In the first stanza of his commentary on the Spiritual Canticle, St. John of the Cross tells the reader who seeks God, the Beloved, and who asks, "Where have you hidden, Beloved?" So many people suffer inwardly because they interpret their lack of sensible feeling in prayer as an indicator of God's distance or else [...]
...Perhaps I should just try a "blog burst" (a series of brief posts) since it's been months since my last post. If I had a dime for every occasion or event when I thought "I should blog that," I'd be ... well, wealthier than I am now (but there's no evidence to prove the good [...]
St. Teresa with Jesus Christ. Icon painted by Br. Claude Lane, OSB of Mt. Angel Abbey, OR. In April of 1571, St. Teresa of Jesus was living in Salamanca. The day after Easter Sunday she was feeling very down and put to paper a reflection for her confessor at the time--Fr. Martín Gutiérrez, [...]
An Easter Homily given this morning at Holy Hill, the Basilica of the National Shrine of Mary, Help of Christians... Happy Easter! The Lord is risen! He is truly risen! Alleluia! Brothers and sisters, there is NO love like the love of God in Jesus Christ. Pope John Paul II once wrote that in Christ [...]
"If man lives without truth, life passes him by: ultimately he surrenders the field to whoever is the stronger.... In Christ, God entered the world and set up the criterion of truth in the midst of history. Truth is outwardly powerless in the world, just as Christ is powerless by the world's standards: he has [...]
St. Teresa of Ávila, Life 9.4: "The scene of His prayer in the garden, especially, was a comfort to me; I strove to be His companion there. If I could, I thought of the sweat and agony He had undergone in that place. I desired to wipe away the sweat He so painfully experienced, but [...]
Today we celebrate Jesus’ entrance into Jerusalem riding humbly on a donkey. Today marks the beginning of the New Exodus—like a warrior preparing to conquer death, Jesus enters the city where He will be mocked, tortured, stripped and crucified… and where He will lead us to conquer DEATH. See the true humility of Jesus Christ—He [...]
This plaque reads "Monasterio De San Jose, Primer Fundacion De Santa Teresa de Jesus, Donde Comenzo La Reforma Del Carmen Dscalzo" Feast of St. Bartholomew, August 24, 2010 448th anniversary of the Foundation of San José in Ávila The beginning of the Discalced Reform of Carmel! We’ll it’s been a LONG time since [...]
Today the Discalced Carmelite Order celebrates that mystical grace granted to St. Teresa which we call the Transverberation, also referred to within the Carmels of Ávila as "la gracia del dardo" or the "grace of the dart." St. Teresa herself recounts the experience in chapter 29 of her Life: “I saw close to me toward [...]
Regarding the dogma of the Assumption of the Blessed Virgin Mary, Pope Pius XII "pronounces, declares, and defines" that "the Immaculate Mother of God, the ever Virgin Mary, having completed the course of her earthly life, was assumed body and soul into heavenly glory" (Munificentissimus Deus). Deliberately left unanswered is the question of whether or [...]