Spiritual advice from a mystic, a poet, a doctor, and a saint

Fasting has long been touted by spiritual writers as a vital discipline for personal growth and holiness. However, St. John of the Cross, the revered Discalced Carmelite saint and Doctor of the Church, offers a compelling alternative. Known as “the most mystical of poets and the most poetic of mystics,” St. John has left an indelible mark on both spirituality and literature. Celebrated for their depth and beauty, his works are considered treasures of Spanish literature and continue to inspire countless people, both believers and non-believers.

Among his many writings, one of the most accessible are the Dichos de Luz y de Amor (“Sayings of Light and Love”), a collection of profound and incisive spiritual insights. This work, though brief compared to his other treatises, has had a significant influence on subsequent spiritual writers, artists, and theologians, including figures like T.S. Eliot and Salvador Dalí.

A particularly striking saying in this collection says that “Conquering one’s tongue is better than fasting on bread and water.” This statement underscores the saint’s belief in the immense power of words and emphasizes that the discipline of speech can be more challenging and spiritually beneficial than traditional fasting.

St. John of the Cross emphasizes the importance of using our words to uplift and encourage rather than to harm or belittle. In today’s digital age, this teaching resonates deeply, especially in the realm of Internet interactions. The anonymity and distance afforded by online platforms can often lead to impulsive and hurtful comments, forgetting that behind every screen is a real person who may be affected by our words. A modern version of St. John’s advice would read “conquering your comments on the Internet” –a valuable contemporary form of spiritual discipline.

The saint’s advice challenges us to exercise restraint and kindness, both in person and online. For those who find fasting relatively easy, focusing on improving the way we communicate, especially in the often harsh landscape of social media, can be a more difficult but profoundly rewarding spiritual practice. It requires mindfulness and self-control to refrain from making hasty, critical comments and instead foster a more compassionate and constructive dialogue.

Here you will find five more of his Dichos, which you can use in your everyday meditations.

Though the path is plain and smooth for people of good will, those who walk it will not travel far, and will do so only with difficulty if they do not have good feet, courage, and tenacity of spirit.

It is better to be burdened and in company with the strong than to be unburdened and with the weak. When you are burdened you are close to God, your strength, who abides with the afflicted. When you are relieved of the burden you are close to yourself, your own weakness; for virtue and strength of soul grow and are confirmed in the trials of patience.

God desires the smallest degree of purity of conscience in you more than all the works you can perform.

Mine are the heavens and mine is the earth. Mine are the nations, the just are mine, and mine the sinners. The angels are mine, and the Mother of God, and all things are mine; and God himself is mine and for me, because Christ is mine and all for me. What do you ask, then, and seek, my soul? Yours is all of this, and all is for you. Do not engage yourself in something less or pay heed to the crumbs that fall from your Father’s table. Go forth and exult in your Glory! Hide yourself in it and rejoice, and you will obtain the supplications of your heart.

Blessed are they who, setting aside their own pleasure and inclination, consider things according to reason and justice before doing them.