Carmelite Spirituality

The Autobiography of St. Teresa of Avila is one of the most remarkable life stories ever written. For here, in a scrupulously accurate translation that is beloved by the Carmelites, the great Reformer of Carmel describes her life and the extraordinary workings of grace within her soul. St. Teresa's vigorous prose shows forth her robust common sense, as well as her strong Catholic faith, which embraces wholeheartedly those teachings of Christ which the world finds most absurd. St. Teresa describes her own spiritual struggles, her long period of spiritual laxity, her vision of her potential place in Hell, the great assistance she received from St. Joseph, her many mystical graces-including visions and locutions-her fears of delusion by Satan and the guidance she received from learned spiritual directors, such as St. Peter of Alcantara (1499-1562). Her ardent spirit shines forth as she writes of what she holds most dear: the faithful service of God-"His Majesty," as she calls Him-and her great eagerness for more souls to withdraw from the worthless pleasures of this earth and give themselves to Him. St. Teresa of Avila was one of the most admirable and colorful women of all time, who despite her mystical gifts, remained intensely practical and down-to-earth, such that she was much loved in her own lifetime. And The Autobiography of St. Teresa of Avila is an ever-fresh source of inspiration from which the reader will come to know the great Madre Teresa and to understand a -little better the Divine Majesty she served. As to fine and beautiful things, such as water, fields, perfume, music, etc., I think I would rather not have them, so great is the difference between them and what I am in the habit of seeing, and so all pleasure in them is gone from me. Hence it is that I care not for them, unless it be at the first sight: they never make any further impression; to me they seem but dirt. -Relations, I (page 429).

Bishop Anders Arborelius, an expert in the ways of authentic Carmelite spirituality, provides a powerful introduction to the spiritual insights that Carmelite saints have made to our understanding of the interior life -- insights that will deepen your prayer life and help you grow in the presence of the Lord. By exploring the writings of St. John of the Cross, St. Teresa of Avila, and St. Therese of Lisieux, you'll begin to implement the wisdom of these great spiritual masters of the past which lead to a deeper union with God.

This book contains Letters from 1546 to 1577. Includes Introductions, Endnotes, Biographical Sketches and Index.

This volume contains two of Teresa's most popular works: The Way of Perfection and The Interior Castle.

While imprisoned in a tiny prison cell for his attempts to reform the Church, sixteenth-century Spanish mystic John of the Cross composed many of his now classic poems of the soul's longing for God. Written on a scroll smuggled to him by one of his guards, his songs are the ultimate expression of the spiritual seeker's journey from estranged despair to blissful union with the divine

After escaping his captors, John fell into a state of profound ecstasy and wrote Dark Night of the Soul. Later, he added an important commentary to his poem to guide other searching souls along the arduous path to communion with God. Here, for the first time, a scholar unaffiliated with the Catholic Church has translated this timeless work. Mirabai Starr, who has studied Buddhism, Hinduism, and Judaism, lends the seeker's sensibility to John's powerful text and brings this classic work to the twenty-first century in a brilliant and beautiful rendering

On the same summer day in 1942, Saint Teresa Benedicta of the Cross (Edith Stein) and hundreds of other Catholic Jews were arrested in Holland by the occupying Nazis. One hundred thirteen of those taken into custody, several of them priests and nuns, perished at Auschwitz and other concentration camps. They were murdered in retaliation for the anti-Nazi pastoral letter written by the Dutch Catholic bishops.

While Saint Teresa Benedicta is the most famous member of this group, having been canonized by Pope John Paul II in 1998, all of them deserve the title of martyr, for they were killed not only because they were Jews but also because of the faith of the Church, which had compelled the Dutch bishops to protest the Nazi regime. Through extensive research in both original and secondary sources, P.W.F.M. Hamans has compiled these martyrs' biographies, several of them detailed and accompanied by photographs. Included in this volume are some remarkable conversion stories, including that of Edith Stein, the German philosopher who had entered the Church in 1922 and later became a Carmelite nun, taking the name Sister Teresa Benedicta of the Cross.

