This year has marked the 500th year since the birth of St Teresa of Avila.
To celebrate the occasion and to explore Teresa’s spiritual wisdom for today, Infant Jesus Parish, Morley and the Maranatha Centre for Adult Faith Formation recently co-facilitated a conference entitled Teresa 2015: A Woman for Our Times.
The conference attracted more than 100 people from across Western Australia eager to enrich their Christian discipleship with the insights of Teresa – the first woman to be declared a Doctor of the Church.
Emeritus Bishop of Broken Bay Diocese and one of the keynote speakers for the conference, Bishop David Walker introduced the conference participants to Teresa’s teaching on prayer, her teaching on the prerequisites for a prayerful life, and The Interior Castle, one of Teresa’s major works.
One of the many practical and helpful points Bishop David offered in his presentations was that we perhaps have more time for prayer than we realise.
Psychologists say that one third of our day is spent daydreaming.
This time, Bishop David suggested, could be used for momentarily turning our attention within, and being present to the One who is – as St Teresa puts it – always present to us.
The other keynote speaker was Fr Greg Burke – a Discalced Carmelite friar, and former parish priest of Infant Jesus Parish.
Fr Greg’s talks enabled the participants to connect Teresa’s story with her historical context and to contemplate the relevance of Teresa’s life and teaching to the Church, and each individual Christian of the 21st century.
In her workshop, entitled Teresa’s Castle and the Human Journey, Sr Jacqueline Jones – congregational leader of the Sisters of St Joseph of the Apparition and a registered counselling psychologist – explored the connections between psychological growth and Teresa’s insights into maturing spiritually.
Teresa’s understanding of mysticism was the topic of the workshop offered by Dr Michelle Jones, Director of the Maranatha Centre.
In the workshop, the mystical life was presented as nothing other than a participation in Jesus’ self-emptying “yes” to the Father’s love and, as such, the fullness of our lives as baptised Christians.
The keynote presentations are available on DVD for $10 from the Maranatha Centre.
For more information, contact 08 9241 5221, or email maranatha@ceo.wa.edu.au.