Teresa Sanchez de Cepeda y Ahumada, better known as St. Teresa of Avila, was a Spanish Catholic Saint and Carmelite nun who was most prominently known for her journey towards contemplative life through mental prayer. In her reflective and analytical autobiography, The Life of St. Teresa of Jesus, of the Order of Our Lady of Carmel, Teresa reflects on her interactions with others as a child, as a woman and as a nun, and bases her opinion of her own freedom and free will on these reflections. In this paper, I will argue the dual nature of freedom in Teresa’s life; on the one hand, Teresa is free in that she breaks free from the traditional role of the woman and society’s honour codes- despite citing honour as providing some guidance in her life-,
and follows her desires often without consequence. On the other hand, none of her actions are truly free, as she is deeply affected by the relationships around her. Every event, action and thought in her life happens to her as an effect of some other interaction, whether it is good and therefore the doing of God, or bad and therefore she has been corrupted by a companion or an influential figure. I will prove this interpretation with reference to Father Milton Remedios’ thoughts on the effects of different types of friendships in Teresa’s life in his article “Honour and Friendship in the Writings of Saint Teresa of Avila.” While I agree with Fr. Remedios’ argument on the importance of friendship in Teresa’s life, whether with God or with the people that that surround her, his view on freedom does not account for the fact that Teresa is very much restricted by her friendships. He focuses on her inner freedom in her relationship to God, but blatantly overlooks the vaguely Stoic idea that in the overarching scheme of her life, Teresa has no control in her actions because everything happens to her and not because of her, and therefore she is not free.
Catholicism glorifies and portrays mothers as the main foundation of the family through the example of the passive and unconditional loving Mary, the mother of Jesus Crist. This idea of mothers as unconditional lover beings has been passed on and reproduced in the Chicana/o community. Gil Cuadros and Reyna Grande through their autobiographical work testify against this predominate idea of mothers being always caring and loving persons. Even though most mothers fall into the norm of a normal mother, normality is subjective; therefore Cuadros and Grande’s work represent the complexities of reality. Grande’s The Distance Between Us and Cuadro’s City of God are autobiographical narratives that incorporate reality as a form of testimonial of existence,
In Spain and the Spanish colonies in South America in the late sixteenth and early seventeenth centuries, gender roles were distinct and the opportunity gap was enormous. Catalina de Erauso compares the two roles through her memoir, “Lieutenant Nun,” where she recounts her life as a transvestite in both the new and old world. Through having experienced the structured life of a woman as well as the freedom involved in being a man, de Erauso formed an identity for herself that crossed the boundaries of both genders. Catalina de Erauso’s life demonstrates the gap in freedom and opportunity for women, as compared to men, in the areas of culture, politics and economy, and religion.
The figures of Sor Juana and Catalina de Erauso are larger than life. They did things no other women (and most men) during the 17th century could have ever dreamed of. Sor Juana was a nun who, through her confined cloister, produced works of literature and theology that are now part of both the Mexican and Catholic Cannon. De Erauso on the hand roamed free, she abandoned her religious life and instead took up the garb of a man and set out for the New World. Both of these women did not do what women were expected to do. Sor Juana’s life in the covenant should have been one of quiet contemplation and De Erauso should have never left the covenant she was a part of. In addition not only did De Erauso abandon her vows but she attempted, and succeeded, at passing herself off as a man which allowed her to do things that, if her true identity was known, every apparatus available in the Empire would have brought her to swift justice. These women went against the norms of what was expected ...
Sor Juana de la Cruz is born into a wealthy family in 1648 that lived near Mexico City, Mexico. After being a part of the Viceregal court and a lady in waiting, Cruz begins her spiritual journey and joins the convent. Here, Cruz explores both secular and non-secular studies. She is an exceptionally talented writer with a passion for reading, learning, and writing. She is scolded for the information she writes and is told to focus exclusively on religious dogma. Soon after the Bishop of Pubela reads one of her letters, he publishes it (without her knowing), and she responds with a respectful yet sarcastic letter (Lawall and Chinua 155-156). Cruz’s “Reply to Sor Filotea de la Cruz” was written during the period of Enlightenment of Europe (1660- 1770). This era in Europe casted an opaque shadow over women’s rights to educate themselves and self-expression. Sor Juana’s piece however is both inspirational and empoweri...
