St. Teresa of Ávila
Feast day: October 15
Born at Ávila, In Castile, Spain, to a wealthy family, Teresa was educated in an Augustinian convent. Rejecting marriage, she entered the Carmelite order in 1536. During a long illness, she began to practice contemplative prayer, and she experienced mystical visions and locutions. In 1555, she founded the reform-minded Discalced Carmelites. She established numerous convents, and with the help of St. John of the Cross. she also established reformed monasteries for men. Teresa wrote several books, including “Autobiography,” “The Way of Perfection” and the “Interior Castle.” Canonized in 1622, Teresa was declared a Doctor of the Church in 1970. She is patron of Spain and of headache sufferers.
Collect
O God, who through your Spirit
raised up Saint Teresa of Jesus
to show the Church the way to seek perfection,
grant that we may always be nourished
by the food of her heavenly teaching
and fired with longing for true holiness.
Through our Lord Jesus Christ, your Son,
who lives and reigns with you in the unity of the Holy Spirit,
God, for ever and ever.
