CARMELITE QUOTE

Peace be with you!

Rosemarie, O.C.D.S.

Photo: (C) Spirit Singing-R. Massaro Byzantine Catholic Cultural Center Cleveland, Ohio

Merry Christmas from the Secular Carmelites-Community of the Holy Family.

A Nativity Poem by St. John of the Cross:

When the time had come

for him to be born,

he went forth like the

bridegroom

from his bridal chamber,

embracing his bride,

holding her in his arms,

whom the gracious Mother

laid in a manger

among some animals

that were there at the time.

Men sang songs

and angels melodies

celebrating the marriage

of Two such as these.

St. John of the Cross

Excerpt from the Romances, No. 9.

Peace be with you!

Rosemarie, OCDS

SATURDAY OF OUR LADY: WILL YOU SHELTER HER

The Virgin, weighed
with the Word of God,
comes down the road:
if only you'll shelter her.
St. John of the Cross

 



Will you shelter her?


"In the history of the Church, the Order of Carmel has come to be known for its dedication to a life of prayer and to Mary, the Mother of Jesus."

This quote is from Fr. Emmanuel J. Sullivan, O.C.D. from his work entitled, Mary and the Holy Spirit in the Writings of St. John of the Cross.
As we reflect on this quote by by Fr. Sullivan, let's keep this theme in mind: shelter.

Fr. Sullivan tells us that Carmel is known for its life of prayer, but not just a life of prayer, but dedication to a life of prayer. As Secular Carmelites, we can ask ourselves these questions: Are we dedicated to our life of prayer that the church has called us to? Are we dedicated to imitate the Virgin Mary who pondered the Word in her heart? Do we look forward to the time of mental prayer?

We can be assured that if we make a place for Mary in our lives, we are creating a holy shelter for Christ as well. Wherever Mary is present, Christ is present.

"You are an enclosed garden, my sister, my bride." Songs 4:12

The image of the enclosed garden (the monastic cloister or enclosure) has come to represent the life of Carmel, the life of intimate prayer with the Beloved, where we remain with Him in the shelter of our heart. We often say that we have chosen Carmel, but is it not the Lord who first chose us to follow this path?

He asks us and all men to find a shelter of rest in Him. "Come to me all you who labor and are heavily burdened, and I will give you rest." Yes, holy rest of contemplation; this is His gift to us in which we do not have to labor with our intellect or imagination during the time of prayer.

We can turn to our Holy Father Elijah to see the symbolism of shelter in his life. In the book of Kings we read that Elijah took shelter in a cave. But the Lord cried out to him, "Why are you here?" He responds with the famous anthem of the Carmelites, "I have been zealous for the Lord, the God of hosts." He was asked a second time, "Why are you here?"

Elijah took shelter in fear for his life, but because he listened to the voice of God, and was intent on doing his own will, the Lord fed him with bread for the journey

(a prefigurement of the Eucharist) and sent him on mission. 

Carmelites continue the mission of Elijah in the world today. By our prayer life, regular reception of the Holy Eucharist, our dedication to the Mother of God, and to the Church, we provide a holy witness to the world. A deep prayer life is a powerful witness against secularism, materialism, and individualism. These are the idols worshipped today that we must denounce with our promises of chastity, poverty, and obedience.

During this Advent season, Let us meditate on this same question that was asked of Elijah. Why am I here? Why am I in the family of Carmel?

The vocation of prayer in Carmel is not for ourselves alone, but for the Church and the world. We have to leave the shelter of our prayer life to attend to daily duties. This can be extremely difficult. St. Teresa tells us it is painfully difficult for people who are given to prayer to attend to duties of business. But we know, too, that the Lord sends the Holy Spirit to help us and we may be given the type of prayer that we can go about our daily duties while being in deep communion with the Lord. Sometimes, we may find that it is a mystery and an especially delightful one as to how this takes place.

Our local Secular Carmelite community is named after the Holy Family. In these remaining days of preparation and waiting for the Lord, let us meditate on the theme of shelter. How do we shelter the Holy Family in our spiritual life? How do we shelter and keep company and find rest in the Holy Family of the Most Holy Trinity?

