The Diamond Castle Book Sample

Endorsements
In The Diamond Castle, Theresa Marie Lynn has put together a beautiful text for children on St. Teresa of Avila’s
Interior Castle. Having well understood the substance of Teresa’s thought, she presents it in a way easy to grasp by
children. Adults, too, will benefit from reading this cheerful presentation of Teresa’s masterpiece.
Fr. Kieran Kavanaugh, O.C.D. Translator of St. Teresa’s and St. John of the Cross works
The Diamond Castle is an imaginative creation in which the author makes simple for children the beauty of
the journey of the spiritual life. It captures the vivid images of St. Teresa of Avila’s mind and heart in a way
that will captivate children and adults.
Dr. Claude R. Sasso, Ph.D., M.A. Vice Chancellor for Evangelization and Catechesis Diocese of
Kansas City-St. Joseph, Missouri
Our journey toward understanding Christ and His plan for our lives at times can seem daunting. As human beings created
in the image and likeness of God we have a basic need to know and understand who God is. The Diamond Castle effectively
draws a child into God’s majestic world through the spiritual exercises of St. Theresa of Avila via her Interior Castle. The
Diamond Castle serves as an effective spiritual instrument of grace bringing a child toward an intimate union with Christ
and drawing upon the reality of sin and the grace found in the sacraments of Baptism and the Holy Eucharist.
A central theme of The Diamond Castle is that Jesus Christ is the King and thus our castle must be
clean in order for the King’s glory to radiate from within you, and out to others. The Diamond Castle
truly is a majestic journey with our Lord.”
Marlon De La Torre, MA, MEd. Author of Screwtape Teaches the Faith: A Guide for Catechists Director
of Catechist Formation and Children’s Catechesis Catholic Diocese of Fort Worth
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About the author of The Diamond Castle
THERESA MARIE LYNN lives in Shawnee, Kansas and grew up in Independence,
Missouri. She received a Master’s degree in Pastoral Theology in 2009 from the former
Institute for Pastoral Theology at Ave Maria University. She is a member of Our Lady
of Good Counsel parish, which is the Diocesan Shrine to the Divine Mercy and Saint
Faustina Kowalska, and is located in Kansas City, Missouri.
Theresa blogs at EucharistMatters.blogspot.com and published the evangelization website,
SinglesoftheEucharist.org in 2006. She works as an advertising consultant in Catholic
media. The Diamond Castle Project, which includes this book and is first in a series, also
includes a gaming app to provide a blended learning opportunity around the diamond
castle metaphor.
TheDiamondCastleProject.com
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Copyright © 2015 The Diamond Castle by
Theresa M. Lynn, Author
All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, distributed, or transmitted in any form or by any means, including photocopying,
recording, or other electronic or mechanical methods, without the prior written permission of the publisher, except in the case of brief quotations embodied
in critical reviews and certain other noncommercial uses permitted by copyright law. For permission requests, write to the publisher,
addressed “Attention: Permissions” at the address below.
Diamond Castle Project, TheresaLynnMTS@yahoo.com
www.DiamondCastleProject.com
Ordering:
Quantity sales. Special discounts are available on quantity purchases for U.S. Catholic trade bookstores and wholesalers,
academic curriculum, missions, ministries, diocese, parishes, and others.
For details, contact the author and publisher at the email address above.
Produced in the United States of America Publisher/Author’s Cataloging-in-publication data
Theresa M. Lynn
The Diamond Castle, Title with sub-title of the same book /Theresa M. Lynn
ISBN 978-1-63415-538-0
1. The main category of the book —Religious—Spiritual—Children
First Edition/Book 1 in a Series under the title: The Diamond Castle
14 13 12 11 10 / 10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1

Introduction by Theresa Lynn
Today in America, castles at the Disney theme parks, princess
costumes, wizards, and magic fill the imaginative hearts and minds
of our children. While they can create happy playtimes, a young mind
may believe that this type of play can be realized concretely in some
future reality. It is many a little girl who “wants to be a princess when
she grows up.” In the end, the entertainment of Disney, which promises
a place “where dreams come true” and where “magic happens” points
to what St. Teresa of Avila called, “building castles in the air.”
It is my hope that by bringing The Diamond Castle to young
children, it will help them to make the distinction between the real
castle that lies within themselves and leads them to know and love
God, and the castles that are just for momentary pleasure. One
castle lasts forever; the other castles fall and there is only one real
King, Christ Jesus. Saint Teresa always refers to him as His Majesty.
Saint Teresa’s metaphor is the anti-thesis to the charm of makebelieve.
Our children’s hearts are so open to what is beautiful and
good. As parents and catechists we must help them to know what
is true and what is make-believe. When they are taught what is true
and lasting they can discern as they grow to what is authentic beauty
and authentic goodness.
