Contemplative Haven: Fifth Mansions (Part 4 of 4) 
Fifth Mansions (Part 4 of 4)
The soul in the Fifth Mansions never rests, says St. Teresa, neither in spiritual consolations nor in the world. It is always "fruitful in doing good to itself and to other souls", but it has not yet found "true repose".
St. Teresa likens this stage to when, in earthly life, two people are "about to be betrothed"; we may see it as pre-engagement, when the couple has had a period of time getting to know each other, and are now deciding whether or not they will become engaged to be married.
In the Fifth Mansions, in the Prayer of Union, the Lord visits the soul, so that "she shall get to know Him better", and "He shall unite her with Himself." The soul is "fired with love", and does everything possible to make certain that the betrothal will take place. The soul's affection, though, must never be set "on anything other than Himself."
We must, at this time, withdraw from occasions of sin, for the devil will do his utmost to ensure that the betrothal does not take place: "For this purpose he will marshal all the powers of hell, for...if he wins a single soul in this way he will win a whole multitude..." We should "consider what a large number of people God can draw to Himself through the agency of a single soul..."
As previously mentioned, the devil cannot interfere in the Prayer of Union because God suspends our faculties, but he can interfere in our lives. Though desirous of doing the Lord's will, we can still be undermined and deceived. Although we are more withdrawn from the world, the devil can still find ways to visit us, St. Teresa warns.
St. Teresa reiterates that we must never have any confidence that we can avoid sin all by ourselves, but that we should beg the Lord to be continually with us. We must pay strict attention to whether or not we are progressing in the virtues, particularly for love of neighbour. But, she says, we can be assured that if God has brought us this far, He will not let us go easily: "His Majesty is so anxious for it [the soul] not to be lost that He gives it a thousand interior warnings of many kinds, and thus it cannot fail to perceive the danger."
"For it is unthinkable that a soul which has arrived so far should cease to grow: love is never idle, so failure to advance would be a very bad sign. A soul which has once set out to be the bride of God Himself, and has already had converse with His Majesty and reached the point which has been described, must not lie down and go to sleep again."
St. Teresa likens this stage to when, in earthly life, two people are "about to be betrothed"; we may see it as pre-engagement, when the couple has had a period of time getting to know each other, and are now deciding whether or not they will become engaged to be married.
In the Fifth Mansions, in the Prayer of Union, the Lord visits the soul, so that "she shall get to know Him better", and "He shall unite her with Himself." The soul is "fired with love", and does everything possible to make certain that the betrothal will take place. The soul's affection, though, must never be set "on anything other than Himself."
We must, at this time, withdraw from occasions of sin, for the devil will do his utmost to ensure that the betrothal does not take place: "For this purpose he will marshal all the powers of hell, for...if he wins a single soul in this way he will win a whole multitude..." We should "consider what a large number of people God can draw to Himself through the agency of a single soul..."
As previously mentioned, the devil cannot interfere in the Prayer of Union because God suspends our faculties, but he can interfere in our lives. Though desirous of doing the Lord's will, we can still be undermined and deceived. Although we are more withdrawn from the world, the devil can still find ways to visit us, St. Teresa warns.
St. Teresa reiterates that we must never have any confidence that we can avoid sin all by ourselves, but that we should beg the Lord to be continually with us. We must pay strict attention to whether or not we are progressing in the virtues, particularly for love of neighbour. But, she says, we can be assured that if God has brought us this far, He will not let us go easily: "His Majesty is so anxious for it [the soul] not to be lost that He gives it a thousand interior warnings of many kinds, and thus it cannot fail to perceive the danger."
"For it is unthinkable that a soul which has arrived so far should cease to grow: love is never idle, so failure to advance would be a very bad sign. A soul which has once set out to be the bride of God Himself, and has already had converse with His Majesty and reached the point which has been described, must not lie down and go to sleep again."
posted by Gabrielle at 12:18 AM
0 Comments:
Post a Comment
<< Home