The Book of the Foundations
of S. Teresa of Jesus
of the Order of our Lady of Carmel
Discussion of Chapter 31
____________________________
█ Account of the Foundation
of the Monastery of S. Joseph
of S. Anne
in the city of Burgos in old Castille
on 19 April 1582, (or 22 April)
on the Octave of the Easter
▀ Envisioning a Foundation
in the city of Burgos
▀ Preparations and Arrangements
■ Authorization and License
■ Journeying to Burgos 1/2/82
■ Arrival in Burgos 1/26/82
■ Moved to the Hospital of the Conception
2/24/82 for temporary stay
■ The House for the Convent is Purchased
(Casa de Mansino) 3/19/82
■ The Archbishop authorization is obtained
4/18/82
▀ The Monastery is Founded
4/19/82 ( or 4/22/82)
■ New nuns enter
and receive the Carmelite Habit
■ The Saint gives up the endowment.
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .
█ Addendum
▀ Factors and Problems Encountered
affecting the timing of the foundation
■ Difficulty in obtaining the permission
of the Archdiocese
■ Factors affecting St. Teresa
regarding the foundation in Burgos
▀ Catalina de Tolosa
▀ Prayers for the Benefactors of the Foundations
____________________
_______________________
Discussion of Chapter 31
█ Account of the Foundation
of the Monastery of S. Joseph
of S. Anne
in the city of Burgos in old Castille
on 19 April 1582,
on the Octave of the Easter
"In 1582 Easter Day fell on 15th April,
and the octave day was 22nd April;
xix in the text may be an error for xxii."
( 19 in the text may be an error for 22 )
[ Foundations: Ch. 31: Foot note #1 ]
[The above Drawings are from:
"St Teresa of Jesus of the Order
of Our Lady of Mt Carmel
embracing The Life , Relations,
Maxims, and Foundations"
Edited by John J. Burke, C.S.P.
from www.books.google.com ]
_____________________
▀ Envisioning a Foundation
in the city of Burgos
Previously...
"More than six years ago
(some Jesuit Fathers)
said to me
that it would be a great service
rendered to our Lord
if a house of this holy order
were founded in Burgos.
They gave me some reasons
in favour of it
which moved me to wish for it".
But.."The troubles
of the order, and
of the other foundations,
left me no opportunity of making it."
[ Foundation: Ch. 31: #1]
Then regarding the time approximately 1580
St. Teresa wrote of the Foundations
of Palencia and Burgos:
"This foundation (Palenica),
with that of Burgos,
had been under consideration
for nearly a year,
[ Foundation: Ch. 29: #2]
▀ Preparations and Arrangements
■ Authorization and License
► The Diocese of Burgos
"...Burgos in old Castille,
an episcopal city raised in 1574
to the rank of an archbishopric"
[ Foundation: Ch. 30:
Foot note #9]
◦ The Authorization of the Archbishop
was needed
The diocese of the city of Burgos
was an archbishopric
and so under the jurisprudence
of the Archbishop, Don Christobal Vela
"Council of Trent: Session 25
On Regulars And Nuns
Seventh Decree: Chapter 3
"No Monasteries, to be erected
without the Bishop's leave.
"nor shall any such places
be henceforth erected,
without the permission of the bishop,
in whose diocese they are to be erected,
being first obtained."
[ Foundation: Ch. 31:
Foot note #5]
Then in 1580
St. Teresa "begged"
the Bishop of Palencia,
Don Alvaro de Mendoza,
who helped her
with her foundation in Avila
when he was the bishop of Avila
"to ask the Archbishop
( Don Christobal Vela )
to allow us
to make a foundation in Burgos,
[ Foundation: Ch. 31: #1]
◦ The Bishop of Palencia asks
the Archbishop for authorization:
"He then asked permission for me
to found the monastery."
[ Foundation: Ch. 31: #2]
◦ The Archbishop agrees
"The archbishop said
he would give it with pleasure"
[ Foundation: Ch. 31: #2]
"Accordingly the bishop told me
not to wait for the license,
- for the archbishop was very glad
to have the monastery;
and
- as the council (of Trent) does not say
that the license is to be in writing,
but only that the bishop's consent
is to be had,
the license might be taken for granted.
[ Foundation: Ch. 31: #2]
"1580...
The archbishop of Burgos gives leave
to found a house in his cathedral city
ch. xxxi. i."
[ Foundations: Introduction
'Annals of the Saint's Life' ]
"and so I began at once
to make arrangements
for both foundations,
(Palencia and Burgos )
[ Foundation: Ch. 31: #4]
► The Provincial of the Carmelite Order
provided authorization for the convent
April 9, 1581
"The patent authorizing S. Teresa
to make a foundation at Burgos
was written by the Provincial,
Father Jerome,
9th April 1581."
[Foundations: Ch 31:
Foot note # 8 ]
She received it at Palencia
Before setting out for Soria.
[ Foundation: Ch. 31:
Foot note: #8]
► Obtaining the permission of the City
"and so after my departure for Avila,
( September 1581)
Catalina de Tolosa...
...
...thinking there was nothing more
to be done
except getting the permission of the city,
(she) began to solicit it...
