A pictorial biography of the descalced Carmelite, doctor of the church, and brief summary of his spiritual work

1. SAINT JOHN OF THE CROSS

2. A mystical poet of the Spanish Renaissance.
He was a reformer of the Order of Our Lady of
Mount Carmel and co-founder of the Order of
Discalced Carmelites with Saint Teresa of Jesus.

3. He was a religious known
as a friar, Juan de San
Matías (born in
Fontiveros, June 24, 1542
- Died in Úbeda,
December 14, 1591

4. Since 1952 he is the
patron of the poets in
the Spanish language.
He is one of the 36
Doctors of the Church,

5. Francisco and Juan, both
suffer dire poverty and
are forced to move to
Arévalo, where they live
for four years, and then
in 1551 to Medina del Campo

6. He entered the College of Doctrine,
being an acolyte of the Agustinians
of the Magdalene, where he was
met by Don Alonso Álvarez de Toledo
who placed him in the Hospital of
the I. Conception and paid for his
studies as a priest. The Jesuits
founded his college in 1551
where he studied Humanities.
He was renowned for his fervour.

7. He learned to write and
compose verses in Latin
and to translate Cicero,
Julius Caesar, Virgil, Ovid,
Marcial and Horace.
Simultaneously, he came
to know the new currents
of Christian humanism

8. At the age of twenty-one, in 1563, he entered the Convent of the Carmelite Fathers of Medina
del Campo, of the Carmelite Order, and adopted the name of Fray Juan de San Matías.
He finished the novitiate between 1563 and 1564 in the Convent of Santa Ana.

9. He studied Arts and Theology at the
University of Salamanca at the college of
the Carmelites. The splendor of the cloister
is renowned: Mancio, Guevara, Gallo, Luis
de León were professors at that time.

10. in 1567 he
returned to
Medina del
Campo for a few
days to be
ordained priest
and celebrate his
first mass in the
presence of his
family and friends
in the convent

11. he met Teresa de Cepeda y Ahumada, future Saint Teresa of Jesus, who had come to
the city to found a new convent for her "Carmelite Reformation", the so-called
Discalced Carmelites. Teresa convinced John to join her cause of reforming the order,
which would lead to great hostility from his brother Carmelites.

12. John returned to
Salamanca and
began studying
theology 1567-
1568, but only
finished one of the
four courses, so he
did not even obtain
a bachelor's
degree.

13. He left Salamanca to accompany Teresa
in her foundation of the sisters in Valladolid.

14. November 28
in 1568 he
founded in
Duruelo the first
convent of the
male branch of
the Discalced
Carmel following
the "Primitive
Rule" of Saint
Albert

15. In 1570 the foundation moved to Mancera, where Juan served as subprior
and novice master. In 1571, after a brief stay in Pastrana, where he started
his novitiate, he established himself in Alcalá de Henares as rector of the
newly founded Convent College of Discalced Carmelites of San Cyril.

16. In 1572 he was invited by Teresa de Jesús, to the Convent of the Incarnation
in Ávila, where he assumed the duties of chaplain and confessor of the nuns.
He remained there until the end of 1577, in order to accompany Mother Teresa
in the foundation of various nuns convents, such as the one in Segovia.

17. Within the Order of Carmel, jurisdictional conflicts between
shod and barefoot Carmelites had worsened, due to different
spiritual approaches to the reform. The contention occurred in
the context of the struggle between the royal and pontifical
powers for the domination of the religious orders.

18. John of the
Cross was
imprisoned
by the friars,
just as had
occurred
already in
1575 in
Medina del
Campo

19. On the night of December 3, 1577, Juan de la Cruz
was arrested again and transferred to the
Carmelite friars convent in Toledo, where he was
forced to appear before a court of friars to retract
the Teresian Reform. Faced with his refusal, he
was confined in a conventual prison for eight
months. During this period of seclusion he wrote
the first thirty-one verses of the Spiritual Canticle

20. With the help of a jailer, he escaped in the middle of
the night and took refuge in the convent of the
Discalced Carmelite Mothers, also in Toledo. For
greater security, the nuns send him to the Hospital of
the Santa Cruz, where he spent a month and a half.

21. he went to
Andalusia to
fully recover.
He passesd
through
Almodóvar
del Campo,
birth place of
the mystics
Saints John of
Ávila and John
Baptista of the
conception

22. then he arrived as Vicar at the
convent of El Calvario in Beas de
Segura, Jaén. He befriended
Ana de Jesús, after some visits
to the Beas foundation.

