Mount Saint Mary's

Seminary
Emmitsburg, MD. USA.

The Gifts of the Holy Spirit

in the Night of the Senses
based on St. John of the Cross
by
Omar Loggiodice
ologgio@newsfromgod.com

A Research writing project submitted in partial fulfillment of the

requirements for the Master of Arts degree program in Theology.
In conjunction with the Elective Course:
SYST906 Themes: Gifts/Charisms-Holy Spirit
Second Theology - Fall 2006

Date: December 08, 2006

Approved By:

Feast of the Immaculate Conception

INTRODUCTION
In this paper we will show the relationship between the Gifts of the Holy Spirit, the three
stages of spiritual life and the Night of the Senses as described by St. John of the Cross in his
work Dark Night1. We intend this paper to be a didactic paper, and so we provide a
foundational understanding of the human person, describing the powers of the soul, and their
relationship. We will then explain the different stages of spiritual growth according to the
tradition of the Church, together with the presence of the nights and their relationship to the
different phases of growth. As we explain the movement and phases of spiritual life we will
describe the effect of the Gifts of the Holy Spirit, with a special emphasis on the first night: the
Night of the Senses.
In the end, this paper is meant to invite you to embark on the journey of Eternal Joy and
Happiness, to give you rudimentary knowledge of your own spiritual experiences, so that you
may advance as unhindered as possible.

FOUNDATIONS
In this section we will give the anthropological and spiritual foundations necessary to
understand the Gifts of the Holy Spirit and the two nights through which the soul must pass if it
is to reach union with God. We will describe the human person in general, what the soul is and
its powers, the virtues and the three stages of spiritual growth.

The Human Person

Since we are concerned with the seven Gifts of the Holy Spirit it is important to understand
the subject in whom they inhere. As we know, that which is received, is received according to
the mode of the receiver2, therefore it is impossible to understand the effects of the Gifts of the
Holy Spirit in the person without understanding properly who is the human person. This is not a
simple question as we might initially think, the depths of the incomprehensible mystery of the
Holy Trinity remains a mystery precisely because of the inexhaustible and yet penetrable
mystery of three Divine Persons who are one. The human person, made in the image of God,
shares in this mystery and so it is not possible for a human to exhaust the meaning of human
person, but according to the plan of God, it is ever more penetrated with the passage of
history as man moves towards the absolute truth: God, Our Beloved.
Soul and Body
The first basis which we must cover, as Mother Church clearly teaches3, is that the human
person is made of a substantial union of body and soul4. The body without the soul is dead and
1 St. John describes two nights, the Night of the Senses and the Night of the Spirit. The Active part of the nights is discussed
in the Ascent of Mount Carmel, whereas the passive aspect of the nights is recounted in Dark Night. In this paper we
will concentrate on the Night of the Senses. Any reference to the Dark Night will be abbreviatedas follows: Book II,
Chapter 3, paragraph 1 of the Dark Night will be abbreviated as DN II, 3, 1. In this work we have used the original Spanish
edition: Ed. Eulogio Pacho. S. Juan de La Cruz: Obras Completas. Editorial Monte Carmelo. 2000. Spain.
2 A well known principle of metaphysics originally proposed by Aristotle and refined by St. Thomas. It is used frequently
by St. John of the Cross (cf. DN, I, 4, 2 and others): quodquod recipitur recipitur per modum recipientis.
3 CCC, 360
4 St. John often refers to the fact that both the sensitive part of the soul (intimately linked with the body) and the spiritual
part of the soul (referring to the higher powers and the very substance of the soul) form one suppositum: Que, como,
en fin, estas dos partes son un supuesto, ordinariamente participan entrambas de lo que una recibe, cada una a su
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corrupts. The soul without the body remains alive, but is notoriously incomplete. Unfortunately,
in our age, the body is extolled in a false manner, making it the principle of life. Proof of this
false exaltation is the fact that a contradiction arises, and the same society which exalts the
body as the only principle of life denies the very differences between the bodies of male and
female. The body is well known in its biological functions and in its ability to support life, but its
connection to the soul the principle of life- and the union of the soul with it, is rarely
discussed. The Gifts of the Holy Spirit are gifts for the human person, and therefore they affect
both soul and body. Raptures and ecstasies are among the signs of the advancement of the
mystical life (but also of the imperfection of the person5), and they are a clear visible
repercussion, in the body, of the growth of the mystical life of the person. This growth in the
mystical life can not occur without the concurrence of the Gifts of the Holy Spirit, and hence the
Gifts affect the body, but in an indirect manner.
Our main concern in this section however, is to discuss the soul and its powers, since it is
not possible to understand the operation of the Gifts of the Holy Spirit without understanding
the soul and its powers to some extent.

