Christopher Hitchens: The Dogmatic Doubter

I read with great sadness the article published in the September 10th edition of Newsweek entitled, "The Dogmatic Doubter." I am not angry with Mr. Hitchens nor with Newsweek for publishing this article. I feel extreme sadness for both because they simply "don't get it."

In "Dark Night of the Soul," St. John of the Cross states very clearly, "What the soul draws also from the aridity and emptiness of the night of desire is spiritual humility. Through humility, acquired along with self-knowledge, the soul is purified of the imperfections of spiritual pride into which she stumbled during her time of prosperity. Aware only of her own aridity and misery, it never occurs to her that she is now making better progress than others, which is what she used to erroneously believe...Her own wretchedness is so present in her sight that there is no room to scrutinize others."

St. John of the Cross goes on to say, "'I fell mute, humbled,' says David. 'I kept silence in blessing and my sorrow was renewed.' It seemed to him that all that was good in his soul had been entirely depleted. Not only could he find no speech to express it, but the grief he suffered about his own insignificance left him mute concerning his neighbor."

Does any of this sound familiar to anyone? It's nearly word for word in the Newsweek article concerning Mother Teresa.

May the Lord Jesus Christ come into your life in a very powerful and wonderful way, Christopher, and heal your broken heart.