Saint John of the Cross, Mystical Doctor

SAINT JOHN OF THE CROSS, MYSTICAL DOCTOR

In 2015, according to the Pew Research Center, Christianity represented 2.3 billion or 31.2% of the total world population. By comparison, Islam and Hinduism constituted 24.1% and 15.1%, respectively, of the total world population.

Of the 41,000 Christian denominations, the Roman Catholic Church has the largest number of members, estimated by the Vatican at 1.2 billion or 52% of the total Christian population. Roman Catholicism claims over 16% of the total world population.

See:

http://www.pewresearch.org/fact-tank/2017/04/05/christians-remain-worlds-largest-religious-group-but-they-are-declining-in-europe/

—“Christians remain world’s largest religious group, but they are declining in Europe,” Pew Research Center (April 5, 2017) by Conrad Hackett and David McClendon

 

https://www.thoughtco.com/christianity-statistics-700533 

 

—“How Many Christians Are in the World Today?” ThoughtCo (September 24, 2018) by Mary Fairchild

 

https://www.bbc.com/news/world-21443313 

 

—“How Many Roman Catholics Are There in the World?” BBC News (14 March 2013)

 

How influential is this single man, Saint John of the Cross, over the Roman Catholic population? His influence may be assessed by looking at three aspects of his position inside the Roman Catholic Church: his official elevation as a saint for veneration by the Roman Catholic faithful; his role as co-founder of the Discalced Carmelites, which, through its apostolic works and distinctive spirituality, influences the entire Roman Catholic Church; and his ongoing contribution to authoritative Roman Catholic doctrine, especially in the aspect in which he has been hailed as distinguished, even singular—mystical theology.

Official canonization is extremely rare in the Roman Catholic Church. It has been estimated that there are about 10,000 saints in Roman Catholicism. If you reduce that number according to those canonized by popes beginning in the year 993, you get 921, not including the luminaries canonized by Papa Francesco.

See:

https://www.uscatholic.org/articles/201310/how-many-saints-are-there-28027 

—“How Many Saints Are There?” U.S. Catholic (November 2013) by Kathleen Manning

http://www.pewresearch.org/fact-tank/2014/04/24/papal-saints-once-a-given-now-extremely-rare/

 

—“Papal saints: Once a given, now extremely rare,” Pew Research Center (April 24, 2014) by Michael Lipka and Tim Townsend

Divide that number, 921, by the estimated total Roman Catholic population in 2015 of 1.2 billion, and you get 0.0000000001%.

Tiny proportion notwithstanding, the influence exerted by the saints over the Roman Catholic Church is disproportionately outsize because they are considered to play an integral role in the worship of God. In the words of the Catechism of the Catholic Church:

2683 The witnesses who have preceded us into the kingdom, [41] especially those whom the Church recognizes as saints, share in the living tradition of prayer by the example of their lives, the transmission of their writings, and their prayer today. They contemplate God, praise him and constantly care for those whom they have left on earth. When they entered into the joy of their Master, they were “put in charge of many things.” [42] Their intercession is their most exalted service to God’s plan. We can and should ask them to intercede for us and for the whole world.

[41] Cf. Heb 12:1.

[42] Cf. Mt 25:21.

Technically, the saints are accorded the honor of dulia or veneration.

See: https://www.catholicculture.org/culture/library/dictionary/index.cfm?id=37057

—“Veneration of Saints,” Catholic Dictionary, CatholicCulture.org

The Blessed Virgin Mary is bestowed a special type of veneration called hyperdulia.

