The Way of Perfection - Chapter 4 - St. Teresa of Avila - Teresa of Jesus

.               The Way of Perfection                      CHAPTER 4   - Exhorts the nuns to keep their Rule              and  - Names three things which are       important for the spiritual life.  - Describes the first of these three things,          which is love of one's neighbour,              and  - Speaks of the harm which can be done      by individual friendships.                            .

Now, daughters,

you have looked at the great enterprise

      which we are trying to carry out.

What kind of persons shall we have to be

if we are not to be considered over-bold

       in the eyes of God and of the world?

It is clear

       that we need to labour hard and

 it will be a great help to us

     if we have sublime thoughts

  so that we may strive
     to make our actions sublime also.

If we endeavour
      to observe our Rule and Constitutions

          in the fullest sense, and

          with great care,

      I hope in the Lord
          that He will grant our requests.

I am not asking
          anything new of you, my daughters--

     only that we should hold to our profession,

     which, as it is our vocation,

          we are bound to do,

     although there are many ways of holding to it.

Our Primitive Rules tells us
    to pray without ceasing.

Provided we do this with all possible care

    (and it is
          the most important thing of all)

   we shall not fail to observe the

            fasts,

            disciplines and

            periods of silence

   which the Order commands;

   for, as you know, 
   if prayer is to be genuine

       it must be reinforced with these things--

  Prayer cannot be accompanied 
      by self-indulgence.

It is about prayer

     that you have asked me
to say something to you.

As an acknowledgment of what I shall say,

   I beg you

      - to read frequently and with a good will

           what I have said about it thus far, and

      - to put this into practice.

Before speaking of the interior life--

        that is, of prayer--

  I shall speak of certain things

     which those who attempt
  to walk along the way of prayer

          must of necessity practise.

  So necessary are these that,

     even though not greatly given to contemplation,

  people who have them

     can advance a long way in the Lord's service,

  while, unless they have them,

     they cannot possibly be great contemplatives,

     and, if they think they are,
        they are much mistaken.

 May the Lord

        help me in this task and

        teach me what I must say,

    so that it may be to His glory.

    Amen.

Do not suppose, my friends and sisters,

    that I am going to charge you

         to do a great many things;

May it please the Lord  
that we

     do the things

which our holy Fathers
     ordained and practised and

by doing which they merited that name.

It would be wrong of us

        to look for any other way or

        to learn from anyone else.

There are only three things

       which I will explain at some length and

       which are taken from our Constitution itself.

       It is essential that we should understand

           how very important they are to us

       in helping us to preserve that peace,

           both inward and outward,

       which the Lord so earnestly recommended to us.

One of these is

        love for each other;

the second,

        detachment from all created things;

the third,

        true humility,

            which, although I put it last,

                is the most important of the three

                and embraces all the rest.

With regard to the first

          --namely, love for each other--

    this is of very great importance;

    for there is nothing,

               however annoying,

    that cannot easily be borne by those
               who love each other,

    and anything which causes annoyance

               must be quite exceptional.

    If this commandment were kept in the world,

               as it should be,

        I believe it would take us a long way

               towards the keeping of the rest;

        but, what with having

               too much love for each other or

               too little,

          we never manage to keep it perfectly.

        It may seem

        that for us to have too much love for each other

              cannot be wrong,

              but I do not think anyone

                 who had not been an eye-witness of it

              would believe

                 how much evil and

                 how many imperfections

                       can result from this.

The devil sets many snares here

    which the consciences of those

        who aim only in a rough-and-ready way
                at pleasing God

        seldom observe--

        indeed, they think
             they are acting virtuously--

        but those who are aiming at perfection

                understand what they are very well:

      little by little
             they deprive the will of the strength

        which it needs 
                if it is to employ itself

        wholly in the love of God.

        This is even more applicable

               to women than to men and

        the harm which it does to community life
               is very serious.

    One result of it is

    that all the nuns 
         do not love each other equally:

       - some injury done to a friend is resented;

       - a nun desires to have something
                 to give to her friend or

       - tries to make time for talking to her, and

         often her object in doing this is

                 to tell her

                     how fond she is of her, and

                     other irrelevant things,

                 rather than how much she loves God.

         These intimate friendships
              are seldom calculated [22]

         to make for the love of God;

         I am more inclined to believe

            that the devil initiates them

         so as to create factions within religious Orders.

        When a friendship has for its object

            the service of His Majesty,

        it at once becomes clear

            that the will

                    is devoid of passion and indeed

                    is helping to conquer other passions.

        Where a convent is large

         I should like to see many friendships
                    of that type;

         but in this house, where there
                are not, and
                can never be,

             more than thirteen nuns,

         all must

             be friends with each other,

             love each other,

             be fond of each other and

             help each other.

     For the love of the Lord,

         refrain from making individual friendships,

              however holy,

        for even among brothers and sisters

                     such things are apt to be poisonous

               and I can see no advantage in them;

       when they are between other relatives, [23]

            they are
                much more dangerous and
                become a pest.

Believe me, sisters,

     though I may seem to you extreme in this,

        - great perfection and great peace

               come of doing what I say and

        - many occasions of sin

                may be avoided

           by those who are not very strong.

