La Vive flamme d'amour

by Jean de la Croix

La vive flamme d’amour « Ô brûlure suave, Ô plaie délicieuse, Ô douce main, ô touche délicate, Qui a la saveur de la vie éternelle, Qui paye toute dette ! Qui donne la mort et change la mort en vie ! » Strophe II L’âme embrasée par cette brûlure « lance elle-même de vives flammes », dit saint Jean de la Croix. La Vive Flamme d’amour reflète, en ce sens, la fin de l’itinéraire mystique, celle où l’union de l’âme et de Dieu est consommée sans retour. Poème d’amour d’un lyrisme flamboyant, La Vive Flamme d’amour est un sommet de l’expérience mystique dans l’histoire religieuse et un chef-d’œuvre de la poésie espagnole du XVIe siècle. Traduit de l’espagnol par le Père Grégoire de Saint Joseph Présentation par Jean-Pie Lapierre

Genres: Spirituality, Christianity, Catholic, Poetry, Christian, Theology, Religion

160 pages, Pocket Book

First published January 1, 1618

About the author

Religieux carme né en Espagne, il travailla à la réforme de son Ordre où il eut d'importantes responsabilités. Il est considéré comme l'un des plus grands poètes et mystiques.

Reviews

[Jana Light · Rating 5 out of 5]

A quick, beautiful, poetic, deepening read. I have long loved St. John of the Cross's _The Dark Night of the Soul_, but have never read any of this other mystical works. _The Living Flame of Love_ is, in crude terms, the spiritual "sequel" to _The Dark Night of the Soul_. St. John describes what happens in the soul after God has purged it, quite painfully at times, of its attachments to the world and all its expectations not founded in God Himself. As such, this work is a little bit, shall we say, lighter, a little more uplifting than _The Dark Night_. (Although, I have to say -- I discovered _The Dark Night of the Soul_ at an incredibly dark spiritual time in my life, and reading his exposition of purgation was like a balm to my anguished heart. I would even say that nothing has ministered to me so powerfully as that book at that time of my life. But _The Living Flame of Love_ has a different purpose.)

A few things I loved in my first (DEFINITELY not my last!) reading of _The Living Flame of Love_:

1. St. John is a consummate mystic in his understanding of deep, overwhelming human emotions and how they relate to the reaching towards God. (Though I find the label "emotions" to be a bit problematic in this context.) He understands and describes the intense suffering and joys capable in the spiritual life better than any writer I have ever read. Even though he is describing the mystical journey -- those who have forsaken the world entirely for a life of solitude and contemplation -- I always feel as though he is describing parts of my own spiritual journey, even as far removed and far less ... "impressive" than those whose journey he describes more completely. I am a very emotional *and* intellectual person, so to read someone discuss the inner life of someone possessing both those qualities was refreshing and comforting. For the intellectual part, so much of my own development consists in coming to terms with what I don't know. St. John, as one would expect of a Christian mystic, describes this lack of understanding in such beautiful terms that it takes some of the sting out of my times of confusion. Those times are not times of weakness, as they often feel, but are very often times of growth. It is so difficult in this age to accept uncertainty, yet there is so much beauty and spiritual deepening there. I absolutely adore the way St. John describes and examines that.

2. I was so drawn to St. John's description of the "caverns" of the human soul, and how God empties them so as to fill them first with a desire for Him alone, and then fully with Himself. St. John makes a direct link to how deeply we desire, how deeply we feel the pain of unmet desire (otherwise known as the Augustinian "longing") and the infiniteness of the Object/Subject of our desire. The more difficult it is to live without the fullness of Him Who we desire, the greater our fulfillment and joy will be when He has breathed into our souls all of Himself. The greater He Who fills our soul, the greater the void felt before His fullness has entered.

3. As someone who has had a difficult time finding a church/pastor/fellowship that helps me grow, I did appreciate St. John's advice to be slightly wary of all spiritual directors. He doesn't say to ignore all their advice, nor that we should never follow the direction of those God has placed in position of authority (always for good reason, if anointed by God), but rather that our absolute Director must always be God. No one else is on the same spiritual path or journey as another person; therefore, there are times when no one will understand the direction God is leading me. In those times, I will do more harm than good listening to the advice or direction of those in positional authority over or equality with me. In those times (not always easy to determine), it is best to listen and act according to God alone and respect church/spiritual authorities in other ways.

