I was thrilled to receive your letter and am equally thrilled to respond to your request. For thousands of years, humanity has struggled against the power of evil to reach a state of harmony with God. The multiple different views of each religion seem to have compounded the question of who might be right and who might be wrong. Regardless of our personal beliefs, our goal always seems to remain the same, to be united with Christ in heaven. St. Teresa of Avila's poems, My Beloved is Mine and Christ Has No Body, illustrate the thoughtful and emotional impact Christ had on St. Teresa of Avila's life and also illuminate various Catholic beliefs. The goal of the poems is to allow the reader to grow closer to God, although, as a Lutheran, my interpretation of each poem may perhaps be different from yours. The poems of Saint Teresa of Avila are simply extraordinary. Saint Teresa seems to revive her deep relationship with God. In the poem My Beloved is Mine, she seems to explain how her "lot" was changed because she gave herself to "Divine Love" ("My Beloved" np). Saint Teresa evidently experienced a life-changing event when she gave her life to God. She speaks of God as her divine love that she apparently sought to achieve her entire life. She described God as her beloved, or perhaps her betrothed, as she entered into the ecstasy of 'spiritual marriage'” (Blackwell np). She clarifies, “At last I am surely His,” in an attempt to identify with the struggle she had faced in becoming one with God (“My Beloved” np). His description of God as a “gentle hunter” is interesting as it indicates a relationship in which both parties are actively engaged in and seeking each other. ...... half of the paper ...... is a little different, I pray that the end result, perhaps St. Teresa of Avila's only wish, remains the same, that each of us finds a lasting union with God for eternity. May God bless you! Works Cited Blackwell, Amy. "Counter-Reformation." World religions: faith, culture and controversy. ABC-CLIO, 2012. Web. 17 March 2012.De Cepeda Y Ahumada, Teresa. “Christ has no body.” Journey with Jesus. Dan Clendenin. Network. March 5, 2012.De Cepeda Y Ahumada, Teresa. "My beloved is mine." Chaikhana poetry. Ivan M. Granger. Web. March 5, 2012. Kinnaman, Scot A. "Lutherans Do Good Works" Lutheranism 101. September 3, 2010. Web. March 7, 2012. "transubstantiation." World religions: faith, culture and controversy. ABC-CLIO, 2012. Web. March 8, 2012. Vandermast, Roberta. Part 2: Reformation and Counter-Reformation. Reformation and Counter-Reformation. Network. March 3. 2012.