ST. JOHN the EVANGELIST CCD
Grades:  Kindergarten through Junior High
Phone: 916 -483-4628
Email: ccd@sjecarmichael.org

October 10

Our spirited CCD students thoroughly enjoyed their Circle of Grace classes this Sunday. Also, our devoted catechists were delighted to personally share time with your children. Next weekend for many schools, there is a three-day weekend, so we will not have Religious Education classes on October 10. Classes will resume at 8:55 a.m., on October 17, in the St. James Hall.
This week, we will honor St. Teresa of Avila, (St. Teresa of Jesus), whose feast day is on October 15. St. Teresa was born in Avila, Spain, on March 28, 1515, to a noble and influential family. Her mother, Beatriz de Ahumada, raised Teresa to be a dedicated Christian. Even as a child, Teresa was drawn to religion and only read accounts about the lives of saints. Because of this, to speed things up, at the age of seven, she convinced her younger brother, Rodrigo, to run away with her to the Muslim lands so that they could be martyred and be able to see God immediately. Luckily, her uncle spotted them right outside the walls of their town and brought them back to Avila. When Teresa was only twelve, her mother died, and she was totally grief-stricken, so she embraced a deep devotion to the Virgin Mary. Sometimes rebellious, but always lively and affectionate, Teresa made friends easily and led a fairly ordinary teenage life. Being enamored with popular fiction, fashion, and gardens, Teresa’s father was worried, so he sent her to an Augustinian nun’s school in Avila. After completing her education, when Teresa was twenty years old, she joined the easy-going Carmelite monastery of the Incarnation in Avila, because she thought that this would be the best place for someone who was prone to sin. Soon, she became the center of a wide circle of friends because of her winsome ways and her delightful sense of humor. Everyone there liked her, and she liked to be liked.
Later Teresa almost died after complications from malaria and a seizure. She was paralyzed for three years, but, due to the intercession of St. Joseph, Teresa’s health started to improve. Teresa then experienced bouts of religious ecstasy. Increasingly, Teresa found herself at odds with the spiritual malaise prevalent among the religious sisters at her Incarnation convent. The atmosphere there lacked the solitude necessary for contemplative prayer.
Soon Teresa began to consider the restoration of the Carmelite life. Inspired by her own motivation and the support of a Franciscan priest, Peter of Alcantara, she resolved to reform the laxity of her Carmelite order with the financial help from a wealthy woman, Guimara de Ulloa, and the authorization of Pope Pius IV, she even founded a new convent named St. Joseph of the Carmelite Reform. Again, with the help of Father Peter of Alcantara, and Father John, Teresa established the reform of the Discalced Carmelites. Teresa simply espoused going back to the basics of contemplative life. There was great opposition to their movement by members of her own Carmelite order. Despite her frail health and the legal proceedings against her, thirty-two Monasteries of the Reformed Rule were developed before Teresa’s death.
Today, Teresa is regarded as one of the foremost writers on mental prayer and mystical theology. Her writings stem from her own personal experiences. Teresa stated, “Contemplative prayer, in my opinion, is nothing other than a close sharing between friends. It means frequently taking time to be alone with Him whom we know loves us. “
On October 4, 1582, Jesus appeared to Teresa with many saints. She begged Him to take her to Himself, and after her prayer, she was taken up to Heaven. Later, she was canonized on March 12, 1622, by Pope Gregory XV. In addition, St. Teresa of Avila was one of the first women to be declared a Doctor of the Church for her writing and teaching on prayer. St. Teresa’s most widely read books are: Life of Mother Teresa of Jesus, Book of Foundation, Relations, Exclamations of the Soul to God, Conceptions on the Love of God. Our St. Teresa always abandoned herself to God's will.

OUR PRAYER: O GOD, YOU RAISED UP ST. TERESA BY YOUR SPIRIT SO THAT SHE COULD MANIFEST TO THE CHURCH THE WAY TO PERFECTION. NOURISH US WITH THE FOOD OF HER HEAVENLY TEACHING AND FIRE US WITH A DESIRE FOR HOLINESS.

Mrs. Joanne Giffard, CCD/Religious Education Coordinator                                                                                   ccd@sjecarmichael.org