The Dark Night of the Soul

August 22

The Dark Night of the Soul
St. John of the Cross wrote a beautiful poem called the Dark Night of the Soul in the 1500s and in the verses he tells of a soul’s journey towards God. The main idea of the poem can be seen as the painful experience that people endure as they seek to grow in spiritual maturity and union with God. These painful experiences can include the death of a loved one, being diagnosed with a terminal or long term illness, or perhaps a painful divorce or other type of personal loss. A person experiencing the dark night of the soul feels that God has abandoned them. They may question their faith: “Why did God take my child?” or “Why did God allow me to be diagnosed with cancer?” They seek God out in the night but cannot find Him. He is, of course, there, but hidden from our sight.

Life is full of losses and it’s perfectly normal to ask God “Where are you?" Mother Teresa is a perfect example of this. Mother Teresa, daily, faced death, disease, poverty in India while working with the poor and destitute. She, at times felt that God abandoned her and left her to languish in the darkness of her soul. But she carried on her work, crying out to Jesus in the night. She felt that the experience of the dark night united her with the poorest of the poor who were abandoned by society. Mother Teresa did find some light in the dark. She is quoted as saying: “Let him do with me whatever He wants… If my darkness is light to some soul… I am perfectly happy.”

This week let us examine the times we have felt darkness in our lives and how our faith saw us through. Extend a warm smile or hug to someone who is experiencing the dark night. If you are in a dark night now… remember God is there with you and the light of dawn will come in time.
. . –God Bless, Holly Clark