St. John of the Cross is one of the major founders of Christian mysticism, his book “The Dark Night of the Soul” exhaustively outlines the spiritual process all who seek a deep mystic experience with God must go through. Basically, the book explains a period of “darkness” that all who travel the mystic path experience at some point as their own sinful nature and worldly attachments must be purged in order to continue toward enlightenment and communion with God. This experience is testified too by later mystics such as C.S. Lewis in “A Grief Observed”, and John Bunyan describes it in “A Pilgrim’s Progress”. The “darkness” is caused us having to face the sinful and perverse reality of our true self and the world around us. During this time we feel lonely, depressed, discouraged, and overwhelmed. As St. John of the Cross would explain, the darkness is not from God but from the light of God exposing our own darkness. The Dark Night of the Soul is the point at which most people give up, and usually take medication. For those who preserver, God rewards them with the secrets of His Kingdom. Continue Reading »

Technorati Tags: christian mystic, Christian Mysticism, dark night of the soul, mourning, st. john of the cross, suffering

“Think Positive”: the battle cry of the modern self-help culture. Of course, it makes sense considering the alternative “Think Negative”, but are those really our only two options? The truth is, despite our ever growing feelings of depression and hopelessness, the secrets to a fulfilling life lie far deeper than the mere pursuit of happiness.

Positive thinking is a fad, nothing more. It just pops up every 10 years or so. Every positive thinking book and philosophy is based on some small grains of truth and wisdom, and because we are starving souls, we eat them up like a dog in ecstasy over the fallen scraps on the floor. Sadly, those shallow philosophies work much like the fad-diet offering fast and visible results up front but ultimately proving useless as a permanent solution to life’s problems. Continue Reading »

Technorati Tags: mourning, positive thinking, self-help