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Friar John longs for God, but his jealous Carmelite brothers resent his holiness and imprison him in a tiny cell, where he writes his beautiful "Spiritual Canticle." The tension heightens - will he escape? The true story of Spain's greatest poet.
TRANSCRIPT
(affectionate music) "Oh living flame of love, that tenderly wounds my soul on its deepest center.
0:32
Since now You are not oppressive, now consummate! If it be your will,
0:40
"tear through the veil of this sweet encounter!"
0:49
My name is Don Alonso Alvarez de Toledo.
0:54
And I want to tell you the story of the greatest poet that Spain has ever known.
1:01
I met him in 1554 when he was only a boy very, very poor but nevertheless extraordinary.
1:11
I felt that even then. What was so extraordinary about him?
1:18
Well, he didn't have an easy life. He suffered greatly.
1:24
But inside, that's where the real drama was, in his heart.
1:29
(longing music continues) When a man is in love,
1:35
and John was in love with God, he will never be satisfied with anything less
1:41
than total union with his beloved. So he sought a life of contemplation
1:47
and poverty and sacrifice in the Carmelite Order. But I'm getting ahead of myself.
1:54
Listen as I tell you the story of John of the Cross.
2:00
(birds twitter) (grass rustles)
3:16
- [Alonso] Her name was Catalina Alvarez. And she was destitute and homeless.
3:22
Her husband had just died. And bread was not to be had for any money.
3:28
It was a three-day journey from her village to the town of Torrijos.
3:33
Yet she had to make the trip. For in Torrijos lived the brother of her dead husband.
3:39
This brother was wealthy, and perhaps he would help her small son, John.
3:44
It was her only hope. - My brother was dead to me long ago, Señora.
3:51
When he married you, he disgraced the de Yepes' family name. There is nothing I can do for you.
3:58
- But this is your nephew, your own flesh and blood, Señor. Look at him, look. Do not leave him in this misery.
4:04
For God's mercy, Señor, have pity. - This child is nothing to me. Please, Señora, you really must leave.
4:11
(dejected music) Go away now.
4:24
- Catalina had nowhere to go. She continued on her journey, begging for food along the way
4:30
until she finally settled here in Medina del Campo, where she found work as a weaver.
4:37
Nine years passed during which John grew into an exceptionally bright young boy.
4:43
But he was isolated from the other children by his quiet nature. His mother loved him very much
4:50
and taught him to love God. (affectionate music continues)
4:58
- My son, we are poor. It's true. But you must always remember to have hope,
5:03
because we have Our Lord and the Blessed Virgin to watch over us.
5:15
- [Alonso] Catalina was determined to get him an education. So she came to me one day
5:22
and asked me to take John under my patronage so that he could attend the Jesuit college.
5:29
I was the Administrator of the plague hospital here in town, and I had a place
5:34
for a quick-witted eager and zealous boy who could assist me in caring for the sick.
5:40
So I decided to help him.
5:51
- [Adult John] "Where have you hidden, Beloved", and left me moaning. You fled like the stag after wounding me.
6:00
I went out calling you. And you were gone.
6:12
"Seeking my love, I will head for the mountains and for watersides.
6:18
I will not gather flowers nor fear wild beasts.
6:25
"I will go beyond strong men and frontiers."
6:38
- More years passed. And John grew into a remarkable young man.
6:44
He had a special gift for caring for the sick. He was kind and very devout.
6:51
He spent many hours in prayer. But the other students didn't understand that.
6:57
They thought him a bit aloof. But I knew him better.
7:03
He was a brilliant student. And I was so proud of him. However, I was concerned about his future.
7:12
He had become like a son to me. And I didn't want to lose him.
7:17
- John, close that book for a minute. I need to talk to you. - Yes, Don Alonso.
7:24
- You've been so preoccupied these last few weeks. You seem so far away. - I'm sorry, Don Alonso.
7:31
(John sighs) Don Alonso, you've been so kind to me. I feel I could never repay you.
7:37
- What nonsense. Do you know what a consolation you have been to me?
7:43
I never had a son of my own, John. And you have become like my own flesh and blood.
7:48
Don't worry your head about repaying me. I'm more than glad to have you here. - Don Alonso, listen to me.
7:56
I need to tell you something even if it makes you angry. My final examinations are next month.
8:03
And, after that, I, Don Alonso,
8:09
I want to be a priest. - Wonderful, wonderful, my boy. (chuckles) Why ever did you hesitate to tell me?
