TERESA AND PURGATORY

Teresa of Avila’s classic, The Interior Castle, is about purification and transformation on the pilgrimage to God. It has an uncanny similarity to the role of purgatory in our salvation. The following five reflections seek to flesh out some positive elements in this connection. In sum, it is our invitation to a deeper and more productive spiritual life.

PART TWO

Purgatory as Purification

Purgatory is not a hot issue among believers these days. It has traditionally been seen much more in negative terms than positive. However, our common understanding of purgatory is in the process of change. It is moving away from the idea of punishment to the idea of purification. This is part of a transition from an image of God as vengeful to God as merciful. The Catechism of the Catholic Church states this about purgatory. “All who die in God’s grace and friendship, but still imperfectly purified, are assured of their eternal salvation; but after death they undergo purification to achieve holiness to enter the joy of heaven.” (CCC #1030)

This idea of purgatory as purification is much more attractive than the pre-Vatican II view of a final down payment as punishment for our sins. It is much more in tune with the image of God Jesus offers us in the experience of the prodigal son. Our sinfulness is completely overwhelmed by the love and mercy of God. We simply need to get dressed up for the party. Any inconsequential delay has no comparison to our possession of our heart’s true destiny: eternal life engulfed in love. In this overall perspective, purgatory transcends any possible expression of human happiness which is necessarily wrapped up in the limits of mortality. This is why we should treasure the invitation of The Interior Castle to seek oneness with God in our daily life right now.

Purification Now Rather Than Later

The Interior Castle is a marvelous invitation into Christian spirituality. Teresa presents an inspiring scheme of what the human experience is really about. She has much to say about purification that reflects the reality of purgatory. The big difference is that this purifying takes place in this life with our cooperation and submission before death. The alternative is a selfish indifference to God’s love and call. Her emphasis is on the beauty and dominance of purification in this life rather than the next.

Teresa is clear that God is our destiny. However, we will never reach that divine calling without both purification and transformation. In short, this happens when we move our energy and commitment away from ourselves and direct it to God. Teresa describes this journey in the seven steps she calls dwelling places. The two major sources of energy in this holy endeavor are prayer and a life- experience rooted in virtue flowing from our faithfulness to Jesus Christ. The way forward in The Interior Castle is a way of purification. In the first three dwelling places, the human initiative is the primary source of progress. Then comes the contemplative switch where God begins a special role in the individual’s purification and transformation in contemplation. This is truly another kind of purgatory leading to the closest thing to heaven in this life. This transpires in the final four dwelling places.

Self-Knowledge Leads the Way

In Teresa’s teachings in the third dwelling places, she emphasizes the hidden sources of evil pulling the person to self-deception and self-centeredness. She has no hesitation in proclaiming a truly stark picture of the brokenness of the human condition. Only self-knowledge leading to humility opens a way out of these depths of misery and blindness. Prayer leading to self-knowledge and humility draws us into God’s purifying light. This leads to freedom as we gradually approach our permanent future in God.

Braking loose from the bondage of sin and self-absorption has very positive consequences in our life. Faithful prayer and a committed virtuous life prove very productive. We can describe these new developments as growth in our spiritual life. A deeper analysis will show us it is God’s acting in us that purifies and transforms us. This is our preparation for the Kingdom prepared for us by our Crucified and Risen Savior.

The next two reflections will attempt to show how The Interion Castle lays out an active GPS for this process of purification and transformation us. It happens in the interaction of prayer and a virtuous life.