Libro Primero — Capítulo 7
The Vices of Spiritual Envy and Acedia
Beginners often struggle with envy and spiritual sloth, which are contrary to the true charity that rejoices in the good of others.
On imperfections regarding envy and spiritual acedia1 1. As for the other two vices—envy and spiritual sloth—beginners certainly aren't without their share of imperfections.2 For concerning envy, many of these commonly have interior movements of distress at others' spiritual good, feeling some sensible pain that others surpass them on this path, and they wouldn't want to see them praised; because they grow sad at others' virtues, and sometimes they can't bear it without saying the opposite themselves, undoing those praises as best they can, and as the saying goes, their eye grows that the same is not done for them, because they would want to be preferred in everything.34 All of which is very contrary to charity, which, as Saint Paul says (1 Cor.5 13:6), rejoices in the truth; and if it has any envy, it is holy envy—grieving that it does not have the other's virtues, yet with joy that the other has them, and taking delight that everyone surpasses it so that they may serve God, since he himself is so lacking in that.67
The Trap of Self-Will
Spiritual acedia leads beginners to prioritize their own comfort and will over God's, failing to understand that true gain requires the loss of self-will.
2. Also, when it comes to spiritual acedia, they often feel weariness toward the more spiritual things and flee from them—namely those that go against sensible pleasure—because, since they have grown so used to savoring spiritual things, when they find no relish in them they grow disgusted with them.8 Because if they once fail to find in prayer the satisfaction their pleasure demanded (for in the end it is right that God should take it away to test them), they don't want to return to it, or sometimes they leave it off or go to it reluctantly. And so, because of this acedia, they set the path of perfection—which is the denial of their will and pleasure for God's sake—behind the pleasure and savor of their own will, which they go about satisfying in this way more than the will of God.9 3. And many of these would want God to will what they want, and they grow sad at willing what God wills, reluctant to conform their will to God's. Because of this, they often assume that if something doesn't align with their own will and taste, it isn't God's will; conversely, when they are satisfied, they believe God is satisfied. They measure God by themselves rather than measuring themselves by God, even though what He taught in the Gospel is the exact opposite (Mt. 16:25), saying that whoever loses their will for his sake will gain it, and whoever wants to gain it will lose it.10
The Need for the Narrow Way
Beginners often avoid the cross and the narrow way because they seek spiritual comfort rather than the strength found in suffering.
4. These people also feel weary when they're told to do something that doesn't please them. Because these people go after the comfort and savor of the spirit, they're very soft for the strength and hard work of perfection—made like those raised in luxury, who flee with sadness from everything harsh and take offense at the cross, where the delights of the spirit are found; and the more spiritual the things, the more weariness they feel, because, since they mean to walk in spiritual things at their own ease and according to their will's pleasure, it causes them great sadness and repugnance to enter by the narrow way that Christ speaks of (Mt.11 7:14), of life.
The Necessity of the Dark Night
God must lead the soul into the dark night to purge these childish imperfections, as the soul cannot fully mortify itself without divine intervention.
5. Of the many imperfections in which those in this first state of beginners live, let these be enough to have mentioned here, so that one may see how great a need they have for God to place them in the state of the advanced—which is done by bringing them into the dark night we are now speaking of, where, weaning them from the breast of these consolations and flavors into pure dryness and interior darkness, God strips them of all these impertinences and childish ways, and makes them gain the virtues by very different means.12 No matter how hard a beginner works to mortify all their actions and passions, they can never do it completely—or even come close—until God does it in them passively through the purgation of that night.13 If I am to say anything useful about this, may God be pleased to grant me his divine light, for it is truly needed in a night so dark and a matter so difficult to speak of and describe. This, then, is the verse: On a dark night.
Read the original Latin
De las imperfecciones a cerca de la envidia y acidia espiritual
1. Acerca también de los otros dos vicios, que son envidia y acidia espiritual, no dejan estos principiantes de tener hartas imperfecciones. Porque acerca de la envidia muchos de éstos suelen tener movimientos de pesarles del bien espiritual de los otros, dándoles alguna pena sensible que les lleven ventaja en este camino, y no querrían verlos alabar; porque se entristecen de las virtudes ajenas, y a veces no lo pueden sufrir sin decir ellos lo contrario, deshaciendo aquellas alabanzas como pueden, y les crece, como dicen, el ojo no hacerse con ellos otro tanto, porque querrían ellos ser preferidos en todo. Todo lo cual es muy contrario a la caridad, la cual, como dice san Pablo (1 Cor. 13, 6), se goza de la verdad; y, si alguna envidia tiene, es envidia santa, pesándole de no tener las virtudes del otro, con gozo de que el otro las tenga, y holgándose de que todos le lleven la ventaja porque sirvan a Dios, ya que él está tan falto en ello.
