View a FREE sample

This test consists of 5 multiple choice questions, 5 short answer questions, and 10 short essay questions.

Multiple Choice Questions

1. When the souls on earth are purged, with what do they become infused, according to Book II, Chapter XII?
(a) Freedom and pain.
(b) Grace and redemption.
(c) Guilt and suffering.
(d) Love and wisdom.

2. 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) Alliteration.
(d) Acronym.

3. What happens at the same time the soul is yearning for God in Book II, Chapter XI?
(a) The fire of God burns the soul.
(b) The forces of evil burn the soul.
(c) The comfort of God gives peace.
(d) The love of friends gives comfort.

4. What is the focus of Book II, Chapter XVI?
(a) The light of spiritual faith.
(b) The darkness in which the soul finds itself.
(c) The pressure of human peers.
(d) The darkness of God's love.

5. What does the soul do on the sixth step of the ladder of love, according to Book II, Chapter XX?
(a) Take a vow of silence.
(b) Separate from human contact.
(c) Draw back from God's love.
(d) Have ceaseless contact with God.

Short Answer Questions

1. What directions can men take upon the secret ladder, as described in Book II, Chapter XVIII?

2. According to Book II, Chapter XIV, why does the soul speak these lines: "I went forth without being observed / My house being now at rest"?

3. What does a believer wear to protect his thoughts from the desires of the world?

4. Who is cited as experiencing a life having been accessed by the devil?

5. Without passing through the dark night, the author says that people are still what of their natural desires and wants?

Short Essay Questions

1. In Book II, Chapter XIX, what happens on the first three steps of love on the secret ladder?

2. How does St. John conclude his book in the final chapter?

3. How does a purifying fire of love affect the souls of humans and angels in relation to a closeness with God as described by the author?

4. In Book II, Chapter XVI, why does the author say that it is necessary for man to learn to walk in the darkness?

5. What did God do with Job during the dark night that allowed the devil access to his life, as explained by the author?

6. How can a soul reach the sixth step on the secret ladder, as written in Book II, Chapter XX? What do men receive while on this step?

7. How does St. John of the Cross use Mary Magdalene as an example of a soul passing through the second night of darkness?

8. What is the author discussing in the second stanza of his poem from the prologue that is further explained in Book II, Chapter XV?

9. What is St. John's explained purpose for writing the book Dark Night of the Soul in Book II, Chapter XXII?

10. Why does the author say that people who have never passed through the dark night understand spiritual freedom?

(see the answer keys)

This section contains 853 words (approx. 3 pages at 300 words per page) View a FREE sample