Book II, Chapter XIII Summary and Analysis

St. John describes how the soul experiences the presence of God, even during the dark night of the spirit. Sometimes, even while the soul is in pain, the spirit is filled with the love of God. Love is felt by the emotions and does not directly affect the will. The will is a free agent and must be tamed by love. The thirst for love is felt more keenly by the spirit than by the soul in the first dark night because the spirit realizes what it lacks and needs, unlike the will. St. John uses Mary Magdalene as an example of the type of yearning for God a soul in the second night of darkness will feel. All of Mary's single-minded acts of devotion to Jesus are signs of a spirit caught up in...