Soliloquy St. Teresa's Communion Meditations.

Aside; In the Monastic Lectionary, St. Teresa's 'Soliloquy' has three occurrences during Lent - this one about the middle of Lent.
I ask if the Carmelite writer, Sr. Ruth Burrows, includes commentary on the Minor Work, 'Soliloquies'?

Full text of "Minor works of St. Teresa; conceptions of the love of God ...

www.archive.org/.../minorworksofstte00tere/minorworksofstte...

The Minor Writings of St. Teresa, — Minor because they occupy but little space in print,..... Although not a commentary on the Canticle of Canticles, the Conceptions do ......According to the legend, Catherine saw in a vision the Blessed Virgin ask ..... not because he does not understand Thee " [St. Augustine's Soliloquies. [Allison Peers]

The contemporary reader most often has two complaints about the text of St. Teresa's Life. The first is that her literary style is diffuse and digressive. As Fr. Kieran Kavanaugh, one of the modern translators of the Life, has remarked: "As though her thoughts were jostling with each other for position, her sentences often become highly involved with parentheses and digressions, causing her sometimes to lose the thread -- which never prevents her from leaping forward quickly and easily to a new thought."(2) A second complaint has to do with St. Teresa's focus on, and minute analysis of, supernatural favors and phenomena in the Life. The author of a recent essay on St. Teresa puts it this way: "Her record of raptures and visions answers to nothing in the experience of most Christians."(3)   http://www.spiritualitytoday.org/spir2day/843631chorpenning.html 

Quote: St. Teresa of Ávila urged her daughters not to rush out after Mass but to treasure the opportunity for thanksgiving:" Let us detain ourselves lovingly with Jesus," she said, "and not waste the hour that follows Communion." St Teresa says that during communion Jesus remains in the soul as on a throne of grace, and says to the soul: "What do you want that I should do to you?" As if saying: "O Christian soul, I am come for the express purpose of giving you my graces. Ask what you wish and you shall obtain it".
Favourite Prayrer of the Fatima Children.:
 Eucharistic Prayer

Most Holy Trinity, I adore you! My God,
my God, I love you in the Most Blessed Sacrament.

Monday, 04 March 2013

Monday of the Third week of Lent

Night Office.

The ‘Soliloquy’ of St. Teresa failed to give light. The Holy Spirit may give grace.

The ‘Soliloquy 2, ICS, Kavanaugh,-Rodriguez, ‘Exclamation’ II, Stanbrook, ‘Exlamation of Soul of God’ II, Allison Peers, was presented as St. Teresa’s meditation in the hour after Holy Communion.

So far the hurdles clear the bars for cognition.

The ‘Soliloquies’ are a complement to the ‘Life’.

Await to understand the genre.

Soliloquies - 9, 2: K. KAVANAUGH and O. RODRIGUES, The Collected Works of St Teresa of Avila vol. I, ICS, Washington 1976, p. 382.

http://archive.org/stream/minorworksconcep00tereuoft/minorworksconcep00tereuoft_djvu.txt  

Works ICS. Kavanaugh, Rodriguez, Word In Season, Augustine Press 74           THIRD WEEK OF LENT MONDAY Second Reading From the writings of Saint Teresa of Jesus (Book of Psalms, Soliloquy 93,1-2)  Solitude and thirst for souls

80 MINOR WORKS OF ST. TERESA. Stanbrook Exclamations – compare with Soliloquy   ‘Exclamations’ II

I often reflect, my Lord, that if there is something by which life can endure being separated from you, it is solitude. For the soul rests in the quiet of solitude; yet, since it is not com­pletely free for the enjoyment of solitude, the torment is often doubled. But the torment arising from the obligation to deal with creatures and from not being allowed to be alone with one's creator makes the soul consider that first torment a delight. But why is this, my God, that quiet tires the soul that aims only at pleasing you? Oh, powerful love of God, how different are your effects from those of the world's love! This latter love does not want company since company would seem to oblige it to give what it possesses. in the case of the love of my God, the more lovers that love knows there are, the more it increases; and so its joys are tempered by seeing that not all enjoy that good.  O my God, what is this that happens: in the greatest favours and consolations coming from you, the memory grieves over the many there are who do not want these consolations and over those who will lose them forever! So the soul looks for ways to find company, and willingly sets aside its joy when it thinks it can be of some help that others might strive to enjoy it. But, my heavenly Father, would it not be more worthwhile to leave aside these desires until a time when the soul has less experience of your favours, and now be completely occupied in enjoying you? O, my Jesus, how great is the love you bear the children of men, for the greatest service one can render you is to leave you for their sake and their benefit - and then you are possessed more completely. For although the will is not so satisfied through enjoyment, the soul rejoices because it is pleasing you. And it sees that while we live this mortal life, earthly joys are uncertain, even when they seem to be given by you, if they are not accompanied by love of neigh­bor. Whoever fails to love his neighbor fails to love you, my Lord, since we see you showed the very great love you have for the children of Adam by shedding so much blood.