Illustration 1: Powers of the Soul

Consider the illustration above. The human soul has five different powers: The vegetative,
the locomotive, the sensitive, the appetitive and the intellectual. You will find them all in any
human being, from conception to natural death. What allows embryonic stem cells to grow into
different types of tissue is the vegetative power of the soul, which is responsible for growth,
maintenance (nutrition) and reproduction of the body6. The locomotive power of the soul is
responsible for the ability of the soul to move the body physically. This is why dead people
don't walk, because their soul has been separated from the body. Notice that these two powers
are directly related to the body of the person.
The sensitive power allows the person to perceive other corporeal objects, and therefore we
have the five senses as well as internal senses that allow us to distinguish harm or usefulness
among other things (i.e. food is perceived as useful)7.
Then we have the appetitive power which inclines the person towards what is good. Here
we need to spend some more time, because the Gifts of the Holy Spirit directly affect the
appetitive power as well as the intellectual power of the soul8.
modo. (DN I, 4, 2). Also see DN II, 1, 1 and DN II, 3, 1.
5 They are signs of imperfection because the body is not completely aligned and integrated with the soul, and so whenever
the soul sees itself taken by God the body is not able to correspond to what the soul is experiencing. In later stages, and in
our Lord Jesus Christ, the body was perfectly integrated with the soul and is able to correspond perfectly to the
contemplation of God.
6 As you can see, plants have this kind of power also since they grow, are maintained by means of nutrients from the earth
and are able to reproduce. It is for this reason that this power of the soul is called vegetative power.
7 Etienne Gilson. The Christian Philosophy of St. Thomas Aquinas. University of Notre Dame Press. Notre Dame, IN.
1956. p. 203.
8 All powers are affected, but according to the principle that causes affect that which is closest to them, the Gifts of the Holy
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Illustration 2: Appetitive power of the Soul.

The appetitive power, as shown in Illustration 2 is composed of two aspects: the will and the
sensual appetites. The will orders the person to that good which is universal, for example
beauty, truthfulness, goodness itself. The sensual appetites are concerned with particular
goods and indirectly with evils which oppose the person (i.e. this tasty steak, this beautiful
picture, that dangerous bear).

Illustration 3: The Will and the Sensual appetites

The irascible appetite is what inclines a person to defend themselves from anything that
prevents them from obtaining a difficult particular good9 and the concupiscible appetite is what
inclines the person to obtain a particular good: a meal or a beautiful poem.
Virtues
Now that we have studied the different powers of the soul we need to look briefly at the
virtues. The virtues are of two types: infused and natural. Natural virtues are those which we
obtain by our own powers, usually by repeated action. Just as a person who exercises
regularly acquires the habit of exercise (and the person can easily perform physical tasks), so
the person who exercises the soul regularly can attain good habits10. These good habits of the
Spirit affect more directly the powers of the soul further away from that which is material, that is, the powers which are
closer to God, who is totally immaterial. This happens also to keep the original order of powers which God intended.
Instead of affecting the material order directly, God allows the lower powers to do what they were originally designed to
do, but in an elevated manner.
9 This type of good is called the Arduous good (Arduum Bonum) because it is difficult to obtain. The object of the
Irascible power is the arduous good (cf. Questiones Disputatae de Virtutibus, Q. 4, A. 2, Obj. 1).
10 Unfortunately it can also attain bad habits, which are called vices.
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soul are called virtues.

The infused virtues are those which can not be obtained by repeated action. They must be
infused by God in the soul. The three primary infused virtues are Faith, Hope and Charity, and
the ordinary way to acquire them is through baptism. These virtues are special not only in the
fact that they are infused by God, but also in the fact that the object of these virtues is not any
created thing, but God himself. The theological virtues dispose Christians to live in a
relationship with the Holy Trinity. They have the One and Triune God for their origin, motive,
and object.11
Faith is the theological virtue by which we believe in God and believe all that he has said
and revealed to us, and that Holy Church proposes for our belief, because He is truth itself12
By means of Faith, the intellect is able to recognize as certain and true the articles of Faith. It is
by means of the virtue of Faith that the person believes and knows with certainty that God is
three in One, and that God assumed human nature in the person of Jesus. Faith, although
certain, is also obscure, because most of the truths of Faith surpass the ability of the intellect to
comprehend them.
Hope is the theological virtue by which we desire the kingdom of heaven and eternal life as
our happiness, placing our trust in Christ's promises and relying not on our own strength, but
on the help of the grace of the Holy Spirit13. The virtue of Hope allows the Will to want with
firmness something that is impossible to obtain by ourselves, namely union with God, eternal
life. The virtue of Hope allows us to trust with certainty that God will fulfill his promise, and that
He will give us eternal life if we do our part.
Charity is the theological virtue by which we love God above all things for his own sake,
and our neighbor as ourselves for the love of God14. It is by means of he virtue of Charity that
we are constantly inclined towards God, that we desire union with Him, that we seek Him and
love him, and want to know Him. It is the virtue that allows us to love neighbor for the sake of
God, and not for any selfish reason. This virtue is lost as soon as mortal sin is committed, and
is recovered by means of confession.
The virtue of Charity is extremely important, because the practice of all the virtues is
animated and inspired by Charity, which 'binds everything together in perfect harmony'15. Even
though the virtues of Hope and Faith could remain in a person with mortal sin, that Faith is
dead because it does not have the work of Charity, and hope is weak because Charity does
not sustain it. This is why confession is so important, it allows the person to regain the
presence of the Holy Spirit which brings Charity, the Gifts of the Holy Spirit and the other
theological virtues with it (cf. Rom 5:5).
There are also the Cardinal virtues: prudence, justice, fortitude and temperance. These
virtues are called cardinal because they are foundational for the other virtues, especially in the
realm of natural virtues. We will not discuss them in detail, but it is important to know that the
primary end of all these virtues is to allow us to act in accordance with right reason. Therefore
they perfect the intellect, the will and the irascible and concupiscible appetites which we
studied previously.
11
12
13
14
15

