St. Teresa of Avila: The Unperfect Saint

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Contrary to common belief, saints are not perfect. Saints simply seek Christ more than anyone else. Saints understood the need for Christ in their own lives through their own experiences. St. Teresa of Avila did not live a perfect life, although she strived to after her conversion. St. Teresa, after living in the world, realized her desperate need for a personal relationship with God, but by no means was she perfect.
Teresa Sánchez Cepeda Davila y Ahumada lived in Avila, Spain where she was born in 1515 and lived during the Reformation until her death at age 67. She was canonized in 1622, forty years after her death. St. Teresa's grandmother was forced to be converted from a Jew into a Christian during the Inquisition. Without her grandmother’s conversion St. Teresa would never have become a Christian saint. Her parents were Godly people and showed tremendous integrity. They always said their prayers and made sure their twelve children did also. Sadly, at the age of twelve, St. Teresa's mother died giving birth which created a fear in St. Teresa of getting married. St. Teresa had a special relationship with one of her nine brothers named Rodrigo. St. Teresa once said, “When I read about certain women saints who endured martyrdom for the sake of God, I concluded that death was a small price to pay for the utter joy they were given in return when they were whisked away to heaven” (Starr, 2007, p.6). Rodrigo taught St. Teresa all about chivalry and they spent many hours reading about the lives of saints, never thinking St. Teresa would accomplish just that. As a girl, St. Teresa strived to be worthy of God, as did her siblings whom she loved. Instead of acting like she was a princess with the other girls, her and her brother Rodri...

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...ruggles she grew stronger, which can inspire many people to do the same.

Works Cited

Kiefer, J. (2013). Teresa of avila, reformer and contemplative. Retrieved from http://justus.anglican.org/resources/bio/268.html Pettinger, T. (2010, September 22). Biography of st. teresa avila.
Retrieved from www.biographyonline.net/spiritual/st_teresa_avila.html
Starr, M. (2007). Teresa of avila: The book of my life. Boston, MA: New Seeds Books
Teresa of avila: Our patron saint. (2013). Retrieved from https://saintteresa.episcopalatlanta.org/Content/Teresa_of_Avila_Our_Patron_Saint.asp Rabb, T. (1993). Renaissance lives. New York, NY: Pantheon Books
Zimmerman, B. (1912). St. teresa of avila. In Catholic Encyclopedia. New York, NY: Robert
Appleton Company. Retrieved from http://www.newadvent.org/cathen/14515b.htm

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