[ Foundation: Ch. 31: #8 ]
"a magistrate,
Don Alonso
de Santo Domingo Manrique"
neighbor of Catalina de Tools and
(son of ) Dona Maria Manrique,
"who desired the foundation greatly"
and
who "discussed the matter with him
that he might ask the consent
Of the council of the city.
He spoke to Catalina de Tools"
If the council would require
an endowment
She said "that she would bind herself
to give us a house...
and maintain us,
and thereupon presented a petition
Signed with her name.
Don Alonso
- obtained leave
from all the magistrates,
- went to the archbishop, and
showed him the permission
In writing.
[ Foundation: Ch. 31: #9 ]
Other chroniclers
refer to him as
'Don Antonio Santo Domingo
y Manrique',
procurador mayor.'
"On 4th November 1581,
he petitioned the town council..."
"The council commissioned him
To wait upon the archbishop.
The latter evidently raised objections,
for on the 7th,
(he) presented to the council
The following petition :
...that the convent of Discalced nuns
shall be duly provided for,
promis(ing)
to give them a house wherein to live,
and
to provide for their livelihood
If their be any need for it.
....the council passed
The following resolution:
...that the said convent be
established and exist and remain
in this town,
their lordships giving their consent
[ Foundation: Ch. 31:
Foot note #13]
■ Looking for a House
"Catalina de Tolosa...
a holy widow, in the city of Burgos
[Foundations: Ch 31: #7 ]
"we considered the archbishop's consent
so certain
that we did not think
there was any reason for delay,
and so I asked her
- to find me a house we might hire
in order to take possession,
- to set up the grating and the turn,
and
- put it to my account,
never thinking she would spend
any money of her own,
But only that she would lend it to me.
[ Foundation: Ch. 31: #8 ]
■ Journeying to Burgos
"1582 2nd Jan.
The Saint leaves Avila
on her way to Burgos...
Where she arrives...26th Jan.
(ch. xxxi. 18)."
[ Foundations: Introduction
'Annals of the Saint's Life' ]
Her companions include:
Fr Jerome Gratin of the Mother of God
"Fray Jerome, the provincial,
came, it seems, from Salamanca,
having two friars with him —
one Fray Pedro of the Purification
The other may have been a lay brother.
[ Foundation: Ch. 31:
Foot note #19]
From Alba de Tormes;
Tomasina of the Baptist
and
From Valladolid,
Catherine of the Assumption,
Catherine of Jesus.
From Palencia
Ines of the Cross,
and
From Avila
Mary of the Baptist, a lay sister.
Also traveling with her were:
Anne of S. Bartholomew,
Teresa of Jesus, (her own niece)
but they would return with her to Avila.
"The Father Provincial would go with us
to make the foundation,
- partly because
he...had to so to Soria
and
- partly that he might look
after my health on the journey...
[ Foundation: Ch. 31: #14 ]
"The Saint took
Tomasina of the Baptist,
niece of Teresa de Layz
from Alba de Tormes;
from Valladolid,
Catherine of the Assumption,
daughter of Dona Catalina de Tolosa,
and
Catherine of Jesus.
From Palencia
the Saint took
Ines of the Cross,
having left Avila
with her constant companion the
Venerable Anne
of S. Bartholomew
with another lay sister,
Mary of the Baptist,
who was to remain in Burgos.
She also took with her
Teresa of Jesus,
her own niece,
who with Anne of S. Bartholomew
was to return with her to Avila."
[ Foundation: Ch. 31:
Foot note #21]
■ Arrival in Burgos.
"We arrived on
Friday, 26th January,
the day after the feast
of the Conversion of Saint Paul.
Our intention was
to make the foundation at once"
She brought with her letters
from Canon Salinas and others
(Martin Alonso Salinas)
"urging their relatives…,friends,...others
... to befriend us in our work"
( and)
"they did so...
- were glad that I had come,
and
- I was to consider wherein
they could be of service to me"
"we intended to inform the Archbishop
( of their arrival)
that we might have
the first Mass said at once,
as in almost all places;
but it was not done
on account of the weather."
[ Foundation: Ch. 31: #18]
▪ The Archbishop's Response
◦ Requirements
But when the Archbishop was informed
of their arrival,
St. Teresa "found him changed,
and angry at my coming
without his leave...
as if he had never sent for me
The archbishop...said so afterwards,
...if we had plainly told him
(that) we were coming
he would have forbidden us to come."
He apparently still wanted to discuss
the conditions of the foundation:
"he said he meant
I was to come alone
to arrange the affair with him"
[ Foundation: Ch. 31: #19]
He issued further requirements to be met.
In addition to the endowment
and purchase of a house,
[ Foundation: Ch. 31: #19]
he said
- "that the endowment and
the house we were to buy
were not to be taken out of any dowry
the nuns might bring with them".
[ Foundation: Ch. 31: #20]
- "we were to give security
for the purchase of a house,
and
we were not to leave the place
we were in"
[ Foundation: Ch. 31: #21]
She was also informed
by the Vicar-general
- "that the archbishop now
did not like us
to make the foundation
in the house we were staying in,
because
it was damp
and
in a street that was very noisy
...and
- the archbishop must be pleased
with the house."
