Bernard of Clairvaux: A Lover Teaching the Way of Love Book

I don't know how many times I've read The Way of Perfection--which doesn't seem so much like a book as a conversation, albeit one-way. Teresa wrote this for her sisters so her voice is warmly familiar, at times consoling, then chiding-admonishing but in a loving maternal manner.
This was my first opportunity to read it using the Institute of Carmelite Studies (ICS) Edition Study Guide. If you really want to understand the text, I cannot recommend this guide enough. Each chapter contains the original text followed by a brief outline of the material, Interpretative Notes (my favorite part!) and 3 or 4 group study questions.

The Interpretive Notes were the most helpful feature of the book. They included everything from the historical* and contextual setting of the text; biographical info about Teresa; cross-referencing to Teresa's other works; explanations of obscure passages; biographical info about St. John Of the Cross and other important figures in Teresa's life as well as references to any of their writings which influenced her, such as Francisco de Osuna's Third Spiritual Alphabet, one of her favorite and formative books, a popular devotional of that era.

The downside of reading The Way of Perfection this way is the lack of flow. You lose something of what I call the intimacy of 'Teresa's voice'. However, for those who complain about my dear Teresa, that she is disorganized or goes off on ramblings, then this is the way you need to read her. Fr. Kieran Kavanaugh has made it his life's work to know Teresa and he explains her beautifully here.

Personally I think her 'rambling' was good subterfuge. Brilliant as she undoubtedly was, had she been hyper-organized as well, she would have been altogether too much for the men of her time. Her poor-pitiful-me-look-how-poorly-I-write is probably what has allowed her writings to come to us! No doubt she would hate me writing that! Forgive me dear Sister-in-faith, but I am allowed to compliment you even if humility forbids you from claiming this for yourself. ☺

One last thing, if you have never read this book, and you love The Our Father, then you must read it! Teresa believed that anyone could become a contemplative just by learning to pray this prayer correctly. And she sets out line by line, almost word by word, to teach her sisters (and us!) how to do it. PERFECTION!


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July 15, 2016: In Chapter 33 Teresa writes: 'I have noticed how in this petition alone he repeats the words: first he says and asks the Father to give us this daily bread, and then repeats, "give it to us this day, Lord," invoking the Father again. It's as though Jesus tells the Father that he is now ours since the Father has given him to us to die for us; and asks that the Father not take him from us until the end of the world; that he allow him to serve each day. May this move your hearts...' It moved mine the other day in Adoration.

May 15, 2016: While Teresa is not the most organized of writers she is one of the most vivid, which I find to be compensatory, at least insofar as she gives me visual landmarks, sometimes analogies, other times principles or concepts, memorable quotes, new ways of seeing. She is never dull. We continue to read at the pace of seven chapters each month but when I'm finished with the group I want to go back and outline the book on my own.

Apr 11, 2016: Although I've read Teresa's great work several times, this is my first chance to study it in a group setting using this Study Edition. And although this book comes up as identical to the original text, the Study Edition contains important additions (Summary, Interpretive Notes and Questions at the end of each chapter) which the regular text does not have.

As a (novice) Secular Carmelite I'm in a group of 4 who are reading this over the next few months. We reading at a rate of 7 chapters a month. When we meet, we only read the Summary, Interpretive Notes and Questions for Discussion for each chapter. We're supposed to have read the entire text before we meet. So far we've never managed to cover all 7 chapters in a setting due to lack of time. Yet considering the quality of our group discussions, the people in the group and our leader, I wouldn't change a thing.


*This is important because Teresa lived during the Protestant Reformation and she is guilty of the prejudice of the age. She speaks of the Lutherans in ways which sound harsh to our ears but were quite acceptable for her era.