1. Often do I think, O my Lord, that if aught can soothe a life apart from Thee it is solitude, wherein the soul rests with Him Who is its true repose. Yet, unable as it is to enjoy Thee with full liberty, its torment often redoubles. Yet this is a delight compared with that of being forced to deal with creatures, and thus deprived of holding converse alone with the Creator. But how is it, my God, that rest wearies the soul which only seeks to please Thee ? 2. O sovereign love of God, how different are thine effects from those of earthly love, which seeks no com- panion, fearing lest it should lose what it possesses ! Love for my God increases on learning that others love Him, and its joys diminish at seeing that all men do not share its happiness. 3. Therefore, O my only Good, during Thy tenderest caresses and consolations, I grieve at remembering the many hearts which do not desire these joys, and still others who will lose them for ever. Thus my soul seeks company, gladly leaving its own delight, moved by the hope that it may incite souls to strive to attain it. But, O my heavenly Father ! were it not better to defer this care for others until the soul enjoys less of Thy favours, and to yield myself now wholly to enjoying Thee ? 4. Oh, my Jesus ! how deep is Thy love for the children of men ! The greatest service we can render Thee is to leave Thee, for the sake of loving and aiding them. Then do we possess Thee most entirely, for, though our will enjoy Thee less, yet love delights to please Thee a During this mortal life, all worldly delights are found to be uncertain even though they seem to come from Thee, unless the love of our neighbour bear them company. Who loves not his brethren, loves not Thee, my Lord, for Thy blood, shed for us, bears witness to Thy boundless love for the sons of Adam.

John 4:5-42 A spring of water welling up to eternal life

John 4:5-42 A spring of water welling up to eternal life

Breviary
SECOND READING

From a treatise on John by Saint Augustine, bishop
(Tract. 15, 10-12. 16-17: CCL 36, 154-156)

A Samaritan woman came to draw water

A woman came. She is a symbol of the Church not yet made righteous but about to be made righteous. Righteousness follows from the conversation. She came in ignorance, she found Christ, and he enters into conversation with her. Let us see what it is about, let us see why a Samaritan woman came to draw water. The Samaritans did not form part of the Jewish people: they were foreigners. The fact that she came from a foreign people is part of the symbolic meaning, for she is a symbol of the Church. The Church was to come from the Gentiles, of a different race from the Jews.

We must then recognize ourselves in her words and in her person, and with her give our own thanks to God. She was a symbol, not the reality; she foreshadowed the reality, and the reality came to be. She found faith in Christ, who was using her as a symbol to teach us what was to come. She came then to draw water. She had simply come to draw water, in the normal way of man or woman.

Jesus says to her: Give me water to drink. For his disciples had gone to the city to buy food. The Samaritan woman therefore says to him: How is it that you, though a Jew, ask me for water to drink, though I am a Samaritan woman? For Jews have nothing to do with Samaritans.

The Samaritans were foreigners; Jews never used their utensils. The woman was carrying a pail for drawing water. She was astonished that a Jew should ask her for a drink of water, a thing that Jews would not do. But the one who was asking for a drink of water was thirsting for her faith.

Listen now and learn who it is that asks for a drink. Jesus answered her and said: If you knew the gift of God, and who it is that is saying to you, “Give me a drink,” perhaps you might have asked him and he would have given you living water.

He asks for a drink, and he promises a drink. He is in need, as one hoping to receive, yet he is rich, as one about to satisfy the thirst of others. He says: If you knew the gift of God. The gift of God is the Holy Spirit. But he is still using veiled language as he speaks to the woman and gradually enters into her heart. Or is he already teaching her? What could be more gentle and kind than the encouragement he gives? If you knew the gift of God, and who it is that is saying to you, “Give me a drink,” perhaps you might ask and he would give you living water.