CCC, 1812.
CCC, 1814.
CCC, 1817.
CCC, 1822.
CCC, 1827.

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As we will see later, the Gifts of the Holy Spirit allow us to be moved from without: by God
Himself. They are likened to the sail in the ship, which allows the wind (i.e. The Holy Spirit) to
move the ship16. The Gifts however, perfect the virtues, and the loftiest purpose of the Gifts is
to allow us to reach the perfection of the virtues of Faith, Hope and Charity which dispose us to
live the Trinitarian Life. Faith and Hope don't exist in heaven, because in heaven we see God
and therefore do not need Faith (i.e. we do not need to believe, because we can already see).
In heaven we are in union with God and have eternal life, so we do not need Hope, but Charity
remains in heaven, which is the most perfect of the three, because God is Love. The more we
have true love, the more we are close to God.
Stages of Spiritual Growth

Pu
rga
wa tive
y

Illu
min
wa ative
y

The tradition of the Church and the Mystics has commonly spoken of the 3 stages of Spiritual
growth: the purgative way, the illuminative way and the unitive way17. They are also called the
way of the beginner, the way of the proficient or advanced, and the way of the perfect. The
works of St. John of the Cross are based on these three stages and are primarily concerned
with the last two: the illuminative and the unitive.

Unitive
Way

GrowthofCharity
Primarily eliminate
Mortal Sin

Specially Cardinal Virtues

and Gifts in a lesser degree
Illustration 4: The three ways

Specially Gifts
and Theological Virtues

It is important to distinguish this stages of spiritual growth in order to understand the relation
between sin, virtue and the gifts as the person grows spiritually. The first stage, the purgative
way, is that in which the person is primarily concerned with eliminating mortal and venial sin
from his or her life. In the illuminative way the person is generally free from mortal sin, and the
primary expression of love for God and Neighbor is the fact that the person lives a virtuous life.
16 The Three Ages of the Interior Life. Vol 1. p. 72.
17 The illuminative and the unitive way form one stage, the stage in which the person enters infused contemplation.
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In the unitive way, or the way of the perfect, the person is immersed in the Love of God,
especially in the ordinary activity of every day, and the Gifts of the Holy Spirit manifest
themselves more clearly and frequently at this stage. As shown in the figure, the stages
represent the growth of Charity in the soul, and this growth is manifested in different ways in
the different stages. It is important to note that the division between the stages is not a
mathematically rigorous division, and God can move a soul from one stage to another in a very
short or long period of time.
The theological virtues of Faith, Hope and Love and the Gifts of the Holy Spirit are present
in all three stages as long as the person remains in the state of grace (i.e. mortal sins have
been confessed). The difference is whether the growth in charity is expressed primarily by the
cardinal virtues (even though the Gifts are present) or by the Theological Virtues and the Gifts
(even though the cardinal virtues are obviously operating at their best).
When the person loses the state of grace because of mortal sin, the theological virtue of
Charity and the Gifts are no longer present. The theological virtues of Faith and Hope may be
lost also, depending on the type of mortal sin18. Both the theological virtues and the Gifts are
recovered as soon as the person confesses their sins19.

THE LIGHT OF GOD: THE DARK NIGHTS

The passage from one spiritual stage to another is marked by what St. John of the Cross
called the Dark Nights. The passage from the purgative way to the illuminative way is
accomplished by the Night of the Senses20 whereas the passage from the illuminative way to
the unitive way21 is marked by the Night of the Spirit22.
The illuminative way (or way of the advanced) together with the unitive way are really two
phases of contemplative life. It is because of this that the Night of the Senses is considered the
door to contemplative life.