Let us look to Our Lady, the Daughter of the Eternal Father, the Mother of the only-begotten Son, and the Spouse of the Holy Spirit, she who is caught up in the mysterious love of the Holy Family of the Trinity. Mary will obtain for us the grace we need to become holy Carmelites, to be holy dwelling places of God.


The tabernacle is a holy shelter for our Eucharistic Lord. We are living tabernacles where God is ever-present in our soul!

If we provide a place for Mary in our lives, we welcome the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit as well.

WILL YOU SHELTER HER?
Peace be with you!

Rosemarie
_______________________

Happy Feast Day of St. John of the Cross

CARMELITE FEAST DAYS

Photo: R. Massaro-Carmelite Monastery-Cleveland, Ohio

Carmelite Feast Day: St. John of the Cross-Dec. 14
Happy Feast Day to all Carmelites!

Song of the Soul That Rejoices 
in Knowing God Through Faith.

A poem by St. John of the Cross

That eternal spring is hidden,

for I know well where it has its rise,

although it is night.

I do not know its origin, nor has it one,

but I know that every origin has come from it,

although it is night.

I know that nothing else is so beautiful,

and that the heavens and the earth drink there,

although it is night.

I know well that it is bottomless

and no one is able to cross it,

although it is night.

Its clarity is never darkened,

and I know that every light has come from it,

although it is night.

I know that its streams are so brimming

they water the lands of hell, the heavens, and earth,

although it is night.

I know well the stream that flows from this spring

is mighty in compass and power,

although it is night.

I know the stream proceeding from these two,

that neither of them in fact precedes it,

although it is  night.

This eternal spring is hidden 

in the living bread for our life's sake,

although it is night.

It is here calling out to creatures;

and they satisfy their thirst,

although in darkness,

although it is night.

This living spring that I long for,

I see in this bread of life,

although it is night.

Peace be with you!

Rosemarie, ocds

A Meditation on the Cross

Jesus said to all: “Whoever wishes to be my follower must deny himself his very self, take up his cross each day, and follow in my steps.  Luke 9:23

As we begin Holy Week, let us reflect on how closely we follow Jesus each day.

During the Advent season, the readings and hymns tell us to make straight the path of the Lord for he is coming. During the Lenten season, the road is not so straight, it has become very rocky and difficult to travel, for we know it leads to Calvary. Just as in Advent, we proclaim, “He is coming," now in Lent, we know He is going… goingto Calvary for us. Do we have the courage to die to self and follow him to the Cross? 

As Carmelites, we are called to follow the Crucified and Risen Lord, we can ask ourselves:

Do I follow Jesus for a little while in prayer and then go in another direction when

the road of daily challenges and frustrations becomes too difficult?

Do I follow Jesus when I am receiving spiritual consolations and great lights

and inspiration in prayer, then, at the first experience of spiritual dryness give up prayer?

Do I stray from the road to Calvary by being unforgiving to that person who has hurtme very deeply?

Here is the image of the cross that St. John of the Cross drew himself. The original is very small. The impact of this tiny image is very spiritually moving, because St. John draws the image with a view of the Cross from above, as if the Father is looking down on His Son and his sacrifice. Perhaps we can meditate on St. John’s Cross this week. 

​

Here is a link to an article about St. John’s Cross:

https://aleteia.org/2017/09/22/discover-the-crucifix-drawn-by-saint-john-of-the-cross-after-a-mystical-vision/

From the writings of St. John of the Cross:

…He was thereby compelled to cry out: My God, My God, why have you forsaken Me?[Mt. 8:20]. This was the most extreme abandonment, sensitively, that he had suffered in His life. And by it he accomplished the most marvelous work of his whole life, surpassing all the works and deeds and miracles that he had ever performed on earth or in heaven.That is, he brought about the reconciliation and union of the human race with God through grace.                                             The Ascent of Mount Carmel, Book Two, Chapter 7, No. 11

We adore you, O Christ, and we praise you.

