Chapter 14 Summary and Analysis

Returning again to the butterfly, Teresa explains she is uplifted by her trials, and so flies higher and higher. The soul is filled with an ever deepening longing for God, granted her in intense moments of brief encounter. She describes them as thunderbolts of unmistakable contact, continuously increasing her desire to unite with Him. Exquisite and delightful pain fills her and she wants to continue feeling it as long as she can. She calls it a burning ember that God presses into the soul but which does not catch fire. Its reality can be tested much more acutely than experiences in past dwellings, since the senses are closely monitoring what is going on. So there can be no doubt that it is not imagined nor from the spirit of evil. She is invigorated and inspired to worship by it.

The soul...