What is this water that he will give if not the water spoken of in Scripture: With you is the fountain of life? How can those feel thirst who will drink deeply from the abundance in your house?

He was promising the Holy Spirit in satisfying abundance. She did not yet understand. In her failure to grasp his meaning, what was her reply? The woman says to him, Master, give me this drink, so that I may feel no thirst or come here to draw water. Her need forced her to this labor, her weakness shrank from it. If only she could hear those words: Come to me, all who labor and are burdened, and I will refresh you. Jesus was saying this to her, so that her labors might be at an end; but she was not yet able to understand.

RESPONSORY
John 7:37-39; 4:13

Jesus cried out: If anyone thirsts,
let him come to me and drink.
Streams of living water will flow
from the heart of whoever believes in me.
– He was speaking of the Spirit
who would be received by those who believed in him.

Whoever drinks the water I shall give
will never be thirsty again.
 – He was speaking of the Spirit
who would be received by those who believed in him.

Liturgical Texts:
The Samaritan Woman (4:4-42)

Liturgy/Season	Prayer/Part of Liturgy	Context
ORDER of MASS Third Sunday of Lent, Year A and whenever the Elect are present	Preface	"When he had asked the woman of Samaria for water to drink, Christ had already prepared her for the gift of faith. In his thirst to receive her faith, he awakened in her heart the fire of your love."
RCIA First Scrutiny Third Sunday of Lent	Intercessions for the Elect B	"That, like the woman of Samaria, our elect may review their lives before Christ and acknowledge their sins..."That they may be freed from the spirit of mistrust that deters people from following Christ... "That, while awaiting the gift of God, they may long with all their hearts for the living water that brings eternal life... "That, by accepting the Son of God as their teacher, they may become true worshipers of the Father in spirit and in truth... "That they may share with their friends and neighbors the wonder of their own meeting with Christ..."
.	Prayer of Exorcism A	"God of power, you sent your Son to be our Savior. Grant that these catechumens, who,like the woman of Samaria, thirst for living water, may turn to the Lord as they hear his word and acknowledge the sins and wekanesses that weigh them down. Protect them from vain reliance on self and defend them from the power of Satan. Free them from the spirit of deceit, so that, admitting the wrong they have done, they may attain purity of heart and advance on the way to salvation."
.	Conclusion: Exorcism A	"Lord Jesus, you are the fountain for which they thirst, you are the Master they seek. In your presence, they dare not claim to be without sin, for you alone are the Holy One of God. They open their hearts to you in faith and confess their faults and lay bare their hidden wounds. In your love free them from their infirmities, heal their sickness, quench their thirst, and give them peace. In the power of your name, which we call upon in fiath, stand by them now and heal them. Rule over the spirit of evil, conquered by your rising from the dead."
.	Prayer of Exorcism B	"All-merciful Father, through your Son you revealed your mercy to the woman of Samaria; and moed by that same care you have offered salvation to all sinners. Look favorably on these elect, who desire to become your adopted children through the power of your sacraments. Free them from the slavery of sin, and for Satan's crushing yoke, exchange the gentle yoke of Jesus. Protect them in every danger that they may serve you faithfully in peace and joy and render you thanks for ever."
.	Conclusion: Exorcism B	"Lord Jesus, in your merciful wisdom, you touched the heart of the sinful woman and taught her to worship the Father in spirit and in truth. Now, by your power, free these elect from the cunning of Satan, as they draw near to the fountain of living water. Touch their hearts with the power of the Holy Spirit, that they may come to know the Father in true faith, which expresses itself in love."

Samaritan Woman – 5^th Sunday of Pascha – John 4:5-42

This well is very deep.

How to acquire the Holy Spirit.

The Lord puts Himself in our path.

Knowledge comes to us by degrees, a little bit at a time.

St. Teresa 'Exclamation' - incomprehensible

St. Teresa, Solilquies INTRODUCTION, Kieran Kavanaugh O.C.D. comments on the earlier Fray Luis de Leon long descriptive title, "Meditations or exclamations of the soul to God writen by Mother Teresa in theyear 1569 on different days according to the spirit ou Lord gave her after Communion." 
He says, "The collection is also, in  way, a complement to the Life.
Three translations of this one Soliloquy affords an enriching relish of generations of English.
The word, INCOMPREHENSIBLE,  shares significantly in the exclamation spirit in the three columns below.
"Thou art almighty; Thy works are incomprehensible.  Grant, then, Lord, that Thy words may never be absent from my thoughts."
                                               EXCLAMATIONS OF SOUL TO GOD

St. Teresa of Ávila: There is no other time than thanksgiving after Mass when we can so easily enrich our soul  with virtues, or so rapidly advance to a high degree of perfection.

