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The Reformation · c. 1578–1585

The Ascent of Mount Carmel

John of the Cross · 1542–1591

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What it is

A systematic account of the active night, in which memory, understanding, and will are emptied of every attachment — including attachment to spiritual consolations.

Why it lasted

The most rigorous analysis of detachment in Christian literature, insisting that visions and raptures are obstacles rather than goals.

Where to read it

Public domain and free to read in full, though not held here. The archives below have it.

These open a search on each archive rather than a direct link, which is the honest way to point at an edition nobody here has checked line by line.

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