[ Foundation: Ch. 31: #23]
◦ Not permitted to have Mass said
in the house where they are staying
He further refused them
"permission for Mass to be said
in the house" where they were staying
which necessitated them to travel
through the streets to the church
in the bad weather and dirty streets
while she was ill.
"out into the streets,
which were very dirty:
it was not seemly
that we should go out,
being barefooted."
"There was a suitable room in the house
(where they were staying)
which had been the church
of the Society of Jesus
... used for more than ten years;
(but) "We were never able to persuade him
to let us hear Mass therein"
[ Foundation: Ch. 31: #21]
■ Their upkeep
"Catalina de Tolosa, however,
was so kind to us,
and
took such care of me,
and
fed us the whole of that month...
in a part of the house
where we lived by ourselves.
The Father Provincial and his companions
were lodged in the house of a friend of his."
[ Foundation: Ch. 31: #22]
■ Obtaining the security
in order to purchase a house of their own
"The sureties we found at once,
for the friends of the Canon Salinas
offered themselves,
and
Catalina de Tolosa offered an endowment.
[ Foundation: Ch. 31: #22]
■ Interim Lodging
while a house was sought
The Father Provincial, Fr. Jerome
"and his friends contrived
to have rooms assigned us
in the Hospital of the Conception;
...on the eve of S. Mathias...
the Most Holy Sacrament was there,
and
Mass was said every day.
[ Foundation: Ch. 31: #26]
"a place where we could
hear Mass
and
live enclosed"
■ A House is Found and Purchased
Casa de Mansino.
▪ Searching for a house
"From the eve of S. Mathias,
( February 24, 1582 (?) )
when we came to the hospital,
until the eve of S. Joseph,
( March 18, 1582 )
we were busy in looking
at this house and at that;
they had...so many disadvantages,
one...had been for sale for some time,
and, though there were so many Orders
looking for a house,
it pleased God
that none of them liked this"
[ Foundation: Ch. 30: #19]
St. Teresa "thought
- that though it were as bad
as it was said to be,
it might be a refuge for us
in our necessity,
and
- that we might sell it later.
and so we made up our minds
to treat for the purchase of it.
[ Foundation: Ch. 31: #31]
"The house belonged then
to Don Manuel Francis
and his wife Dona Angela Mansino,
and was called Casa de Mansino.
[ Foundation: Ch. 31:
Foot Note #39]
▪ Purchasing the house
"The nobleman
to whom the house belonged
... had given authority to sell it
to an ecclesiastic
the ecclesiastic came here,
and the licentiate also...
[ Foundation: Ch. 31: #32]
Don Diego Ruiz de Ayala
who held a chaplaincy at the Cathedral,
(and)
Don Martin Perez de Rozas,
also a chaplain.
[ Foundation: Ch. 31:
Foot Note #40]
"This meeting took place before Mass
on the eve of the glorious S. Joseph...
the sale
was made,
and
could not be set aside,
on the eve...of the glorious S. Joseph"
[ Foundation: Ch. 31: #33]
Immediately, the next day,
the deeds were drawn up,
and one-third of the money was paid
on the demand of the ecclesiastic"
[ Foundation: Ch. 31: #34]
"...Canon Juan Alonso Salinas.
His name appears in the deed
of the foundation,
dated 19th April 1582.
[ Foundation: Ch. 31:
Foot Note #9 ]
"In point of fact the deed shows
that the purchase took place
on the 12th,
and its ratification on the 16th;
In a letter to Father Mariano,
dated 18th March 1582,
the Saint tells him
that the house has been bought.
Perhaps the deed was delivered
on the 18th.
On the 16th
Saint Teresa had already given power
to Father Peter of the Purification
to take possession of the house
which he did without delay
as appears from a document
signed by him on the same day..."
[ Foundation: Ch. 31:
Foot note #41]
"The house was sold to the saint
for thirteen hundred ducats,
and
Dona Catalina de Tolosa
paid one-third of the money at once."
[ Foundation: Ch. 31:
Foot note #42]
▪ Fixing and converting the house
"The (licentiate) was
for more than a month
helping us and
arranging the house
so as to make it suit us,
and at little cost."
[ Foundation: Ch. 31: #35]
"All the furniture we required
for fitting up the house
( Catalina de Tolosa) gave us
— beds and many things besides"
[ Foundation: Ch. 31: #38]
▪ The Archbishop's Response
But when the Archbishop was informed
that they had obtained a suitable House
he still withheld the license.
"the archbishop ...was very glad..."
to hear they had bought a house.
Yet he was angry to hear
that they had moved into it
without consulting him first and
"that I wished to act
as if free from his authority".
"Notwithstanding all the goodwill
he professed,
we found no way to make him willing
to grant the license."
[ Foundation: Ch. 31: #36]
■ The Archbishop grants the license
St. Teresa continued to request
the aid and intercession
of the Bishop of Palencia
to speak with the Archbishop
regarding the founding of the monastery
and "what a service to God it would be".
"Doctor Manso,
canon-preacher in the cathedral"
[ Foundation: Ch. 31: #22 ]
"Doctor Manso was pressing
at the same time"
"...the archbishop
- granted the license,
and
- sent...Hernando Matanza with it".
[ Foundation: Ch. 31: #40]
"The authorization is dated 18th April...
In a letter of 13th April, the Saint thanks
the bishop of Palencia for his intervention.
