John of Avila

The work of John of Avila is primarily defined by his preaching, which earned him the nickname "Apostle of Andalusia." For nearly forty years, he traveled throughout southern Spain, preaching conversion and promoting the practice of the sacraments. Deeply committed to the reform of the Church, he devoted a large part of his activity to the formation of priests and laypeople: he founded several colleges and, by a bull of Pope Paul III dated March 4, 1538, was authorized to establish the University of Baeza, of which he became the first rector. His proposals for the reform of the clergy anticipated the orientations of the Council of Trent. A great scholar of Holy Scripture, he left behind an abundant written body of work: his most famous spiritual treatise, Audi, filia ("Listen, O daughter"), a commentary on Psalm 44 begun in the late 1520s and revised several times, as well as a Christian doctrine in the form of a catechism, sermons, biblical commentaries, and a vast correspondence, which make him one of the most influential spiritual masters of the 16th-century Spanish world.

The reputation for holiness of John of Avila was built around his influence as a spiritual master and director of conscience. His doctrine, marked by the love of Christ and the centrality of the mystery of the Redemption, insists on the necessity of self-knowledge to attain the knowledge of God. His influence extended to several major figures of Spanish spirituality: he converted and accompanied Saint John of God, contributed to the conversion of Saint Francis Borgia, advised Saint Teresa of Avila, and counted among his disciples the Dominican Louis of Granada, who was his first biographer. Esteemed by Saint Ignatius of Loyola, he directed about thirty of his best disciples toward the young Society of Jesus. His rigor regarding the danger of riches led to him being denounced to the Inquisition of Seville: imprisoned at the Castle of Triana from 1531 to 1533, he was finally declared innocent and released. This trial, experienced in prayer, strengthened his spiritual stature and his teaching on abandonment to God.

The process for the sainthood of John of Avila followed a long path. He was declared venerable by Pope Clement XIII on February 8, 1759, but his cause did not reach its conclusion until the 19th century. Based on several healings recognized as miraculous—approved by a decree in 1893—he was beatified in 1894 by Pope Leo XIII. The cause for canonization, formally reopened in 1952, concluded on May 31, 1970, when Pope Paul VI proclaimed him a saint, presenting him as a model of priestly life at the time of the Church's conciliar renewal. On October 7, 2012, at the opening of the Synod of Bishops dedicated to the new evangelization, Pope Benedict XVI proclaimed him a Doctor of the Church, at the same time as Saint Hildegard of Bingen; he thus became one of the few diocesan priests to receive this title. His liturgical feast is celebrated on May 10, the anniversary of his death, and has been inscribed in the General Roman Calendar as an optional memorial.

The legacy of John of Avila continues above all in the spirituality of the clergy: a promoter of a movement of interior life among secular priests, he is considered a master of priestly formation, whose thought prepared and accompanied the Tridentine reform. On July 2, 1946, Pope Pius XII declared him patron of the Spanish secular clergy. He is also venerated as patron of Andalusia, and was placed among the patron saints of the World Youth Day in Madrid in 2011. His written work, in particular Audi, filia and his abundant correspondence, continues to nourish spiritual theology and preaching. The center of his cult remains the city of Montilla, in the province of Cordoba, where he died and where, according to his wish, he was buried in the Church of the Incarnation, which became a sanctuary dedicated to his memory and a place of pilgrimage. His proclamation as a Doctor of the Church in 2012 confirmed the lasting scope of his teaching for evangelization and Christian life.