Devotion for today: my words fail me

This week we have learned from two marvelous “Teresa’s”. Here is a third to help us see the glory of our life in Christ.

Edith Stein, also known by her monastic name of Teresa Benedicta of the Cross, was a mystic, philosopher, and Carmelite nun who died at Auschwitz. Edith Stein was born in 1891 in Breslau, Germany to Jewish parents…. In 1922, Edith Stein converted to Catholicism after reading the autobiography of Saint Teresa of Avila…. When the Nazis invaded Holland, Sister Benedicta was arrested and sent in the trains to the death camp at Auschwitz. There she died in the gas chambers on August 9, 1942. She was canonized as a saint in 1998. (http://www.poetry-chaikhana.com/S/SteinEdith/index.htm).

I Remain in You

You reign at the Father's right hand
In the kingdom of his eternal glory
As God's Word from the beginning.

You reign on the Almighty's throne
Also in transfigured human form,
Ever since the completion of your work on earth.

I believe this because your word teaches me so,
And because I believe, I know it gives me joy,
And blessed hope blooms forth from it.

For where you are, there also are your own,
Heaven is my glorious homeland,
I share with you the Father's throne.

The Eternal who made all creatures,
Who, thrice holy, encompasses all being,
In addition has a silent, special kingdom of his own.

The innermost chamber of the human soul
Is the Trinity's favorite place to be,
His heavenly throne on earth.

To deliver this heavenly kingdom from the hand of the enemy,
The Son of God has come as Son of Man,
He gave his blood as the price of deliverance.

In the heart of Jesus, which was pierced,
The kingdom of heaven and the land of earth are bound together.
Here is for us the source of life.

This heart is the heart of the triune Divinity,
And the center of all human hearts
That bestows on us the life of God.

It draws us to itself with secret power;
It conceals us in itself in the Father's bosom
And floods us with the Holy Spirit.

This Heart, it beats for us in a small tabernacle
Where it remains mysteriously hidden
In that still, white host.

That is your royal throne on earth, O Lord,
Which visibly you have erected for us,
And you are pleased when I approach it.

Full of love, you sink your gaze into mine
And bend your ear to my quiet words
And deeply fill my heart with peace.

Yet your love is not satisfied
With this exchange that could still lead to separation:
Your heart requires more.

You come to me as early morning's meal each daybreak.
Your flesh and blood become food and drink for me
And something wonderful happens.

Your body mysteriously permeates mine
And your soul unites with mine:
I am no longer what once I was.

You come and go, but the seed
That you sowed for future glory, remains behind
Buried in this body of dust.

A luster of heaven remains in the soul,
A deep glow remains in the eyes,
A soaring in the tone of voice.

There remains the bond that binds heart to heart,
The stream of life that springs from yours
And animates each limb.

How wonderful are your gracious wonders!
All we can do is be amazed and stammer and fall silent
Because intellect and words fail.

And I Remain With You. (from The Hidden Life: Hagiographic Essays, Meditations, Spiritual Texts (The Collected Works of Edith Stein))

My thoughts: If you have never done so, please consider reading the life story of Edith Stein, St. Teresa Benedicta of the Cross. Highly educated, a prolific writer, philosopher, and advocate for women, Edith Stein was above all a lover of Christ. Her poem reminds us that souls are the chosen dwelling place of the Holy Trinity, and that through the reception of Holy Communion, “Your body mysteriously permeates mine, and your soul unites with mine: I am no longer what once I was.” Wouldn’t it be wonderful if, each time we received the body and blood of Christ, we were filled with the awe and wonder of Edith Stein? Let us make that our goal, never to take the Eucharist for granted, but to always and forever more, receive it and say, “All we can do is be amazed and stammer and fall silent
Because intellect and words fail.”