of S. Teresa of Jesus
of the Order of our Lady of Carmel
Discussion of Chapter 15
Chapter 15 Contents
Treats Of The Foundation
Of The Monastery
Of The Glorious S. Joseph
In The City Of Toledo, 1569
1. Martin Ramirez. —
2. Is persuaded to found a monastery. —
3. The Saint consents to found a house
in Toledo. —
4. Difficulties. —
5. She speaks to the governor of Toledo. —
6. Who gives his consent. —
7. Martin of the Cross and Andrada. —
8. Andrada finds a house. —
9. Of which the Saint takes possession.- —
10. Preparation of the house. —
11. Troubles. —
12. Mass forbidden in the monastery. —
13. Poverty. —
14. Blessings of poverty. —
15. Pride of family. —
16. The Saint accepts in part
the conditions of Alvarez. —
17. The matter is settled.
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Discussion of Chapter 15
▀ Efforts and Perseverance for the Foundation
at Toledo for the Nuns
▀ The Monastery of the Glorious S. Joseph
14 May 1569
▀ The Love of Poverty
▀ Reactions to the Foundation
▀ Regret of the loss of Poverty
▀ Relocationing of the Foundation
1570, 1594, and 1607
▀ Virtue rather than Descent / Lineage
The question of rights to the Church's Chancel
___________________________
▀ Efforts and Perseverance
for the Foundation
at Toledo for the Nuns
While "founding the house in Valladolid",
St. Teresa was offered the means
of establishing a monastery in Toledo.
[Foundations: Ch. 15: #3 ]
Martin Ramirez,
on the advise of Fr. Paul Hernandez
aimed to make a donation
But because of a fatal illness,
"he left it all in the hands of his brother,
Alonso Alvarez Ramirez"
[Foundations: Ch. 15: #2 ]
Difficulties in making arrangements
for the foundation resulted
because "They began by insisting
on many conditions
which I did not think right to grant."
[Foundations: Ch. 15: #3 ]
"when the monastery '
might have been founded
without trouble,
upon our agreeing with Alonso Alvarez,
He would not have it so,
but quite otherwise,
in order that the foundation might be laid
in poverty and trouble"
[Foundations: Ch. 15: #8 ]
Another problem was obtaining permision:
"for at that time there was no archbishop"
" I could not get permission,
for when the administrator
was a little softened,
the members ot the council were not."
[Foundations: Ch. 15: #4 ]
Without the promised donation and
without permission or a license,
St. Teresa decided to persevere
in a foundation at Toledo for the nuns.
She speaks to the governor of Toledo
I told him when I saw him
that it was a hard thing
(that) there should be women
desirous of living
in great austerity, perfection,
and retirement,
while persons
who did nothing of the kind,
but lived at their ease,
wished to hinder the doing
of those things
which are for the service of our Lord.
[Foundations: Ch. 15: #5 ]
"His heart was so touched
that he gave me permission"
[Foundations: Ch. 15: #6 ]
And there were many others who helped her:
Alonso de Avila,
and
Andrada
who was sent to help her
by the Franciscan Friar,
Fray Martin of the Cross,
and
who located a house for their monastery
[Foundations: Ch. 15: #6 ]
"Then, as we were satisfied with the house,
I ordered possession
to be taken at once
before anything could be done to it,
in order that there might be no hindrance.
[Foundations: Ch. 15: #9 ]
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▀ The Monastery of the Glorious S. Joseph
14 May 1569
"Fray Juan Gutierrez de la Madalena,
Prior of the Carmelites,
said the mass.
The Most Holy Sacrament was reserved,
and formal possession was taken,
it being the feast of S. Boniface,
14 May 1569"
[Foundations: Ch. 15:
Foot note # 14 ]
Of the site, St. Teresa said:
"It was so good
that we remained in it nearly a year "
[Foundations: Ch. 15: #8 ]
"The house was situated
on the Plazuela del Barrio Nuevo,
near the church
of Nostra Senora del Transito.
It was temporarily fitted as a convent
at the small expenditure of 100 reales"
[Foundations: Ch. 15:
Foot note # 13 ]
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▀ The Love of Poverty
The house was founded in poverty:
They had two mattresses, a blanket,
and two paintings of Christ for the altar.
They didn't even have twigs
with which to provide warmth
or even to cook for themselves.
"it was the will of God
we should learn by experience
the blessing of this virtue".
[Foundations: Ch. 15: #13]
"To us, it was a great blessing,
for the inward comfort and joy
we then felt
was such as to make me often ponder
on the treasures
which our Lord has laid up in virtues.
The poverty we were in
seemed to me
as the source of a sweet contemplation"
[Foundations: Ch. 15: #14]
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▀ Reactions to the Foundation
"I saw afterwards
how hastily we had acted,
for then,
in the exaltation which comes from God,
we saw no difficulties.
