Our true friend

The feast of St Teresa of Jesus of Avila, which the Universal Church celebrated on October 15, is a great reminder that in our existential loneliness we are never alone. We have Jesus, as our sure friend who holds our hand along the arduous journey of life.

I was particularly struck by what St Teresa wrote in her autobiography: "If Christ Jesus dwells in a person as his friend and noble leader, that person can endure all things, for Christ helps and strengthens us and never abandons us. He is a true friend.

"And I clearly see that if we expect to please him and receive an abundance of his graces, God desires that these graces must come to us from the hands of Christ, through his most sacred humanity, in which God takes delight... All blessings come to us through our Lord. He will teach us, for in beholding his life we find that he is the best example" (Life 22, 6-7.14).

Christ is the person to whom we need to go to when we feel abandoned by everyone. He clearly told us: "Come to me, all who labour and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest" (Matt 11, 28).

His loving presence is for us a guaranteed comfort in our stress, disappointments, depressions and fatigue. He is indeed our True Friend.