Join us as we reflect on the life and times of Teresa Benedicta of the Cross, a brilliant philosopher and poet, a mystic and searcher of the truth, and a Jew - a daughter of Israel. Her encounter with the cross in the life of a Christian friend sparked an inner transformation that led to her baptism into the Catholic faith. Her reading of the life of Teresa of Avila brought her to the door of the Cologne Carmel where she began her contemplative journey as a Carmelite nun. Her Jewish identity and her Catholic faith collided with the oppressive Nazi regime and led to her martyrdom at Auschwitz.
FR. JOSEPH BRENNAN has been a monk of Valyermo since 1994 after having served as a parish priest in the Archdiocese of Los Angeles for over 20 years. He is a spiritual director at the Cardinal Manning House of Prayer for priests in Los Angeles as well as St. Andrew's Sub-Prior.
MICHAELA RUSSELL is an oblate of Valyermo. She has a BA in International Studies/East Asia and a Graduate Certificate in Advanced International Affairs. Michaela spent many years in Asia and is fluent in Mandarin. She has co-facilitated retreats on the desert mothers, women in scripture, and Edith Stein.
St. Andrew's Abbey Retreat Office
Phone: (661) 944-2178
Email: retreats@valyermo.com
Office hours:
8:30am-5:00pm
(Closed for Mass and lunch 11:45am-1:30pm)