The Diamond Castle first came to mind when I was teaching my
fourth grade religious education students. The lessons included
multi-syllable Catholic terms flowing from our beautiful doctrines
surrounding, Sacrament, Paschal Mystery and the Eucharist. The
children in my classes seemed to not have any problem with these “big
words.” In addition, the curriculum offered the teaching of the four
types of prayer, went over the beatitudes, moral lessons, and what is
venial and mortal sin, the virtues, and the gifts of the Holy Spirit and
corporal works of Mercy.
Their verbal skills and amicable behavior in class also impressed
me. They would answer theological and religious education questions
that I would present to them and their profound answers and correct
responses were not only edifying to me, but showed me how the
Holy Spirit was working in their young minds. Often, to see what
they knew, I would ask them questions about things they had not
even been taught yet. These young seven and eight year old students
seemed to be really starting to grasp the mysteries of the Church.
Each class started with a blank sheet of paper for the students to
take notes with colored markers and crayons. Usually, I would start
with a lesson that was outside of that week’s textbook instructions. I
would typically begin with Church history. History can be illustrated
with a timeline. I would have them draw a line with an arrow on
both ends and a vertical line through the middle for the time Christ
entered into history. We plotted salvation history before Christ (BC),
and after Christ (AD), or Old Testament and Old Covenant and New
Testament and New Covenant times.
The first question I would ask my students was, “How long ago
did Jesus live?” There were various answers from 100 to a million
years ago. This showed me that their concept of history and time
was still being formulated. It showed me they needed the basics as
well as learning the terms which would help them in what would be
their future dialogue with others about who the Church is, and what

she believes. When did the people throughout salvation history, like
Moses and Abraham live? After Christ, when was St. Teresa of Avila
born? What did it look like on the timeline?
Prayer was a big lesson and an important activity in each week’s
class. Springing from the implementation of Vatican II’s “universal
call to holiness,” prayer gained its own section in the Catechism of
the Catholic Church and religious education materials have followed
this initiative by including lessons on prayer. At the third and fourth
grade level, students are learning new prayers like the Memorarae and
the types of prayer; petition, praise, thanksgiving, adoration.
Beyond the types of prayer and memorizing the standard prayers,
since I saw that the student’s intellects seemed open and capable of
learning deeper theological concepts, I thought of introducing them
to what it meant to have a “spiritual life.” I wanted to share with the
students what I had learned about holiness and the soul’s union with
God, while studying theology at the Institute for Pastoral Theology
with Ave Maria University. The first place to start would be to teach
them that they have a soul and who dwells there.
However, I did not find any lesson on the soul as part of the
textbook curriculum. I was inspired to realize that Saint Teresa
of Avila’s use of castle imagery, to depict the soul and how God is
experienced there, could provide a creative way for teaching a lesson
on the soul.
St. Teresa of Avila recommends that you think of the soul as a
beautiful diamond castle where the His Majesty the King of Glory
resides. I had the students draw their own diamond castle. Using the
Index in the back of The Collected Works of St. Teresa of Avila, translated
by Father Kieran Kavanaugh, O.C.D. and Otilio Rodriguez, O.C.D.,
I picked out symbols from the list, that I thought they could grasp.
Young minds and even adults aren’t ready in the first lesson for many
of the symbols and their meaning that St. Teresa uses throughout the
Interior Castle. But the basic symbols of vermin for sin and light for
Christ’s presence were easy for them to understand and incorporate
into their drawings. Their drawings were edifying. Some drew hearts
in the center of the page to illustrate Christ and His merciful Love.
I did not suggest the use of the heart to them, they thought of it on
their own. The “heart” is so much a part of Catholic spirituality.
Drawings of the diamond castle were so inspiring to me that I
decided to put the lesson down on paper. It is my prayerful hope
that The Diamond Castle will be the first in a series of books that will
teach children about their soul and union with God. It starts your
child on a journey that Saint Bonaventure described as “a journey of
the mind to God.” I am thankful to Al Cassidy, the illustrator, of the
diamond castle image. It truly should stir your child’s imagination
and illustrate the beauty of the soul that St. Teresa of Avila speaks of
in her spiritual works.
I don’t know if anyone has ever attempted an artistic rendering of
the diamond castle metaphor, but I believe Al Cassidy accomplished
it well. As I expressed to him on more than one occasion, when Saint
Faustina Kowalska was following our Lord’s request to have the image
of his Divine Mercy painted and she was concerned that the painting
did not show our Lord as beautiful as he really is, our Lord told her,
“It is good enough.”

Foreword by Timothy P. Herrman, Ph.D.., S.T.L.
