john of the cross - the ascent of mount carmel

8/9/2019 John of the Cross - The Ascent of Mount Carmel

1/1601

JOHN OF HECROSS

HE

ASCENOF

MOUN CARMEL


2/1602


3/160


4/1604

CHAPER 23 96CHAPER 24 98CHAPER 25 101CHAPER 26 101CHAPER 27 106CHAPER 28 109

CHAPER 29 109CHAPER 30 113CHAPER 31 115CHAPER 32 116

BOOK HREE 118CHAPER 2 118CHAPER 3 122CHAPER 4 124

CHAPER 5 124CHAPER 6 125CHAPER 7 126CHAPER 8 127CHAPER 9 128CHAPER 10 129CHAPER 11 130CHAPER 12 130CHAPER 13 131

CHAPER 14 134CHAPER 15 135CHAPER 16 136CHAPER 17 138CHAPER 18 138CHAPER 19 140CHAPER 20 143CHAPER 21 145CHAPER 22 146

CHAPER 23 148CHAPER 24 150CHAPER 25 151CHAPER 26 153CHAPER 27 155CHAPER 28 156CHAPER 29 160


5/1605

HE ASCEN OF MOUN CARMEL

Tis reaise explains how o reach divine union quickly. I presens insrucion and docrine valuab-le or beginners and prociens alike ha hey may learn how o unburden hemselves o all earhlyhings, avoid spiriual obsacles, and live in ha complee nakedness and reedom o spiri necessaryor divine union. I was composed by Padre Fray John o he Cross, Discalced Carmelie.

HEME. Te ollowing sanzas include all he docrine I inend o discuss in his book, Te Ascen o MounCarmel. Tey describe he way ha leads o he summi o he moun -- ha high sae o perecionwe here call union o a soul wih God. Since hese sanzas will serve as a basis or all I shall say, I wano cie hem here in ull ha he reader may see in hem a summary o he docrine o be expounded.Ye I will quoe each sanza again beore is explanaion and give he verses separaely i he subjec sorequires.

SANZASA song o he soul's happiness in having passed hrough he dark nigh o aih, in nakedness and pur-gaion, o union wih is Beloved.

1. One dark nigh, red wih love's urgen longings -- ah, he sheer grace! -- I wen ou unseen, myhouse being now all silled.

2. In darkness and secure, by he secre ladder, disguised, -- ah, he sheer grace! -- in darkness and con-cealmen, my house being now all silled.

3. On ha glad nigh, in secre, or no one saw me, nor did I look a anyhing, wih no oher ligh orguide han he one ha burned in my hear.

4. Tis guided me more surely han he ligh o noon o where he was awaiing me -- him I knew so well-- here in a place where no one Appeared.

5. O guiding nigh! O nigh more lovely han he dawn! O nigh ha has unied he Lover wih his

beloved, ransorming he beloved in her Lover.

6. Upon my owering breas which I kep wholly or him alone, here he lay sleeping, and I caressinghim here in a breeze rom he anning cedars.

7. When he breeze blew rom he urre, as I pared his hair, i wounded my neck wih is genle hand,suspending all my senses.

8. I abandoned and orgo mysel, laying my ace on my Beloved; all hings ceased; I wen ou rom

mysel, leaving my cares orgoten among he lilies.


6/1606

PROLOGUE

P.1. A deeper enlighenmen and wider experience han mine is necessary o explain he dark nighhrough which a soul journeys oward ha divine ligh o perec union wih God ha is achieved,insoar as possible in his lie, hrough love. Te darknesses and rials, spiriual and emporal, ha or-

unae souls ordinarily undergo on heir way o he high sae o perecion are so numerous and pro-ound ha human science canno undersand hem adequaely. Nor does experience o hem equipone o explain hem. Only hose who suer hem will know wha his experience is like, bu hey won'be able o describe i.

P.2. In discussing his dark nigh, hereore, I will no rely on experience or science, or hese can ailand deceive us. Alhough I will no neglec whaever possible use I can make o hem, my help in allha, wih God's avor, I shall say, will be Sacred Scripure, a leas in he mos imporan maters, orhose ha are dicul o undersand. aking Scripure as our guide we do no err, since he Holy Spiri

speaks o us hrough i. Should I misundersand or be misaken on some poin, wheher I deduce irom Scripure or no, I will no be inending o deviae rom he rue meaning o Sacred Scripure orrom he docrine o our Holy Moher he Caholic Church. Should here be some misake, I submienirely o he Church, or even o anyone who judges more compeenly abou he mater han I.

P.3. I am no underaking his arduous ask because o any paricular condence in my own abiliies.Raher, I am conden ha he Lord will help me explain his mater because i is exremely neces-sary o so many souls. Even hough hese souls have begun o walk along he road o virue, and ourLord desires o place hem in he dark nigh ha hey may move on o he divine union, hey do no

advance. Te reason or his may be ha someimes hey do no wan o ener he dark nigh or allowhemselves o be placed in i, or ha someimes hey misundersand hemselves and are wihou sui-able and aler direcors who will show hem he way o he summi. God gives many souls he alenand grace or advancing, and should hey desire o make he eor hey would arrive a his high sae.And so i is sad o see hem coninue in heir lowly mehod o communion wih God because hey dono wan or know how o advance, or because hey receive no direcion on breaking away rom hemehods o beginners. Even i our Lord nally comes o heir aid o he exen o making hem advan-ce wihou hese helps, hey reach he summi much laer, expend more eor, and gain less meri,

because hey do no willingly adap hemselves o God's work o placing hem on he pure and reliableroad leading o union. Alhough God does lead hem -- since he can do so wihou heir cooperaion-- hey do no accep his guidance. In resising God who is conducing hem, hey make litle progressand ail in meri because hey do no apply heir wills; as a resul hey mus endure greaer suering.Some souls, insead o abandoning hemselves o God and cooperaing wih him, hamper him by heirindiscree aciviy or heir resisance. Tey resemble children who kick and cry and sruggle o walk byhemselves when heir mohers wan o carry hem; in walking by hemselves hey make no headway,or i hey do, i is a a child's pace.

P.4. Wih God's help, hen, we will propose docrine and counsel or beginners and prociens hahey may undersand or a leas know how o pracice abandonmen o God's guidance when Hewans hem o advance.1 P.4.(2). Some spiriual ahers are likely o be a hindrance and harm raherhan a help o hese souls ha journey on his road. Such direcors have neiher undersanding nor


7/1607

experience o hese ways. Tey are like he builders o he ower o Babel [Gn. 11:1-9]. When hesebuilders were supposed o provide he proper maerials or he projec, hey brough enirely dierensupplies because hey ailed o undersand he language. And hus nohing was accomplished. Hence,i is arduous and dicul or a soul in hese periods o he spiriual lie when i canno undersand iselor nd anyone else who undersands i.

P.4.(3).I will happen o individuals ha while hey are being conduced by God along a sublime paho dark conemplaion and aridiy, in which hey eel los and lled wih darknesses, rials, conics,and empaions, hey will mee someone who, in he syle o Job's comorers [Jb. 4:8-11], will proc-laim ha all o his is due o melancholia, depression, or emperamen, or o some hidden wickedness,and ha as a resul God has orsaken hem. Tereore he usual verdic is ha hese individuals mushave lived an evil lie since such rials aic hem.

P.5. Oher direcors will ell hem ha hey are alling back since hey nd no saisacion or consola-ion as hey previously did in he hings o God. Such alk only doubles he rial o a poor soul. I will

happen ha he soul's greaes suering will be caused by he knowledge o is own miseries. Ta iis ull o evil and sin is as clear as day o i, and even clearer, or, as we shall say urher on, God is heauhor o his enlighenmen in he nigh o conemplaion. And when his soul nds someone whoagrees wih wha i eels (ha hese rials are all is own aul), is suering and disress grow wihoubounds. And his suering usually becomes worse han deah. Such a conessor is no saised wihhis bu, in judging hese rials o be he resul o sin, he urges souls who endure hem o go over heirpas and make many general conessions -- which is anoher crucixion. Te direcor does no under-sand ha now perhaps is no he ime or such aciviy. Indeed, i is a period or leaving hese personsalone in he purgaion God is working in hem, a ime o give comor and encouragemen ha hey

may desire o endure his suering as long as God wills, or unil hen no remedy -- whaever he souldoes, or he conessor says -- is adequae.

P.6. Wih divine help we will discuss all his: how individuals should behave; wha mehod he con-essor should use in dealing wih hem; signs o recognize his puricaion o he soul ha we call hedark nigh; wheher i is he puricaion o he senses or o he spiri; and how we can discern wheherhis aicion is caused by melancholia or some oher deciency o sense or spiri.

P.6.(2). Some souls -- or heir conessors -- may hink ha God is leading hem along his road o hedark nigh o spiriual purgaion, bu perhaps his will no be so. Wha hey suer will be due o one ohese deciencies. Likewise, many individuals hink hey are no praying when, indeed, heir prayer isdeep. Ohers place high value on heir prayer while i amouns o litle more han nohing. P.7. Somepeople -- and i is sad o see hem -- work and ire hemselves grealy, and ye go backward; hey lookor progress in wha brings no progress bu insead hinders hem. Ohers, in peace and ranquiliy,coninue o advance well. Some ohers le hemselves be encumbered by he very consolaions andavors God besows on hem or he sake o heir advancing, and hey advance no a all.

P.7.(2). We will also discuss many oher experiences o hose who walk along his road: joys, aic-ions, hopes, and sorrows -- some o hese originaing rom he spiri o perecion, ohers rom hespiri o imperecion. Our goal will be o explain, wih God's help, all hese poins so ha hose whoread his book will in some way discover he road hey are walking along, and he one hey ough o


8/1608

ollow i hey wan o reach he summi o his moun. P.8. Readers should no be surprised i his doc-rine on he dark nigh -- hrough which a soul advances oward God -- appears somewha obscure.Tis, I believe, will be he case as hey begin o read, bu as hey read on hey will undersand i betersince he later pars will explain he ormer. Ten, i hey read his work a second ime, he mater willseem clearer and he docrine sounder.

P.8.(2). Bu i some people sill nd diculy in undersanding his docrine, i will be due o mydecien knowledge and awkward syle, or he docrine isel is good and very necessary. Bu I am in-clined o believe ha, even i i were presened wih greaer accuracy and polish, only a ew would ndpro in i, because we are no wriing on moral and pleasing opics addressed o he kind o spiriualpeople who like o approach God along swee and saisying pahs. We are presening a subsanial andsolid docrine or all hose who desire o reach his nakedness o spiri.

