Dark night of the soul?

[Austere]

I’ve seen this term on a variety of posts and needless to say, I have no clue as to what it means but I have a semblance of a clue. How does one know if they are experiencing this ‘dark night of the soul’? What would it feel like, if it feels like anything at all? Is it a general problem, do all Catholics go through this? Could it be possible that a person could have always experienced this, rather than experiencing it at a later date?

Any information would be helpful.

God bless you and hail to the Cross, our only hope!

 

[Mintaka]

Christ is risen!

The term “dark night of the soul” comes from St. John of the Cross. He wrote a poem of the same name, and then wrote two books on the spiritual life that used it as a structure: The Ascent of Mount Carmel, and its sequel The Dark Night of the Soul.

The basic idea of both books is that while you trying to improve in prayer life, love, virtue, etc., God is also doing stuff to help you. Sometimes God gives you lots of encouragement, special feelings of joy, and so forth. It’s a sort of spiritual treat and nourishment that is easy to digest. But then, as you “grow up,” God will often put you into a sort of training program for your faith, where you have to do a lot more work and prayer without having the happy feelings to help you. Often one does not feel the presence of God as strongly, or even at all. But then, mysteriously, you may find yourself suddenly having the good feelings again. This cycle tends to repeat in many people’s spiritual lives, and St. John of the Cross talks a lot about how to deal with the periods when God is stepping up your spiritual workout schedule.

People who advance very far into closeness with God will often have a “workout cycle” (or more than one) that feels very painful and confusing, where God seems totally absent and where nothing makes sense, like being lost on a dark night without stars. That is “the dark night of the soul.”

St. John of the Cross tells us that actually it is at these “workout times” that God is closest and doing the most to help us; but we can’t sense His presence because He’s working “behind our backs,” so to speak. The night is not really dark at all, but we can’t tell.

Now… obviously most people who use the term have not actually read both books; and so they often use the term to refer to either a time of failure and confusion in a person’s secular life, or for depression. But it’s not either. (Although obviously it can be depressing to not be able to sense God’s presence, or to have to rely totally on faith and not have any happy feelings about God!)

Do all Catholics go through this? No, but many go through periods when God is giving their faith a workout, and some spiritually advanced people do suffer dark nights of the soul. And yes, these sorts of things can happen at any time of life.

Some people never really have much feeling or sense of God’s presence, because it’s just something God gives or doesn’t give. Some very famous, devout, and wise people have been in that situation. Mother Teresa had a dark night of the soul that lasted over forty years, and yet it strengthened her to do amazing things.

My best advice is to read The Ascent of Mount Carmel and see if anything sounds helpful or familiar. If it doesn’t, don’t worry about it. If it does, St. John of the Cross will probably have some helpful advice or insights for you.

 

[Austere]

Christ is risen!

The term “dark night of the soul” comes from St. John of the Cross. He wrote a poem of the same name, and then wrote two books on the spiritual life that used it as a structure: The Ascent of Mount Carmel, and its sequel The Dark Night of the Soul.

The basic idea of both books is that while you trying to improve in prayer life, love, virtue, etc., God is also doing stuff to help you. Sometimes God gives you lots of encouragement, special feelings of joy, and so forth. It’s a sort of spiritual treat and nourishment that is easy to digest. But then, as you “grow up,” God will often put you into a sort of training program for your faith, where you have to do a lot more work and prayer without having the happy feelings to help you. Often one does not feel the presence of God as strongly, or even at all. But then, mysteriously, you may find yourself suddenly having the good feelings again. This cycle tends to repeat in many people’s spiritual lives, and St. John of the Cross talks a lot about how to deal with the periods when God is stepping up your spiritual workout schedule.

People who advance very far into closeness with God will often have a “workout cycle” (or more than one) that feels very painful and confusing, where God seems totally absent and where nothing makes sense, like being lost on a dark night without stars. That is “the dark night of the soul.”

St. John of the Cross tells us that actually it is at these “workout times” that God is closest and doing the most to help us; but we can’t sense His presence because He’s working “behind our backs,” so to speak. The night is not really dark at all, but we can’t tell.

Now… obviously most people who use the term have not actually read both books; and so they often use the term to refer to either a time of failure and confusion in a person’s secular life, or for depression. But it’s not either. (Although obviously it can be depressing to not be able to sense God’s presence, or to have to rely totally on faith and not have any happy feelings about God!)

Do all Catholics go through this? No, but many go through periods when God is giving their faith a workout, and some spiritually advanced people do suffer dark nights of the soul. And yes, these sorts of things can happen at any time of life.

Some people never really have much feeling or sense of God’s presence, because it’s just something God gives or doesn’t give. Some very famous, devout, and wise people have been in that situation. Mother Teresa had a dark night of the soul that lasted over forty years, and yet it strengthened her to do amazing things.

My best advice is to read The Ascent of Mount Carmel and see if anything sounds helpful or familiar. If it doesn’t, don’t worry about it. If it does, St. John of the Cross will probably have some helpful advice or insights for you.

Thank you very much my friend, that was an excellent answer and explanation; I thank you wholeheartedly. I was just wondering whether or not I might be suffering from this but I realized that you need an advanced prayer life and extreme closeness with God can only suffer from this, neither of which I can say I really have. Nonetheless, thank you once again.