8:16
This is exactly what I had in mind for you all a long. Ha ha, then after you are ordained,
8:21
I have a prestigious opportunity for you. I will appoint you the Chaplain of the plague hospital.
8:27
Now, what will your mother say to that do you think? - You don't understand.
8:32
I can't stay. I have to... (affectionate music)
8:40
Did you ever love someone so much that you were willing to give up everything for that person?
8:45
Well, that is how I feel. I want to spend myself totally for my God.
8:52
Only in total sacrifice of my will will I have any hope for peace on this earth.
8:57
I believe I have found a place where such a life is possible. Don Alonso, God is calling me to enter the Carmelites.
9:07
- The Carmelites? John, you can't be serious. Do you have any idea what a Carmelite is?
9:13
Why, all they do is pray. And you, with all your education, think of the good you could do here.
9:18
How can you think of wasting your life, your mind, your talents? No, no, no, no, I'm sure God wants you here in the hospital with me.
9:27
- But, Don Alonso, I- - All your life you've been poor. All your life you've been an outcast.
9:32
Do you think it will be any different with the Carmelites? It will be the same there. Please be practical. (breathes)
9:39
With me you will have a comfortable life. Think of your poor mother.
9:45
Under the circumstances, I must forbid you to leave. - Don Alonso, I will think about what you have said,
9:52
(affectionate music) but I won't disobey God's call.
9:59
- [John] "One dark night", fired with love's urgent longings,
10:04
ah, the sheer grace! I went out unseen,
10:10
"my house being now all stilled." - [Alonso] When I found out that he had left,
10:17
I was filled with sadness. I suppose I felt he had rejected and turned his back on me.
10:24
But I didn't realize then how right the Carmelite Order would be for John.
10:31
He had a passionate desire for prayer, and in their contemplative life, he could seek a union with God.
10:38
(adventurous music)
10:47
- [John] "Pouring out a thousand graces", he passed these groves in haste.
10:53
And having looked at them, with his image alone, clothed them in beauty.
11:02
(triumphant organ music)
11:20
- [Alonso] So on the 24th day of February, 1563,
11:26
he was clothed with the Carmelite habit and took the name of Brother John of St. Matthias.
11:37
(solemn music)
11:52
- [Friar] What do you seek? - The mercy of God, the poverty of the order,
11:58
and the society of the brothers. - Do you intend to persevere in religion
12:05
till the end of your life? - With the mercy of God and the prayers of the brothers, I do.
12:19
♪ Come Holy Spirit from above ♪
12:25
♪ Come share your heav'nly light of love ♪
12:31
♪ Come, Father of the poor, ♪ ♪ God of might ♪
12:38
♪ Oh come within our hearts ♪ ♪ now shining bright ♪
12:50
(tender music)
13:03
- I, Brother John, promise to show obedience, poverty, and chastity to God
13:09
and to the Reverend Father, my brother, Juan Baptista Rubio of Raveena, Prior General of the order of Our Lady of Mount Carmel.
13:18
I thank Our Lord for the grace that He has granted me in allowing me to be admitted
13:23
into an order of which our patron is God's Blessed Mother.
13:29
♪ Come Holy Spirit from above ♪
13:35
♪ Come share your heav'nly light of love ♪
13:41
♪ Come, Father of the poor, ♪ ♪ God of might ♪
13:48
♪ Oh Come, within our hearts ♪ ♪ now shining bright ♪
13:57
♪ Amen ♪
14:04
♪ Alleluia ♪
14:10
(bell tolls)
14:19
- John wanted to live the Carmelite life in all its fullness, according to the primitive rule.
14:25
However, not all the friars felt the way he did. (troubled music) The monastery in which he lived
14:31
had moved away from the original aim of order, which was detachment from the world.
14:36
Just as I predicted, John gradually began to meet with opposition and jealousy.
14:42
(Maldonado laughs) (woman laughs) - You asked to see me, Father Maldonado?
14:51
- Yes, Fray John of St. Matthias. Please, please, sit.
14:57
Take some wine. (cork pops) (wine splashes) It's an excellent vintage. - No thank you, Father.
15:03
(bottle clunks) - Fray John, I concerned about something.
15:10
Your name has come up a number of times. It seems that some of the brothers feel
15:16
that you're not really participating in the life of the community,
15:21
that you hold yourself apart. - Father Maldonado, if I've offended anyone in the community
15:26
I am truly sorry. I've seen the way they look at me. I'm not surprised.
