of S. Teresa of Jesus
of the Order of our Lady of Carmel
CHAPTER 13
Chapter 13 Contents
Treats of the Foundation
and the Founder
of the First House
of Friars under the Primitive Rule,
A.D. 1568
1. The Friars of the Order. —
2. Don Rafael Mejia Velasquez. —
3. The Saint's journey to Duruelo. —
4. Fray Antonio. —
5. S. John of the Cross. —
6. Consent of the Provincial. —
7. The Saint's thanksgiving.
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CHAPTER 13
1. The Friars of the Order. —
1.
I had already,
before setting out
for this foundation in Valladolid,
arranged with the Father,
Fray Antonio of Jesus,
then Prior of S. Anne, in Medina,
of the order of Carmel, and with
Fray John of the Cross,
as I said before, [1]
that they were to be the first to enter,
if we could found a monastery
for the observance of the primitive rule
of the barefooted friars.
But, as I had not the means
of supplying a house for the purpose,
I constantly recommended the matter
to our Lord,
for, as I said before,
I was satisfied with these fathers.
It was now a year
since I had spoken to Father Antonio,
during which our Lord had proved him
by many trials,
which he had undergone
with great perfection.
There was no need
to try Father John of the Cross,
for, though he was living
among the fathers of the mitigated rule,
he always led a perfect and religious life.
2. Don Rafael Mejia Velasquez. —
2.
Our Lord,
Who had given me
that which was essential,
namely, friars to begin the work,
was pleased to give everything else.
A nobleman ot Avila, Don Rafael, [2]
to whom I had never spoken,
- found out
— I do not remember how —
that I wished to have a monastery
of barefooted friars,
and
- came to me to offer as a gift
a house that he had,
in a small hamlet thinly peopled.
I think it had less than twenty inhabitants
— I do not now remember;
and the house was kept
for the use of his bailiff,
who received his corn rents there.
I knew what sort of a place it must be,
but I gave praise to our Lord,
and to him thanks.
He told me
it was on the road to Medina del Campo,
whither I was going on my way
to the foundation of Valladolid;
It was right on my road,
and I might see it.
I told him I should do so,
and I did so;
for I left Avila in June,
with one of the nuns for my companion, [3]
and the Father Julian of Avila
chaplain of S. Joseph's, Avila,
the priest whom I have spoken of [4]
as the one
who helped me in my travels.
3. The Saint's journey to Duruelo. —
3.
We set out early in the morning,
but as we did not know the road
we missed it,
and the place being
but little known
we could not hear much about it.
We spent the whole day in great toil,
for the sun was very strong:
when we thought we were near the place
we had to go as far again.
I shall always remember
that wearisome and winding road.
We reached the house
a little before nightfall,
and the state it was in
when we entered
was such
that we could not venture
to pass the night there,
because
of the exceeding absence of cleanliness,
and
of the crowd of harvest men.
It had
- a fair porch,
- two rooms,
one beyond the other,
and
- a garret, with a small kitchen.
This was all the building
that was to be our monastery.
I thought that
the porch might be made
into a church,
the garret into a choir,
which would do well,
and
the friars could sleep in the room.
The nun who was with me,
though much better than I am
and
very much given to penance,
could not bear
that I should think
of having a monastery there,
and said to me,
'Certainly, Mother,
there is nobody,
however great his spirituality,
who can bear this;
do not speak of it.'
4. Fray Antonio. —
4.
The Father
who was travelling with me,
though of the same mind
with my companion the nun,
did not oppose me
when I told him of my purpose.
We went and spent the night
in the church,
but, on account of the great fatigue
we had undergone,
we would not pass it watching*.
( * Blog note:
They spent that night in the church
but did not observe the night in prayer.
Since they were so fatiqued
from their journey and labor ,
'no quisiéramos tenerla en vela'
'we would not want to keep awake'
'we would not pass it watching' )
When we reached Medina
I spoke at once
to the Father Fray Antonio,
and told him
- what had happened,
and
- that if he had the courage
to remain there for a time
he might be certain
that God would soon help him,
and
- that to begin was everything.
I think I saw then
what our Lord has done,
and as clearly, so to speak,
as I see it now,
and even much more
than I see at present;
for at this moment
when I am writing this,
by the goodness of God,
ten monasteries [5]
of the bare-footed friars
have been built.
I told him, too,
he might depend on it
- that
neither the late (previous / former )
nor the present provinicial [6]
(for, as I said in the beginning,
their consent must be had )
would ever give us leave
if we were seen living
in a large house;
- besides, there was no help for it,
and
- if they were settled
in that little hamlet and house
neither the one
nor the other
would take any thought about them.
God had given him
a courage greater than mine,
and so
he answered
that he would live not only there
but even in a pigstye.
5. S. John of the Cross. —
5.
Fray John of the Cross
was of the same mind.