18 The theological virtue is lost if the mortal sin opposes the virtue directly. For example, Hope is lost if the sin is despair;
Faith is lost if the sin is unbelief (cf. Fr. Reginald Garrigou-Lagrange. The Three Ages of the Interior Life. Tan books and
Publishers, Inc. Rockford, IL. 1947. Vol. 1. p. 56.)
19 cf. Fr. Reginald Garrigou-Lagrange. The Three Ages of the Interior Life. Tan books and Publishers, Inc. Rockford, IL.
1947. Vol. 1. p. 77.
20 Just as the stages are not rigorously divided, so also the nights compenetrate each other. The Night of the Spirit completes
what the Night of the Senses began. They are intertwined just as the body and the soul are intertwined in a person.
21 Fr. Aumann is of the opinion that the Night of the Spirit occurs when the soul is well underway in the unitive way, and
is meant to prepare the person for what is called the transforming union which is the last phase of the unitive way. In the
transforming union the person enters the spiritual marriage with God. This opinion has its merit, and Fr. Aumann gives a
very good reason to hold it (cf. Antonio Royo, O.P. and Jordan Aumann, O.P. Theology of Christian Perfection. The
Priory Press. Dubuque, IOWA. 1962. p. 342) . Fr. Garrigou-Lagrange and Fr. Cirsogno, on the other hand, hold the
opinion that the Night of the Spirit marks the passage between the illuminative and the unitive way. I believe that both
opinions are not necessarily contradictory, but discussion of this particular question lies outside the scope of the paper.
22 I use the term night of the spirit and not night of the soul because this is the term used by St. John of the Cross in the
original Spanish.
The Gifts of the Holy Spirit in the Night of the Senses

The Light of God: The Dark Nights

Dar
k
of th Night
e Se
nses
Primarily eliminate
Mortal Sin

Da

th

rk
N

e S igh
pir t
it

Illu
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Pu
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of

Li
g
pr ht o
ese f G
nt
o
th d's
ro
ug Love
ho
ut

Unitive
way

GrowthofCharity

Specially Cardinal Virtues

Specially Gifts
and Gifts in a lesser degree
and Theological Virtues
Illustration 5: The dark nights of St. John of the Cross

As the figure shows, the Night of the Senses and the Night of the Spirit are interconnected,
and St. John explicitly states that the purpose of the Night of the Senses is not really achieved
until the Night of the Spirit is reached. The nights begin and are present at the boundaries
between the spiritual stages, and therefore it is difficult to know the actual stage of the person.
It is also interesting to note that most of the spiritual life, before reaching the unhindered light of
the unitive stage, is clouded by the nights.
The nights in reality are not a lack of light, as St. John explains, but rather an abundance of
light. This may surprise the reader, but St. John gives us a great insight on the essence of the
nights. He says that the nights are experienced with so much suffering and pain not because
God is far from the soul, but rather because God is illuminating the soul in a more intense way.
The light of God makes our imperfections much more visible and therefore we experience
them with much more intensity. It is like the light coming through a window: the more polluted
the air is, the more the light will reflect those particles23. The imperfections were always
present, but the nights make them visible so that they may be cleansed. In addition the more
pure the soul is the more imperceptible is the light, because having less impurities the light is
not reflected as much as it was before24.
The lighter and more sensual imperfections are cleansed by the Night of the Senses,
whereas the deeper and more substantial imperfections are purified by the Night of the Spirit.
23 Cf. DN II, 8, 3.
24 as, cuanto esta divina luz embiste ms sencilla y pura en el alma, tanto ms la oscurece, vaca y aniquila acerca de
sus aprensiones y afecciones particulares, as de cosas de arriba como de abajo; y tambin, cuanto menos sencilla y
pura embiste, tanto menos la priva y menos oscura le es. (DN II, 8 2)
The Gifts of the Holy Spirit in the Night of the Senses

The Light of God: The Dark Nights

St. John uses the name Senses to refer to the sensitive or sensual part of the soul (even
though the intellect and will are also affected), whereas the word Spirit is used to signify the
very substance of the soul which only God can touch.

Passive and Active aspect

In addition to the distinction between the Night of the Senses and the Night of the Spirit, St.
John also distinguishes between passive and active nights. Passive nights refers to the aspect
of the nights in which God operates on the person, as a surgeon removing a tumor. Active
night refers to the person acting in order to purge himself of all imperfections, as a person
exercising to strengthen a broken muscle.
St. John discusses the active aspect of the Night of the Senses and the Night of the Spirit in
The Ascent of Mount Carmel, whereas the passive aspect of the nights is discussed in the
Dark Night of the Soul25. It is important to note that this distinction between active and passive
is a real distinction but it is not a temporal one. It is all one night26. The passive element is
always present concomitantly with the active element27, even though the expression of one or
the other may be stronger or weaker in different stages28.
Now that we have a general idea of the nature of the nights, we will discuss the Gifts of the
Holy Spirit.