[ Foundation: Ch. 31:
Foot Note #45]
▀ The Monastery is Founded
"The archbishop, after many shiftings,
yields at last
and the monastery is founded
22nd April. "
[ Foundations: Introduction
'Annals of the Saint's Life' ]
Burgos, the 17th foundation
for the Discalced Carmelite Nuns
was founded on 4/22/1582:
"17. Burgos
22 April, 1582
( Foundations ch. xxxi. 41. )"
[ Foundations: Introduction ]
▪ The First Mass is said
"the first Mass was said
on the next morning (April 19, 1582)
[ Foundation: Ch. 31:
Foot Note #45]
"Doctor Manso had leave
from the Archbishop
to say Mass the next day,
and
to reserve the Most Holy Sacrament.
He said the first Mass,
"and the high Mass was sung
by the Father Prior of S. Paul's
of the order of S. Dominic,
The Father Prior sang the Mass
with very solemn music played..."
[ Foundation: Ch. 31: #41]
"Fray Juan de Arcediano,
Prior of the Dominican convent
of San Pablo,
(later reported) the fact of
his having said the first Mass
at the Carmelite convent,
at which the Archbishop assisted,
and
having reserved the Blessed Sacrament"
[ Foundation: Ch. 31:
Foot Note #45]
"The Saint, in a letter
sent to the Bishop of Palencia,
April 13, 1582,
said that the first mass was to be said
on the last day of Eastertide,
which would be April 22nd.
Yepes and the chronicler say
it was said April 9,
and Ribera on the 13th.
The heading of the chapter
"The First Mass is Said
19 April 1582,
Octave of the Feast of the Resurrection"
and
the letter agree in placing the blessing
of the church on Low Sunday,
and though difficulty is made
by the statement
that the octaves of Easter fell
in 1582 on the 19th,
instead of on the 22nd day of April."
[ Book of Foundations Ch 31
Paragraph #41's Footnote
Teresa of Jesus
transl. by D. Lewis 1871 ]
"In 1582 easter day fell on April 15,
and the octave day must have been
April 22nd;
xix in the text may be an error
for xxii."
[ St Teresa of Jesus of the Order
of Our Lady of Mt Carmel
embracing The Life , Relations,
Maxims, and Foundations"
Edited by John J. Burke, C.S.P.
1911 ]
■ Prioress and Sub-prioress
"Sister Tomasina was made prioress, and
Catherine of Jesus, from Valladolid,
sub-prioress
[ Foundation: Ch. 31:
Foot note #21]
■ New nuns enter
and receive the Carmelite Habit
"the Archbishop ... gave the habit
to a daughter of Catalina de Tolosa,
(Helena of Jesus)
and
to another nun who soon came in"
(Dona Beatriz
del Arceo y Covarrubias)
[ Foundation: Ch. 31: #45]
"Helena of Jesus,
the youngest of the daughters,
who were all Carmelite nuns"
[ Foundation: Ch. 31:
Foot Note #49]
"Elenita (Helena of Jesus)
who received it
from the archbishop himself
in presence of S. Teresa,
but did not make profession
until 25th June 1586.
[ Foundation: Ch. 31:
Foot Note #12 ]
"Dona Beatriz
del Arceo y Covarrubias)
widow of Don Hernando Venero,
a gentleman at the court of Philip II.
She made her profession
24th May 1583,
and was afterwards
mistress of novices
and prioress of Vitoria.
Her name in religion was
Beatriz of Jesus."
[ Foundation: Ch. 31:
Foot Note #50]
■ The Saint gives up the endowment.
"Some time after the house was founded,
it was thought
by the Father Provincial and myself
that the endowment furnished
by Catalina de Tolosa
had certain inconveniences
which might end
in a lawsuit for us,
and
in some trouble for herself...
we, all, before a notary
- renounced the property she had given us...
and
- sent her all the deeds.
"...when it is once known of a house
that it is founded in poverty
there is nothing to be afraid of,
because everybody helps it,
but when the house is known
to be endowed
there is evidently a risk,
and
it may have to remain for a time
without the means
of supplying itself with food."
However, Catalina de Tolosa
and her daughters
did make provision for this convent.
[ Foundation: Ch. 31: #43]
"But I have always held
that the nuns will never be in want,
because our Lord,
who sends succour
to monasteries dependent on alms,
- will raise up people to do
as much for this house,
or
- will find means to maintain it.
...I have begged our Lord from time to time,
as it was His will
(that) the foundation should be made,
- to come to its relief,
and
- supply what is necessary for it;
...One day,
thinking of this after communion,
I heard our Lord say:
'Why doubt ?
This is now done;
thou mayest safely go '
— making me to understand
that the nuns would never be
in want of that
which might be necessary for them.
I felt
as if I were leaving them
amply endowed,
and
have never been anxious about them since."
[ Foundation: Ch. 31: #44]
_____________________________
█ Addendum:
■ Afterward
"1582 24th May.
The monastery in Burgos is flooded,
and the nuns are in great danger."
[ Foundations: Introduction
'Annals of the Saint's Life' ]
"1582
She leaves Burgos
about the end of July
for Palencia and Valladolid."
