Chapter 12 - The Life of St.Teresa of Jesus - Autobiography of St. Teresa of Avila

 The Life of the Holy Mother
       Teresa of Jesus

      "The Life" 

The Life of St. Teresa of Jesus
of the Order of Our Lady of Carmel

Chapter 12
- Continuation of the first state.
- She declares how far, with the grace of God,
     we can proceed by ourselves, and
- speaks of the danger of seeking
     supernatural and extraordinary experiences
     before God lifts up the soul.
- What We Can Ourselves Do.
- The Evil of Desiring
     to Attain to Supernatural States
    Before Our Lord Calls Us.
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Topics / Discussion Questions
     to keep in mind
    as we read along

1). In chapter 1, Pargraph #1, St. Teresa discusses:
     - how much we can attain by our own power and
     - how in this first stage of devotion
          we can do a certain amount for ourselves.
     What does she recommend the soul,
         who is in "this first stage of devotion", to do ?
     What are the beneficial results of each
         of these recommended actions?
      [ Life: Ch. 12: #1,2,3,4,5,7,8,9,12 ]
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2). St. Teresa teaches the importance of Humility,
      especially in regard to the use of the
           Understanding / Intellect.
     What did she advise regarding Humility
          and the use of the Understanding?
          [ Life: Ch. 12: #5,8,9,12 ]
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3). What does St. Teresa say at this time
         regarding "Mystical Theology"?
         [ Life: Ch. 10: Paragraph # 1 ]
         [ Life: Ch. 12: Paragraph # 8,9 ]
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4). St. Teresa said that "When His Majesty pleases,
         He teaches everything in a moment,"
     "for a long time, too,
         though God gave me understanding
      herein, I never could utter a word
          by which I might explain it to others"
      "I conversed with many spiritual persons,
        who sought to make me understand
           what our Lord was giving me,
         in order that I might be able to speak of it..."
          [ Life: Ch. 12: #10 ]

      What does St. Teresa say
         "would have been a virtue in me" ?
          [ Life: Ch. 12: #10, 11 ]
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5). What Is St. Teresa teaching in regard to
          prayer states and the faculties?
          [Life: Chapter 12; #5,6,7,8,9,12]
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     Chapter 12

1. My aim in the foregoing chapter--
       though I digressed to many other matters,
because they seemed to me very necessary--
   was to explain
   - how much we may attain to of ourselves; and
   - how, in these beginnings of devotion,
      we are able in some degree to help ourselves:

   because
      - thinking of, and
      - pondering on,
    the sufferings of our Lord for our sakes
         -- moves us to compassion, and
         -- the sorrow and tears which result therefrom
                are sweet.

      The thought
      - of the blessedness we hope for,
      - of the love our Lord bore us, and
      - of His resurrection,
     kindle within us a joy
       which is
              neither wholly spiritual
              nor wholly sensual;
     but the joy is virtuous, and
           the sorrow is most meritorious.

2. Of this kind are all those things which
      - produce a devotion
      - acquired in part
           by means of the understanding,
     though it can
           neither be merited
           nor had (aquired),
    if God grants it not.

It is best for a soul
  which God has not raised
      to a higher state than this
  not to try to rise of itself.

Let this be well considered,
  because all the soul will gain in that way
will be a loss.

In this state
 it can make
 - many acts of good resolutions
          to do much for God, and
      -- enkindle its love;
- other acts also, which
     -- may help the growth of virtues,
    according to that which is written
    in a book called The Art of Serving God,
    [1] a most excellent work, and
    profitable for those who are in this state,
   because the understanding is active now.

3. The soul may also
- place itself in the presence of Christ,
- and accustom itself to many acts of love
    directed to His sacred Humanity, and
- remain in His presence continually, and
- speak to Him,
- pray to Him in its necessities, and
- complain to Him of its troubles;
- be merry with Him in its joys, and
- yet not forget Him because of its joys.

All this it may do without set prayers,
but rather with words befitting
    its desires and its needs.

4. This is an excellent way
       whereby to advance,
       and that very quickly.

He that
   - will strive to have
         this precious companionship, and
   - will make much of it, and
   - will sincerely love our Lord,
        to whom we owe so much,
is one, in my opinion,
    who has made some progress.

There is therefore no reason why
   we should trouble ourselves
because we have no sensible devotion,
    as I said before. [2]

But let us rather give thanks to our Lord,
  who allows us to have
       a desire to please Him,
though our works be poor.

This practice of the presence of Christ
     - is profitable in all states of prayer, and
     - is a most safe way
         -- of advancing in the first state, and
         -- of attaining quickly to the second;
         -- and as for the last states,
               it secures us against those risks
               which the devil may occasion.

5. This, then, is what we can do.
      (what was listed above)

He who would
   pass out of this state, and
   upraise his spirit,
      in order to taste consolations denied him,
will, in my opinion, lose both the one and the other. [3]

These consolations being supernatural,
   and the understanding inactive,
the soul is then left desolate and in great aridity.

As the foundation of the whole building
   is humility,
the nearer we draw unto God
  the more this virtue should grow;
if it does not, everything is lost.

It seems to be a kind of pride
  when we seek to ascend higher,
seeing that God descends so low,
   when He allows us,
          being what we are,
   to draw near unto Him.