Because, by your holy Cross, You have redeemed the world.

Peace be with you!

Rosemarie, OCDS

SATURDAY OF OUR LADY

Photo: R. Massaro (c)2018 Spirit Singing Our Lady of Lebanon Shrine North Jackson, Ohio

St. John of the Cross' love for Our Lady:

Among his favorite feasts, besides those of the Blessed Trinity and Corpus Christi, were the feasts of the Blessed Virgin. In his prison cell, on the Vigil of the Assumption, after nine months of severe privation, he was asked what he was thinking of. He replied, "I was thinking that tomorrow is the feast of our Lady and that it would give me great joy to say Mass."

From the Collected Works of St. John of the Cross Translated by Kieran Kavanaugh, O.C.D. and Otilio Rodriguez, O.C.D.

Ancient Hymn to Our Lady of Mount Carmel 

Listen to the hymn in Gregorian Chant

(click on image)

Flower of Carmel

Blossoming Vine,

Splendor of heaven!

Child-Bearing Virgin,

Immaculate one,

Yet tender Mother,

On all Carmel's children

Graces bestow,

Star of the Sea!

Peace be with you!
Rosemarie, O.C.D.S.

CARMELITE SAINT OF THE DAY

SAINT JOHN OF THE CROSS

December 14

Photo: R. Massaro (C)2017 Spirit Singing

A Poem by St. John of the Cross

The Soul That Suffers With Longing to See God

I no longer live within myself 

and I cannot live without God,

for having neither him nor

myself

what will life be?

It will be a thousand deaths,

longing for my true life

and dying because I do not die.

This life that I live

is no life at all,

and so I die continually

until I live with you;

hear me, my God:

I do not desire this life,

I am dying because I do not die.

When I am away from you

what life can I have

except to endure

the bitterest death known?

I pity myself,

for I go on and on living,

dying because I do not die.

A fish that leaves the water

has this relief:

the dying it endures

ends at last in death.

What death can equal my pitiable life?

For the longer I live, the more

drawn out is my dying.

When I try to find relief

seeing you in the Sacrament,

I find this greater sorrow:

I cannot enjoy you wholly.

All things are affliction

since I do not see you as I desire,

and I die because I do not die.

And if I rejoice, Lord,

in the hope of seeing you,

yet seeing I can lose you

doubles my sorrow.

Living in such fear

and hoping as I hope,

I die because I do not die.

Lift me from this death,

my God, and give me life;

do not hold me bound

with these bonds so strong;

see how I long to see you;

my wretchedness is so complete

that I die because I do not die.

I will cry out for death

and mourn my living

while I am held here

for my sins.

O my God, when will it be

that I can truly say:

now I live because I do not die?

Peace be with you!

Rosemarie, OCDS

Spiritual Direction With St. John of the Cross

Please enjoy this post from the archives of Spirit Singing

Photo: R. Massaro Lourdes, France

Today's teaching comes from St. John's classic, The Ascent of Mt. Carmel. In this excerpt, St. John makes a seven-fold list of souls who take pleasure in their good works. 

First: Vanity and Pride.

_________________________________________
These people brag about themselves and their accomplishments. Perhaps you have heard this type of soul in your parish community. They may go on and on about how they formed a prayer group, initiated an adoration program, started a soup kitchen, organized the choir, and on and on.  There is no humility in their good works. They boast for all the world to see. They love praise!

Second: Comparing people and their actions
______________________________
These people love to judge and speculate on the motives of others who perform good works.  They infer that the work of another is not as perfect as their own. They do not esteem others or respect them, for they themselves are on the pedestal to which only they can ascend. They become angry when others are noticed and praised. This type of thinking can lead to the sin of detraction.

Third: Only perform good works if praise will be given
_______________________________
St. John teaches that these people resemble the Pharisees that Jesus spoke about. They only perform good works in order to be noticed. Their motive is not the love of God but the praise of men.