[ Foundations: Introduction
'Annals of the Saint's Life' ]
_______________________
▀ Factors and Problems Encountered
affecting the timing of the foundation
■ Difficulty in obtaining the permission
of the Archdiocese
Intermittently but ongoing
the Archbishop expresses new
Reservations and Conditions
regarding the founding of a convent at Burgos.
It seems as his conditions were satisfied,
new and additional concerns arose.
Among his subsequent or dilatory concerns
that were treated and satisfied by St. Teresa
were:
- The consent of the city was provided;
- A House, security,
and endowment / maintenance
was promised by Catalina de Tolosa;
- That other Orders and their Monasteries
already existing in Burgos in poverty,
would be affected by the foundation
of yet another foundation,
this prospective Carmelite foundation.
"he always said
that he wished the foundation to be made
more than any one...
In his conduct this did not appear,
for he asked for things
which evidently were
beyond our power to do"
[ Foundation: Ch. 31: #29]
This seeming vacillation on the part
of the Archbishop spanned the period of
1580 until 4/ 22/ 1582
▪ Initially desires a foundation in Burgos
The Bishop of Palenica
"asked permission for me
to found the monastery.
The archbishop said
he would give it with pleasure;
he had asked for one in the Canaries,
and had longed to have there
one of these monasteries,
because he knew
how much our Lord is served in them,
...and was well acquainted with me.
Accordingly the bishop told me
the archbishop was very glad
to have the monastery"
[ Foundation: Ch. 31: #2]
"1580...
The archbishop of Burgos gives leave
to found a house in his cathedral city
ch. xxxi. i."
[ Foundations: Introduction
'Annals of the Saint's Life' ]
▪ Defers her to the City Council
and requires an endowment
"The archbishop,
in a letter to me, said...
- that he desired my coming;
made arrangements with the canon
and
wrote to the bishop,
putting himself in his hands
- that I must come in
with the consent of the town;
in short, the conclusion was
that I was to go and treat,
in the first place,
with the city,
and
if it refused permission,
his hands could not be tied,
nor himself hindered,
from giving it;
...
- that it would not be right
to found the monastery
unless
with an endowment,
or
with the consent of the city...
— a condition I did not like"
[ Foundation: Ch. 31: #5]
July 13, 1581
"In a letter, written in Soria
13th July 1581,...
the Saint speaks of her"...misgivings
regarding the dependability
of the conditions."
[ Foundation: Ch. 31:
Foot note # 10]
November 29, 1581
Relating to a letter received by St. Teresa
on November 29, 1581,
[ Foundation: Ch. 31:
Foot Note #16]
"from Catalina de Tolosa
and her friend, Dona Catalina
pressing me to make haste"
because of another concern
of the Archbishop's that arose.
There were many orders that
had or intending to found monastery
in that city which he felt
could not be sustained"
"the archbishop,
thinking of all the difficulties
that might arise,
forbade it,
for he considered
that a new house would be a wrong
done to the orders founded in poverty,
in that they would not be able
to maintain themselves"
[ Foundation: Ch. 31: #12]
Then before January 1582
in planning to travel to Burgos,
St. Teresa
"Catalina de Tolosa
had already written to me to say
- that she had the house
in which she lived
secured for the purpose
of taking possession,
- that the city had consented,
and
- the archbishop also"
At thie time, she wrote to
the Provincial, Father Jerome"
" they had written to me from Burgos
saying
- that they had arranged
with (the Archbishop)
- that the consent of the city
had been asked and obtained,
and
- that the archbishop was satisfied
with it"
[ Foundation: Ch. 31: #13]
▪ Arrival at Burgos
The Archbishop seems to be angry
that she arrived with the nuns
before arrangements were completed
although the endowment assured
and the ciy's permission obtained.
He adds requirement:
- They must purchase their own house
- they must pay down security
- that the above could not be paid
for by the dowery of nuns
- that they were not to purchase the house
where they were presently staying
(damp and very noisy)
- that the archbishop must be pleased
with the house that they would purchase.
January 2, 1582
"We arrived (in Burgos) on
Friday, 26th January..."
[ Foundation: Ch. 31: #18]
"Early in the morning
the Father Provincial went to his Grace
to ask his blessing,
for we thought
that was all we had to do.
He found him changed,
and angry at my coming
without his leave,
as if he had never sent for me
or meddled at all in the matter;
Then, admitting
that he had sent for me,
he said he meant
I was to come alone
to arrange the affair with him;
To tell him
- that we had already arranged
with the city,
as he had asked us to do...
was all to no purpose whatever.
the Archbishop...said so afterwards,
- ...if we had plainly told him
(that) we were coming
he would have forbidden us to come.
- that unless we
-- were endowed and
-- had a house of our own
he never would give his consent"
[ Foundation: Ch. 31: #19]
- "that the endowment and
the house we were to buy
were not to be taken out of any dowry
the nuns might bring with them."
[ Foundation: Ch. 31: #20]
- "that an endowment being assured
the foundation might be made there
(when) we bought a house,
and
to obtain this
we were to give security
for the purchase of a house,
and
we were not to leave the place
we were in."
[ Foundation: Ch. 31: #21]
Later, after the security was obtained,
"the Vicar-General sent me a note
- that the license would not be granted
till we had a house of our own;
- that the archbishop now
did not like us
to make the foundation
in the house we were staying in,
because
it was damp
and
in a street that was very noisy;
...as if the matter were then
discussed for the first time;
...and
- the archbishop must be pleased
with the house."