A MOVEMENT FROM WITHOUT: THE GIFTS OF THE HOLY SPIRIT

The Gifts of the Holy Spirit are habits29 whereby man is perfected to obey readily the Holy
Ghost30. They differ from the virtues which are also habits, in the fact that the virtues are
habits whereby the powers of appetite are disposed to obey reason promptly31. So the virtues
dispose our appetites to obey reason32, and the Gifts dispose man to promptly obey the Holy
Spirit. Here we can see an analogy with the nights: just as the Night of the Senses is meant to
align the sensual appetite to reason (Intellect and Will), so the virtues dispose our appetites to
obey reason. In the same way, just as the Night of the Soul aligns the person to God so the
Gifts dispose man to promptly obey the Holy Spirit. This is why the illuminative way is
characterized by the virtues and the unitive way by the Gifts.
It could be argued, however, that right reason also disposes us to obey the Holy Spirit, and
25 Even though a discussion on the active elements of the Night of the Spirit is also present in the Dark Night of the Soul.
26 Fr. Peter Bourne, H.M.C. St. John of the Cross and the Dark Night: Understanding His Ascent and Dark Night in Easy
Stages. Wenzel Press. 1993. p. 151-152
27 cf. Ibid., p. 152.
28 The distinction is made to better understand the way in which the spiritual growth occurs. The character of the active
element changes as the person progresses in the Spiritual life, at first the active element seeks to chose for oneself what is
good, whereas in the higher stages of the Spiritual life the person seeks to consent to the inspirations of the Holy Spirit. In
the later stages the person continually chooses God, and consents to what God proposes. This last stage is, paradoxically,
wholly passive and wholly active at the same time, but the activity is primarily that of consent and of choosing God
continuously.
29 A good habit is a semi-permanent (difficult to change) disposition of the person to act in accordance with its nature (cf. ST
I-II, q. 49, a. 2, Obj. 1, cf. ST I-II, q. 54, a. 3)
30 ST I-II, q. 68, a. 3
31 Ibid.
32 Reason in this context does not mean the logically discursive thought that allow us to reach a conclusion, that is just a
small part of the ability of man to reason. The concept of reason which we use here is much more encompassing: it refers
to that which differentiates man from animal, that is, the ability to know and to love.
The Gifts of the Holy Spirit in the Night of the Senses

A movement from without: The Gifts of the Holy Spirit

therefore the virtues also dispose us to obey the Holy Spirit. This conclusion is correct.
Nonetheless, the virtues don't dispose us directly to obey the Holy Spirit. Moreover, the virtues
are habits which operate in a human manner (modo humano). The Gifts of the Holy Spirit on
the contrary, as St. Thomas points out, are called spirits in the book of Isaiah, and therefore
denote a movement from without, a movement that comes directly from God33. The Gifts
therefore, in contrast with the virtues, don't operate in a human way but rather in a Divine way
(modo Divino): it is God himself who moves man by means of the Gifts.
This is a very important distinction, because it allows us to conclude that the Gifts operate
directly only in the passive aspect of the nights. It is because of this reason that we
concentrate only on the Night of the Senses in the Dark Night of the Soul, and not in the
Ascent of Mount Carmel34.

Illustration 6: The Seven Gifts of the Holy Spirit

The tradition of the Church has identified seven Gifts of the Holy Spirit according to the text
of Isaiah 7:2-3. The gifts are Wisdom and Understanding, Counsel and Fortitude, Knowledge,
Piety and Fear of the Lord.
All the gifts, like the virtues, are rooted in charity. The gifts, like the virtues, are deeply
connected, one gift can not be present if the others are not present. They are, as it were, like
the fingers of a hand. They grow together, but if the hand is present then it has all the fingers.
In the same way, if the theological virtue of Charity is present in the soul, then the person has
all the Gifts35. The connection exists because God's love has been poured into our hearts
through the Holy Spirit which has been given to us (Rom 5:5). The gifts depend on Charity, and
33 ST I-II, q. 68, a. 1
34 The Ascent of Mount Carmel is concerned primarily with the active aspect of both nights.
35 ST I-II, q. 68. a. 5.
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A movement from without: The Gifts of the Holy Spirit

in turn, Charity depends on the presence of the Holy Spirit in us. This is why the person in
mortal sin loses the Gifts, because mortal sin expels the Holy Spirit from our souls, and
therefore we lose Charity, which in turn, causes the loss of the Gifts.
The gifts, like the virtues, also grow in an organic way. When one grows all the other grow in
proportion. They grow organically, as if they were the fingers of a hand. They assist each
other, as St. Gregory the Great says: by turns they fed one another, referring to the seven
sons of Job which in his passage represent the Gifts of the Holy Spirit36.
There are two Gifts whose action is perceived more during the passive aspect of the nights:
the Gift of Fear of the Lord and the Gift of Understanding37. We will explain in more detail
these two gifts in the following sections. As we said before, all the Gifts are present in all the
stages of growth, but some are more active than others. After and during the Night of the
Spirit, the Gift of Wisdom --which is the central Gift of contemplation--, is the crown of the Gifts.
We will not discuss it at length in this paper because we are mostly concerned with the Night of
the Senses38.