15:32
I like to be by myself. I came to Carmel to pray to God, to love God,
15:39
but I have found all my desires frustrated since I entered the order. - I'm not going to say that you are praying too much.
15:48
That would be ridiculous, of course. But you're so intense.
15:54
The other brothers say that you act as if you think
15:59
you are holier than they are. Moderation, my dear Fray John.
16:05
You should learn to relax and enjoy life a little more. - But Father Maldonado,
16:10
don't you long for something more, something deeper? Isn't that why we both became Carmelites?
16:17
Sometimes my heart is so full that I feel as if there is a burning flame of love within me
16:23
so strong that it could consume my whole being. How can I contain these feelings of love?
16:30
How can I seek moderation in my desire for God?
16:35
It seems our order has slid dangerously down the slope of indulgence, Father.
16:41
(worrisome music continues) Aren't we called to live in total poverty, relying on the mercy of God?
16:48
All that I seek is to live in detachment from my appetites, so I can't understand what you want of me.
16:54
- You can't understand what I want. Well, then let me make myself more clear. (wrathful music continues)
17:00
You are a fanatic. There is no place for your extreme ideas in this order,
17:06
I can tell you that. Fray John, let me warn you. Unless you change your rebellious ways,
17:14
your days as a Carmelite will be over. (contemplative music)
17:21
- [John] "Why, since you wounded this heart", don't you heal it?
17:27
And why, since you stole it from me, do you leave it so
17:32
and fail to carry off what you have stolen? "Extinguish these miseries
17:40
since no one else can stamp them out and may my eyes behold you
17:48
because you are their light. "And I would open them to you alone."
17:55
(wind murmurs) (bell peals)
18:04
(cheerful music) (nuns speaking faintly) - [Alonso] Her name was Madre Teresa de Jesus,
18:11
Teresa of Avila. And she was the most remarkable woman then living in Spain.
18:16
For it was she who started the great reform movement within the Carmelite Order, a return to the primitive rule.
18:24
Her followers were called Discalced Carmelites, because they wore no shoes on their feet.
18:29
- What kinds of changes do you plan to make within our monastery, mother? - Simply to teach our sisters about the incredible love of Jesus
18:37
as our founder originally intended. Shall we go in now?
18:49
- Oh Lord, how is it that you command the impossible? I know what you're calling me to do, but how?
18:57
How am I to lead the reform not just of the nuns but of the friars as well?
19:04
If only you would send me some sign, some friar who would share my vision.
19:11
How long, oh Lord? How long must I wait?
19:16
Dear Jesus, forgive me. I'm too impatient.
19:23
But if you want me to do this, send me a friar.
19:29
- God always listened to Madre Teresa. It wasn't long before she found her friar.
19:36
In 1567, the year John was ordained a priest, these two mystics,
19:42
these two giants of the faith, met for the first time.
19:48
What a moment that must have been.
20:02
(prayerful music)
20:10
- [John] "In darkness and secure", by the secret ladder, disguised,
20:16
ah, the sheer grace! In darkness and concealment, "my house being now all stilled."
20:24
(curtain rod scrapes)
20:29
- Peace be with you, Fray John of St. Matthias. - And also with you, Madre Teresa de Jesus.
20:37
- Fray John, I've heard some disturbing things about you that have made me suspect that you might be just the man I'm looking for.
20:44
- I know what you've heard. I suppose they've told you that I'm a failure as a Carmelite.
20:51
I guess it's true. I just don't fit in with the rest of the brothers.
20:56
I seem to be heading in a very different direction. - Yes, the question is in what direction are you heading.
21:04
- Oh Madre Teresa, (hopeful music continues) I want to climb to the summit the mountain,
21:10
I want to attain perfect union with God, and I want to do it quickly
21:17
because my heart is overflowing with love. - And your brothers do not share your longing
21:24
or your impatience? - When I speak of leaving behind all earthly things
21:33
and of avoiding spiritual obstacles, they accuse me of pride and self-righteousness.
21:40
And I suppose this is always a danger. - Yes, yes, they misunderstand you.
21:47
I know all about that danger and about your longing too.
21:53
- I am traveling through a dark night that is difficult to explain.
21:59
I've not found in the order what I came to seek, a life of contemplation of our Beloved.