Thanksgiving after Communion - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Thanksgiving_after_CommunionShare

... spiritual practice among Christians who believe in the Real Presence of Jesus Christin the ... Jesus Christ, the founder of Christianity, said in the Bible that whoever receives... St. Teresa of Ávila urged her daughters not to rush out after Mass but to ... with Jesus," she said, "and not waste the hour that follows Communion.

From the writings of Saint Teresa of Jesus (Collected Works Institute of Carmeite Studies, Washington. D.C.1987, Soliloquy 8, pp. 450-451)	The Complete Works Of Saint Teresa Of Jesus by E. Allison Peers Volume II   (1946) EXCLAMATIONS OF SOUL TO GOD	Minot Works of St. Teresa, Exclamations, trans. By Stanbrook Benedictines, Edit Benedict Zimmerman.
We are your handiwork O Lord, my God, how you possess the words of eternal life,*Jn. 6:67-68, where all mortals will find what they desire if they want to seek it! But what a strange thing, my God, that we forget your words in the madness and sickness our evil deeds cause! O my God, God, God, author of all creation! And what is creation if you, Lord, should desire to create more? You are almighty; your works are incomprehensible. *Rm. 11:33;Jb. 9:10. Bring it about, then, Lord, that my thoughts not withdraw from your words. 2. You say: Come to me, all who labour and are burdened, for I will comfort you.*Mt. 11:28 What more do we want, Lord? What are we asking for? What do we seek? Why are those in the world so unhappy if not because of seeking rest: God, help me! Oh, God, help me! What is this, Lord? Oh, what a pity! Oh, what great blindness that we seek rest where it is impossible to find it! Have mercy, creator, on these your creatures. Behold, we do not understand or know what we desire, nor how we obtain what we ask for. Lord, give us light; behold, the need is greater than with the man born blind, for he wanted to see the light and could not.*4 Now, Lord, there is no desire to see. Oh, how incurable an illness! Here, my God, is where your power must be demonstrated; here, your mercy. 3. Oh, what a difficult thing I ask you, my true God: that you love someone who does not love you, that you open to one who does not knock, that you give health to one who likes to be sick and goes about looking for sickness. You say, my Lord, that you come to seek sinners;*Pr. 8:17; Mt. 7:7; 9:13, these, Lord, are real sinners. Do not look at our blindness, my God, but at all the blood your Son shed for us. Let your mercy shine upon evil that has so increased; behold, Lord, we are your handiwork. May your goodness and mercy help us.	VIII O Lord, my God, Thou hast indeed the words of life, *2 wherein, if we will seek it, we mortals shall all find what we desire. But what wonder is it, my God, that we should forget Thy words when our evil deeds have made us so infirm and foolish? O my God! God, God the Maker of all things created! And yet what are all things created, Lord, if Thou shouldst be pleased to create more? Thou art almighty; Thy works are incomprehensible. *3 Grant, then, Lord, that Thy words may never be absent from my thoughts. Thou sayest: "Come to Me, all you that labour and are burdened: and I will comfort you." *4 What more do we want, Lord? What do we ask for? What do we seek? Why are worldly people lost if not because they are seeking repose? O God! O God! What is this, Lord? How sad a pity! How blind of us to seek repose where it cannot possibly be found! Have mercy, Creator, on these Thy creatures. Reflect that we do not understand ourselves, or know what we desire, nor are we able to ask as we should. Give us light, Lord. Behold, we need it more than the man who was blind from his birth," for he wished to see the light and could not, whereas nowadays, Lord, no one wishes to see it. Oh, what a hopeless ill is this! Here, my God, must be manifested Thy power and Thy mercy. Ah, how hard a thing am I asking of Thee, my true God! I ask Thee to love one who loves Thee not, to open to one who has not called upon Thee *5 to give health to one who prefers to be sick and who even goes about in search of sickness. Thou sayest, my Lord, that Thou comest to seek sinners; these, Lord, are the true sinners. Look not upon our blindness, my God, but upon all the blood that was shed for us by Thy Son. Let Thy mercy shine out amid such tremendous wickedness. Behold, Lord, we are the works of Thy hands *6. Help us by Thy goodness and mercy. 1 St. Luke i, 46. 2 [St. John vi, 69]. 3 Job ix, la. 4 St. Matthew xi, 28 [D.V. has "refresh," but the Spanish is consolaT]' 5 St. John ix, 1. 6 ... St Mt. vii, 7.	EXCLAMATION VIII. 1. O Lord my God, truly " Thou hast the words of life," *l wherein men can find all they crave, if they but seek it ! But what wonder is it if we forget Thy words, seeing the state of folly and disorder to which our sins have reduced us ? 2. O my God ! God ! God and Maker of all Creation ! What is all this creation compared with what Thou canst create, dost Thou but will ? Thou art omnipotent : Thy works are incomprehensible. *2 Permit not Thy words ever to become effaced from my mind : " Come unto Me all you that labour and I will refresh you." ' What more can we desire or seek, Lord ? Why are worldlings lost, save through seeking happiness ? 3. Good God ! Good God ! How is it, Lord ? How pitiful ! What utter blindness to seek for happiness where it cannot be found. Have pity, Creator, on Thy creatures ! Remember, we do not understand ourselves, or know what we want, nor do we ask aright ! Lord, give us light ! See ! we need it more than did the man who was born blind, for he longed to see the light but could not, while we do not wish to see it. 1 St. John vi. 69 : Domine, ad quern ibimus ? verba vitcB ceternce habes. 2 Job ix. 10 : Qui facit magna et incomprehensibilia. 3 St. Matt. xi. 28 : Venite ad me omnes qui laboratis et onerati estis, et ego reficiam vos. 4. Oh ! ill past remedy, needing Thee to manifest both Thy power and Thy mercy. O true God of mine ! How hard a thing I crave of Thee ! No less than that Thou shouldst love those who love not Thee : shouldst open to those who do not knock — shouldst cure those who wish to ail, and who foster their maladies. 5. Thou didst declare, my Master, that Thou earnest to seek sinners : *4 these are the real sinners ! Look not on our blindness, my God, but on the streams of blood shed by Thy Son for us. Let Thy mercy shine forth amidst such monstrous wickedness. Remember, Lord, we are " the work of Thy hands; *6 " succour us by Thy goodness and mercy !