Over two centuries ago, Mary Lamb and her brother, Charles, published a book that would establish their literary careers and become a “best seller”
for years to come. The book was called, Tales from Shakespeare, and the intended goal of the book was to present young people with a translation of a classic
work that would not only remain faithful to the author’s intention, but also be written in a language that children could more easily understand. There was
no doubt in the Lamb’s minds that the plays of Shakespeare were classics, but Shakespeare’s language made reading and understanding the plays difficult,
especially for a young audience. The writing itself demonstrated the faithfulness of the Lambs to the author and its reception demonstrated the success of
their goal. As a result, many people were introduced to Shakespeare who otherwise would never have known him or his plays. Such a task, when done
well, not only is a tribute to the source itself, but serves as a real contribution to society by lifting the hearts and souls of readers, and positively influences
culture. Their goal is a goal shared by many artists, especially artists of the word.
This type of translation is by no means easy. It requires that the author capture and translate the “mind” or intention of the source accurately and in a
language that is manageable to the audience. A good ambassador must know the mind of the source so well that he or she can communicate that author’s
mind to others without merely parroting or repeating the source. That is, the ambassador must be able to address questions or related issues that were not
part of the original communication. Secondly, the good ambassador must also know the mind of the audience. That is, he or she must know the language
and idioms that are used by this audience so that what he or she communicates is not only faithful, but also effective. If what is communicated is lacking
either or both of these two elements, the idea communicated will undoubtedly ‘fall on deaf ears’.
The author of The Diamond Castle, Theresa Marie Lynn, has taken up the task of a good ambassador; she seeks to imitate what the Lambs did centuries
ago. In this work, she has attempted to faithfully translate a Catholic spiritual classic by Saint Teresa of Avila, the Interior Castle, and to do so for a young
audience. Her experience in teaching the Catholic faith to children has taught her that they have the ability to grasp theological and spiritual concepts
even when their own language for understanding these concepts remains rudimentary. Theresa has seen that the Holy Spirit is present in a way in young
children that makes their minds open to the transcendent, eager to learn Whom it is, and how they can and will experience Him.
The Interior Castle explains these experiences to us. But, this great work for discovering and authentic spiritual life in Christ is a deep and lengthy
text. Theresa realizes to distill the many doctrines and metaphors and symbols used by Saint Teresa in the Interior Castle into a text that will illuminate
for children the journey of their hearts, minds, and souls to God, is a task that will require several books. Gradually, with future editions of The Diamond
Castle, it is her goal that children will come to love and desire to imitate the spiritual heart of this great saint of the Catholic Church, Saint Teresa of Avila,
so they can become saints, too.
9

L
ong
ago, most of the nations in
the world were ruled by Kings
and Queens who lived in castles.
They reigned over their kingdoms from
their castle. Their castles were made
of stone and mortar.
During that time there lived
a nun named Sister Teresa of Jesus.
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Sister Teresa of Jesus was born March 28, 1515 and
died on October 4, 1582.
She was a nun in the Order of Carmel. Her
Carmelite convent was located in the area known as
Avila in the country of Spain.
Sister Teresa of Jesus spent all of her days with other
Carmelite Sisters in the convent. They would say
beautiful prayers together. They prayed prayers you
know like the Our Father and the Hail Mary.
Every day she would offer herself to God through
Christ at the Holy Sacrifice of the Mass.
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When Sister Teresa was alone praying she thought a lot
about how to pray.
She said she used to think of Jesus Christ, our Lord and
our God, as present within her. She said, “It was in this
way that I prayed.”
Sister Teresa of Jesus is known today as Saint Teresa of
Avila. She was canonized a saint by the Roman Catholic
Church in 1622.
Saints are some of the best teachers.
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Saint Teresa wrote about our bodies and their interior life.
Our interior life is the life inside us
that is experienced in what is called our
soul. Normally, our attention is on our
bodies and daily activities. This is
called our exterior life or “active life.”
The convent could be a busy place.
Even with the hustle and bustle of Saint
Teresa’s active life, she found the time
to pray.
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God guided Saint Teresa on how to pray so within the
interior life of her soul, she could grow closer to Him.
Saint Teresa listened carefully to His guidance.
She wrote down the lessons for prayer and her own prayer
experiences to complete a book called, Interior Castle.
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In the year 1577, on the eve of Trinity
Sunday, Saint Teresa said that, “in a
flash,” God showed her the book.
With God’s guidance, through His Holy
Spirit, Teresa’s book explains that the
castles we see in the world are not the
most beautiful castles.
The most BEAUTIFUL CASTLES
are the souls of God’s children.
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1 - Calvary
Represents uniting our souls when we
suffer to Christ’s suffering on the Cross.
2 - St. Peter’s Basilica
Church of the Holy See, the Bishop of
Rome and Pope of the Roman Catholic
Church. Responsible for teaching the
children of God faith and morals.
3 - Angels
They help protect our souls from the
vermin outside the castle and help us to
pray to His Majesty and make intercession
to the King of the castle with our petitions.
