Introduction
Saint John of the Cross
Influences of Saint John
Darkness
Darkness in Ps- Dionysius
Mystical Theology : The negative theology
Negations versus privations
Ascension of Moses and Ascent of the soul
Ps-Dionysius central concern
The Darkness as the summit
“Unknowing”
Divine Darkness versus Nether Darkness
Divine Darkness
The concept of beyond-being
Darkness in John the Cross
John’s Writings :
Dark Night of the soul
Ascent of Mount Carmel
Total purification through denial of everything
The place of silence in union with God
The various stages of the night
Active Night of the senses
Passive night of the senses
Spiritual Sweetness
Conclusion
Term paper: Compares and contrasts darkness in Ps-Dionysius and John of the Cross.
Ps-Dionysius, a Neoplatonic Christian mystic, wrote about the First Principles, a concept of beyond-being, goodness beyond comprehension, the nature of God and the mysteries of Divine Wisdom (The Amos Bronson Alcott Network 1). Ps-Dionysius’ ideas influenced many mystical writers: the English and Italian Renaissance mystical writers, Rhineland mystical writers and great Spanish mystics like Saint John of the Cross (Corrigan and Harrington 1). Saint John of the Cross also known as San Juan de la Cruz was a Carmelite friar, priest and a major figure in the Counter Reformation (CCEL 1). Along with Saint Teresa of Avila they are considered the founders of the Discalced Carmelites, he was a reformer of the Carmelite order by advocating for the return of the order to a life of prayer and spiritual growth. Saint John is also recognized for his writings especially poems. His writings include A Spiritual Canticle of the Soul, Ascent of Mount Carmel, the Bridegroom Christ and Dark Night of the Soul (CCEL 1).
It is rarely disputed that Ps-Dionysian tradition influenced John’s overall mystical theology structure and the language used in the union of the soul with God (Girón-Negrón 699). What is not clear however is whether John had direct access to Ps-Dionysius’ writings or whether the influence is derived from reading works by other authors influenced by Ps-Dionysius. There is reason to assume that John was not only familiar with the mystic writings of Ps-Dionysius, but also with those of Meister Eckhart and Jan Van Ruysbroeck this is because his writings presented the way of unknowing comprehensively and described it more elegantly and precisely than preceding texts.
Both John of the Cross and Ps-Dionysius wrote about darkness (The Amos Bronson Alcott Network 1). They believed in the soul going through various stages or levels to attain full contemplation of God. They advocated for renouncing all things including oneself in order to reach contemplation of God. However, the Divine Darkness spoken of by Ps-Dionysius was of a different category, and it was of a transcendent realm beyond light (The Amos Bronson Alcott Network 1). Saint John of the cross wrote about other kinds of darkness: the dark night of the soul and the darkness of the night of purgation (MSU 211).
Ps-Dionysius in the Mystical theology recommends dissimilar similarities over the symbolic names of God (Corrigan & Harrington 1). He elaborates that negations are more appropriate than affirmations to God. The Mystical Theology focuses on negative or apophatic theology. This negative theology offers a signification theory that is necessarily deceptive and self-subversive at each level. Here theology becomes mystical (“hidden”). All and any names of the symbolic theology, intelligible names, and theological representations must be negated. The godhead is more than “fatherhood”, “sonship” and “spirit” (Pseudo-Dionysius 141). He is no more “asleep” or “intellect”.
Negations are different from privations. A privation refers to the absence of a particular predicate that could be present just as easily (Corrigan & Harrington 1). The predicate absence is opposed to the predicate presence. For instance, living (present predicate) is opposed to lifeless (absent predicate). This, the godhead is not living, does not mean that the godhead is lifeless, it means that the godhead is beyond the living and the lifeless. Ps-Dionysius explains that the godhead affirmations are not opposed to the godhead negations, but both must be transcended, negations must also be negated (Turner 19-49). Negations alone do not adequately characterize the “over-being” since doing so continuously would be to characterize the divinity positively (Harrington et al. 8). Furthermore, the godhead “is beyond assertion and denial” (Pseudo-Dionysius 141).
Ps-Dionysius states that beyond all reading, speaking and comprehension of names there is a divine darkness, unknowing and silence (Corrigan & Harrington 1). These characteristics seem privative as if they were the absence of sight, knowledge and speech respectively. However, Ps-Dionysius does not treat them as such but uses spatial and temporal language to give them a special time and place. For instance, Ps-Dionysius gives an account of the ascension of Moses up Mount Sinai (Exodus 19-20). It is only after Moses ascends through the intelligible and sensible contemplation of God does he get to the darkness above the peak of the mountain. It is only after the contemplation of the various forms of theology does Moses enters into the darkness.
