The Way of Perfection Quotes

“It is certain that a man who has no need of anyone has many friends: in my own experience I have found this to be very true.”
― Teresa of Ávila, St. Teresa of Avila: The Way of Perfection

“It is certain, my Lord, that in these days withdrawal from the world means no sacrifice at all.”
― Teresa of Ávila, St. Teresa of Avila: The Way of Perfection

“: ¿cómo podrá el verdadero humilde pensar que es él tan bueno como los que llegan a ser contemplativos?”
― Teresa of Ávila, Camino de Perfección

“You should each do your duty; and, if this is not appreciated by your superior, you may be sure that it will be appreciated and rewarded by the Lord.”
― Teresa of Ávila, The Way of Perfection by Saint Teresa of Avila

“as He refuses to force our will, He takes what we give Him but does not give Himself wholly until He sees that we are giving ourselves wholly to Him.”
― Teresa of Ávila, The Way of Perfection by Saint Teresa of Avila

“Believe me, friends, it is a great thing to realize the truth of this so that we may see how deceptive are earthly things and favours when they deflect the soul in any way from its course and hinder it from entering within itself.”
― Teresa of Ávila, The Way of Perfection by Saint Teresa of Avila

“If we fill the palace with vulgar people and all kinds of junk, how can the Lord and His Court occupy it? When such a crowd is there it would be a great thing if He were to remain for even a short time.”
― Teresa of Ávila, The Way of Perfection by Saint Teresa of Avila

“How wonderful it is that He Whose greatness could fill a thousand worlds, and very many more, should confine Himself within so small a space, just as He was pleased to dwell within the womb of His most holy Mother!”
― Teresa of Ávila, The Way of Perfection by Saint Teresa of Avila

“mental prayer, which I have already described, and which consists in thinking of what we are saying, understanding it, and realizing Whom we are addressing, and who we are that are daring to address so great a Lord. To think of this and other similar things, such as how little we have served Him and how great is our obligation to serve Him, is mental prayer.”
― Teresa of Ávila, The Way of Perfection by Saint Teresa of Avila

“of the Lord, Who has13 brought you together here for that very purpose. This is your vocation; this must be your business; these must be your desires; these your tears; these your petitions. Let us not pray for worldly things, my sisters. It makes me laugh, and yet14 it makes me sad, when I hear of the things which people come here to beg us to pray to God for; we are to ask His Majesty to give them money and to provide them with incomes—I wish that some of these people would entreat15 God to enable them to trample all such things beneath their feet. Their intentions are quite good, and I do as they ask because I see that they are really devout people, though I do not myself believe that God ever hears me when I pray for such things.16 The”
― Teresa of Ávila, The Way of Perfection

“A pobreza é um bem que encerra todos os bens do mundo. É uma grande soberania; confirmo que se assenhoreia de todos os bens quem nenhum caso faz de os deixar.”
― Santa Teresa de Jesús, The Way of Perfection

“The happy result of detachment is inner freedom, freedom from worry about bodily comfort, honor, and wealth. Considering”
― Teresa of Ávila, St. Teresa of Avila The Way of Perfection: Study Edition

“Mirad que no son tiempos de creer a todos, sino a los que viereis van conforme a la vida de Cristo.”
― Teresa of Ávila, Camino de Perfección

“¡Oh gran ganancia, no querer ganar por nuestro parecer para no temer pérdida, pues nunca permite Dios la tenga el bien mortificado, sino para ganar más!”
― Teresa of Ávila, Camino de la perfección

“la verdadera humildad está mucho en estar muy prontos en contentarse con lo que el Señor quisiere hacer de ellos, y siempre hallarse indignos de llamarse sus siervos.”
― Teresa of Ávila, Camino de la perfección

“damos mil caídas y tropiezos y erramos el camino por no poner los ojos -como digo- en el verdadero camino. Parece que nunca se anduvo, según se nos hace nuevo.”
― Teresa of Ávila, Camino de la perfección

“will tell you, for I am not sure if you properly understand as yet how much we owe to the Lord for bringing us to a place where we are so free from business matters, occasions of sin and the society of worldly people.”
― Teresa of Ávila, The Way of Perfection by Saint Teresa of Avila

“At first it may cause a good deal of trouble, for the body insists on its rights, not understanding that if it refuses to admit defeat it is, as it were, cutting off its own head.”
― Teresa of Ávila, The Way of Perfection

“never seem unable to find a reason for thinking I am being virtuous when I make excuses for myself.”
― Teresa of Ávila, The Way of Perfection

“For the devil does not allow a single bad habit to disappear and the very weakness of our mortal nature destroys the virtues in us.”
― Teresa of Ávila, The Way of Perfection

“Remember, my sisters, that if we are not good we are much more to blame than others.”
― Teresa of Ávila, The Way of Perfection

“for the devil never slumbers. And the nearer we are to perfection, the more careful we must be, since his temptations are then much more cunning because there are no others that he dare send us;”
― Teresa of Ávila, The Way of Perfection

“there are people whose nature it is to be very much cast down by small things.”
― Teresa of Ávila, The Way of Perfection

“Their heart does not allow them to practise duplicity: if they see their friend straying from the road, or committing any faults, they will speak to her about it; they cannot allow themselves to do anything else.”
― Teresa of Ávila, The Way of Perfection

“For, under the Lord, I owe it to such persons that I am not in hell; I was always very fond of asking them to commend me to God, and so I prevailed upon them to do so.”
― Teresa of Ávila, The Way of Perfection

“matters. Do you think, my daughters, that it is an easy matter to have to do business with the world, to live in the world, to engage in the affairs of the world, and, as I have said, to live as worldly men do, and yet inwardly to be strangers to the world, and enemies of the world, like persons who are in exile -- to be, in short, not men but angels?”
― Teresa of Ávila, The Way of Perfection

“For, as I have already said, it is the ecclesiastical and not the secular arm which must defend us.”
― Teresa of Ávila, The Way of Perfection