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Today while beseeching our Lord to speak for me because Iwasn't able to think of anything to say nor did I know how tobegin to carry out this obedience, there came to my mindwhat I shall now speak about, that which will provide us witha basis to begin with. It is that we consider our soul to be likea castle made entirely out of a diamond or of very clear crystal,in which there are many rooms, just as in heaven there aremany dwelling places [John 14:2]. For in reflecting upon itcarefully, sisters, we realize that the soul of the just person isnothing else but a paradise where the Lord says he finds hisdelight. So then, what do you think that abode will be likewhere a King so powerful, so wise, so pure, so full of all goodthings takes his delight? [Prov. 8:31]. I don't find anythingcomparable to the magnificent beauty of a soul and its marvelouscapacity. Indeed, our intellects, however keen, canhardly comprehend it, just as they cannot comprehend God;but he himself says that he created us in his own image andlikeness [Gen. 1:26–27].
Well, if this is true, as it is, there is no reason to tire ourselvesin trying to comprehend the beauty of this castle. Since this castleis a creature and the difference, therefore, between it and Godis the same as that between the Creator and his creature, HisMajesty in saying that the soul is made in his own image makesit almost impossible for us to understand the sublime dignityand beauty of the soul.
It is a shame and unfortunate that through our own fault wedon't understand ourselves or know who we are. Wouldn't itshow great ignorance, my daughters, if someone, when askedwho he was, didn't know, and didn't know his father or motheror from what country he came? Well, now, if this would be soextremely stupid, we are incomparably more so when we do notstrive to know who we are, but limit ourselves to consideringonly roughly these bodies. Because we have heard and becausefaith tells us so, we know we have souls. But we seldom considerthe precious things that can be found in this soul, or who dwellswithin it, or its high value. Consequently, little effort is made topreserve its beauty. All our attention is taken up with the plainnessof the diamond's setting or the outer wall of the castle, thatis, with these bodies of ours.
Well, let us consider that this castle has, as I said, many dwellingplaces: some up above, others down below, others to the sides; andin the center and middle is the main dwelling place where the verysecret exchanges between God and the soul take place.
It's necessary that you keep this comparison in mind. PerhapsGod will be pleased to let me use it to explain something to you about the favors he is happy to grant souls and the differencesbetween these favors. I shall explain them according to what Ihave understood as possible. For it is impossible that anyoneunderstand them all, since there are many; how much more sofor someone as wretched as I. It will be a great consolation whenthe Lord grants them to you if you know that they are possible;and for anyone to whom he doesn't, it will be a great consolationto praise his wonderful goodness. Just as it doesn't do us anyharm to reflect on the things there are in heaven and what theblessed enjoy -- but, rather, we rejoice and strive to attain whatthey enjoy -- it doesn't do us any harm to see that it is possible inthis exile for so great a God to commune with such foul-smellingworms; and, on seeing this, come to love a goodness so perfectand a mercy so immeasurable. I hold as certain that anyone whomight be harmed by knowing that God can grant this favor in thisexile would be very much lacking in humility and love of neighbor.Otherwise, how could we fail to be happy that God grantsthese favors to our brother? His doing so is no impedimenttoward his granting them to us, and His Majesty can reveal hisgrandeurs to whomever he wants. Sometimes he does so merelyto show forth his glory, as he said of the blind man whose sighthe restored when his apostles asked him if the blindness resultedfrom the man's sins or those of his parents [John 9:2–3]. Hence,he doesn't grant them because the sanctity of the recipients isgreater than that of those who don't receive them, but so that hisglory may be known, as we see in St. Paul and the Magdalene, andthat we might praise him for his work in creatures.
One could say that these favors seem to be impossible and that itis good not to scandalize the weak. Less is lost when the weak donot believe in them than when the favors fail to benefit those towhom God grants them; and these latter will be delighted andawakened through these favors to a greater love of him who grantsso many gifts and whose power and majesty are so great. Moreover,I know I am speaking to those for whom this danger does not exist,for they know and believe that God grants even greater signs of hislove. I know that whoever does not believe in these favors will haveno experience of them ...
Teresa of Avila
Excerpted from Teresa of Avila: Selections from the Interior Castle by HarperCollins Spiritual Classics Staff, Emilie Griffin
All rights reserved by the original copyright owners. Excerpts are provided for display purposes only and may not be reproduced, reprinted or distributed without the written permission of the publisher.
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