of S. Teresa of Jesus
of the Order of our Lady of Carmel
Discussion of the Introduction
Discussion of The Interior Castle or The Mansions Topic Contents ■ Written by St. Teresa of Avila ■ Description of The Interior Castle ■ Written under obedience ■ Publication of the Interior Castle ■ History of the Manuscript ■ This version ■ St. Teresa's perspective of this book: ■ Regarding the graces she received: - the Vision of the Castle and - Infused Knowledge ■ Mystical Theology and her 7 Mansions ■ St. Teresa and Thomasian Doctrine |
■ Written by St. Teresa of Avila ▪ Begun: June 2, 1577 on Trinity Sunday ▪ Completed: November 29, 1577 ▪ Duration: ("about four weeks") Approximately 6 months but with a 5 month interruption "so that the actual time spent in the composition ...was...about four weeks". "a fortnight for the first (half of the book) , and another fortnight for the second half of the book" "its rapidity" was possible because of - the grace and inspiration of God - "provided God grants me the grace of explaining myself" - "the Saint had conceived its plan some time previously". "The early mornings and late evenings were devoted to the composition of the book, while the rest of the day was taken up by the affairs of the Order. |
■ Description of "The Interior Castle" ▪ "a treatise on prayer" "of prayer and contemplation" ▪ Describes "the beauty of a soul ...in the shape of a castle, with seven rooms, the seventh, situated in the centre, being occupied by the King of glory" ▪ "comparing the seven rooms of the Castle with as many degrees of prayer, whereby we enter within ourselves and draw nearer to God. ▪ "the progress of the soul from the gate to the very centre" "it describes the progress of the soul through every stage of perfection." ▪ The subject matter extends beyond the contents of "The Life", "The Way of Perfection", and "The Relations" because St Teresa is "adding those new favours our Lord has lately granted me" ▪ "She describes the road by which she has been led, being well aware that others may be led in a different way. 'In the heavenly Father's house there are many mansions', not only seven, and many paths lead to them." ▪ "... it is the result of a most searching inquiry into the various phases whereby a soul is gradually transformed into the likeness of God, Himself. |
■ Written under obedience "She never asked for permission to write anything, but waited until she received a command from her superiors, which, in this case, came from Father Jerome Gracian, Superior of the Discalced Carmelites of the Provinces of Andalusia and Castille, and Don Alonso Velasquez, Canon of Toledo, afterwards bishop of Osma." "she was commanded to write a treatise on prayer, of which she had much personal experience." "As she was deeply humble and submissive and obedient to the doctrine of the Church and to the teaching of the learned ministers of God, she never rested until her revelations had been approved of by her superiors and by theologians, and were shown to be conformable to Holy Scripture." |
■ Publication of the Interior Castle ▪ The publication of the Interior Castle, in 1588 at Salamanca, ▪ by Fray Luis de Leon Augustinian Father "In August 1586... the Augustinian Fray Luis de Leon. being selected as editor, ▪ Corrections to the text ◦ "the Saint..introduced many changes" ◦ "when completed, the original was handed to Father Jerome Gracian and to the Dominican, Fray Diego de Yanguas, for approval. Both, particularly the former, made numerous corrections... scratching out whole sentences and adding others" "which Fuente, not without reason, calls impertinent" ▪ Restoration of the original text of St. Teresa ◦ "Most of these corrections are badly done, the original text being much better. ◦ It will be noticed that the holy Mother's sentences are superior and agree with the context, which is not the case with the corrections. ◦ These improvements and glosses may therefore be dispensed with. "...that the reader, too, should have before him the words of the author who knew best what to say; for this reason, I have left out the additions, and have restored what has been changed, excepting only a few corrections made by the writer herself." "... her words cannot be tampered with if they are not to lose their meaning" |
■ History of the Manuscript "After the publication of the Interior Castle by Luis de Leon, the manuscript came into the possession of Father Jerome Gracian, who, after having made a copy of it which is still extant, presented the original, to Don Pedro Cereso Pardo, a great friend of the Saint. "When his only daughter took the habit (at the convent of Seville) the precious manuscript was part of her dowry. (to the Carmelites Nuns of Seville) |
■ This Version "Translated from the Autograph of St. Teresa of Jesus by The Benedictines of Stanbrook Revised, with Notes and an Introduction, by the Very Rev. Fr. Benedict Zimmerman, O.C.D. PRIOR "On the occasion of the tercentenary of Saint Teresa's death, a photo-lithographic edition of the original was published under the direction of Cardinal Lluch, Carmelite of the old observance, Archbishop of Seville" The present translation, the third in English, has been made directly from this autograph edition. It has been thought advisable - that, as far as the genius of the language allows it, the wording of the author should be strictly adhered to, and - that not even a shade of her expression should be sacrificed. For Teresa is not only a saint whose every word is telling, but she is a classic in her own language who knows how to give expression to her deepest thoughts. |
■ St. Teresa's Perspective on this book: Prior to writing it: ▪ "adding those new favours our Lord has lately granted me" ▪ "provided God grants me the grace of explaining myself" After its completion: ▪ "another jewel... superior to the former [the Life]" ▪ that she "was less experienced when he fashioned the previous one." ▪ "The book I have written since seems to me superior [to the Life]; at least I had more experience when I wrote it." ▪ "that our Lord had communicated so much to her since she had reached what she described in the seventh Mansion, --the Spiritual Marriage,-- that she did not consider it possible to advance further in this life, in the way of prayer, nor even to wish to do so." |