P.9. My main inenion is no o address everyone, bu only some o he persons o our holy order ohe primiive observance o Moun Carmel, boh riars and nuns, whom God avors by puting on he

pah leading up his moun, since hey are he ones who asked me o wrie his work. Because hey arealready deached o a grea exen rom he emporal hings o his world, hey will more easily grasphis docrine on nakedness o spiri.

BOOK ONE

CHAPER 1

1. Some remarks abou he wo dieren nighs hrough which spiriual persons pass in boh he lower andhigher pars o heir naure. A commenary on he rs sanza.

[Firs Sanza]

One dark nigh,red wih love's urgen longings

-- ah, he sheer grace! -ou unseen,

my house being now all silled.

1.1. Te soul sings in his rs sanza o is good luck and he grace i had in deparing rom is inordi-nae sensory appeies and imperecions. o undersand his deparure one should know ha a soulmus ordinarily pass hrough wo principal kinds o nigh -- which spiriual persons call purgaions orpuricaions o he soul -- in order o reach he sae o perecion. Here we will erm hese purgaionsnighs because in boh o hem he soul journeys in darkness as hough by nigh.

1.2. Te rs nigh or purgaion, o which his sanza reers and which will be discussed in he rs

secion o his book, concerns he sensory par o he soul. Te second nigh, o which he secondsanza reers, concerns he spiriual par. We will deal wih his second nigh, insoar as i is acive, inhe second and hird secions o he book. In he ourh secion we will discuss he nigh insoar as iis passive.


9/1609

1.3. Tis rs nigh is he lo o beginners, a he ime God commences o inroduce hem ino he saeo conemplaion. I is a nigh in which heir spiri also paricipaes, as we will explain in due ime. Tesecond nigh or puricaion akes place in hose who are already prociens, a he ime God desires olead hem ino he sae o divine union. Tis purgaion, o course, is more obscure, dark, and dreadul,as we will subsequenly poin ou.

Commenary on he Sanza

1.4. In his sanza he soul desires o declare in summary ashion ha i depared on a dark nigh, a-raced by God and enkindled wih love or him alone. Tis dark nigh is a privaion and purgaion oall sensible appeies or he exernal hings o he world, he delighs o he esh, and he graicaionso he will. All his deprivaion is wrough in he purgaion o sense. Ta is why he poem proclaimsha he soul depared when is house was silled, or he appeies o he sensory par were silled and

asleep in he soul, and he soul was silled in hem. One is no reed rom he suerings and anguisho he conning appeies unil hey are empered and pu o sleep. So i was a sheer grace, he souldeclares, o have gone ou unseen wihou encumbrance rom he appeies o he esh, or rom any-hing else. I was also orunae he deparure ook place a nigh; ha is, ha God ook rom he soulall hese hings hrough a privaion ha was a nigh o i.

1.5. I was a sheer grace o be placed by God in his nigh ha occasioned so much good. Te soulwould no have succeeded in enering i, because souls are unable alone o empy hemselves o allheir appeies in order o reach God.

1.6. Summarily, hen, we have an explanaion o he rs sanza. Now we will expound on i verse byverse and explain whaever perains o our subjec. We will ollow he mehod menioned in he pro-logue: rs cie each sanza and commen on i; hen, he individual verses.3

CHAPER 2

Te naure o he dark nigh hrough which a soul journeys o divine union.

One dark night

2.1. We can oer hree reasons or calling his journey oward union wih God a nigh.

2.1.(2) Te rs has o do wih he poin o deparure, because individuals mus deprive hemselves oheir appeies or worldly possessions. Tis denial and privaion is like a nigh or all one's senses.

2.1.(3). Te second reason reers o he means or he road along which a person ravels o his union.Now his road is aih, and or he inellec aih is also like a dark nigh.

2.1.(4). Te hird reason perains o he poin o arrival, namely God. And God is also a dark nigh o


10/16010

he soul in his lie. Tese hree nighs pass hrough a soul, or beter, he soul passes hrough hem inorder o reach union wih God.

2.2. Tey are represened in he Book o obias [b. 6:18-22], where we read ha he angel orderedhe young obias o wai hree nighs beore any union wih his bride.

2.2.(2). On he rs nigh he was o burn he sh hear in he re. Ta hear signied he human hearha is atached o worldly hings. o underake he journey o God he hear mus be burned wihhe re o divine love and puried o all creaures. Such a purgaion pus he devil o igh, or he haspower over people hrough heir atachmen o emporal and bodily hings.

2.3. obias, on he second nigh, as he angel old him, was o be admited ino he sociey o he holypariarchs, he ahers o he aih. Afer passing hrough he rs nigh (he privaion o all sensible ob-jecs), a person eners he second nigh by living in aih alone; no in a aih ha is exclusive o chariybu a aih ha excludes oher inellecual knowledge, as we shall explain laer, or aih does no all

ino he province o he senses.

2.4. Te angel old obias ha on he hird nigh he would obain he blessing, which is God. God,by means o aih, which is he second nigh, communicaes himsel so secrely and inimaely ha hebecomes anoher nigh or he soul. Tis communicaion o God is a nigh much darker han hoseoher wo nighs, as we will soon poin ou. When his hird nigh (God's communicaion o he spiri,which usually occurs in exreme darkness o soul) has passed, a union wih he bride, who is he Wis-dom o God, hen ollows. obias was also old by he angel ha, afer he hird nigh had come o anend, he would be joined o his bride in he ear o he Lord. Now when he ear o God is perec, love

is also perec, which means ha he ransormaion o he soul in God hrough love is accomplished.

2.5. In acualiy hese hree nighs comprise only one nigh, a nigh divided ino hree pars like nauralnigh. Te rs par, he nigh o he senses, resembles early evening, ha ime o wiligh when hingsbegin o ade rom sigh. Te second par, aih, is compleely dark, like midnigh. Te hird par, re-presening God, is like he very early dawn jus beore he break o day. o provide urher enlighen-men abou all his, we will discuss each o hese causes o nigh separaely.

CHAPER 3Te rs cause o his nigh -- he privaion o he appeie in all hings.

he reason or he use o he expression "nigh."

3.1. We are using he expression "nigh" o signiy a deprival o he graicaion o he soul's appeiesin all hings. Jus as nigh is nohing bu he privaion o ligh and, consequenly, o all objecs visibleby means o he ligh -- darkness and empiness, hen, or he aculy o sigh -- he moricaion o he

appeies can be called a nigh or he soul. o deprive onesel o he graicaion o he appeies in allhings is like living in darkness and in a void.1 Te eye eeds on is objecs by means o ligh in such away ha when he ligh is exinguished he eye no longer sees hem. Similarly do people by means oheir appeies eed and pasure on worldly hings ha graiy heir aculies. When he appeies are


11/16011

exinguished -- or moried -- one no longer eeds on he pleasure o hese hings, bu lives in a voidand in darkness wih respec o he appeies.

3.2. Le us draw an example rom each o he aculies. By depriving isel o is appeies or he delighso hearing, a soul lives in darkness and empiness in his sense aculy. And by depriving isel o hepleasure o seeing hings, i lives in darkness and povery in he aculy o sigh. By denying isel he

ragrances pleasing o he sense o smell, a soul abides in empiness and darkness in his sense aculy.Ten oo by denying he palae he pleasures o delicious oods, i is also in he void and in darkness inhe sense o ase. Finally, by moriying isel o all he delighs and saisacions o he sense o ouch,a soul likewise dwells in darkness and in a void in his aculy. Te conclusion is ha any individualswho may have denied and rejeced he graicaion ha all hings aord hem, by moriying heirappeie or hem, live as hough in he nigh -- in darkness, which is nohing else han a void wihinhem o all hings.

3.3. Te cause o his darkness is atribuable o he ac ha -- as he scholasic philosophers say -- he

soul is like a abula rasa [a clean slae] when God inuses i ino he body. Wihou he knowledge i re-ceives hrough is senses i would be ignoran, because no knowledge is communicaed o i naurallyrom any oher source. Accordingly, he presence o he soul in he body resembles he presence o aprisoner in a dark dungeon who knows no more han wha he manages o behold hrough he win-dows o his prison and has nowhere else o urn i nohing is seen hrough hem. For he soul possessesno oher naural means o perceiving wha is communicaed o i han he senses (he windows o isprison).

3.4. We can easily arm ha i a soul denies whaever is percepible hrough he senses, i lives in

darkness and in a void since ligh can ener by no oher naural means han hese ve senses. Nowi is rue ha he sensory percepions o hearing, sigh, smell, ase, and ouch are unavoidable; yehey will no more hinder a soul -- i i denies hem -- han i hey were no experienced. I is rue alsoha hose desiring o keep heir eyes closed will live in darkness jus like he blind. David says on hissubjec: Pauper sum ego, e in laboribus a juvenue mea. (I am poor and in labors rom my youh)[Ps. 88:15]. Even hough he was maniesly rich, he says he was poor because his will was no xed onriches; and he hereby lived as hough really poor. On he oher hand, had he been acually poor, wi-hou his will being so, here would have been no rue povery, because he appeie o his soul would

have been rich and ull.

3.4.(2). Hence, we call his nakedness a nigh or he soul, or we are no discussing he mere lack ohings; his lack will no dives he soul i i craves or all hese objecs. We are dealing wih he denu-daion o he soul's appeies and graicaions. Tis is wha leaves i ree and empy o all hings, evenhough i possesses hem. Since he hings o he world canno ener he soul, hey are no in hem-selves an encumbrance or harm o i; raher, i is he will and appeie dwelling wihin ha cause hedamage when se on hese hings.

3.5. Tis rs kind o nigh reers o he sensory par o he soul, and i is one o he wo nighs men-ioned above hrough which a person mus pass o reach union wih God. I is ime o explain howting i is ha he soul leaves is house and journey hrough his dark nigh oward union wih God.


12/16012

CHAPER 4

Te necessiy o ruly passing hrough his dark nigh o sense (he moricaion o he appeies)in order o journey o union wih God.

4.1. Te necessiy o pass hrough his dark nigh (he moricaion o he appeies and denial o plea-sure in all hings) o atain divine union wih God arises rom he ac ha all o a person's atachmens

o creaures are pure darkness in God's sigh. Clohed in hese aecions, people are incapable o he

enlighenmen and dominaing ullness o God's pure and simple ligh; rs hey mus rejec hem.Tere can be no concordance beween ligh and darkness; as S. John says: enebrae eam no compre-henderun (Te darkness could no receive he ligh) [Jn. 1:5].

