St. Teresa of Avila is the real deal; holy, down to earth, humble and best of all extremely articulate. Her phrases are succinct, to the point yet those few words point to a deep, Divine wisdom.
Today, Oct. 15, is the Feast of St. Teresa of Ávila, also called Saint Teresa of Jesus. I love this woman. Although she is a doctor of the Church and one of the three great 16th-century Spanish mystics (along with St. Ignatius of Loyola and St. John of the Cross), she is humorous as well as wise.
Since I cannot top St. Teresa, I will simply let her speak for herself.
Famous HUMOROUS Quotes
The first line of her autobiography is funny.
“Having virtuous and God-fearing parents would have been enough for me to be good if I were not so wicked.”
After a donkey threw her into a cold river she said-
“If this is how You treat Your friends, then it is no wonder You have so few of them.”
You’ve gotta love that level of practicality and annoyance in a mystic.
For prayer is nothing else than being on terms of friendship with God.
I do not fear Satan half so much as I fear those who fear him
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May God protect me from gloomy saints.
Teresa of Avila was unapologetically herself. If she had written a letter to which her correspondent had not replied, she did not hesitate to write again, demanding,
“Why haven’t you answered my letter? Don’t you love me?Do you have any idea of the pain your silence is causing me?”
Most of all she could be succinct
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Published by melanie jean juneau
Melanie Jean Juneau serves as the Editor in Chief of Catholic Stand. She is a mother of nine children who has edited her kid's university term papers for over a decade. She blogs at joy of nine9 and mother of nine9. Her writing is humorous and heart warming; thoughtful and thought-provoking. Part of her call and her witness is to write the truth about children, family, marriage and the sacredness of life. Melanie is the administrator of ACWB, a columnist at CatholicLane, CatholicStand, Catholic365 , CAPC, author of Echoes of the Divine and Oopsy Daisy, and coauthor of Love Rebel: Reclaiming Motherhood.
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joy of nine9 
Wonderful, thank you for this. She is still one of my favorite Saints.
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me too
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I love St. Teresa too. Her charm is all over her writing. Earlier this year I read The Interior Castle, and yes she has moments of humor. But I did get so much out of that book. She is quite a writer.
The quote of hers that is always with me is what is sometimes called her prayer:
“Christ has no body now but yours. No hands, no feet on earth but yours. Yours are the eyes through which he looks compassion on this world. Yours are the feet with which he walks to do good. Yours are the hands through which he blesses all the world. Yours are the hands, yours are the feet, yours are the eyes, you are his body. Christ has no body now on earth but yours.”
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I really should have included that quote- it is powerful
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Thank you for this Melanie Jean. St. Teresa is such an inspiration. St. Teresa of Avila – Pray for us!
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You might to hear John Michael Talbot put it to music. It’s one of my favorite of Talbot’s work. Here:
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Oops, I meant to reply to Melanie, but I hope you both enjoy it.
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it was meant to be, I think
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It has been so long since I have listened to Michael- thank you- love it- his lyrics and music pierce through right to my inner spirit
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