Bl. Angela of Foligno 1248 - 1309

Aside: 

There are 10 occurrences of the word 'Uncreated' in this short Reading, in

Bl Angela of Foligno -
She is often depicted receiving Holy Communion
from the Lord, or in the case of the image here, from
an angel of the Lord (given her name, "Angela").

Angela of Foligno: Complete Works (Classics of Western Spirituality Series) [Paperback]

Romana Guarnier (Editor), Paul A. Lachance (Translator) 

It is a pressing invite inquiry into this mystic.Part Two,  See further reading, 'The Instructions, Instruction II: pp. 227-229, "The love that is perfect ...".'

Franciscan tertiary and mystic. Born in Foligno, Italy, in 1248, Angela married and had several children. Wealthy, she took part in the social events of the city until 1285, when she had a vision. Following that mystical experience, Angela became a member of the Franciscan Third Order. When her husband died, she gave away her possessions and started a community of tertiaries devoted to the care of the needy. Her visions, which were recorded by her confessor, demonstrated a mature mystical union with Christ and the gift of revelation. She is sometimes called "the Mistress of Theologians." Her tomb is in the church of St. Francis in Foligno. Many miracles have been recorded there.

• Complete Works - Angela of Foligno, Paul LaChance, O.F.M. – pp.228-9

MAGNIFICAT (com)  Friday 1^st March 20133

Mt. 21:33-46 Parable of the Vine-Dressers

MEDITATION OF THE DAY

Bl. Angela of Foligno

People Who Produce Fruit

The soul is also given a vision of the Uncreated. This vision deposits an uncreated love in the soul. In this uncreated love the soul cannot act; it is without works, but love itself acts. When the soul possesses this vision of the Uncreated, it can do nothing, because it is completely absorbed in this vision; it can contribute nothing to uncreated love. It is to be noted, however, that when the soul is given this vision, it has been actively working, in that with its whole being it desired to be united with the Uncreated, and with its whole being sought how to be better united with him. Indeed, it is the Uncreated himself who operates in the soul and inspires it to with­draw from all created things to be better united to him. It is the uncreated love, then, which is at work and the one producing the works of love. 