6. It must not be supposed
    that I am now speaking
      of raising our thoughts
    to the consideration
      of the high things of heaven and
      of its glory, or unto God
          and His great wisdom.

I never did this myself,
 because I had not the capacity for it--
   as I said before; [4]

and I was so worthless, that,
   as to thinking even of the things of earth,
God gave me grace to understand this truth:
  that in me it was no slight boldness to do so.
How much more, then,
   the thinking of heavenly things?

Others, however, will profit in that way,
  particularly those who are learned;
for learning, in my opinion,
  is a great treasury in the matter
    of this exercise,
if it be accompanied with humility.

I observed this a few days ago
    in some learned men
who had shortly before made a beginning,
and had made great progress.

This is the reason why I am so very anxious
   that many learned men may become spiritual.
I shall speak of this by and by. [5]

7. What I am saying--namely,
  let them not rise if God does not raise them--
      is the language of spirituality.

He will understand me
    who has had any experience;
and I know not how to explain it,
if what I have said
   does not make it plain.

8. In mystical theology--
of which I spoke before [6]--
   the understanding ceases from its acts,
because God suspends it--

as I shall explain by and by, if I can; [7] and
God give me the grace to do so.

We must neither imagine nor think
   that we can of ourselves
bring about this suspension.

That is what I say must not be done;
  nor must we allow the understanding
        to cease from its acts;
for in that case we shall be stupid and cold,
and the result will be
       neither the one nor the other.

For when our Lord
    suspends the understanding, and
    makes it cease from its acts,
He puts before it
  that which astonishes and occupies it:
so that without making any reflections,
  it shall comprehend in a moment [8]
more than we could comprehend in many years
  with all the efforts in the world.

9. To have the powers of the mind
           occupied, and
     to think that you can keep them at the same time
           quiet,
     is folly.

I repeat it, though it be not so understood,
    there is no great humility in this;
and, if it be blameless,
    it is not left unpunished--
it is labour thrown away,
    and the soul is a little disgusted:
it feels like a man about to take a leap,
    and is held back.

Such a one seems
    to have used up his strength already, and
    finds himself unable to do
      that which he wished to have done:

so here, in the scanty gain that remains,
he who
  will consider the matter
  will trace that slight want of humility
       of which I have spoken; [9]
for that virtue has this excellence:

there is no good work attended by humility
   that leaves the soul disgusted.

It seems to me
   that I have made this clear enough;
yet, after all, perhaps only for myself.

May our Lord open their eyes
   who read this,
by giving them experience;
and then however slight that experience may be,
   they will immediately understand it.

10. For many years I read much,
           and understood nothing;
and for a long time, too,
   though God gave me understanding herein,
I never could utter a word
   by which I might explain it to others.
This was no little trouble to me.

When His Majesty pleases,
  He teaches everything in a moment,
so that I am lost in wonder.

One thing I can truly say:
   though I conversed
        with many spiritual persons,
who sought to make me understand
   what our Lord was giving me,
in order that I might be able to speak of it,
    the fact is, that my dulness was so great,
that I derived no advantage
    whatever, much or little, from their teaching.

11. Or it may be,
  as His Majesty has always been my Master-
         may He be blessed for ever!

for I am ashamed of myself
    that I can say so with truth--
that it was His good pleasure
   I should meet with no one
to whom I should be indebted in this matter.

So, without my wishing or asking it--
  I never was careful about this,
for that would have been a virtue in me,
   but only about vanity--

God gave me to understand
   with all distinctness in a moment,
and also enabled me to express myself,
  so that my confessors were astonished
but I more than they,
   because I knew my own dulness better.

It is not long since this happened.
  And so that which our Lord has not taught me,
I seek not to know it,
  unless it be a matter that touches my conscience.

12. Again I repeat my advice:
    it is of great moment
      not to raise our spirit ourselves,
if our Lord does not raise it for us;

   and if He does,
      there can be no mistaking it.

For women, it is specially wrong,
  because the devil can delude them--
though I am certain
  our Lord will never allow him to hurt any one
who labours to draw near unto God in humility.

On the contrary, such a one will derive
   more profit and advantage
out of that attack
   by which Satan intended to hurt him.

13. I have dwelt so long upon this matter
- because this way of prayer
     is the most common with beginners, and
- because the advice I have given is very important.

It will be found much better given elsewhere:
  that I admit;
and I admit, also, that in writing it
   I am ashamed of myself,
and covered with confusion--
  though not so much so as I ought to be.

Blessed for ever be our Lord,
  of whose will and pleasure it is
that I am allowed,
   being what I am,
to speak of things which are His,
  of such a nature, and so deep.
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1. Arte de servir a Dios,
    by Rodrigue de Solis,
        friar of the Augustinian Order (Bouix).
   Arte para servir a Dios,
     by Fra. Alonso de Madrid (De la Fuente).
2. Ch. 11. # 20, 25.
3. That is, he will lose the prayer of acquired quiet,
       because he voluntarily abandons it
          before the time;
     and will not attain to the prayer of infused quiet,
       because he attempts to rise into it
          before he is called
     (Francis. de Sancto Thoma,
      Medulla Mystica, tr. iv. ch. xi. n. 69).
4. Ch. 4. # 10.
5. Ch. 34. # 9.
6. Ch. 10 # 1.
7. Ch. 16 #4.
8. "En un credo."
9. #5
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