23. In June 1579 he settled in the
foundation of Baeza where
he remained as Rector of the
Colegio Mayor until 1582

24. in 1582 he left for
Granada after being
named Third
Definitor and Prior
of the Martyrs of
that city.

25. For reasons of this nomination
he made numerous trips to
Andalusia and Portugal.
He transfered the
consultation to Segovia.

27. After a new doctrinal confrontation in 1590, he
was dismissed in 1591 from all his positions, and
he remained a simple subject of the community.
During his trip back to Segovia, he fell ill in the
convent of La Peñuela de La Carolina

28. he was transferred to
Úbeda, where he died
on the night of
December 13-14.

29. The process of
beatification and
canonization
began in 1627 and
ended in 1630.
He was beatified in
1675 by Clement X and
canonized by Benedict
XIII in 1726.
On August 24, 1926,
Pius XI proclaimed
him Doctor of the
Universal Church

30. THE SPIRITUAL LITERARY WORK OF SAINT JOHN OF THE CROSS
three influences: first, the biblical Song of Songs

31. second,
the tradition
of Italianized
cultured poetry
and the tradition
of popular
poetry and
songbooks of
the Spanish
Renaissance.
The influence of
the Bible is
fundamental
in his poetry,

32. Combining the ancient symbolism
of the Song of Songs with the
proper formulas of Petrarchism,
he produced a rich mystical
literature, which has its roots in
Thomistic theology and in
medieval German and Flemish
mystics. His production reflects a
broad religious training, although
it reveals the influence of the
traditional Cancionero from
the 16th century

33. The stanza most used in his poems is the lyre, although he shows
equal ease in the use of the octosyllable romance. – he uses
symbols such as the house or abode, night, light, source,
darkness, falconry, hunting, fall, flight, animals and so on.

34. His poetic work
is composed of
three major poems
1 - Dark night of the soul

35. 2 – Spiritual
Canticle

36. Llama de amor viva;
33 - Flame
of living love

37. and a set of poems usually
classified as minor:
five glosses, ten romances
(nine of them can be counted
as a single composition)
and two songs.
The diffusion of his work
was by handwritten copies.
WORKS IN PROSE
Ascent to Mount Carmel
(1578-1583)
Dark night of the soul
Spiritual Canticle (1584)
Living Flame of Love (1584)

38. SOME WORKS OF SAINT JOHN
I entered where I did not know..
Gloss on I live without living in me
After a loving adventure..
Only a shepherd is troubled..
I know well the fountain..
In the beginning there dwelt…
In the beginning erat Verbum
(9 romances - first verses are:-
-"In that immense love",
-"A wife who loves you",
-"Let it be then, said the Father,“
- «With this good hope»,
-"In those and other requests",
-«Since the time was arrived»,
-«Then an archangel called»,
-"Since the time had come" and
-"On top of the currents")
San Juan de la Cruz

39. The night, by erasing the limits of things, suggests
the eternal, and in this way it comes to symbolize
the active negation of the soul of what is feelable,
that leads to absolute spiritual emptiness.

40. The term "dark night" is used by Saint John in reference to the "terrible trials that
God sends to man to purify him"; In keeping with this meaning, he speaks of a night
of the senses and a night of the spirit, located, respectively, at the end of the
purgative path and the illuminative path, after which the unitive path would come.
The ultimate aspiration of the soul, is tormented by the distance that separates
it from God, and the fulfillment of its desire for total fusion with Him.

41. The existence of these
three ways corresponds
to the three classical
powers of the soul:
memory, understanding
and will, which in this
same order are reduced
to a state of
perfect silence.
The silence of memory
is called mystical hope.
The silence of
understanding is called
faith and silence of will
- charity or love.

42. These three silences represent both an interior emptying and
a renunciation of oneself that reaches its maximum degree
through the virtue of charity. Hence the enormous anguish
and the sensation of death characteristic of the mystics,
because to join God is to lose oneself prior to winning.

43. Before accessing the mystical experience of union with God, the soul
experiences a devastating sense of loneliness and abandonment,
accompanied by terrible temptations that, if it manages to overcome,
they give way to a new light, for "God does not leave emptiness unfilled."

44. From the historical beginnings
of the retired hermit life, seekers
renounced worldly goods and
pleasures by submitting to fasts
and other hardships, in order to
empty themselves of desires of
the world and fill replace them
with elevated things.
Saint John of the Cross clarifies
that this is only the first stage,
since after it comes the
aforementioned spiritual night,
in which the seeker, already
detached from worldly
consolations and pleasures,
will also lose the support of his
peace, of his interior softness ,
entering the most horrible night.
This is followed by perfect
contemplation.

