On the second day after Pentecost, while at Ecija, a person was recalling a great favor she had received from our Lord on the vigil of this feast.
Desiring to do something very special in His service, she thought it would be good to promise from that time on not to hide any fault or sin she had committed in her whole life from the one who stood in God’s place.
Even though she had made a vow of obedience, this promise seemed to involve something more, because there’s no obligation like this toward one’s superiors. And she also promised to do all that this confessor might tell her—with regard to serious matters, of course—providing it would not go against her vow of obedience.
And even though keeping this promise was hard for her in the beginning, she made it.
The first reason why she decided to do so was the thought that she was rendering some service to the Holy Spirit; the second was that she chose a person who was a great servant of God and a learned man, who would help her serve the Lord more.
This learned man knew nothing about the above until some days after she had made the promise. He was Friar Jerónimo Gracián de la Madre de Dios.
Saint Teresa of Avila
Spiritual Testimonies, 35
Ecija, Andalusia, 23 May 1575
The vow of obedience to Father Gracián
Note: This is a rough draft concerning the vow of obedience Teresa made to her superior and director, Father Gracián. She arrived in Ecija, Andalusia, on her way to Seville.
Featured image: These two famous images of Father Jerónimo Gracián and Saint Teresa come to us from the Teresa, de la Rueca a la Pluma blog.
Carmelite Quotes 
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