Fourth: They do not find their joy in God
_______________________________
These souls are an unhappy and confused people.  Since they perform works for human praise, they are confused, upset and angry when they do not receive it.  Since their motives are not pure, they find no pleasure in pleasing God alone and finding in Him the only reward necessary. These people are hard to work with, they complain constantly about the amount of work, their schedule, the management, etc.

Listen to this powerful statement of St. John regarding these souls: "There is so much misery among human beings as regards this kind of harm that I believe most of the works publicly achieved are either faulty, worthless, or imperfect in God's sight." He goes on to say, "It can be said that in these works some adore themselves more than God."

St. Therese desired to keep

her acts of charity hidden.

St. John teaches that a lack of detachment is at the heart of this illness. That is why he recommends that in order to avoid this spiritual illness we must strive to hide our good works, even from ourselves! We know from the life of St. Therese and her way of hidden love that she was a master at hiding her good works. Let us learn from her example. 

Fifth: Failure to advance in the way of perfection
_______________________________
Since these souls are attached to the consolations received by performing good deeds, they lack perseverance in actually carrying out these good works. When God tries them by removing the sweetness attached to the good works.  These souls are spiritually immature, and, in a way, they refuse to "grow up." They prefer  "infants milk" instead of the "bread of the perfect" as St. John puts it.

Sixth: They are under the illusion that works that bring satisfaction are better than those that do not
____________________________________
These souls cannot see that God esteems more the deed that requires self-denial than a deed that is easily done because of the consolation one receives. St. John states: "This evil arises when they seek to please themselves in their works and not God alone."

Seventh: Incapable of taking counsel and unable to be formed in the way of perfection
___________________________________
Because of this weakness and imperfection in the soul and of the pride involved, they refuse to believe that anyone can counsel them. St. John says these souls become slack in charity toward God and neighbor. Self-love makes the soul grow cold in charity.

Let us pray for each other, that we always strive to please God and not men when we are performing acts of charity. If we struggle with this, turn to God, who is able to give us the grace needed to purify our motives.

Excerpt from The Ascent of Mt. Carmel, Book III, Chap. 28 No. 1-9, The Collected Works of St. John of the Cross, Translated by Kieran Kavanaugh, O.C.D.

Peace be with you!
Rosemarie, ocds
____________________

CARMELITE FEAST DAYS

SOLEMNITY OF ST. JOHN OF THE CROSS

DECEMBER 14

Happy Feast Day to all Carmelites!

Photo: R. Massaro Carmelite Monastery Cleveland, Ohio

From the life of St. John of the Cross:

Once during Holy Week he suffered so intensely from the Passion of Christ that he found it impossible to leave the monastery to hear the nuns' confessions. Among his favorite feasts, besides those of the Blessed Trinity and Corpus Christi, were the feasts of the Blessed Virgin. In his prison cell, on the Vigil of the Assumption, after nine months of severe privation, he was asked what he was thinking of. He replied, "I was thinking that tomorrow is the feast of our Lady and that it would give me great joy to say Mass. The sight of an image of the Mother of God brought love and brightness to his soul. Once, on seeing an image of our Lady while he was preaching to the nuns in Caravaca, he could not conceal his love for her and exclaimed: "How happy I would be to live alone in a desert with that image."

St. John of the Cross, pray for us!







Peace be with you!
Rosemarie, OCDS

SATURDAY OF OUR LADY

Photo: R. Massaro Lourdes, France

Mary's closing visit to Lourdes was on July 16th the feast which honors her under the title of Carmel. She came at sunset. Her choice of day must not have been an accident. the very name Carmel must have filled her with fond memories.

She would have remembered many a sunset when she and her Son rested their eyes on the beauty of that mountain as the day faded. In its pure and lonely grandeur it stood out of this world. It recalled memories of a great past. She would have known it as a place of prayer and silence and the witness of mighty battles in the plains below.

When she sang her Magnificat she was the meeting-place of two worlds, a world stretching back to Abraham and forward to generations yet unborn. She recalled the past mercies of the Lord; she foresaw the praise future ages would give her for the great things God had done in her.

