Letter 164. To Mother Mary of St. Joseph, Prioress of Seville, Toledo, January 17, 1577

A rich postulant. Advice about reforming the nuns at Paterna,

Jesus be with your Reverence !

O MY daughter ! How full your letter is of good news, both of your health and of the postulant who is going to show us such charity as to pay for the convent ! God grant there may be no mishap as I pray with all my heart, for it would give me the greatest pleasure to see you freed from anxiety. If she enters, watch over her carefully, for the love of God, for she deserves every kindness. I should very much like to send her a long letter but have not time, having already written to Avila and Madrid and other places; besides, my head is tired.

I have received the letters from you which you mention. One that I sent open for you to read addressed to my Father, the Prior of las Cuevas, must have been lost as you say nothing about it.

You must all be feeling very lonely now that our good Father has left you. Tell Señor Garci Alvarez that he is more bound than ever to be a good father in his stead. I am glad that his relation has entered. Remember me very kindly to her and to the nuns at Paterna to whom I very much wish to write. Forward this letter to them so that they may know that I am well, and that I was delighted to hear from them and to know about Margarita and the confessor. They must not be surprised at the nuns there not leading such lives as ours at once; it would be folly to expedí it. Let them not insist too striffly upon the sisters' keeping silence, nor upon other matters which are not in themselves sinful, for with people unaccustomed to observe them, such severity would result in fresh sins instead of preventing them. Time and divine grace are needed, or the nuns would be driven to despair. We pray for them a great deal here. It is not right that the prioress should allow them to speak insultingly to her unless she can pretend not to understand. The superiors should realize that, with the exception of keeping enclosure striólly, they must behave with great mildness and leave the rest to God. May He be with you, my daughter, and proteél you and the sisters to whom I send my love. The prioress of Paterna says no more in any of her letters about San Jerónimo than if she did not exist, yet perhaps she might do more than the Prioress herself Ask the latter to let me know about her and let San Jerónimo write to me. Both of them ought to place their trust in God so that they may succeed in all their efforts: let them not

■ Mary of St. Joseph, in her book of Recreaciones p. 121, says that the nuns of Paterna would not even give any food to the Seville nufls so that it had to be supplied from outside. One night the behaviour of the Calced nuns was so threatening that the poor Discalced sisters locked themselves up in a cupboard under the stairs which the others tried to force open, threatening to kill them.

suppose that they can do anything by their own strength.

I am well; the Mother Prioress of Malagon is as usual. Tell me whether our Father had any money for his journey; they said he had not. I ask you of your charity to send him the enclosed letter at once, with great secrecy and by a safe messenger. I regret that the fiscal is leaving Seville. God seems to intend to make us recognize that He alone does all. Will your Reverence remember me to the Prior of Carmel' and ask my good Fray Gregorio to write to me.

To-day is January 17, of the year 1577, and I am your Reverence's servant, Teresa de Jesus.

I was greatly pleased with your account of the Christmas Matins. I feel sure that things will go well, for God always helps those who need it most. Do not cease writing to me although our Father is not at Seville. I shall not write to you so often, solely on account of the cost of messengers.