The way of perfection

...to be different from theirs, she obeyed them all the same, our Lord approving her manner of acting and testifying that He preferred obedience to confessors Priests authorized to hear confessions and provide spiritual guidance, a role essential in the life of a Catholic nun. and superiors The appointed leaders within the religious order or the Church hierarchy..

She possessed another special gift of our Lord, namely this, that all the persons dealing with her changed their lives and advanced in virtue, as has been clearly seen in some religious Members of religious orders, such as monks, friars, or nuns. deficient in gravity and learning, and also in many other persons. Not less remarkable was another gift she held from God, which enabled her to lead her visitors to the exercise of prayer and meditation, so that in a very short time and with great facility they even became masters in that art, provided they had the necessary disposition.

Owing to the great desire I have that your Reverences should in all things imitate her and faithfully guard the treasure entrusted to you, I wished to remind you of these matters, trusting that our Lord, Who hath given you so rich a share of His spirit, will preserve it within you. Thus you will ever advance from virtue to virtue until you attain perfection, and will not be far from the glorious sight of your most sweet Bridegroom A traditional mystical image of Jesus Christ, representing the soul's intimate union with God., our Lord. For myself I desire no other reward than that the nuns into whose hands this book may fall should commend me to our Lord, asking Him that, since His Majesty A respectful title used frequently by St. Teresa and her contemporaries to refer to God or Christ. has placed me in this high position, He may also give me the grace so to fill it that after this mortal life I may come...