[ Foundation: Ch. 31: #23]
"1582... (around spring of 1582)
"The archbishop of Burgos
makes it difficult
for the Saint to found a house.
She and her nuns are lodged
for a time
in the Hospital of the Conception."
[ Foundations: Introduction
'Annals of the Saint's Life' ]
▪ When a house is found and purchased
St. Teresa wrote that in March 1582,
when they had purchased a house,
"the archbishop ...was very glad..."
Yet he was angry to hear
that they had moved into it
without consulting him first.
"He was angry also
when he heard
that we had a grating and a turn,
for it made him think
that I wished to act
as if free from his authority;
I wrote to him, and said
that I had no such wish,
only that we had done
what is done in the house of persons
who live in retirement
— that I had not dared
to put up even a cross...
Notwithstanding all the goodwill
he professed,
we found no way to make him willing
to grant the license."
[ Foundation: Ch. 31: #36]
"The archbishop, after many shiftings,
yields at last
and the monastery is founded
22nd April. "
[ Foundations: Introduction
'Annals of the Saint's Life' ]
___________________________
■ St. Teresa's Perspective of problem
Generally, throughout this book,
St. Teresa was accustom to
and even expected opposition and resistance
to her foundations.
Regarding the vacillation of the Archbishop:
Although in foot notes # 43,
the editor refers to the "obstinancy"
of the Archbishop
St. Teresa, in the chapter,
spoke of his goodness.
The Archbishop of Burgos,
"Don Christobal Vela ,
son of the viceroy of Peru,
whose brother was S. Teresa's Godfather.
The family belonged to Avila and
were befriended with S. Teresa's parents."
[ Foundation: Ch. 31:
Foot Note #2 ]
She did, however, find his actions inconsistent
with his words.
Her letter of July 13, 1581
referenced in the footnote #10
mentions St. Teresa's uncertainty
of the Archbishop's conviction to action.
"he always said
that he wished the foundation
to be made
more than any one;
and I believe it,
for he is so good a Christian
that he would not say
that which is not true.
In his conduct
this did not appear..."
[ Foundation: Ch. 31: #29 ]
"Notwithstanding all the goodwill
he professed,
we found no way
to make him willing..."
[ Foundation: Ch. 31: #36 ]
"I think I saw beforehand
how little we could rely on him...
...because the archbishop made
so many difficulties
after showing
such good dispositions before,
and so I said nothing
of my suspicions,
to avoid causing disagreements
[ Foundation: Ch. 31: #6 ]
From her perspective, she saw his resistance as
"a device of Satan
to hinder the foundation."
[ Foundation: Ch. 31: #29 ]
"I always felt assured
- that all this was for the best
— a plot of Satan
to hinder the foundation —
(But)
- that God would prosper
His (Foundation) work."
[ Foundation: Ch. 31: #20]
The Lord said to her,
"...Satan is exerting all his strength
to hinder the foundation:
Do thou exert thine
on My behalf
that it may be made,
and
go thyself without fail,
for the fruits of it will be great"
[ Foundation: Ch. 31: #11]
"it may be
that the devil suggested it
in order to do away
with the good
which God works
wherever many monasteries
are built..."
[ Foundation: Ch. 31: #12]
She saw God's Will and His Providence at work:
"But, O Lord,
how plain it is
that Thou art mighty !
the very means
which Satan sought
for the purpose of hindering it
Thou didst employ to make it better"
[ Foundation: Ch. 31: #29 ]
"O my Lord, how true it is
that he
who shall render Thee a service
is immediately rewarded
by a great cross!
And what a priceless reward it is
if they who truly love Thee,
only knew its value at the time !
But we did not then
desire the reward,
because it seemed
to make the foundation
altogether impossible"
[ Foundation: Ch. 31: #20]
"and thus there seems to be
no other reason to give than this
— that it was the good pleasure
of our Lord
we should suffer."
[ Foundation: Ch. 31: #37]
"God willed the foundation
of the house"
[ Foundation: Ch. 31: #19]
■ Providence
▪ Regarding "the purchase of this house,
...the truth is (it was)
nothing less than a miracle,
whether it be the price,
which was so small,
or the blindness of all the religious
who had seen it,
and
which hindered them
from taking it:
and we can truly say that, under God,
(the licentiate) gave us the house.
...and as God had given him the will,
so he brought our affair to an end.
It seemed clear
that our Lord had been keeping the house
for Himself,
for almost everything seemed
to have been done for our use.
...as if prepared for us,
it seemed to me a dream
— everything was done so quickly.
Our Lord repaid us well
for what we had gone through
when He brought us into a paradise
— for the garden, the view, and the water
seemed nothing else.
[ Foundation: Ch. 31: #35]
▪ Regarding the Foundations
"Our Lord, knowing my misery,
always helps me by words and deeds.
He began to encourage me
from the very first.
[ Foundation: Ch. 31: #3 ]
"He asked me...
'What was I afraid of? '
Had He ever failed me?
'I am the same:
Fail not to make
these two foundations.'