■ Regarding the graces she received: - the Vision of the Castle and - Infused Knowledge "From this vision (...a most beautiful globe of crystal, in the shape of a castle...) she learnt four important matters. 'First, she came to understand... that God is present in all things by His essence, presence, and power. 'With such regard for obedience, she asked me one day at Toledo --probably at the time when she saw the vision of the Castle-- whether it was true that God was in all things by His power, presence, and essence, to which I replied in the affirmative, 'Secondly, she was greatly surprised at the malice of sin, since, notwithstanding the presence of God in these various ways, it prevents the soul from partaking of that powerful light. 'Thirdly, she derived such humility and self-knowledge from this vision, that from that moment she never thought of herself in all the good she was doing; for she learnt that all the beauty of the soul emanates from that resplendent light... by the Power established in the centre, whence comes all our good, so that we have but a small share in our good works. All the good she did, she from this moment referred to God as its principal author. 'Fourthly, she derived from it, the subject of the book which she was ordered to write on prayer, comparing the seven rooms of the Castle with as many degrees of prayer, whereby we enter within ourselves and draw nearer to God. So that, penetrating to the depths of our soul and gaining perfect self-knowledge, we reach the seventh room where God Himself dwells, with Whom we become united by as perfect a union as is possible in the present life, being made partakers of His light and love. ...she describes the progress of the soul from the gate to the very centre. It is clearly seen in this treatise how she communicated with our Lord, and how His Majesty vouchsafed to place her in the centre and to unite her with Himself, as she puts it, by the bonds of marriage and an inseparable union.' __________ Thomas Hurtado, Professor of Theology at Seville, said: "God instructed her in mystical theology for the sake of souls" "there is seen the effect of infused knowledge" "who, in her books, but chiefly in the Mansions, has cleared up in simple language the most difficult questions of this divine theology" ▪ how God takes possession of the soul, ▪ how He unites Himself with its substance, whence comes to the intellect the light of faith, to the will the ardour of love, and to the senses the jubilation over His works? No one has ever turned theory into practice in a more convincing or more catholic manner. The most profound secrets of this supernatural wisdom ...are illustrated by such nice and homely examples, ...instead of awe-inspiring obscurity, "Until the teaching of this great door ...it seemed as though God were inaccessible, being surrounded by darkness, Now, however, this way is clear and patent to all, having been pointed out in the Mansions, in language so straight and so methodical, and no longer such as could not be understood, or required further explanation. In my opinion this holy writer derived not only the substance of her teaching from infused knowledge, but even the words with which she explains it.' __________ 'Don Alvaro de Villegas, Canon of Toledo, expressed his opinion... - that she was guided by her heavenly Spouse.. and - that the Holy Ghost... was dilating these works.' |
■ Mystical Theology and her 7 Mansions "Mystical Theology is generally divided into three parts, respectively called the purgative, the illuminative, and the unitive life. In the first, man is cleansed from sin and habitual imperfection by the use of the sacraments and by voluntary mortification of the passions. The mind is purified by sedulous meditation on the last end and on the Life and Passion of Christ, which must ever be the great model of the Christian. This first portion of the way to heaven can be covered by the help of the ordinary means of grace, without any direct and extraordinary intervention of divine power. The second part differs in many ways from the first. It comprises ▪ the passive purification of the soul and ▪ the passive enlightenment of the mind. - By sending it keen interior and exterior trials and sufferings, God completes the cleansing of the soul in a manner far surpassing any voluntary effort of man. - By raising it to the stage of contemplation, He gives it fresh light on the mysteries of our Redemption. The mind is then no longer compelled to strain the memory, the reason, and the will, in order to dwell upon the great truths of religion and to derive some personal benefit therefrom, for these truths are now more or less permanently before it and fill it with holy thoughts, sometimes giving it consolation in trouble, at other times striking a warning note against imperfection. Again, the subtraction of sensible consolation, and the interior aridity arising therefrom, leave a terrible blank in the soul, showing it that, without God's help, it is mere nothingness. This apparent estrangement from God is the keenest trial that can befall a soul, but also the most powerful means of cleansing it from the least, the most subtle imperfections. Emerging from this state of probation, the soul enters upon the third stage, in which, though perhaps in the midst of severe suffering and sharp persecution, it knows itself to be a chosen child of God, to Whom it is united by perfect conformity of the will. __________ It will be noticed that - the first two Mansions belong to the purgative life, - the third and fourth to the illuminative, and - the remaining three to the unitive life. |
■ St. Teresa and Thomasian Doctrine "St. Teresa had never studied it herself, but her directors and confessors were deeply versed in it and solved her doubts and perplexities on the lines of the greatest of the school men. The Interior Castle might almost be considered a practical illustration of certain parts of the Summa Theologica, as it describes the progress of the soul through every stage of perfection." ▪ Other Influences "the influence of the Imitation of Christ and of the Life of our Lord by Ludolphus the Carthusian can be distinctly traced in the Interior Castle." |
End of the Discussion of the Introduction of The Interior Castle or The Mansions of S. Teresa of Jesus of the Order of our Lady of Carmel |