4.2. Te reason, as we learn in philosophy, is ha wo conraries canno coexis in he same subjec.1Darkness, an atachmen o creaures, and ligh, which is God, are conraries and bear no likeness o-ward each oher, as S. Paul eaches in his leter o he Corinhians: Quae convenio lucis ad enebras?

(Wha conormiy is here beween ligh and darkness?) [2 Cor. 6:14] Consequenly, he ligh o divi-ne union canno be esablished in he soul unil hese aecions are eradicaed.

4.3. For a beter proo o his, i ough o be kep in mind ha an atachmen o a creaure makes a per-son equal o ha creaure; he sronger he atachmen, he closer is he likeness o he creaure and hegreaer he equaliy, or love eecs a likeness beween he lover and he loved. As a resul David saido hose who se heir hears on heir idols: Similes illis an qui aciun ea, e omnes qui condun ineis (Le all who se heir hears on hem become like hem) [Ps. 115:8]. Anyone who loves a creaure,hen, is as low as ha creaure and in some way even lower because love no only equaes bu even

subjecs he lover o he loved creaure.

4.3.(2). By he mere ac ha a soul loves somehing, i becomes incapable o pure union and rans-ormaion in God; or he lowness o he creaure is ar less capable o he heigh o he Creaor hanis darkness o ligh.

4.3.(3). All creaures o heaven and earh are nohing when compared o God, as Jeremiah poins ou:Aspexi erram, e ecce vacua era e nihil; e caelos, e non era lux in eis (I looked a he earh, and i

was empy and nohing; and a he heavens, and I saw hey had no ligh) [Jer. 4:23]. By saying ha hesaw an empy earh, he mean ha all is creaures were nohing and ha he earh oo was nohing. Insaing ha he looked up o he heavens and beheld no ligh, he mean ha all he heavenly luminari-es were pure darkness in comparison o God. All creaures considered in his way are nohing, and aperson's atachmens o hem are less han nohing since hese atachmens are an impedimen o anddeprive he soul o ransormaion in God -- jus as darkness is nohing and less han nohing since iis a privaion o ligh. One who is in darkness does no comprehend he ligh, so neiher will a personatached o creaures be able o comprehend God. Unil a soul is purged o is atachmens i will beunable o possess God, neiher here below hrough he pure ransormaion o love nor in heaven

hrough he beaic vision. For he sake o greaer clariy we will be more specic.

4.4. We jus assered ha all he being o creaures compared o he innie being o God is nohingand ha, hereore, anyone atached o creaures is nohing in he sigh o God, and even less han no-


13/16013

hing because love causes equaliy and likeness and even brings he lover lower han he loved objec.In no way, hen, is such a person capable o union wih he innie being o God. Tere is no likenessbeween wha is no and wha is. o be paricular, here are some examples.

4.4.(2). All he beauy o creaures compared o he innie beauy o God is he heigh o ugliness. AsSolomon says in Proverbs: Fallax graia, e vana es pulchriudo (Comeliness is deceiving and beauy

vain) [Prv. 31:30]. So a person atached o he beauy o any creaure is exremely ugly in God's sigh.A soul so unsighly is incapable o ransormaion ino he beauy ha is God because ugliness doesno atain o beauy.

4.4.(3). All he grace and elegance o creaures compared o God's grace is uter coarseness and crudi-y. Ta is why a person capivaed by his grace and elegance o creaures becomes highly coarse andcrude in God's sigh. Someone like his is incapable o he innie grace and beauy o God because ohe exreme dierence beween he coarse and he inniely elegan.

4.4.(4). Compared o he innie goodness o God, all he goodness o he creaures o he world canbe called wickedness. Nohing is good save God only [Lk. 18:19]. Tose who se heir hears on hegood hings o he world become exremely wicked in he sigh o God. Since wickedness does nocomprehend goodness, such persons will be incapable o union wih God, who is supreme goodness.

4.4.(5). All he world's wisdom and human abiliy compared o he innie wisdom o God is pure anduter ignorance, as S. Paul wries o he Corinhians: Sapienia hujus mundi suliia es apud Deum(Te wisdom o his world is oolishness in God's sigh) [1 Cor. 3:19].

4.5. Tose, hereore, who value heir knowledge and abiliy as a means o reaching union wih hewisdom o God are highly ignoran in God's sigh and will be lef behind, ar away rom his wisdom.Ignorance does no grasp wha wisdom is. S. Paul says ha such wisdom is oolishness o God, or inGod's sigh hose who hink hey have some wisdom are very ignoran. Te Aposle says o hem inwriing o he Romans: Dicenes enim se esse sapienes, suli aci sun (aking hemselves or wise,hey became ools) [Rom. 1:22].

4.5.(2). Only hose who se aside heir own knowledge and walk in God's service like unlearned child-

ren receive wisdom rom God. Tis is he wisdom abou which S. Paul augh he Corinhians: Si quisvideur iner vos sapiens esse in hoc saeculo, sulus a u si sapiens. Sapienia enim hujus mundi sul-iia es apud Deum (I anyone among you hinks he is wise, le him become ignoran so as o be wise.For he wisdom o his world is oolishness wih God) [1 Cor. 3:18-19]. Accordingly, o reach unionwih he wisdom o God a person mus advance by unknowing raher han by knowing.

4.6. All he sovereigny and reedom o he world compared o he reedom and sovereigny o heSpiri o God is uter slavery, anguish, and capiviy. Tose, hen, who are atached o prelacies or ooher such digniies and o reedom o heir appeies will be considered and reaed by God as base

slaves and capives, no as ospring. And his because o heir no waning o accep his holy eachingin which he insrucs us ha Whoever wans o be he greaer will be he leas, and whoever wanso be he leas will be he greaer [Lk. 22:26]. Tus hey will be unable o reach he royal reedom ospiri atained in divine union, or reedom has nohing o do wih slavery. And reedom canno abide


14/16014

in a hear dominaed by desires, in a slave's hear. I abides in a liberaed hear, in a child's hear. Tisis why Sarah old her husband Abraham o cas ou he bondwoman and her son, declaring ha hebondwoman's son should no be an heir ogeher wih he ree son [Gn. 21:10].

4.7. All he delighs and saisacions o he will in he hings o he world compared o all he delighha is God are inense suering, ormen, and biterness. Tose who link heir hears o hese delighs,

hen, deserve in God's eyes inense suering, ormen, and biterness. Tey will no be capable o atai-ning he delighs o he embrace o union wih God, since hey meri suering and biterness.

4.7.(2). All he wealh and glory o creaion compared o he wealh ha is God is uter povery andmisery in he Lord's sigh. Te person who loves and possesses hese hings is compleely poor andmiserable beore God and will be unable o atain he richness and glory o ransormaion in God; hemiserable and poor is very ar rom he supremely rich and glorious.

4.8. Divine Wisdom, wih piy or hese souls ha become ugly, abjec, miserable, and poor because

o heir love or worldly hings, which in heir opinion are rich and beauiul, exclaims in Proverbs: Oviri, ad vos clamio, e vox mea ad lios hominum. Inelligie, parvuli, asuiam, e insipienes, animad-vere. Audie quia de rebus magnis locuura sum. And urher on: Mecum sun diviiae e gloria, opessuperbae e jusiia. Melior es rucus meus auro e lapide preioso, e genimina mea argeno eleco. Inviis jusiiae ambulo, in medio semiarum judicii, u diem diligenes me, e hesauros eorum repleam.Te meaning o his passage is: O people, I cry o you, my voice is direced o he children o his earh.Be atenive, litle ones, o cunning and sagaciy; and you ignoran, be careul. Lisen, because I wan ospeak o grea hings. Riches and glory are mine, high riches and jusice. Te rui you will nd in meis beter han gold and precious sones; and my generaions (wha will be engendered o me in your

souls) are beter han choice silver. I walk along he ways o jusice, in he mids o he pahs o judg-men, o enrich hose who love me and o ll heir reasures compleely [Prv. 8:4-6, 18-21].

4.8.(2). Divine Wisdom speaks, here, o all hose who are atached o he hings o he world. Shecalls hem litle ones because hey become as litle as he hings hey love. She ells hem, accordingly,o be cunning and careul, ha she is dealing wih grea hings, no small hings, as hey are; and hahe riches and glory hey love are wih her and in her, no where hey hink; and ha lofy riches andjusice are presen in her. Alhough in heir opinion he hings o his world are riches, she ells hem

o bear in mind ha her riches are more precious, ha he rui ound in hem will be beter han goldand precious sones, and ha wha she beges in souls has greaer value han cherished silver, whichsignies every kind o aecion possible in his lie.

CHAPER 55. Coninuaion o he same mater. Proos om passages and gures o Sacred Scripure or he necessiy o

journeying o God hrough his dark nigh, he moricaion o he appeies.

5.1. We have some idea, rom wha was said, o he disance ha lies beween wha creaures are inhemselves and wha God is in himsel, and, since love produces equaliy and likeness, o how souls


15/16015

atached o any o hese creaures are jus as disan rom God. Wih a clear realizaion o his disance,S. Augusine addressed God in he Soliloquies: Miserable man ha I am, when will my pusillanimiyand imperecion be able o conorm wih your righeousness? You indeed are good, and I evil; Youare merciul, and I unmerciul; You are holy, and I miserable; You are jus, and I unjus; You are ligh,and I blindness; You are lie, and I deah; You are medicine, and I sickness; You are supreme ruh; andI uter vaniy.1 Tese are he words o he sain.

5.2. People, indeed, are ignoran who hink i is possible o reach his high sae o union wih Godwihou rs empying heir appeie o all he naural and supernaural hings ha can be a hindranceo hem, as we will explain urher on. For here is an exreme disance beween such appeies andha which is given in his sae, which is nohing less han ransormaion in God. Insrucing us abouhis way, our Lord saed according o S. Luke: Qui non renunia omnibus quae posside, non poesmeus esse discipulus (Whoever does no renounce all ha he will possesses canno be my disciple)[Lk. 14:33]. Tis saemen is clear, or he docrine he Son o Man came o each is conemp or allhings so we may receive he gif o God's Spiri. As long as people ail o rid hemselves o hese pos-

sessions, hey are incapable o receiving God's Spiri in pure ransormaion.

