Leonard Doohan

The central teachings of Spanish mystic, John of the Cross, namely on the importance of love as the goal of life. God's inner life is one of love, the created world is God's work of love and our lives are surrounded by God's invitations to love. John's writings proclaim the centrality of love in spiritual growth: The Ascent of Mount Carmel teaches us how to prepare for a life of love, The Spiritual Canticle reveals the thrill and excitement of the journey of two lovers, The Dark Night calls us to have the courage to accept the pain of love, and The Living Flame describes what it is like to be immersed in love. Even many of John's shorter works of prose and poetry invite readers to be lost in love.

Living motivated by faith is increasingly difficult in our contemporary Church and world. We are surrounded by dysfunctional organizations, selfishness, hatred, and bigotry and at the same time many aspects of contemporary religion undermine good people's desires and efforts to respond to the call of faith. Fortunately, there are many glimpses of grace around us that call us to faith and nurture the faith we struggle to maintain. There are also many aspects of our faith that help us find life and fulfillment in God. Perhaps we do not give the life that results from faith sufficient opportunity to grow. Maybe our own half-heartedness blocks the growth of faith. Faith demands a conversion and change of life that lead to a spiritual growth that makes faith real. When we journey to God along these paths God reveals aspects of the life of faith to us that enthuse us and encourage us to strive for deeper knowledge and experience of God.