22:07
I am taking steps to withdraw from Carmel and to become a hermit. I've asked the Carthusians to receive me.
22:14
- Patience, Fray John, patience. How can you think of leaving the order
22:20
on the eve of its rebirth? You've heard, I suppose, of the reforms that I am instituting among the nuns?
22:27
- Yes, yes, it's wonderful what you're doing, Mother. - The prior general has granted permission for the foundation of two houses
22:34
of contemplative Carmelites not just for the nuns but for the friars as well.
22:39
You, my young outcast, are going to lead the reform of the friars.
22:46
- Madre Teresa, how can you say that? Ha, the friars won't listen to me. - Ha ha, I don't care about that.
22:52
You're probably right. I have just one question for you.
22:59
Are you ready for the cross? - I long for suffering
23:04
and to be forgotten. - Yes, Fray John. God will grant the desires of your heart.
23:13
Join with me in renewing the Carmelite family, and you will climb that mountain to your Beloved.
23:21
- I'm willing to join you but under one condition. Let there be no delay.
23:28
- Fray John, let your soul be at rest. It shall be done by God.
23:39
(passionate music) - [John] "Oh living flame of love" that tenderly wounds my soul
23:46
in its deepest center, since now you are not oppressive, now consummate.
23:55
If it be your will, tear through the veil of the sweet encounter.
24:02
(birds twitter)
24:08
"Oh lamps of fire in whose splendors the deep caverns of feeling,
24:15
once obscure and blind, now give forth so rarely, so exquisitely,
24:23
both warmth and light to their beloved.
24:34
"How gently and lovingly you wake in my heart where in secret you dwell alone,
24:41
and by your sweet breathing filled with good and glory, "how tenderly you swell my heart with love."
24:49
(ardent music)
24:58
- "Dear Madre Anna, what an exciting time it is.
25:03
The reform is really beginning to take hold. Our faithful friar has a new name, Fray John of the Cross,
25:13
and he is is fulfilling all my expectations. I feel I have finally found a partner
25:19
to share this work with me. Fray John knows what the true Carmelite spirit demands:
25:26
nothing less than perfection. I recently invited him to live in a stone hut
25:32
just outside the monastery walls, and I think that he's happy here with us.
25:38
He has embraced an austere life with a passion and seems to thrive on suffering.
25:44
However, the other friars don't appreciate his good example. It pricks their consciences.
25:51
Many of them hate him. Yet he is kindness itself for the poor and the sick.
25:57
I have set him to work as the spiritual advisor of the sisters. He can teach them much about the interior life.
26:04
Indeed, I myself am learning from him. He's such a wonderful confessor and teacher, never rushing
26:11
while directing a person to a deeper relationship with God. However, our work here is challenging, to say the least.
26:20
The sisters enjoy his talks and spiritual direction, but they have a long way to go.
26:26
This monastery is great only in regards to its size. The nuns in Avila
26:33
are notorious for their worldliness and gossiping. In fact, things are so bad
26:40
that the Convent of the Incarnation has been called... "Babylon."
26:45
(nuns giggle and chatter faintly) (giddy music continues)
26:52
- [Nun] Don't you think Father Ramirez is handsome? - [Nun] I heard they were caught kissing in the stables. - Has anyone seen Señor Suarez?
26:59
- [Nun] Tell me, tell me. (nuns chatter and laugh) - [Nun] She's such a prig.
27:05
(nuns laugh) - [Nun] And she knows, but she always gives me the same penance.
27:11
- Gradually, over the course of three years, a transformation began to take place at Avila.
27:17
In his simple persistent way, Father John taught the sisters, who so loved to talk,
27:24
to love to pray. For prayer is, after all, a talking to God. (solemn music)
27:30
- In nomine Patris, et Filii, et Spiritus Sancti. Amen.
27:36
Jesus be in your souls. Dear sisters, you should live in the monastery
27:45
as though no one else were in it, never meddling in things that happen in the community
27:52
nor with individuals. Take no notice of their good or bad qualities
27:58
or their conduct. You are like the stone
28:03
which must be chiseled and fashioned before being used in the building.
28:09
Those who are in the monastery are craftsmen placed there by God
28:14
to mortify you by chiseling at you.
28:20
Some will you chisel with words, telling you what you would rather not hear,
28:26
others, by deed, doing to you what you would rather not endure,
28:32
others, by their temperament, being in their person and in their actions a bother and annoyance to you,
28:40
and others, by their thoughts, neither esteeming nor feeling love for you.
