Saint Teresa of Ávila, a Life of Friendship with God

Saint Teresa of Ávila

Teresa was born in Ávila, Spain, on March 28, 1515. From childhood, stories of the saints stirred her desire for heaven. After her mother’s death, she turned to the Blessed Virgin Mary for motherly protection. At twenty, she entered the Carmelite Monastery of the Incarnation in her hometown, becoming Teresa of Jesus.

Religious life brought both joy and struggle. Teresa suffered serious illness and wrestled with distractions that divided her attention between God and worldly attachments. In 1554, an image of the wounded Christ moved her deeply and marked a decisive renewal of her commitment. In her writings, she described prayer as a friendship with God, cultivated through time spent with the One who loves us.

As her prayer deepened, Teresa sought to establish communities where the sisters could live with greater simplicity, poverty, and recollection. In 1562, she founded the Convent of Saint Joseph in Ávila. Despite opposition and persistent illness, she continued founding monasteries throughout Spain. With Saint John of the Cross, she also helped establish the reformed Carmelite life among the friars. Her work became the foundation of the Discalced Carmelite Order.

Amid these demanding responsibilities, Teresa wrote works that would guide generations in prayer. In The Way of Perfection, she instructed her sisters in humility, charity, and devotion. In The Interior Castle, she pictured the soul as a castle through whose dwelling places it journeys toward deeper union with God. Her teaching joined contemplation with love for the Church and practical concern for others.

Teresa died in Alba de Tormes in October 1582. Pope Gregory XV canonized her in 1622. On September 27, 1970, Pope Paul VI proclaimed her the first woman Doctor of the Church. Her feast is celebrated on October 15. Through her foundations and writings, Teresa continues to invite Christians to persevere in prayer and entrust their lives to God.

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Saint John Henry Newman, Following the Light

Saint John Henry Newman

In 1833, John Henry Newman was returning to England after a serious illness in Sicily. His ship lay becalmed in the Strait of Bonifacio. During the voyage, he wrote the poem that became known as “Lead, Kindly Light,” a prayer asking God to guide him through uncertainty. Years later, he recalled both his longing for home and his conviction that he had work to do in England.

Born in London on February 21, 1801, Newman had grown up in an Anglican family. He studied at Oxford, became a fellow of Oriel College, and was ordained an Anglican priest in 1825. As vicar of the University Church of Saint Mary the Virgin, he became an influential preacher. Alongside friends such as John Keble and Edward Pusey, he helped lead the Oxford Movement, seeking to renew Anglican life through the teaching and practices of the ancient Church.

Yet his study of the Church Fathers gradually challenged his opposition to Catholicism. At Littlemore, near Oxford, he spent years studying, praying, and discerning. On October 9, 1845, the Passionist priest Dominic Barberi received him into the Catholic Church. The decision cost him friendships and strained family relationships, but Newman later described his conversion as “coming into port after a rough sea.”

Ordained a Catholic priest in Rome in 1847, Newman established an Oratorian community near Birmingham the following year. His life joined scholarship with pastoral service. He ministered to poor immigrants and factory workers and served as the first rector of the Catholic University of Ireland.

In 1879, Pope Leo XIII made him a cardinal. Newman chose the motto Cor ad cor loquitur, meaning “Heart speaks to heart.” He remained at the Birmingham Oratory until his death on August 11, 1890.

Pope Francis canonized him on October 13, 2019. On November 1, 2025, Pope Leo XIV proclaimed him a Doctor of the Church. His feast is celebrated on October 9, the anniversary of the day his long search brought him into Catholic communion.

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