See: https://www.catholicculture.org/culture/library/dictionary/index.cfm?id=34033

—“Hyperdulia,” Catholic Dictionary, CatholicCulture.org

 

Saints model for the Roman Catholic faithful how to live out their religion. They are presented as universal exemplars and guides. They are understood to show the way to salvation. They are elevated as extremely rare, outstanding witnesses to the sanctifying action of the Holy Spirit. Declares the Catechism of the Catholic Church:

2684 In the communion of saints, many and varied spiritualities have been developed throughout the history of the churches. The personal charism of some witnesses to God’s love for men has been handed on, like “the spirit” of Elijah to Elisha and John the Baptist, so that their followers may have a share in this spirit. [43] A distinct spirituality can also arise at the point of convergence of liturgical and theological currents, bearing witness to the integration of the faith into a particular human environment and its history. The different schools of Christian spirituality share in the living tradition of prayer and are essential guides for the faithful. In their rich diversity they are refractions of the one pure light of the Holy Spirit.

More from the Catechism of the Catholic Church on the saints:

http://www.luigiguanella.com/cate.html

—Blessed Luigi Guanella, Modern Apostle of Charity website

 

As the founder of a major religious order, Saint John of the Cross’ influence as a saint goes one step further.

Religious orders (and religious congregations—a technical difference) influence the Roman Catholic Church through their charism, which has been defined as follows:

“Charism is frequently associated with the spirituality of religious institutes and this understanding of it will be addressed at another time. Here we will define it as a gift of the Holy Spirit given in a particular way to an individual or to a group to build up the Kingdom of God for the good of the Church.”

See: https://carmelitesistersocd.com/2015/what-is-a-charism/

 

—“What is a Charism?” Carmelite Sisters of the Most Sacred Heart of Los Angeles

Concisely, the Carmelite charism is expounded here:

https://ocarm.org/en/content/ocarm/charism

—“Our Charism,” Order of the Brothers of the Most Blessed Virgin of Mount Carmel

Carmelites are popularly referred to in the Roman Catholic Church as one of the “Big Five”: Benedictines, Franciscans, Dominicans, Carmelites, and Jesuits.

As the founder of the reformed branch of the Carmelites, one among the most salient religious orders in the Roman Catholic Church, Saint John of the Cross, along with his co-founder, Saint Teresa of Avila, occupies an elevated position among the saints.

The third major influence of Saint John of the Cross on Roman Catholicism is in the area of mystical theology.

Mystical theology deals with the subject of extraordinary spiritual states brought about by the direct action of grace, and more generally, with supernatural experiences, which by definition transcend the ordinary powers of human beings. Mystical theology has been defined as follows:

“The science of the spiritual life, with stress on the operation of divine grace. It deals with the higher forms of mental prayer and with such extraordinary phenomena as are recorded in the lives of the saints. It is the science of the study of the mystic states.”

See: https://www.catholicculture.org/culture/library/dictionary/index.cfm?id=35030

—“Mystical Theology,” Catholic Dictionary, CatholicCulture.org

Mystical theology goes hand in hand with ascetical theology. In contrast to mystical theology, ascetical theology emphasizes the active practice of virtue in cooperation with grace in preparation for growth in mystical union with God.

“It is aimed at making people holy by explaining what sanctity is and how to attain it. It is the science of leading souls in the ways of Christian perfection through growth in charity and the practice of prayer leading to contemplation. It is that part of spiritual theology which concentrates on man's cooperation with grace and the need for human effort to grow in sanctity.”

See: https://www.catholicculture.org/culture/library/dictionary/index.cfm?id=31988

—“Ascetical Theology,” Catholic Dictionary, CatholicCulture.org

A bird’s-eye view of St. John of the Cross’ mystical and ascetical doctrine is offered by Tony Mulcahy at this link:

https://catholicstrength.com/tag/the-mystical-theology-of-saint-john-of-the-cross/

—“A Bird’s-Eye View of the Spirituality of St. John of the Cross,” Catholic Strength by Tony Mulcahy

 

If we were to attempt a summary of his doctrine, we would venture thus:

In order to attain the highest possible union with God in this life, it is necessary to undergo the most severe trials and to undertake uncompromising abnegation, sensible and spiritual.

Described as “Todo y nada,” “All and nothing,” Saint John of the Cross’ doctrine is expounded in verse in The Ascent of Mount Carmel, Book One, Chapter 13:

To reach satisfaction in all

desire satisfaction in nothing.