5.3. We have a gure o his in Exodus [Ex. 16] where we read ha God did no give he children oIsrael he heavenly manna unil hey exhaused he our brough rom Egyp. Te meaning here is hars a oal renunciaion is needed, or his bread o angels is disagreeable o he palae o anyone whowans o ase human ood. Persons eeding on oher srange ases no only become incapable o hedivine Spiri, bu even grealy anger he divine Majesy because in heir aspiraions or spiriual oodhey are no saised wih God alone, bu mix wih hese aspiraions a desire and aecion or oherhings. Tis is likewise apparen in he same book o Sacred Scripure [Ex. 16:8-13] where i saes

ha he people, disconened wih ha simple ood, requesed and craved mea, and seriously angeredour Lord because o heir desire o commingle a ood so base and coarse wih one so high and simpleha, even hough simple, conained he savor and subsance o all oods. Consequenly, while morselso manna were ye in heir mouhs, he wrah o God descended on hem (as David also says: Ira Deidescendi super eos [Ps. 78:31]), spouing re rom heaven and reducing housands o hem o ashes[Nm. 11:1]. For God hough i shameul or hem o crave oher ood while he was giving hem hea-venly ood.

5.4. Oh, i spiriual persons knew how much spiriual good and abundance hey lose by no atempingo raise heir appeies above childish hings, and i hey knew o wha exen, by no desiring he aseo hese ries, hey would discover in his simple spiriual ood he savor o all hings! Te Israeliesdid no perceive he ase o every oher ood ha was conained in he manna, because heir appeiewas no cenered on his manna alone. Tey were unsuccessul in deriving rom he manna all he aseand srengh hey were looking or, no because he manna didn' have hese bu because o heir cra-ving or oher oods. Similarly, hose who love somehing ogeher wih God undoubedly make litleo God, or hey weigh in he balance wih God an objec ar disan rom God, as we have said.

5.5. I is well known rom experience ha when he will is atached o an objec, i eseems ha objechigher han any oher, even hough anoher, no as pleasing, may deserve higher admiraion. And ipeople desire pleasure rom wo objecs, hey are necessarily oensive o he more deserving becausehrough heir desire or boh hey equae he wo. Since nohing equals God, hose who love and are


16/16016

atached o somehing along wih God oend him exceedingly. I his is rue, wha would happen ihey loved somehing more han God?

5.6. Tis was also indicaed when God ordered Moses o climb o he op o he mounain. He did hisha Moses migh be able o speak o him. He commanded Moses no only o ascend alone and leavehe children o Israel below, bu o rule agains even he pasuring o beass on he mounainside [Ex.

34:3]. Te meaning is ha hose who ascend his moun o perecion o converse wih God mus noonly renounce all hings by leaving hem a he botom, bu also resric heir appeies (he beass)rom pasuring on he mounainside, on hings ha are no purely God. For in God, or in he sae operecion, all appeies cease.

5.6.(2). Te road and ascen o God, hen, necessarily demands a habiual eor o renounce andmoriy he appeies; he sooner his moricaion is achieved, he sooner he soul reaches he op.Bu unil he appeies are eliminaed, one will no arrive no mater how much virue is praciced. Forone will be ailing o acquire perec virue, which lies in keeping he soul empy, naked, and puried

o every appeie.

5.6.(3). We also have a sriking gure o his in Genesis. When he pariarch Jacob desired o ascendMoun Behel o build an alar o oer sacrice o God, he rs ordered his people o do hree hings:desroy all srange gods; puriy hemselves; and change heir garmens [Gn. 35:2].

5.7. Tose desiring o climb o he summi o he moun in order o become an alar or he oering oa sacrice o pure love and praise and reverence o God mus rs accomplish hese hree asks perec-ly. Firs, hey mus cas ou srange gods, all alien aecions and atachmens. Second, by denying hese

appeies and repening o hem -- hrough he dark nigh o he senses -- hey mus puriy hemselveso he residue. Tird, in order o reach he op o his high moun, heir garmens mus be changed. Bymeans o he rs wo works, God will subsiue new garmens or he old. Te soul will be clohedin a new undersanding o God in God (hrough removal o he old undersanding) and in a new loveo God in God, once he will is sripped o all he old cravings and saisacions. And God will ves hesoul wih new knowledge when he oher old ideas and images are cas aside [Col. 3:9]. He causes allha is o he old sel, he abiliies o one's naural being, o cease, and he atires all he aculies wihnew supernaural abiliies. As a resul, one's aciviies, once human, now become divine. Tis is achie-

ved in he sae o union when he soul, in which God alone dwells, has no oher uncion han ha oan alar on which God is adored in praise and love.

5.7.(2). God commanded ha he alar o he Ark o he Covenan be empy and hollow [Ex. 27:8]o remind he soul how void o all hings God wishes i o be i i is o serve as a worhy dwelling orHis Majesy. I was orbidden ha he alar have any srange re, or ha is own go ou; so much soha when Nadab and Abihu, he sons o he high pries Aaron, oered srange re on our Lord's alarGod became angry and slew hem here in ron o he alar [Lv. 10:1-2]. Te lesson we derive here isha one's love or God mus never ail or be mixed wih alien loves i one wans o be a worhy alar o

sacrice.

5.8. God allows nohing else o dwell ogeher wih him. We read, consequenly, in he Firs Book oKings ha when he Philisines pu he Ark o he Covenan in a emple wih heir idol, he idol was


17/16017

hurled o he ground a he dawn o each day and broken ino pieces [1 Sm. 5:2-4]. Te only appeieGod permis and wans in his dwelling place is he desire or he perec ulllmen o his law and hecarrying o he cross o Chris. Scripure eaches ha God ordered nohing else o be placed in heArk where he manna was han he Law and he rod o Moses (signiying he cross) [D. 31: 6; Nm.17:10]. Tose who have no oher goal han he perec observance o he Lord's law and he carryingo he cross o Chris will be rue arks, and hey will bear wihin hemselves he real manna, which is

God, when hey possess perecly, wihou anyhing else, his law and his rod.

CHAPER 66. Te harm, privaive as well as posiive, ha appeies cause in he soul.

6.1. For he sake o a clearer and uller undersanding o our asserions, i will be benecial o explainhere how hese appeies cause harm in wo principal ways wihin hose in whom hey dwell: Tey

deprive hem o God's Spiri; and hey weary, ormen, darken, dele, and weaken hem. Jeremiahmenions his in Chaper 2: Duo mala eci populus meus: dereliquerun onem aquae vivae, e o-derun sibi cisernas dissipaas, quae coninere non valen aquas (Tey have orsaken me, he ounaino living waer, and dug or hemselves leaking ciserns ha hold no waer) [ Jer. 2:13]. Any inordinaeac o he appeie causes boh his privaive and posiive damage.

6.1.(2). o begin wih, i is clear in speaking o he privaive harm ha a person by mere atachmen oa creaed hing is less capable o God; and his, in he measure ha he appeie has eniy in he soul.For wo conraries canno coexis in he same subjec, as he philosophers say, and as we also meni-

oned in Chaper 4.1 Since love o God and atachmen o creaures are conraries, hey canno coexisin he same will. Wha has creaure o do wih Creaor, sensory wih spiriual, visible wih invisible,emporal wih eernal, heavenly ood ha is pure and spiriual wih ood ha is enirely sensory, henakedness o Chris wih atachmen o somehing?

6.2. In naural generaion a new orm canno be inroduced ino a subjec wihou expulsion o heorm already here, which is an impedimen o he new orm because o he exising conrariey. Simi-larly, insoar as a person is subjec o a sensory spiri, an enirely spiriual one canno ener. Tis is why

our Lord said hrough S. Mathew: Non es bonum sumere panem liorum e mitere canibus (I isunbecoming o ake he children's bread and give i o he dogs) [M. 15:26]. Also in anoher par hesays hrough he same evangelis: Nolie sancum dare canibus (Do no give wha is holy o he dogs)[M. 7:6]. All hose who dispose hemselves or he pure recepion o God's Spiri hrough he denialo heir appeies or creaures, our Lord compares o he children o God. And all hose who desire oeed heir appeies on creaures, he compares o he dogs. I is he privilege o children o ea a ablewih heir aher and rom his dish, which is o share in his Spiri; bu he dogs mus ea he crumbsha all rom he able [M. 15: 26-27].

6.3. Our lesson here is ha all creaures are like crumbs ha have allen rom God's able. Tose whogo abou eeding on creaures, hen, are righly designaed as dogs and are deprived o he children'sbread because hey reuse o rise rom he crumbs o creaures o he uncreaed Spiri o heir Faher.Tis is precisely why hey wander abou hungry as dogs. Te crumbs serve more o whe heir appeie


18/16018

han o saisy heir hunger. David says o hem: Famem paienur u canes, e circuibun civiaem. Sivero no uerin saurai, e murmurabun (Tey will suer hunger like dogs, and wander around heciy. And i hey are no lled, hey will murmur) [Ps. 59:14-15]. Tis is he characerisic o hose wihappeies; hey are always dissaised and biter, like someone who is hungry.

6.3.(2). Wha, hen, has he hunger caused by creaures in common wih he ullness caused by he

Spiri o God? Tis uncreaed ullness canno ener a soul unil his oher hunger caused by he desiresis expelled. Since hunger and ullness are conraries hey canno coexis in he same person.

6.4. I will be eviden rom our explanaion ha God accomplishes more in cleansing and purgingpeople o hese conraries han he does in creaing hem rom nohing. Tese impedimens o conraryatachmens and appeies are more opposed and resisan o God han nohingness, or nohingnessdoes no resis.

6.4.(2). Since we have already said a good deal abou his rs kind o harm (resisance o God's Spiri)

caused by he appeies, our commens here should be sucien.

6.5. Le us now deal wih he second eec, he numerous kinds o impairmen wrough in he soul.For he appeies weary, ormen, darken, dele, and weaken i. We shall discuss hese ve eecs se-paraely.

6.6. As or he rs, i is plain ha he appeies are wearisome and iring. Tey resemble litle children,resless and hard o please, always whining o heir moher or his hing or ha, and never saised.Jus as anyone who digs coveously or a reasure grows ired and exhaused, so does anyone who

srives o saisy he appeies' demands become wearied and aigued. And even i a soul does nallyll hem, i is sill always weary because i is never saised. For, afer all, one digs leaking ciserns hacanno conain he waer ha slakes hirs. As Isaiah says: Lassus adhuc sii, e anima ejus vacua es,which means: He is ye ain wih hirs and his soul is empy [Is. 29:8].

6.6.(2). A soul wih desires wearies isel, because i is like someone wih a ever whose hirs increasesby he minue, and who eels ill unil he ever leaves. I is said in he Book o Job: Cum saiaus ueri,arcabiur, aesuabi, e omnis dolor irrue super eum (When he has saised his appeie, he will be

more burdened and oppressed; he hea o appeie will have increased and every sorrow will all uponhim) [Jb. 20:22].