45. In his famous drawing of the
Mount of Perfection, the straight
path of the ascent appears flanked
by two side roads with no exit.
The one on the right, the worldly
path, points out its dangers:
possessing, joy, knowing,
consolation, rest. Likewise, the
one on the left also marks the
dangers of a spiritual path: glory,
joy, knowledge, comfort, rest.
Especially surprising is the legend
of the steps of the central path,
the correct one, in which it reads:
Nothing, nothing, nothing,
nothing, nothing

46. In order to know how to get rid of everything temporal
and not get bloated with the spiritual,
and remain in the utmost nakedness
and freedom of spirit,
which is required for divine union -
some of his short sentences
summarize his doctrine well,
such as: «Deny your desires, and
you will find what your heart desires» And
«Love does not consist in feeling great things,
but to be stripped, and to suffer for the Beloved ».

49. LIST OF PRESENTATIONS IN ENGLISH
Revised 24-11-2021
Advent and Christmas – time of hope and peace
All Souls Day
Amoris Laetitia – ch 1 – In the Light of the Word
Amoris Laetitia – ch 2 – The Experiences and Challenges of Families
Amoris Laetitia – ch 3 - Looking to Jesus, the Vocation of the Family
Amoris Laetitia – ch 4 - Love in Marriage
Amoris Laetitia – ch 5 – Love made Fruitfuol
Amoris Laetitia – ch 6 – Some Pastoral Perspectives
Amoris Laetitia – ch 7 – Towards a better education of children
Amoris Laetitia – ch 8 – Accompanying, discerning and integrating weaknwss
Amoris Laetitia – ch 9 – The Spirituality of Marriage and the Family
Beloved Amazon 1ª – A Social Dream
Beloved Amazon 2 - A Cultural Dream
Beloved Amazon 3 – An Ecological Dream
Beloved Amazon 4 - An Ecclesiastical Dream
Carnival
Christ is Alive
Christ the King
Familiaris Consortio (FC) 1 – Church and Family today
Familiaris Consortio (FC) 2 - God’s plan for the family
Familiaris Consortio (FC) 3 – 1 – family as a Community
Familiaris Consortio (FC) 3 – 2 – serving life and education
Familiaris Consortio (FC) 3 – 3 – mission of the family in society
Familiaris Consortio (FC) 3 – 4 - Family in the Church
Familiaris Consortio (FC) 4 Pastoral familiar
Football in Spain
Haurietis aquas – devotion to the Sacred Heart by Pius XII
Holidays and Holy Days
Holy Spirit
Holy Week – drawings for children
Holy Week – glmjpses of the last hours of JC
Inauguration of President Donald Trump
Juno explores Jupiter
Laudato si 1 – care for the common home
Laudato si 2 – Gospel of creation
Laudato si 3 – Human roots of the ecological crisis
Laudato si 4 – integral ecology
Laudato si 5 – lines of approach and action
Laudato si 6 – Education y Ecological Spirituality
Love and Marriage 12,3,4,5,6,7,8,9
Lumen Fidei – ch 1,2,3,4
Martyrs of North America and Canada
Martyrs of Vietnam
Medjugore Pilgrimage
Misericordiae Vultus in English
Mother Teresa of Calcuta – Saint
Pope Francis in Cyprus, Greece
Pope Franciss in Thailand
Pope Francis in Japan
Pope Francis in Sweden
Pope Francis in Hungary, Slovaquia
Pope Francis in America
Pope Francis in the WYD in Poland 2016
Querida Amazonia
Resurrection of Jesus Christ –according to the Gospels
Russian Revolution and Communismo 3 civil war 1918.1921
Russian Revolution and Communism 1
Russian Revolution and Communismo 2
Saint Agatha, virgin and martyr
Saint Albert the Great
Saint Anthony of Padua
Saint Cecilia
Saint Elizabeth of Hungary
Saint Francis of Assisi
Saint Ignatius of Loyola
Saint James, apostle
Saint Joseph
Saint Maria Goretti
Saint Martin of Tours
Saint Maximilian Kolbe
Saint Mother Theresa of Calcutta
Saint Nicholas, Santa Claus, Christmas
Saint Jean Baptiste MarieaVianney, Curé of Ars
Saint John of the Cross
Saint Patrick and Ireland
Saints Zachary and Elizabeth, parents of John Baptis
Signs of hope
Sunday – day of the Lord
Thanksgiving – History and Customs
The Body, the cult – (Eucharist)
Valentine
Vocation – mconnor@legionaries.org
Way of the Cross – drawings for children
For commentaries – email – mflynn@legionaries.org
Fb – Martin M Flynn
Donations to - BANCO - 03069 INTESA SANPAOLO SPA
Name – EUR-CA-ASTI
IBAN – IT61Q0306909606100000139493