 

[GEddie]

The term “Dark Night of the Soul” (“DNS”) is probably thrown around a weebit excessively, to where people who are merely hitting some reverses in their normal life, or suffering from depression, may assume that they are facing it.

But not everybody gets the full-on DNS. I’d say if you have to ask whether you are facing it, the answer is almost certainly no.

ICXC NIKA

 

[Austere]

The term “Dark Night of the Soul” (“DNS”) is probably thrown around a weebit excessively, to where people who are merely hitting some reverses in their normal life, or suffering from depression, may assume that they are facing it.

But not everybody gets the full-on DNS. I’d say if you have to ask whether you are facing it, the answer is almost certainly no.

ICXC NIKA

I realized that my friend, those who whose experience such a thing are probably all saints!

 

[EveningSkye111]

Wonderful explanation. Thank you! : )

 

[Robert_Sock]

I’m a Catholic psychologist and I would venture to suggest that all non-organic mental disorders, especially depression, can be transformed into a dark night of the soul.

Which is exactly what John of the Cross is saying: learn to be at home in the darkness, do not run away from it, do not fight it or even try to understand it, embrace it -‘the night has eyes’. A new and different world is being born, what seem to be death pangs are in fact birth pangs, the soul in darkness is being renewed and transfigured; a new and [wonderful] beauty is born. Painful though it may be, there is in fact no other way except the way of trust and surrender, and ultimately of belief in the creative and transforming power of love. John’s invitation to accept ‘the dark ray of contemplation’ may not be easy, but there is no other way.
-Eugene McCaffrey, OCD

 

[GEddie]

I’m a Catholic psychologist and I would venture to suggest that all non-organic mental disorders, especially depression, can be transformed into a dark night of the soul.

Which is exactly what John of the Cross is saying: learn to be at home in the darkness, do not run away from it, do not fight it or even try to understand it, embrace it -‘the night has eyes’. A new and different world is being born, what seem to be death pangs are in fact birth pangs, the soul in darkness is being renewed and transfigured; a new and [wonderful] beauty is born. Painful though it may be, there is in fact no other way except the way of trust and surrender, and ultimately of belief in the creative and transforming power of love. John’s invitation to accept ‘the dark ray of contemplation’ may not be easy, but there is no other way.
-Eugene McCaffrey, OCD

By non-organic do you mean not originating in the biological body?

If so, how does your statement square with the modern treatment of depression by medication?

ICXC NIKA

 

[Robert_Sock]

By non-organic do you mean not originating in the biological body?

If so, how does your statement square with the modern treatment of depression by medication?

ICXC NIKA

Organic disorders would be things like becoming psychologically dull from ingesting paint chips made with lead.

I’m on medication for depression, which helps, but I also engage in Centering Prayer which helps even more and has led me into the light. I’m not condemning medicine, but I do feel that many people can be better helped through positive inner experiences brought on by prayer.

 

[drforjc]

Christ is risen!

The term “dark night of the soul” comes from St. John of the Cross. He wrote a poem of the same name, and then wrote two books on the spiritual life that used it as a structure: The Ascent of Mount Carmel, and its sequel The Dark Night of the Soul.

The basic idea of both books is that while you trying to improve in prayer life, love, virtue, etc., God is also doing stuff to help you. Sometimes God gives you lots of encouragement, special feelings of joy, and so forth. It’s a sort of spiritual treat and nourishment that is easy to digest. But then, as you “grow up,” God will often put you into a sort of training program for your faith, where you have to do a lot more work and prayer without having the happy feelings to help you. Often one does not feel the presence of God as strongly, or even at all. But then, mysteriously, you may find yourself suddenly having the good feelings again. This cycle tends to repeat in many people’s spiritual lives, and St. John of the Cross talks a lot about how to deal with the periods when God is stepping up your spiritual workout schedule.

People who advance very far into closeness with God will often have a “workout cycle” (or more than one) that feels very painful and confusing, where God seems totally absent and where nothing makes sense, like being lost on a dark night without stars. That is “the dark night of the soul.”

St. John of the Cross tells us that actually it is at these “workout times” that God is closest and doing the most to help us; but we can’t sense His presence because He’s working “behind our backs,” so to speak. The night is not really dark at all, but we can’t tell.

Now… obviously most people who use the term have not actually read both books; and so they often use the term to refer to either a time of failure and confusion in a person’s secular life, or for depression. But it’s not either. (Although obviously it can be depressing to not be able to sense God’s presence, or to have to rely totally on faith and not have any happy feelings about God!)

Do all Catholics go through this? No, but many go through periods when God is giving their faith a workout, and some spiritually advanced people do suffer dark nights of the soul. And yes, these sorts of things can happen at any time of life.

Some people never really have much feeling or sense of God’s presence, because it’s just something God gives or doesn’t give. Some very famous, devout, and wise people have been in that situation. Mother Teresa had a dark night of the soul that lasted over forty years, and yet it strengthened her to do amazing things.

My best advice is to read The Ascent of Mount Carmel and see if anything sounds helpful or familiar. If it doesn’t, don’t worry about it. If it does, St. John of the Cross will probably have some helpful advice or insights for you.

Very nicely put.