As the year draws to a close, All Saints’ and All Souls’ Days signal to us a season of considering the “Last Four Things” and to reflect on that final encounter with Jesus. Without the veil of our flesh, will we see Him, as 1 John 3:2 says – as He really is? How much in us will be similar or dissimilar to Him?
Our hope is to find few dissimilarities, knowing that freed from anything opposed to God, can we enter that union with Him called Heaven, where joy never ends.
St. Teresa of Avila’s path is a testament to this hope. She struggled for years in mental prayer, her divided heart wanting yet resisting a deeper relationship with God. Conflicting desires and wild distractions left her feeling torn and disheartened, yet she continued to show up.
Over time, her “determined determination” in prayer brought her insights, opened her heart to God’s infusion of knowledge and love, transforming her to mirror His likeness.
Her writings encourage us to this path of prayer and union, experiencing a glimpse of Jesus as He is and sharing in His likeness even in this life.
St Teresa of Avila, all Saints and Souls, pray for us!