15 Days of Prayer with Teresa of Avila (15 Days of Prayer (New City Press))
Jean Abiven was a diocesan priest and teacher of spiritual philosophy for thirty years before he responded totally to the apostolic and contemplative charism of two outstanding figures of the Counter-Reformation: Teresa of Ávila (1515-82) and her helpmeet John of the Cross (1542-91). Abiven's classic analyses of Teresa and the spiritual life written since his becoming a Discalced Carmelite friar are concentrated in this 15 Days of Prayer title introduced by Thomas M Santa CSsR.Santa insists that the purpose of each book in the series is not to forge a pious bond between reader and subject but to serve as a pilgrim's guide towards a closer relationship with God. Teresa of Ávila with her emphasis upon living in God's presence, actively and interiorly, would approve of Santa's rubric. She might even be considered his model spiritual director. Nonetheless, despite Abiven's profound understanding of Teresa, the choice of content for this slight volume from her substantial and diverse oeuvre could not have been easy. He has succeeded beyond my expectation.Each of the fifteen chapters opens with a focus point and concludes with ideas for prayerful reflection. Abiven sets Teresa's life and writings alongside modern Carmelite formation methods, drawing in what has been learned from the Spiritual Exercises of Ignatius of Loyola (1491-1556), in covering six key stages of Teresian direction from starting to pray to the intimacy of mystical union. Jean Abiven's expert yet approachable text will be welcomed throughout the Carmelite family of friars, nuns, religious sisters and lay people in vocation discernment, formation, and private prayer. Equally, it will appeal to any seeker after God, lending itself as much to individual contemplation as to retreat center or parish prayer programs. Readers will find Constant Tonnelier's 15 Days of Prayer volume on Saint John of the Cross, to be reissued in 2012, to be an ideal companion text. --Tracy E Martin,Theological Book Review