6.6.(3). Te appeies are wearisome and iring because hey agiae and disurb one jus as wind dis-urbs waer. And hey so upse he soul ha hey do no le i res in any place or hing. Isaiah declareso such a soul: Cor impii quasi mare ervens (Te hear o he wicked is like a sormy sea) [Is. 57:20].And anyone who does no conquer he appeies is wicked.

6.6.(4). People seeking he saisacion o heir desires grow ired, because hey are like he amished

who open heir mouhs o saisy hemselves wih air. Bu hey nd ha insead o being lled hemouh dries up more since air is no one's proper ood. Wih his in mind Jeremiah says: In desiderioanimae suae atraxi venum amoris sui (In he appeie o his will he drew in he air o his atachmen)[Jer. 2:24]. o commen on he dryness in which he soul is lef, he immediaely adds he advice:


19/16019

Prohibe pedem uum a nudiae, e gutur uum a sii. Tis means: Hold back your oo (ha is, yourmind) rom nakedness, and your hroa rom hirs (ha is, your will rom saisying is desire, whichonly causes greaer hirs) [Jer. 2:25].

6.6.(5). Jus as a lover is wearied and depressed when on a longed-or day his opporuniy is rusraed,so is he soul wearied and ired by all is appeies and heir ulllmen, because he ulllmen only

causes more hunger and empiness. An appeie, as hey say, is like a re ha blazes up when wood ishrown on i, bu necessarily dies ou when he wood is consumed.

6.7. In regard o he appeies, hings are even worse. Te re dwindles as he wood is consumed, buhe inensiy o he appeie does no diminish when he appeie is saised, even hough he objecis gone. Insead o waning like he re afer he wood is burned, he appeie ains wih aigue be-cause is hunger has increased and is ood diminished. Isaiah reers o his: Declinabi ad dexeram, eesurie; e comede ad sinisram, e non saurabiur (He will urn o he righ and be hungry, and eaoward he lef and no be lled) [Is. 9:20]. When hose who do no moriy heir appeies urn o he

righ, hey o course see he abundance o he swee spiri ha is he lo o hose who are a he righhand o God bu is no graned o hem. When hey ea a he lef (saisy heir appeie wih somecreaure), hey o course grow disconened because, in urning rom wha alone saises, hey eed onwha augmens heir hunger. I is clear, hen, ha he appeies weary and aigue a person.

CHAPER 77. How he appeies ormen a person. Proos hrough comparisons and passages om Sacred Scripure.

7.1. ormen and aicion is he second kind o damage he appeies cause in an individual. Te a-licion hey engender is similar o he orure o he rack, where a person has no relie unil reed romhe ormen o being bound by hese cords. David says o his orure: Funes peccaorum circumplexisun me (Te cords o my sins -- my appeies -- have ighened around me) [Ps. 119:61].

7.1.(2). A soul is ormened and aiced when i reclines on is appeies jus as is someone lyingnaked on horns and nails. Like horns, he appeies wound and hur, sick o a person and cause pain.

David says o hem: Circumdederun me sicu apes, e exarserun sicu ignis in spinis. (Tey circledaround me like bees, sung me, and burned me like re among horns) [Ps. 118:12]. For among heappeies, which are he horns, he re o anguish and ormen increases.

7.1.(3). Jus as a peasan, coveous o he desired harves, goads and ormens he ox ha pulls heplow, so concupiscence, in order o atain he objec o is longing, aics he one who lives under heyoke o he appeies. Tis is eviden in Delilah's desire o know where Samson acquired such srengh.Scripure saes ha he desire was such a aigue and ormen o her ha she ained away and almosdied: Deeci anima ejus, e ad morem usque lassaa es [Jgs. 16:15-16].1

7.2. Te appeie ormens in he measure o is inensiy. Tus here is as much ormen as here is ap-peie, and he more numerous he appeies ha possess a soul he greaer in number are is ormens.In he person possessed by appeies we nd ullled even in his lie wha is said o Babylon in he


20/16020

Apocalypse: Quanum gloricavi se, e in deliciis ui, anum dae illi ormenum e lucum (In hemeasure o her desire or sel-exalaion and ulllmen o her appeies, give her ormen and anguish)[Rv. 18:7].

7.2.(3). Tose who le heir appeies ake hold o hem suer orure and aicion like an enemy heldprisoner. Te Book o Judges conains a gure o his in he passage ha narraes how he enemies

capured mighy Samson, who was once he ree, srong judge o Israel, and weakened him, pulled ouhis eyes, and chained him o grind a he millsone where he was grievously orured and ormened[Jgs. 16:21]. Tis same hing happens o a person in whom he enemy appeies reside and riumph.Firs hese appeies weaken and blind, as we shall poin ou below, hen hey aic and ormen bychaining ha person o he mill o concupiscence, or hey are he chains by which a soul is bound.

7.3. God, hen, wih compassion or all hose who hrough such labor and cos o hemselves srive osaisy he hirs and hunger o heir appeies or creaures, proclaims hrough Isaiah: Omnes siien-es, venie ad aquas; e qui no habeis argenum, properae, emie, e comedie: venie, emie absque

argeno vinum e lac. Quare appendiis argenum non in panibus, e laborem vesrum non in sauri-ae? [Is. 55:12]. Tis is inerpreed: Come o he waers, all you who experience he hirs o yourappeies; and you who have no he silver o your own will and desires, make hase; buy rom me andea; come and buy wine and milk (peace and spiriual sweeness) rom me wihou he silver o yourown will, wihou paying wih labor as you do or he saisacion o your appeies. Why do you oerhe silver o your will or wha is no bread (he bread o he divine Spiri) and wase he eors o yourappeies on wha canno saisy hem? Come, lisen o me, and you will have he ood you desire, andyour soul will deligh in abundance.

7.4. Tis coming o abundance is a going away rom all he pleasures derived hrough creaures, be-cause he creaure ormens while he Spiri o God rereshes. Accordingly, God calls us hrough S.Mathew: Venie ad me, omnes qui laborais e onerais esis, e ego reciam vos, e invenieis requiemanimabus vesris, as hough he were o say: All you going abou ormened, aiced, and weigheddown by your cares and appeies, depar rom hem, come o me and I will reresh you; and you willnd he res or your souls ha he desires ake away rom you [M. 11:28-29]. Tey are indeed a heavyburden, because David says o hem: Sicu onus grave gravaae sun super me [Ps. 37:5].2

CHAPER 88. Te appeies darken and blind a person.

8.1. Te hird kind o harm he appeies bring upon a person is blindness and darkness. Vapors makehe air murky and are a hindrance o he brigh sunshine; a cloudy mirror does no clearly reec aperson's counenance; so oo muddy waer reecs only a hazy image o one's eaures. In jus hisway a person's inellec, clouded by he appeies, becomes dark and impedes he sun o eiher naural

reason or God's supernaural wisdom rom shining wihin and compleely illumining i. As a resulDavid says when speaking o his: Comprehenderun me iniquiaes meae, e non poui u viderem(My iniquiies surrounded me and I was unable o see) [Ps. 40:12].


21/16021

8.2. And because o he darkening o he inellec, he will becomes weak and he memory dull anddisordered in is proper operaion. Since hese aculies depend on he inellec in heir operaions,hey are maniesly disordered and roubled when he inellec is hindered. Tus David says: Animamea urbaa es valde (My soul is exceedingly roubled) [Ps. 6:4]. Tis is like saying he aculies omy soul are disordered. For, as we said, he inellec (as he murky air in relaion o he sun's ligh) isincapable o receiving he illuminaion o God's wisdom; and he will is incapable o embracing God

wihin isel in pure love (jus as he mirror clouded wih seam has no he capaciy o clearly reeche counenance beore i); and he memory obscured by he darkness o appeie has sill less capa-ciy or receiving serenely he impression o God's image (as muddy waer canno clearly reec heeaures o one who looks in i).

8.3. Te appeie blinds and darkens he soul because he appeie as such is blind. I is blind because,o isel, i has no inellec. Reason always acs as a blind person's guide or he appeie. Consequenly,as ofen as people are led by heir appeies, hey are blinded, jus as we migh say ha when a blindperson guides someone who has good eyesigh boh are blind. Te logical oucome is wha our Lord

proclaims in S. Mathew: Si caecus caeco ducaum praese, ambo in oveam cadun. (I one blindperson leads anoher, boh will all ino he dich) [M. 15:14].

8.3.(2). A moh is no helped much by is eyes because, blinded in is desire or he beauy o ligh, iwill y direcly ino a bonre. Tose who eed on heir appeies are like a sh dazzled by a ligh ha sodarkens i ha he sherman's snares canno be seen. David describes his blindness well: Supercecidiignis, e non viderun solem (Fire, ha gives o hea and dazzles by is ligh, came upon hem) [Ps. 58:89]. Te appeies cause his in he soul: Tey enkindle concupiscence and overwhelm he inellec soha i canno see is ligh. Te reason is ha a new ligh se direcly in ron o he visual aculy blinds

his aculy so ha i ails o see he ligh arher away. And since he appeie is so close o individualsas o be acually wihin hem, hey are impeded by his inerior ligh, eed upon i, and are unable osee he clear ligh o he inellec; nor will hey see i unil hey exinguish his blinding ligh o heirappeie.

8.4. Te ignorance o some is exremely lamenable; hey burden hemselves wih exraordinary pe-nances and many oher exercises, hinking hese are sucien o atain union wih divine Wisdom.Bu such pracices are insucien i hese souls do no diligenly srive o deny heir appeies. I hey

would atemp o devoe only hal o ha energy o he renunciaion o heir desires, hey would promore in a monh han in years wih all hese oher exercises. As he illing o soil is necessary or isruiulness -unilled soil produces only weeds -- moricaion o he appeies is necessary or one'sspiriual ruiulness. I venure o say ha wihou his moricaion all ha is done or he sake oadvancemen in perecion and in knowledge o God and o onesel is no more proable han seedsown on unculivaed ground. Accordingly, darkness and coarseness will always be wih a soul unilis appeies are exinguished. Te appeies are like a caarac on he eye or specks o dus in i; unilremoved hey obsruc vision.