4. Finally, one of my favorite passages was St. John's discussion of when a soul is fully united with God (after the Dark Night and subsequent igniting with the Flame of Love) and how in that state we love God by giving God back to God. The profundity of that still makes me smile. We can love God perfectly through Him (He?) Who loves perfectly, and only in that way. To think that that is possible, that is possible to offer perfect love to the only Being Who absolutely deserves such perfection, is astounding. Astounding in its simplicity and depth. I think it's what every Christian might desire to attain to, might desire in itself, if he/she truly understood what that meant.

This book, while written to describe a spiritual life 99% of people will not embark upon, is one that every Christian and spiritual person can benefit from. I will never retire to a mountaintop convent to spend my days pondering the mystery of God's unknowable nature (though the thought holds delicious appeal), but I will always endeavor to empty myself of attachments to the world (i.e., selfishness) and endeavor to be a soul fully led by God, rather than one resisting His movement even without knowing, simply because of my external attachments. I believe anyone can be united to God in the way St. John describes, though the details and degree will certainly differ. As such, everything in this book is worth reaching for, praying for, surrendering to. And surrender is probably the most important part. This is a truly beautiful work that I look forward to reading more slowly many times over, one that holds untold passages to be lost in for hours at a time. Pretty much one of the best "Jana" books ever.

[John Sester, LC · Rating 5 out of 5]

So much wisdom contained in this little book, a mixture of Juan de Yepes's deep theology and personal experience with his Beloved, the Lord God. The imagery he uses to express his relationship with God is astounding and leaves the reader with greater desires to pause and contemplate and experience this Love of which he speaks so eloquently.

Highly recommended, although I would recommend reading his "Spiritual Canticle" first.

St. John of the Cross, pray for us. May we fall in love with God like you did.

[Atwalys Tristan · Rating 5 out of 5]

Lumineux...une réflexion qui embrase les coeurs et les âmes. Cette vive flamme d'amour est un chef d'œuvre absolu et une révélation pour moi..

[Matthew Johll · Rating 4 out of 5]

Great poetry to pray with...although I was not a huge fan of the English translations (the author prioritized rhyme over meaning/text significance at times).

[Claire Walker · Rating 5 out of 5]

Profoundly deep and poetic

[Leonardo]

Usado en La Oración Contemplativa Pág.112-113


En un pasaje notable de La Llama de Amor Viva, en el cual San Juan de la Cruz describe detalladamente la transición de una devoción razonada a una intimidad espiritual con Dios, dice que cuando uno no puede discernir con la razón o hacer actos de la voluntad durante la oración, uno debería darle a esta situación una calmada bienvenida. Comenzará uno entonces a experimentar paz, tranquilidad y fortaleza, porque Dios ahora está alimentando el alma directamente, derramando su gracia sobre sólo su voluntad y atrayéndola misteriosamente hacia sí.

Mente abierta corazón abierto Pág.12

[Bill · Rating 4 out of 5]

St. John of the Cross is a Christian Mystic. I read this book at an appropriate time in my life: soon after finishing my studies at the California Institute of Technology (1969 - 1972), where for my humanities requirement I took a class in which the required reading was some of the writings of the so-called ancient Hindu, Buddhist, and Taoist writers. I had wanted to expand my readings of the mystics because the aforementioned class, as well as what I had evolved to at that point in my life, had convinced me that all of the world's major religions spoke with One voice and with One finger pointed at a single Absolute Truth. I purchased the paperback edition of this book, but many years ago I donated it to the local public library. However, I'll never forget the last stanza: "And in thy sweet breathing, full of blessing and glory, how delicately thou inspirest my love".

[Paul Baker]

2025-03-09

Review 2025.02.008

Reviewers Note: It is the beginning of 2025 and one of the skills I desire to grow in is that of writing book reviews (having never done this before). I am doing this so I can better hone my writing (and reading) skills as I seek to think more critically about the books I am reading. I am sharing on Goodreads for my own personal development. I know this will be something I am always growing in so if you actually read these, please be patient with me as I develop this skill. I will also receive constructive criticism if you desire to help me become a better writer (and reader). I plan to use this disclaimer for the entire 2025 year.