Now, it remained for us
to obtain the consent of the two fathers
I have just spoken of, [7]
for it was on that condition
our Father-General had given us permission.
I trusted in our Lord
we should obtain it,
and therefore (I)
- told the Father Fray Antonio
to do everything he could
in making some provision
for the house,
and
- set out myself
with Fray John of the Cross
for the foundation of Valladolid,
already described.
And as we tarried there some days
without enclosure,
in the midst of work-men,
repairing the house.
Fray John of the Cross had the means
of learning our way of life,
so that he might clearly
understand everything,
- both the mortifications we practise
and
- the sisterly affection
with which we treat one another,
and
- how we all come to recreation together,
which is so modestly carried on
that it
◦ helps us to discover
the shortcomings of the sisters,
and
◦ is some slight comfort to ourselves,
enabling us to endure
the severity of the rule.
He was so good
that I, at least,
might have learned
much more from him
than he from me.
But I did not do so.
I only showed him the way
in which the sisters live.
6. Consent of the Provincial. —
6.
It pleased God
that the provincial of our order,
Fray Alonso Gonzalez, [8]
whose consent I was obliged to obtain,
should be there at the time.
He was an old man,
very kind, and without guile.
I said
so much to him,
and
of the account he would have
to give to God
if he hindered so good a work,
when I asked him his consent,
that he was greatly softened.
His Majesty also disposing him thereto;
for He would have
the monastery founded. [9]
Dona Maria de Mendoza arrived,
and her brother, the bishop of Avila,
who has always
helped and defended us,
and they obtained his consent at last,
with that of the late provincial,
Fray Angel de Salazar, [8]
from whom I feared every difficulty.
But some great and pressing matter
occurred at the time,
for which the help of that lady,
Dona Maria de Mendoza, was needed,
and that I believe
helped us much.
But, putting this aside,
even if that necessity had not arisen
our Lord would have put it into his heart
to consent,
as He did into that of the father-general,
who was very far from such a thought.
7. The Saint's thanksgiving.
7.
O my God !
What things I have seen
in these foundations
that seemed impossible,
and
How easily His Majesty
overcame the difficulties !
What confusion of face is mine,
seeing what I have seen,
that I am not better than I am !
for now, when I consider it
as I am writing,
I find myself
wondering, and desiring
that our Lord would make
all people understand
that what we creatures did
in these foundations
is as nothing.
Our Lord directed all
from beginnings so mean (meager)
that only His Majesty
could have raised them
to the state they are in now.
May He be blessed for ever.
Amen.
_________________
Foot Notes:
[1]
See ch. iii. 15, 16.
_________________
[2]
Don Rafael Mejia Velasquez.
The offer was made
in June, 1568, in Avila,
whither the Saint had returned
after founding the monastery
of Malagon
[Reforma, bk. ii. ch. xiv. 2].
_________________________
[3]
Antonia of the Holy Ghost
[Reforma, bk. ii. ch. xiv].
_________________________
[4]
Sec Foundations: Ch. 3: #2
_________________________
[5]
( there were 10 foundations
of the Discalced Carmelite Friars
when she wrote this account )
These were:
Duruelo,
Mancera,
Pastrana,
Alcala de Henares,
Altomira,
La Roda,
Granada,
Penuela,
Seville and
Almodovar del Campo.
_________________________
[6]
The two provincials. See Paragraph #6.
_________________________
[7]
See Foundations: Ch. 2: #5.
_________________________
[8]
The general,
by letters dated Barcelona,
14th August 1567,
authorised the provincial,
Fray Alonso Gonzalez
and the ex-provincial
Fray Angel de Salazar,
then prior of Avila,
jointly to accept two houses of friars,
in which the primitive rule
was to be observed.
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . ..
Fray Alonso Gonzalez,
probably a native of Salamanca,
appears for the first time
as simple religious at Avila
in a document of 1528.
Later on he became prior of that convent
(documents of 1531, 1532, 1550,
and 1561),
and may have filled
the same post elsewhere.
At the provincial chapter
presided over by Rubeo
(12th April 1567)
he was elected provincial
with twelve out of twenty votes.
At that time he was
as yet only Presentado,
a title given to a licentiate
who had been presented to the university
for the degree of Master
by the authorities of the Order
as distinguished from those
who took the degree
at the expense of their friends,
but Rubeo, by letters patent
of 1st May 1567
gave him leave to apply
for the doctor's cap.
His term of office expired in April 1570
but was prolonged
until the provincial chapter,
held 23rd September 1570,
at which Salazar was elected,
Gonzalez acting as definitor.
After that date
we lose sight of him.
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
On Angel de Salazar,
see Life, ch. xxxiv. i. n. 2.
______________________
[9]
The province being small
and almost dying out
he viewed with little favour
the foundation of new convents
and of such austerity.
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End of Chapter 13
of the
Book of the Foundations
of S. Teresa of Jesus
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