At the source of this work is an illumination which sets ablaze a new desire and a powerful love to which the soul both contributes and does not contribute, for it is the uncreated love that does all the work. It is responsible for all the good and none of the evil that we do. True annihilation consists in becoming aware that we are truly not the authors of any good .... For the love of God is never idle, even when it follows the way of the cross through bodily penance. The sign that true love is at work is this: The soul takes up its cross, that is, penance as long as one lives, penance as great and harsh as possible.

When love is done with the works of the cross and penance in me, that is, after it has pushed these to their final limits, as long as I live and as harsh as possible, then I will become aware that in truth I am an unprofitable servant. And if I wish to ask God for something, I will do it in the name of the penance he did in me and for me.

Rome's Station Churches: Week II

ZENIT

The world seen from Rome

DAILY DISPATCH - MARCH 01, 2013

IN FOCUS

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Santa_Maria_in_Trasteve_Interior_Rome

Rome's Station Churches: Week II

Santa Maria in Trastevere and the Early Christians

By Ann Schneible

ROME, March 01, 2013 (Zenit.org) - This week's annual Lenten station church pilgrimage led pilgrims to Santa Maria in Trastevere, the heart of what was one of Rome's earliest Christian communities.

• The pilgrimage is organized each year by seminarians and priests of the Pontifical North American College in Rome. An early morning (7 a.m.) Mass is celebrated in English at one of these churches each day (except Sunday) throughout Lent. It is a practice which goes back to the early Church when the pope, as bishop of Rome, would pay a pastoral visit to the parishes of the city.
• One of the oldest churches in Rome, Santa Maria in Trastevere was built on the site where, according to legend, oil miraculously sprung forth from the ground on the day Mary the mother of Jesus was born. Built in the 4th century, the church to this day enjoys an active parish life, and is closely tied to the San'Egidio Community – a movement known for its work with the poor. The parish also hosts a Byzantine Liturgy with roots in Italy, celebrated each Sunday evening in the Italian language.
• J. Stanton Good, who works as a professional tour guide in Rome, explained to ZENIT that Santa Maria in Trastevere was likely the center of the early Church. Translated "across the Tiber," the region of Rome known as Trastevere hosted an international community during the Roman empire as it was located close to a port. Good said there is proof of Christian worship at the site of the church going back to the 4th century, although there is "the possibility of Christian worship in the vicinity even before that when Christianity was still illegal."
• "There are three ancient churches in Trastevere, what we would call 'Paleo-Christian' churches," he said. "The very oldest churches going back to the 5th and 4th century when the Roman empire was still standing. This is the most characteristic of the three."
• Speaking on the legend surrounding the site, Good noted how it was significant that the miraculous oil erupted in a pagan neighborhood of Rome on the day the Virgin Mary was born in the East. "This is an interesting tradition," he said. "For instance, people go into the Sistine Chapel and wonder why there are five Greek pagan symbols on the ceiling of a Christian place. A natural phenomena happening, it seems, at the same time the Virgin Mary is born. After Christianity is legalized and becomes the majority religion – then becoming the only religion – we look back in time and we start to rehash all of these old pagan prophesies."
• Santa Maria in Trastevere  was also the site of key ecclesiastical moments in the Church's history, Good said, explaining that a conclave was held in the church. "When the popes came back from Avignon in 1378 Saint John Lateran had been burnt to the ground twice in 55 years. They came here because this church was still standing. You had some very important ecclesiastics in this church."
• Artistically, the church is rich in Marian imagery, much of which is stylistically Byzantine. The façade of the building presents a 12th century mosaic of Mary, flanked by angels, breastfeeding the Christ child as she sits on a throne. Inside the Church, in the apse above the altar, a domed 13th century mosaic made of glass also represents Mary on a throne, this time beside an adult Jesus who has His arm around His mother. Flanking the altar are panels which depict the life of Mary, again in the style of Byzantine mosaic, beginning with her life and ending with her dormition. Contained in the "Altemps chapel," located just left of the main apse, is one of the oldest images of Mary in the world. The image is historically significant in that it dates to the iconoclast controversy, which stated that sacred images of our Lord and the saints were not to be used. The controversy drove many icon painters to Rome, bringing this form of religious art to the city, Good explained.
• Good concludes: "Santa Maria in Trastevere is, in my experience, the most active of the ancient Churches – the best combination of antiquity and an active Church for living worship." 

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