To come to possess all

desire the possession of nothing.

To arrive at being all

desire to be nothing.

To come to the knowledge of all

desire the knowledge of nothing.

To come to enjoy what you have not

you must go by a way in which you enjoy not.

To come to the knowledge you have not

you must go by a way in which you know not.

To come to the possession you have not

you must go by a way in which you possess not.

To come to be what you are not

you must go by a way in which you are not.

Saint John of the Cross’ doctrine has been exceptionally influential in Roman Catholicism for two reasons principally.

First, he expounded his theology in poetry, an approach that—while not unprecedented in Roman Catholicism—is scarce. Saints renowned as poet theologians include, for example, Saint Ephrem the Syrian, Saint Gregory Nazianzen, Saint Hildegard of Bingen, and Saint John the Evangelist.

A very small number of saints drop into this category, and they are unique in their own way. Saint John of the Cross, along with Saint Teresa of Avila, is the only one among them preeminent in mystical theology. He also shares with her the honor of illumining the Spanish Golden Age, together with Miguel de Cervantes, Lope de Vega, Garcilaso de la Vega, Francisco de Quevedo, Luis de Góngora, Sor Juana Inés de la Cruz, and many other writers, painters, sculptors, architects, and musicians.

Saint John of the Cross’ most famous poem is “Noche Oscura,” “The Dark Night.” It is a lyric masterpiece of Spanish literature.

The poem’s title—or to be precise, the title of the book that expounds the poem—is familiar worldwide, and “dark night of the soul” has entered the lexicon of popular culture. Whenever the phrase “dark night of the soul” is popularly used, it usually means a prolonged experience of spiritual or psychological desolation, or both. Misconceptions to the contrary, Saint John of the Cross never wrote down this phrase, although he originated the expressions “dark night of the senses” and “dark night of the spirit.”

What is remarkable about this poem is its ecstatic tone. When we consider that it was composed over a period of nine months under conditions of major spiritual and physical affliction at Toledo, Spain, inside a closet converted into a place of solitary confinement, the rapturous poetry is astonishing. Paradoxically, Saint John’s dire circumstances give credence to his account of mystical union.

STANZAS OF THE SOUL

One dark night,

fired with love’s urgent longings

—ah, the sheer grace!—

I went out unseen,

my house being now all stilled.

In darkness, and secure,

by the secret ladder, disguised,

—ah, the sheer grace!—

in darkness and concealment,

my house being now all stilled.

On that glad night,

in secret, for no one saw me,

nor did I look at anything,

with no other light or guide

than the one that burned in my heart.

This guided me

more surely than the light of noon

to where he was awaiting me

—him I knew so well—

there in a place where no one appeared.

O guiding night!

O night more lovely than the dawn!

O night that has united

the Lover with his beloved,

transforming the beloved in her Lover.

Upon my flowering breast

which I kept wholly for him alone,

there he lay sleeping,

and I caressing him

there in a breeze from the fanning cedars.

When the breeze blew from the turret,

as I parted his hair,

it wounded my neck

with its gentle hand,

suspending all my senses.

I abandoned and forgot myself,

laying my face on my Beloved;

all things ceased; I went out from myself,

leaving my cares

forgotten among the lilies.

“The Dark Night” offers us a rarefied account of mystical union. Delicately intimate metaphors move us deeply—“upon my flowering breast…he lay sleeping,” “the breeze…wounded my neck with its gentle hand.” The poem intrigues.

Saint John expounds “The Dark Night” (poem) in two books, The Dark Night and The Ascent of Mount Carmel. The first consists of two major divisions and the second, three.

Both books start out by introducing “The Dark Night.” However, the poem is not the sole focus of the books.

The Dark Night deals with the first three stanzas of the poem, The Ascent of Mount Carmel the first two.

Basically, the books are treatises in mystical and ascetical theology.

