Fire Within: St. Teresa of Avila, St. John of the Cross, and the Gospel-On Prayer
Overview
This book is the fruit of Thomas Dubay’s many years of study and experience in spiritual direction and in it he synthesizes the teachings on prayer of the two great doctors of the Church on prayer—St. John of the Cross and St. Teresa of Avila—and the teaching of Sacred Scripture.
But the teaching that Dubay synthesized is not collected from Teresa and John for contemplatives alone. It is meant for every Christian and is based on the Gospel imperative of personal prayer and the call to holiness. All the major elements of these great teachers are ordered, commented on, and put in the context of their scriptural foundations. Here is an outstanding book on prayer and the spiritual life written by one of the best spiritual directors and retreat masters of our time, and based on the writings of the Church’s two greatest mystical doctors.
Save more when you purchase this book as part of the Thomas Dubay Collection.
Key Features
- Presents the fruit of Dubay’s study in spiritual direction
- Synthesizes the teachings on prayer of the two great doctors of the Church
- Provides timeless spiritual instruction from Jesus, John of the Cross, and Teresa of Avila
Contents
- A Question of Relevance
- The Woman and the Man
- The Experience of God
- Creation and Meditation
- What Is Contemplation?
- The Teresian Mansions
- Conditions for Growth: St. Teresa
- The Freedom of Detachment
- Fire in the Nights
- The Transforming Summit
- The Universal Call
- Miscellaneous Matters
- Discerning Growth
- Locutions and Visions
- Friendship
- Spiritual Direction
- Liberating Completion
Top Highlights
“Without humility, detachment and sound doctrine there is no deep communion with the Lord. There” (Page 9)
“As the experience of the centuries attests, true transformations in the world and in the Church continue to come about only through the interventions of men and women on fire—that is, through saints.” (Page 1)
“A man possesses the Holy Spirit to the extent of his love for Christ’s Church.’” (Page 32)
“‘Love is the measure of our ability to bear crosses.’80” (Page 127)
“‘The whole aim of any person who is beginning prayer—and don’t forget this, because it is very important—should be that he work and prepare himself with determination and every effort to bring his will into conformity with God’s will.’ She then adds that ‘it is the person who lives in more perfect conformity who will receive more from the Lord and be more advanced on this road [of prayer]’.” (Page 112)
Praise for the Print Edition
This book is a gold mine for any Christian intent on making progress in prayer. Any reader who appreciates the relevance of the spiritual in these troubled times will find Fire Within difficult to put down. A work of art by a master of the spiritual life.
—Benedict J. Groeschel, professor of pastoral psychology, St. Jerome’s University
About Thomas Dubay
Thomas Dubay i a retreat master and spiritual director for religious communities around the country, as well as a highly regarded speaker at conferences and retreats for lay people in North America. He has hosted five different 13-part television series on spirituality and prayer, and is the best-selling author of such acclaimed spiritual works as Deep Conversion/Deep Prayer and Prayer Primer.