The Living Flame of Love by Saint John of the Cross
364 Pages

I stumbled upon a podcast a month or two back (currently 2025-03) that discusses in depth different books by different Christian mystics. One of the series was on this book by Saint John of the Cross. I had read two of his other books - Dark Night of the Soul and The Ascent of Mount Carmel - both of which I enjoyed. Both of which I did not get the fullness out of because I did a macro-reading but I did grow from them so I figured The Living Flame of Love would be good to read in conjunction with this podcast.

While I am not a big poetry guy, there are poems that resonate with me (Alone by Edgar Allan Poe being a big one). When I read the first stanza of this poem, it made me think but not really that deeply. Then as I read the author’s own explanation of his words, I was surprised by the depth of the stanza. I know from experience that you really have to sit on a poem and let the words resonate with you before you begin to really grasp the fullness of them so I should not have been surprised but I was. So did I sit on them? Nope. I continued on with a macro reading.

What am I saying? I suppose that I need to practice micro-reading. And that I should do so with this book and this poem. Will I be able to do this? That I do not know.

The book was much easier to read than Dark Night of the Soul. Granted, Dark Night was one of the first books on contemplation and Christian mysticism that I read so it was a foreign subject. Honestly it is still pretty foreign but I’ve read around 10 books by different authors now so I do have a little bit better understanding.

There was a break in the explanation of the third stanza to talk about the soul and spiritual director. At first I was a bit thrown off but when I got to the end, I wondered where I might be able to find a spiritual director for myself.

I looked back over the four stanzas to see if there was one that really affected me more than the others. Each one had their piece to play which I suppose is how poetry works. If you have any interest in contemplation or even just love a good Christian poet then I can recommend this book. I want to say “highly” recommend but I do not think it is fair to highly recommend books in this genre on a single macro-reading.

[Peter · Rating 5 out of 5]

The Living Flame of Love is St John of the Cross’ attempt at explaining the joys of the state of full union with the Deity. Ordinarily, this state of union occurs only posthumously, but among some few souls, God wills, and the soul cooperates, to purify and illuminate the soul to such an extent in this life that the soul becomes as fire, hence the title.

The book is profound and beautiful, however, it is speaking about very lofty spiritual matters that, unless you have taken at least the early steps on the road of prayer, will make absolutely no sense. I have tried several times to read it, and this is the first time I have been able to complete it. I am glad that I did. It inspires one in the practice of prayer, seeing that, once weaned away from the early delights, it will not always remain dark and arid.

[Lani · Rating 5 out of 5]

A great guide, sublime...especially for caregivers

St John of the Cross proves my hypothesis, that we are not caring for those with dementia, or even demons, but for those experiencing dark nights which are actually just blinding light. I watch the one I care for become enraptured in spiritual wisdom, inspired and peaceful, ascending the steps to heaven. When the steps seem to descend, I await the next appearance of the "living flame of love" and work to reflect it myself.

[Hannah Bergstrom de Leon · Rating 3 out of 5]

I love me some poetry and I love me some mystics but I'll be honest this was a hard book of poetry for me. There were definite lines and moments that I deeply connected but often their topics and language we're so foriegn to me I struggled to connect with the words themselves. I wish I could read it in Spanish, alas I cannot but I think overall a wonderful peek into these mystics' deep emotional lives in relationship to God.

[Andrew · Rating 5 out of 5]

(Read this in ICS Publications edition of "The Collected Works of St. John of the Cross"). This is magnificent, and what really (finally) made St. John of the Cross click with me. Seeing the end, which is outlined in the Living Flame of Love, will hopefully serve as a guide when I try to tackle more of St. John of the Cross's writings.

[Kristina · Rating 5 out of 5]

I love how humble St. John of the Cross is in writing this prose in explanation for a benefactor. I know I could use some help in understanding even the most fundamental poetry. No one seems to care for the finer things in life anymore.

[Brian Hohmeier · Rating 4 out of 5]

A very enjoyable translation. I can imagine nothing of Sn Juan's poetry is lost in this very readable, slim edition.

[Aaron Schuschu · Rating 4 out of 5]

A more positive version of Dark Night of the Soul, but considering the passages about cauterizing, explain to me again how covid masks normalize sadism?

[Wiseman513 · Rating 5 out of 5]

4.6/10

[Cristal Peña · Rating 5 out of 5]

Una bellísima selección de poemas

[Santiago Vieto Rodríguez · Rating 5 out of 5]

The work of a true mystic. The holiest of poets, and the most poetic of saints.