28:46
If this was not your reason for entering the monastery, you should not have done so
28:52
but should have remained in the world to seek your comfort, honor, reputation, and ease.
29:01
Strive to pray constantly in all you do. Undertake all things, agreeable or disagreeable,
29:10
for the sole purpose of pleasing God by carrying Christ's Cross.
29:17
So sisters, do not engage yourself in something less
29:23
nor pay heed to the crumbs which fall from your Father's table. Go forth and exult in your glory.
29:31
Hide yourself in it and rejoice, and you will obtain the desires of your heart.
29:44
(hopeful music)
29:49
- [John] "Following your footprints" maidens run along the way. The touch of a spark,
29:56
the spiced wine, cause flowings in them from the balsam of God.
30:05
"In the inner wine cellar, I drank of my Beloved, and, when I went abroad through all this valley,
30:13
I no longer knew anything "and lost the herd which I was following."
30:22
- The monastery changed from a Babylon to a holy Jerusalem.
30:27
But persecution was beginning to mount within the order. - [Friar] Father Maldonado, the sisters flock around him
30:34
as if he were a great saint. - [Friar] We are losing all our influence. And it's all because of him. - [Maldonado] Who does this man think he is?
30:40
- [Friar] He's all the time alone with the nuns. The whole thing seems suspicious to me. - [Friar] I tell you, Father Maldonado, this man is dangerous.
30:47
Something must be done!
30:53
- [Teresa] Fray John, I need to speak to you. - [John] Madre Teresa.
31:00
- [Teresa] Fray John, I am frightened. - You, Mother? What could frighten you?
31:06
- (sighs) I'm not as brave as I look. (Teresa sighs)
31:11
I've pulled you into this life, and I feel responsible for your wellbeing. - Yes, Mother.
31:17
- There are friars in the order, Fray John, who will stop at nothing to kill the reform.
31:22
- Yes, I know. God permits the devil to blind and delude many.
31:28
- I fear for your very life, Fray John. They see that other friars are following you
31:34
into the reform movement. I tell you, the war is on.
31:40
- Mother, listen to me. We must try always to want
31:45
not the easiest but the most difficult.
31:50
Let us not choose a light burden. For the heavier the burden is,
31:56
the lighter it becomes when we carry it for Christ. In silence and in hope shall our strength be.
32:07
- So you embrace the cross, whatever that might mean? No regrets?
32:14
- No regrets, Mother, only great joy and love.
32:22
(vindictive music)
32:33
- I have important news. Father Tostado, the visitor general of the order,
32:41
will arrive here tomorrow to carry out the mandate of the general chapter.
32:48
The reform will be suppressed. For neither Madre Teresa nor Father John of the Cross
32:56
have received any authorization for what they do.
33:02
Madre Teresa will be ordered to retire in one convent and not stir.
33:09
She's a meddlesome and restless nun. And we all know that she has a long arm.
33:17
But this Father John is different matter. He refuses to renounce the reform.
33:25
Things have gotten out of control. The visitor general has ordered
33:31
his immediate arrest and interrogation. I authorize you to carry out this injunction tonight.
33:43
Use force if necessary. (troubled music)
33:52
- [John] "In darkness and concealment", my house being now all stilled,
33:59
"on that glad night in secret, for no one saw me, nor did I look at anything
34:06
with no other light or guide "than the one that burned in my heart."
34:12
(troubled music swells)
34:23
(hinge squeaks) - [Soldier] Fray John of the Cross, you are under arrest, in the name of Father Maldonado.
34:31
- Yes, I was expecting this.
34:38
(footsteps clop)
34:44
- [Maldonado] Father Tostado, this man is a disobedient, rebellious, and contumacious member
34:51
of the Discalced Carmelites. By his arrogant pride, he censures his brothers.
34:59
And by his extreme actions, he's instigating a movement among the friars
35:04
that could destroy the very life of our order.
35:10
(Tostado whispers)
35:16
Well, Father John of the Cross, the visitor general is prepared to show compassion.
35:25
After all, we are all brothers. I appeal to your sense of religious obedience.
35:32
- Father Maldonado, I am simply doing what the Church and lawful authority have commissioned me to do.
35:39
- What is the use of your resistance? We will stop you one way or another.
35:44
You can be sure of that. But, Father John,
35:51
we have been friends a long time.
