In her “Interior Castle”, St. Teresa of Jesus compares the soul in grace to a magnificent diamond filled with light, shining with radiance. Sin dulls the surface of the diamond, hiding its radiance, but the radiance is still there, to flash out again as soon as the sin is forgiven.

            The description applies also to the Church, dulled by the sins of it members but with its centered light undimmed in itself, needing only our repentance for it to reveal its glory. We can even develop Teresa’s image and say that each facet of the Church shines with its own color, just as each saint reveals a different facet of God’s wisdom and love. These innumerable facets blend their beauty to give the Church its inimitable wonder and loveliness, and, at the same time, each facet is itself fascinating in its own unique beauty.

            This is true of contemplative nuns also. There are many different institutes of contemplative nuns and none of them are exactly like the others. Cistercians, Benedictines, Visitandines, Adorers of the Precious Blood, Dominicans, Carmelites, Poor Clares, each has its own spirituality, and each reveals a different facet of the life wholly devoted to contemplation. Contemplative spirituality is so rich and so varied, that it can take a lifetime for those who seek to live it to even begin to fathom the depths of their own spirituality. Hopefully, in this website, we will be able to give you a glimpse of the riches held in the treasuries of the various orders.

Sr. Gabriela of the Incarnation, O.C.D.