But, in addition to the consternation
of the house's owner and neighbors,
"when the members of the council heard
that the monastery was founded...
they were very angry"
[Foundations: Ch. 15: #11 ]
St. Teresa was assisted by
- "Don Pedro Manrique,
one of the canons of the church"
who mediated this matter with the council.
"He brought them over,
especially as the thing was done"
[Foundations: Ch. 15: #4, 12]
- "Fray Vicente Baron...
Her old friend the Dominican,
took up her cause at the same time"
[Foundations: Ch. 15:
Foot note # 16 ]
- "Alonso Alvarez (Ramirez) ,
himself, and others
provided for us soon,
and that
in greater abundance
than we desired."
So, the promised legacy of Martin Ramirez
was given for the foundation.
( See conditions at bottom of page.)
[Foundations: Ch. 15: #14 ]
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▀ Regret of the loss of Poverty
St. Teresa said of the virtue of Poverty:
"I was in pain
when my poverty was ended,
and so were my sisters"
[Foundations: Ch. 15: #14 ]
"From that time forth
the desire of being very poor
grew within me,
and I felt a strength to enable me
to hold in contempt
the goods of this world,
seeing that
in the absence of them
grows interior good,
which, of a truth,
brings with it, fullness and rest".
[Foundations: Ch. 15: #15 ]
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▀ The Monastery is relocated in 1570
"and by their help (of the legacy)
we bought that
in which we are now living,
and
which is one of the good houses
of Toledo,
and cost 12,000 ducats"
[Foundations: Ch. 15: #17 ]
The house bought with the money
of Alonso Ramirez
was in the ward of S. Nicholas,
opposite the Mint,
and was taken possession of in 1570"
And relocated in 1594:
"but, as the charities founded by the family
proved a trouble and annoyance
to the nuns,
the monastery was removed
to the house of Alonso Franco,
near the Misericordia, in 1594"
And relocated in 1607:
"that proved too small for the nuns,
and the Prioress Beatriz of Jesus,
niece of S. Teresa,
bought a house in the parish
of S. Leocadia,
near the Cambron gate,
the palace of the Dukes of Medina Celi,
where S. Teresa had been the guest
of Dona Luisa de la Cerda,
and transferred thither the community
in 1607,
where it still remains."
___________
"The foundations of the Ramirez family
continued in their original site,
and were known as
the oratory of S. Joseph."
[Foundations: Ch. 15: Foot note # 22 ]
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▀ Virtue rather than Descent / Lineage
The question of rights
to the Church's Chancel
The promised legacy of Martin Ramirez
was given on condition
that the family would have rights to the chancel.
"However, as the foundation was now made
I compromised the matter
by giving them the chancel,
(Blog note: chancel
space around the altar of a church
for the clergy and sometimes the choir)
but in the monastery, itself ,
they were to have no rights"
[Foundations: Ch. 15: #16 ]
St. Teresa seesm to imply a controversy
since "A great personage wished
to have the chancel",
[Foundations: Ch. 15: #16 ]
while The Ramirez family was
"neither great
nor noble,
though very good in its own place"
"I did not pay much attention to this,
for, thanks be to God,
I have always prized goodness
more than descent"
[Foundations: Ch. 15: #15 ]
"It pleased our Lord
to give me light in the matter,
and so He said to me at once,
"How useless will birth and dignities be
before the judgment-seat of God ! '
And He gave me a severe rebuke
because I had listened to those
who spoke in this way,
for these were not matters
which those who despised the world
should think of.
[See Relation, 3:1]
[Foundations: Ch. 15: #16 ]
"When I was in the monastery of Toledo, and
some people were advising me
not to allow any but noble persons
to be buried there, [644]
Our Lord said to me:
"Thou wilt be very inconsistent,
My daughter,
if thou regardest the laws of the world.
Look at Me,
poor and despised of men:
are the great people of the world
likely to be great in My eyes?
Or is it descent or virtue
that is to make you esteemed?"
[ Relations: Ch. 3: #1 ]
"Alonzo Ramirez wished to have
the right of burial in the new monastery,
but the nobles of Toledo
looked on his request as unreasonable.
See Foundations, chs. xv. and xvi."
[ Relations: Ch. 3: #1 - Foot note # 644 ]
So, St. Teresa had not
"respected the vain opinions of the world"
"and it would have been
a wrong done to him
who did us the charity
with so much goodwill"
[Foundations: Ch. 15: #17 ]
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End of the Discussion
of Chapter 15
of the
Book of the Foundations
of S. Teresa of Jesus
of the Order of our Lady of Carmel
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