In an age of difficulty and suffering for the Church, God raises up saints. Sixteenth century Europe was no different! From this time, we see saints like St. John of the Cross, St. John Fisher, St. Thomas More, St. Ignatius of Loyola, and St. Angela Merici. These courageous witnesses to the Gospel of Christ brought about a share of God’s kingdom here on earth, even in the midst of serious challenges.
One of these such legendary witnesses is none other than St. Teresa of Avila, whose feast we celebrate today! In honor of her feast — and her holiness in the midst of struggle — check out these 10 pieces of wisdom from today’s saint!
St. Teresa of Avila, pray for us!
“Accustom yourself continually to make many acts of love, for they enkindle and melt the soul.”
“You pay God a compliment by asking great things of Him.”
“There are more tears shed over answered prayers than over unanswered prayers.”
“Christ has no body now but mine. He prays in me, works in me, looks through my eyes, speaks through my words, works through my hands, walks with my feet and loves with me here.”
“From silly devotions and sour-faced saints, good Lord, deliver us!”
“The surest way to determine whether one possesses the love of God is to see whether he or she loves his or her neighbor. These two loves are never separated. Rest assured, the more you progress in love of neighbor, the more your love of God will increase.”
“Trust God that you are exactly where you are meant to be.”
“God walks among the pots and the pans.”
“We always find that those who walked closest to Christ were those who had to bear the greatest trials.”
“We shall never learn to know ourselves except by endeavoring to know God; for, beholding his greatness, we realize our own littleness; his purity shows us our foulness; and by meditating upon his humility we find how very far we are from being humble.”