Fools for Christ's Sake

It seems the talk I brought last Saturday on St Teresa of Avila has caused a bit of misunderstandings. I brought up the point where St Teresa did not ask for consolations, but she asked for cross. And this makes her looks like she only prefers sufferings or pain. But I would say this is very far from what I want to point out.

Furthermore, her lifestyle seems to be very extreme, from her desire for martyrdom ever since she was little, and her feeling of unworthiness that she looked at consolations as chastisement. Yes, it might feel quite different from nowadays popular perceptions, but I still feel that it is quite normal when we really love God and when we look at ourselves as unprofitable servants.

Hence I would like to make some clarifications:

1. To be fools for the sake of foolishness is stupid,
2. We become fools for Christ's sake, not for the sake of foolishness,
3. There is a need to differentiate between means and ends,
4. To suffer for the sake of suffering itself is also stupid,
5. But when we suffer and we offer it up to God, it is very profitable for our souls (need to learn more on the term Redemptive Sufferings),
6. An analogy: a soldier is very proud when he can go to war and prove his worth, even if he died for his country. But a soldier is nothing if he just stay behind and do not go to war,
7. A love is proven in the difficult times more than in good times,
8. St Teresa Avila experienced many consolations in her life but she does not encourage us to ask for consolations,
9. I believe the consolations here refers more to visions, trance, and those supernatural moments,
10. Consolations can come from God or from Satan,
11. There is a need to discern the source of consolations and it is not easy to do so,
12. If we experience consolations, we need to discern the source of it and there is always a possibility that it might come from Satan trying to deceive us,
13. But if we do not experience consolations, then we do not need to discern, and it is in a way 'easier' because then we do not need to discern and worry about being deluded by Satan,
14. If God chooses to give us consolations, treat is as a gift and accept it, but we must understand that it is a gift, and we do not deserve it in any way because of our effort or worth,
15. St Teresa of Avila was afraid that the consolations are from Satan because she was feeling that she was very unworthy because of her sins and offenses to God,
16. She tried to resist the consolations out of obedience to her spiritual director, because obedience is more worthy than all the things decided by our ownselves and obedience also proves her humilty,
17. There were times that God confirms the genuinity of the consolations that they were from Him to St Teresa of Avila.

Please let me know if I have made mistakes and do not hesitate to drop a comment below if you have an opinion regarding this :)