     If our will becomes inclined

                more to one person

                than to another

                  ( this cannot be helped, 
                     because it is natural--

           it often leads us to love the person

             who has the most faults

         if she is the most richly endowed by nature ),

   We must

    - exercise a firm restraint on ourselves and

    - not allow ourselves to be conquered
         by our affection.

   - Let us love the virtues and inward goodness, and

   - let us always

           apply ourselves and

           take care to
             avoid attaching importance to externals.

   - Let us not allow our will

           to be the slave

               of any, sisters,

               save of Him

                     Who bought it with His blood.

     Otherwise, before we know where we are,

           we shall find ourselves

                trapped, and

                unable to move.

     God help me!

      The puerilities which result from this
           are innumerable.

       And, because they are so trivial

           that only those who see how bad they are

                    will realize and believe it,

           there is no point in speaking of them here

                    except to say

              that they are wrong

                    in anyone,  and,

                    in a prioress, pestilential.

In checking these preferences

     we must be strictly on the alert from the moment

            that such a friendship begins 
                    and

     we must proceed diligently and lovingly

            rather than severely.

One effective precaution against this is

     that the sisters should not be together

        except at the prescribed hours, and

     that they should follow our present custom

       - in not

             talking with one another, or

             being alone together,

          as is laid down in the Rule:

       - each one should be alone in her cell.

       - There must be no workroom at Saint Joseph's;

             for, although it is a praiseworthy custom
                   to have one,

             it is easier to keep silence 
                   if one is alone,

          and getting used to solitude
             is a great help to prayer.

    Since prayer must be the foundation

       on which this house is built,

    it is necessary for us to learn to like

       whatever gives us the greatest help in it.

Returning to the question 
    of our love for one another,

it seems quite unnecessary to commend this to you,

    for where are there people

                so brutish as not to love one another

    when they

                live together,

                are continually in one another's company,

                indulge in no conversation, 
                               association or recreation

                        with any outside their house and

                believe

                        that God loves us and

                        that they themselves love God

    since they are leaving everything for His Majesty?

More especially is this so

   as virtue always attracts love,

and I hope in God 
   that, with the help of His Majesty,
there will always be love 
   in the sisters of this house.

It seems to me, therefore,

     that there is no reason for me

   to commend this to you any further.

With regard to

         -  the nature of this mutual love and

         -  what is meant by the virtuous love

                  which I wish you to have here, and

         - how we shall know 
            when we have this virtue,

            which is a very great one,

               since Our Lord has

                    so strongly commended it to us and

                    so straitly enjoined it upon His Apostles--

   About all this

           I should like to say a little now

   as well as my lack of skill will allow me;

           if you find this explained in great detail in other books,

                 take no notice of what I am saying here,

           for it may be that I do not understand

               what I am talking about.

There are two kinds of love which I am describing.

    The one is

             - purely spiritual, and

             - apparently has nothing to do with

                       sensuality 
                            or the

                       tenderness

                of our nature,

                       either of which might stain its purity.

    The other is

          - also spiritual,

          - but mingled with it 
                  are our sensuality and weakness; [24]

            - yet it is a worthy love,

                  which, as between relatives and friends, 
               seems lawful.

               Of this I have already said sufficient.

It is of the first kind of spiritual love

       that I would now speak.
It is untainted by any sort of passion,

       for such a thing would completely spoil its harmony.

       If it leads us to treat virtuous people,  
             especially confessors,

       with moderation and discretion, 
             it is profitable;

       but, if  the confessor is seen

                to be tending in any way towards vanity,

            he should be regarded with grave suspicion,

            and, in such a case,

                conversation with him, however edifying,

                      should be avoided, and

                the sister should

                      make her confession briefly and

                      say nothing more.

            It would be best for her, indeed, to

                tell the superior
                      that she does not get on with him and

                go elsewhere;

            this is the safest way,

                providing it can be done

                      without injuring his reputation. [25]

            In such cases, and in other difficulties

                with which the devil might ensnare us,

                       so that we have no idea where to turn,

                the safest thing will be

                      for the sister to try to speak

                with some learned person;

            if necessary, permission to do this can be given her,

            and she can

                     make her confession to him and

                     act in the matter as he directs her.

           For he cannot fail
                    to give her some good advice about it,

           without which she might go very far astray.

           How often people stray
                    through not taking advice,

           especially when there is a risk
                    of doing someone harm!

           The course that must
                          on no account be followed

                    is to do nothing at all;

           for, when the devil begins
                   to make trouble in this way,

           he will do a great deal of harm

                   if he is not stopped quickly;

           the plan I have suggested, then,

                   of trying to consult another confessor

           is the safest one 
                   if it is practicable,

           and I hope in the Lord that it will be so.

           Reflect upon the great importance of this,  

           for it

                   is a dangerous matter, and

                   can be a veritable hell, and

                   a source of harm to everyone.

          I advise you

             not to wait

                   until a great deal of harm has been done

             but to

                   take every possible step

                         that you can think of and

                   stop the trouble at the outset;

           this you may do with a good conscience.