The Gift of Fear of The Lord

There are three kinds of fear which we could have with respect to God:
1) Servile Fear: this is fear of God in so far as he can impose a punishment for our
actions39. This type of fear does not belong to the Gift of Fear of the Lord, even though
it could proceed from the Holy Spirit. It is, as it were, the imperfect stage of fear.
2) Filial Fear: this is the fear of God in so far as we can offend him, detract from his
extrinsic glory by our actions. This fear corresponds to filial love40.
3) Reverential Fear: this is the fear of God in so far as we see our nothingness in the
presence of his infinite majesty and grandeur, it corresponds to chaste love41.
The Gift of Fear of the Lord is a movement away from anything that can separate us from
God, from any attachment to creatures that could cause us to sin. There are three primary
virtues perfected by the Gift of Fear of the Lord. It perfects the virtue of humility to prevent us
from loving ourselves in a disorderly manner, seeking to satisfy our desires through created
things even though they would separate us from God42. It perfects the virtue of hope, because
this destroys presumption43, whereby man thinks that he can satisfy his own desires through
the created order. And it perfects the virtue of temperance so that the appetites are moderated
according to reason allowing the person to have the right desires for created things.

The Gift of Understanding

The Gift of Understanding is given to illumine the intelligence of man, to make him know the
36 Ibid., sed contra.
37 Ven. P. Maestro Fray Juan de Santo Tomas, O.P. Tr. y Notas Fr. Ignacio Menndez, O.P. Los Dones del Espritu Santo y
la Perfeccin Cristiana. p. 578, Nota S.
38 The Gift of Wisdom is also present in the Night of the Senses, but in a lesser manner and the person generally has no
consciousness of it. The person gradually becomes aware of contemplation as the Night of the Senses ends and the Night
of the Spirit begins.
39 Ibid., p. 579
40 Ibid.
41 Ibid.
42 cf. Ibid., p. 580.
43 cf. Ibid., p. 580.
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A movement from without: The Gifts of the Holy Spirit

spiritual things by virtue of a certain co-naturality of affection, and of a certain experience44 of

them. The Gift of Understanding, through the motion of the Holy Spirit makes us realize
supernatural realities in a mystical way, they become evident to us by means of a mystical
experience. This understanding is gained, not by means of our reason, or by the power of the
intellect to understand truth, but rather by a direct movement of the Holy Spirit in our souls. The
Gift of Understanding gives us a simple intuitive gaze upon the Divine Mysteries45. It allows
those in the State of Grace to know more deeply the truth about direct matters of faith but also
matters connected to these truths46.
It differs from the Gift of Wisdom in so far as the Gift of Wisdom concerns the penetration of
the interconnectedness and relationship between matters of faith and God himself with one
simple gaze. It is, as it were, similar to the difference between touching a ball and seeing it.
When we touch the ball we know it's a ball, we know it is round and spherical, we know its
texture. But when we see it we know much more, we know in one gaze-- the
interconnectedness of color and shape, of texture and shadow. With one look we know much
more than a blind person who could only know the ball by touch. Understanding would be
similar to what we know by touching and wisdom to what we know by seeing. Both are
complementary, and both are present in the person.

THE GIFTS OF THE HOLY SPIRIT IN THE NIGHT OF THE SENSES

In order to understand how the Gifts of the Holy Spirit (especially the Gift of Fear of the Lord
and the Gift of Understanding) perfect the person during the Night of the Senses, we must first
look at the state of the soul before the night, but after mortal sin has been rooted out from the
ordinary life of the person47.

The state of the Soul Before Night of Senses

Before the Night of the Senses the soul is primarily centered on created spiritual
consolation, as we can see in the figure. Its desire is for God, but it only experiences God as a
source of consolation. This is fitting, because God in his mercy has been providing the milk of
consolation in order to lure the child away from its appetite for sin, especially mortal sin. Now
that the child is growing, the milk must be taken away, and the child must be weaned.

44
45
46
47

Ibid. p. 407
cf. Ibid., p. 411.
ST II-II, q. 8, a. 3, respondeo.
Note that even though we use the language of before and after, it is only a way to make this mystical truths more
accessible to our understanding. In reality, they are not divided with a rigorous boundary, and the person may need to
experience some aspects of the Night of the Senses even though they are in the Night of the Spirit or vice-versa.

