The Sixth Dwelling│Mansions of Intimacy
Chapter one
The soul is wounded with love for God and wants to be alone
No consummation is granted at this point
Praise is just another trial
All good is on loan from God. Healthy detachment increases
The soul pays less attention to both fame and blame
Soul forgets that she has any connection to the goodness she possesses - all comes from God p.158
Soul is sensitive to getting glory that belongs to God
Blame begins to sound like sweet music
Heightened states of union are fleeting and self doubt is a constant companion
Her imagination overplays its hand ;162
God will calm the storm if waited upon
Soul has grasped her own nothingness
Soul doubts she has ever loved God
Refining torment of doubt
Her humility is growing deeper roots
As long as you don’t lose your mind, all outer strife is inconsequential
Chapter two
The soul burns with desire for God
Wounded by longing unrequited; exquisite pain
Strive to serve God and improve the whole of your life
Benefits of the suffering of painful longing ignited by the summons of God from the
seventh dwelling:
Determination to suffer for God
Desire to withstand trials
Impulse to withdraw from worldly concerns p. 170
21. The soul is overcome by a desire to enjoy God
Chapter three
22. God awakens the soul
23. Some auditory visions are figments of the imagination or the result of mental imbalance
24. Listen to the friends who hear these false sounds as you would a sick friend with
gentleness and compassion
25. Remember spiritual voices have little to do with serving God
26. Spiritual voices may come from:
God
Imagination
Spirit of evil
27. Even when the spiritual voices come from God, don’t think you will be any better
because of them
28. Afterall, didn’t Christ talk a lot to the pharisees?
29. All good comes from what we do with what we hear
30. Unless the voice can be aligned with revealed truth, dismiss it
31. Clear indications voice is from God:
A. What words reveal manifests in works one feels less troubled for instance or fear falls away. Worry ceases
B. soul grows quiet
C. words from the voice are imprinted on the memory
32. When spiritual voices come from the imagination there is no certainty, peace, or inner delight
33. Be cautious and check with someone wise and cautious before taking action p. 179
34. Always seek counsel!
35. Spiritual voice is from God if:
A. Voice is clear and memorable
B. Surprising p. 180
C. It’s not what you want to hear
D. Words are received differently p. 181
E. Words received transcend all words
36. Spirit of evil can’t leave peace and light within. Even though it can enunuciate as clearly as the spirit of truth
37. Humility disarms evil
38. Test: do i think i am better than others?
39. The higher the favor granted by God the less the soul thinks of herself p. 182
40. If God speaks you WILL hear.
Chapter Four
41, Suffering increases the souls desire to enjoy the Beloved
42. God understands our fragility
43. Union would be impossible unless God gave us the strength to meet him
44. In rapture the faculties and senses are absorbed beyond function
45. What’s revealed in episodes of rapturous union is indescribable
46. Divine favors are inscribed in the innermost part of the soul
47. In true ecstasy - God carries the whole soul off for himself
48. The soul is shown around the kingdom of the 6th and 7th dwellings but may not remember any or many details
49. All earthly delights are disgusting garbage when compared to the treasure of union with God.
50. The intensity of rapture only lasts for a short period of time
51. But afterwards love is all that concerns the soul for a while
52. “If the soul truly wishes to be humble, then who cares what other people think?” p. 193
53. God will protect the soul at all costs
Chapter five
54. Another kind of rapture: flight of the spirit
55. It seems as if her spirit were being whisked away
56. It’s scary so one must be fully surrendered
57. Place yourself at the mercy of God appealing to the compassion He has always shown sinners
58. If we truly accept our own powerlessness we will be truly humble and truly brave
59. In the rapture called flight of the spirit the soul is shown a rarified light.
60. See with the eyes of the soul
61. 3 benefits of rapture
Knowledge of God
Humility through self knowledge
Loss of appetite for worldly things
Chapter six
62. Beautiful, terrible torment - she longs for God
63. W/out the pain she feels something is missing
64. No rest from the suffering which comes from longing
65. Humility deepens
66. All she wants is the embrace of God
67. She desperately does not want to sin
68. She can endure any trial
69. She desires to bring more people, anyone, to God
70. The spirit of evil can fool you but can’t fill you with deep quietude and serenity which this sacred suffering gives you.
71. True and false tears p. 208
72. Happiness stirs the soul to sing God’s praises sometimes in the midst of divine experiences and favors.
Chapter Seven
73. Souls feels pain for past wrongs
74. The more you receive from God the more it hurts to see where you’ve sinned
75. Suffering doesn’t bother you so much as realizing where and how you’ve been ungrateful
76. Past mistakes now seem so flagrant
77. Soul has no fear of hell now
78. Humility: this side of paradise we will always make mistakes
79. We realize that we are not entitled to blessings on demand
80. There is much that is none of our business p. 217
81. It is not good or possible to remain perpetually absorbed
82. Remember Christ’s humanity
Chapter Eight
83. The further we go the more we feel Jesus with us always
84. It comes obvious that he loves us.
85. Intellectual vision: you can feel the unseen presence of Christ beside you as constant companion
86. Radical humility and awe confirm that the “favor” is from God
87. When the vision dissipates no human effort can bring it back
88. Having the vision doesn’t make you special
89. The purpose of the journey is to make us better servants of God
Chapter nine
90. Visual revelations (imaginative visions) happens quickly like a lightning strike and is seen internally NOT externally
91. A “real” vision is not sustained over time though the sweetness is. P. 236
92. There is a powerful stirring then everything grows quiet
93. Confide in your spiritual director
94. If you are humble and calm even a false vision will do you no harm
95. God can draw goodness out of wickedness
96. Don’t ask for the favor of this vision:
To do so is a lack of humility
A soul in desire is vulnerable to deception
Desire sets the imagination loose
Too presumptuous God will give what’s best
You might not be able to handle it
You might not like what it brings
97. The safest thing is to want only what God wants
98. They will be done
99. More favors = more obligation to serve
100. Visions are accompanied by trials (can you drink the cup i drink?)
101. “Their only desire is to satisfy their thirsty love”
Chapter Ten
102. Teresa has given us a general sense of the variety of visions, so we’ll know what’s real and what’s not and the general effect of both.
103. Inner turmoil distracts the soul from loving and praising God
104. God has all things inside himself.
105. Let’s stop feeling so self-righteous whenever anyone says or does anything against us
106. Let’s love the ones who offend us
107. God has, after all, NEVER stopped loving us
108. God is pure truth
109. Strive to seek truth always
110. We will be less attached to that which is impermanent
111. To be humble is to walk in truth. It is true that we are nothing
112. The spirit of evil and our own imagination have no power at this level, thus the soul tastes the abiding sweetness here.
Chapter Eleven
113. The soul is bereft with longing for the beloved. Her desire mounts.
114. A sudden blow inflicts a penetrating wound on the soul.
115. God adds to the pain by granting the soul vivid knowledge of himself
116. There is not a creature on earth who can be her companion
117. She is caught - stuck - between heaven and earth
118. She is thirsty with a thirst that can only be quenched from the springs within
119. The soul who enters the 7th dwelling must be purified by this suffering
120. In the 7th dwelling pain is a drop that dissolves in infinite bliss
121. She is dying with the desire to die
122. Then the beloved relieves her suffering with a vision or rapture and she loses her fear of any additional trials and her desire to live as long as He wills her to live is renewed.
123. Her detachment from worldly comforts increases.
