Quotes from Teresa of Avila

God's will is that no bounds should be set to His works.

souls without prayer are like people whose bodies or limbs are paralysed: they possess feet and hands but they cannot control them.

Humility cannot exist without love, and love cannot exist without humility. It is impossible for these virtues to exist except where there is great detachment from all created things.

Once, when she was travelling to one of her convents, St. Teresa of Ávila was knocked off her donkey and fell into the mud, injuring her leg. "Lord," she said, "you couldn't have picked a worse time for this to happen. Why would you let this happen?" And the response in prayer that she heard was, "That is how I treat my friends." Teresa answered, "And that is why you have so few of them!

Since God has given it such great dignity, permitting it to wander at will through the rooms of the castle, from the lowest to the highest. Let it not force itself to remain for very long in the same mansion, even the one of self-knowledge.

But to get to know God's friends is a very good way of "having" Him;

It is a good proof and test of our love if we can bear with such faults and not be shocked by them. Others, in their turn, will bear with your faults, which, if you include those of which you are not aware, must be much more numerous.

Not a fig shall I care then for all the devils in hell: it is they who will fear me. I do not understand these fears. "Oh, the devil, the devil!" we say, when we might be saying "God! God!" and making the devil tremble. Of course we might, for we know he cannot move a finger unless the Lord permits it. Whatever are we thinking of? I am quite sure I am more afraid of people who are themselves terrified of the devil than I am of the devil himself.

Either we are the brides of this great King or we are not.

It is quite important to withdraw from all unnecessary cares and business, as far as compatible with the duties of one's state of life, in order to enter the second mansion.

Never suppose that either the evil or the good that you do will remain secret, however strict may be your enclosure.

For at times it happens that some trifle will cause as much suffering to one as a great trial will to another; little things can bring much distress to persons who have sensitive natures. If you are not like them, do not fail to be compassionate.

Let the truth be in your hearts, as it will be if you practise meditation, and you will see clearly what love we are bound to have for our neighbors.

Just these two words He spoke changed my life, "Enjoy Me" What a burden I thought I was to carry-a crucifix as did He. Love once said to me: "I know a song, would you like to hear it?" And laughter came from every brick in the street and from every pore in the sky. After a night of prayer, He changed my life when He sang "Enjoy me".

true perfection consists in the love of God and our neighbor, and the better we keep both these commandments, the more perfect we shall be.

It is no small pity, and should cause us no little shame, that, through our own fault, we do not understand ourselves, or know who we are.

As to what good qualities there may be in our souls, or Who dwells within them, or how precious they are -- those are things which we seldom consider and so we trouble little about carefully preserving the soul's beauty. All our interest is centred in the rough setting of the diamond, and in the outer wall of the castle -- that is to say, in these bodies of ours.

But here the Lord asks only two things of us: love for His Majesty and love for our neighbour. It is for these two virtues that we must strive, and if we attain them perfectly we are doing His will and so shall be united with Him.

we are weakness itself, and unless He guards the city, in vain shall we labor to defend it.

perfection consists not in consolations, but in the increase of love;

One of these is love for each other; the second, detachment from all created things; the third, true humility, which, although I put it last, is the most important of the three and embraces all the rest.

do not try to get so much that you achieve nothing. Look

Let us not fail him; do not fear that he will fail you. And if some time he should fail you, it will be for a greater good. The

to say nothing through fear that taking the matter up would be yielding to temptation would itself be to yield to temptation.