The Ecstasy of Saint Theresa

Next Monday we will fly to Rome, Italy…

Ecstasy of St. Theresa
1647?1652. Giovanni Lorenzo Bernini (1598?1680). Marble. Italy.
Santa Maria della Vittoria, Rome.

In one of the most haunting texts in the tradition of Christ-mysticism, the Spanish Carmelite nun, mystic and Doctor of the Church, Theresa of Avila (1515?1582), spoke of her union with Christ:

?It pleased the Lord that I should sometimes see the following vision. I would see beside me, on my left hand, an angel in bodily form?. In his hands I saw a great golden spear, and at the iron tip there appeared to be a point of fire. This he plunged into my heart several times so that it penetrated my entrails. When he drew it out I felt that he took them with it, and left me utterly consumed with a great love for God.? The sweetness caused by this intense pain is so extreme that one can not possibly wish it to cease, nor will one’s soul be content with anything less than God.?

a closer view [LINK]
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