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This test consists of 15 multiple choice questions and 5 short answer questions.

Multiple Choice Questions

1. In Book II, Chapter XX, what does the soul learn on the tenth step?
(a) Immortality.
(b) Perfection.
(c) All that God knows.
(d) Magical powers.

2. Who else can descend and ascend upon the spiritual ladder besides men, according to Book II, Chapter XIII?
(a) Devils.
(b) Children.
(c) Animals.
(d) Angels.

3. What does a believer wear to protect his thoughts from the desires of the world?
(a) A helmet.
(b) A black cloak.
(c) A scarf tied around the head.
(d) The hat of salvation.

4. In Book II, Chapter XXIV, in what state is the soul when the soul is united with divine wisdom after passing through the dark night?
(a) Sinfulness.
(b) Perfection.
(c) Atonement.
(d) Purgatory.

5. What happens on the first step of the ladder, according to Book II, Chapter XIX?
(a) God punishes the soul.
(b) The soul swoons for God.
(c) Sin takes over the soul.
(d) The spirit battles the soul.

6. In Dark Night of the Soul, the spirit thirsts for love more than the soul thirsts because the spirit realizes what?
(a) The evil of sin.
(b) What it lacks.
(c) God's punishment.
(d) How much pain relates to the divine.

7. What holds the soul in bondage?
(a) Peer pressure.
(b) God.
(c) The devil and the senses.
(d) Human thought.

8. In Book II, Chapter XI, the soul would miss the spiritual love and affection of what if it was to go away?
(a) The demands of the earthly world.
(b) The fire of the Spirit.
(c) The threat of evil.
(d) The guild of sin.

9. What is the purpose for writing Dark Night of the Soul that St. John describes?
(a) To spread the word of God.
(b) To teach others.
(c) To help women.
(d) To make money.

10. What is the term given to a spiritual experience beyond words?
(a) Unimaginable.
(b) Futile.
(c) Ecstasy.
(d) Ineffable.

11. What can a soul not see beyond until it has been properly purged?
(a) God's message.
(b) Sin and evil.
(c) The darkness.
(d) The eyes of a human.

12. According to St. John, people who have never experienced a dark night do not understand what this feels like?
(a) Heaven.
(b) Sin's grasp.
(c) God's forgiveness.
(d) Spiritual freedom.

13. What does the author return to explaining in Book II, Chapter XXII?
(a) The author's credentials for writing.
(b) The poem from the prologue.
(c) A verse from the Bible.
(d) Another author's works.

14. St. John's use of writing about a spiritual ladder as a path to unification with God is an example of what?
(a) Allegory.
(b) Foreshadowing.
(c) Acronym.
(d) Alliteration.

15. In Book II, Chapter XI, the author writes about the depth and power of what?
(a) The Spirit of God.
(b) Earthly evil.
(c) God's vengeance.
(d) Sin.

Short Answer Questions

1. In Book II, Chapter XII, what is the will described as?

2. For whom is the ninth step on the ladder reserved, according to Book II, Chapter XX?

3. Why does the soul become secure after passing through the dark night, according to St. John?

4. What is the main topic of Book II, Chapter XVII?

5. How many periods of trials must a soul pass through to finish going through the dark night, according to Book II, Chapter XXIV?

(see the answer keys)

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