      But I hope in the Lord

           that He will not allow persons

                who are to spend their lives in prayer

           to have any attachment save to one

             who is a great servant of God;

       and I am quite certain He will not,

           unless they have no love

              for prayer and

              for striving after perfection

           in the way we try to do here.

       For, unless they see that he

           understands their language and

           likes to speak to them of God,

       they cannot possibly love him,

           as he is not like them.

       If he is such a person,

           he will have very few opportunities
               of doing any harm,

       and, unless he is very simple,

           he will not seek to disturb

               his own peace of mind and

               that of the servants of God.

As I have begun to speak about this,

         I will repeat

that the devil can do
         a great deal of harm here,

which will long remain undiscovered, and

thus the soul that is striving after perfection

        can be gradually ruined

without knowing how.

        For, if a confessor gives occasion for vanity

               through being vain himself,

        he will be very tolerant with it

               in [the consciences of] others.

May God, for His Majesty's own sake,

   deliver us from things of this kind.

   It would be enough

        to unsettle all the nuns

   if

        their consciences and

        their confessor

              should give them exactly opposite advice, and,

   if it is insisted

              that they must have one confessor only,

        they will

              not know what to do,

              nor how to pacify their minds,

  since the very person

        who should be

              calming them and

              helping them

        is the source of the harm.

  In some places there must be
       a great deal of trouble

  of this kind:

    
I always feel very sorry about it 
       and

so you must not be surprised

       if I attach great importance
to your understanding this danger.

______________________

.            Foot Notes to Chapter 4:  [22] Lit.: "are seldom ordered in such a way as."     [23] "Other" is not in the Spanish.            "When they are only between",                  is the reading of T.,              which also omits: "and become a pest."  [24] Here begins the passage reproduced in the             Appendix to Chapter 4, below.  [25] Honra.

.   ~       End of  Chapter 4     ~            The Way of Perfection                           .

.         Appendix To Chapter 4  "The following variant reading     of the Escorial Manuscript  seems too important    to be relegated to a footnote.  It occurs the twelfth paragraph of ch. 4 (cf. n. 24) ,    and deals, as will be seen, with the  qualifications and character of the confessor.  Many editors substitute it in their text      for the corresponding passage in V.  As will be seen, however,      it is not a pure addition;  we therefore reproduce it separately."  "The important thing is   that these two kinds of mutual love     should be untainted by any sort of passion,   for such a thing would     completely spoil this harmony.  If we exercise this love,           of which I have spoken,   with moderation and discretion,           it is wholly meritorious,   because what seems to us sensuality           is turned into virtue.  But the two may be    so closely intertwined with one another  that it is sometimes impossible   to distinguish them,  especially where a confessor is concerned.  For if persons      who are practising prayer   find that their confessor          is a holy man and          understands the way they behave,  they become greatly attached to him.  And then forthwith the devil  lets loose upon them      a whole battery of scruples  which produce a terrible disturbance       within the soul,  this being what he is aiming at.  In particular, if the confessor       is guiding such persons             to greater perfection,   they become so depressed       that they will go so far            as to leave him                 for another and                 yet another,       only to be tormented            by the same temptation every time.      What you can do here is            not to let your minds dwell upon         whether you like your confessor or not,            but just to like him                if you feel so inclined.    For, if we grow fond of people           who are kind to our bodies,    why should we not love those       who are always striving and toiling               to help our souls?    Actually, if my confessor       is a holy and spiritual man    and I see that he is taking great pains       for the benefit of my soul,    I think it will be a real help to my progress       for me to like him.   For so weak are we       that such affection   sometimes helps us a great deal       to undertake very great things in God's service.  But, if your confessor    is not such a person as I have described,       there is a possibility of danger, and    for him to know that you like him       may do the greatest harm,    most of all in houses       where the nuns are very strictly enclosed.  And as it is a difficult thing      to get to know  which confessors are good,     great care and caution are necessary.  The best advice to give    would be    that you should see    he        has no idea of your affection for him and        is not told about it.       But the devil is so active            that this is not practicable:        you            feel as if this is the only thing                 you have to confess and            imagine you are obliged to confess it.    For this reason I should like you         to think            that your affection for him                 is of no importance and         to take                 no more notice of it.     Follow this advice         if you find that everything                 your confessor says to you              profits your soul;         if you neither see nor hear him                 indulge in any vanity                    (and such things are always noticed                     except by one who is wilfully dull) and         if you know him to be a God-fearing man,     do not be distressed over any temptation         about being too fond of him,     and the devil will then grow tired         and stop tempting you.    But if you notice that the confessor         is tending in any way towards vanity             in what he says to you,         you should regard him with grave suspicion;    in such a case,         conversation with him,             even about prayer and about God,         should be avoided             --the sister should                 make her confession briefly and                 say nothing more.       It would be best for her to            tell the Mother (Superior)       that she does not get on with him and            go elsewhere.      This is the safest way if it is practicable,      and I hope in God           that it will be, and           that you will do all you possibly can                to have no relations with him,                though this may be very painful for you.    Reflect upon the great importance of this, etc.        (pp. 58-9).                                .

.   ~              End   of                      ~              Appendix to Chapter 4                          .