Besides “The Dark Night,” Saint John wrote two notable poems, “The Spiritual Canticle” and “The Living Flame of Love.” They are expounded in books with the same titles, respectively.

Saint John composed “The Spiritual Canticle” during his imprisonment at Toledo. “The Spiritual Canticle” is inspired by the Song of Songs and written as an eclogue or pastoral dialogue between the Bride, who is the soul, and the Bridegroom, who is Christ.

Two stanzas below convey a sense of the entire 40-stanza poem.

Opening stanza:

Bride

Where have you hidden,

Beloved, and left me moaning?

You fled like the stag

after wounding me;

I went out calling you, but you were gone.

Stanza 22:

Bridegroom

The bride has entered

the sweet garden of her desire,

and she rests in delight,

laying her neck

on the gentle hands of her beloved.

Some years after the ordeal at Toledo, Saint John wrote “The Living Flame of Love,” which sings ecstatically of his experience of mystical union with God. It is similar to the two earlier poems.

STANZAS THE SOUL RECITES IN INTIMATE UNION WITH GOD

O living flame of love

that tenderly wounds my soul

in its deepest center! Since

now you are not oppressive,

now consummate! if it be your will:

tear through the veil of this sweet encounter!

O sweet cautery,

O delightful wound!

O gentle hand! O delicate touch

that tastes of eternal life

and pays every debt!

In killing you changed death to life.

O lamps of fire!

in whose splendors

the deep caverns of feeling,

once obscure and blind,

now give forth, so rarely, so exquisitely,

both warmth and light to their Beloved.

How gently and lovingly

you wake in my heart,

where in secret you dwell alone;

and in your sweet breathing,

filled with good and glory,

how tenderly you swell my heart with love.

The second reason why Saint John is exceedingly influential in the Roman Catholic Church is because he wrote another poem, namely, that of his holy life, thereby vesting his written poetry with integrity and verve. If he had not been a holy man, exceptionally so, his poetry—however exquisite—celebrating his mystical union with God would be judged, simply, a sham.

Saint John of the Cross is highly esteemed in Roman Catholicism, but he is not held in the same regard by other Christian denominations.

He is treated with suspicion by Protestants, who profess that the sole source of religious and spiritual truth is the Reformation interpretation of the Bible. The Anglican Church is an exception, honoring Saint John every December 14 with the title “Teacher of the Faith.”

The Orthodox Church, which deems the Roman Catholic Church heterodox, has developed its own tradition of mystical and ascetical theology that postdates the Great Schism of 1054. Key to this divergence is Saint Gregory Palamas (1296-1359) who, while recognized as a saint by the Roman Catholic Church, propounds a different theological tradition, “Palamism,” that in critical respects, according to some Roman Catholic theologians, is a thread irreconcilable with the dominant Thomism. To be sure, the historical conflict between Thomism and Palamism today fuels the flames separating the two churches.

Discussion of Orthodox mysticism available here:

http://saintandrewgoc.org/home/2016/6/7/eastern-orthodox-mysticism

—“Eastern Orthodox Mysticism,” June 7, 2016 by Father George

Besides making his mark on popular culture, Saint John has inspired many notables in Western culture, mostly Roman Catholic. Following is an illustrative list.

Saint Therese of Lisieux (1873-1897), one of the most popular Roman Catholic saints, is a spiritual daughter of Saint John of the Cross. She directly witnesses to his spirituality of Todo y nada. Her extraordinarily holy life and her spiritual writings—she is the youngest Doctor of the Church—testify to her tutelage under the spirituality of Saint John. There are only 36 Doctors of the Church, far less than the total number of popes—it is a very exclusive club.

T. S. Eliot (1888-1965) is considered one of the greatest poets of the twentieth century. His interest in Saint John and other Roman Catholic mystics dates from his years as a Harvard undergraduate. Eliot’s poetry and drama show patterns of ideas and symbols that draw from Saint John. The poem “East Coker” explicitly alludes to Saint John.