[ Foundation: Ch. 31: #4]
"I remembered
what our Lord had said to me,
that I was to make this foundation
for Him,
I was so confident it would be made
that scarcely anything vexed me;
[ Foundation: Ch. 31: #24]
The sisters had prayed much to S. Joseph
that they might have a house
for his feast, and,
though they did not think
they could have one so soon,
their prayer was heard:
[ Foundation: Ch. 31: #33]
"and until now
people have never failed
to provide for us,
nor will our Lord
leave His brides to suffer
if they serve Him according
to the obligations under which they lie.
To this end may His Majesty
give them His grace
out of His great compassion and goodness !"
[ Foundation: Ch. 31: #45]
▪ Regarding the Journey
"The Father Provincial would go with us
to make the foundation...
It was certainly a providence of God,
for the roads were in such a state
[ Foundation: Ch. 31: #14]
The truth is,
our Lord had said to me
that we might go on safely
— not to be afraid —
for He would be with us.
[ Foundation: Ch. 31: #15]
_________________________
▀ Factors affecting St. Teresa
regarding the foundation in Burgos
This brief description of the many factors
regarding St. Teresa's health and obligations
which also affected
- the timing of the foundation at Burgos
and
- St. Teresa's ability to travel to Burgos
is included here.
From her comments,
it seems that a foundation in Burgos
was pondered in 1579
[ Foundation: Ch. 29: #2]
and perhaps even as early as
"more than six years ago"
[ Foundation: Ch. 31: #1]
▪ Her illnesses and weakness
"1580
March 31 (1580) has a paralytic stroke
... at Toledo.
August 1580
Goes on from Ávila to Medina del Campo
and (August 8) Valladolid ...
At Valladolid has a recurrence
of the Toledo complaint
and becomes dangerously ill...
[Complete Works St. Teresa of Avila
Volume 1
'An outline of the Life of St. Teresa'
Transl by Edgar Allison Peers ]
In the beginning of August (1580)
... she is very ill,
and believed to be dying [ch. xxix. i]."
[ Foundations: Introduction
'Annals of the Saint's Life' ]
"It appears from a letter dated Soria,
14th July 1581,
that the Provincial
Fray Jerome of the Mother of God...
that she was therefore not to travel
in the winter to Burgos."
[ Foundation: Ch. 31:
Foot note # 14]
"I wrote to the bishop of Palencia...
that, as
- the summer was nearly over (1581)
and
- my infirmities such as to disable me
from staying in so cold a climate,
the matter (of Burgos) might rest
for the present."
[ Foundation: Ch. 31: #6]
"It was my want of health
that most frequently wearied me
while making this foundation;
the cold was nothing
— at least, I did not feel it —
certainly not more, I think,
than I did in Toledo. "
[ Foundation: Ch. 31: #11]
▪ The death of her brother, Don Lorenzo
June 26, 1580"
[ Complete Works St. Teresa of Avila
Volume 1
'An outline of the Life of St. Teresa'
Transl by Edgar Allison Peers ]
"1580 28th June.
Death of the Saint's brother Don Lorenzo.
The Saint is obliged to go to Avila
to arrange the affairs of her brother. "
[ Foundations: Introduction
'Annals of the Saint's Life' ]
July 1580
"Goes (July 6) from Segovia to Ávila,
to settle his business affairs"
[ Complete Works St. Teresa of Avila
Volume 1
'An outline of the Life of St. Teresa'
Transl by Edgar Allison Peers ]
▪ The needs of her other foundations
◦ Palencia
"better to make
the foundation of Palencia first,
because
- it was nearer, and....
- Burgos so cold...and
- it would please the
good bishop of Palencia"
[ Foundation: Ch. 31: #4 ]
Palencia was eventually founded
29th December 1580 and
relocated approximately May 26, 1581
◦ Soria
"the foundation of Soria was offered
and I thought that...
it would be best to go thither first,
and thence to Burgos."
[ Foundation: Ch. 31: #5]
Though she already received
the authorization from Father Jerome,
9th April 1581
before setting out for Soria.
[ Foundation: Ch. 31:
Foot note # 8]
Soria was eventually founded
June 3, 1581
◦ Avila
St. Teresa was also summoned to Avila
and arrived there on September 5, 1581
"went from Soria to Avila"
"my going to the house
of S. Joseph in Avila
was very necessary for many reasons"
[ Foundation: Ch. 31: #6]
See also
Foundation: Ch. 30: #12's Note
▪ The Journey to Burgos, itself.
"The Saint went from Avila
on Monday, 2nd January 1582,
and arrived in Medina del Campo
on Wednesday the 4th,
staying there till Monday the 9th,
when she started for Valladolid
(Letter of 8th January 1582).
She was detained for four days
in Valladolid by illness,
but reached Palencia
on Monday the 16th,
intending to leave
on the Friday following
if the weather should be favourable"
(Letter of 16th January).
[ Foundation: Ch. 31:
Foot note #19]
"We arrived on
Friday, 26th January" (1582)
after a perilous journey,
of dangerous passages,
flooded roads, floating bridges,
bad weather and illness."
[ Foundation: Ch. 31: #18]
_____________________________
▀ Catalina de Tolosa
- A holy widow, who lived in Burgos
- She eventually entered the Carmelite
Foundation at Palencia
- St. Teresa credits her as the founder
of the convent monastery at Burgos.