8.5. David, observing he blindness o such people, how impeded heir souls are rom seeing ruh cle-arly, and he exen o God's anger wih hem warns: Priusquam inelligeren spinae vesrae rhamnum:sicu vivenes, sic in ira absorbe eos, as hough o say: Beore your horns (ha is, your appeies)undersand, God will absorb hem in his wrah as he would he living [Ps. 58:9]. Beore he appeies


22/16022

living in he soul come o an undersanding o God, he will absorb hem in his lie, or in he nex, bychasisemen and correcion, ha is, hrough purgaion. David says God will absorb hem in wrah,because he suering caused by he moricaion o he appeies is a chasisemen or he havoc heyproduce in he soul.

8.6. Oh, i people bu knew wha a reasure o divine ligh his blindness caused by heir aecions and

appeies akes rom hem and he number o misorunes and evils hese appeies occasion each daywhen lef unmoried! Individuals mus no so rely on heir good inelligence or he gifs receivedrom God as o hink ha even hough hey have atachmens or appeies hese will no blind, dar-ken, and cause hem o grow gradually worse. Who would have hough ha a man as perec in hewisdom and gifs o God as Solomon could have sunk ino such blindness and orpor o will, when hewas already old, as o consruc alars o counless idols and hen worship hem himsel? Ye his wascaused by nohing else han his aecion or women and his neglec o deny he appeies and delighso his hear [1 Kgs. 3:1213; 11:1-4]. He says in Ecclesiases ha he did no deny his hear wha i askedo him [Eccl. 2:10]. Alhough in he beginning he was ruly resrained, his rush afer his desires and

he ailure o deny hem, gradually blinded and darkened his inellec so ha nally he powerul ligho God's wisdom was exinguished. Consequenly, in his old age, Solomon abandoned God.

8.7. I he unmoried appeies could do his in a man who possessed such lofy knowledge o he di-sance beween good and evil, wha errible damage can hey cause in us who are ignoran. For as Godsaid o Jonah abou he people o Nineveh: We do no know he dierence beween our righ handand our lef [Jon. 4:11]. A every sep we misake evil or good and good or evil. Tis is peculiar oour naure. Bu wha will happen i appeie is added o our naural darkness? Nohing else han whaIsaiah says: Palpavimus sicu caeci parieem e quasi absque oculis atrecavimus: impegimus meridie

quasi in enebris [Is. 59:10]. Te prophe is speaking wih hose who love o pursue heir appeies, ashough o say: We have el our way along he wall as hough blind, we have groped as i wihou eyes,and our blindness has reached he poin ha we sumble along in broad dayligh as hough walking inhe dark. For his is a characerisic o hose who are blinded by heir appeies; when hey are in hemids o he ruh and o wha is suiable or hem, hey no more see i han i hey were in he dark.

CHAPER 99. Te appeies dele he soul. Proos hrough comparisons and passages om Sacred Scripure.

9.1. Te ourh way he appeies harm he soul is by deling and saining i. Te Book o Ecclesias-icus eaches: Qui eigeri picem, inquinabiur ab ea (he one who ouches pich will be deled byi) [Ecclus. 13:1]. And a person handles pich by saisying he will's appeie or some creaure. I isnoeworhy ha he Wise Man compares creaures o pich, or he dierence beween he excellenceo he soul and he bes in creaures is greaer han ha beween pure gold, or a brigh diamond, andpich. Te gold, or he diamond, when placed on ho pich becomes more sained and unsighly as he

hea meling he pich increases. Similarly, hose who are red by heir appeie or some creaure aresained and blackened by ha creaure because o he hea o heir desire.


23/16023

9.1.(2). Tere is as much dierence beween he soul and oher corporeal creaures as here is beweena ransparen liquid and he lhies mire. Tis liquid would be pollued i mud were mixed wih i; sooo atachmen o a creaure deles a soul, because his atachmen makes i similar o he creaure.Srokes o soo would ruin a perec and exraordinarily beauiul porrai, so oo inordinae appeiesdele and diry he soul, in isel a perec and exremely beauiul image o God.

9.2. Jeremiah, weeping over he ravages o unsighliness hese inordinae appeies cause in a soul,rs liss he soul's beauy and hen is ugliness: Candidiores sun nazarei ejus nive, niidiores lace,rubicundiores ebore aniquo, saphiro pulchriores. Denigraa es super carbones acies eorum, e nonsun cognii in plaeis (Is hair -- ha is, o he soul -- is whier han snow, more resplenden han milk,ruddier han ancien ivory, more beauiul han sapphire sone. Is surace became blacker han coaland wen unrecognized in he public squares) [Lam. 4:78]. Te hair reers o he soul's aecions andhoughs; when ordered o he end inended by God -which is God himsel -- i is whier han snow,clearer han milk, ruddier han ancien ivory, and more beauiul han sapphire. Tese our objecs ocomparison indicae every kind o beauy and excellence in corporeal creaures; ye he beauy and

excellence o he soul's operaions, which are signied by he Nazaries or hair, are, he says, greaer. Ihese operaions o he soul are inordinae and occupied in an end no inended by God -- ha is, increaures -- heir surace, says Jeremiah, will become blacker han coal.

9.3. Inordinae appeies or he hings o he world do all his damage o he beauy o he soul, andeven more. So grea is he harm ha i we ry o express how ugly and diry is he imprin he appe-ies leave in he soul we nd nohing comparable o i -- neiher a place ull o cobwebs and lizardsnor he unsighliness o a dead body nor he lhies hing imaginable in his lie. 9.3.(2). Alhough iis rue ha he disordered soul possesses in is naural being he perecion ha God besowed when

creaing i, neverheless in is raional being i is ugly, abominable, diry, dark, and ull o all he evilshere described, and many more besides. One inordinae appeie alone, as we will explain,1 suceso make a soul so capive, diry, and unsighly ha unil he appeie is puried he soul is incapable oconormiy wih God in union. Tis is rue even hough here may be no mater or moral sin in heappeie. Wha hen will be he ugliness o a soul enirely disordered in is passions and surrendered ois appeies? How ar i will be rom God and his puriy!

9.4. Te variey o lh caused in he soul is boh inexplicable and uninelligible! For were i compre-

hensible and explainable i would be surprising and also disressing o see how in he measure o isquaniy and qualiy each appeie leaves a deposi o lh and an unsighly mark in he soul. I wouldbe a surprise and a piy o observe how only one inordinae ac can in is own way occasion innumera-ble kinds and various degrees o lh. Te well-ordered soul o he jus in a single perec ac possessescounless rich gifs and beauiul virues. Each o hese gifs and virues is dieren and pleasing in isown way according o he muliude and diversiy o he aecions he soul has had or God. Similarly,in an inordinae soul he deposi o lh and degradaion is as miserable and has he same variey as hevariey o is appeies or creaures.

9.5. We have an excellen gure o hese varied appeies in Ezekiel. I is writen ha God showedhis prophe all kinds o crawling repiles and all he abominaion o unclean animals pained on heinerior walls o he emple. God hen said o Ezekiel: Son o man, have you no seen indeed he abo-minaions ha each o hese accomplishes in he secrecy o his chamber? And when God commanded


24/16024

he prophe o ener urher and behold greaer abominaions, Ezekiel says he saw women seaed hereand weeping or Adonis, he god o love. Being commanded by God o penerae sill urher or hesigh o even greaer abominaions, he says he beheld here 25 old men whose backs were urned onhe emple [Ez. 8:10-16]. 9.6. Te many repiles and unclean animals pained on he walls o he rsroom in he emple represen inellecual houghs o abjec earhly hings and o all creaures. Tesecreaures are pained jus as hey are in he emple o he soul i i allows is inellec, he rs chamber,

o be encumbered wih hem.

9.6.(2). Te women urher wihin, in he second chamber, weeping or he god Adonis, represen heappeies residing in he second aculy o he soul, which is he will. Tese appeies weep as i were bycoveing wha he will is atached o; ha is, hey cove he repiles pained in he inellec.

9.6.(3). Te men in he hird room are a represenaion o he images o creaures ha he hird par ohe soul, he memory, preserves and ocuses on. Te passage saes ha hese men urned heir backson he emple, or when he soul is wholly joined wih an earhly objec by embracing i wih hese

hree aculies, we can say ha soul has urned is back on he emple o God. And he emple o Godrepresens he soul's righ reason, which admis nohing o creaures.

9.7. Wha we have said is sucien a presen or some undersanding o he unsighly disorder o hesoul caused by is appeies. We would never nish i we ried o discuss in paricular he lesser degreeo ugliness, and is variey, ha imperecions cause in he soul, or he sill greaer degree, and is va-riey, produced by venial sins, or he degree o oal ugliness caused by morally sinul appeies. Tevariey o he oal ugliness corresponds o he exensive diversiy o all hree degrees. No even heangelic inellec could have an adequae undersanding o all his unsighliness. Te poin I am making

and desire o make is ha any appeie, even one ha is jus slighly imperec, sains and deles hesoul.

CHAPER 1010. Te appeies weaken a soul and make i lukewarm in he pracice o virue.

10.1. Weakness and epidiy is he fh kind o harm he appeies produce in a person. Te appeiessap he srengh needed or perseverance in he pracice o virue. Because he orce o he desire isdivided, he appeie becomes weaker han i i were compleely xed on one objec. Te more objecshere are dividing an appeie, he weaker his appeie becomes or each. Tis is why he philosopherssay ha virue when unied is sronger han when scatered. I is hereore clear ha i he appeie ohe will pours isel ou on somehing oher han virue, i grows weaker in he pracice o virue. Aperson whose will is divided among ries is like waer ha, leaking ou a he botom, will no risehigher and is hereore useless. Tis is why he pariarch Jacob compared his son Reuben, who had gi-ven rein o his appeies in a cerain sin, o spilled waer: You are poured ou like waer, grow no [Gn.

49:4]. Tis was like saying: Because according o he appeies you are poured ou like waer, you willno grow in virue.


25/16025

10.1.(2). Ho waer quickly loses is hea i lef uncovered, and aromaic spices when unwrapped even-ually lose he srengh and pungency o heir scen. So he soul ha is no recolleced in one appeiealone, he desire or God, loses hea and srengh in he pracice o virue. Clearly undersanding his,David said o God: Foriudinem meam ad e cusodiam (I will keep my srengh or you) [Ps. 59:9].I will do his by concenraing he srengh o my appeies on you alone.

10. 2. Te appeies weaken a person's virue because hey are like shoos burgeoning abou a ree,sapping is srengh, and causing i o be ruiless. Te Lord says o such people: Vae praegnanibus enurienibus in illis diebus! (Woe o hem who will be wih child in hose days, and o hem who willbe nursing!) [M. 24:19]. Being wih child and nursing reer o he growh o he appeies ha, i nocu o, will weaken he soul in virue. Teir growh will be cosly, like he growh o sprous around heree. Our Lord consequenly advises us: Le your loins be gir [Lk. 12:35]. Te loins here indicae heappeies. Tey are indeed like leeches, always sucking blood rom one's veins. Tis is wha he WiseMan calls hem: Te daughers (he appeies) are leeches always calling: give! give! [Prv. 30:15].