There is the ascent from the sensuous realm (lower) to the intelligible realm (intermediate) and finally to the darkness of the godhead (Corrigan & Harrington 1). Notably, Ps-Dionysius leaves the relationship between the darkness and Moses very obscure. Some theologians like Lamblichus and Proclus speculate that this is a form of knowing though it is quite a strange form of knowing. Others like the Periphyseon say that in the darkness, Moses experienced something he could not explain or say in words, hence a form of affective experience (Harrington et al. 11). Ps-Dionysius does not offer any decisive evidence to support either claim. He only shows Moses’ union with the invisible, unknowable and ineffable godhead.
Ps-Dionysius’ central concern is how God who is beyond individual substances, beyond goodness, unknowable and unrestricted being can manifest to, through and in the entire creation and bring all things back to their source which is hidden darkness (McGinn 135). The absolute, unchangeable and simple mysteries of speaking of God (Theology) are swathed in the hidden silence, the darkness beyond the light of secret (Corrigan & Harrington 1). The soul goes beyond the inactivity of knowledge to a realm of unification with God which is achieved “in the brilliant darkness of a hidden silence” (Pseudo-Dionysius 135).
It is the prayer of Ps-Dionysius that they (together with Timothy) reach “this darkness so far above light” (Pseudo-Dionysius 138). He considers the darkness as the summit of God’s mystical knowledge and the climax of contemplation of God. We must unceasingly and absolutely renounce all things including ourselves as to be borne into the Divine Darkness. It is only after we forsake the things that we know that we can attain the fullness of the Contemplation of God (Pseudo-Dionysius 138). This is similar to the analog Dionysius gives of carving a statue. You have to clear every obstacle to reveal the beauty of the hidden image (Pseudo-Dionysius 138). Yet after all this Ps-Dionysius says that the godhead is beyond “darkness and light, error and truth” (Pseudo-Dionysius 141).
When Ps-Dionysius talks of “unknowing” (agnosia) he does not mean ignorance or nescience (MSU 211). He refers to the recognition that no finite knowledge can understand the Infinite godhead (one). The infinite one should, therefore, be approached by that which is above and beyond knowledge. Ps-Dionysius speaks of two kinds of darkness: the super-darkness (Divine Darkness) and the sub-darkness (nether-darkness). Between these two kinds of darkness lies an octave of light. These two kinds of darkness are not the same; the nether darkness is the absence of light while the Divine Darkness is the excess of light. The sub-darkness symbolizes mere ignorance and the Divine Darkness symbolizes the transcendent unknowing. The Divine Darkness is super-knowledge that cannot be gained through discursive reason (MSU 211).
This divine darkness is of the first principle to ancient Egyptians, and they celebrated it (the godhead) as Darkness beyond all spiritual and intellectual perception (MSU 211). They referred to the divine darkness as a Thrice unknown Darkness. The Thrice unknown Darkness refers to pavilions of the great light that is unapproachable. It is not the absence of lumination but the superabundance of light, a deep, dazzling Darkness (MSU 211). When one gets to the realm of divine darkness they possess extraordinary knowledge through faith and love. However, the intellect is plunged into darkness since this knowledge is contemplative.
The concept of beyond-being is particularly significant in aiding Ps-Dionysius to describe Divine Darkness (MSU 211). The realization that what is known in the unknowing cannot be described adequately and is beyond the realm of being is astounding. Even though, negation comes closer to describing it (the godhead) than affirmation the concept of beyond being is mind boggling (MSU 211).
The Dark Night of the soul and the Ascent of Mount Carmel appear as two distinct volumes having different titles (Roth 1). However, they are constituents of a single treatise in one poem. Saint John drew from the apophatic mysticism to write the Ascent of Mount Carmel, which mirrors the ascent of the soul to God (Roth 1). Mount Carmel is an allegory of the place of God (CCEL 1). Saint John describes the experiences the soul goes through to attain union with God. The Dark Night of the soul is a continuation and a sequel of the Ascent of Mount Carmel (CCEL 1). It describes the soul’s journey that is the dark night into divine union with God. The soul is deprived of worldly things, dispossessed of the natural understanding of God and then lurched into divine darkness (Roth 1). The gospel demands that we abandon everything for the love we have for Christ. Saint John of the cross took up this challenge and abandoned earthly possessions, all voices, all visions, all supernatural and natural clinging and all spiritual and sensible consolation to attain this loving wisdom.