Salvador Dali (1904-1989) is one of the greatest painters of Surrealism. His Christ of Saint John of the Cross (1951) was directly inspired by Saint John’s drawing of the crucified Christ.

Reginald Garrigou-Lagrange, O.P. (1877-1964) was an influential theologian of the twentieth century. His magnum opus, The Three Ages of the Interior Life, constructs a systematic outline of growth in holiness and union with God that is based on the Roman Catholic mystical tradition and prominently incorporates Saint John of the Cross’ theology.

Thomas Merton (Father Louis) (1915-1968) was an American Trappist monk and writer whose 1948 autobiography The Seven Storey Mountain shot him to fame and influence. A popular writer in the U.S. until his death by accidental electrocution, Merton in 1952 published a stimulating essay on Saint John of the Cross. See:

http://www.cin.org/saints/jcross-merton.html

—“Saint John of the Cross,” Saints for Now (1952), Clare Booth Luce, ed., by Thomas Merton

Jacques Maritain (1882-1973) is an acclaimed Roman Catholic philosopher who revived Thomism in the twentieth century. He published over 60 books ranging over diverse aspects of philosophy and theology. Delving into Saint John of the Cross, among others, Maritain wrote about Christian mysticism.

Dorothy Day (1897-1980) was the co-founder, along with Peter Maurin, in 1933 of the Catholic Worker movement and its banner publication, the Catholic Worker. Day, a journalist, focused on social advocacy. In the early forties, she became a Benedictine oblate, combining a spirituality based on traditional Roman Catholic sources with her longtime social activism. Saint John of the Cross had a lifelong influence on her spiritual life, shown in her published writings. In 2002 John Cardinal O’Connor formally opened her cause for canonization.

Hans Urs von Balthasar (1905-1988) is widely acknowledged as one of the major Roman Catholic theologians of the twentieth century. According to Britannica.com, he “rejected the ultraconservatism of the French schismatic archbishop Marcel Lefebvre and the progressive views of the Swiss theologian Hans Küng in favour of a deeply personal spirituality.” His most controversial legacy was to argue the possibility of universalism. His 16-volume magnum opus on systematic theology includes in Volume III an entire section about Saint John of the Cross. In 2018 his cause for canonization was formally opened by the Roman Catholic Diocese of Chur.

Saint John Paul II (1920-2005) had the second longest pontificate in modern times, over 26 years. His pontificate, dominant and very influential, was not without major controversy. He wrote his 1948 doctoral dissertation in theology at the Angelicum about Saint John of the Cross’ theology. Numerous times as pope he attested to Saint John’s influence on his life, for example: 

 

https://www.ewtn.com/catholicism/library/master-in-the-faith-8924

 
—“Master in the Faith,” December 14, 1990 by Saint John Paul II

Thomas Green, S.J. (1932-2009) was an internationally known spiritual director and spiritual writer. His principal responsibility for most of his religious life was spiritual director of San Jose Seminary, Manila, Philippines, and professor of philosophy and theology at Ateneo de Manila University. He published six books about spirituality, which were translated into eleven languages. Posthumously, in 2010, Experiencing God: The Three Stages of Prayer was published. His books integrate Ignatian spirituality with Saint John of the Cross’ mystical and ascetical theology.

Bill Viola (born 1951), a contemporary video artist, is the producer of Room for St. John of the Cross (1983).

“Reading Saint John of the Cross” by Susan Kelly-Dewitt was published in the February 2010 issue of Poetry magazine.

While Saint John of the Cross wrote extensively on mystical and ascetical theology, his poetical output is small. The Poems of Saint John of the Cross, 3rd edition, published in 1995, translated by John Frederick Nims, counts only 23 poems, including the revised version of “The Spiritual Canticle.”

Today there is no doubt that Saint John of the Cross is one of the greats of world literature. Well does he exemplify the adage, Non multa, sed multum.

Saint John of the Cross (1656) by Francisco de Zurbarán