10.3. Maniesly, hen, he appeies do no bring any good o a person. Raher hey rob one o whaone already has. And i one does no moriy hem, hey will no cease unil hey accomplish wha heospring o vipers are said o do wihin he moher: While growing wihin her hey ea away a herenrails and nally kill her, remaining alive a her expense. So he unmoried appeies resul in killinghe soul in is relaionship wih God, and hus, because i did no pu hem o deah rs, hey alonelive in i. Tis is why i says in he Book o Ecclesiasicus: Auer a me Domine venris concupisceniase concubius concupisceniae ne apprehendan me [Ecclus. 23:6].1

10.4. Even hough hey do no go o his exen, i is sad o consider he condiion o he poor soul

in whom hey dwell. How unhappy i is wih isel, how cold oward is neighbors, how sluggish andslohul in he hings o God! No illness makes walking as burdensome, or eaing as disaseul, as dohe appeies or creaures render he pracice o virue burdensome and saddening o a person. Ordi-narily, he reason many people do no have diligence and eagerness or he acquisiion o virue is haheir appeies and aecions are no xed purely on God.

CHAPER 11

11. Proos o how eedom om all appeies, even he smalles, is necessary o atain divine union.

11.1. Te reader has apparenly desired or quie a while o ask i he oal moricaion o all he ap-peies, large and small, is a requiremen o atain his high sae o perecion, or i i is sucien omoriy jus some o hem and leave he ohers, a leas hose ha seem riing. For i seems i wouldbe an arduous ask or individuals o atain such puriy and nakedness ha hey would have no atach-men o anyhing.

11.2. Firs, I respond ha i is rue ha he appeies are no all equally derimenal, nor are all equally

a hindrance o he soul. I am speaking o he volunary appeies because he naural ones are litle orno hindrance a all o he atainmen o union, provided hey do no receive one's consen or pass bey-ond he rs movemens, hose sirrings in which he raional will does no ake par eiher beore orafer. o eradicae he naural appeies, ha is, o moriy hem enirely, is impossible in his lie. Even


26/16026

hough hey are no enirely moried, as I say, hey are no such a hindrance as o preven one romataining divine union. A soul can easily experience hem in is sensiive naure and ye be ree o hemin he raional par o is being. I will happen someimes ha while a person is experiencing an inenseunion o will in he prayer o quie hese appeies will be acually dwelling in he sensory par. Ye hesuperior par o he soul, which is in prayer, will be paying no atenion o hem.1

11.2.(2). Bu all he oher volunary appeies, wheher hey be he mos serious ha involve moralsin, or less grave in ha hey concern venial sin, or wheher hey be he leas serious o all in ha heyonly involve imperecions, mus be moried. A person mus be liberaed o hem all, however slighhey be, in order o arrive a his complee union. Te reason is ha in he sae o divine union aperson's will is so compleely ransormed ino God's will ha i excludes everyhing conrary o God'swill, and in all and hrough all is moivaed by he will o God.

11.3. Here we have he reason or saing ha wo wills become one. And his one will is God's will,which also becomes he soul's. I a person were o desire an imperecion unwaned by God, his one

will o God would be undone because o he desire or wha God does no will.

11.3.(2). Clearly, or a soul o reach union wih God hrough is will and love, i mus rs be reedrom every appeie, however sligh. Ta is, one mus no give consen o he will adverenly andknowingly o an imperecion, and one mus have he power and reedom o be able, upon adverence,o reuse his consen.

11.3.(3). I say "knowingly" because one will all ino imperecions, venial sins, and he above-meni-oned naural appeies wihou having adverence or knowledge or conrol in he mater. I is writen

o hese semivolunary and inadveren sins ha he jus will all seven imes a day and rise up again[Prv. 24:16]. Bu any one o he volunary appeies ha are adveren venial sins, even i riing, ino conquered is sucien o impede union, as I have said. I am reerring here o habiual appeiesbecause cerain scatered acs o dieren desires are no such a hindrance o union when he habiualappeies are moried. However, he soul mus be liberaed o hese acs oo, since hey also proceedrom habiual imperecion. Ye some habiual volunary imperecions ha are never compleely con-quered are an impedimen no only o divine union bu o spiriual progress as well.

11.4. Some examples o hese habiual imperecions are: he common habi o being very alkaive; asmall atachmen one never really desires o conquer, or example, o a person, o clohing, o a bookor a cell, or o he way ood is prepared, and o oher riing conversaions and litle saisacions inasing, knowing, and hearing hings, and so on. Any o hese habiual imperecions o which hereis atachmen is as harmul o progress in virue as he daily commission o many oher imperecionsand sporadic venial sins ha do no resul rom a bad habi. Tese later will no hinder a person asmuch as will he atachmen o somehing. As long as his atachmen remains, i is impossible o makeprogress in perecion, even hough he imperecion may be very small.2

11.4.(2). I makes litle dierence wheher a bird is ied by a hin hread or by a cord. Even i i is iedby hread, he bird will be held bound jus as surely as i i were ied by cord; ha is, i will be impededrom ying as long as i does no break he hread. Admitedly he hread is easier o break, bu nomater how easily his may be done, he bird will no y away wihou rs doing so. Tis is he lo o


27/16027

hose who are atached o somehing: No mater how much virue hey have hey will no reach hereedom o he divine union.

11.4.(3). An individual's appeie and atachmen resemble he remora, which, i successul in clingingo a ship, will hold i back and preven i rom reaching por, or even rom sailing, even hough his shis excepionally small. I is regretable, hen, o behold some souls, laden as rich vessels wih wealh,

deeds, spiriual exercises, virues, and avors rom God, who never advance because hey lack he cou-rage o make a complee break wih some litle saisacion, atachmen, or aecion (which are allabou he same) and hereby never reach he por o perecion. Tis requires no more han a suddenap o one's wings in order o ear he hread o atachmen, or o ge rid o he clinging remora.

11.5. I is a mater or deep sorrow ha, while God has besowed on hem he power o break ohersronger cords o atachmen o sins and vaniies, hey ail o atain so much good because hey do nobecome deached rom some childish hing ha God has asked hem o conquer ou o love or himand ha amouns o no more han a hread or hair. Wha is worse, no only do hey ail o advance, bu

hey urn back because o heir small atachmen, losing wha hey gained on heir journey a he coso so much ime and eor. Everyone knows ha no o go orward on his road is o urn back, andno o gain ground is o lose. Tis is wha our Lord waned o each when he said: Te one who is nowih me is agains me, and he one who does no gaher wih me scaters [M. 12:30].

11.5.(2). I one small crack in a picher goes unrepaired, he damage will be enough o cause all he li-quid o leak ou. Te Book o Ecclesiasicus gives clear eaching o his when i says: One who despisessmall hings will all litle by litle [Ecclus. 19:1]. For as i eaches elsewhere: A grea re is occasionedby a iny spark [Ecclus. 11:32]. Accordingly, one imperecion leads o anoher, and hese o sill more.

You will scarcely ever nd a person negligen in he conquering o one appeie who will no havemany ohers owing rom he idenical weakness and imperecion caused by his one appeie. Suchpersons, consequenly, are ever alering along he road. We have winessed many persons, whom Godwas avoring wih much progress in deachmen and reedom, all rom happiness and sabiliy in heirspiriual exercises and end up losing everyhing merely because hey began o indulge in some slighatachmen o conversaion and riendship under he appearance o good. For by his atachmen heygradually empied hemselves o boh holy soliude and he spiri and joy o God. All his happenedbecause hey did no pu a sop o heir iniial saisacion and sensiive pleasure, and preserve hem-

selves or God in soliude.3

11.6. Te atainmen o our goal demands ha we never sop on his road, which means we mus con-inually ge rid o our wans raher han indulging hem. For i we do no ge rid o hem all compleely,we will no wholly reach our goal. A log o wood canno be ransormed ino he re i even a singledegree o hea is lacking o is preparaion or his.4 Te soul, similarly, will no be ransormed in Godeven i i has only one imperecion. As we shall explain in speaking o he nigh o aih, a person hasonly one will and i ha is encumbered or occupied by anyhing, he person will no possess he ree-dom, soliude, and puriy requisie or divine ransormaion.

11.7. We have a gure o his in he Book o Judges. I narraes ha he angel announced o he child-ren o Israel ha because hey had no compleely desroyed heir enemies bu made a pac wih someo hem, hese enemies would be lef in heir mids o be an occasion o heir all and perdiion [Jgs.


28/16028

2:1-3]. God does precisely his wih some souls. He has wihdrawn hem rom he world, slain he gi-ans, which are heir sins, and desroyed he muliude o heir enemies (he occasions o sin encoun-ered in he world) solely so ha hey can ener wih greaer reedom ino he promised land o divineunion. Neverheless, in spie o all his, hey raernize and make pacs wih he insignican people-- heir imperecions -- by no moriying hem compleely. And God in his anger allows hem o gorom bad o worse in heir appeies.

11.8. We nd anoher gure o his in he Book o Joshua. Tere we read ha God commanded Jos-hua, who was abou o ener ino possession o he promised land, o desroy everyhing in he ciyo Jericho wihou leaving anyhing alive, neiher men nor women, young nor old, nor any animals.God ordered him no o cove or seize any o he booy [Jos. 6:18-19, 21]. Te lesson here is ha allobjecs living in he soul -- wheher hey be many or ew, large or small -- mus die in order ha hesoul ener divine union, and i mus bear no desire or hem bu remain deached as hough hey werenonexisen o i, and i o hem. S. Paul eaches his clearly in Corinhians: Wha I ell you, brohers,is ha he ime is shor; wha remains and suis you is ha hose wih wives should ac as hough hey

had none, and hose who weep or he hings o his world as hough hey were no weeping, and hosewho rejoice as hough no rejoicing, and he buyers as hough hey did no possess, and he users ohe world should behave as hough hey made no use o i [1 Cor. 7:29-31]. In his ex he Aposleeaches us how deached our souls mus be rom all hings in order o go o God.

CHAPER 1212. Te answer o anoher quesion. An explanaion o he kinds o appeies

ha can bring his harm on a soul.

