Teresa of the Andes

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Saint Peter's Basilica, Vatican City by Pope John Paul II
Major shrineShrine of Saint Teresa of Los Andes
Feast
  • 12 April
  • 13 July (Discalced Carmelites)
AttributesDiscalced Carmelite habit, crucifix

Teresa of Jesus of Los Andes, OCD (

Chilean nun of the Discalced Carmelites.[1]

Fernández Solar was a pious child but had an often unpredictable temperament for she could be prone to anger and being vain but could also demonstrate her charitable and loving nature; she seemed transformed when she decided to become a nun and her character seemed to change for her sole ambition was to dedicate herself to the service of God. However her time in the convent was cut short due to her contracting an aggressive disease that killed her - she knew she would die but was consoled knowing she would be able to make her profession before she died.[2][3]

Her canonization process opened on 23 April 1976 under

Saint Peter's Basilica
.

Life

Juana Enriqueta Josefina de los Sagrados Corazones Fernández Solar was born in 1900 in

Santiago in Chile to the upper class Miguel Fernández and Lucia Solar as the fourth of six children; three males and two females not including herself. Her brothers were Luis and Miguel and Ignacio and her sisters were Lucía and Rebeca (d. 31 December 1942). Rebeca became a Discalced Carmelite nun at the same convent as Juana as "Teresa of the Divine Heart".[1] Her mother was Lucía Solar de Fernández, her father was Miguel Fernández Jara and her maternal grandfather was Eulogio Solar.[4] Her baptism was celebrated in the parish church of Santa Ana.[2]

Fernández Solar received her education in a college managed by French nuns from the Sacred Heart order, and she remained there from 1907 until 1918. In 1914, she decided to consecrate herself to the Lord and become a Discalced Carmelite.

harmonium
. In 1916, she made a retreat for the Spiritual Exercises.

In her childhood, she read the autobiographical account that

Confirmation on 22 October 1909 and made her First Communion later on 11 September 1910.[1] In September 1917 she sent a letter to the prioress of the Discalced Carmelite convent close to her home expressing her desire to enter the order.[3]
In late 1917 she and her mother left church and she turned to her mother in abruptness and asked whether she knew she would become a religious to which her mother told her that decision was for her father to make. Solar did not pursue it until from school she sent a letter to her father on 25 March 1919 that received no response; she returned home for a brief period but did not mention it and her father never alluded to it either but before she left for school again he consented when she asked him about it.

On 7 May 1919 she entered the

canonical novitiate so as to make her religious vows. But she nevertheless was allowed to profess her vows "in articulo mortis" ("facing death") on 7 April 1920. Sister Teresa received the final sacraments on 5 April 1920 and later died at 7:15pm on 12 April 1920, one week after Easter. Her remains were later relocated in 1940 to a new chapel.[2]

Sainthood

Tomb of Saint Teresa of Jesus of Los Andes, bearing the inscript "El amor es mas fuerte ("Love is stronger" [than death])

Teresa of Jesus remains popular with the estimated 100 000 pilgrims who visit on an annual basis the shrine where her remains are venerated in the Shrine of Saint Teresa of Los Andes in Los Andes.[2][6] The nun is Chile's first saint and the first Discalced Carmelite saint from outside of Europe.

The beatification process began in an informative process in the

Venerable after the C.C.S. Prefect Cardinal Pietro Palazzini
brought the document to the pope for promulgation.

The process for a miracle attributed to her opened in Chile where the healing originated in and it was subjected to a diocesan process for investigation from 19 October 1984 until 16 October 1985 while the C.C.S. later validated it on 23 May 1986. The board of medical experts approved this healing to be miraculous on 21 January 1987 while theologians did so as well on 20 February 1987 as did the C.C.S. on 3 March 1987. John Paul II approved this healing to be a legitimate miracle on 16 March 1987 and thus confirmed her beatification. John Paul II beatified the late nun on 3 April 1987.[6] This was done in O'Higgins Park in Chile while her brother Luis was present at her beatification; he was the last direct relative of hers still alive then.

The process for a miracle attributed to her - the definitive one for sainthood - was investigated from 4 December 1990 to 12 June 1991 again in Chile while it received validation not long after on 18 October 1991. Medical experts this healing on 2 June 1992 as did theologians on 19 June 1992 and the C.C.S. on 7 July 1992. John Paul II confirmed the healing as a miracle on 11 June 1992 while he later canonized her on 21 March 1993 in

Saint Peter's Square.[6][7]

Her life was used for a Chilean television miniseries spanning from 6 August until 10 September 1989 starring Paulina Urrutia as Teresa of Jesus.[8] Other films have been made about her life.

She was also mentioned in the Young Pope, a 2016 religious drama TV miniseries.

See also

References

  1. ^ a b c "Saint Teresa of the Andes". Saints SQPN. 31 July 2016. Retrieved 4 January 2017.
  2. ^ a b c d e "Teresa de Jesús de Los Andes (1900-1920) - virgen, Carmelita Descalza". Holy See News Services. Retrieved 24 March 2017.
  3. ^ a b c d "Blessed Teresa of the Andes". Santi e Beati. Retrieved 4 January 2017.
  4. ISBN 8515020866
    .
  5. Abbey of Saint Joseph de Clairval
    . 6 August 1998. Retrieved 4 January 2017.
  6. ^ a b c Deeper Truth Catholics website, The Catholic Defender: Saint Teresa of Los Andes "Flower of the Andes" (2017)
  7. ^ "Saint Teresa of Los Andes", Franciscan Media
  8. ^ Watch Formed website, St Teresa of the Andes: The story of the first Chilean Saint
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