The Gifts of the Holy Spirit in the Night of the Senses

12

The Gifts of the Holy Spirit in the Night of the Senses

Inte
llect

W
ill

Co
nc
up
isc
ibl
e

Ira
sci
ble

Person Seeks God

in spiritual things
Spiritual joy
and consolations
are provided
by God

Intellect and Will seek

God in consolation

Human Person

Sensitive appetites
are not ordered to
the intellect and the
will

God

Person is ordered
to self in a way that is not sinful,
seeks God in
spiritual consolation,
many imperfections

Illustration 7: State of the Soul before the Night of Sense, after mortal sin has been eliminated

At this stage the irascible and concupiscible appetites are not aligned with the intellect and
the will. The person knows God with the Intellect and desires God with his Will, but He is
unable to control his appetites and instead of knowing and loving God as He truly is, he loves
God as a source of consolations. This happens in a manner that is generally not conscious.
When the person doesn't experience any sweetness or taste in prayer he thinks that he is
far from God, he thinks God is not with him any more. This is because they, most likely not
consciously, have equated God with sweetness and consolation. The concupiscible appetite
seeks sweetness in meditation, prayer, devotionals, pictures, etc48.
The irascible appetite causes the person to be easily upset with anyone who stands
between him and this God of sweetness. The primary purpose, then, of the night of the senses
is to wean the child from the milk of consolation and to point the lower appetites to be aligned
with the intellect and the will49, making the first step in knowing and loving God as He is in
himself and not simply because He gives us consolation and sweetness. The person at this
stage is ordered to self, but in a manner in which he is not committing mortal sin. The person is
honestly and truly seeking God, but it can not distinguish between God as He is in himself and
God as a source of sweetness. For this reason the Night of the Senses is needed, to align the
sensitive appetite to the intellect and the will.
We can therefore see that the Gift of Fear of the Lord and the Gift of Understanding are very
important as we enter the passive aspect of the nights. The soul must detach from all created
48 Cf. DN, I, 3, 1-2
49 [...] y con leche sabrosa y manjar blando y dulce le cra, y en sus brazos le trae y le regala. Pero, a la medida que va
creciendo, le va la madre quitando el regalo y, escondiendo el tierno amor, pone el amargo acbar en el dulce pecho,
y, abajndole de los brazos, le hace andar por su pie, porque, perdiendo las propiedades de nio, se d a cosas ms
grandes y sustanciales. (DN I, 1, 2)
The Gifts of the Holy Spirit in the Night of the Senses

13

The Gifts of the Holy Spirit in the Night of the Senses

things, and this is provided by the Gift of Fear of the Lord. With the Gift of the Fear of the Lord
the Holy Spirit will move the soul away from the unmoderated love of spiritual consolations,
and will cause the soul to experience a deep repugnance from any sweetness that leads her
away from God. The soul will experience a filial connection with God (Gift of Piety) and she will
fight with anything that threatens this connection with her Father. The soul must also begin to
know God as He is, and not as a source of consolation, and this is provided by the Gift of
Understanding. The soul starts to penetrated Divine Mysteries in ways it never did before, in
ways that are not reachable through human activity. In order to see the effects of these Gifts,
let us look at the soul after the Night of the Senses.

Int
ell
ec
t

W
ill

pisc
ib
Con
cu

Ira
sci
ble

le

The state of the Soul after the Night of the Senses

God infuses
contemplation of Himself
Creatures are
loved for the sake
of God

God
Human Person
Person still has stains of habitual
and actual imperfections to
be cleansed in the
night of the spirit

Sensitive appetites
are mostly aligned
with the intellect
and will

Illustration 8: State of the Soul after the Night of the Senses

After the night of the senses the irascible and concupiscible appetites are aligned to the
intellect and the will, and the person loves created things, but for the sake of God. It continues
to love God in desolation and trial, much of which is present during the Night of the Senses.
Here the Gifts of Counsel and Fortitude are important, so that the soul has the patience to
suffer all that it must suffer during this night, and so that it does not renounce everything when
pain and suffering comes. This must be endured in order to learn to truly love God.
The source of the pain and suffering is not God himself directly, but rather the imperfection
present in the soul which is now more visible under the light of God. Just as the child that is
weaned from the mother experiences a deep pain50, which seems without end, so the soul that
is being weaned from the milk of God's consolations and attachment to creatures experiences
an intense suffering and a deep desolation, coupled with pain, sometimes even bodily.
50 DN I, 1, 1-3.
The Gifts of the Holy Spirit in the Night of the Senses

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The Gifts of the Holy Spirit in the Night of the Senses

