Today, December 14, is the feast of Saint John of the Cross.
Carmelite and Doctor of the Church.
Born in Fontiveros, Spain in 1542, Juan de Yepes y Álvarez lived in poverty. In Medina del Campo, John was able to study and become an altar boy at a nearby Augustinian nunnery. There, he also cared for the poor in the hospital.
In 1563, he became a Carmelite lay brother at age 21 and took the name John of St. Matthias. As a Carmelite, he lived more strictly than the Rule required. He was ordained priest in 1567 at age 25.
After his priestly ordination, John considered joining the very strict Carthusian Order. He was persuaded by St. Teresa of Avila to begin the Discalced (or barefoot) reform within the Carmelite Order. St. Teresa wanted to bring back the purity of the Carmelites by returning to the Primitive Rule of the Carmelites of 1209. Later during this reform, he changed his name to John of the Cross.
His reforms did not sit well with some of his brothers, and he was ordered to return to Medina del Campo. He refused, and was imprisoned at Toledo, Spain, escaping after nine months. He became vicar-general of Andalusia, Spain. His reforms brought back much-needed energy into the Order.
John is one of the greatest spiritual writers. He wrote masterpieces of mystical theology, such as “Spiritual Canticle,” “Dark Night of the Soul,” “The Ascent of Mount Carmel,” and “Living Flame of Love.”
He died of erysipelas in 1591. He was beatified in 1675 in Rome by Pope Clement X. John was canonized in 1726 by Pope Servant of God Benedict XIII.
In 1926, Pope Pius XI declared St. John of the Cross a Doctor of the Church (“The Mystical Doctor”).