And in a sense, Carmel linked two worlds, east and west, past and future. A mountain hallowed by prayer before she was born, a place that would do her honor from age to age. There are flowers on Mount Carmel when there are none elsewhere.

The Ascent of Mount Carmel is a well-worn path, traveled down through the centuries by countless members of the Order which glories in the title of Carmel who have been richly rewarded for the ardor of the ascent, for in their souls have blossomed flowers of holiness of rarest quality. In the majestic grandeur of the mountain of God they have lived through dark nights, and have seen glorious dawns.There in the silent companionship of Mary they have pondered the word and remained with her in prayer. They have enriched the Church with a shining example of silent worship, unending contemplation, and pure love. The beauty of Carmel might tempt us to follow them at least from afar. Any day, at any moment, we may go on pilgrimage to Carmel, we may climb the heights to pay her our tribute of praise and love. 

But before we start we have something to do. Before we ascend to honor her who had her roots in Jacob we must take the advice once given to Jacob before he ascended to Bethel. "Put away the foreign gods that are among you,, and purify yourselves and change your clothes. (Gen. 35,2) Three things to do. Put aside the gods made with hands, the worldly attachments which hold us in their spell; cleanse ourselves of the dross of this world; robe ourselves anew in the innocence of our baptismal garment, and then we will be capable of a new love, a new song that will have all the freshness and beauty of spring flowers on Carmel. Let St. John of the Cross lead us in this song for the ascent:

Let us rejoice, Beloved. And let us go forth to behold ourselves in your beauty, to the mountain and to the hill, to where the pure waters flows...There you will show me what my soul has been seeking.
Pilgrims With Mary by John Moloney P.P.



Peace be with you!
Rosemarie, OCDS

Spiritual Direction with St. Therese of the Child Jesus

Photo: (C) R. Massaro St. Peter Church North Ridgeville, Ohio

In the life of St. Therese, we learn about the ways in which she overcame herself by practicing virtue. She did this in a very ordinary way by accepting life as it was presented to her each day. As she matured in the spiritual life, her sister, Celine, noticed her virtue and said to her "Oh, when I think of how much I have to acquire." Therese responded, "Rather, how much you have to lose." Therese's few words of wisdom gets right to the heart of the call in Carmel and to all Christians who are seeking perfection: one must be detached from sin and from worldly pleasures and from one's own will, and from one's own desires... We could go on an on identifying and describing detachment.

Therese's deep detachment was a gradual process and the fruition of her cooperation with God's grace to give herself totally to God's merciful love. This desire of detachment so inflamed her that in her written prayer "Act of Oblation to the Merciful Love of God," she writes:

In the evening of life, I shall appear before You with empty hands, for I do not ask You, Lord, to count my works...

What an amazing, bold, and spiritually detached statement from this little Doctor!  By this statement we can read between the lines, if you will, and see that her motives must have been totally purified by the Holy Spirit, for she did not do works to be justified before God. She continues in her prayer:

All our justice is stained in Your eyes. I wish, then, to be clothed in Your own Justice and to receive from Your love the eternal possession of Yourself. I want no other Throne, no other Crown but You, my Beloved!

St. Therese is a true daughter of the Church, a true daughter of Carmel. She took to heart and let blossom the spiritual direction of her Father in Carmel, St. John of the Cross, who's teaching on detachment is a light and guide to those who wish to ascend the holy mountain and reach spiritual perfection.  St. John of the Cross uses the symbolism of a bird to explain detachment:

A bird caught in a birdlime has a twofold task: It must free itself and cleanse itself. And by satisfying their appetites, people suffer in a twofold way: They must detach themselves and, after being detached, clean themselves of what has clung to them. 
The Sayings of Light and Love #22

Sometimes, I think we forget the second part of detachment, the purifying of the effects of our attachments. We must let the Holy Spirit purify and cleanse us from our attachments and the effects. St. John of the Cross is simply describing Purgatory. Those seeking spiritual perfection have a desire to be purified beginning in this life. 

