ALBA de Tormes, Spain.
On April 22-24, Alba de Tormes celebrated the close of the fourth centenary of the Beatification of St. Teresa with special solemnity. Pilar Concejo gave a presentation as part of the program.
The Diocese of Salamanca and the city of Alba had organized a program with various religious and cultural events. The Diocesan Commission requested the Teresian to give the keynote address. Pilar Concejo, Professor of Literature, was the keynote speaker. She presented on "Teresa of Jesus: the transforming power of a woman." The event took place at the Teatro de la Villa, presided by the Mayor, the parish priest, and a Carmelite priest.
The hall, with a capacity of 250 people, was packed. Pilar Concejo emphasized the transforming power of Teresa as a woman committed to her time, with a capacity to transform others because she transformed herself first before the image of a wounded Christ. She emphasized the integration of her human personality and her personal experience of God.
She surprised and significantly attracted people to discover a Teresa of Jesus who, by the power of prayer, promotes reading and culture, especially among women, then mostly illiterate, thus contributing to the advancement of women. She emphasized her ability to dialogue with all kinds of people: nobles, theologians, townspeople, and especially her nuns.
The audience was able to approach a woman who, with courage and respect, faces conflicts of all kinds, always armed with the weapon of truth, without acrimony and always trusting in God.
Teresa transforms the world of relationships. She moved from “purity of blood “ to a “dominion of the spirit" based on virtue, on the dignity of each person, and on fraternity. Thus, her small communities are based on equality, love and tenderness.
Pilar Concejo made a clear reference to Pedro Poveda, who opted for the advancement of women in society and in the church and found Teresa as a model for his collaborators. "Eminently human and all God’s," “with the head and heart in the present moment,” as was Poveda’s approach.
The audience valued the presentation very mush as they were able to find a new Teresa, one close to the women of today, and who has much to say to the laity committed to society and to the church. They expressed that it was the first time they listened to a laywoman speak in Alba about Teresa of Jesus.
Several members of the Teresian accompanied Pilar Concejo and represented the Teresian association at the different events. It is to be noted that the civil and ecclesiastical authorities and the people in general received the presenttion warmly.
Cristina Andujar