St. Teresa of Avila

At our Tuesday service this week, we remembered St Teresa of Avila, in whose memory the Howard Gift was given and the Labyrinth was dedicated. Born in 1515, Teresa was a Carmelite nun, a mystic and author of spiritual classics, and the first woman to be declared a doctor of the church.

A few life lessons from Teresa for today:
1. Begin with prayer. For Teresa, prayer opened a great friendship with God, which was the source of action, vocation, and mission.
2. Surround yourself with friends and mentors. Teresa benefited greatly from the support of friends both inside and outside of her community. She wrote, “I have learned what great advantage comes from good companionship” and “I would advise those who practice prayer, to cultivate friendship with others.”
3. Take life and yourself lightly Perhaps Teresa’s greatest teaching is that we are than hands and feet of Christ.

In words attributed to her:

“Christ has no body but yours, No hands, no feet on earth but yours, Yours are the eyes with which He looks Compassion on this world, Yours are the feet with which He walks to do good, Yours are the hands, with which He blesses all the world. Yours are the hands, yours are the feet, Yours are the eyes, you are His body. Christ has no body now but yours, No hands, no feet on earth but yours, Yours are the eyes with which he looks compassion on this world. Christ has no body now on earth but yours.”