35:57
I have always admired your great mind. You have great potential, which you are wasting with Madre Teresa.
36:05
You should use your talent to do good among your brothers.
36:11
If you renounce the reform here and now, the visitor general is prepared to offer you
36:18
the rank of prior. You shall have comfortable quarters and your own library.
36:25
How do you answer, Fray John? (graceful music) - He who seeks Christ, stripped of all things,
36:31
has no need of gold or jewels or honors. - Then you are confirmed in your error.
36:37
Father John of the Cross, since you have refused due acceptance of these orders and letters,
36:43
alleging in your excuse lies and fabrications, I declare you unworthy to hold office
36:49
in the Carmelite Order. You will be held in solitary confinement
36:55
until you renounce this rebellion. Strip him of his cowl and scapular.
37:03
Take him away. - [Friar] Where shall we put him, Father Maldonado? - [Maldonado] I know the perfect place
37:10
that will break his will, if nothing else can. You know that little room that adjoins the chamber upstairs?
37:18
- [Friar] You mean the storeroom, Father? He'll go mad shut up in that airless tomb.
37:23
- [Maldonado] Yes indeed, indeed.
37:28
- [Guard] In here, priest. - [Maldonado] This stubborn brother will soon come to his senses.
37:35
Bread and water only. (door creaks) (lock clunks)
37:47
- [John] "This guided me more surely than the light of noon to where He waited for me,
37:52
Him I knew so well, in a place where no one else appeared."
37:59
(crickets chirp) - [Alonso] Eight months passed in that dark and stifling cell.
38:06
But John never wavered.
38:13
- "What more do you want, O soul? What else do you search for outside,
38:18
when within yourself you possess your riches, delights, satisfactions, fullness, and kingdom...
38:25
Your Beloved whom you desire and seek? "The Kingdom of God is within you."
38:32
- Why do I bother with this pigheaded man? If he were to disappear,
38:38
no one would ever know the difference. Should he ever leave here at all,
38:45
it will only be for the cemetery. - "Be joyful and gladdened in your interior recollection with Him,
38:51
O precious soul. For you have Him so close to you.
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Desire Him there. Adore Him there. Even though He does abide within you,
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He is hidden. Nevertheless, it is vital for you to know the place of His hiding
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"so that you may search for Him there with assuredness." - This man is a fool
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indicted as a rebel, not worthy of the name of Christian.
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He is a hypocrite of the worst kind.
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I know why he wishes to go barefoot and clad in a coarse habit... So that he might be venerated as a saint.
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- "Anyone who is to find a hidden treasure must enter the hiding place secretly,
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and once he has discovered it, he shall also be hidden just as the treasure is hidden.
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"In order to find Him, you should forget all your possessions and all creatures
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"and hide within the interior secret chamber of your spirit."
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- Who has sown the seeds of revolt in the order? Who is to blame for all of this?
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It is none other than John of the Cross, a wretched little friar
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who has plunged us all into trouble and disunity. - "Come, then, oh beautiful soul.
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Since you know now that your desired Beloved lives hidden in your heart,
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strive to be really hidden with Him, and you will embrace Him within you
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"and experience Him with loving affection."
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- Sister, in the face of so many enemies, I have found it impossible to sit with my hands folded.
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I've gone to all the authorities. But no one can give me any idea of his whereabouts. It's as if he's fallen off the edge of the earth.
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Fray John of the Cross is a saint, a treasure who must be returned immediately.
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(sighs) Dear Lord, you treat your friends so terribly at times. It's no wonder you have so few.
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- During these trying months, God, in his secret way, converted the most inactive period of John's life
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into the most intense. He was able to make friends with his kind jailer,
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who took pity on his miserable circumstances and gave him some paper and ink.
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(companionable music) And so it was there in that prison cell
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that John composed some of the most sublime and mystical poetry ever written.
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♪ My Beloved, the mountains ♪
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♪ And lonely wooded valleys, strange islands ♪
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♪ And resounding rivers ♪ ♪ The whistling of love-stirring breezes ♪
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(companionable music continues)
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♪ The tranquil night ♪ ♪ At the time of the rising dawn ♪
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♪ Silent music ♪ ♪ Sounding solitude ♪
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♪ The supper that refreshes and deepens love ♪
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- Oh Beloved Jesus, if I am destined to die here,
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Thy will be done. But, if you want me to escape, inspire me.