50. LISTA DE PRESENTACIONES EN ESPAÑOL
Revisado 24-11-2021
Abuelos
Adviento y Navidad, tiempo de esperanza
Amor y Matrimonio 1 - 9
Amoris Laetitia – ch 1 – A la luz de la Palabre
Amoris Laetitia – ch 2 – Realidad y Desafíos de las Familias
Amoris Laetitia – ch 3 La mirada puesta en Jesús: Vocación de la Familia
Amoris Laetitia – ch 4 - El Amor en el Matrimonio
Amoris Laetitia – ch 5 – Amor que se vuelve fecundo
Amoris Laetitia – ch 6 – Algunas Perspectivas Pastorales
Amoris Laetitia – ch 7 – Fortalecer la educacion de los hijos
Amoris Laetitia – ch 8 – Acompañar, discernir e integrar la fragilidad
Amoris Laetitia – ch 9 – Espiritualidad Matrimonial y Familiar
Carnaval
Cristo Rey
Cristo Vive
Dia de todos los difuntos
Domingo – día del Señor
El camino de la cruz de JC en dibujos para niños
El Cuerpo, el culto – (eucarisía)
Espíritu Santo
Familiaris Consortio (FC) 1 – iglesia y familia hoy
Familiaris Consortio (FC) 2 - el plan de Dios para la familia
Familiaris Consortio (FC) 3 – 1 – familia como comunidad
Familiaris Consortio (FC) 3 – 2 – servicio a la vida y educación
Familiaris Consortio (FC) 3 – 3 – misión de la familia en la sociedad
Familiaris Consortio (FC) 3 – 4 - participación de la familia en la iglesia
Familiaris Consortio (FC) 4 Pastoral familiar
Fátima – Historia de las Apariciones de la Virgen
Feria de Sevilla
Haurietis aquas – el culto al Sagrado Corazón
Hermandades y cofradías
Hispanidad
Laudato si 1 – cuidado del hogar común
Laudato si 2 – evangelio de creación
Laudato si 3 – La raíz de la crisis ecológica
Laudato si 4 – ecología integral
Laudato si 5 – líneas de acción
Laudato si 6 – Educación y Espiritualidad Ecológica
Lumen Fidei – cap 1,2,3,4
Madre Teresa de Calcuta – Santa
María y la Biblia
Martires de Nor America y Canada
Martires de Vietnam
Medjugore peregrinación
Misericordiae Vultus en Español
Papa Francisco en Bulgaria
Papa Francisco en Chipre, Grecia
Papa Francisco en Rumania
Papa Francisco en Marruecos
Papa Francisco en México
Papa Francisco – mensaje para la Jornada Mundial Juventud 2016
Papa Francisco – visita a Chile
Papa Francisco – visita a Perú
Papa Francisco en Colombia 1 + 2
Papa Francisco en Cuba
Papa Francisco en Fátima
Papa Francisco en la JMJ 2016 – Polonia
Papa Francisco en Hugaría e Eslovaquia
Queridas Amazoznia 1,2,3,4
Resurrección de Jesucristo – según los Evangelios
Revolución Rusa y Comunismo 1, 2, 3
Santa Agata, virgen y martir
San Alberto Magno
San Antonio de Padua
San Francisco de Asis 1,2,3,4
Santa Cecilia
Santa Maria Goretti
San Ignacio de Loyola
Santa Isabel de Hungria
San José, obrero, marido, padre
San Juan Ma Vianney, Curé de’Ars
San Juan de la Cruz
San Martin de Tours
San Maximiliano Kolbe
San Nicolas, Santa Claus, Navidad
Santa Teresa de Calcuta
San Padre Pio de Pietralcina
San Patricio e Irlanda
Santiago Apóstol
Santos Zacarias e Isabel, padres de Juan Bautista
Semana santa – Vistas de las últimas horas de JC
Vacaciones Cristianas
Valentín
Virgen de Guadalupe
Vocación – www.vocación.org
Vocación a evangelizar
Para comentarios – email – mflynn@lcegionaries.org
fb – martin m. flynn
Donations to - BANCO - 03069 INTESA SANPAOLO SPA
Name – EUR-CA-ASTI. IBAN – IT61Q0306909606100000139493