2. También, acerca de la acidia espiritual, suelen tener tedio en las cosas que son más espirituales y huyen de ellas, como son aquellas que contradicen al gusto sensible; porque, como ellos están (tan) saboreados en las cosas espirituales, en no hallando sabor en ellas las fastidian. Porque, si una vez no hallaron en la oración la satisfacción que pedía su gusto (porque en fin conviene que se le quite Dios para probarlos), no querrían volver a ella, o a veces, la dejan o van de mala gana. Y así, por esta acidia, posponen el camino de perfección, que es el de la negación de su voluntad y gusto por Dios, al gusto y sabor de su voluntad, a la cual en esta manera andan ellos por satisfacer más que a la de Dios.
3. Y muchos de éstos querrían que quisiese Dios lo que ellos quieren, y se entristecen de querer lo que quiere Dios, con repugnancia de acomodar su voluntad a la de Dios. De donde les nace que, muchas veces, en lo que ellos no hallan su voluntad y gusto, piensen que no es voluntad de Dios; y que, por el contrario, cuando ellos se satisfacen, crean que Dios se satisface, midiendo a Dios consigo, y no a sí mismos con Dios, siendo muy al contrario lo que él mismo enseñó en el Evangelio (Mt. 16, 25), diciendo que el que perdiese su voluntad por él, ese la ganaría, el que la quisiese ganar, ése la perdería.
4. Estos también tienen tedio cuando les mandan lo que no tiene gusto para ellos. Estos, porque se andan al regalo y sabor del espíritu, son muy flojos para la fortaleza y trabajo de perfección, hechos semejantes a los que se crían en regalo, que huyen con tristeza de toda cosa áspera, y oféndense de la cruz, en que están los deleites del espíritu; y en las cosas más espirituales más tedio tienen, porque, como ellos pretenden andar en las cosas espirituales a sus anchuras y gusto de su voluntad, háceles gran tristeza y repugnancia entrar por el camino estrecho, que dice Cristo (Mt. 7, 14), de la vida.
5. Estas imperfecciones baste aquí haber referido de las muchas en que viven los de este primer estado de principiantes, para que se vea cuánta sea la necesidad que tienen de que Dios los ponga en estado de aprovechados, que se hace entrándolos en la noche oscura que ahora decimos, donde, destetándolos Dios de los pechos de estos gustos y sabores en puras sequedades y tinieblas interiores, les quita todas estas impertinencias y niñerías, y hace ganar las virtudes por medios muy diferentes. Porque, por más que el principiante en mortificar en sí se ejercite todas sus acciones y pasiones, nunca del todo, ni con mucho, puede hasta que Dios lo hace pasivamente por medio de la purgación de la dicha noche. En la cual para hablar algo que sea en su provecho, sea Dios servido darme su divina luz, porque es bien menester en noche tan oscura y materia tan dificultosa para ser hablada y recitada. Es, pues, el verso:
En una noche oscura.
Notes
- 1 ↩Source has 'a cerca' (two words); treated as older orthography for 'acerca de' ('concerning'). 'Acidia' is the traditional spiritual vice of acedia (sloth/spiritual apathy), not ordinary laziness.
- 2 ↩Spanish acidia is the capital vice of acedia; rendered as spiritual sloth to keep the technical sense without archaism.
- 3 ↩les crece el ojo is a proverbial Spanish idiom for growing envious/covetous; kept with 'as the saying goes' to mark the proverbial force, and paired with the clause no hacerse con ellos otro tanto (that the same is not done for them).
- 4 ↩pena sensible keeps the ascetical sense of felt/sensible pain (affective, not merely intellectual).
- 5 ↩caridad rendered as charity (theological virtue), not generic love, because the sentence frames it against envy and cites 1 Cor.
- 6 ↩envidia santa kept as holy envy: not spiteful envy, but a longing to share another's virtues while still rejoicing that the other has them.
- 7 ↩porque before sirvan a Dios rendered as purpose ('so that they may serve God'); ya que as causal 'since'.
- 8 ↩Spanish acidia is rendered as acedia (spiritual sloth/weariness), the traditional English for this capital vice. Gusto sensible / sabor keep the Sanjuanist sense of felt, affective relish rather than mere preference.
- 9 ↩Posponen A al B = put A after / set A behind B (prefer B over A). The path of perfection is subordinated to self-will's relish.
- 10 ↩The Spanish adapts Mt 16:25 from losing/gaining one's life (vida/ψυχή) to losing/gaining one's will (voluntad). The translation follows San Juan's wording, not a standard English Bible rendering of the verse.
- 11 ↩Spanish regalo here means spiritual comfort/indulgence (consoling sweetness), not a gift; paired with sabor del espíritu it names attachment to felt spiritual pleasure rather than to God alone.
- 12 ↩aprovechados: technical term for those past the beginner stage (the proficient/advanced), as distinct from principiantes.
- 13 ↩puede is elliptical: the implied object is full mortification of those actions and passions (never fully, and not by a long way).
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