In this Year of Mercy, the Church offers a plenary indulgence to the faithful. One of the requirements to gain the indulgence is to be detached from sin, even venial sin. When we think of detachments, we usually think of something related to the senses. However, we must also consider what the Church requires, detachment from even venial sins. We must ask ourselves if we take pleasure in certain sins. For example, impatience. Perhaps we are attached to being impatient. If we are confessing the same sins over and over in confession, this may be a time to ask ourselves if we are seriously attached to a particular sin.  

St. John of the Cross also teaches that we can become attached to the manner of our prayer. He teaches us that we must be open to the Holy Spirit who may wish to speak to us and give us self-knowledge, perhaps about our attachments. We cannot hear the Lord speaking if we never listen in prayer. Perhaps we are attached to talking in prayer and not giving the Lord an opportunity to speak to us.

In our technologically advanced society, we can certainly be attached to many things and devices. How many of us can disconnect from our computers and cell phones?  It's not easy. 

My prayer is for the Lord to raise up more spiritual ascetics in the church. We need prophets! We need prayerful witnesses. We need to spend time with our Lord in Eucharistic Adoration! We need to go out into the desert for a half-hour or an hour, with no phone or headphones and be totally present to the Lord-standing at attention before him proclaiming: Here I am Lord, I come to do your will!

ASCETIC:

A person who practices severe self-discipline and abstention.

Photo: R. Massaro   The Prophet Elijah

Peace be with you!

Rosemarie, OCDS

Spiritual Direction with St. John of the Cross

In the inner wine cellar

I drank of my Beloved, and, when I went abroad

through all this valley

I no longer knew anything,

and lost the herd which I was following.

In this poem of St. John of the Cross, The Spiritual Canticle, he begins to explain what takes place in the depth of this union with the soul and the Bridegroom. He tells us:

This wine cellar is the last and most intimate degree of love in which the soul can be placed in this life...and we can assert that there are seven of these degrees or wine cellars of love. They are all possessed when the seven gifts of the Holy Spirit are possessed perfectly according to the soul's capacity for receiving them.
The Spiritual Canticle, Stanza 26, No. 3

In our Carmelite tradition, we have many saints who teach us that heaven begins now. Blessed Elizabeth of the Trinity is a holy Carmelite who speaks about this in her writing.  As Secular Carmelites, we must make the effort now to be holy, so that when the Lord comes unexpectedly he will find us ready for the Kingdom. 

In your circle of friends, family, and co-workers, do you know anyone who possesses a gift of the Spirit in its fullness, in its perfection? Do you know someone who is perfectly patient? Do you know someone who has perfect peace, gentleness, and kindness? Do you know someone who is perfectly loving and charitable, despite being persecuted? If you do, then you know a saint!  These are how the blessed in heaven live and move and have their being in union with God. 

When people come to our community who are interested in Carmelite spirituality, I tell them, yes, it is a way of life, but more importantly, we are striving for a state of being, a state of holiness. We want to begin the process of spiritual purification now, because we want to see God immediately when we die. As St. Therese teaches, if we love perfectly in this life, we do not have to go to purgatory.  This desire does not stem from a fear of purgatory, but flows from a heart that is completely in love with God and is waiting and longing to see him face-to-face.

Let us pray for the souls in purgatory, who long to see God face-to-face. They need our prayers so that they can be filled with all the gifts and fruits of the Holy Spirit. Once they enter the final depth of the "wine cellar" they will be in a glorious state of being, one of holiness, ready to experience the beatific vision and experience the union with God they so long for.

Let us pray for our world and for the conversion of sinners. One only has to read the news to see that God is not loved in the world, that many do not revere him or fear him. Our world needs the outpouring of the Holy Spirit. Let us pray that he renews the face of the Earth!

Prayer to the Holy Spirit

O Holy Spirit, Spirit of the Father and the Son, let the might of your love be more and more felt in the hearts of men. Let your light shine more and more on souls that are wandering in the darkness far away from God. Turn them to the light-giving Heart of Jesus and to the healing stream of His Precious Blood. Strengthen souls that love you. Perfect in them your Seven Gifts and your Twelve Fruits, and so make them your temples here that you may be adored in them forever. Amen.

