The Complete Works of St. Teresa

by Teresa de Ávila

St. Teresa was born in Avila, Spain in 1515. She was the daughter of a business trader and his second wife. Her father died when Teresa was 15, being one of ten children. Shortly after this, Teresa was giving over to the care of a group of Augustinian nuns. After reading some of St. Jerome's works she resolved to enter a Religious order. In 1535, she joined the Carmelites. She lived in the convent, but often had severe illnesses that left her legs paralyzed for three years. However during this time she experienced a life changing vision of "the sorely wounded Christ."

From this point on, Teresa moved into a period of increasingly other-worldly experiences in which she came to focus more and more sharply on the passion of Christ. From these visions she set about reforming her order starting with mastering herself and following the rule. With a devoted group of supports Teresa tried to create a stricter form of the Carmelite order, known as discalced or shoeless Carmelites. During this time she wrote the Way of Perfection and the Meditations on the Song of Solomon. In 1567, she met with St. John of the Cross, who she encouraged to reform the male side of the Carmelite Order. Teresa died in 1582.

During her life St. Teresa founded many new convents, many of which still exist to this day. She also left a number of, now famous, writings, which are classics of Christian mysticism. These include the Way of Perfection and the Interior Castle. She also left two autobiographies, the Life of Teresa of Avila and The Foundations. Apart from these works a large collection of her letters, poems, prayers and maxims have also survived.

This collection brings together all of St. Teresa's known writings in a convenient single volume.

Genres: Religion, Spirituality, Poetry, Theology, Catholic

2514 pages, Kindle Edition

First published January 1, 1967

About the author

Saint Teresa of Jesús, also called Saint Teresa of Ávila, was a prominent Spanish mystic, Carmelite nun, and writer of the Counter Reformation. She was a reformer of the Carmelite Order and is considered to be, along with John of the Cross, a founder of the Discalced Carmelites. In 1970 she was named a Doctor of the Church by Pope Paul VI.

Teresa Sánchez de Cepeda Dávila y Ahumada Borned in Ávila, Spain, on March 28, 1515, St. Teresa was the daughter of a Toledo merchant and his second wife, who died when Teresa was 15, one of ten children. Shortly after this event, Teresa was entrusted to the care of the Augustinian nuns. After reading the letters of St. Jerome, Teresa resolved to enter a religious life. In 1535, she joined the Carmelite Order. She spent a number of relatively average years in the convent, punctuated by a severe illness that left her legs paralyzed for three years, but then experienced a vision of "the sorely wounded Christ" that changed her life forever.

From this point forward, Teresa moved into a period of increasingly ecstatic experiences in which she came to focus more and more sharply on Christ's passion. With these visions as her impetus, she set herself to the reformation of her order, beginning with her attempt to master herself and her adherence to the rule. Gathering a group of supporters, Teresa endeavored to create a more primitive type of Carmelite. From 1560 until her death, Teresa struggled to establish and broaden the movement of Discalced or shoeless Carmelites. During the mid-1560s, she wrote the Way of Perfection and the Meditations on the Canticle. In 1567, she met St. John of the Cross, who she enlisted to extend her reform into the male side of the Carmelite Order. Teresa died in 1582.

St. Teresa left to posterity many new convents, which she continued founding up to the year of her death. She also left a significant legacy of writings, which represent important benchmarks in the history of Christian mysticism. These works include the Way of Perfection and the Interior Castle. She also left an autobiography, the Life of St. Teresa of Ávila.

Reviews

[James Verreault · Rating 3 out of 5]

Comprehensive but could be better

Contains pretty much all of St. Teresa's writings so it's nice to have it all in one place. I only gave it three stars because the developer didn't take the trouble to translate the footnotes into English. What's the point of providing footnotes in Latin or Spanish unless most readers understand those languages, and the vast majority of us certainly do not? Sure you can cut and paste into a translation app but that's a lot of time consuming work which distracts you from your focus on the saint's writings.

[Andrea Lago · Rating 3 out of 5]

É difícil dar uma avaliação ruim à obra de algum santo, ainda mais de um dos mais influentes como foi Santa Teresa de Ávila, porém é um livro extenso e, poderia facilmente ter sido mais breve ou ter uma conexão maior. Talvez o compilado não me agrade tanto para estar todo em um livro só, sendo uma crítica mais à disposição "física" do que dos escritos em si (que são maravilhosos)

[Juan Carlos López Domínguez · Rating 4 out of 5]

Lenguaje hermoso, armonioso, sin demasiados adornos, breve... Belleza pura.
Como lector, te conviertes en testigo del monólogo de la autora con Dios. A pesar de esto, cualquier persona puede disfrutar de su poesía. (Yo en lo particular, no soy religioso).

[Marica Milano · Rating 5 out of 5]

Estasi pura.