John’s writings show the need for total purification through denial of everything in order to attain union with God (Lozano 1). The Ascent of Mount Carmel describes the active purification, the things Christians do actively through the grace of God. The Dark Night deals with the various levels of purification of the soul by God. There is a need for absolute denial of everything (life, possessions) to become Jesus’ disciple. Saint John of the Cross says that “In order to be united with him, the will must consequently be emptied of and detached from all disordered appetite and satisfaction with respect to every particular thing in which it can rejoice, whether earthly or heavenly, temporal or spiritual, so that purged and cleansed of all inordinate satisfactions, joys, and appetites it might be wholly occupied in loving God with its affections” (John of the Cross 747). Saint John of the cross had a special fondness for two ideas: the axiom that we keep life by losing it to Christ and need for total renunciation (Lozano 1).
John of the Cross explains that “For whereas speaking distracts, silence and work collect the thoughts and strengthen the spirit” (Saint John of the Cross 524). Just like Ps-Dionysius Saint John advocated for silent meditation in order to get to union with God since Dionysius says that the godhead “is most eloquent, yet utters few words, or rather is altogether silent” (MSU 205). and “when plunging into the Darkness that is above the intellect, we pass not merely into brevity of speech, but even into absolute silence of thoughts and of words” (MSU 208). It is only in silence that the believer can achieve union with God through contemplation. The Bible says, “When there are many words, transgression is unavoidable, But he who restrains his lips is wise” (proverbs 10:19). Silence draws the believer away from distractions and sin and hence closer to God.
In the Dark Night of the soul, the night is one but there are various stages in the night (Roth 1). The first stage, the Active Night of the senses, involves the soul actively riding itself of the desires that come from the interior senses of fancy and imagination and those that come from the five exterior senses. These desires must be eliminated so that the soul does not suffer privative desire (the more the soul is filled with the desire for things the more deprived of God the soul becomes) and the five positive effects (darkened, defiled, weakened, wearied and tormented). Here, John of the Cross shows us that it is not things themselves but the desire or craving for things that hinder the ascent of the soul.
The soul cannot be able to eliminate these desires or senses on its own. Therefore, the work is perfected by God in an intense darkness referred to as the passive night of the senses (Roth 1). The passive purgation involves the spiritual imperfections that affect beginners like envy, luxury, pride, sloth, avarice, gluttony and wrath. The passive Night of the Senses reveals John’s reflection on his own journey and years of experience as a spiritual director. For, instance he knew firsthand the obstacle pride presented in the ascent of beginners or the bodily penance extremes the gluttonous got involved in to attain spiritual sweetness.
For the ascent of the soul to continue, spiritual sweetness (the good feeling experienced by the soul during devotion and meditation) must cede to dryness (Roth 1). Saint John gives three signs to discern whether the lack of spiritual sweetness is due to the soul’s Luke warmness or is due to God leading the soul into a more delicate prayer mode. Firstly, the soul finds no pleasure in created things or in God. Secondly, the soul is anguished since the soul thinks that without spiritual sweetness she is backsliding and not serving God. Thirdly, the soul cannot meditate or use imagination in reading, devotion, and prayer. The presence of these three signs marks the transition from known to unknown, from natural to supernatural, from active consciousness to passive and from meditation to contemplation.
Like Ps-Dionysius, Saint John says “that God is darkness to our intellect” (John of the Cross 177), He is beyond knowing. In the darkness of the night of purgation, God passively and entirely achieves the mortification of the soul of the believer (John of the Cross 375). The imperfect habits and natural affections must be purified in order to pass into the divine union. Therefore, the spiritual night (the purgation) is necessary to advance to divine union with God. God makes those he wishes to elevate to the highest level of the union to go through a strong purgation (John of the Cross 651). This means that the level of union one attains is determined by the severity of the purification he undergoes.
In conclusion, John of the Cross and Ps-Dionysius both write about darkness. It is clear that the writings of Saint John of the Cross show Ps-Dionysian influence. The soul goes through various levels or stages to attain contemplation or union with God. Ps-Dionysius talks of the sensible, intelligible and finally divine darkness while John of the Cross explores the Active Night of the senses and passive night of the senses. They both believed in the renunciation of all things including self in order to attain union with God. Saint John and Ps-Dionysius advocated for silence during meditation or contemplation of God.
The Darkness spoken of by Ps-Dionysius is more of a transcendent realm beyond light. It is an “unknowing” and is beyond all things and intellect. Saint John of the Cross spoke of the dark night of the soul and the darkness of the night of purgation. Saint John focuses more on the soul’s journey to divine union with God while Ps-Dionysius view point is how we describe or perceive the infinite one (negations and affirmations) and the way in which we attain union with It (godhead).
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