4 - rose garland
Helps to realize the beauty that one will find
in their soul through prayer. Also is
reminiscent of the Blessed Mother and the
Rosary and St. Teresa of Lisieux.
5 - Divine Mercy Rays
Depicts the Divine Mercy devotion that a
soul can pray to help them be close to
Christ. White is for water and red is for
Christ’s blood.
6 - Vermin
Alligators, snakes and dragon flies
represent sin and temptation which tries to
keep us from entering the diamond castle.
It keeps us from realizing God’s presence
in our soul.
7 - Flowers
Light up the outside of the body or the
outside of the castle because nature
glorifies God.
8 - Homes
Illustrate that the souls of the children of
God are part of a community of souls in
prayer.
9 - Gate
Partially opened illustrates His Majesty’s
invitation for the soul to unite themselves
in prayer with him to the Father with the
Holy Spirit.
10 - The Virgin Mary
Our Lady, Queen of Heaven. She prays for
us to His Majesty if we ask her because she
is so close to him in Heaven. She holds
court in the castle.
11 - Torches
Like at church there is always a candle lit
when Christ is present in the tabernacle.
Depicts that this diamond castle has the
presence of God.
12 - Sacred heart
Christ has loved us all with a human heart.
For this reason, the Sacred Heart of Jesus,
pierced by our sins and for our salvation,
“is quite rightly considered the chief sign
and symbol of that... love with which the
divine Redeemer continually loves the
eternal Father and all human beings”
without exception, (CCC,478).
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Glossary
Taken from the Catechism of the Catholic Church, Second Edition. Glossary Copyright, 2000, United States Catholic Conference, Inc., Washington, D.C.
SOUL
The spiritual principle
of human beings. The
soul is the subject of
human consciousness
and freedom; soul and
body together form one
unique human nature.
Each human soul is
individual and
immortal, immediately
created by God. The
soul does not die with
the body, from which it
is separated by death,
and with which it will
be reunited in the final
resurrection (CCC, 363,
366, cf. 1703).
BAPTISM
The first of the seven
sacraments, and the
“door” which gives
access to the other
sacraments. Baptism is
the first and chief
sacrament of
forgiveness of sins
because it unites us with
Christ, who died for our
sins and rose for our
justification. Baptism,
Confirmation, and
Eucharist constitute the
“sacraments of
initiation”. By these
“sacraments of
initiation” a believer
receives the remission
of original and personal
sin, begins a new life in
Christ and the Holy
Spirit, and is
incorporated into the
Church, the Body of
Christ. The rite of
Baptism consists in
immersing the
candidate in water, or
pouring water on the
head, while
pronouncing the
invocation of the Most
Holy Trinity: the Father,
the Son, and the Holy
Spirit (CCC, 977, 1213
ff.; 1275, 1278).
BIBLE
Sacred Scripture: the
books which contain
the truth of God’s
Revelation and were
composed by human
authors inspired by the
Holy Spirit (105). The
Bible contains both the
forty-six books of the
Old Testament and the
twenty-seven books of
the New Testament
(CCC, 120).
CATHOLIC
CHURCH
The Church established
by Christ on the
foundation of the
Apostles, possessing the
fullness of the means of
salvation which he has
willed: correct and
complete confession of
faith, full sacramental
life, and ordained
ministry in apostolic
succession. (CCC, 830).
CATECHISM
A popular summary or
compendium of
Catholic doctrine about
faith and morals, and
designed for use in
catechesis.
ETERNAL LIFE
Living forever with God
in the happiness of
heaven, entered after
death by the souls of
those who die in the
grace and friendship of
God (CCC, 988, 1020).
In preaching the
kingdom of heaven,
Jesus called all people to
eternal life, which is
anticipated in the grace
of union with Christ:
“This is eternal life, that
they may know you, the
only True God, and
Jesus Christ whom you
have sent” (Jn. 17:3).
GOD
The infinite divine
being, one in being yet
three Persons: Father,
Son, and Holy Spirit.
God has revealed
himself as the “One
who is,” as truth and
love, as creator of all
that is, as the author of
divine revelation, and as
the source of salvation
(CCC, 198, 279).
HUMILITY
The virtue by which a
Christian acknowledges
that God is the author
of all good. Humility
avoids inordinate
ambition or pride, and
provides the foundation
for turning to God in
prayer (CCC, 2559).
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The Ten Commandments
The First Commandment
I am the Lord your God. You shall not have strange gods
before me. Exodus 20:2
Because the Almighty has revealed Himself to us as our God and Lord, we must
not place anything above him or consider anything more important or give any
other thing or person priority over Him. To know God and to serve and worship Him
has absolute priority in our life. YouCat, 352
The first commandment summons man to believe in God, to hope in him, and to
love him above all else. CCC, 2134
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