that we are giving pleasure unto God; [Foundations: Ch5: #10] ► "Why Obedience furnishes the readiest or the best way for arriving at so blessed a state" ▪ The intellect can not be depended upon to conform to the Will to God. The discursive nature of the mind's thoughts tends to accept, present, and endlessly rehash rationalizations and dispensations in its favor. "can never be brought about by much reasoning" "...our nature and self-love can furnish so much on their side that we shall never come to an end" "that which is most reasonable, ...seem folly because we have no inclination to do it ... (and) we have no liking for it" [Foundations: Ch5: #11] "...when Satan sees...obedience he suggests many difficulties under the colour of some good, and makes it distasteful" [Foundations: Ch5: #10] "this inward struggle... shall never come to the end" "and so many are the means which Satan, the world, and our flesh employs in order to warp our reason". [Foundations: Ch5: #12] ▪ "Obedience (is) stronger than reasoning St. Teresa explained that to rely on Obedience is - to rely on God, not on ourselves, who can do nothing who can deceive ourselves "...we are never absolute masters of our own will, so as to employ it purely and simply for God, till we subject (our will) wholly to reason" [Foundations: Ch5: #11] "the soul is not the power of thinking, and that the will is not ordered by it" [Foundations: Ch5: #2] "Obedience is the true means of bringing about that subjection" [Foundations: Ch5: #11] "To practice obedience to one's superior is the way of cultivating conformity to God's will" "...there is no better way of finding this treasure than that of toiling and digging... out of the mine of obedience; "for...the more we subject ourselves to men, having no other will but that of those who are over us, the more we shall master our will so as to conform it to the will of God". "... your preparation for attaining to that true union ...which is that of ♦ making our own will one with the will of God. This is the union which I desire, and would have you all possess" Foundations: Ch5: #14] ► St. Teresa advises: "Is there, then, any help for it ? Yes... let the soul go to... the superior or the confessor, ...pleading no further or thinking of its cause, but relying on the words of our Lord, who saith, 'He that heareth you, heareth Me,' regardless of its own will. ...mak(ing) Him thereby Master of the free will He has given us; "our Lord on His part helps us so much, that as we submit our will and reason for His sake, so He makes us masters of them both". [Foundations: Ch5: #12] "then, being masters of ourselves, are able to ▪ give ourselves perfectly to God, ▪ offering to Him a pure will that He may unite it to His own, ▪ praying Him to send down from heaven the fire of His love to consume the sacrifice, and ▪ putting everything away that may be displeasing unto Him". [Foundations: Ch5: #13] . |
. End of Discussion of Chapter 5 of the Book of the Foundations of S. Teresa of Jesus of the Order of our Lady of Carmel . |