Initially, Patria had always strongly believed in God which made her ignore the prejudices which occurred during Trujillo’s reign, for example people being killed by the dictator (53). Patria had a still born baby and the pain of losing a loved one made her relate to families who had lost their relatives due to Trujillo’s injustices (53). Suffering from the pain of her loss, made her lose faith which resulted in Patria’s beliefs evolving from a God centered view towards a people centered faith. The evolution of her faith is aided by her experience during the pilgrimage, when she heard Mary tell her to turn around her religious views towards needy people. This is because all her life she had been focusing on God and not serving
The women of the priory also live a highly ascetic life, believing that the hard work performed and simple living conditions in themselves alone can give rise to an experience that is greater than anything achievable through other worldly goals. Mariette herself writes prayerfully, “Were it necessary to give up all the worldly pleasures of my life to gain one instant of happiness for you, I would do it without hesitation.” (Page 135).
INTRODUCTION The medieval theologian Julian of Norwich was a mystic, writer, anchoress and spiritual director for her time. She is gaining in popularity for our time as she provides a spiritual template for contemplative prayer and practice in her compilation of writings found in Revelations of Divine Love. The insightful meditations provide the backdrop and basis for her Trinitarian theology’s embrace of God’s
Day by day women are faced with obstacles simply because of gender. In the plays we have read women are faced with obstacles but overcome them. Women in the past were expected to be submissive and not object to the men’s decisions. The world today has changed its face. No longer are women quiet. Sappho and her work is a good example in our readings to represent today’s day and time. Her poems seem contemporary, very modern. The Descent of Inanna ,on the other hand, is a prime example of works we’ve read that represent the past much more.
To begin with, the structure of Kirk’s article could be divided into three parts. The first part is the introduction of Sor Juana’s background and her achievements. Krik(2008:38) argues that Juana’s uses the vocabulary and the issue of pain and suffering in order to ‘establish an intimate connection between the female physical pain and the acquisition of knowledge.’ In addition, Krik also mentions that female’s opinion does not get enough respect. This suggested in Sor Juana opinions in her works that some nuns are compulsory to be asceticism and are obedient to the ecclesiastical authorities.
Independently, as one grows in age, their actions should make a daily reflection to God. In “A Theology of Liberation,” Gutierrez avers that, "The present life is considered to be a test: one’s actions are judged and assessed in relation to the transcendent end. The perspective here is moralistic, and the spirituality is one of flight from this world...
Kempe’s story has a typical beginning. She is married, soon thereafter conceives her first child, and goes on to give birth to fourteen more children. She assumes the responsibilities of a wife and mother whose position in the late medieval society is assured by the solid reputation of her father, John Burnham, and her husband, John Kempe. However, Kempe’s conventional story changes early in her life by an elusive interaction with Jesus that she experiences shortly after her first excruciating child birth. Women were expected to carry out the societal norm of a good wife and mother which meant staying home to tend to the family. As we’ve seen, this is the opposite of how Kempe wanted to live her life — she hastily became distinguished and recognized. Her autobiography explains her own efforts to dissociate herself from the covetous and restric...
Voig, Desmond. Mother Teresa Her People and Her Work. New York: Nachiketa Publication, 1976. Print.
It has been written that "since the day of Aristotle, probably no one man has exercised such a powerful influence on the thinking world as did St Thomas Aquinas." Thomas Aquinas was born in 1225 in Italy of a noble family, thus separated by 900 years to Aristotle. He received his first education at the Abbey of Monte Cassino, going on from there to the University of Naples. In 1243, he joined the Dominican monastic order at Cologin. His most influential teacher was another Dominican, Albertus Magnis, a German who wrote extensively on theological matters and questions of national science, especially biology. Thomas was also a highly successful lecturer, and travelled widely across Europe, particularly on the business of his order and the church.
Clarice Lispector, a Brazilian female writer of Jewish descent, tied her writing with her very life, for her writing reflects her viewpoint on many aspects of her life. She was well-known for her existentialist writing involving themes revolving around women’s roles. Through the characters and their interactions in her works, Lispector explores the societal status of women. The male subjugation of women influences many of the themes found in her works and a better understanding of women’s social status ultimately leads to a better understanding of the relationship between the characters in her works and actions by those characters. Thus, the evaluation of women in the society contemporary to the era Lispector lived in influences the overall existentialist ideas and the motif of women’s roles in her work.
To answer God’s calling Mother Teresa decided to become a nun when she got older. In church one day she saw pictures of starving families in small cities around India. She consulted the Father for adv...