Tunic worn by St. Francis of Assisi
found in Cortona, Italy
Sensory pleasure and desire, even in spiritual experience, obscures and obstructs the spirit. A state of predicament quickens and illumines the understanding. Vexation makes us see how, through the blessing of this dark, dry night of contemplation. God supernaturally imparts His divine Wisdom to an empty and unburdened soul. God did not share this inflow along with those first suite juices because the soul was too crowded.
The Prophet Isaiah asks: "To whom shall God teach His knowledge? And to whom shall He make to understand His message?" To those, He answers, who are drawn away from the breasts and weaned from their milk. The first milk of spiritual sweetness fosters attachment to the succulent breasts of mental prayer. This is the realm of the senses. It cannot prepare the soul for the direct inflow of the divine.
Saint John of the Cross
Dark Night of the Soul
Night of Sense
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