Events for 19 April 2024

St Teresa of Avila (1515-1582) is a towering figure in Christian spirituality, her influence extending far beyond the Carmelite Order in which she established her reformed or ‘discalced’ branch of nuns and friars, now spread throughout the world.  In an age when women were expected to restrict their spiritual horizons to reciting vocal prayers and receiving the sacraments, Teresa discovered friendship with Christ as the gateway to contemplative prayer, experienced for herself the most exalted forms of mystical union and, undaunted by the Inquisition, encouraged her sisters to do likewise.  Her mystical writings quickly became spiritual classics and continue to [...]