12.1. We could explain his nigh o sense a greaer lengh by menioning everyhing relevan o hekind o damage he appeies cause, or hey injure no merely in he ways described bu in manyohers as well. Wha we have explained, however, is sucien or our purpose. I has probably beenundersood how he moricaion o he appeies can be called nigh and how suiable i is or peopleo ener his nigh in heir approach o God. Te only poin ha remains beore we rea, in conclusi-on, he mehod o enering his nigh is o setle a doub ha may occur o he reader concerning hismater.1

12.2. Firs, can any appeie produce and cause he wo evils menioned above, namely: he privaive,which removes God's grace rom he soul; and he posiive, which causes he ve principal kinds oharm we explained?

12.2.(2). Second, is any appeie, however sligh or o whaever kind, enough o produce all heseypes o harm ogeher, or does each cause only a paricular kind, in ha one may produce ormen,anoher weariness, anoher darkness, and so on?

12.3. o he rs query, I answer ha relevan o he privaive evil, he loss o grace, only he volunaryappeies involving a mater o moral sin can cause his compleely, or hey deprive he soul o gracein his lie and o glory, he possession o God, in he nex.


29/16029

12.3.(2). o he second, my answer is ha all hese posiive evils are ogeher occasioned in he soulby each o hese appeies. Tis is rue wheher he appeies concern moral sin, venial sin, or imper-ecion. We call hese evils posiive, hough in a cerain ashion hey are privaive, because hey corre-spond o a conversion o he creaure, jus as he privaive evils correspond o he aversion rom God.

12.3.(3). Ye here is his dierence: Te appeies or moral sin produce oal blindness, ormen,

lh, weakness, and so on; he ohers do no cause hese kinds o harm o a complee and absoluedegree. For hey do no deprive he soul o grace -- a privaion ha would give hem ull possession,since he deah o grace means lie or he appeies. Bu hese smaller appeies do cause his damagein a lesser degree according o he loss o grace hey occasion. Te exen o he ormen, blindness,and delemen corresponds o he weakening o grace brough on by he appeies.

12.4. I is noeworhy, however, ha, hough each appeie causes all hese kinds o posiive harm, iwill cause one kind principally and direcly, and he ohers indirecly. For hough i is rue ha a sensu-al appeie breeds all hese kinds o evil, i principally and properly speaking deles he soul and body.

And an appeie o avarice produces hem all oo, ye principally and direcly i causes aicions. Oneo vainglory similarly causes hem all, ye principally and direcly i darkens and blinds. And whereasan appeie o glutony beges all he evils, i chiey produces lukewarmness in virue. And so on wihhe ohers.

12.5. Te reason any ac o a volunary appeie produces all hese evils ogeher is ha i direcly op-poses he acs o virue ha produce he conrary eecs. An ac o virue produces and osers in hesoul mildness, peace, comor, ligh, puriy, and srengh, jus as an inordinae appeie brings abouormen, aigue, weariness, blindness, and weakness. Trough he pracice o one virue all he virues

grow, and similarly, hrough an increase o one vice, all he vices and heir eecs grow.

12.5.(2). Tese evils do no unmask hemselves a he momen he appeie is being saised, sincehe pleasure o he momen is an obsacle o his. Ye sooner or laer he harmul eecs will cerainlybe el.

A good illusraion o his is ound in he Apocalypse. An angel commanded S. John o ea he book,which was swee o he mouh bu biter in he somach [Rv. 10:9]. When saised he appeie seems

swee and pleasan, bu evenually he biter eec is el. Tis ruh will cerainly be clear o hose whoallow hemselves o be carried away by heir appeies. I realize, however, ha here are some so blindand unaware ha hey do no experience his biter eec. Since hey do no walk in God, hey do noperceive wha keeps hem rom him.

12.6. I am no speaking here o he oher naural, involunary appeies, or o houghs ha do no passbeyond he rs movemens, or o oher empaions in which here is no consen. Tese hings do nogive rise o any o he evils previously menioned. Tough he passion and disurbance hey momena-rily cause make i seem ha one is being deled and blinded, such is no he case; raher, hey occasion

he opposie good eecs. Insoar as one resiss hem, one wins srengh, puriy, comor, and manyblessings, as our Lord old S. Paul: Virue is made perec in weakness [2 Cor. 12:9].2


30/16030

12.6.(2). Bu he volunary appeies bring on all hese evils, and even more. Ta is why he chieconcern o spiriual masers wih heir disciples is he immediae moricaion o every appeie. Tedirecors should make hem remain empy o wha hey desire so as o liberae hem rom so muchmisery.

CHAPER 1313. Te manner and mehod o enering his nigh o sense.

13.1. Some counsels are in order now ha he individual may boh know he way o enering his nighand be able o do so. I should be undersood, consequenly, ha a person ordinarily eners his nigho sense in wo ways: acive and passive.

13.1.(2). Te acive way, which will be he subjec o he ollowing counsels, comprises wha one cando and does by onesel o ener his nigh. 13.1.(3). Te passive way is ha in which one does nohing,

bu God accomplishes he work in he soul while he soul acs as he recipien. Tis will be he subjeco he ourh book, where we will discuss beginners. Since wih God's help I will give many counselsregarding he numerous imperecions beginners ordinarily possess on his road, I will no ake heime o oer many here. Nor is his he proper place o give hem, since here we are dealing only wihhe reasons or calling his journey a nigh, and wih he naure and divisions o his nigh.1

13.1.(4). Neverheless, i we do no oer some immediae remedy or counsel or exercising oneselin his nigh o he appeies, his par would seem very shor and o litle help. Tereore I wan o sedown he ollowing abridged mehod. And I will do he same a he end o my discussion o each o he

nex wo pars (or reasons or he use o he erm "nigh") which, wih God's help, will ollow.

13.2. Tough hese counsels or he conquering o he appeies are brie and ew in number, I believehey are as proable and ecacious as hey are concise. A person who sincerely wans o pracicehem will need no ohers since all he ohers are included in hese.2

13.3. Firs, have habiual desire o imiae Chris in all your deeds by bringing your lie ino conormiywih his. You mus hen sudy his lie in order o know how o imiae him and behave in all evens as

he would.

13.4. Second, in order o be successul in his imiaion, renounce and remain empy o any sensorysaisacion ha is no purely or he honor and glory o God. Do his ou o love or Jesus Chris. In hislie he had no oher graicaion, nor desired any oher, han he ulllmen o his Faher's will, whichhe called his mea and ood [Jn. 4:34].

13.4.(2). For example, i you are oered he saisacion o hearing hings ha have no relaion o heservice and glory o God, do no desire his pleasure or he hearing o hese hings. When you have an

opporuniy or he graicaion o looking upon objecs ha will no help you love God more, do nodesire his graicaion or sigh. And i in speaking here is a similar opporuniy, ac in he same way.And so on wih all he senses insoar as you can duly avoid such saisacion. I you canno escape heexperience o his saisacion, i will be sucien o have no desire or i.


31/16031

13.4.(3). By his mehod you should endeavor, hen, o leave he senses as hough in darkness, mori-ed and empy o ha saisacion. Wih such vigilance you will gain a grea deal in a shor ime.

13.5. Many blessings ow when he our naural passions (joy, hope, ear, and sorrow) are in harmonyand a peace. Te ollowing maxims conain a complee mehod or moriying and paciying hem. I

pu ino pracice hese maxims will give rise o abundan meri and grea virues.

13.6. Endeavor o be inclined always:

no o he easies, bu o he mos dicul;no o he mos delighul, bu o he mos disaseul;no o he mos graiying , bu o he less pleasan;no o wha means res or you, bu o hard work;no o he consoling, bu o he unconsoling;

no o he mos, bu o he leas;no o he highes & mos precious,

bu o he lowes & mos despised;no o waning somehing, bu o waning nohing.

Do no go abou looking or he bes o emporal hings, bu or he wors, and, or Chris, desire o ener inocomplee nakedness, empiness, and povery in everyhing in he world.

13.7. You should embrace hese pracices earnesly and ry o overcome he repugnance o your will

oward hem. I you sincerely pu hem ino pracice wih order and discreion, you will discover inhem grea deligh and consolaion.

13.8. Tese counsels i ruly carried ou are sucien or enry ino he nigh o senses. Bu, o ensureha we give abundan enough counsel, here is anoher exercise ha eaches moricaion o concu-piscence o he esh, concupiscence o he eyes, and pride o lie, which, as S. John says, reign in heworld and give rise o all he oher appeies [1 Jn. 2:16].13.9. Firs, ry o ac wih conemp or yoursel and desire ha all ohers do likewise.

13.9.(2). Second, endeavor o speak in conemp o yoursel and desire all ohers o do so.13.9.(3). Tird, ry o hink lowly and conempuously o yoursel and desire ha all ohers do hesame.

13.10. As a conclusion o hese counsels and rules i would be appropriae o repea he verses in TeAscen o he Moun [he drawing a he beginning o he book], which are insrucions or climbingo he summi, he high sae o union. Alhough in he drawing we admitedly reer o he spiriual andinerior aspec, we also deal wih he spiri o imperecion exisen in he sensory and exerior par ohe soul, as is eviden by he wo ways, one on each side o ha pah ha leads o perecion. Conse-

quenly hese verses will here bear reerence o he sensory par. Aferward, in he second division ohis nigh, hey may be inerpreed in relaionship o he spiriual par.4


32/16032

13.11. Te verses are:

o reach satisfaction in all desire satisfaction in nothing.o come to possess all desire the possession of nothing.o arrive at being all desire to be nothing.o come to the knowledge of all desire the knowledge of nothing.

o come to enjoy what you have not you must go by a way in which you enjoy not.o come to the knowledge you have not you must go by a way in which you know not.o come to the possession you have not you must go by a way in which you possess not.o come to be what you are not you must go by a way in which you are not.

A Mehod o Avoid Impeding he All

13.12. When you delay in somehing you cease o rush oward he all. For o go rom he all o he allyou mus deny yoursel o all in all. And when you come o he possession o he all you mus possess

i wihou waning anyhing. Because i you desire o have somehing in all your reasure in God is nopurely your all.

13.13. In his nakedness he spiri nds is quieude and res. For in coveing nohing, nohing ires iby pulling i up and nohing oppresses i by pushing i down, because i is in he cener o is humiliy.When i coves somehing, by his very ac i ires isel.

CHAPER 14

14. An explanaion o verse 2 o he rs sanza. red wih love's urgen longings

14.1. Now ha we have explained he rs verse o his sanza, which reas o he nigh o sense, andhave di

john of the cross - the ascent of mount carmel

Documents