St. John of the Cross

Their story

Juan de Yepes was born in 1542 in a small town in Spain. His father died when he was a small child, and his mother struggled to feed her sons. John worked in a hospital and studied at a Jesuit school, and in 1563 he entered the Carmelite Order. He was ordained a priest in 1567. That same year he met St. Teresa of Ávila, who invited him to help bring her reform to the Carmelite friars, returning them to a simple life of prayer. Not everyone welcomed the reform. In 1577 John was seized by friars who opposed it and locked in a tiny, dark cell in Toledo. For about nine months he was beaten and nearly starved. In that darkness he composed some of the most beautiful poetry in the Spanish language, songs of the soul’s love for God. One night he escaped by lowering himself from a window on a rope made of strips of cloth. John went on to write The Ascent of Mount Carmel, The Dark Night, The Spiritual Canticle and The Living Flame of Love. He taught that God leads us through times of darkness and dryness to purify our love, so that we can be united with him. He died in 1591 and is a Doctor of the Church.