To return, then, to our first point: whether they come from within, from above or from without, has nothing to do with their coming from God. Some of them seem to come from without others from the innermost depths of the soul others from its higher part while others, again, are so completely outside the soul that they can be heard with our ears, and seem to be uttered by a human voice… This awakening of the soul is effected by means of locutions, which are of many kinds. For this reason I will spend a short time describing it. “There is another way in which God awakens the soul, and which, although in some respects it seems a greater favour than others, may also be more perilous. In this passage, Teresa speaks about ways to determine if these locutions are authentic or not. I don’t always know how I myself interpret these things. Teresa describes here during my practice of Centering Prayer. Personally, I have had similar experiences to what St. Regardless, the experience of a leading or deeper/more authoritative voice in one’s conscious experience is a common part of the spiritual journey for those from theistic faiths. This can be interpreted as coming from the depths of the individual, from the Divine, or in a host of other ways.

The language surrounding this type of experience is often nuanced, and many Quakers, for instance, are hesitant to speak of a “voice from God,” but may talk about a deeper voice or leading. This type of spiritual experience seems to me to be similar to Quaker Inner Listening.

Monastics from the Catholic tradition interpret their spiritual experience theistically, thus “messages from God” are seen to be at least in the realm of possibility. The term “locution” is typically used to describe supposed “messages from God” experienced through prayer.

Saint teresa of avila interior castle