Every true disciple of Christ must engage in spiritual warfare
Carmelites of all times have understood that their effort to dedicate themselves to Christ's service means accepting Christ's mission and continuing in it, in the mission of He who, in his work of redemption, had to engage in an uninterrupted and demanding battle against the powers of evil.
The Carmelite order, which traces back to the spirituality of the desert fathers, does not overlook the spiritual warfare that every true disciple of Christ must engage in. The necessary spiritual armor of the order is detailed primarily through the image used by Saint Paul (1): "For since the life of a man on earth is a trial, and all who desire to live godly in Christ Jesus will suffer persecution, and your adversary the devil prowls around like a roaring lion, seeking whom he may devour, strive with all care to put on the armor of God, that you may be able to stand against the wiles of the enemy" (chap. 14).
The Carmelites recognized that following Christ is not just about imitating him, but rather that he intends, through grace, to personally enter our lives, to the extent that we become truly his living members. The Heavenly Father expects to see in us the image of his Son: that is the only thing that makes us pleasant in the Father's eyes. If the experience of Christ’s life by his disciples is to be authentic, it will inevitably include the cross. It is worth noting that for both St. Teresa of Jesus and St. Teresa of Lisieux, the key turning point in their spiritual lives was the moment they encountered the image of Jesus crucified, bleeding, and suffering unspeakably. Both were struck by the fact that the pouring out of his blood did not yield the fruit it should have. Both accepted the suffering that was an integral part of it for the rest of their lives, so that the redeeming blood of Jesus could bring redemption to all for whom it was spilled. In other words, both of these outstanding Carmelites understood that Jesus, in order to free us from the clutches of evil and lead us to a life of grace, had to suffer greatly. They also understood that as Carmelites, they were invited to share in Christ’s redemptive work for the benefit of their contemporaries, and thus they must be – like their divine Bridegroom – prepared for battle.
St. Teresa of Lisieux, a saint who saw everything as grace and whose smile would like to hide her suffering – physical, moral, and spiritual – even from God, if possible, realized that suffering is not just something to be endured, but is even something desirable, and not in a masochistic sense, but rather as an extension and actualization of Christ’s redemptive work. At the end of her life, when she had been immersed for eighteen months in a seemingly endless night of faith, questioning whether anything exists after death and wondering why more people who suffer like her do not commit suicide, Teresa heroically identified holiness with suffering. She believed that the bride must be with her bridegroom; Christ chose the way of the cross, and she must follow him.
(1) Eph 6:10–17.
Taken from the book (ed. incl.): The Carmel in the Czech Church
Author: Redemptus Valábek, OCarm.
Published by: KNA
