Monday — Behind the walls of Avila

Narrow streets in Toledo

10:00 am Good morning sunshine!

Waking up this morning was like waking up in heaven. It reminded me of a movie I had seen about a boy who escaped from a concentration camp and was taken in by a wealthy Italian family. I woke up, finding myself in a soft bed covered by the linen sheets. As I laid there taking in the moment, I looked out the window and saw the familiar blue sky and thatched roofs of the adjoining buildings. “Could I be in heaven already,” I thought to myself. I lay there for about half an hour just enjoying my surroundings and thanking God for the blessing of a bed and the hope of a shower in a few minutes.

After a good night’s sleep and a shower, we went down to the chapel. I must admit that the similar stone corridors are a little confusing and easy to get lost in. Following morning prayers, we had a hearty breakfast consisting of sliced meats, cheese, toast, crackers, fruit, juice, coffee, and tea. Europeans usually only have bread and coffee for breakfast, but knowing that we are Americans, I’m sure they accommodated our eating habits. And now we are off once again to a fortified city like Toledo, Avila!

The Walls of Avila

11:30 pm From one ancient city to another.

In the bus, on the way to Avila, there were sudden exclamations of, “Castle!” or “Sheep!” Then, one of the consecrated said, “This is Escolona, one of the oldest castles in Spain, built in the 12th century.” And then several people rushed to one side of the bus. What can I say? It’s not like we see castles and sheep when driving through the streets of New York or the cornfields of Indiana. Soon we beheld the enormous walls of Avila, and behind them, a city fairly similar to Toledo.

12:00 pm Into the house of a saint

Our first stop was the Incarnation Convent of the Discalced Carmelites. Don’t confuse this with the one we are staying at in Toledo. The convent in Avila is the very one which St. Teresa of Avila lived in and where she experienced many of her spiritual moments of ecstasy. We were grateful to be greeted by a native Spaniard who knew much about the convent and the Carmelites. Dona Carmen, our guide, is a mother of three Carmelites, one diocesan priest, one Legionary priest, one consecrated, two who are married, and one who is single. She gave us a tour of the museum, which displayed many objects and paintings from before and after the reform of the Carmelites. We even got to see St. Teresa’s cell and St. John of the Cross’ confessional!

2:30 pm Background check on the Carmelites

As we ate a late lunch at 2:30 (normal for Spaniards), we asked Dona Carmen questions about the lives of the Carmelites: what they do, how they enter, what they eat, etc. She also showed us pictures of her own children, including the three Carmelite nuns. We asked her many practical questions because at 4:00 we would have the great privilege of actually speaking to one of her daughters through the grill. Carmelites only see their parents once a month and aside from that, they can only see bishops and cardinals. Therefore, to speak to a Carmelite is quite an honor. From Dona Carmen, we learned the following:

There is a limit of 29 nuns in the convent. In most Carmelite convents, the limit is 21. However, in a vision, Our Lady told St. Teresa that there could be an exception in Avila.

The garments and veil that the nuns wear weighs a total of 17.6 pounds.

They are constantly occupied either in prayer or in work. They paint, do woodwork, and other things to sell in the gift shop. While they make each item, they pray for the person who will receive it.

They live their day in silence aside from the one hour of recreation between 1:00 to 2:00 pm.

They have a longer Lent than ours. It extends from September 14 (Feast of the Holy Cross) to Easter. During this time they live much prayer and sacrifice.

The nuns who enter the Carmel are not the “leftovers” of society. Many of them have college degrees and have had careers.

Mass in Avila at the chapel of Transverberation

(where St. Teresa experienced spiritual ecstasy)

Hawkesworth & Hawkesworth at Avila

4:00 A Special Meeting with Two Carmelite Nuns

Following lunch, the long awaited moment to speak to one of Dona Carmen’s daughters had arrived. We crowded in the visiting room and soon after, we saw not one, but two nuns in the Carmelite habit approach the grill. We were surprised with the appearance of both of Dona Carmen’s daughters! Immediately, they both greeted us with smiles and amiable laughs. They were much different than we thought they would be. After hearing about their 17 pound habit and tradition of fasting, I imagined a very reserved and frail cloistered nun who spoke slowly and seldom. However, here were two who looked very healthy, laughed with us, and eagerly responded to our questions. They shared with us what it means to live silence and a little bit about how they discovered their vocation to be a Carmelite nun. The younger sister discerned that God was calling her when she was only 12 years old. However, as I said before, there are only 29 spots in the convent, and to enter under 18 years of age she would need special permission. Yet, after 5 years of waiting, she finally entered at the age of 17. The older sister, on the other hand, was already studying at a university when she felt God calling her to the Carmelite vocation. After several months of resisting it, she finally accepted God’s call and entered the convent with great peace. When she told her dad that she was going to be a Carmelite, he told her, “If you want it, then no; but if God wants it, then yes.” As most of us are discerning consecrated life, their advice to us was, “Do not resist God’s call. In the end, his will gives us peace and happiness.”

5:30 pm Leaving Avila

Being able to talk to the nuns was a definite highlight of my day, and of this entire pilgrimage. Their joyful attitudes and animated expressions give witness to God’s love and his grace. I’m sure that they would not be able to endure the sacrifices and difficulties of cloistered life in the Carmelite order if it weren’t for God. With all this in mind and with a greater appreciation for the work of St. Teresa, we had mass in the chapel of Transverberation, where St. Teresa’s heart was pierced by a flaming sword. She experienced a profound certainty of the magnitude of God’s love, yet she had great pain as well. However, she preferred the pain because it was accompanied with the “sweetness and tenderness” of God’s love.

Another eventful day has come to a close. We will be arriving back to our lodgings in Toledo in about an hour and a half, just in time for dinner, night prayers, and bed. Tomorrow is just around the corner with many more surprises and events in store.