"and, though at first
I did not intend,
neither did it enter into my mind,
that Catalina de Tolosa should be
the founder of the house,
her good life obtained it for her
from our Lord,
who so ordered matters
that it became impossible
to withhold this honour from her;
for, to say nothing of the purchase
of the house by her
when we had not the means
of doing so ourselves"
[ Foundation: Ch. 31: #27]
"Among those
who were founders of our monasteries
there are some
who gave more of their substance,
but there is not one
who had the tenth part of the trouble
it cost her...
She longed so earnestly
to see the monastery founded
that what she did for that end
seemed to her as nothing.
[ Foundation: Ch. 31: #38]
"There dwelt in the city of Burgos,
a holy widow,
Catalina de Tolosa,
a Biscayan by birth,
of whose
goodness, penance, and prayer,
great alms-giving and charity,
good sense and courage,
I could speak at great length.
She had placed
two of her daughters as nuns in the
Monastery of our Lady of the Conception
in Valladolid...
and
two others in Palencia.
[ Foundation: Ch. 31: #7 ]
"These were
Catherine of the Assumption and
Casilda of the Holy Angel
in Valladolid,
Mary of S. Joseph and
Isabel of the Trinity
in Palencia".
[ Foundation: Ch. 31:
Foot Note #12 ]
"The four nuns have turned out
as the children of such a mother;
they are like angels.
She gave them
a good dowry and
everything else most abundantly,
for she herself is very wealthy"
[ Foundation: Ch. 31: #8 ]
"God rewarded Catalina de Tolosa
even in this life, for
two sons
and
five daughters
were called to the Order,
and finally,
after having offered up to Him
seven children,
she,
like the mother of the Macchabees,
made a sacrifice of herself.
(She entered the Carmel Convent
at Palencia)
Catherine of the Assumption,
the eldest daughter,
professed at Valladolid,
22nd August 1579,
became foundress and five times prioress
of the convent of Rioseco
where she died,
20th September 1616.
Casilda of S. Angelus
had accompanied her sister
to Valladolid and
took her vows on the same day
as the former.
She eventually was elected prioress there,
and died 2nd October 1632.
Mary of S. Joseph
took the habit at Palencia,
made her profession
22nd April 1582,
and died at Tarazona,
21st July 1613.
Isabel of the Blessed Trinity
took the habit and
was professed
together with her sister.
She never left Palencia
until her death
which occurred 8th October 1633...
The fifth daughter to take the habit was
Elenita (Helena of Jesus)
who received it
from the archbishop himself
in presence of S. Teresa,
but did not make profession
until 25th June 1586.
The elder son of Dona Catalina,
Fra Sebastian of Jesus,
entered the Order at Pastrana in 1585.
He distinguished himself
as lecturer, preacher and administrator,
rising from one dignity to another,
inclusive of those
of Provincial and Definitor General
which he held at the time of his death.
The second son, Lesmes,
afterwards Fra John Chrysostom,
was only thirteen
when he took the habit, in 1587;
he became a celebrated professor
at Salamanca, and died at Palencia.
Another child, Beatriz,
having died in infancy.
Dona Catalina joined her two daughters
at Palencia in 1587,
being then forty years old.
She gave unmistakable proof
of humility and obedience
when her own daughter was prioress
and her son provincial;
she also showed her wisdom
and experience during three years
she held the office of prioress.
She died at Palencia 13th July 1608.
[ Foundation: Ch. 31:
Foot Note #12 ]
_________________________
▀ The Blessedness of a cloistered life.
"Nobody
who does not know it by experience
will believe the joy
we have in these monasteries
...souls,
accustomed to live
in the torrents of the waters
of their Bridegroom:
If they be drawn out therefrom
by the nets of the things of this world...
do not really live
till they are taken back again."
"those nuns
who are conscious of a wish
to go abroad among seculars,
or
to converse much with them,
have reason to be afraid
- that they have never touched
that living water
of which our Lord spoke
to the Samaritan woman,
and
- that the Bridegroom has
hidden Himself from them,
seeing that they are not content
to dwell alone with Him.
I am afraid
that this comes from two sources:
- either they have not undertaken
the religious state for Him alone,
- or they do not understand
after undertaking it
what a great grace God gave them
when He
chose them for Himself,
and
rescued them
from being subject to man,
who very often kills their body...
O my Bridegroom,
very God and very man !
Is this a grace to be lightly regarded ?
[ Foundation: Ch. 31: #42]
____________________________
▀ Prayers for the Benefactors of the Foundations
In addition to Catalina de Tolosa
and her family
in this chapter and throughout this book,
St. Teresa gave the names of those
who by their labor and support
assisted in the establishment of these foundation.
She asks that all the nuns,
those present at that time and
those who will enter in the future
to remember these benefactors in their prayers.
"I have given the names of those
who were our benefactors
in the beginning,
(so) that the nuns
now there,
and
those who shall come after them,
may, as is fitting,
remember them in their prayers;
They are the more bound
to do so for founders,
[ Foundation: Ch. 31: #27]
___________________
End of the Discussion
of Chapter 31
of the
Book of the Foundations
of S. Teresa of Jesus
of the Order of our Lady of Carmel
