Blessed Ana de Jesús
This website went live on March 4, 2024. I chose March 4 for a very particular reason.
On March 4, 1621, a Carmelite nun named Ana de Jesús departed this world and entered into eternal life. She was an extraordinary person. Her efforts profoundly enriched the faith, but not because she called attention to herself. She showed great humility by using her considerable energies and gifts to encourage others, and then she labored to preserve their works instead of creating her own. We owe her an incalculable debt. It happens that the people whose works she promoted and preserved were none other than St. Teresa of Avila and St. John of the Cross.
In 1570, Ana de Lobera y Torres joined the Carmelite order in the Monastery of St. Joseph, founded by St. Teresa of Avila as the first establishment of the Carmelite reform in Spain. Taking the religious name Ana de Jesús, she made her solemn vows and served the order as prioress of the convent in Granada. St. John of the Cross was her spiritual director. During those years, St. John shared his poem, "The Spiritual Canticle," with other members of the Discalced Carmelites, and he began writing and sharing commentaries on the poem. It was at the request of Bl. Ana de Jesús that he completed and collected all his commentaries, which form the work we have now (also called The Spiritual Canticle). After the saint's death, she assisted in gathering and preserving his writings. She further collected the works of St. Teresa of Avila after her death and assisted in their preservation. Without her efforts, we might not have access to many of these works today.
Bl. Ana moved to Paris with a group of Discalced Carmelite nuns in 1604, and with the assistance of a lay Carmelite, Blessed Marie of the Incarnation (Mme. Acarie), she was instrumental in bringing the reform to France. The successors of that effort include the great French Carmelites St. Therese of Lisieux and St. Elizabeth of the Trinity.
Of all the Carmelites who have shown us how to pray and grow in holiness, I have a particular fondness for Bl. Ana de Jesús. I place this blog under her special patronage. Her efforts made the wisdom of St. John of the Cross available to the world, and to me. May my small efforts be fruitful through her assistance.
On December 14, 2023, Pope Francis formally recognized a miracle attributed to her and authorized her beatification. Let's give thanks for Ana de Jesús, a spiritual daughter of St. Teresa of Avila and St. John of the Cross. Please pray for a second miracle and for her canonization. Blessed Ana de Jesús, pray for us!