Several of the witnesses chronicled here had already suffered for their faith in Christ before falling victim to Hitler's "Final Solution," enduring both rejection by their own people, including family members, and persecution by the so-called Christian society in which they lived. Among these were those who, also like Sister Teresa Benedicta, perceived the cross they were being asked to bear and accepted it willingly for the salvation of the world. Illustrated

Shorter spiritual writings on prayer, liturgy, and the spirit of Carmel, with 5 photos and index.

This second of three volumes of her Complete Works contains all of Elizabeth's surviving letters from Carmel. It includes 8 photos, background information and the horarium for the Dijon Carmel, as well as the floor plan for the monastery. In simple and tender language, writing to friends and family, Elizabeth returns again and again to the great themes of her spirituality: the indwelling Trinity, silence and solitude, living by love, becoming a "praise of glory" (laudem gloriae) by sharing in the dying and rising of Jesus Christ. Here too we find many of her best-known sayings, e.g., "I have found my heaven on earth, for heaven is God, and God is in my soul."

Reprint of popular introduction to the mystical way, based on the teachings of Teresa of Avila and John of the Cross, and written by a Secular Carmelite especially for lay readers. The wisdom of St. Teresa of Avila and St. John of the Cross has been distilled to help us understand the stages and experiences of the inner journey. The reader is guided through the classic works of these time-tested directors, in a logical, easily understood fashion.

When first published in 1976, and still relevant today, this critically acclaimed work of spiritual theology as reflection on spiritual experience was a growing trend; but at the same time there was a new interest in, and a return to, the classical Carmelite theology of prayer, with an effort to formulate that theology in contemporary thought categories. Guidelines for Mystical Prayer embodies both tendencies. It offers a personal narrative, a reflection on the spiritual history of two gifted people, St. Teresa and St. John of the Cross; and yet it speaks clearly out of the Carmelite tradition, and in the language of today.

This study of the life and character of Therese of Lisieux is a remarkable, penetrating, and fascinating search for the truth behind one of the most astounding religious figures of modern times. A young nun who entered a convent at fifteen and died at twenty-four, Therese roused an incredible storm of spontaneous veneration only a few months after her death, and has been called by one Pope as "the greatest saint of the modern times." Countless images of the sweetly smiling saint flooded the world. But who was she, really? The Hidden Face has sprung from this question. It presents the true Therese, as objectively as possible, and gives a convincing interpretation of her sainthood. It is a book not for Catholics alone, but for anyone fascinated by the force of spirituality, by the incalculable effects of what Pascal called the "greatness of the human soul." It opens the cloistered world of the Carmel, takes off the sugar coating, and reveals the stark drama behind convent walls, the tension between personalities, the daily details of conventual life. And it throws light on the tremendous purifying process that turned the pampered darling into a saint of heroic virtue. The work of a mind of rare intelligence and integrity, this book is unique among the lives of saints. First published in Germany in 1944, the original is now in its eighth edition. This first English translation is based on a new, revised version using the latest edition of the saint's writings.

Following the footsteps of the Masters of Carmel, Fr. Marie-Eugene opens up the paths of contemplation and holiness to all, in the midst of ordinary life. This is a classic for all interested in Carmelite spirituality.

Interior Castle guides the spiritual seeker through each stage of development until the soul's final union with the divine. Includes an introduction written by Teresa Tomeo.

Lent is not meant to foster morbid gloominess and debilitating self-loathing, but to thrust us into the heart of Divine love.--From the Introduction

While reading the autobiography of St. Thérèse, Fr. Caster had an 'ah ha' moment that transformed his experience of Lent from one of narrow concern over what to give up to one of joyful freedom to enter into the sacrificial love of Jesus Christ. "What struck me," he says, "was her insistence on the way we do things for God and not the things we do for him. It wasn't about what I was offering; it was about why." The daily Lenten meditations in this book--all colored by St. Thérèse's Little Way of Spiritual Childhood--will transform you, too, helping you focus not so much on what you have done to offend God, but on what he has done to redeem you.

The audio edition of this book can be downloaded via Audible.

Millions love St. Therese of Lisieux, not only for her wisdom, but for her unwavering passion to serve God in life and in death. Listen with your heart as this most popular of saints speaks with simple charm about her life. These 120 readings excerpted from the writings of St. Therese of Lisieux will help you get to know first hand the pure, simple girl whom Pope Pius X called "the greatest saint of modern times.