The Gift of Understanding now gives the soul a purified experience of God, God is not
simply a source of consolation but Goodness itself, Beauty itself, Truth itself. God is love. God
is infinitely good and perfect. All these things were known by the soul before the night, but they
were not experienced, it was just an intellectual knowledge detached from the irascible and
concupiscible appetites which only sought consolation and sweetness. God now infuses
contemplation in the soul, and allows her to experience Him as He is. There is generally no
discursive reasoning or meditation, and no search for consolation. The person starts to be with
God and God with the person, but the person is generally not aware of this51.
At this point the irascible and concupiscible appetites seek to follow the intellect and the will,
and the soul loses to a good extent the disordered love for self and for self-satisfaction.
The Gift of Knowledge allows the person to know how created things can lead him to God,
and there is also a knowledge of how they can bring the person away from God. The person is
now much more measured in its love for consolations, and knows that God gives them out of
love, but also knows in an experiential manner that desolations, deep suffering and pain also
bring the person close to God.
The Gift of Piety, on the other hand, allows the person to experience a filial love for God, the
soul intensifies its experience of God as Father. It knows, not just intellectually, but
experientially, that God has given everything to her, that it wouldn't even move without the
Love of God the Father. It cries with a deep sigh: Abba, Father!.
Even though the soul has been purified from the disordered love for creatures and
consolations the root of this disorder is still present in the soul. There are still habitual and
actual imperfections that need to be cleansed in order to be united with God. There is still a
hidden, deep seated pride which only God can cleanse. These are represented in the figure
above by the misalignment between the will and the intellect. If these imperfections are not
cleansed on earth they will be cleansed in purgatory, as long as the person dies in the State of
Grace.

The state of the Soul after the Night of the Spirit

Although we intended to concentrate primarily on the Night of the Senses, we would me
amiss not to mention the goal and end of our very life: union with God.
When the person has been purified of imperfection and sin through both nights52, it reaches
the state of union with God. The irascible and concupiscible appetites are aligned with the
Intellect and Will, and all of them incline the person to God in one manner or another. The
person is internally ordered and is united with God in a union of love. The person experiences
God in infused contemplation, which is produced by God, and actions are primarily done as a
response to promptings of the Holy Spirit.
The Gifts and the theological virtues are the principal aspects of the life of union, all rooted
in the virtue of Charity, which is perfected most directly by the Gift of Wisdom. Contemplation is
a love-induced knowledge of God achieved by means of the Gift of Wisdom, which is aided
and operates together with the other Gifts.
In this stage the soul and God are, as it were, one. One in love, one in purpose, and the
51 La cual inflamacin de amor, aunque comnmente a los principios no se siente (DN I, 11, 1)
52 The person nonetheless always remains free to sin, and may even commit venial sins but rarely deliberate. Complete and
full perfection is not reached until heaven.
The Gifts of the Holy Spirit in the Night of the Senses

15

The Gifts of the Holy Spirit in the Night of the Senses

Int
ell
ec
t

W
ill

Co
nc
up
isc
ibl
e

Ira
sci
ble

Person loves
creatures
with the Love
of God

God

Person is internally
ordered, and is
united to God in a
union of Love

Human Person

Illustration 9: State of the Soul after the Night of the Spirit

person loves with the Love of God through the virtue of Charity and the Gift of Wisdom, in
coordination with all the other Gifts and Virtues which reach their maximum expression in this
union. The person now sees all creatures from the vantage point of God, and so is willing to
give his own life for his neighbor out of love for God. This is the life to which all Christians are
called, this is the prelude of eternal life on earth, before the thin veil is removed 53 and the
person enters the eternal joy of the vision of God.

CONCLUSION
We have shown briefly how the Gifts of the Holy Spirit operate in the Night of the Senses.
We have explained how the Gifts of Fear of the Lord and the Gift of Understanding are of
particular importance for this night, even though all the Gifts operate in an organic manner
along with the virtues. In the process of explaining the Night of the Senses we have described
the three stages of Spiritual Life, and their connection to the virtues and the Gifts, hopefully
evoking in the reader a desire to advance and to pray for the Virtues, for Gifts of the Holy Spirit,
for the grace of union with God and for the continuous increase of Love. May Our Lady guide
your steps and bring to fulfillment that which God has started in you, and may she bring you to
that blessed state of union with God, even here on earth. Amen.
53 De los bienes y riquezas de Dios que el alma goza en este grado, no se puede hablar; porque, si de ello escribiesen
muchos libros, quedara lo ms por decir. Del cual, por esto y porque despus diremos alguna cosa, aqu no digo ms
sino que de ste se sigue el dcimo y el ltimo grado de esta escala de amor, que ya no es de esta vida (DN II, 20, 4)
The Gifts of the Holy Spirit in the Night of the Senses

16

Conclusion