Peace be with you!
Rosemarie, OCDS

THREE WORDS OF WISDOM

 O HOLY NIGHT

During this Christmas season I was thinking of the hymn, "O Holy Night" and it reminded me of St. John of the Cross and the lines in his writing we as Carmelites are so familiar with: O guiding night! O night more lovely than the dawn!Yes, the night of our dear Savior's birth is a night filled with light, joy, and hope. A night in our salvation history that is filled with loveliness!

This theme of finding joy amid the darkness of our spiritual quest, in faith, for union with Christ, is a theme that is found throughout the writings of our Carmelite doctors of the church and our Carmelite saints.  It is a theme that we can find throughout the writings of any saint.  Sometimes we want to avoid the darkness in our life, we want 

to avoid the cross, but if we truly long to be one with Jesus, we must embrace the cross, and even die to ourselves each day in a spirit of joy and rejoicing amid this journey of faith that is walked in darkness.

Our Savior came into this world in darkness, in poverty, in humility, in love. Let us follow him from birth to death in order to experience the resurrection and life with Him for all eternity, for this is our calling as Carmelites. 

As Carmelites, we experience the "radiant darkness" in our lives of quiet prayer in faith on behalf of the church. This radiant darkness of Christ in our life is a stumbling block to the world who find a false light and joy in the attachment of created things. 

Let us give thanks to God that he has called us to Carmel. Let us pray for each other that we always follow Christ, even in our darkest moments of trial and temptation. We will never be led astray if we follow the Crucified and Risen Savior who is the light of the world.

View previous posts of "Three Words of Wisdom"


Peace be with you!
Rosemarie, ocds
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Sunday with the Saints

SOLEMNITY OF 
ST. JOHN OF THE CROSS
DECEMBER 14 (Transferred to the 15 this year)
Happy Feast Day to all Carmelites!

Born in Spain in 1542, John learned the importance of self-sacrificing love from his parents. His father gave up wealth, status, and comfort when he married a weaver's daughter and was disowned by his noble family. After his father died, his mother kept the destitute family together as they wandered homeless in search of work. These were the examples of sacrifice that John followed with his own great love -- God.

When the family finally found work, John still went hungry in the middle of the wealthiest city in Spain. At fourteen, John took a job caring for hospital patients who suffered from incurable diseases and madness. It was out of this poverty and suffering, that John learned to search for beauty and happiness not in the world, but in God.

After John joined the Carmelite order, Saint Teresa of Avila asked him to help her reform movement. John supported her belief that the order should return to its life of prayer. But many Carmelites felt threatened by this reform, and some members of John's own order kidnapped him. He was locked in a cell six feet by ten feet and beaten three times a week by the monks. There was only one tiny window high up near the ceiling. Yet in that unbearable dark, cold, and desolation, his love and faith were like fire and light. He had nothing left but God -- and God brought John his greatest joys in that tiny cell.

After nine months, John escaped by unscrewing the lock on his door and creeping past the guard. Taking only the mystical poetry he had written in his cell, he climbed out a window using a rope made of strips of blankets. With no idea where he was, he followed a dog to civilization. He hid from pursuers in a convent infirmary where he read his poetry to the nuns. From then on his life was devoted to sharing and explaining his experience of God's love.

His life of poverty and persecution could have produced a bitter cynic. Instead it gave birth to a compassionate mystic, who lived by the beliefs that "Who has ever seen people persuaded to love God by harshness?" and "Where there is no love, put love -- and you will find love."

John left us many books of practical advice on spiritual growth and prayer that are just as relevant today as they were then. These books include: Ascent of Mount Carmel , Dark Night of the Soul and A Spiritual Canticle of the Soul and the Bridegroom Christ .
(From Christian Classics Ethereal Library)

Some of the Literary works of St. John of the Cross include:

The Ascent of Mount Carmel

Dark Night of the Soul

The Spiritual Canticle

The Tomb of St. John of the Cross




Peace be with you!
Rosemarie, of the hearts of Jesus and Mary ocds